The dust is finally settled. After two months of build up (and more posturing months before the election was called) and leaders trying to one-up each other, Canadians finally know which party gets to form the next goverment (and who gets the keys to 24 Sussex Drive).
Now that the campaign is over, legions of commentators, professional and amateur alike, will begin disecting what went right and what went wrong for the people invloved in full force. The following is a (not quite) brief review of the campaign in the form of coverage of a free-for-all fight (since politics is often a man-eat-man world, it may be apt to describe the campaign as if it was a bout).
The four main combatants were the Red Giant, Mr. Right, 20% Man, and the Separator. After a violent and nasty battle in the summer of 2004, the Red Giant emerged as the Chammpion on the Hill for the fourth straight time, but was badly bruised and lost many points compared to the last meeting. Mr. Right made gains points scored, but he left too many openings for the Red Giant to exploit and lost the bout mainly because of his mistakes. The Separator, who longed for his own arena, was the big winner as he scored multiple hits against the Red Giant. While 20% Man succumbed to the tactics of the Red Giant and lost valuable points late in the match.
The battle might have been called back in last May, when Mr. Right and the Separator thought that the Red Giant was at its weakest. However, 20% Man offered its support to the Red Giant mere days before the match was declared. With the majority of the independent players deciding that the match should not be held at that time. Mr. Right and the Separator's bid to hold the match was defeated.
Fast foward six months, and Mr. Right and the Separator were ready to declare a free-for-all battle once again. 20% Man once again offered to help the Red Giant hold on to the title, but the Red Giant refused the terms. Thus 20% Man teamed up with Mr. Right and the Separator and declared a battle would be held in January. Without 20% Man's support to prevent the match from happening, the Red Giant agreed to hold the battle.
It was clear from the outset that, like last time, the Red Giant and Mr. Right were the only ones capable of winning the Championship, and Mr. Right wasted no time to unveil his arsenal. However, he chose to reveal his full set of skills and tactics one at a time, forcing the Red Giant to react and to reveal his own wares. The Red Giant appeared to have few new skills himself, believing that Mr. Right's arsenal had not changed much since the last battle. In pre-match press conferences, 20% Man often make calls that both the Red Giant and the do not deserve to take the championship and most of his attacks were pointed at the Red Giant at the early stages. The Separator chose to sit out the other rounds and focused his energy on only one section of the bout. Most of his attacks were directed at the Red Giant, but as the match went on, as Mr. Right appeared to have taken the lead in points, he also launched strikes against Mr. Right.
During the battle, both the Red Giant and Mr. Right left openings and the other often took no time to try and take advantage of the opportunity to land some easy blows. Mr. Right seemed to have learned from his mistakes in the last fight and was able to recover from the Red Giant's attacks more easily. On the other hand, the mistakes the Red Giant made were more numerous and severe compared to the last bout. As a result, he was more vulnerable to the other three's attacks and had a more difficult time recovering from them.
After the final bell rang, the scores were tallyed and Mr. Right was declared the new Champion on the Hill. He contributed his vicotry on the many blows he landed on the Red Giant. However, his victory was not as convicing as he had hoped. The Red Giant was disappointed that he was dethroned but vowed he would return to the top. 20% Man scored many direct hits at the Red Giant and obtained more points than the last battle, while the Separator scored fewer points due to attacks from Mr. Right. All challenges launched by other combatants failed, except one, where an unaffiliated fighter landed a hit on the Separator.
The four main combatants likely will not return to the ring for another year, especially with the Red Giant's decision to hire a new trainer. However, given that the did not will be total knockout, there is no way to know when will we see another round of battle featuring these four warriors.