What: *NSYNC POPODYSSEY Tour 2001
When: 05.23.01

The first thing I want to do to start this very cynical review is thank Ms. Cowgirl in the row directly in front of me for blocking my view. Yeah hun, cowboy hats aren't in anymore, well apparently they are @ BSB concerts, but that's another review entirely. I'd also like to thank said cowgirl for wearing a shirt with two not-so strategically placed slits. They were much appreciated...

While I'm on this thanking streak, I'd also like to thank the aforementioned girl's underage "entourage" for drinking beer during the entire concert. To the group behind us, thanks much for trying to push us off our chairs.

Next, I want to thank ALLTEL stadium for the vast array of port-o-lets sans hand sanitizer. Lastly, I want to thank every person who shot their hand up each time I took a picture.

On to the actual concert, I have to admit, I was really worried about the safety of Joey, Chris, Lance, and J.C. Yeah, that's right I didn't mention Justin, get over it. There were so many new special effects that hadn't been done before, but the guys floated, flew, and rose above the crowd without a problem.

The videos that are shown throughout the show have their cheesy moments and would be deemed "so stupid" by non-fans. The only video and "segment" I had a real problem with was the intro to "Game Over" in which they took a play on words and intro'd a video game supervillain. Said video and "live action" took roughly 20 minutes of my life away from me.

Weird things: Mechanical bulls. I thought they would be stupid, but they were actually pretty funny. Velcro walls. This goes along with a song with lyrics like: "up against the wall" and "you know what happens next". Let's call it the "Digital Getdown" of "Celebrity".

Complaint: They ended the concert with "Bye, Bye, Bye" AGAIN. I feel that they don't really feel like expending the energy to actually SAY goodbye to their fans and just do it in a song they didn't even write. The last time you see *NSYNC, they're in their own separate cages. It's a mystery to me which member came up with that idea...

What: *NSYNC POPODYSSEY Tour 2001
When: 7.31.01

Well let's start with my soundcheck "party." My great opportunity as the fan club called it. My great opportunity to do what? To see *NSNC "act" as if they'd rather be anywhere else? My great opportunity to experience heat stroke after waiting in line for 5 1/2 hours? Or perhaps it was my great opportunity to add some more rare pre-printed autographs to my collection. Whatever the fan club wanted me to think it was, it wasn't.

You'll notice that I wrote *NSNC up there. That was no typo, my friends, my soundcheck was Joey-less. Joey, at this point the only reason I like *NSYNC, was "fighting a fever" as JC put it. So anyhoot, what was supposed to last 1 hour, lasted a whopping 20 minutes. All together, 6 hours of my life wasted.

Now, I don't want to hear I was so lucky I got to go, blah blah blah. I also don't want to hear how *NSYNC doesn't have to do a soundcheck at their level, they do it b/c they love their fans. Well, call me crazy, but if you love your fans, wouldn't you acknowledge they were there a little more or interact with them? All in all, I wouldn't recommend trying to get a soundcheck pass unless you just want to get a couple of close pictures.

Now, on to the POPODYSSEY tour itself, or, as I like to call it, the RECYCLEDEVERYTHING tour. At one point in the show, Chris wears the same vest from the MTV Movie Awards 2000. At this same point, he sports pants that seem to be made from the "Tearin' Up My Heart" vid. The men also recycle choreography and performances from the 1999/2000 vma's and the 2001 Grammy awards.

But wait, I'm getting ahead of myself. The torrential downpour before, during, and after the concert must have slipped my mind. Yes folks, that's Florida weather for you. Surprisingly, the rain only delayed the show about 45 minutes and didn't affect it that much. *NSYNC did skip one of the "stunts" (during "The Two Of Us"), but that was understandable.

A sad thing: Joey's eyes made him look as though he was going to die. He obviously was very sick b/c he didn't dance full-out. And the day Joey Fatone half-asses a performance is a sad sad day.

Another big disappointment: Not once did *NSYNC thank us for standing in the freezing rain for them. And now, thanks to my crazy devotion to those 5 guys (or 3 if you wanna get technical) I have the stomach flu. So a big thanks goes out to *NSYNC for keeping me in bed for 5 days straight (and not in a good way either.)

Side note: I DID have tons of fun at the concert, but if I just talked about the good parts, it wouldn't be suitable for a humor site.