Iron Fic 2-4

Rooster455

Well-Known Member
#26
Chance by Takerial

Readability: 16
Theme: 17
Details: 16
Plot: 17
Opinion: 15
Total: 81

An interesting look at what could have been, what was lost when the Kyuubi attacked, but I feel you only addressed one part of the prompt: what was lost. Not the why or even how. Even though I'm familiar enough with the series to understand what is going on, the allusion might have left some confused.

Also I was taken aback by the sudden skips in time with no break or real transition. He's one, then he's three, then he's five and a half, then he's a genin, all mashed into one. I know you said you wanted it to be fragmented, but it can still be with sudden shifts. It'll give it a more jagged, jarring shift that can be understood instead of a run together flow.

------------------------

Faded by twin blade

Readability: 17
Theme: 18
Details: 17
Plot: 16
Opinion: 15
Total: 83

This is a piece that left me a bit...befuddled. It's like I was reading and understanding what it was as I read it, without actually understanding it. I think what I mean to say is I could follow what was happening, the loss, the distance, the tension, but I wasn't understanding who these people were. All pronouns, no names. Faceless people who although they have some strong, intriguing emotions, lose that sense of who they are because they seem only to be abstract ideas, concepts.

Your flow was good and so were your descriptions, but I would have liked to have something behind it to bolster it, a background, names, faces, concrete fact instead of fleeting emotional glimpses.

------------------------

Indefatigable by Cornuthaum

Readability: 18
Theme: 20
Details: 17
Plot: 17
Opinion: 17
Total: 89

A piece that sticks true to it's theme through and through, never letting us lose sight of the fact that this is about loss. Each segment is remarkably fully capable of letting us understand a bit about what is going on, the who and the how and the why. However I feel that any one of these, or a couple of them, expanded into a more flowing story instead of a list would have greatly enhanced the piece. That said, the ability to show a wide variety of events in a short amount of time allowed you to show, in rapid succession, the losses Lelouch endured.

------------------------

Never Surrender by Professional Cynic

Readability: 19
Theme: 16
Details: 18
Plot: 17
Opinion: 18
Total: 88

A robust piece that left me sated, but a little hungry for more. The amount of detail in this piece is great, but you were kept from a perfect 20 in detail because of some repeated imagery, mainly of the hunks of meat and the green blood. Being one familiar with the Star Wars universe I was intrigued by your storyline, and while it fired off in the direction you wanted, I don't think it had the proper Star Wars feel to it. The battle felt less like a Stormtroopers versus Natives fight, than a trip down to the local meat processing plant.

Gore in large amounts becomes a stagnant taste, where as if the desperation, the emotion, the struggle for survival had been give more expansion I'm sure that readers would be able to become more emotionally involved with Derek and make his story more compelling. Without it, we don't fully see the sense of loss that you wanted to convey.

------------------------

Down Is Up by Left Shoe

Readability: 19
Theme: 15
Details: 18
Plot: 16
Opinion: 17
Total: 85

A very well written but your last minute sprint to make it in time is quite evident in this piece. The main casualty to your haste would be the theme. I can feel how there was more to it, how it was going to expand and truly get into the theme of loss, but it fell flat, not quite reaching where you had it heading. But for what was there, it was all rather good. Not excellent, but for being strapped for time you did well. My biggest bug for this fic are the attitudes of the characters, primarily the hospital staff. I can sort of see the receptionist being snippy at him, but the doctor being outright sarcastic seemed to push it for me.

One of the things I really appreciated was backstory. I was able to know and understand the main character, what was going on and why. I wasn't left guessing as to who this person was or what the hell was going on, you were able to give me enough of a glimpse at this universe for me to get my bearings. I suggest next time start earlier so you have more time and I'm sure you can make something even more delicious.

------------------------

Final Scores:

81: Takerial
83: Twin Blade
89: Cornathaum
88: Professional Cynic
85: Left Shoe

------------------------

See, now Wata if you finished your scoring within 12 hours of the end of the contest like me and Kayeich then you wouldn't have the problems with announcing the winner. :rolleyes:
 
#27
I was going for an angle of a wide variety of losses. The battle showcases the futility of the fight that killed his comrades, and finding out that their sacrifice was in vain. This is echoed with the fall of the Empire. Derek doesn't want to believe that he fought for nothing once more. Whether he is right or wrong, or whether he actually fought for nothing is up to the reader to decide.

I'll try to work on making my descriptions less repetitive. Thanks for pointing that out. I was trying to give the battle more of a gritty Hammer's Slammers feel rather than the fantastic battles that you usually find in Star Wars, especially with the effects of blasters, but that has appeared to backfire a bit. The battle from Saving Private Ryan was an influence in writing this story.
 
#28
Chance, by Takerial
I love this dish. This is so sweet, is it AU? The flavorÆs not really familiar, but it feels so nice on the tongue. The major problems seem to be typographical errors and lack of detail, but itÆs just so sweà
Oh, frak, what is this? Bitter. Bitter! Sour! *spits it out*
àTakerial, once again, you masterfully blend two flavorsà much to my dismay.
Readability 14
Theme 20
Details 12
Plot 15
Opinion 18
Total 79

Faded, by Twin Blade
At the least, this dish was bitter all the way through and in a pleasant, mild sort of way. Its notes of desperation near the end pair well with the struggling, soft grief in the rest of the piece, and though easy to read, it is sad, and sorrowful. Unending sadness, without another flavor. Unleavened. Twin Blade, your writing is sad and sweet. ThatÆs all it is. Create something else and catch all of our eyes.
Readability 18
Theme 19
Details 15
Plot 17
Opinion 18
Total 87

Code Geass: Indefatigable by Cornuthaum
Interesting. The notion of going with a selection of small bites, rather than a cohesive dish, turns the prompt into a new door indeed, but the typographical errors and abounding canon references of this piece make it hard to decipher when it should be quick, easy, effortless, especially noting the very straightforward take. Curiosity emblazons itself on my mind for the cap-ends of the pieces: they needed to be better coordinated if that was going to be one of your repeating factors. But the plot is great and the ending is fantastic, so here I must say: Well done.
Readability 15
Theme 18
Details 12
Plot 19
Opinion 17
Total 81


Never Surrender, by Professional Cynic
Ohà oh my. This is very strange but very wonderful. An awesome mix of flavors, though itÆs blunt and at times has a few errors. The pacing is good, the starting point is the worst, but the rest of it is wonderful. And the nod to Avatar was genius. The prompt may have been a bit neglected for the storyÆs sake. It seemed less a loss than a win; maybe if more attention had been given to the revelation that it was a needless loss? Anyway, sir, you are truly masterful. May you compete again!
Readability 13
Theme 16
Details 20
Plot 19
Opinion 20
Total 88


Down is Up, by Left Shoe
Very strange indeed. Disjointed, hard to understand at times, shortly written, bluntly given, but not hard to follow. Who is this man, why is he here? But we can stay beside him thanks tot he writing. I donÆt know the songs by seeing their names. Also, the ærealized IÆve lostÆ moment is underplayed. Work on that. The mood of this piece could be better, but the actual delivery is great, the style and rhythm exceptional for IF. Good work writing ità now tell us what you wrote.
Readability 20
Theme 13
Details 10
Plot 17
Opinion 19
Total 79
 

Rooster455

Well-Known Member
#29
Since Wata is not here to post the final results, I guess I will.

Here are the average scores!

*Drumroll*

81: Takerial

83.3: Twin Blade

85.3: Cornuthaum

86.3: Professional Cynic

83: Left Shoe


There you have it folks. With only one point difference Professional Cynic is our Iron Fic 2-4 Champion!!

Great job, everyone. This week's IF was especially delicious. Keep up the good writing, learn from your mistakes and I hope to see you next time to bring even more wonderful dishes to the table!
 

Kayeich

Well-Known Member
#30
Now if only we had a declared champion for IF 2-3, we'd all be satisfied... =p
 
Top