"Clash of the Corps" Episode Discussion

[MikeRapp]

It is notable that the "Second Team" camera crew in the credits are 2 employees of Blue Devils' BD360 video crew. Smart move.

They probably have better equipment and more experience than the First Team crew!

[garfield]

It seems that most of the negative analysis in this thread gets a response of "be patient" or "this is just the first two episodes."

With that in mind, there are six episodes left with about 20 minutes of non-commercial time each. This means we have about 2 hours real programming left. So if the negative nellies are patient they will get deeper character development and storylines, a more thorough context and explanation of drum corps and DCI and the technical aspects of the activity. All while still having to follow the development of the competitive season.

In 2 hours.

Sure.

Good morning. Pour yourself a bowl of corn flakes. I have to pee.

[ouooga]

K, I finally saw the first episode (they didn't have the first two on Hulu, just Ep. 1). My $.02:

It's good. It's done exactly like I'd imagine a reality show would be. Is it completely accurate or depicting of drum corps exactly as we hope? No. And that's actually a good thing.

I get into a similar discussion a lot with the Marvel Comics movies. A lot of the die hard fans complain that the movies aren't true to the comics. And they're right. But, the comics aren't accessible to the wider audience. The movies take the basic framework and retool the story so that the average person, who has no clue what the Iron Man/Captain America Civil War is really all about, can get into it. It's not a complete translation, and for that the die hards are going to riot, but on the plus side, we get a shift in pop culture, and the die hard fan and the casual fan alike can walk around wearing an Iron Man t-shirt without ridicule.

Same thing's happening here. The die hard fan isn't going to get everything they want in this. But, this comes across exactly like ten million other shows that are easily accessible to the average person, and we have a higher likelihood of seeing the same turnaround. In a year, you might be able to walk around with a Blue Devils shirt on, and get a high five or "ya, Blue Devils!" from some random person at Starbucks. And ya, maybe that person has no clue who David Gibbs is or can tell you about that famous night in 2008 or who won in 76, but it's still a win for our activity.

So ya, it was good. I'm looking forward to the rest of the season.

[ouooga]

Do we know, if this show takes off, will they use different corps in future seasons?

[camel lips]

I don't follow or watch the summer band circuits anymore. Nor have I seen this show.

What I can say is if this show gets picked up after the initial 6 its going to be hard to have any longevity on TV. The reason why is the cast of characters will move on in real life and there really wont be any central characters for viewers to identify with.

Its not like survivor or anything where people can just catch up in 2 min with a entire new cast every year.

[Eleran]

The reason why is the cast of characters will move on in real life and there really wont be any central characters for viewers to identify with.

Its not like survivor or anything where people can just catch up in 2 min with a entire new cast every year.

So you're saying Survivor can work with a new cast every year, but Clash cannot work because of a new cast every year?

Personally, I agree that it might not work for multiple years - but not because the kids move on after a season. Rather, because it would just be more of the same each year: kids talking about how hard it is, and staff saying how wonderful the kids are, with shots of rehearsal in the background, and limited use of actual show music. Maybe what you meant by the Survivor comparison is that shows such as that which are competition based have an appeal - something to watch - outside of merely the cast itself, where the interest level is the interaction in a competition (see also Ink Master, Food Network Star, etc., etc.). I agree with that - I think Clash will need to look at exploring other aspects, with more interaction between members (not just solo monologues and backstory), if they want to return for future seasons.

PS: John Mackey posted that he was under the impression that the only music licensed for use in the show was his own, the Bieber, and the original BD music. In fact, it does seem that so far the clips of Cadets rehearsals has only included audio of Mackey's music, not Respighi (which missed the public domain cut-off by a year or so).

Edited October 7, 2016 by Eleran

[garfield]

I don't follow or watch the summer band circuits anymore. Nor have I seen this show.

What I can say is if this show gets picked up after the initial 6 its going to be hard to have any longevity on TV. The reason why is the cast of characters will move on in real life and there really wont be any central characters for viewers to identify with.

Its not like survivor or anything where people can just catch up in 2 min with a entire new cast every year.

In other words, this show simply gave you another avenue through which you denigrate the activity and justify your rationale for no longer following along.

Got it.

I stopped following NASCAR, I haven't seen documentary reality show about it, but I know it sucks and it will never succeed.

Got it.

[ouooga]

In other words, this show simply gave you another avenue through which you denigrate the activity and justify your rationale for no longer following along.

Got it.

I stopped following NASCAR, I haven't seen documentary reality show about it, but I know it sucks and it will never succeed.

Got it.

Spoiler: They're still turning left.

[MikeRapp]

In other words, this show simply gave you another avenue through which you denigrate the activity and justify your rationale for no longer following along.

Got it.

I stopped following NASCAR, I haven't seen documentary reality show about it, but I know it sucks and it will never succeed.

Got it.

The inability to use actual shows with actual music is disappointing, but understandable. If the show continues, they are going to have to overcome this issue.

[MikeD]

So you're saying Survivor can work with a new cast every year, but Clash cannot work because of a new cast every year?

Personally, I agree that it might not work for multiple years - but not because the kids move on after a season. Rather, because it would just be more of the same each year: kids talking about how hard it is, and staff saying how wonderful the kids are, with shots of rehearsal in the background, and limited use of actual show music. Maybe what you meant by the Survivor comparison is that shows such as that which are competition based have an appeal - something to watch - outside of merely the cast itself, where the interest level is the interaction in a competition (see also Ink Master, Food Network Star, etc., etc.). I agree with that - I think Clash will need to look at exploring other aspects, with more interaction between members (not just solo monologues and backstory), if they want to return for future seasons.

PS: John Mackey posted that he was under the impression that the only music licensed for use in the show was his own, the Bieber, and the original BD music. In fact, it does seem that so far the clips of Cadets rehearsals has only included audio of Mackey's music, not Respighi (which missed the public domain cut-off by a year or so).

Plus, all of those shows like Survivor etc....have a huge pool of applicants to draw from, and they carefully select people they know will generate 'entertainment'.