I can not agree that it will be "diffrent shades of gray".....Peter......you are over reacting my friend.....
Yes, ok... maybe a little...

But it is always sad when one of the greats retires.
No matter if he is the friend or the foe..
I mean I never really liked Schumi (in fact; when he was a green punk taking wins away from Senna I hated his smug ass

), but I think a driver with his skill and will to win contributes greatly to the sport.
And consequently, it won't be quite the same without him.
Like the move he put on Raikonnen in t1... very few drivers can / will do that. Alonzo will do it, Kimmi maybe (if the car happens to be working on the day) but thats about it... everyone else is just a talented driver, a genious even, but not a racing legend...
But lets hope for the best, maybe Hamilton, Kovaleinen, Kubica or Rosberg will turn out to be that driver with the little extra spark...
-"Winning is like a drug...I can't settle for second or third in no circumstances whatsoever"
(Ayrton Senna)