You're right about her never being forgotton!
If you'd asked me in January if this was going to be Britney's last era I would have responded with a "Hell NO!" Ask me now and I'm not so sure.
This era has just been one long non-starter. Whatever they set out to achieve with this era they failed. The Circus era had a clear mandate, it had to prove that Britney was 'sane' and still a contender and it had to be the antidote to the previous events in Britney's life.
As for this era from what I can gather through the relentless hyping by Larry, Adam, Dr Luke, Brian etc this was meant to be the era that put Britney back at the pinnicle and reminded the public why they fell in love with Britney. Larry said this era was to be Britney's "Ray of Light". But how can you have a triumphant era with an absent star.
Sadly if anything this era is proving that Britney is a washed up has been. It actually pains me to type those words, but that's mainly because they're being proved to be valid. As someone pointed out on another website, not every Britney dance routine has been majorly complex but she always killed them with her attitude, she always owned the routines. I know Brian got a lot of stick for his coreography but you can tell that Britney's heart isn't in the performing, she is just going through the motions. Its not a case of her knee, because everything is laboured and sluggish. Maybe its the meds, or maybe stage fright. I don't even want to talk about the Billboard performances they were that embarrasing.
I'll never turn my back on Britney, or say I'm done with Britney, but right now its hard to be anything other than a backseat fan because she doesn't inspire me at the moment. I find myself dreading the public performances rather that look forward to them. And don't get me started on her most recent make over as a "Housewives of ..." She's 29 not 45!
If Britney is planning on coming back, then I would love to see her do some movies during her break so we're not left with a drought. Movies could be a great way to keep interest on her, especially if she picks wisely (although I'm expecting half-baked romcoms).
I only want Britney to come back musically when her heart is truly in it, like it was during the ITZ era and the Original Doll era that never happened. Of course she won't be able to dedicate the time that she did back then, but if she had that level of passion she would find to make it work. If not I'd want Britney to leave it all behind because it would be such a shame to her legacy if she ends up doing some dumb reality show, or became the judge of some tacky tv show etc. Her legacy is better than that, and her bank balance should be able to provide lavish lifestyles for her great grandchildren.
*Rant over, it wasn't meant to be a rant but it just kinda flowed out and it wouldn't stop