Your favorite Star of Indiana shows of "all time"

[Cop]

1985 Star was the only show to use rifles.

1986 Star had points of genius in design.

1987 Star may be the worst guard design in finals Ever.

1988 Star was amazing to see live and beat the 88 DCI champ several times that season.

1989 Star had a horn sound like no other.

[NakedEye]

1990! 1990! 1990!

Still my favorite show by anyone EVER.

The uniforms and helmets sparkled like nothing else. The music was majestic, powerful and emotional. The colors were gorgeous/the guard outfits were crazy and interesting, and their drill moved faster than all the competitors (even Cadets). It was a total spectacle and it WORKED.

2nd Favorite: 1993. Amazingly ageless all these years later, even if it took me most of that season to finally like it.

Least favorite: sorry, 1992, that just didn't do it for me. I actually like the music a lot, but the drill was sort of disjointed, everything the guard wore or touched looked like Betsy Ross vomited all over it, the scrims were overkill, and the whole show was just too, too much. Had they kept the music and toned the visuals way down, I probably would have loved it. Honorable mention for the "flag" set at the end, though. That was genius. And also, if this show hadn't happened, we wouldn't have gotten Medea.

[Triple Forte]

So given the glut of "favorite of the decade" polls around here at the moment, I was poking around at various shows on the Fan Network and I was inspired to rewatch most of Star's shows, and they had some great ones. Every year has some amazing playing, and they were pushing the limits on the visuals (hot pink uniforms! alien "flags"!) and repertoire (hey, I love Belshazzar's Feast, but I would not expect it in a drum corps show) from the very start. Everyone talks about 1991 and 1993, and justifiably so, but those weren't the only great shows they put on. Despite all that, I still rate Roman Images the top of the top.

And just to keep it interesting, and maybe spread the poll results around, what was your least favorite? Not to hate, but I'm just curious. Personally, the theme in 1992 was pushed so hard that it turned me off entirely to anything good they were doing out there. But then I'm squeamish about that kind of super-positive-feelgood show in general. So as cheesy as the ET/Star Wars theme was, I voted for 92.

Finally, I never saw Brass Theatre or Blast but I wonder if there are folks out there who really did enjoy those efforts?

favorite....1986

least favorite.....1993

Saw Star live for the first time in 1986.....and no one sounded like them. And their marching was very intricate.....excellent corps all around for only it's second season

I also liked 1989,1990 and 1992 (1991 was just impressive..but less exciting for me than 1990)

1993.....just don't like it. boring for the most part.

[CloudHype]

93 is my all time favorite show.

90 is a close second.

Least favorite, I don't have one.

[tommytimp]

Favorite: 1988. Much as I love and appreciate the 93 show, the Stupid Symmetrical Pit (copyright TSheaCorp) is a huge turnoff, and I just like the tastiness of the 88 book more. The mallet audition feature in the opener (I don't think they stop playing 16th notes until the stop hit, and in F# too) and the best sop soloist in DCI that year IMO (who I believe, was Becky Wood's fiance, there's a winner in life). Plus one of the best bass drum melodies of all time and a new way to look at the tenor section.

Worst:1986. The 92 show is so well-performed that my personal distaste for the hard-sell approach is mitigated, so 86 it is. Not terrible, just unmemorable. John Williams? Yawn. Funny 86 story, though-we had to borrow a bell stand from them at one show for whatever reason. Comes time to give it back, I tell their timp player I can't remember which one was theirs. He says "Know what? Keep it. We've got plenty." And I thought, F@%k, these guys really are rich."

[Rollo Tomasi]

Favorite: 1988. Much as I love and appreciate the 93 show, the Stupid Symmetrical Pit (copyright TSheaCorp) is a huge turnoff, and I just like the tastiness of the 88 book more. The mallet audition feature in the opener (I don't think they stop playing 16th notes until the stop hit, and in F# too) and the best sop soloist in DCI that year IMO (who I believe, was Becky Wood's fiance, there's a winner in life). Plus one of the best bass drum melodies of all time and a new way to look at the tenor section.

Comes time to give it back, I tell their timp player I can't remember which one was theirs. He says "Know what? Keep it. We've got plenty." And I thought, F@%k, these guys really are rich."

Comes time to give it back, I tell their timp player I can't remember which one was theirs. He says "Know what? Keep it. We've got plenty." And I thought, F@%k, these guys really are rich." Gee, isn't it great when one corps helps out another?"

I wish you had typed that instead.

[Guardguy89]

As a guard person - Star was never one of my favorite corps - except for 1993 - that was a totally different guard out on the field that year and they were amazing - so by far - that would be my favorite one

An honorable mention to the 1986 guard - just bizarre enough to be very intriguing.

Later,

Mike

[TexasPRfan]

Such a hard choice!

Favorites:

1. Belshazzar (90) - sheer brass and drill heaven. one of my alltime favorite shows

2. Roman Images (91) - unbelievable brass performance levels, and the closing minutes of the show, including the beautiful flags and the amazing drill just take this over the top. Also in my top 10 all time

3. 1989

4. 1993

5. 1992

[tommytimp]

Comes time to give it back, I tell their timp player I can't remember which one was theirs. He says "Know what? Keep it. We've got plenty." And I thought, F@%k, these guys really are rich." Gee, isn't it great when one corps helps out another?"

I wish you had typed that instead.

Well, I didn't think that at the time, so why the screaming hell would I type it? Way to suck all the juice out of a one-liner.

[Lance]

Between 90 and 93 for me...

I've got to go with 93 by a hair.