Malaysia's New Straits Times described the ceremony on Friday as 'the greatest show on earth', while The Star called the fireworks display the 'Great Wall of fire'.

In the Philippines, the Daily Inquirer already proclaimed the Beijing Games as 'the world's most memorable Olympics', quoting President Gloria Arroyo. The Korea Herald said it was an 'extravaganza depicting China's history (and) rise as a global power'.

The ceremony was also the top story in Japan's largest-selling Yomiuri Shimbun, which highlighted China's culture and 'technological wizardry'. Another daily, the Japan Times, congratulated Beijing on taking a big step 'in the right direction'.

Predictably, the show had mixed reviews in Taiwan.

The pro-independence English- language Taipei Times slammed the entire Games as a series of broken pledges by an authoritarian regime.

The mass-circulation China Times was more neutral, praising show director Zhang Yimou for giving the world a sensational visual treat not unlike his acclaimed movies.

In India, the Hindustan Times noted how people in Tiananmen Square were brimming with national pride while The Statesman made a fleeting reference at the end of its report to Chinese police clashing with Tibetan activists on Friday.

Reviews in the Western press credited China for its phenomenal display, but many carried cynical undertones and some were outright hostile.

They were peppered with allusions to China's communist roots, human rights record and the protests leading up to the event.

Canada's Globe and Mail, for example, headlined the story on its website 'The iron hand behind the magic show'. It framed China's magnificent performance against the backdrop of forced evictions, state coercion and a clampdown on civil liberties.

The Independent newspaper of Britain was effusive with praise for Friday's show, but also spoke of the 'other realities' of the Olympics that happened 'behind the scenes'.

It mentioned China's much-criticised non-interference policy in Sudan's conflict, as well as Chinese officials' questioning of the United States team's decision to let Lopez Lomong, a naturalised American athlete from Darfur, carry the American flag at the parade.

The praise-criticism dichotomy was also evident in reports by the BBC and CNN. Both highlighted China's crackdown on dissidents, poor civil liberties record and pollution problem even as they applauded the 'stunning' Beijing Games opener.

The New York Times started on a note of cynicism with the headline 'Even the cynical succumb to a moment of real national pride' with the underlying message that such events of grandeur often make people forget 'the sins of their government'.

China's state-controlled media waxed patriotic over the opening ceremony, saying the extravaganza showcased an increasingly confident nation and could be a turning point in world history.

Colour photos of Friday night's event were plastered on the front page of every major daily, while state television repeatedly broadcast highlights of the spectacle.

'The Beijing Olympic Games is a new starting point for human civilisation to move towards the future, now the expectation is for a more open China to make greater contributions to humanity,' the Beijing Times said.

'Beijing has not let down the expectations of 1.3 billion Chinese,' it added.

mlwong@sph.com.sg

With additional information from Reuters, AFP

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