Let’s Talk About Left Shark

The clear star of the Super Bowl half time show was not Katy Perry. No, the star, dressed in a shark costume, dancing to the left of Perry underneath a palm tree, was Left Shark.

Perry’s performance was solid. Her entrance was emblematic of who she is: someone who wants to shock us, who uses her props to supplement her vocals, and who doesn’t take her self too seriously.

Her duet with Lenny Kravitz was nice, though too short, and a relatively risky choice.Of course, Kravitz was all but forgotten when Left Shark took the stage. Against the enormous beach backdrop, Left Shark won our hearts by doing his own thing, following his own rhythm and being slightly ridiculous—not unlike Perry herself. Immediately following the performance, memes, tweets, Facebook and Tumblr posts flooded the Internet and a star was born.

With the surprise introduction of Missy Elliot, Perry brought a different sound to the performance. Though her entrance was welcome, Perry looked severely outplace attempting to dance alongside Elliot. Perry looked uncomfortable, out of place and had lost her charm as she bopped along to Elliot’s performance. Things got better when Perry ceded the stage.

The final moments of her performance were my favorite. Though Firework was a cheesy choice, her sail through the air was impressive—if not as memorable as Left Shark.