Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Review: Nashville NightWatch (AUDL)

Part of the series critiquing professional ultimate team logos and nicknames.

Team: Nashville NightWatch

Web: http://nashvillenightwatch.com/ // twitter: NSH_NightWatch

Representation: City // League: AUDL

Disc within logo?: No. // Ultimate element in team name?: No.

Background: The NightWatch name is meant to epitomize the team owners' "sense of responsibility and vigilance to both the Nashville community and the sport of ultimate as a whole." The design on the collar comes from the Tennessee state flag.

First impression(s) from SLUDGE: The grooming style is very Kenny Powers (Eastbound & Down) with an ensemble like that of Dread Pirate Roberts and Hamburglar. Also, the Nashville NightWatch-man and Gmail bandit might be cousins.



Eli's Eval: Overall this is a pretty good start but the design begins to break down under a little bit of scrutiny. The font seems like an odd choice – slightly chubby with some art deco elements like lowered cross bars, and an italic slant that may or may not be forced. The kerning is sloppy – giant gap between the N and A and again between the S and H, and again and again after that. Both city and team name are all-caps, so the only thing differentiating them is color and the hairline dropshadow on the team name. The city name is slightly smaller than team name but this needs more contrast of scale to really separate the two.

The logo is also nice enough, but needs help to feel finished. There are things like the black strokes at either end of the hat band and the rounded bump on the back of the bandana/mask that feel rushed or totally unnecessary. The pointy ends of the long hair don’t really point in any direction, and the white stroke around them reinforces the haphazard feel. Perhaps they should all three point straight out? I like the inclusion of the state flag's three-stars in a circle on the collar, but the combination of a gray (why not white?) and small scale make it nearly disappear. You could get rid of the red piping on the collar of our hero and have more room for this element. The curve of the brim of the hat seems to be a bit too high, which raises the top of the hat itself to an uncomfortable height. This just needs a bit more time in under the watch of a pro and it could be great.

:Eli's Grades:
Grade: B
On Logo: B+
On Typography: B- (not terrible, but not imaginative)

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