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Tim Briody: Since there are few legitimate surprises among the major awards anymore, it's up to the host and the winners to provide the entertainment value. For instance, it was not a surprise that Matthew McConaughey was going to win Best Actor, so he delivered a clearly well prepared and solid acceptance, even working in his most famous phrase. Ellen provided a safe and comfortable environment after Seth MacFarlane perhaps tiptoed over that line last year, and the selfie and pizza moments were clearly memorable.

Kim Hollis: I liked that it was a congenial atmosphere, and Ellen Degeneres was responsible for fostering that feeling. She did an amazing job of humanizing the people in the theater that night. The song performances were all terrific, but I was puzzled by the inclusion of some of those random montages (heroes? why?). I suppose the biggest surprise for me is that there were no surprises (other than maybe Mr. Hublot). I thought all of the acceptance speeches were really great, and I liked that no one got played off. My favorite moment of the night was the speech from Best Song winners Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez ("Let It Go"), even if it meant that they'd obviously prepared it. I can't really put my finger on any bad moments, although more people than just Travolta seemed to have trouble with the teleprompter. I guess I'd say overall the show was boring but pleasant.

David Mumpower: What I enjoyed about Ellen DeGeneres during her first appearance was much more evident on Sunday. Her sense of humor is strange and definitely an acquired taste. Her opening monologue fell flat simply because most of the people watching her had no true understanding of what she was trying to accomplish. As the night wore on, she gradually won over this same group of celebrities and power players.

Ellen is simply that likable a person. Anyone who spends time in her presence eventually feels like she is a friend. That sort of Miss Congeniality effect is a welcome change for a ceremony that is occasionally hosted by mean-spirited people seeking to make their reputations by savaging the more fatted calf that is the Hollywood A List. Ellen went an entirely different way, showing these same people in very human moments such as ordering pizza and arguing over who has to pay. It humanizes people who are professionally demonized by conservative media critics and paparazzi bottom feeders.

The Samsung bit may have been a shameless promotion yet it led to a real moment as Bradley Cooper snapped a picture of his friends and potential new friends. The fact that the brother of Lupita Nyong'o wound up with more face time than his Academy Award winning sister was glorious. To a larger point, she was the start of the night with a speech that solidified her celebrity. By demonstrating what a kind-natured woman she is, her TV-Q went up, and that means that her asking price for films went up.

I also do not have a problem when awards season leads to few surprises during the Academy Awards themselves. I think our staff effectively demonstrated that we knew what would happen when our group picks were 10 for 10 on the major awards. I would have vastly preferred Gravity to win Best Picture yet I am satisfied that it won so many awards that its legacy is secured. Now, it is a science fiction blockbuster that won seven Oscars. So Sunday's ceremony was a rare demonstration of meritocracy in that the best film of the year was lavishly rewarded for its excellence.

What I believe is particularly noteworthy about Sunday's presentation is that the dreaded show killing segments were largely excised this year. There was the one celebration of the Hero, and a couple of other minor sequences. It was certainly the tightest show I can ever recall on the whole. People have asked for that for years and now we know how such a production looks. Personally, I liked it a lot but I realize a lot of people are frustrated by their inability to thrust random hate at the song and dance numbers such as last year's celebration of Chicago. It's a be careful what you wish for scenario. Personally, I hope that this becomes status quo. The Oscars are no different than movies in this regard. I prefer lean and mean (i.e. Gravity) to bloated and indulgent (i.e. The Wolf of Wall Street and American Hustle).

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