Glorious beasts in the prime of their lives charge out of the gates and are then reduced to death within minutes. I feel like I can see the bull's life unfolding, all of its vigor and strength in each charge. But the show is torturous to watch. At times, it seems as if the bulls are even confused, actually protecting the matador from the cloth that he waves.

To the credit of one of the matadors, he would greet and battle the bull on his knees. He could easily be trampled - and was. Several minutes later, he came back in a bloodied uniform. After a series of graceful moves in which he seems to twirl the charging bull around him in circles, he plunges the sword deeply into the bull in a swift move. The audience applauds to both the matador's bravery and quick execution. In an age where the practice of bullfighting is likely to continue for years more at least, a skillfully executed quick death is all we can hope for.