Mr. Topp and the Big Bad Blog

The Big Bad Blog is wrapping up our first year, and we now take a quick look back at the most popular bits from the blog this year.

Honorable mention: Rule Obsessions
We have written quite a bit about roleplaying here at the Big Bad Blog over the past year, but none of these articles have made our top five. Our look at those who are obsessed by the canonical text of the rulebooks proved to be the most read of these articles in 2009.

#5: The Bill Gates mock facebook page
This would seem to require no further introduction. Simply sharing a photo found online was the fifth most popular item on the blog in its first year. With 423 views, it was the only member of the top five not to garner 500 views.

#4: War of the Tubes

Back in August, I discovered that there exists a Cardboard Tube Fighting League, with chapters worldwide. It’s a fantastic idea, and a whirlwind of research quickly led to what would become the fourth most read article on the Big Bad Blog in its first year.

#3: Imprison the tourists
The first article on the Big Bad Blog to gain over 1,000 views, this was the first piece on what was to become a repeating theme on the Big Bad Blog — the harassment of photographers by the police.

Not surprisingly, this theme arrived around the same time as my photography hobby began and the photoblog category truly sprang to life.

#2: The Microsoft Dilemma
In June this year, it was reported that Microsoft would have to ship Windows 7 without Internet Explorer in Europe — but left to the company to determine how this was to be done. Microsoft later came up with a solution, and the European Commission dropped its case against them in December.

#1: The Marshmallow March
Shortly after buying my Nikon D300, the London Marathon was scheduled with the route passing only two blocks from my flat here in London. I wandered out to the race with my new camera, determined to take a ton of fantastic photos.

Nicole had told me that two of her friends were going to be running the race dressed as the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, and asked me to get a photograph of them. So I waited for them, long past the time when I would have otherwise left.

I was not disappointed — her two friends rounded the corner carrying a giant Stay Puft on a metal frame. I snapped away, and dutifully created the resulting blog post shortly following the race.

What a reaction I received.

I simply could not believe it, and continually refreshed my stats to watch the number of views increase. They finally topped out just short of 25,000 views — although that milestone has since been reached via the occasional random web surfer passing through. People were coming in from all over the internet, and it was fascinating to surf back to these places and see people coming in.

The marshmallow march shows how strange the Internet can be. Completely random things can simply catch lightning in a bottle, and what you wrote — or your photograph — can suddenly be everywhere.

Prior to this, I had only had approximately 5,000 views in the life of the Big Bad Blog — three photographs combined to get five times that number in approximately 72 hours. Today, that article still counts for nearly a third of all visits to the Big Bad Blog.

Hence, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man is crowned the champion of the Big Bad Blog for 2009:

I am not sure how I managed to reach the age of thirty-two without learning about this. There is an organisation out there which is truly inspired. It represents the best of a world connected by intertubes. It is awesome in concept, awesome in practice.

It is the Cardboard Tube Fighting League.

Born in Seattle, Washington, the league has spread to include chapters in San Francisco and Sydney, Australia. Philadelphia, New York City and Washington, DC are working towards opening new chapters according to the Facebook group. This raises a question: Why are there not more? In particular, why is there no league in London?

Clearly, London needs such a thing. It is something that could work in London, too — there seem to be millions of people here who seem to enjoy such things, and ample park space in which to hold impromptu (or promptu) events.

Potential organisers should begin by learning the Cardboard Tube fighting rules:

1. First Rule of CTFL: Don’t break your tube. In a duel, the last person with an unbroken tube is declared the winner. In the event that both participants break their tubes at the same time, the game is a draw, and both duelists are considered losers.

9. Shields are officially banned in tournaments.

The Big Bad Blog would also like to encourage potential organisers to follow the SF chapter’s lead and reward cardboard-fighting champions appropriately. Mr Topp awaits his invitation to the first ever London tube fighting event. Londoners can expect an announcement here the moment we learn of a tournament in the area.

Those elsewhere are encouraged to create their own league chapters, organise their own tournaments, and keep an eye on their local listings for events. Together, we can make this into a worldwide phenomenon of awesome. Those in Winnipeg and Long Beach are encouraged to take a look at their local Facebook pages.

Many thanks to izismile.com for introducing us to the concept with their photo compilation.