-THE WINTER TOPICAL QUARTERFINALS MAGAZINE ft. Bags-

PancakeBrah · 01-29-2014, 06:37 PM

THE WINTER TOPICAL
Quarterfinals Magazine

Welcome to the Quarterfinals Magazine of The Winter Topical. The Second Round, much like the First, lived up to expectations. We again only had two no show verses and although that represents a higher no show percentage than the first it was more than made up for by the quality of the matches that did go to votes. Every match that wasn’t a 5-0 shutout received at least eight votes and there were multiple comments in the Discussion topic detailing how close and high quality the matches were last round. As far as upsets, we had one pretty major upset in terms of seeding with #21 oXus beating #5 NYC. That’s a bit deceiving, though, as oXus was one of the biggest misseeds on my part (mostly due to me not knowing if he’d show). We only had one other “upset” aside from that in #9 big baby beating #8 Zygote but that match was basically a coinflip before it started so it’s difficult to classify it as a true upset. Everyone who submitted a verse last round did well but you can’t argue with the lineup we have for the Quarters in terms of talent.

I have to give everyone who’s participated some major props for the success of this tournament thus far. With only four total no-shows and a surplus (!) of votes you all have made this tournament even more of a success than I anticipated. The end result is one of the most stacked quarterfinals of any tournament I’ve seen during my tenure here at Netcees. We’re reaching the point where the championship match is just off in the horizon and I can’t envision that match not being a classic, no matter who makes it out of the remaining eight participants.

For this magazine we’ll have the usual sections (Bracket breakdown, match reviews/previews) with the addition of a video mag from Bags. We won’t have interviews this round due my schedule (read: procrastination) but they will return for the final two magazines. All apologies for that. This mag won’t be as lengthy as the last two simply due to the fact there are less matches to review and preview and there are no more writers to profile. Hopefully the 15-minute video mag will help. Hope you enjoy the magazine.

THE BRACKET
erhmahgerd it’s the Quarterfinals

PancakeBrah · 01-29-2014, 06:38 PM

ROUND TWOMATCH REVIEWS
Quotes are sentences attributed to a specific person.

(1)dead man vs. (17)Witty
Props to Witty. He sent me a PM just a couple hours before the deadline saying he wouldn’t be able to drop but he found the time to finish a strong verse. Same goes for dead man, who had intimated that he was not going to show due to lack of motivation. Both pulled through and created a good battle. dead man wrote in his patented style about restrictions and wanting more under the guise of an ode to flying. His technique, as always, was on point with a flow above reproach and rhymes the same. Witty wrote about justice/law in the voice of a gay man dying in this life then going to hell and being reunited with his loverboy one last time before the devil owned their souls for eternity. Shit got serious. But really, this was a dope battle. Both writers weren’t exactly at their TOP level of writing but not too far off. Enjoyable. dead man won in a shutout 5-0.

(8)ZYG vs. (9)big baby
Interesting match-up. ZYG re-imagined an old parable as a text verse bookended by a bit of narrative writing. big baby took the topic and wrote about each season in the context of a relationship, dwindling downwards. Although he didn’t have the best verse of the round like in the First, this was still Top 5 in my mind. It stood as the more original and well written composition between the two. ZYG posted within an hour of the matches going up and wrote another good piece but I think the uniqueness of big baby’s writing and the emotional imprint he went for took this. Some voters didn’t enjoy the romantic nature of big baby’s piece and instead favored the message ZYG conveyed. It was relatively close in terms of voting. big baby won 6-3.

(R)Nigma vs. (13)trap
Trap no-showed. He sent me a PM early in the week saying he wouldn’t be able to show due to work related issues. He wanted CopyPat subbed in for him, so that’s honorable. Of course that couldn’t realistically happen so I left him in hoping he’d maybe find some time but it just didn’t work out. It would have been an interesting match had it gone to votes, I think. Nigma wrote a narrative piece about a cop getting a prostitute who turns out to be a cop herself. The mechanics were solid even if the twist was a bit tired. Nigma won via no-show, in the records as a 5-0 shutout.

(5)NYCSPITZ vs. (21)oXus
Interesting match-up. Prior to going to votes I had the preconception that NYC would run away with this due to the topic and having a history of reading his work. oXus, though, wrote the fuck out of his verse and came away with a pretty easy win here. I liked oXus’ approach to the topic conceptually and his writing was very crisp and refined. He employed some nice little rhyming tricks and there were no noticeable hiccups in his flow. NYC’s writing was just as good and his concept was solid. I have to side with many of the voters, though, in saying he tried to do too much with his verse. black mentioned that if he had a line extension he probably would’ve taken this, and I tend to agree. He had too many moving parts, not enough space. This match was one of the highlights of the round. oXus won 7-1.

(2)Pent uP vs. (15)Wise Ways
Wise no-showed. He mentioned elsewhere that he had a lot of personal shit going on and writing wasn’t a top priority which is more than reasonable. Still, I wish this match had happened because I was looking forward to it quite a bit. Wise wrote my second favorite verse of the First Round and I thought he had a real chance of making a deep run in the tournament. Pent dropped a dope verse, though, and it would’ve been tough to match his effort. He wrote a metaphor-heavy verse about a mother/son relationship and leaving home. He dropped it in the Open Mic and I suggest you give it a read and drop some feed. It’s good. Pent uP won via no-show, in the records as a 5-0 shutout.

(7)Lars vs. (10)Certain
Good match. Lars wrote a creative piece about two prehistoric men named ‘Alpha’ and ‘Bet’ and the formation of language and the eventual first lie, resulting in Bet’s death at the hand of Alpha. He related to the topic extremely well, and even touched on the alpha/beta nature of bros, even if that aspect was a bit too on the nose for me. His strength was his actual writing; he had smooth transitional rhymes and great schemes all around, all cohesive within a tight little rhythm. Certain told the story of a master/slave relationship that dealt with the dark arts and some weird shit, to put it plainly. For me, his piece lacked some context and had some wording issues (master being repeated TOO much, moving past the point of effect and into hitting the reader over the head). I liked his piece quite a bit but the lack of context and seemingly rushed ending left me wanting a bit more. Lars wrote the more complete verse. Props to both. Lars won 7-1.

(3)Vulgar vs. (14)Split Eight
This match-up was probably the closest of the Second Round, both quantitatively and qualitatively. As one of the two matches that finished 6-3 in votes this was the closest match in voting disparity of the Second Round and a few voters mentioned that the difference between the two verses was razor thin. Vulgar wrote about a mobster growing old, and Split wrote about a reflecting surgeon. Both pieces were expertly written. In the end, the flipped coin landed in Vulgar’s favor more often than it did Split’s. No shame in the loss. Vulgar won 6-3.

(R)uh-oh vs. (R)oats
Entertaining. uh-oh, in all caps because da god, wrote about Caesar taking Pompey after a drunken brag the night before. I’m not that knowledgeable on Roman history but his verse was clever and revealing enough that I was able to get where he was going with it. The flow was smooth throughout and the idea was funny and well-executed. Probably better than his First Round verse, which is a compliment to both. His writing definitely surprised me with its quality. oats wrote a partly-scathing piece in regards to the inherent nature of humans, with evolution and alcohol being the vehicles in his piece. His technique was on point throughout and his writer’s voice was pronounced. oats’ verse was one of the best verses of the Second Round. oats won in a shutout 5-0.

PancakeBrah · 01-29-2014, 06:38 PM

QUARTERFINALS VIDEO MAGAZINE
Bags vs. Everyone

I’ve contracted our very own discussion heel, Bags, to provide a video mag for this round. The Second Round will be the last round with a decent number of matches to review so I figured this would be the last opportunity for a good video mag. Props to Bags for doing this on relatively short notice.

QUARTERFINAL MATCH PREDICTIONS
Coinflips. All the coinflips.

I’ll give my prediction for each of the four matches this round, along with an opinion of who the topic favors in this section. Some credit goes to Vulgar for the topics this round; I picked them out from an old discussion topic of his (EOW Art). Also, I’ll be using Certain’s titles for the topics as opposed to eating up space pasting the pictures in the mag.

(1)dead man vs. (9)big baby
Topic: “Dead People Around a Rock Hole”

I’ll be saying this for most of the matches this round, but this should be a classic. This being my third mag for this tournament, it’s difficult to keep coming up with superlatives for both these writers. As I’ve mentioned before, dead man hasn’t had a single vote cast against him in The Winter Topical, having beat breathless and Witty in shutout fashion. big baby, on the other hand, had three votes cast against him last round and won in no-show fashion in the first. Most consider his First Round verse to be one of, if not the, best of that round and it definitely could have been a shutout if Fig had shown. Both writers are in the highest echelon. dead man has been the go-to Open Mic writer of Netcees in my time here, and big baby has been the most prolific writer of the past few months. This match has an almost mainstream/indie feel to it. dead man is known throughout the board as the best and it’s well deserved. big baby’s just as talented but with a more underground following, if such a thing exists on this site. black has, as I said in the Opening Round Magazine, a style that he’s sharpened to a samurai sword, and it’s one of the best. big baby has a pretty identifiable style as well but he’s more liable to switch things up and hit the readers with a different type of flow/rhythm in his pieces. Both write some of the best content on the site; big baby’s is more irreverent and black’s is more philosophical although both can play the other role well. The topic favors dead man. I could see the picture being used for a study of human nature or possibly a character sketch, but it’s obviously biased towards writing a story. I don’t believe I’ve read a story/narrative piece from big baby yet; everything I’ve read from him has been a flex, love, or satirical piece. black often works in the same space as big baby, albeit with a different approach, but I’ve read some narrative pieces from him. The advantage in regards to the topic, then, goes to dead man simply because I’m more familiar with his work in terms of where the picture leads. Although dead man hasn’t been voted against once, his path has been slightly easier than big baby’s even figuring in big baby’s no show win. He also stated he wasn’t motivated last round which may give cause for concern. big baby has written arguably the best verse of each round thus far and seems to have the hot hand. I think that big baby will prove my doubts about the topic wrong and pull the upset here. It’s a veritable coin flip but I’m putting a lot of stock into the performance in-tournament, and big baby has been too on-point to ignore. Hopefully black’s motivated and proves me wrong; an inspired verse from each will make this the best battle of the tournament.
big baby 55/45

(R)Nigma vs. (21)oXus
Topic: “Strange Structures in the Desert”

As the #21 seed vs. a reserve, this is the surprise match-up of the Quarterfinals. Nigma won in the First Round against Frank in a controversial 5-4 decision and then was no showed by trap in the Second. Beating Frank is no small task but he has probably had the easiest route to the Quarters out of the remaining eight writers. oXus also benefited from a no-show, First Round vs. Orc, but beat NYC last round more convincingly than Nigma beat Frank (7-1). I think even Nigma would admit his First Round verse wasn’t his best work. His Second Round verse was better, but I saw the twist coming from a mile away. His mechanics are solid although some of his rhymes get too slanted at times. oXus wrote one of my favorite verses of the Second Round. After posting a solid if unspectacular verse in the First Round he really dialed in his style and wrote well towards the topic in the Second. I like his rhyming style; he uses breaks in sentences and punctuation to accent unique rhymes. Fun to read. Throw in his grasp of the English language and it all pools together to form an interesting style. As for the topic, I could see it favoring Nigma. He enjoys writing in the narrative format and all the topics this week tend towards that aspect of the topical writing spectrum. Being not as familiar with his work, oXus seems to work better in description and exploration of ideas. That could be wrong, just my impression from the handful of verses I’ve read from him. Nigma has the talent to drop dope pieces but I think oXus is the better writer and has the momentum.
oXus 60/40

(2)Pent uP vs. (7)Lars
Topic: “Underwater City Also Has Whales”

This is a match-up of a couple legends of the topical scene, spanning across multiple years and websites. Also, this is the only match of the Quarterfinals to have chalk seeding. Pent had a close First Round contest after being forced to face Diode due to the reserve system. The match went down to the wire and finished 5-4. He was then no-showed by Wise Ways but wrote a verse that would’ve been tough to beat (would’ve liked to have seen that match go down). Lars has had arguably the best run in the tournament in terms of results and opponents showing. Both of his matches have gone to votes and he’s won by a combined 12-1, with one shut out. One of those matches included a win over Certain, one of the favorites (mis-seeded) prior to starting the tournament. Lars wrote one of the better verses of the last round, as did Pent. Both writers are seasoned champs of leagues and tournaments and now that we’re in the Quarterfinals you have to figure that both will be bringing their best to the table. Lars’ has the more fluid approach to writing, with his rhythm and rhymes being top notch and his content being just as good. Pent writes some of the best content on the site, though, and his mechanics are about on par with Lars’, albeit in a different way. As Certain said in the Discussion topic, the topic for this match is arguably the most difficult, at first glance, to write for. I think there’s a lot to work with, though, and multiple approaches can be taken in tackling it. It lends itself towards storytelling, obviously, but there’s room for philosophy/character sketching/exploration. I honestly don’t think the topic favors either writer here but if I were forced to pick one of the two I’d go with Pent. Just a gut call, no real reasoning behind it (strong analysis). Much like picking who the topic favors, I’ve gone back and forth in my mind as to who will win this match. On one hand, Lars has put forth the best run in the tournament aside from dead man and oats. On the other hand, Pent’s last verse was dope and it seems he’s rounding into form. Plus, he’s Pent. This is a coinflip, but gun to my head I think that Lars takes this in a closely disputed voting process. He’s been running through this tournament and seems motivated and focused. Much like every match this round, neither result would surprise me in the slightest.
Lars 55/45

(3)Vulgar vs. (R)oats *BATTLE OF THE WEEK
Topic: “Man Looks at City from Cliff”

The combination of the writers and topic makes this my pick for BOTW. dead man/big baby and Pent uP/Lars were given strong consideration as well, obviously. Vulgar’s up 11-3 in votes in the tournament, with one shut out, and both of his matches went to votes. He’s defeated Innovator and Split Eight, a solid resume. Oats is 13-1, with one shut out, and both his matches went to votes. He beat uh-oh and Just Write; a solid resume if not a bit weaker than Vulgar’s path. Both have written top tier verses each round, with, in my opinion, Vulgar writing better in the First and oats better in the Second. Both are among the best on the site with different styles. The topic lends itself perfectly to each of their writing styles and preferences. Both can handle a narrative piece with much aplomb, same with any other type of topical writing. There’s enough going on in this picture to allow for each to write to their strengths. Certain mentioned in his predictions that he believes Vulgar will write a “fundamental deconstruction of city life” and oats will “counter with the story of the man.” I agree, as both those routes would match their preferences, or at least my perception of their preferences. Then again, saying that may lead to a different outcome. Regardless, I expect this to be the best read of the Quarterfinals. Just as personal preference I usually enjoy oats’ approaches to topics over Vulgar’s, with their writing being relatively equal in my mind. With that, I’ll give the slight edge to oats here.
oats 55/45

CLOSING REMARKS
Keep up the good work.

We’ve reached the Quarterfinals, and we’re over halfway through with this tournament. It’s been a huge success so far, in my eyes. All the credit goes to the writers and voters; with only four no shows and an abundance of votes you all have made this the smoothest and best tournament on this site since I’ve been here. Keep up the good work and lets finish strong. All four match-ups this week are top-tier and every possible Semifinal and Championship match looks to be even better. Good luck to all the writers this round, I looks forward to reading and voting.

Ghost1 · 01-29-2014, 07:34 PM

Lol. No1 cares?

This mag is massive.

Obv took a lot of time to do all thise write ups. Props. Im sure these poem writing faggots will slink there way in here eventually.

Witty · 01-29-2014, 07:38 PM

Awesome mag once again @Pancake, props.
@Bags I'm happy you have so much knowledge of Irish politics.

Your beard is a faggot beard.

PancakeBrah · 01-29-2014, 07:39 PM

Thanks bros.

That whole lucky charms section slayed me.

dead man · 01-29-2014, 07:45 PM

Pancake thou art the fucking man. Haven't watched the vids yet but I will surely be entertained.

Your breakdowns/analyses are insightful and detailed and really just phenomenal in terms of the effort and attention to the context of each matchup. Seriously great work and it's obviously vastly appreciated.

Will be back to add in reactions and compliments for bagsworth.

Ghost1 · 01-29-2014, 07:45 PM

I watch the news bros.

Split · 01-29-2014, 07:53 PM

i am dead inside

CopyPat · 01-29-2014, 08:00 PM

hahaha sick bags

and i was just saying its way colder here

Certain · 01-29-2014, 08:31 PM

What happened to skinny Bags?

Certain · 01-29-2014, 08:40 PM

Good magazine. I was uninspired, but I do want to point one thing out:

PancakeBrah · 01-29-2014, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dead man

Pancake thou art the fucking man. Haven't watched the vids yet but I will surely be entertained.

Your breakdowns/analyses are insightful and detailed and really just phenomenal in terms of the effort and attention to the context of each matchup. Seriously great work and it's obviously vastly appreciated.

Will be back to add in reactions and compliments for bagsworth.

Thanks for the kind words broski.

Adonis · 01-29-2014, 08:41 PM

Someone Mention me when voting opens up, I got mad free time this week bishes

Vulgar · 01-29-2014, 09:13 PM

dead@ the Bags mag....geezus

You went the fuck in on oXus..

Pan, another dope production. Thanks.

StarFaggot · 01-29-2014, 09:14 PM

This magazine makes me want to do Topicals. Bags interview made me LOLs everything he said was true.

@Bags shirt and tie combo is cool, good choice with the iron free fitted button up look

big baby · 01-29-2014, 09:43 PM

Bags video where he talks about certain and vulgar slayed me.

Cool mag. I guess I do seem autistic.

Certain · 01-29-2014, 09:52 PM

He nailed me. I mostly eat and type things. I also listen to a lot of music and watch TV, but he can be forgiven for leaving those out.

Eŋg · 01-29-2014, 09:56 PM

i think your comprehensive mags have done well to motivate during this tournament -- take some selfish pride in its success.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vulgar

You went the fuck in on oXus..

ikr. i've got an italian talmbout my nose. in other news an israeli was suggesting i loosen the purse strings. strong beard though bags. mine is better, but it's probably the persian blood?

PancakeBrah · 01-29-2014, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oXus

i think your comprehensive mags have done well to motivate during this tournament -- take some selfish pride in its success.

;)

01-29-2014, 07:39 PM	#6
PancakeBrah SOBER Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 13,052 Battle Record: 2-5 Champed - AOWL Season 2 Rep Power: 85899406	Thanks bros. That whole lucky charms section slayed me. __________________ If I ventured in the slipstream Between the viaducts of your dreams Where immobil steel rims crack And the ditch in the back road stop Could you find me?

01-29-2014, 07:45 PM	#7
dead man living Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 3,467 Battle Record: 33-18 Accomplishments - Hall of Fame Champed - AOWL Season 1 - Art of Writing League - AOWL Season 4 - Write Week V - GWL Season 1 Rep Power: 77606676	Pancake thou art the fucking man. Haven't watched the vids yet but I will surely be entertained. Your breakdowns/analyses are insightful and detailed and really just phenomenal in terms of the effort and attention to the context of each matchup. Seriously great work and it's obviously vastly appreciated. Will be back to add in reactions and compliments for bagsworth. __________________ Zack Wicks for president

01-29-2014, 08:00 PM	#10
CopyPat Mic Check Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Calgary Alberta Canada Posts: 707 Battle Record: 13-10 Rep Power: 3742221	hahaha sick bags and i was just saying its way colder here __________________ My syllable count approximately a billion, bounce. You cannot compete.

01-29-2014, 08:40 PM	#12
Certain Mad fucking dangerous. Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 12,072 Battle Record: 40-19 Champed - AOWL Season 3 - Art of Writing League (2x) Rep Power: 85899402	Good magazine. I was uninspired, but I do want to point one thing out: __________________ I'm just swinging swords strictly based on keyboards, unbalanced like elephants and ants on seesaws.

01-29-2014, 08:41 PM	#14
Adonis Tsk Tsk Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Beer Goggles Posts: 4,834 Battle Record: 36-34 Champed - Lime Green Poetry Association - NFL Pick'em 2016-17 Rep Power: 9946446	Someone Mention me when voting opens up, I got mad free time this week bishes __________________ I'm tryna fuck like A-don-is TUPAC SHAKUR

01-29-2014, 07:38 PM	#5
Witty Lime Life Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 16,794 Battle Record: 30-41 Accomplishments - Only Slightly Retarded Champed - Lyric Olympics - Summer Classic Rep Power: 82986458	Awesome mag once again @Pancake, props. @Bags I'm happy you have so much knowledge of Irish politics. Your beard is a faggot beard. __________________ He listens to voices inside of his mind Explicit and poisonous violent crime.

01-29-2014, 07:53 PM	#9
Split . Join Date: Aug 2013 Posts: 8,904 Battle Record: 27-22 Rep Power: 85899395	i am dead inside __________________ http://split8.yolasite.com

01-29-2014, 08:31 PM	#11
Certain Mad fucking dangerous. Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 12,072 Battle Record: 40-19 Champed - AOWL Season 3 - Art of Writing League (2x) Rep Power: 85899402	What happened to skinny Bags?

01-29-2014, 09:13 PM	#15
Vulgar Razor-thin derision Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 4,422 Battle Record: 40-25 Accomplishments - OM HOF Champed - Fight Night LIV - Gimmick Battle League (2x) - Write Week II - Art of Writing League - Storytelling And Topical Invitational Tournament - STI - Haiku Writer Challenge - GWL Picture Challenge(2x) Rep Power: 49604317	dead@ the Bags mag....geezus You went the fuck in on oXus.. Pan, another dope production. Thanks.

01-29-2014, 09:14 PM	#16
StarFaggot Leave you flatlined. Join Date: Feb 2013 Posts: 5,110 Battle Record: 12-9 Champed - Site Diss 2013 - Tag Team Tournament III Rep Power: 0	This magazine makes me want to do Topicals. Bags interview made me LOLs everything he said was true. @Bags shirt and tie combo is cool, good choice with the iron free fitted button up look __________________ [B][CENTER][SIZE="5"] It's Aero join me at RAPBATTLES[/SIZE][/CENTER][/B]

01-29-2014, 09:52 PM	#18
Certain Mad fucking dangerous. Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 12,072 Battle Record: 40-19 Champed - AOWL Season 3 - Art of Writing League (2x) Rep Power: 85899402	He nailed me. I mostly eat and type things. I also listen to a lot of music and watch TV, but he can be forgiven for leaving those out. __________________ I'm just swinging swords strictly based on keyboards, unbalanced like elephants and ants on seesaws.