Shawn Rhoden

[Primemuscle]

By himself he looks ok. But when he stands next to the the top 5 he disappears.

It is a shame that people still believe size is king. It isn't.

[Primemuscle]

Size wise, sure..

But is that really as important?  I see too many of those guys looking like bloated messes.

Proportion, symmetry, balance and how aesthetically pleasing a physique looks should be more important than how big a competitor looks.

Again, just my opinion, I could be looking at it the wrong way.

"1"

Yours is an opinion I happen to agree with.

[delta9mda]

I am not sure.

What I am thinking is that the original purpose of bodybuilding has probably morphed into something completely different.

As a young kid, I would read about Arnold Schwarzenegger competing in the Mr. Olympia, alongside guys like Zane, Mentzer, Robinson, Nubret etc. and I would always comment to my friends how much balanced and statue-like proportions those men were able to achieve. It was not so much about who was the freakiest, but moreover who embodied the "sport" better.

Many of the guys I see today lack proportion, are strong in a select group of body parts and/or just look like they do not embody the essence of "bodybuilding".

Fuck that, maybe I am having my period or something... Just not that impressed this year.

"1"

The David statue has proportions that are totally swimmer like. Is this what you want?

[dyslexic]

If it were up to me, I would give it to Shawn.

It's a bodybuilding contest and out of the bulk of the competitors, he is one of the very few that brought a balanced physique with great conditioning and flow.

His build is aesthetically pleasing.

I agree 100% ~ I've felt this way for a while. Very aesthetically pleasing. Very "Wheelerish" ~ sure, he ain't as big as the others, but I thought we were making a move in that direction. He would be perfect for setting that standard of build.

Not enough people agree... it is what it is, but I'm with you mang!

[OneMoreRep]

The David statue has proportions that are totally swimmer like. Is this what you want?

Remember how Arnold used to look? Well, I think that what he looked like at his biggest should serve as a benchmark for what these guys should aim for (with improvements relative to the competitor's genetic strengths of course - Think along the lines of Richard Jones).



What's the purpose of "building" your body if you lose proportion, symmetry and make yourself look relatively foolish when set alongside the general population? A freak show might be appealing for a few schmoes seeking spanking material, but bodybuilding should still remain like that of an art that seeks to embellish, not detract from the male physique.

Bigger is not necessarily better. Roelly, for instance, looks more like a walking photoshopped competitor, than he does a professional bodybuilder. Big muscles yes, but is it aesthetically pleasing??





"1"

[Rudee]

I got Shawn "droopy eyes" Rhoden 3rd.

[Cableguy]

If shawn improves his back and conditioning, that's Mr O right there. Beautiful flowing lines. Reminds me of a combination of Flex and Thierry Pastel. That's what bodybuilding should be about. That's what used to inspire me. Certainly not these bloated messes waddling around the stage today. I am "dissapoint".

[deceiver]

Haha! Mea culpa, Chimps. Missed that series, but just downloaded the episodes. Looking forward to them.

Myslisz, ze jak napiszesz cos po francusku to bedziesz fajny, glupio-madry trollu? Pashol na huy.

Rhoden has no back. If he did, he would have won or placed close second. Wheeler had better arms, cleaner Lines and WAY better back (one of the best of all times).

[The Scott]

Remember how Arnold used to look? Well, I think that what he looked like at his biggest should serve as a benchmark for what these guys should aim for (with improvements relative to the competitor's genetic strengths of course - Think along the lines of Richard Jones).



What's the purpose of "building" your body if you lose proportion, symmetry and make yourself look relatively foolish when set alongside the general population? A freak show might be appealing for a few schmoes seeking spanking material, but bodybuilding should still remain like that of an art that seeks to embellish, not detract from the male physique.

Bigger is not necessarily better. Roelly, for instance, looks more like a walking photoshopped competitor, than he does a professional bodybuilder. Big muscles yes, but is it aesthetically pleasing??





"1"

Do you recall what Sinatra said about what many (myself included) consider the greatest dance routine of all as performed by beautiful  Eleanor Powell and dashing Fred Astaire, to "Begin The Beguine" in the film "That's Entertainment"?

"You can wait around and hope, but you're never gonna see the likes of this again."

Bu it could happen with bodybuilding.  A return to sanity would be a welcome respite form the madness of mass for the sake of ass.   It would take the likes of a Frank Zane or Bob Paris but for it to work the size queens have to be exorcised from the judging panels.  Only someone with power and the backing (and admiration) of the public could do that.   That someone might be Arnold.

Now then as to Shawn.  His physique is nice but among the newer contestants I prefer Lionel.  That kid just lights the place up.  I have him in the top six but we shall see. 

[deceiver]

The problem is that being shredded and small is far "easier" to achieve than being HUGE and ripped. That is why, if he limited contest only to aesthetic physiques and got rid of mass monsters it would be extremely hard to judge the contest. The mass and condition are objective and easy to judge, aesthetics are highly subjective. We actually never progressed "towards" mass monsters, we actually progressed towards more objective judging and guys like Dorian abused that. Was he more aesthetic that everyone else? That is disputable but there is no doubt that he was bigger and leaner than anyone.

In my opinion you have to kill the poison with the poison itself. We have to make another huge leap towards more transparent, objective judging and create scalable, easy to follow point system that anyone could relate to. Then we can easily set penalties for things we want to get rid of like guts, big waists, torn bodyparts, gyno and because of the transparency everyone would know that sayl Ramy got 7th because he had 5 points penalty for gyno.

To me the fact that after the contest people have to speculate on why judges gave this or that guy worse placing than most of the audience thought is just wrong. At most they (people managing the media coverage like MD, RX etc.) base that on some hearsay, rarely they pull one judge and ask him to speak his mind during an interview.

[arce1988]

  I think he looks like a mini Flex           

[The Ugly]

Lacks thickness, and his back fades away right in the middle...
At this level, this is unacceptable.

Jesus, Flex has so much more going on in the back. Not close.

[The_Punisher]

Complete physique....The quads are impressive.....his placing should be top 6....back needs work