Jessica Garrison in the L.A. Times takes a first crack at the "tangled web of onetime alliances, betrayals and broken relationships" that will be in play in the coming mayor's race. Hahn and the major contenders share a lot of overlapping pasts in common, none more intriguing than the relationship between Hertzberg and Villaraigosa, former Sacramento roommates who are now frosty toward each other.

In the small world of Los Angeles politics, it's no surprise that all the leading contenders know each other. But what has many political insiders catching their breath is the complex, intimate and occasionally bitter relationships among these men, Democrats all, who seek the city's top post.

"A writer of a telenovela couldn't have made this one more interesting," said Councilman Eric Garcetti, who has endorsed Hahn.

The personal baggage and interconnections between the candidates go much deeper. One of those turned up last week on Hertzberg's blog. Joe Trippi, the former Howard Dean strategist, wrote an item that mentions he managed Hahn's first campaign for city attorney back in 1985. Now he's pitching for dollars for Hertzberg.