Just to be clear, Rayiner (upthread): my issue was, that candidate succeeded by being confident and clever enough to turn a straightforward question into an opportunity to put on a show for the interviewer. You're right, that's great. It sucks that the process required it, though.

I guess I'm thinking more from the other side of the table. I know several talented, hard-working people who had a hard time finding work because they couldn't "hack" interviews. It's a flawed system, but if you're a young person it's to your advantage to know how to game it.