The first week of the Beijing Olympics has seen its fair share of world records and team triumphs, but it has also sparked a number of controversies that serve as a fascinating window into the West’s still uneasy relationship with the world’s nascent superpower. Who better than the king of Comedy Central to make sense of the opening ceremony’s laughable lip-synch, Spain’s foolish photo, and the somersaults of smack-talk sparked by “women’s” gymnastics?

–Will Di Novi

Check out more great Nation videos on our YouTube channel.