Last year had been the Year of the Dog, so there was a lot of competition with the many dog Animalians for who was crowned Mister and Miss Zodiac. The Year of the Pig had substantially less competition. Pigs have quite a bit of negative traits associated with them, being considered unclean animals in some cultures. And even though pigs do have some commendable traits, they weren't considered the most attractive type of Animalian. As such, most of the pig Animalians were one who had been uplifted, many of them from the original outbreak.
As such, this year's Zodiac pageant was focused less on skills and beauty than they were on fitness and strength. Not that the entrants' bodies were completely unattractive. The boars had been honing their physical bodies to their best potential. If one could ignore their porcine features, such as different coloration and bristles, their bodies did appear almost human. The sows had also put a lot of work into their own bodies, though they were less focused on weight-lifting than the boars. They were mostly showing how agile and fast their bodies were. There was a general increase in interest regarding the sows, most probably because pig Animalians are the only species that have more than one pair of breasts. No one was really sure why pigs of all species would retain their multiple teats instead of the other species. Even animals that should have had udders such as cows and goats lose them after uplifting. But as one of the less-discreet male members of the audience has said, 'The only guys who are complaining are the ones who keep kosher.'
Since the competition wasn't as drawn out as last year's, the winners were decided a lot sooner. The winner of the male division was Paul, one of the few converted boars in Animalia. His conversion wasn't quite like other people's. Three years ago, Paul had an aortic valve replacement, his new valve having come from a pig. He had been drinking some tap water on the day of the Outbreak and the Animalian virus latched onto the DNA of his porcine heart valve. As such, Paul felt a little cheated when it came to his Animalian form. But he came to realize he was still a lot healthier than he had been before, especially after he got his second dose. Also, his diet hadn't changed as radically as some of his other friends'. Of course, he had to be more careful with sweets and pork products were now something to avoid.
Miss Zodiac for this year was Olive, who got her name for her black color, love of olives, and loving nature. Unlike the swine on the Brown farm, Olive had been a pet pig before she was uplifted. It wasn't easy being an uplifted pig in a world of judgmental people. But Olive's sunny personality was good at winning friends. She was more motivated to keep in shape to stave off the negativity of people considering pigs fat slobs. Having six breasts tended to be a hassle at times, but no one ever said they didn't look good.
As with what happened last year, Beth and Luke, the previous winners of the Zodiac competition presented the crowns, rotating them slightly so that the Pig gem was at the front. Some may wonder if Beth and Luke would ever get those crowns back. But that would be eleven years from now and it didn't seem likely they'd be interested enough to compete for the title again. Everyone thought that Paul and Olive had done very well, but a lot of people felt like this was just a prelude to next year's competition. But for now, the Pig reigned supreme.