Nachfolger Christi

FLguardman, I'm sorry, but I speak English and work in the insurance industry. What I said was that trampolines are such a liability that personal insurance lines have cut coverage for them in most cases. To use such devices is not safe. Not every prop has the same level of safety hazard potential. Trampolines are up there with pitbulls in terms of anyone's ability to predict what can happen. Oh, that's why few insurance companies cover liability for them as well. The potential safety problems is why Crown does not use them significantly in their show, which means this design element is essentially unneccessary. One can barely use them, so why have them? So, Crown's staff must have realized too late that such items add little to the show are too dangerous to use them to any significant advantage and are therefore stupid to have them on the field.

Cappybara, I will easily concede that the final product is no longer disjointed. The point I am making here is that it took too long to get the program to a place where the focus did not need to be on design and could be on cleaning it. The staff could not get to the clean part in time. Thus, fifth place. Sorry, cappybara. I am not trying argue with you at all. Never have. I just know that the corps could have been a contender with a better designed show. :)

Cappybara, I don't want to point out the weaknesses, but I must mention the show's disjointed nature. There is way too much clutter on the field that is not utilized much at all. The difficulty level is too high and this is obvious by the fact that they have had little success in cleaning it well at all. I was amazed at how poorly the final minute of show is marched. If you see that something is too difficult or you don't have enough time to clean it, you simplify it. Crown did not have the opportunity to clean much because the concept of the show itself had to go through too many changes. I mean, trampolines are not normally safe in the yards of people's homes. In fact, most home insurance companies won't even cover liability for them. But, the staff has the great idea of putting four of them with no safety equipment on the field as an eye sore. Sorry, you get no GE for that type of stupidity. The members have really put forth sooo much effort to this show, but in many ways it had little chance of contending this year. Designers much match talent to design, not simply dream up concepts they hope will work.

Sad to see that Crown's designers wasted such talent on a poorly designed show. Fifth place does not do justice to what could have been achieved with a better put together show.

Banned...what we are witnessing from Crown is great talent with a poorly designed show.

DCI-86. I don't see any change that justifies a lot of excitement.

I wish jjeffeory.

Many it's just me, but I think white pants may have helped me see the visuals in the BlueStars better this year. The sets are a distraction for me, although I understand their purpose, but something to contrast that color would have been nice.

Actually SFZFAN, I agree with Banned. Design is a big part of the success of a show now.

SFZFAN. The reason why they are getting beat is because of design, not talent. Crown has the same problem this year.

Agreed Cainan.

I'm just curious. Does anyone know who Brent Crocker's favorite corps' are? I know he has a history with many of them, but never know if he's watching anymore because of the job or if he gets to clap, scream and shout for any while the mic is off.

Hi Kamarang, let me clarify. I don't hate BDs shows, from a technical and design perspective, they are brillant, but I have found that they have not stirred me emotionally for years. The last BD show I own the audio for is 1996. If I were a show designer, I would watch every detail. I'm not, and I have rarely been entertained by their shows for a long time, so I choose not to watch them. I did attempt to watch this year, but 5 mins. into the show, there was nothing I heard or saw that was grabbing me to keep watching.

Wow NeutralVoice and Cappybara, I have rarely run across a comment to one of my posts that sees the worst interpretation of something I have written. I give all the credit in the world to BD, but I don't watch their shows because I have found them to be clean, professional, but unemotional to me. I don't understand the harshness of the reply.

If I am honest in terms of design of a show in collaboration with talent, there is no question that BD has the best show in 2014. I have not watched a BD show in years and do not plan to do so because their shows do not reach me emotionally, but they are consistent in building programs around talent and do it better than anyone else at this point in time. From a design perspective, I like the concept of BK's show this year better than I have in many years. I am also a fan of the Bluecoats show this year because again the concept matches the talent and they are doing very well at blending the two together.

I am more convinced than ever that Crown is getting decimated, as the CHEZman says, because the design of the show is awful. The members are performing it the best they can. But, there is no where for this show to go. jwillis 35 said, designers will study the BD show in the off season and for years to come. Crown's designers should. Crown has the talent to be in contention for a championship this year, but this show is a disaster. It is Cadets 2005 and 2006 deja vu.

jmc5682 . . . be careful of saying that "the Gold medal is what is most important" on DCP and Crown forums. I think with the talent Crown has brought in for the last several years, they should have been in a place to win the Gold, but design staff and percussion techs has been an achilles heel for them. This corps now brings in tremendous talent year after year and has rarely been given a show that can compete for 1st beyond brass. Most of the musical selection was blah in 2010 and I have never been able to figure out what the show was about. The 2011 show was fun, but never had a chance. What a show, though, for a percussion line, writers, and techs to really perform. Nope! Percussion was terrible. Last year, they were beat in finals by the Madison Scouts. And, in some ways, the percussion was a good reason why Crown did not get a medal in 2012. In 2012, they ended up with an 18.8. Something in design and percussion needs to change if Crown is ever to be a consistent contender for the Gold. But, right now, Crown seems to have set its priorities on winning the Ott for the most part. But brass alone will not contend for titles. Right now, Crown's staff seems to have the mind set that a title every now and then is nice, but consistency is far from the their minds (except for Mr. Harloff). The reason I suggest caution is because corps aren't really supposed to care about placements and scores, although DCI is a competitive activity. The 2014 Crown could have contended if not for this disaster design the staff put on the field. Cappybara just LOLed me, but Crown is now looking at 6th place rather than the top 5 based on scores from last night. The Cavies get cleaner and cleaner while the Crown staff does more changing of its show than cleaning it. I am thrilled to death, though, that Mr. Kevin Smith is being inducted into the DCI Hall of Fame.

Seems like it will be a great temperature for a show. Terrible on the humidity though :(. Let us pray for few to no injuries if it does rain and the show proceeds.

Two reasons immediately come to mind. The brass generally plays as badly as Crown's percussion line this year. Second, they simply are not as clean as BD and Cadets in GE or Visual. Having said this, SCV's percussion is purring like happy kittens and play like Crown's brass.

The intensity was not there on finals night. The design was not championship caliber. The brass played well, but the percussion was awful. Attitude problems can exist and in some ways should exist when members go from an a great show design as they had in 1991 to OK in 1992. I saw this show live several times in 92 and it played where it should have.

I suggest that rewrites are necessary if a show design is initially flawed, and the rewrites should continue until the kinks are generally worked out. For example, Carolina Crown 2014 had a good concept for a show this year. It looked better in the mind or on paper, but initially did not translate well to the field. They have had to make massive changes in order to get the show to a place where it practically makes sense. Crown now needs to stop changing the show, in my opinion, period and start to clean all the changes they have needed to make. The only changes they need to make at this point is making some things easier in order to clean them. For other corps, like the Blue Devils, they need to change nothing and just cleaning to a championship this year. I have not like BD's shows in years and have even stopped watching them. BUT, they this staff consistently knows how to translate concepts to the field almost perfectly and knows how to clean them neatly. Very little needs changing. Most corps at this point in the season can do nothing but clean, because they have run out of time to successfully make changes in addition to cleaning them well. I think from the Cavies down and clean their way into finals without needing to make bold changes that may cost them placement. If I were the troopers, however, I would take the chance and change the show to see if a run a 12th is possible for them. Crossmen, in 12th right now, should just clean and be content, as they have little chance of overtaking Madison. Much of the rewrite vs. clean, at this point, depends on where they are placed.

One judge rarely ruins the placement of a corps. Judges are allowed to dislike something that we like or like something that we dislike. I have hated BDs shows for years, but I understand why the judges appreciate them as much as they do. BD is consistent and clean from year to year. I haven't listened to their shows in several years and don't plan to, but I don't blame the judges for scoring them as such. Yes, a judge can score something in left field it happens, but generally, one judge does not break a drum corps' back.

I agree DrumManTX . . . that drum line is purring like happy kittens. They make it looks sooo easy. SCV sounds like Crown's drumline and SCV drumline sounds like Crown's brassline.

I am begging the Crown Staff for no more changes to the show unless they are to make it easier for the purpose of cleaning.

SCV's percussion section is purring like happy kittens though. They sound so effortless in their playing. SCV's percussion is Crown's brass this year.