“Rock Rivalry through the Eyes of an 8th Grader”

I now present to you readers a review of this year’s Rock Rivalry Entrances and hall décor–written by me, an 8th grader who knows nothing about the scoring system or how any of it works.

Rock Rivalry 2021 has come to a close. Due to the pandemic, many events were virtual, live streamed for others, or recorded because of the restrictions. Despite all the hassle of these changes, I believe we had a productive, successful Rock Rivalry season. Everyone was very creative with their ideas and put up a good fight to the finish for the beloved Cup. So today I am here to give my reviews of the two events I saw for Rock Rivalry: hall decorating and entrance. I will be judging Entrance on 3 categories: storyline, music, and creativity. Hall décor will be judged on relation to the theme and overall appeal. 

Freshman:

The fact that the 9th grade tried this year with no previous experience (and very little viewing experience) is phenomenal. And for their first time, they did really well. I liked the creativity of the cooking show in Las Vegas. They also had some nice music choices. However, the storyline might be their downfall. In the beginning I was very confused about the story and what it was about. Later on I realized that it was a version of Romeo and Juliet. The 2 families are fighting but the 2 kids want to spend time together. It was a good plot, but it took me too long to figure it out so I spent most of their confusion on what was going on. Additionally, their locker decorating was a nice attempt, but needed some work. It related well because it was Las Vegas themed, but there could have been more related directly the plot. There was also not much about cooking even though the main plot was a cooking show. All in all, good job and I can’t wait to verse you next year!

Sophomores: 

I loved the sophomore’s Entrance. They were very creative with the monster high school competing in a competition. They had some funny jokes and I liked how developed their characters were. They had personalities and backstories and great singing voices. The story was fun and exciting. They were 4 groups of different monsters fighting for a prize that was what they deserve. They had to sing songs to pass to the next round but the ghost wouldn’t. So they made it to the end first and got what they deserved for cheating. I liked their Entrance and their song choices a lot. Their hall decorating was very fun. They had a grave for each dead character and some other grave that were empty or had other names on them. There was a start and finish line and a bunch of spooky decorations like moss and a creepy tree. They really went all out and did a fantastic job.

Juniors:

Way to go juniors! Their story was so good and had so much depth. It was about 2 rival flapper groups in the 1920s. They were going to a party when someone in the rival group was killed. The murder was framed on a flapper from the diamonds so the other members in her group help prove her innocence. They become investigators and find clues to figure out who the killer was. The story was very detailed and organized so no one was confused. They had a good twist of someone from the dead flappers group killed her. I think it would have been a better twist if the main diamonds boyfriend was the killer but that’s my opinion. They had some good songs with fun beats and nice word choice. The creativity was off the charts. It was a very different idea that I would never have thought of. They had a good idea and executed it well. Their hallway decorations were amazing. They decorated everything like the 1920s and had a taped out body area on the floor with police tape surrounding it. They also made a small theater stand with lights and headings. It related well to their entrance and was a very great design. CONGRATULATIONS JUNIORS!!!

Seniors: 

I really enjoyed what they made with their Entrance. The plot was amazing. It was about a group of students who bombed their futures after a senior prank went wrong and they all met up again after 20 years at their high school reunion. One kid said they could solve all their problems and they used a time machine to go back and fix their mistakes. Their story was creative and funny. They all had great singing voices and great song choices. The editing on the video was great too. They were also very in character and had great costumes and sets. It really screamed the 80’s. The hallway design was very basic but very 80’s at the same time. There were records and bright colors and different shapes and patterns. It wasn’t much but you don’t want to go overboard with all that or it might be too much color. They did just the right amount. They did a great job and I am sad to say farewell to them all. I wish you all the best of luck on your futures but worst case scenario, find the time machine locker and fix your mistakes.

I am glad I got to watch the entrances to Rock Rivalry. They were all very different and all amazing. I love the effort and excitement from the 9th grade class. The sophomores were very funny and were very creative. I liked all the characters and all their different personalities. The juniors had a very deep story that kept you on your toes. They also had a fun twist at the end. The seniors had a great story and great costume and designs. Everyone screamed the 80s and I enjoyed watching them. They all had a fighting chance and it was a nice war between them all. A big congratulations to the juniors on their victory in Rock Rivalry. I look forward to competing against you next year. I can’t wait to be a part of this because everyone has so much fun doing it and it is a great bonding experience with your classmates…but look out everyone–the class of 2025 is coming in to take you all down!