User blog comment:Jkl9817/New frontpage, issue 1: Story sampler voting/@comment-1874924-20120505171300

Here are my thoughts:


 * The problem with Return to Total Drama Action (RTDA) is that all of its contestants are recycled from RTDI, and they don't get a proper introduction because RTDA rests on the assumption that the reader has already read the earlier story. If we include one of Brandon's stories, it really needs to be RTDI.
 * I like An Atmosphere, but I don't think it's sufficiently acclaimed to merit a spot on the front page. Its main selling point is the fact that it's a comic noncompetition story, and options #1 and #5 cover that ground with TWE. (#4 could also do so by replacing An Atmosphere with TWE, since #4 doesn't currently have a Nalyd story, and replacing AA with TWE would still be in keeping with the option 4 theme of sweeping change.)
 * Speaking of option #4, as much as I'd like to see TDI-G&S on the front page, Legacy is a far better representative for several reasons, which I've noted before and probably don't need to repeat here. I also agree that #4 doesn't have enough competition stories.
 * For Option #5, I suggest replacing An Atmosphere with The Beasts of Wawanakwa because Beasts represents another popular if thinly-populated genre, i.e. a collection of shorts where each chapter stands more or less alone. TWE arguably does this as well, but Beasts doesn't have TWE's meta quality and also uses (sort of) canon characters.
 * I don't think TWE's meta quality is necessarily a problem, and could be addressed in the story's description. (More on this in a moment.) TWE also represents an important genre in the TD fandom, i.e. the "starring you" story. This genre also includes competition stories that feature characters chosen via open auditions. (I don't know whether any of the competition stories being considered here are of that type or not.)
 * While I understand the appeal of having the story sampler represent all the categories in the library template, it's not strictly necessary. Indeed, a case could be made for using the sampler to represent additional categories. Most notably, the latter approach would allow us to resolve the "Collaborations or Crossovers" issue by giving split billing. We could, for example, put the Crossovers category in the libary template on the grounds that it would be of more interest to newcomers (who, after all, are the front page's target audience) and link to the Collaborations category in TWE's sampler description. TWE's description might thus be, "Our best-known Collaboration, featuring characters based on our users".

Bottom line: I like Option #5 best if we replace An Atmosphere with The Beasts of Wawanakwa. Option #1 is my second choice, but #5 has the advantage of including a newer competition story, i.e. Revolution.