Nintendo's original Entertainment System ushered in what would be but the beginning of Japan's supreme domination over the console market. Many years extending from that point would see the Nation of the farthest East with the first gaming releases, the better releases. But we Americans are no slouches... Aside from us being slouches, we can bake a cake with the best of them, if we're not too busy slouching. With some trial and error (extreme emphasis on the error), we managed to weed through the Jaguars and the 3DOs and eventually came to Microsoft's unyieldingly large Xbox -- proof of American tenacity and evidence that if you throw enough money around, anything can happen. Despite the flagrant fanboyism forwarded controversy and blind dismissals that accompany every new console release under the sun, the Xbox remains an undeniable piece of finely crafted, Malaysian made, American goodness. But damned if the controller it came with didn't stink the place up, or so the legions of GameCube owners with frail and tiny hands would have us all believe. Those of us in the know, however, are in the know.