were still conducted virtually due to Covid, Amazon put on its first edition. This year’s in-person debut took full advantage of the posh setting, opening with a ballerina dancing in front of a massive video screen, before the Blue Angels Drum Line boomed out an opening fusillade.
Thankfully, the night’s host was Amy Poehler. The comedian who has become an active producer and director delivered a welcome dose of insouciance during an otherwise straight-laced evening. After yet another sizzle reel finished playing, Poehler strode to the center of the stage, snarking as she went, “That video was super-fun, and I’m really glad I saw it. But I want to know more!” Of Amazon’s fast-growing livestream platform, she declared, “Twitch: The best place to watch people watch people watch people play videogames!”
There were segments about new ad tactics and a half-dozen creative teams from new and returning shows. One portion of the show seemed deliberately engineered not to yield any new news: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was queried by Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit, who will team in the tech giant’s Thursday night booth. “Amazon Prime is going to change the way people watch football,” Goodell intoned, without much elaboration.