Posted 28 January 2019 - 11:25 PM
The judges are ready to deliver their verdict!
D’rek evokes the feel of an Erikson epigraph, like a surviving fragment of an epic poem, it makes one desire to find out more about these Jol-Nar. Plus, tentacles! But, conversely, where was the reference to fishbowls which is common to all Jol-Nar poetry? And at least one unnecessarily long word in place of a more common one to reflect the academic snootiness of the Jol-Nar? Perhaps these are to be found in the lost sections.
At the opposite end, Twelve has gone down the limerick route. Short, funny, to the point, and it rhymes, all great qualities for absolutely any piece of poetry. Nice twist at the end where the Winnu come to mop up. However, does it spend enough time elucidating upon the Winnu themselves? And does it need to, or does this in fact reflect the behind-the-scenes very nature of the Winnu?
Gnaw’s gets off to a great start because it actually has a title, which is always useful. It impressively ties together and riffs on real historical events and has its own unique and literally inimitable Nekro style. But is it a bit too heavy-handed in its appeal to my own actions in a previous game, quite blatantly trying to butter me up? Then again, I do like butter.
Morgoth: This is brilliant. Amazing. Riffs off a previous work, gently mocking another race while at the same time extolling the aggressiveness of the Letnev. Quite brilliant. Also quite disqualified, for so many reasons. 1) These are song lyrics, not a poem; 2) You couldn’t remember the name of your own race; 3) I’ve had that bloody tune stuck in my head for hours.
Where to begin with Tatts’? I guess it focuses on the Sol throughout, so that’s good? But this is appalling, particularly the hashtag at the end. Did the Solarians lose all their poets in the supernova? Did they get a Solarian child to scrawl this with a crayon on edible paper? However, I would very much have liked to hear more about those toys - perhaps this indecisiveness in itself should be taken as a part of the whole poetic contribution, in which case it emerges into a new light, one which reflects the very flawed humanity of the Sol themselves. This effort perhaps deserves further intensive critical analysis.
One surely must admire the perfect circularity of Tapper’s contribution. In sand we begin, in sand we end, via the deepest mines and the highest stars. Quite beautiful. However, one must also surely quirk an eyebrow at the quite literal and straightforward interpretation of the challenge, a synopsis of the Hacan history and their ideology. No Nekro fucking tangent in sight anywhere. Is it memorable, one must ask? Will people pretend to have read this to seem highbrow, while in truth Twelve’s limerick has more widespread cultural impact?
I can honestly say that this has been the hardest poetry competition I have ever had to judge. I mean, after disqualifying Morgoth and Tatts clearly coming in last place.
Twelve, I’m going to choose to believe that behind the humour of your entry lies a deeper meaning, a great insight into the Winnu ideology: come across as harmless, forgettable, and pointless even, all to disarm and make your competitors heedless of your actions while you rise to the top, as exemplified by the final line. If this isn’t a masterpiece, then I’m not a qualified literary judge.
Twelve is the Speaker. Strategy pick order will be Twelve - Blend - Tatts - D’rek - Macaw - Tapper - Nom - Morgoth - IH
"I think I've made a terrible error of judgement."