John Armstrong: Dunne's platitudes score with the crowd

During an unusually good-humoured affair, Jeanette Fitzsimons gave the quality performance of the night, but Peter Dunne will probably (unfairly) be deemed the winner.

Fitzsimons was assured, relaxed, measured, succinct, strong on detail and firm in rebuttal.

The dry technocrat showed she was human after all. Here was a not-so-scary Green. And, unlike the others, she actually answered John Campbell's questions.

Dunne's talk of building "strong families" and "common-sense" policies was language guaranteed to get an instant upwards spike in the "worm", otherwise known as the "Reactor". The more shamelessly Dunne played to the Reactor, the more shallow he sounded.

Don Brash had a shocking start, showing all the vitality of a showroom dummy. However, he quickly relaxed, only to stumble by being less than convincing on the crucial question of whether National could be trusted not to sell state assets. It wasn't really his night.

Helen Clark did what prime ministers can only hope to do in such debates: she survived intact and did herself no harm.

Winston Peters was out of tune with the occasion, delivering a noisy, domineering performance.

Tariana Turia was disappointing. Rodney Hide and Jim Anderton were solid, sensible ... but also-rans.