dear diary (round 4 and much longer)

[fishy 1,757]

dear diary,

 

Lots has been on my mind about the league lately. Since my last point task, sonnet has announced that he’s done with the league, rory and muff have decided to step down from their GM positions, more VHLE discussions have been presented to the league, and Elmebeck nominations have opened.

 

It’s always sad to see beloved members step away, but I, of course, always support people doing what’s best for them. I’m glad we got a chance to do a podcast before he decided to dip, especially because that was something that he mentioned that he wanted to try. Podcasts are and will probably always be my favorite point task for a few reasons. I get TPE just for talking to my friends, you get to deviate from VHL topics a bit more for the sake of an entertaining podcast, and less people interact with them. If there were a way for me to post a media spot and not allow anyone to read or comment on it (but still get my TPE for it), I absolutely would. That completely defeats the purpose of posting, but I usually post for TPE, not league engagement. So it goes.

 

I don’t know if it’s just because I’ve started actually paying attention to it, but I feel like the past few seasons have seen a far higher rate of GM turnover than when I joined. I’m only in my seventh (?) season here, so my experience ought to be taken with a grain of salt.

 

If I had to guess why the turnover rate increased, I would suspect that it has to do with the fact that folks joined/became GMs when they had much more time on their hands amidst the thick of the pandemic. We newer members came in with rose-colored glasses on, too much time to waste, and a drive to be “important” to the league. After seeing behind the curtain and having real life kick into higher gear as society tries to return to “normal,” I’m sure they’ve probably experienced a higher level of burnout and disenchantment, causing them to cycle in and out of those positions. Again, so it goes.

 

I’ve been thinking about posting my thoughts about the VHLE team concepts and have held off because 1) it’s mostly me being petty, 2) I wouldn’t say that I’m really qualified to critique logos, and 3) in the end, my input probably doesn’t really matter, lost in the midst of everyone else’s equally nearly-meaningless thoughts. Nonetheless, I feel like I won’t have the right to complain about the team concepts after they’ve been published and finalized if I don’t throw my thoughts into the mix, so for the sake of allowing myself to bitch and moan later, I’m going to skim through my thoughts on the VHLE team concept proposals.

 

First, I was really glad to see the conversation about the Berlin Steel logo was addressed, leading to an amendment of the concept. It’s reassuring that, although posting on forums seems like screaming into the void, someone is listening.

 

I’m honestly not exceptionally fond of any of the concepts. Is it because I don’t like new things or change? Maybe. I’m not going to act like I know what I want, because I don’t.

 

Berlin Steel: How many times do members have to point out that a good logo doesn’t need big text on it before we start adapting logos to be in accordance with popular opinion? Apparently far more times than has already been noted. What is this logo without the text? A hammer. It is a fancy hammer.

 

I know that steel manufacturing or whatever is significant for Berlin or Germany, but like, a hammer? My biggest hope for a team concept is that the creative takes on it are actually interesting and abundant. I suppose if you really wanted to stretch it, you could make something work with steel and hammers and hockey and beating down the opponents. Otherwise, it’s… odd.

 

Also, Berlin Steel Construction Company is a company in Connecticut. Largely irrelevant, but I’m noting it anyway.

 

Bern Royals: This looks like a knockoff Moscow logo. Everyone ought to be thinking it, so I’m just going to say it. Moscow logo meets Stonehenge.

 

Bern does have significance for royalty in Switzerland, I’ll give it that. It’s a good location (from the biased research I’ve done) to use “Royals” for. I also acknowledge that Catholicism is (or, at least, was) the dominant religion, but do we really need a cross on the crown?

 

Bratislava Watchmen: What is the significance of watchmen for Bratislava? I did a quick google search and can’t find anything. Did I look very hard? No, but I don’t think you should have to.

 

I like the blue and green in the logo; no other team (from the top of my head) has that color scheme, which definitely works in its favor. Otherwise, I can’t put my finger on why, but this logo feels off.

 

I’d say this is one of the better concepts other than the fact that I have no idea where the “watchmen” came from.

 

Cologne Express: Great, another german team. I, like many others, don’t think it’d be optimal to have more than one team in any country. There are so many options that it just feels extremely unoriginal.

 

I get the relationship with Cologne and trains; the Köln Hauptbahnhof is a major local, national, and international (thanks, Wiki) station, so the concept makes sense to me. The train vibe is easy to adapt to hockey team morale, which also scores it some points in my book.

 

The logo, honestly, isn’t bad. The text is a bit funky, but it’s not overbearing and I like the placement. Another one of the better concepts in my opinion.

 

Istanbul Red Wolves: We already have the Vancouver Wolves. We do not need another wolf team.

It’s also great that we have red in there, because this was one of the first articles for “Istanbul wolves” in my google search:

 

The Grey Wolves, officially known as Idealist Hearths, is a Turkish far-right organization and movement affiliated with the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). Commonly described as ultranationalistic, Islamistic and neo-fascist, it is a youth organization that has been characterized as MHP's paramilitary or militant wing. Its members deny its political nature and claim it to be a cultural and educational foundation, as per its full official name: Ülkü Ocakları Eğitim ve Kültür Vakfı (Idealist Clubs Educational and Cultural Foundation).

 

There are too many almost-very-bad things here, need I say more? (probably, but I’m not going to)

 

Paris Revolution: I liked the guardians logo concept better than this one. I don’t know why, but I don’t like this concept. Oooo, so original, France in another revolution, haha, very funny.

 

I have no constructive feedback (not that I’ve offered any so far), so I’m moving on. Also, I’m getting tired of writing.

 

Rome Gladiators: Now THIS team concept works for me. You don’t need a google search to understand the team (not that googling to understand a team is a bad thing, I think those ones are kinda cool and feel more authentic). This concept feels very safe. The gladiator representation is pretty cohesive with the traditional depiction of a roman gladiator, so props for that one.

 

My (only, really) issue with the concept is that the colors are too similar to solas’s Vasteras logo concept. The grey and yellow/orange-yellow palette probably shouldn’t be used for two teams in the same league.

 

Stockholm Vikings: I don’t like the Vikings idea, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad one. The term “viking,” being a modern catch-all, feels really tacky for this location.

 

The logo feels very… cookie cutter. I don’t know how else to describe it. And, like I mentioned earlier, do we really need the text? A good logo should be able to stand alone without big text telling you what it’s supposed to be.

 

Vasteras Iron Eagles: Yay, great, another Swedish team. Again, like I said for Germany, having two teams in the European league in the same country is weak and unoriginal. We would optimally choose between Stockholm and Vasteras.

 

People who have been around for a while are in love with bringing Vasteras back, but I can’t really think of a great reason why this is a great idea. I don’t understand the significance of eagles in Vasteras because a bunch of the google search results are about the Vasteras Black Eagles hockey team……………………………………………..

 

The eagle is a really cool idea for a team because of its spiritual meaning (much of which would probably be from native or indigenous beliefs), but the iron eagles? Why?

 

Solas’s logo is cool, but again, the color scheme wouldn’t be great with the gladiator logo if we decide to move forward with both of those.

 

I’ll finish out my VHLE section by saying that 1) I know that I didn’t offer any constructive feedback, which is why it’s in a media spot and not in the voting thread and 2) I think the idea of a whole league in Europe is boring. I will not be elaborating.

 

Although I am already able to claim this article as-is for three weeks, I’m still going to tack on my thoughts on the Elmebeck. If I wait, then it will probably be around or post-awards, and I don’t want anyone to take my thoughts as a direct attack. It’s not an attack on any member, just some thoughts I’ve had on the topic for a while.

 

I don’t see why we feel the need to give out this award every season. The Elemebeck is described as the following in the VSN Awards Show:

 

“On now to one of the most meaningful awards the VHL has to offer: the Frederik Elmebeck Trophy. Named in the honor of Frederik Elmebeck, a wonderful man who engaged our community with incredible passion and positivity before he was taken from us all far too soon, this award is to honor the lasting legacy of Elmebeck by recognizing the member who best served the VHL community.”

 

This award, in my very humble and unimportant opinion, is meant to be given to someone who demonstrated an exceptional dedication to the league and made a notable contribution during a specific season. Victor recently made a few posts pushing for more nominations for the award, which makes me think that there haven’t been many nominations. That tells me that 1) there wasn’t really anybody this season who did exceptional work and/or 2) people aren’t in agreement about what “exceptional” means.

 

It seems, to me, that it somewhat defeats the purpose of the award if we give it out every season out of obligation. I think that it ought to be amended to have nominations open every season, but the BoG reserves the right to say “there weren’t really any great candidates this season” without it being a huge deal. It’s not necessarily a bad thing to not have anyone stand out for doing great things, it (hopefully) just means that we’ve had a quiet season where things ran smoothly and without a hitch.

 

Are there ways that this idea could be terrible? Absolutely. We risk losing the award because it gets forgotten or we subconsciously raise the standard for the award to the point where no one can really win it without getting torn to shreds for not being good enough. I recognize that, but at the same time, I still think that the Elmebeck can, and will, lose its significance if we start giving it out simply because we “have to.”

 

Anyway, I think that concludes my thoughts here. I truthfully wasn’t expecting this article to end up as long as it did.

 

I’m finishing this out by saying that, although this should go without saying, these are simply my thoughts. I’m not going on a crusade about anything mentioned here, I’m not interested in fighting people about what was said here, and nothing said was meant to be an attack on any individual. (I’m saying this specifically because of my comments on logos. I don’t do graphics, I’m unqualified to comment on them, and I didn’t offer any way to get better. I acknowledge that and simply don’t care.)

 

Finally, I don't proofread, and I don't intend to start now.

 

Cheers,
fishy

 

this article is over 2000 words, so i'll be claiming for the next 4 weeks beginning week ending 7/4

Edited July 1, 2021 by fishy

[Ledge 1,131]

First of all, amazing article, really spoke the mind of the people. Great read

 

Second of all, I wanted to explain my Elmebeck nomination, just for reference.

 

I nominated Acyd. IMO, he has done all of the award criteria and more. As a commissioner of two leagues, he had to manage a plethora of GM resignations and hirings while helping create a friggin league, all while being an active and engaged member. 

 

But you are correct to say that there weren't a lot of worthy candidates. Obviously there are guys like rj who could win every season, but other than that, not much. 

[Ledge 1,131]

@rory the fuck you laughin at

[rory 1,916]

49 minutes ago, Ledge and Dairy said:

@rory the fuck you laughin at

[fishy 1,757]

2/4

[v.2 1,406]

Agreed with pretty much all your VHLE takes.  I find it hard to enjoy where that league is going at this current stage.

[fishy 1,757]

3/4

[fishy 1,757]

4/4