KEY POINTS:
The State of Origin is a league war of enemies surrounded by friends.
State of O has provided fabulous moments - gripping finishes being the speciality. Whether the commentators add or detract from it is debatable.
The State of O wouldn't be the same without Rabbits, Fatty, Sterlo and Gus but it could be better. It's a world of sugar-coated analysis - commentators who hate grapple tackles have got more in common with their pro-wrestling colleagues than they might imagine.
Live television league's chief ringmaster Ray Warren is superb yet a touch flawed; he is a man who can signal a great play with a magnificent roar that disappears instantly like a waterfall into a still river when the move turns to nought.
Warren's strength is his uniqueness. He links to the array of players and coaches around him with references to compressed defences as easily as he throws a birthday nod into a backline move or tells you a player's religion.
But Warren and friends are under oath to be in raptures, or close to. Wednesday night was a dud contest. New South Wales were pathetic against Queensland. Gould dropped a hint on this, but Warren couldn't bring himself to ruin the plot.
You can almost see rugby, soccer and Aussie Rules circling as league desperately promotes "our game". The post-match interviews should come with a Government health warning.
Ben Ikin goes to any length to out-gush Matthew Johns and succeeds by utilising an all-access pass like no one before. He even celebrated on the Queensland bench and got a Warren admonishment.
In the post-match interviews with Brent Tate, Craig Fitzgibbon and Billy Slater, the word "mate" was used 14 times by all. The longer you stay in this backyard, the more you feel like an outsider at a party.
