I was too tired/sleepy last night to attempt any comment after the competition, and I'm still zombified today lol (just made that word up, zombified lol). All the coffee in the world is not going to animate this little girl lolololol
There looks to be an interesting bunch of arguments on this thread, and perhaps I can muster enough concentration later to read through it all, but at this point, all I feel up to is very basic commenting (better late than never lol).
I am utterly thrilled for Joannie Rochette. Way to go, girl!
I think Yu-na Kim has probably turned out to be the overall best female single skater in the world under CoP, but I always fear for her physical fragility.
I did not get to see the ladies' short programs, so I really cannot adequately assess what happened to Mao Asada at this event. I think Mao has enormous talent, is a natural on the ice, and is certainly Yu-Na's best rival for the position of best female skater, but this event has got to be a huge disappointment for her. I have no idea what's wrong.
I am proud of Alissa Czisny for overcoming her nerves as well as she did; she is always loveable and lovely. I am proud of Rachael Flatt for the performance she gave, and it seemed to me she was doing her best to keep those shoulders up. Keep it up, Rachael!

I am proud of Caroline Zhang for her performance, which was lovely.
One can tell a lot from looking at a skater's face just before they perform, when they first get on the ice. Caroline gave the kind of performance I expected when I saw her face at the beginning. I am thrilled for her that she overcame past disappointments and did her best to rotate fully. Her expressed idol is Michelle Kwan, and I think that she has tried to skate a lot like her. Michelle was more about landing her jumps, than about speed. That was another era in skating standards, when falling was the big sin. Now, speed and textbook rotation are very important. I think Caroline is doing her best to get with the times, and I look forward to her future development.
To all the ladies who gave their all last night,
