Ediker

Funny, I was thinking of it in the same way (up/down, +/-), but with some different assessments.

It's been attempted, but the design style seems to be so out-of-fashion in the judging community. I'm hoping Cadets' new leadership, some of whom were a part of that era, will find a way to bring it back, and get it rewarded.

Bingo! Moment after moment... look away and you'll miss something. Way more interesting than move-a-little, play-a-little, bend-your-legs... and frost it all with electronic gimmickry.

They stayed on the right side of it though. Underrated show, imho.

I can't remember ever seeing Crown do cheesy

Overall, it's been a low hype season so far. There've been very public distractions and the rumor mill has mainly carried negative stuff. The performances will speak for themselves. Still seems like forever away.

Agreed. 1995 was a good year. High energy, high emotion guard. That show lent itself well to their success, and the guard rose to it. Recent Cadet shows would be challenging for any guard to hone in on (and nail) the interpretation/emotion.

Is there a thread for 2018 Colts? There is a certain positive vibe coming from Dubuque!

Yeah, it's really an open ended question. There are so many ways to support the activity, and no reason to pick only one.

Miss seeing drill like that! Now THAT's visual design. Blind link ups, constant reshapes, high tempos. That's huge demand... all while playing incredibly well.

I doubt it. Such behavior has been happening everywhere. Drum corps is simply the latest place where the light is being shined. Do we want a new story breaking every three weeks and casting a shadow over this season? No. As someone else pointed out, all corps need to dig up past (and present) bad behavior in their organizations, come out with it before the papers do, take any required actions (dismissals, etc.), put a plan in place to address any future concerns (preferably with third party reporting, whistle-blower protections, and oversight into any investigations), and keep vigilant.

89 was incredible. I'm not expecting a hair-raiser this time... the promo video suggests something more mellow. Sounds like a "new" direction for them... sliding into the "new world" of today's DCI. Symphony No. 9 kind of belongs to Phantom...

Looking forward to this show. Seems like it can make one feel, as well as think.

Totally. 100% agree. It will be so nice to see the MMs get a chance to truly nail down and execute what the real designers intend.

I am so, so, happy for Cadets’ MMs that such respected and talented people are onboard and working hard to give them a great season. There is no shortage of challenges, but they are under capable leadership. Regardless of anything, this is likely to be a very memorable edition of The Cadets. Previously alienated alumni and benefactors will be returning. Audiences are going to give them the warmest of welcomes, and these young adults are going to remind us why we love this activity. Let’s get ready for a new era.

Bloo was doing some warp speed last year, Cadets were zooming around in 2015 (and a little in 2016), and neither seemed to be getting a whole lot of credit for it. Bloo could've been cleaner. Cadets seemed to hit a GE ceiling in 2015. I hope Boston does not over-invest in fast tempos, this year, if they're not going to get credit for it.

I think it's this that I've been fixated on. I was raised on Zingali, Brubaker, and Sylvester drill moves. While the judges appreciate those moments, they're also looking for more scope in the visual design.

Looking forward to a new era of success for The Cadets.

Okay, it was uncalled for on my part. Ship me off

His main point was that we don't often see a clear reflection in a corps' score when they've had a bad run, like in other judged sports (figure skating was an example). The activities are totally different.

Fair enough!

I wish I weren't. To be fair, I read the sheets @Liahonaposted earlier, and watched BD's victory run. I can now better appreciate the many obvious and subtle ways the visual is enhancing the music. The music is spectacular. Visually, there are many moments where the visual components "click" into what's going on musically. The colorguard is pretty darn good at lyrically capturing the music too. Okay, I'm learning. I need to go and re-watch the top12 with these things in mind.

I get @Liahona's point in that they are both judged competitions. There is no stopwatch or measuring tape providing a more definite measure of achievement. Yeah, they're totally different activities, but have some things in common with how they are assessed.

I'll pay more attention to the color thing. In terms of color schemes last year, BK and Cadets were my favorites.

Good points. Yes, there is definitely some herd mentality. I really want to appreciate what BD is doing so well, according the the judges. If, while watching BD, I imagine that they're any other corps, it seems they're getting inflated Visual scores. No one else could get away with such an ordinary design. In comparison, there is so much originality coming from SCV, Cavies, Crown, and Bloo.