Week 4 contender match: Vulgar (3-0) vs. Frank (3-0) \\ Frank wins 4-3

[oats]

Vulgar: it took me a little bit to start getting into this verse. around when the jello shots line, I had a hard time figuring out what you were talking about, but you subverted that confusion well in the following lines by humanizing the conspiracy theorist and making him into a tragic hero of sorts - even the most radical/delusional people really are just trying to make things better, regardless of how legitimate their explanations are. What also really helped me get into this is the entirety of the second half of this verse had a distinct flow and rhyme structure that made it, dare I say, fun to read. I think the undertow of humor in here also pushed the otherwise heavy subject matter in a way that made it enjoyable, even if I didn't catch all the allusions or know what you were referring to at all times. Overall this was a tough verse to get into, but a rewarding one after you give it the multiple re-reads that it deserves.


Frank: This, too, took me a handful of reads to really get into it. Part of it is the sheer density of imagery you pack into each line - at first read it can be overwhelming, but once I settle into it more some of those descriptions stick out as excellent atmospheric tools. Although your storytelling gets a lot of shine, I've always been impressed with your descriptive abilities, which you use to engross the reader into the story. In any case, the rhymes started to stand out midway through the verse, and the drumming assonance helped carry me through.

I like how you bounced back in the story from one perspective to the other, helped the pacing and added a tension to the verse, which, if you break it down, was fairly uneventful. There were strong conceptual elements bandied about the verse, but the last line summed up your main point well - both cops and graffiti artists really want the same thing, they just go about it differently. It was a dope verse overall.

Vote: This is close, I liked a lot about both verses, and struggled a little bit with both as well. I expect that personal preference in style will determine the winner of this match, because the verses are both good enough to win. But what tilted it in Vulgar's favor for me was how direct he was in handling the subject matter, whereas Frank opted to keep the intellectual meat in the peripherals. Like I said, tough call, as both of these are easily two of the top 4 verses this week, just had to respond to what I connected with more. Dope battle, BOTW easy imo.