Top Tweets Vol. 6: Welcome to the Atl(atl)

Man. What an awesome episode. I had a feeling I might have been jumping the gun a little the other week  when I said this is my favorite season, but I think those qualms are being laid to rest. I'll go into this more when I do my analysis later this week.

Also, quick side note, I apologize for skipping out on posts this weekend. Spring break mayhem once again intervened, but I'm back at school to push through seven more weeks of academia before getting tossed out into the real world. Which is just a long way of saying that posting should be pretty regular for the rest of the season.

After a few dull weeks, Colby finally busted out some good tidbits about the behind the scenes action of this episode. Here are some of his top tweets:

• If you need some shells for your 3.2" Bag Gun, you can follow in the footsteps of Top Shot and special order them from Billet Aluminum.

• Tonight's expert for the bag gun, Rick Pohlers, hit the bullseye on his first test firing.

• Colby, unfortunately, did not get an opportunity to fire the cannon.

• According to Colby the Bag Gun had the loudest and largest concussion of any weapon to yet be featured on the show.

• In the team challenge, the bag gun was reset after each shot so neither team would have an unfair advantage.

• Although not shown on the air, there was a time limit placed on the team's to prep, load and fire the Bag Gun.

• Not really anything that provides any additional insight but here is my favorite question and response of the night (paraphrased): Tweeter: Why is it always so windy? Colby: Because it is.

• I've seen a lot of people asking about what contestants put in their backpacks on the Top Shot Facebook page, and Colby was able to provide an answer: "Backpacks:Eye/ear pro, water, layers, alt. footwear. You never know what the challenge will require or what the weather will do. Be prepared"

• I, like many viewers, was confused when the camera seemed to show Chris Cheng's atlatl dart hit the four ring, but was counted as six. The United States Practical Shooters Association (USPSA) rules state that if a hit breaks the plane of two rings, the higher ring is scored. Thank you to Stephen Ramsey of Ramsey Marketing for clarifying.

All in all, a pretty good batch of info this week. Stay tuned for my recap tomorrow and my analysis on Thursday.

Also, my friend Tony said he would start watching the show if I mentioned him in this post. So there, mentioned, start watching.

Stay up to date on my latest posts by following me on Twitter: @cswiets

Top Shot Analysis: S4 E5 "Swing into Action"

The fifth episode of the fourth season offered a lot of good (lack of bandanas) and a few things that weren't so great (an episode title lacking alliteration, I would have gone with "Flintlock Frenzy"). 

Let's dive right in shall we? I have jobs to apply for (p.s. if anyone wants to hire me, I graduate in May, resume available upon request).

The Challenges

I have to hand it to Colby on that misdirect for the team challenge. I can only imagine what the contestants were thinking the challenge would be like after he gave them all that Revolutionary War background. 

The Kentucky flintlock also featured one of the most complicated loading mechanisms ever seen on Top Shot. The surprising thing about the team challenge was that while the practice led me to believe that once again the challenge would all come down to how well team's could load the weapon, that didn't turn out to be the case. 

The first obstacle was the challenge itself. It was painful to see Chee Kwan hit that platform time after time, I couldn't help but think this guy had a deprived childhood. 

Top Shot is supposed to be fun and this challenge certainly fulfilled that aspect of the show, at least at the beginning. The fun quickly faded from both teams, first as Kwan failed to cross to the other platform, and then when Littlejohn couldn't take his shot. 

I think that disappointed me most though, was the lack of dropped ball jokes that were made. There was such a rich opportunity for humor here that either the contestants didn't take advantage of, or the producers decided to edit out. Either way it is a shame. 

The elimination challenge was also a little disappointing. I know Top Shot likes to contrast old and modern, but seeing two pistol elimination challenges in a row was a little boring. However, Top Shot makes up for that in how they form the challenges. I was excited to see that it would be up to Trefren and Keyes to keep pace with the moving window to shoot their targets. 

I have to admit that I wasn't too upset to see Keyes go, I had a feeling that he had kind of been coasting on his team's success the past couple of weeks. That is why it is almost better for teams not to get on a winning streak. Sure, that team may end up with more members, but they also hang onto the weak members of their team. As we saw this week, this can lead to the critical shooters being forced to sit out and puts pressure on the weaker ones to deliver. 

The Contestants

I'm going to abandon the contestant formula this week and speak solely about the teams. No character really stuck out, and there really isn't any point in harping on Littlejohn again.

Top Team: Red

Despite their failures in the team challenge, red is still proving to be the team that knows how to play this game, and how to play it well. I give big props to Gary Shank for his coaching ability in this challenge. His calm and steady instruction kept his team on point throughout the challenge, and with a weapon that had so many steps to go through before actually firing it, his instruction proved vital to keeping this contest close. He possesses a special talent of giving instruction without letting frustration seep into his tone. In addition red team had all three of their biggest failures step up to the plate for elimination. It had to be a tough choice for red team in who to send this week, and while I'm a big fan of Trefren (who I think Kwan accurately described as the "heart" of the read team), I think it was the right choice to send him this week.

Not-So-Top Team: Blue

While blue team won this challenge, they are far from being the cohesive whole they need to be to make it to the individual stage of this contest. Let's disregard Littlejohn's freeze up for the moment and look at the other four members of the blue team. While red team had Gary Shank shouting every loading instruction to every member of his team who picked up the flintlock, blue team never picked up  this strategy. The only thing they thought to do was to try and keep themselves calm by telling Littlejohn to keep calm. It took Littlejohn picking up and setting down the pistol three times to reset himself before Augie finally asked him if he had fully-cocked the pistol. Blue team is going to have to amp their support of each other if they are going to make it through the next challenge. 

What do you think? How did the teams stack up to you? Hit the comments and let me know.

No post tomorrow as I'm off to visit the exotic locale of Sheboygan, Wis. I'll be back Friday with a surprise post.

Stay up to date by following me on Twitter @csiwets

Top Shot Recap: S4 E5 "Swing Into Action"

This week's episode toned down the drama (a bit) but kept the stakes high in the competition.

Not much to talk about at the house before the episode really kicked off this time around, except that the contestant seem to be adding their own personal touch to nailing the targets to the wall this season. Each target has an accompanying memento. After assuring everyone that Colin Gallagher left with "his head held high" Gregory Littlejohn placed a shell from the Smith & Wesson M&P 40 on the target.

On the practice range, Colby informed the contestants they would be getting a blast from the past in the form of the Kentucky flintlock pistol, a weapon used throughout the Revolutionary War. Red team got to practice first and had the advantage of Gary Shank, who had previous experience with black powder weapons. Tim Trefren, whose main experience is with rifles, had a little trouble getting a handle on the flintlock.

Blue team also had a few troubles when they came up to give it a try. Littlejohn had trouble figuring out the trigger, which both teams commented on being incredibly stiff. William Bethards also had difficulty aiming the flintlock, and had his ball fall out on one occasion.

The contestants were thrown for a loop in the team challenge, as Colby left out one important detail when explaining the background of the the Kentucky flintlock, namely it's use by pirates.

The teams were set up on two platforms. One at a time each team member would swing across a gap on a rope to another platform. They would then have to load the flintlock and fire it at a jug filled with sand. If a contestant failed to reach the other platform, they would have to drop down, climb back up the platform and try again until they were able to reach the other side. First team to hit all five targets would win.

Blue team decided to take out the leadership on red by sitting Kyle Sumpter and Shank, but much like last week when they sat Trefren, Shank was still able to be a strong supporting player by coaching his teammates through the challenge. However red team got to a rough start when Chee Kwan failed to make it onto the platform and had to start over.

Meanwhile, blue team got off to solid start nailing their first three targets. Then they stumbled when Littlejohn stepped up to the stage. Littlejohn froze up, with a look of anguish not only on his face, but on those of his teammates. Red team looked to take advantage of the hold up they had been anticipating, but Iggy Keyes missed his target, as did Tim Trefren, and Keyes also missed on his second time around. Littlejohn, finally got his shot off and hit his target. Blue team finished up and took advantage of the lost time red team just couldn't make up, going five for five to win the challenge.

Back at the house red team members Keyes, Kwan, and Trefren all offered themselves up for elimination. Keyes and Trefren for being the only members to miss their shot, and Kwan for setting the setting the tone for what turned out to be a jumbled performance by the red team. At the elimination range though, red team seemed to settle on voting for poor shooting performance, rather than someone's ability to swing on a rope, nominating Trefren and Keyes to duke it out.

At the practice they found they would be shooting a much more modern pistol, the Heckler & Koch USP Tactical. Trefren was visibly concerned at having to shoot another pistol, but Keyes seemed more than happy to take up the challenge. However during the practice, which featured them shooting through a small circular window, there didn't seem to be a great advantage to either contestant.

The challenge featured the contestants shooting through a moving window. However, in a Top Shot twist, the contestants would not be on a moving platform, they would have to move along with the window as it went down the course.

In a rare moment on Top Shot, both contestants went through the course and hit the same amount of targets using the same amount of rounds (more on this aspect in the analysis). Trefren and Keyes both hit only eight out of twenty targets. However on the second go around, Trefren smoked the course, hitting eighteen out of twenty targets, while Keyes once again only managed to hit eight.

Iggy shuffled his way out of the competition, and the teams now stand at 6-5.

What did you think of last night's episode? Hit the comments and let me know.

Stay tuned for my analysis as there is a lot I want to discuss about this episode.

Follow me on Twitter @cswiets

Top Tweets Vol. 5: Danger! Danger, Colby Donaldson!

I was not able to watch Top Shot when it aired as I originally planned tonight, however all was not lost. Since I am at home for spring break (for now) I am not at the mercy of campus cable, or History's sporadic online episode posting schedule. So thanks to the magic of Time Warner Cable, I was able to watch tonight's episode about 12 hours earlier than I normally do.

The tweets this week are not only a little disappointing, they are also a little disheartening. We had a great episode, one free of any talk of bandanas, but Colby got an onslaught of repetitive tweets asking the same questions he is asked every week.

But, once again, I managed to pull out a few gems:

• In a bit of distressing news, Colby seemed to imply that viewership needs to get a bump or Season 5 of Top Shot could be in jeopardy. He followed it up with a small ray of hope that Season 5 could be an all-star season, but I'm not convinced this is the answer to Top Shot's ratings problems. Read my full thoughts on an all-star season here.

• Colby is not in favor of doing a season featuring contestants with little shooting experience. (I am still undecided)

• He is also not big on the idea of using the Dillon Aero Minigun in a challenge, nor was he a big fan of contestants throwing rocks. (Which oddly has been a major criticism I've been coming across on the web this past week.)

• I don't often quote Colby's tweets word for word, but this time I will make an exception. This was posted in regards to Augie's response to  Littlejohn's troubles in the team challenge: "Half Cock?"

Are you as concerned as I am about the future of the show? Hit the comments and let me know.

I'll try and get my recap up before noon tomorrow, and might even throw up my analysis tomorrow as well since I don't think I will have time on Thursday.

Stay up to date on my latest posts by following me on Twitter @cswiets

Hey Look Over There!

I have a new feature on the blog. Take a look over to the left and you will see I have installed a blogroll. These blogs are not all specifically dedicated to Top Shot as this one is, but they all comment on the show in some form or the other, plus they give more insight than I ever could about weapons.

Now, because of the limitations of Blogger, I could not arrange these in the order I would like them to appear. Nonetheless, here is the rundown of what you can find over on the left.

First up is the OutdoorLife blog The Gun Shots. Red team, contestant Tim Trefren blogs weekly for them recapping episodes, providing added insight into what went down in the episodes, and some basic shooting tips.

The NRABlog features a lot more about shooting than it does about Top Shot, but editor Lars Dalseide recaps episodes weekly, taking a much more journalistic approach.

HausofGuns takes a less traditional approach to the recap as well, setting up their recap in more of a live commentary. The blog also features occasional interviews with past contestants.

Finally, Terry Vaughan's TV Empowers blog provides some much needed insight into the dynamics of the blue team. He recently posted a YouTube video with his reaction to "Crossbow Crossfire" in place of his written recaps, and reveals the real answer to this season's biggest question, "Why is everyone wearing bandanas?"

So if you just can't get enough Top Shot, there are a few more places you can check out. And while I'm good, I'd never discourage someone from finding another opinion.

Follow me on Twitter @cswiets

Talkin' 'bout Chris Cheng

Sorry for the delay here folks, I now I promised this yesterday but as much as I did not want it to, spring break got in the way.  I spent my time yesterday driving and enjoying the wonderful spring weather in Madison, Wis., and was unable to throw up this post.

The good news is I am back at home base, which means not only will I be able to watch Top Shot when it airs, but I'll be watching it in 52 glorious inches of high definition.

I'll take this guy over Hugh Jackman any day of the week.

This week, I'm focusing on red team member Chris "Van Helsing" Cheng. Cheng dominated the crossbow challenge this week, and has slowly been getting more screen time as the weeks go on. Bestowed with a new nickname and some new confidence, Cheng is starting to break out as one of the competitor's to watch this season.

Cheng started following me on Twitter this week, and so I'm returning the favor by doing a little cross promoting.

You can follow Cheng on Twitter @TopShotChris

And you can show your support by liking his Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/TopShotChris

Cheng also hosts weekly recaps and Q&A's for episodes that he records and posts on YouTube. You can check out his channel here:
http://www.youtube.com/user/TopShotChris

That's it for this edition of Talk' 'bout. Watch Cheng and the rest of the red team on this week's episode of Top Shot on Tuesday 10/9 c.

Come back tomorrow for a little Monday bonus.

Follow me on Twitter @cswiets

Friday Surprise: Home or the Range?

One of the many questions Colby was asking over Twitter during this week's episode is whether viewers thought the cameras should show more of what goes on at the house, or if more time on the show should be spent focusing on the range. Based on the responses Colby was getting and retweeting, I thought I would take a look at how well Top Shot divides its screen time between the two locales, and how the show would change if there was more or less emphasis placed on either.

 I would argue Top Shot, right now, is serving a happy medium between the time spent at the house and that spent on the range. I realize it is a bit of a cop-out to not really criticize the show, but let's look at the structure of the show. Episodes always begin back at the house, but this time is brief. It shows the contestants nailing the targets to the wall and maybe a little time with the team that lost the previous challenge as they discuss how they can rebound in the next challenge. Then its off to the range for a little banter with Colby, and then practicing with that week's weapon. There's a brief visit back at the house as the teams gear up for the challenge, then its off to shooting again. As, I'm writing this, even I'm getting a little bored, so I'm going to assume you know the rest without me picking through it.

What I'm trying to say is the show has a good balance between seeing what happens in the house and what happens on the range. The house portions of the show are necessary for the audience to gain a better understanding of the team dynamics. And even for the parts that end up being shown from the house, there is still so much that is cut out. I'm thinking specifically of Season 2 where we didn't find out until the epilogue episode about the secret alliance that had been in place for the majority of the season, and that there was an  awesome Nerf gun showdown that went on in the house. This shows that there really isn't anything being shown in the house bits that isn't critical to helping the audience understand the progression of the contest.

Think of it this way: In the current season the main theme has been the fractured blue team. If the house portions of the show were cut out, it would be a lot harder to understand why the blue team was having a hard time pulling themselves together. If the only vantage the audience was shown was the practice and the challenge there would be a pretty big disconnect that the audience would have to reconcile. Blue team is full of talented shooters, and on the practice range they have shown their prowess in being able to adapt to different weapons. However there is a big difference between a practice session and pressure filled challenges, which is where things have been falling apart for the blue team. The time spent at the house helps give a better understanding for why the are not functioning as a team, and more importantly helps the audience better understand the decision making process among contestants when teams are sent to the elimination range.

At the same time cutting down on the time spent showing the shooting would be disingenuous to the shows nature. This is a competition show, and while it is good to see how the competitors operate, cutting back on the competition parts would sacrifice what most of the audience is tuning in for. I for one, cannot get enough exploding targets, fast paced shooting, and close contests that often get "All tied up!"

In addition we also have enough cutaways to the one-on-ones with contestants that help give a better idea for how they feel about the challenges, their performance, and the performances of their teammates.

Overall, Top Shot continues to hold its competition and its contestants in the highest integrity. It is the rare reality show that has not fully succumb to the temptation of focusing solely on the drama between the contestants. Instead, it keeps the drama where it belongs, on the intense competition displayed each week.

So what do you like more, home, or the range? Hit the comments and let me know.

Come back tomorrow for this week's edition of Talkin' 'bout.

Follow me on Twitter @cswiets