QUARTERFINALS REVIEW
No-Shows Make Me Sad
The QuarterFinals looked like a monster on paper but was a let-down in practice. Only two matches went to votes, one of which was a shut-out, and both no-shows were arguably the favorites of their prospective match ups. Two of the writers who did show wrote their verses past the deadline, seemingly in a rush. I’ll give a quick run-down of each match before getting to the Semifinal Previews.
(1)dead man vs. (9)big baby
dead man went with an unexpected interpretation of the picture. Instead of taking the scene at face value and building around it he instead internalized the action and went with a very metaphorical analogy. He used his style well, a sort of shotgun spread of short phrases painting a picture intermixed with a couple sniper shots for depth. big baby wrote at the last minute. He didn’t hit a wall; he just didn’t manage his big baby feeding schedule properly enough to drop to his normal level of quality. I honestly thought he was going to win the tournament after the first two rounds but some big babys burn so bright they disintegrate before they grow up. He also employed his style, but not as effectively. He went with a humorous approach, something he usually excels in. But instead of irreverent and witty it seemed frivolous and quickly put together, which it was. It didn’t have the overarching bite and depth his comedic pieces usually have and, to me, goes down as a well written one-off. dead man won in a shutout 6-0.
(R)Nigma vs. (21)oXus
oXus was not able to show because he is afraid of commitment. Nigma wrote a pretty solid verse. It was actually his best effort of the tournament; a cohesive verse with a readily grasped concept and message. His mechanics were better than his other entries as well. His rhymes were more clearly defined and he neither used too many or too little. It seems he’s dialing it in a bit and drop some of the superfluous elements of his writing at exactly the right time. Well done by him, it would’ve been an interesting match had it gone to votes. Nigma wins via no-show, in the records as a 5-0 shutout.
(2)Pent uP vs. (7)Lars
Pent no-showed due to personal life stuff, whatever that means. Personal life. El oh el. Anyway, Lars started his verse with ‘As spermatozoa’ which is pretty cool. It’s an actual word, obviously, but it makes me think of a sperm dinosaur. Nah mean? Anyways, his verse was good. It was kind of in-line with the route dead man took with his topic, not to say either did it purposefully. He took a macro look at life as a series of adventures and explorations and instead of going into the specifics of the picture he used it as a theme. I think he pulled it off and enjoyed reading it. Pent would’ve made this a tightly-contested match, I think, if he had the wherewithal to buckle down and hone his craft whilst drinking a Schroederbrau. Instead he’s left with schadenfreude. That doesn’t really make sense but I liked how the words were similar, and it’s a Breaking Bad reference. Anyways, well done by Lars here. Lars won via no-show, in the records as a 5-0 shutout.
(3)Vulgar vs. (7)oats *Battle of the Week
I got my prediction of battle of the week correct. With the other three matches consisting of two no-shows and a shutout, this was the BOTW almost by default. It ended up with only five votes which was a bit disappointing but oats seemed to admit Vulgar had won and the round was dragging on a bit due to waiting for votes. Vulgar dropped a Vulgar verse, with a breadth and depth most writers strive for but fail to reach while wrapping it all together eloquently. A lot of his references went over my head because I’m an illiterate farmer but I got there after a few reads It was another excellent verse from a writer who’s lived up to expectations throughout the tournament. oats wrote a more accessible verse with strong rhyme and rhythm mechanics. His plot was simple yet effective, one I had genuine interest in while still grasping the point he was driving home. His ending, in particular, was a strong bit of creative writing and turns of phrase. In all honesty if I wasn’t preoccupied with real life and had time to vote I would’ve likely leaned towards oats. The voters disagreed and I can see both arguments as both writers showed very well in my opinion. Props to both. Vulgar won 4-1.