Love is all around

Tonight's Big Quiz Thing was all about that most glorious of emotions, love. To wit:

-- The video round, "If They Mated…," dealt with the theoretical result of such amorousness. And it's kind of pleasant to imagine a world in which Bill O'Reilly falls in love with Tina Fey, or Barack Obama makes it with Rachel Maddow. Well, almost pleasant.

-- A team of ladies, calling themselves Young Used Dirty Whores, sat just to my left at the foot of the stage and gave me copious amounts of love-filled cheer and encouragement. Quizmasters get all the tail.

-- Last-place finishers And in Last Place… (psychic? a dive?) got nothing but praise for their humorous audio round fail. When I magnaminously gave them ten points for the round, everyone cheered rather than doling out the usual booing, hissing, thrown cabbages, voodoo-doll sticking, and embittered postshow e-mails.

-- Nice question about barnacles and their massive genitalia.

-- I couldn't coax a hearty round of boos from the crowd when we had a question about the MTA raising a monthly MetroCard 27 percent.

-- Gerard Depardouche repeated their victory, winning with a point total of—wait for it—69.

Etc. It would've been even more lovey if we had indeed used the new clearing in the back of the room for a rollerskating party. Couples skate to "When the Children Cry"—someone would've scored their first kiss, I guarantee you. But this was plenty. To quote my five-year-old nephew, "You have love."

Otherwise, great show, even though I cannot pronounce Dutch. And now, the standings:

1. Gerard Depardouche (second in a row—a new dynasty?)
2. Fantastic Fournicators
3. Strippers for Stephen Hawking (in their new barside domicile)
4. Three Up, Three Down, and the Pirates Are Retired (I am completely not getting it)
5. Ferris Bueller's Madoff (with a paltry two members)

April 27, let's do it again!