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I have REAL issues with the Blue Devils


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That was behind flats and unreadable from the top. This is as plain of view as possible. You cant get more distracting.

Also, just because the multi-cam guys thought it should be in the show doesn't mean it's the main focus.

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Alright I'm now to the point of being so fed up that I'm actually going to publicly rant because I KNOW that judges come snooping on here. Maybe they can take a hint. I'll probably get a lot of negative reputation for this but quite frankly I rather voice my own opinion. If you don't agree then that's fine but you're probably in the minority.

Discuss

Not much to discuss. Haters got to hate. :thumbdown:

I have an idea for you. Don't watch them anymore. Just watch Crown or whichever corp you prefer.

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Heard here again the line that the Blue Devils are playing to the sheets and that's all that matters. Fans don't matter? The audience in the stands doesn't matter? I was at the Atlanta show and I can tell you from my 50 yard line mezzanine vantage point, looking both ways, that for the vast majority of the Blue Devils show you could have heard crickets. The audience was sitting on their hands. There was a several minute stretch during the Blue Devils show in which the audience had less reaction than they did for Pioneer. At the end of the show, I saw very few people stand, and most of them were wearing Blue Devils gear. So much for that audience connection DCI was touting.

Furthermore, the Blue Devils show to me looks very much like a cheat. While random scatter drill and randomized performances might look really cool at times, they can't be judged for execution. Watch the show closely to see how many times they play and move fast at the same time. Extremely rare. I see a few moments in the drill here and there where they are flying, but in every one of those moments, the horns are down. Fast horn runs are always played standing still. Are they not capable of playing and moving fast at the same time? Strange, I know of about 5-6 other corps around them that can. The Blue Devils of late have become a corps that will push the envelope of challenge only so far, holding just back from the others around them, hide as many errors as they can, and win by executing a show that is deceptively easy as compared to the challenges the other corps place on themselves year after year.

The shame in all of this is that the fans WANT to like them. I hear it from the comments all the time. They want the Blue Devils that knew how to entertain the crowd and win at the same time. They want the Blue Devils that challenged themselves and set the bar for excellence at the same time. I have no doubt with the talent pool they have to draw from every year that they are imminently capable. It is very obvious that the staff doesn't care. The ones I feel most sorry for are the members who must go out every night and perform an obviously controversial and unpopular show. What kind of victory is it going to be for them if they are crowned the winners at Indianapolis, only to be greated by a chorus of booes from the crowd like we had in Atlanta tonight? It's time the staff woke up and started giving the kids shows they can take pride in.

Another hate rant. Got news for you. BD is very well received out west, but then again, haters got to hate. Now, you call them cheaters as well. All your BS about caring for the kids falls on deaf ears. Say something nice about the kids and then you can rip their performance and show and corp to pieces. Very sad. :thumbdown:

Edited by ajwdad
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Yeah it's another negative BD thread.

Maybe they should change how they design their shows so they don't get booed at score announcements.....

And we don't have to deal with these threads anymore.

These thread will keep coming as long as the continue on this design trend. They aren't going to change the game with it.

I just don't know why they wouldn't want to be a fan favorite and win! They used to be....

Won't work. The negativity will stop when BD stops winning. :tongue: That is all that some people really want. Of course, different show design, different brass, different percussion, and different color guard would work. They could fire their entire staff and replace it with a staff from Phantom, or at maybe get Crown's brass staff to come over in its entirety. Of course, no corp would ever take the staff from a different corp... that would be unethical. I am sure that DCI would not allow that.

I know, let's just turn them into a perennial 5 place corp and then after about a decade, we can see the negative threads stop. Haters got to hate.

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for a corps that loves props , obviously theres a reason and a purpose for the exposed change..you would have to ask them why but why wouldnt they bulid a prop to be behind unless it was diliberate..maybe the distraction is on purpose..study the individuals and whats happening besides the obvious and there may be an answer or the possibility is to diliberately cause a controversial moment

I definitely thought this was a strange choice when I first saw video of the show, but whatever the reason for the uniform change, the show is well designed to take the focus away from the uni change while it's happening. I haven't yet watched the multicam stream from last night thanks to the Internet choking on the Olympics. But I saw some comments about it showing the members changing. But BD's designers didn't want the focus to be on the changing. When seeing the show in person, I certainly didn't even notice the members putting on their jackets and shakos, because the hula hoops and Gymnopedie are too mesmerizing.

I suspect the judges are actually giving them credit for working a uniform change *out in the open* into their show design successfully, and it's also a chance to give the performers a break ("understanding recovery" is even on the sheets!) without just having them hide behind a screen.

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MartinO, you hit the nail on the head and exactly how I feel. I would agree with most of what you posted. Just gotta go to a show with them in it and see that the vast majority of the crowd agrees or they wouldn't be sitting on their hands. Wait and see if they win finals, which I bet they probably will, and hear the disapproval of the crowd. But they don't care. Cadets can put on a enjoyable show AND win. Cavies, the same. Phantom, the same. WTH is with Devils?????

Edited by Sportster
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As I have said in other threads I have grown to understand and accept this year's Blue Devils program. But, having viewed the Fan Network feed last night I was surprised that the outcome wasn't closer. Didn't the judges hear the five fracks by the amplified trumpet soloists? Face it, they had an off night last night and were still more than a point ahead of the field? Do the judges really listen? The show that most impressed me last night was The Cadets. Their horns (particularly the opening soloists) were the cleanest I have heard them this year. As far as I'm concerned it it time for the judges to reward on an individual night's performance. If not, why judge at all.

Edited by ozarkbugler
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My concern is is if there are potential sponsors at the DCI Championships. Will the booing at championships have a negative impact on sponsors? People have already booed at Minneapolis, San Antonio, and Atlanta. I know this would make me think twice about donating money to an activity where people boo.

I will say that I haven't been a BD fan since they started chopping up the music they play. However, I was amazed at the level of the muscianship, creativity, and design put into this year's program. The staging is terrific. Is it my favorite show this year? No, but I can sure appreciate the level of talent on the field.

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The Blue Devils are not the only corps that has a formula. As entertained as some people are by Phantom Regiment, I'm real fricking bored because I feel like I've seen the show for the last five years.

I'd rather watch BD do what they do successfully than watch Crown try to perform a show that they can't clean or perform. Demand is only a PART of the whole picture, and at this point Crown isn't playing their show well enough to get on top of BD. Corps should NOT be rewarded for their potential, and I think that is what would be happening if Crown was over BD.

Butttttt of course this is all just my opinion.

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I'd rather watch BD do what they do successfully than watch Crown try to perform a show that they can't clean or perform. Demand is only a PART of the whole picture, and at this point Crown isn't playing their show well enough to get on top of BD. Corps should NOT be rewarded for their potential, and I think that is what would be happening if Crown was over BD.

Butttttt of course this is all just my opinion.

Where would the activity be if no one ever tried to extend the limitations of the members? We'd be back in the tic system.

There is dirt in Crown's show. There are also sections of it where the horn line is moving all over the place and you have to strain your ears to detect any feet in the sound. That isn't potential - it's accomplishment.

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