And on 'Bad Romance', the lead single from The Fame Monster, she became kind of awesome. Then, between the VMAs and 'Paparazzi', she came into her own. 'Poker Face' had about three big hooks, but next to her other singles- which ran the gamut from forgettable fluff ('Just Dance') to 'Muffin Top' ('LoveGame')- it seemed like a fluke.
She filled her résumé and interviews with style icon namedrops- Andy Warhol and his notions on celebrity, the denizens of New York's downtown arts scene, and avant couture designers like Thierry Mugler- but her singles betrayed none of the artistry that she insisted was part of her package. For about a year, she was nothing but a lot of talk and a badge- only without the badge. Remember that 'Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror where the Krusty the Clown doll was trying to murder Homer? Turned out the problem was the doll had a switch on its back set to 'evil' and with a flick of the wrist, it could be reset to 'good.' It feels like sometime late last summer, someone flicked a similar switch on Lady Gaga.
