Also, a general update: As the crunch time for IFComp affects several participants, progress has slowed considerably, but we are actually getting close to complete in terms of prep work, perhaps 75-80% overall, so don’t worry!
I expect that the excess nervous energy generated by waiting for transcripts, reviews and results will contribute to rapid progress in early September. I’m not expecting to post much from behind the scenes until then, but I will try to get the draft FAQ posted sometime in the next two weeks.
This week, some challengers have been producing simulated versions of the kinds of items that chefs will be posting during the development period, in order to find out what types of materials will work best for the judges. (@Pacian has definitely led the charge here, going so far as to build the skeleton of a mini-game as a practice run!)
I’ve also created a library of 30+ potential challenge ingredients, so there’s no shortage there. However, a special note for audience members. For the pilot episode I plan to allow audience suggestions for the very first ingredient that will be used. (A FAQ will provide details on the prescribed format.) However, I’ll only be accepting those from people who have signed up as Tasters and are using the Taster flair, so be sure to sign up! (See post #59 above for details.)
Now that the hullabaloo of IFComp is settling down a bit, we’re wrapping up the primary planning for Iron ChIF. I want to thank everyone in the various working groups, all three of which have put in substantial effort in working out the details to make this happen.
Scheduling the pilot has turned out to be more difficult than expected due to the large number of people involved. To reduce the number of potential conflicts, it’s going to be necessary to hold the vote to select the premier challenger before the development period can be finalized.
The vote will go up this Friday September 26, and the voting period will last for 48 hours. A new thread will be created for the purpose, where the challengers will post their pitches for your consideration. Voters will be able to select up to five challengers, and the challenger with the most votes will become the very first to have a chance to cross keyboards with an Iron Chef.
Depending on which challenger is chosen (and which Iron Chef is challenged), the timing of the pilot may vary, but it is currently expected to take place either immediately before or immediately after the holiday season (i.e. mid-November or mid-January).
Also, sadly, Jim Nelson has let me know that he will need to withdraw as Iron Chef TADS for very understandable reasons. If no replacement can be found in time, TADS may not be an option for the pilot episode. We wish @jnelson the very best and thank him for his efforts during the planning stage.
I’ve closed the sign-up poll in the top post. Challengers, refine your pitches! It’s time to get this show on the road!
Choose up to five candidates. (Do not displease your ancestors by failing to use all votes! Choose five!) The candidate with the most votes will be the contestant for the pilot. In the event of a tie, the winner will be selected randomly.
As a reminder: Audience members are encouraged to sign up as official Tasters at the group page. Simply go to the group page and click the “Join” button at top right – it’s that easy.
Those who sign up and make use of the official Taster flair (a fork icon, available from your user preferences after becoming a group member) will be able to submit suggestions for the seed idea to be used in the pilot episode. See the FAQ above for details.
Less than 24 hours remain for the vote to select the Premier Challenger, and with almost 100 votes for individual candidates registered there is one challenger who is significantly in the lead.
Is it my imagination, or does the tiger begin to drool?
The pilot episode has been scheduled, and the event put on the community calendar. Thank you to all challengers who signed up and got the ball rolling at the top of this post, and thank you again to the large number of people who have contributed to making this happen. It’s been amazing!
