was the "Asian-influenced set for the still-rousing 'Rhythm Nation'." He adds, "She doesn't fight against her image like Madonna, who plays almost none of her early hits during this summer's 'Drowned World' tour. Rather, she attacks her classics with such vigor that the experience is less nostalgic than vitally in-the-moment. But most of all, by embracing her well-liked hits, Jackson does precisely what a superstar is supposed to do: She lets the crowd love her." Jim Farber of the New York Daily News wrote: "In the splashy two-hour event, which made its New York bow at Madison Square Garden last night, the suspiciously sculpted star ripped through nine costume changes, gyrated around a host of ever-changing stage sets and offered no fewer than 26 songs plucked from more than a decade's worth of hits." He criticized similarities to her previous tour, saying: "Unfortunately, the evening also recycled some Janet stunts from the past. A segment that centered on frothy cartoon characters (with Jackson appearing as a sugar plum fairy) mimicked her 1998 tour's equally infantile circus fantasia. An S&M segment, in which she strapped an audience member to a gurney and straddled him, also repeated a similar NC-17 episode from the last go-round." Sonia Murry of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution offered a positive review of Jackson's performance at the Philips Arena in comparison to other artists who were also touring at the time. She comments that while "'N Sync had some sharp moves on occasion, it was as if Jackson was plugged in she moved so much, and so well ... While Madonna offered a true visual feast, the 19,000-plus seemed to be satiated with just the art that was Jackson's sculptured body ... And where Sade may offer instant intimacy with one well-placed and throaty high note, well, Jackson did fine just to flex her thin pipes on 'Again', part of her medley of ballads ('Come Back to Me', and 'Let's Wait Awhile' included)." Los Angeles Times pop music critic David Massey also praised Jackson's concert favorably in contrast, reporting "Madonna even in her prime was unable to move at the fast and crisp pace of Jackson. ... From the T-shirts to the tour book to the concert itself, Janet outdid the Material Girl by a mile." Massey added, "Eric Clapton sits with a guitar, year after year. Elton John sits at a piano year after year. No one presses