Say what you want about the Patriots -- those of us on the couch all day watching the game and its accompanying festivities on TV got a look at the real winners and losers:

Real winners and losers of Super Bowl XXXVI
General category	Specific example	Winner/Loser	Why
Halftime entertainment	U2	Winner	They rock; would have enjoyed a few more songs. (Was I the only one who saw Bono take a spill?)
Halftime entertainment	The imported crowd at the U2 stage	Winner	My friend Kelly put it best -- Did they make everyone grab a piece of stage or two on the hustle out in exchange for the great seats?
Halftime entertainment	Playmates on "Fear Factor"	Loser	Even bunnies can't compete with U2.
Halftime entertainment	Backdrop of victims' names from Sept. 11	Winner	The most powerful moment of the night.
Confusion	"What is MLIFE?"	Loser	Because I still don't know. Something to do with bellybuttons?
Charitable contributions	That guy who bought the Porsche from Boomer Esiason via Cris Collinsworth.	Winner (charity); Loser (new owner)	Kept thinking of the Seinfeld episode where George is obsessed with owning the used car of "a Mr. Jon Voight."
TV special effect	Pregame show super-zoom from satellite to Superdome.	Winner	Yes, and NASA was also peeking into your Super Bowl party.
Fashion statement (headwear)	Backward baseball caps	Winner	Brady's signature displaces the formerly trendy backwards visors.
Broadway Velvet	Joe Namath at the Maxim party	Loser	Joe Willie looked like a pimp in Jillian Barberie's hat.
Scared straight	ONDCP anti-drug ads	Winner	Play on Mastercard, Euro-PlayStation ads and tying drugs to terrorism -- pretty potent.
Marriage	Soldier's proposal beamed from Kandahar, Afghanistan	Winner	Sure makes your marriage proposal on the stadium Jumbotron seem weak.
Fashion statement (jackets)	Donald Rumsfeld's fleece vest	Winner	Rummy knows that layers work best both in winter and wartime.
Auto emissions	The Ford Focus ad	Loser	Does the car inspire flatulence?
Musical act	No Doubt	Loser	What was worse Gwen Stefani's hair or zebra-inspired dress. You pick.
New song "Let Freedom Ring"	Barry Manilow	Loser	Dug his 9/11 commemorative jacket, but -- yikes -- the guy's aged like a piece of rodeo saddle.
New song "Let Freedom Ring"	Patti LaBelle	Winner	The diva shows us how it's done.
Historical documents	The Declaration of Independence	Winner	Now that it's going on a national road trip, I want to see it on "Antiques Roadshow" -- "At auction, I think this could command somewhere around, oh, $1 billion."
Historical re-enactments	The Founding Fathers	Loser	With the exception of Ben Franklin, could you ID any of those figures by sight? The reading by football greats was more than enough.
Composers	Aaron Copland	Winner	"Lincoln's Portrait" deserved the nationwide props.
Movie ads	"Spider-Man"	Winner	So cool it got me out of my seat. Next generation "Matrix."
Pregame entertainment	Marc Anthony	Loser	Expected him to follow "America the Beautiful" with a cover of Corey Hart's "I Wear My Sunglasses at Night."
Bling bling	That piece on Mariah Carey's wrist	Winner	With that $28 million buyout of her record contract, no wonder she can afford to drip in it.
Stadium technology	The field-cleaning tool used to pick up stray pieces of paper	Loser	It's 2002, and we can't come up with anything more sophisticated than a lint brush?
Neckties	Roger Staubach and G.H.W. Bush	Loser	Polka dots were a little garish; where were the patriotic designs?
New beer intro	Sam Adams Light	Winner	I mean, I was kind of fooled.
"Old" beer intro	Michelob Light	Loser	Targeting older consumers is sketchy enough. But using a song by the Soup Dragons?
Britney	A theme-by-theme review	'50s diner (winner); Bandstand (loser); Beach-blanket (winner); Hippie (loser); Robert Palmer (loser); Today (winner)	At some point, you just forget about the fact she's selling soda.
Super Bowl ad	Quizno's	Loser	Did they not get the memo that we're not down with violence these days? Who the hell are they anyway?
A riot -- and a laugh riot	Lipton Brisk	Winner	Danny DeVito was good, but the cameos by Al Roker, O'Brien, puppet Jackie Childs were captivating.
Animals in Ads, Part 1	Bud Light's "The Falcon"	Winner	Animal ads always get raves.
Oh, now I get it	HotJobs.com	Winner	Delayed gratification on the mimic-turned-stenographer.
Rip-off	Bud Light's "Robot Wars"	Loser	Isn't this an Energizer ad?
Athlete as endorser	Charles Schwab's use of Barry Bonds and Hank Aaron	Winner	Hammerin' Hank is kind of funny; Bonds surpasses him in less than three seasons.
Animals in ads, part 2	Bud's Clydesdales in New York City	Winner	Perennial snoozer breaks out with touching tribute.
Putting the "ass" in "fantastic"	Bud's "Your Daughter's Tushie"	Winner	That kind of happened to me with my girlfriend's parents.
Six degrees of ...	Kevin Bacon	Winner	Visa finally brings the country's favorite underground pop-culture game to the mainstream.
Best use of primate	E*Trade Financial	Winner	Self-referential "worst Super Bowl ad ever" moment. And the clever use of women pulling up their flowing dresses to communicate product attributes. Subliminal? Hardly.
Fresh legs	Bud's "How You Doin'? Goes Country"	Winner	Bud's best franchise finds new life poking fun at people from the South.
Celebrity ad directors	The Coen brothers	Losers	Surprise -- they couldn't turn taxes into "Fargo."
Gender relations	Bud's "The Card Store"	Winner	It's funny because it's true.
Must-have car	The Cadillac Escalade EXT	Winner	Tom Brady drives one now. And it holds a smaller car in the back!
Facial hair	Three-week growth	Winner	Hey, if it works for Vinatieri, it works for me.
Pregame player introductions	Patriots forgoing individual intros for team intro	Winner	Set new bar in professional sports for selflessness. No wonder they won.

Dan Shanoff is a regular contributor to Page 2. Agree or disagree with what's hot? Want to send in your prediction of what will be "in" in 2002? Send Page 2 your comments.