[Kalrany]

Fantastic job everyone! All of the poems were wonderful -- it was not an easy judgment, but here is mine anyway....

Prompt 1

Spoiler

TechWarrior : story was very clear, wonderful use of imagery, good flow, pace was solid, nice control of stanzas
Haruki : very good imagery, solid storytelling – I enjoyed the anthropomorphism, no clear rhyming scheme but interesting use still, solid flow and pacing, unique use of rhythm
Comment – this was particularly close, both were good and solid in terms of imagery and mechanics but TechWarrior had a clear edge in stronger imagery, good pacing for both but Haruki seemed more consistent leading to a cleaner word flow; overall I leaned more heavily to the storytelling elements of TechWarrior’s, but it was a very tight call
Winner – TechWarrior

Prompt 2

Spoiler

Weezer : creative twist on the topic, solid pacing, somewhat choppy rhythm mimicking the segmentation of the individual photos on the film strip (very cleaver)
The Grimmace : an even looser interpretation of the prompt but it works for me, wonderful imagery and clear pacing, less a story and more of an inanimate character sketch but extraordinarily well done
Comment – I find it interesting that both of these entries focus on the medium rather than the image but it works… I keep changing my mind on the winner, it was so close… Weezer did a much better poem for the prompt, but The Grimmace had a better poem for what I felt from the words and saw in my mind’s eye, and I think that is the deciding factor for me
Winner – The Grimmace

Prompt 3

Spoiler

Saint Ridley : although I said it last round, the synopsis holds true – superb use of imagery, good use of pacing, strong storytelling, and I loved the sense of humor…
leakingpen : NP
Comment – Saint Ridley’s win by default, but I have to say that I loved the poem overall, the story and the image were so solid and the subtle humor was wonderful, and I think that I would call this one my favorite of all 8 this round
Winner – Saint Ridley

Prompt 4

Spoiler

Silviya : NP
Garwain : it is a very good poem, with clear flow and a solid story, though with less of a focus on imagery, but I cannot find the connection to the prompt at all despite reading it several times in multiple sittings – perhaps an additional stanza or even just a few lines to tie it back to the prompt in a clear way
Comment – Garwain’s win by default; the poem was a very interesting story, but I can’t say that I would have necessarily chosen it due to the seeming lack of connection to the prompt
Winner – Garwain