Plushenko's artistry is somewhat superficial – his facial expressions and hand movements, but this is the easiest and most understandable for the average person. He isn't particularly successful in expressing emotions and feelings with his whole body, unlike Yagudin. To put it simply, Plushenko is a poser. And that's precisely why people love him. It's a paradox...

He won everything he could, and there was objectively no one for him to compete against. Plushenko stayed, because he really wanted that famous Olympic "gold."

Both have fans and admirers, but we're talking about who was the better ATHLETE, not the better SHOWMAN.