Let's talk about the Baby Lasagna in the room. This year's edition of Dora brought a lot of changes: moving the contest to a TV studio, adding semi-finals, and reducing the number of local juries to make room for international juries. But all of that was overshadowed by the story that's swept through the world of Eurovision obsessives.
In January, Zsa Zsa announced she was withdrawing from the contest and the broadcaster, HRT, said she would be replaced by their first backup artist, Baby Lasagna. Buzz built quickly around him, reaching a fever pitch when the release of the video to his song,"Rim tim tagi dim" rocketed Croatia to the #3 spot in the odds.
Like Loreen's return to Melodifestivalen last year, Baby Lasagna's win was secured before he even stepped on the stage. Not even Let 3, last year's Dora winners and the whole reason I signed up to write about Croatia, performing with a cameo by Severina, another previous Dora winner, swing a giant, fuzzy, pink hammer had a chance against this unknown newcomer.
Of course, there were plenty of other songs. There were even some interval acts. But take one look at the scoreboard and it's clear that's all irrelevant. Baby Lasagna finished with 321 points. Vinko, in second, had a measly 82.
There will be plenty of time to debate things like, “How did HRT mess things up so badly that they made Baby Lasagna an alternate?” and “Are HRT dumb or corrupt or both?” But for now, this is Baby Lasagna’s moment, and we’re just his cats. We don’t need to debate. We just need to meow back.