beki

Exactly. And if Yuzu hadn’t been able to keep up the superhuman facade of perfection all the way past the short program, the judges and everyone else would have written him off. And then he freaking wings the free on one leg with only a couple of runthroughs. Call me when your boy can do that and miss me until then. The degree of impossible that is is insane.

I disagree. Yuzu and Brian came in with a strategy of psychological warfare and Nathan fell for it. They bluffed him. All the others were more prepared to skate from within themselves. He was too inexperienced and unprepared. He hadn’t beaten these guys at Worlds yet either. I knew the top 4 could handle the big moment because we’ve seen it before.

Do they honestly need 3 spots at this time? I don’t mean to be brutal, but I’d say the same if it were another country.

What percentage of his full ability do you think he was at here? I think this is a good sign for Zhenya. The mind is everything

I went to the dentist today and look who I saw https://ibb.co/chb4f

After the very good pairs event, I have a strong feeling of the "surprises of skating," which Yuzuru understands well. There are so many different scenarios possible tonight. But in all of them there is hope. For champions like Aljona and Yuzu, anything is possible.

I think you are all fine skipping your lectures. I definitely would if I were you.

Tissue box fan is surely dead now.

I’m getting the most glee from the mind games he’s playing about his multiple secret layout possibilities. That was always Rafael Arutunian’s line about Nathan. He can rattle them for sure. Especially with Nathan sadly unprepared for the frenzy of stardom, unlike him.

The case of the 3A could actually be instructive in the evolution of quads. It’s been around for decades, yet it’s still difficult to get, a pinnacle. And you have brilliant skaters capable of quads who never tamed it: Lambiel, Chan. And gorgeous interpreters like Brown and Hendrickx who still white knuckle it. Sometimes I wonder which jumps are truly the most difficult.

I’m way behind the times, because I love triple axels more than quads. Guess I’ll love the 4A

I kind of think Nathan will lose it. I bet Shoma will finish above him. But I’m not invested in either of them, only Yuzu. My preferred podium is Yuzu, Javi, Boyang.

Brian’s jumps are timeless, but his programs...

I took vacation time for those two days so I can fully focus on watching! But I do have to work over the weekend. Whatever happens, I'll probably be thinking about it for the next four years, or the next eight years. I still have *feelings* both ways about various results at Vancouver and Sochi. I think if Yuzu were anyone else he'd be in a tough spot right now. But he's completely unique in how quickly he can peak. In a way it's probably easier for him to peak in a hurry than to sustain it over a longer period. He's capable of gold, so I'm going to TRY to relax and enjoy. Nobu's quad lutz is really right there! I love that Yuzu seems inspired by him and Plushenko to continue. I know we haven't seen everything he can give yet.

Did anyone see the map at the beginning of the presale? Because I only found out several hours into it, and I didn't see any excellent seats available then. Were they ever available or did they just get taken quickly? I bought unimpressive tickets, but I'm hoping against hope it could be like Milan, where they seemed to hold some back and release them later. As it is, I really want to trade up from what I got.

That seems a little unfair.

A bit off topic, but I thought what Yuzu, Javi, Machida and Ten were doing 2014-16 was the real sweet spot for men’s skating. Very balanced. I give Patrick the credit for inspiring that, but I don’t see him as the sole practitioner of it.

At this point I think total secrecy and mystery gives him more power. If he’s struggling, his reputation is better served by keeping everyone guessing. And if he’s surprisingly strong, it will mess with his competitors’ heads far more to get that shock at the last minute. I admire how nothing seems to leak out of TCC. Cactii, unite!

I think it’s false advertising and revisionist history. Yuzu takes pains to specifically credit Boyang Jin for starting the trend. And Boyang’s quad success inspired his world record performances which still set the standard for men’s skating. There is this idea that Nathan can combine base value and PCS more perfectly than either Yuzu or Boyang. I’ll believe it only when I see it. And despite his imperfect technique, I have a gut feeling Shoma might be the one who can handle Olympic pressure better.

To me his statements are more strategic than sincere. Hence why I don’t care. Since all the other men have been meh this year, saying Yuzuru’s nothing special doesn’t really land. Who’s special then?

It’s not too surprising that the article didn’t tell us devoted fans anything we didn’t already know. Frank Caroll’s comments were pretty eyeroll-worthy, but I have to give him props for always advancing the American agenda. I don’t necessarily object to the word obsession. He chases his ideal relentlessly, even heedlessly. You could see it as Yuzu’s tragic flaw, or his greatest driver. Kind of depends how it turns out in Pyeongchang. He doesn’t skate safe, but at least he’s never boring.

Eh, they would find something to be bitter about anyway. I’m glad he has the chance to do both if he wants to take it.

I'm worried about him, but that worry may be misplaced. I don't know his peaking pattern that well either, except he often saves his best for the end of the season. I hope it's not an injury or loss of motivation like Patrick. I want the uncles to do well! Anyway, it only matters at the Olympics, and he has risen to big occasions before. Curious to see what happens at Europeans, because if Kolyada pulls himself together he could win. The biggest concern might be that his usual verve and performance quality seem to be dialed down. I can see the potential in his programs, but they need more of his trademark charisma to sing.

To me Yuzu is most beautiful in motion. It's the quality of his movement across the ice. You don't really get the effect of his skating from freeze-framing his positions, unlike ice dance, for example, where every moment should be picture perfect. Although Papadakis and Cizeron are a bit like him in terms of effortless flow. Of course, his posture and extension have improved so much. The flexibility that allows him to do Biellmanns, Ina Bauers, unique spin positions and that signature hydroblade has some drawbacks. And you'll notice that as his strength has increased, he's not quite as bendy as before. I wish Nathan had some more special moves in the field besides a spread eagle. He hits some nice positions, but they're not really integrated into a seamless whole because of his stiff knees. He really relies on the jumps coming off, a lot like Boyang, even though they are not judged in the same way.

I'd love to see him keep the ACI SP layout. Doesn't mean I expect him to though. My hopes are still pinned on the gold. And I think he needs to aim for that in order to skate well. Just aiming for the podium like Javi—it doesn't seem to be his nature. That said, my loyalty won't change even if he loses. It is also true that the public can fall in love with a non-winner even moreso than the gold medalist. Janet Lynn, Denise Biellmann, Michelle Kwan... there are many such cases. Not to mention the many very forgettable gold medalists...