No one is saying it sucked. It was just kind of there.
This isn't a generational thing. I will be the first to say that the Who were one of the worst halftime shows of the last 30 years, followed closely by Petty, McCartney and the Rolling Sones. Actually, McCartney's was probably the worst of that group. All of those geezer bands completely mailed it in. And for a bunch of family friendly acts that were in response to the Timberlake/Jackson incident, why did Tom Petty's set start with a giant phallic lit up guitar inserting itself into his stage? I will leave Bruce out of that group. Springsteen always puts on a great show, but his set choice was "meh".
The ranking of Super Bowl halftime shows that I can remember:
1) Prince - if you disagree, you are simply wrong and should stop posting about popular culture, or anything else. I just rewatched it. Did he play that show in the rain?
2) U2
3) Bruno Mars - I didn't even know this guy that well at the time, but he put on an awesome show
4) Madonna
5) Lady Gaga
6) Dre and Eminem - It says something about how mediocre the Super Bowl halftime shows have been that last year's by the numbers performance may be the 6th best show of all time.
7) Black Eyed Peas - I don't get why there is so much hate these days against the Blackeyed Peas. I feel like the backlash against the Black Eyed peas will be a lot like the anti-Bee Gees backlash was in the 80's. It will pass and people will remember how original and influential the band was.
Throw the rest in a hat and pick away. They can go in any order you want.