The Apprentice: Challenge 4

[Shumway]

Their identity simply says "China" to me, while Prodigy's says "the western world's view of China"

How, exactly?

That's just, like, my opinion, man.

edit: Now that I've read BiB's judging, it's safe to say it's two men's opinion.

10 internets for Joel for the quote. Obviously, you guys aren't golfers.

Oh, and a few 'atta boys' to those competing in this. Great stuff overall, and I think I spend more time looking through your respective threads than any other on here. I love seeing where you guys go with your ideas and initial concepts. I wanna personally throw some props(did I just use that word?) to those who did the mascots. As an amateur cartoonist, I guess I'll call myself, I really dig what you guys did with those.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

I think both teams did outstanding work, but I'm a little bit surprised Optimus gets points for looking like other Olympic logos. Yeah, a lot of them tend to be simple, abstract shapes, but is doing what everyone else does a good thing? Again, both teams look great. I just think one branched out a little bit more.

The funny part is that had Beijing actually used either one, they'd both probably get roasted on the Sports Logos board. And that's far more a comment on this community than the logos or designers.

[GFB]

Wow... I just forgot my own contest... Unbelievable....

Before I start the critique, I just want to say that both teams really stepped up this challenge... Now lets get this show on the road!!!

Optimus Logo: I love the idea, and this time, the execution is there. It is abstract, but you know exactly what it's supposed to be. Colors are excellent. Font is safe and maybe a little too clean, but it works. Nothing more needs to be said...

Prodigy Logo: I have to say, I liked the fan idea more than the dragon. And to add to that, I don't like your rendering of the dragon. It just looks... off. (Maybe it is the antlers or the eyes or the negative space between the nose and the chin) I do love your wordmark, though it could be cleaned up a little. I would have liked to see another shade of gold, but I can accept what you used.

Optimus Mascots: Too cute! I could so see those guys walking around the games next week...

Prodigy Mascot: It's nice... it just doesn't have that adorability factor. Also, did you guys put any thought into how they would actually use this guy? It seems kinda impractical for that use...

Optimus Extras: Everything looks professional. Why didn't you use the official font for the "one world one dream" script? The bottom of the banner may be a little too much also... The medals look real nice though....

Prodigy Extras: I really like the apparel... I would buy that hoodie in a heartbeat. Your banners are also very pleasing to look at...

Result: Prodigy, you guys really put a good effort into this one. However, I don't think that anyone expected the effort that Optimus put into this one. Coming into today, I thought it was going to be a 12-round fight. Well, this 12-round fight just turned into an 11th round knockout...

Winner: Optimus.

[morrissey]

You guys should take a cue from the real Apprentice and swap a couple contestants. Whenever one team is clearly superior, or is winning multiple challenges in a row, the Donald would ask someone to volunteer to go to the other side and turn their fortunes around. With the way these challenges have been shaping up lately, it might be a good option to keep this contest interesting and competitive.

[maz]

You guys should take a cue from the real Apprentice and swap a couple contestants. Whenever one team is clearly superior, or is winning multiple challenges in a row, the Donald would ask someone to volunteer to go to the other side and turn their fortunes around. With the way these challenges have been shaping up lately, it might be a good option to keep this contest interesting and competitive.

Im not totally opposed to the idea, were in quite the hole here.

[chestnutz]

Agreed, but now would kind of be a bad time for that considering one team already has a head start, it'd be unfair to take a player from the team who already has the head start and put him on the team that doesn't.

[Cola]

Agreed, but now would kind of be a bad time for that considering one team already has a head start, it'd be unfair to take a player from the team who already has the head start and put him on the team that doesn't.

I see what you are saying, but it doesn't really matter that much in the scheme of things. While we are working together as teams, eventually (when 5 people are left) it will be every man for himself (or female for herself) in the rest of the challenges. Right now there are 11 people between two teams, 10 after the decision is made for this challenge. That means there will be 5 more rounds UNTIL that point...and then 4 more challenges to decide "The Apprentice."

This competition is going to be a long one for sure, averaging a week and one half per challenge...it could last another 3 to 4 months.

Anyhow, I am just ready to hear the rest of the judge critiques.

[maz]

Wow.... I didint realize it will take that long.... Im going to try my best to stay on as long as possible - but this is gonna get intresting for me in a few weeks....

[Cola]

Wow.... I didint realize it will take that long.... Im going to try my best to stay on as long as possible - but this is gonna get intresting for me in a few weeks....

with high school and then college starting back for some people, i know it will be tough. luckily, i get to kill some time at work on some things...but during football season, my weekends are shot as I go to all the home games and travel to the away games.

[ShinyHubCaps]

The player swap generally occurs with an even number of contestants but unequal amounts per team. It's 5-6 now, so the situation would be in place should Prodigy lose a member during this challenge. If Optimus loses a member, then all is even. However, on the actual show, they do events and a lot of running and stuff besides designing. It's unclear if a "power play" is even an advantage at this point in our contest like it would be in the actual show.

But as GFB often states, he's guiding the contest as it goes along, so we'll see.

[Cola]

No offense, but where are the other judges? The possible length of this contest has already been stressed above, adding 2-3 days to each challenge for judge review isn't exactly pushing the contest along.

[morrissey]

No kidding, the contestants put a ton of effort into these designs and presentation, the least the judges could do is take 15 minutes out of a Wednesday to provide their opinions. The contestants are met with a strict 12pm Wednesday guideline... is it too much for the judges to have a 12-24 hour deadline after that? It's not like this contest doesn't run on a timeline.

If that's too onerous, perhaps the judging panel needs to be restructured...

[maz]

Agreed. Its been over a day without any c&c.

[chestnutz]

Agreed. I'm sorry, but this contest is taking forever. Taken several months to do what, 3.75 challenges? There's going to be another 11 challenges, I mean really. I realize people have lives outside of this, but why sign up for this if you don't have the time to do the job.

[gingerbreadmann]

Alright, I tried to not chime in about the length but 3 days is kind of ridiculous. Even then we still have to eliminate someone which has taken about a week for the previous challenges and will be very difficult this time around. This thread has basically gone to page 2 multiple times and there are still 4 or 5 judges left. Can someone step in and take decisive action?

[maz]

Hello?

[slapshot]

Sorry for the delay guys...totally forgot.

Logo

WINNER: OPTIMUS

Simple, yet effective abstract rendition of a pagoda. Not too detailed, an icon that is instantly identifiable with the host country and city.

Not a bad choice for Prodigy with the dragon, but in this case the abstract nature of it works against you. I like the Olympic torch as part of the face, but the antlers makes it look like some mutant deer.

Mascots

WINNER: OPTIMUS

Very cute turtles. Definitely something that would appeal to children, and instantly marketable.

Points for consistency by using the dragon from the identity as the mascot, but turtles > dragons for cuteness.

Extras

WINNER: OPTIMUS

All in all, a fantastic selection and design set for Optimus. The logo shows up well on the banner, and also is beautiful on the medals.

I think Prodigy's identity shows up well on the apparel shown, and it's definitely marketable in the presentation, but there was a lack in attention to detail on the banners. The outlines on the dragon blew up and it looks much different than in the original identity.

Overall

WINNER: OPTIMUS

Again, well thought out and researched combined with a great presentation put this team on the medal stand.

Prodigy showed more promise with this event than in previous ones, and the increase in skills is showing, but still not enough yet to overtake Optimus.

[pollux]

Alright... Since I just got back from vacation, I'll put my comments in now.

Prodigy

Logo: Very dynamic looking. I like that it's head-on. It would have been easier to do a side view of it, but you decided to go the hard way. The end result is very nice. I simply love the font you used for the wordmark. It simply fits the logo and has the same angular feeling as the dragon.

Mascots: While the dragon is cute, I wish you'd gone with something other than what you already have as a logo. This, to me, doesn't allow the host country to show the different faces of its culture.

Optimus

Logo: Very abstract, but also in line with what had been done for previous Games. I really like its simplicity yet powerful interpretation. This clearly is a well thought logo. The font is also very neat, and does complement the logo very well.

Mascots: These little things are cute as hell! The hat is a very nice touch and adds to the overall picture of the mascots.

Verdict

OPTIMUS. To me, their package reflects more what a logo/mascot combination should be for Olympic Games. But both teams did very good work.

[GFB]

Hey everyone... I just got back from vacation where I had extremely limited access to a computer (borrowing my cousin's laptop)...

With that being said, I apologize for the length of absence... When I left for vacation Wednesday night, 3 judges had given their critiques. Last night, when I quickly checked over the thread, nothing had changed.... I must say that a I'm very sorry and somewhat disappointed.

But we have got to move on... So I'm making even more changes to the formatting... Here's the deal-e-o:

After the final presentation deadline passes, there will be a 24-36 hour judging period, and at the end of the period, the team with the most votes wins... If there is a tie, it will be broken by a random "celebrity" judge (who will be determined at the time of the presentation)... There will also be a 24 hour board room session immediately following the judging period, with the elimination being chosen at the end of the 24 hour period...

This rule change will take effect immediately after this challenge has been completed.

With this change, the contest will no longer be held hostage by renegade judges or lengthy elimination processes... The contest will also pick up the pace and finish must faster....

Now, the winner of the fourth challenge is Optimus... no suprise here... good job guys....

Can the Prodigy PM please choose two people to take into the board room? Thanks...

Also, with the 2-man advantage on the Optimus side, we will have a member of Optimus join Prodigy after this elimination... and that member will be...

bruschimania

I know that bruschimania was a big part of the Optimus team, but I'm curious to see how Optimus will react "shorthanded"...

I'll pm the next challenge to all of Optimus except bruschimania right after I finish typing this post...

Matt

[scottysprings]

Hey everyone... I just got back from vacation where I had extremely limited access to a computer (borrowing my cousin's laptop)...

With that being said, I apologize for the length of absence... When I left for vacation Wednesday night, 3 judges had given their critiques. Last night, when I quickly checked over the thread, nothing had changed.... I must say that a I'm very sorry and somewhat disappointed.

But we have got to move on... So I'm making even more changes to the formatting... Here's the deal-e-o:

After the final presentation deadline passes, there will be a 24-36 hour judging period, and at the end of the period, the team with the most votes wins... If there is a tie, it will be broken by a random "celebrity" judge (who will be determined at the time of the presentation)... There will also be a 24 hour board room session immediately following the judging period, with the elimination being chosen at the end of the 24 hour period...

This rule change will take effect immediately after this challenge has been completed.

With this change, the contest will no longer be held hostage by renegade judges or lengthy elimination processes... The contest will also pick up the pace and finish must faster....

Now, the winner of the fourth challenge is Optimus... no suprise here... good job guys....

Can the Prodigy PM please choose two people to take into the board room? Thanks...

Also, with the 2-man advantage on the Optimus side, we will have a member of Optimus join Prodigy after this elimination... and that member will be...

bruschimania

I know that bruschimania was a big part of the Optimus team, but I'm curious to see how Optimus will react "shorthanded"...

I'll pm the next challenge to all of Optimus except bruschimania right after I finish typing this post...

Matt

I'm sorry to have to do this but instead of bringing in two of my teammates I was thinking I should personally drop out of the competition. Maybe I was too ahead of myself entering the contest but I didn't actually realize how long it would go on for and I'm not going to be able to participate for much longer with school, soccer, and work. I think staying in the competition would be a bigger burden for my teammates than me dropping out being I won't be able to put my full time and effort into the competition. Once again I'm sorry to have to do this to everyone especially my teammates. Go Prodigy!