“I stopped in my tracks, sweat ran down my brow. Spinning around, I saw my assassin standing there, an evil grin in their eyes. I pleaded for my survival, but no mercy came about.” Zac Ciomperlik, a senior at Austin High, joined over 200 of his classmates in participating in this year’s game of senior assassins. Entry only requires $20, after which during the first round you are given three weeks to eliminate your target while trying to not get eliminated yourself.
“It’s been a wonderful experience getting to know my classmates, where they live, all that,” noted senior Benno Schulz. “I’ve become sharper, hunting man, the most dangerous prey, you know what hunting does to a man? It changes them.” For many, the thrill of the hunt is what drives them to participate. “I see red,” commented senior Sachel Omar. “I feel like a lion, looking at a deer about to pounce. About to make my day with this kill.” According to Nash Parker, “I also see red, I imagine [my target] crying in a corner after I remove his existence.”
Alternatively, senior Ryan Dworksy, his mission was to eliminate “someone in the coolest way possible. I went to [my target’s] house and.. Uh.. she died [in the game]. I made a very nice edit of it over King Von.” Ryan also discussed the physical benefits of the game. “My cankles have become a lot stronger from leaping. I’m not going to explain that further because that is a part of my strategy.”
Not everyone has enjoyed the game, however. According to Ryan, “I see [senior assassin] as a lot of rage, and dismay between people who don’t feel like they should be out because of how poorly the rules have been going so far.” Disputes over rules and stipulations have been rampant within discussions, with some believing certain groups have gotten favorable treatment. Additionally, many believe the rules have been too lenient in general. “I think it’s kind of stupid that there would be any time that you can’t get shot [in the game], just in general,” mentioned Ryan. “I think that it should just always be on. High risk, high reward, that’s the point of the game.” As Ryan stated these comments, an aggressor with opposing beliefs to this opinion attempted to silence the interviewee, who calmly continued with his statement. “For the following years of senior assassins, the game needs to intensify. The rules need to shift in favor of the strongest surviving instead of the weak having a chance to wobble on the floor.” Critiques of the game argue that the current rules make the game last too long and not intense enough.
Senior Luke Henry Silvers and self-stated 18 years young shared similar beliefs. “The issue was getting my person out took a pretty hard mental toll on me,” remarked Luke. “Quite frankly, it was just annoying to have to try to go get my person. So I just, I didn’t, I kind of gave up.” For Luke, his reason for leaving the game came from interpersonal dilemmas. “I’m more philosophical. I think because I have an issue with just ‘childhood’. It was more of a constrained development. My parents were very strict. [I felt] chained up all the time. I felt by these restrictions of having to go get this person, having to find them, destroy them, and take away their enjoyment, I just couldn’t do it.” Luke’s childhood reemerged as he participated in these games, which acted as an unwelcome reminder to his past. “Senior Assassin started to become a bit of a moral issue. Honestly, quite frankly, it was a case of reverse Stockholm syndrome. My target, lets call him Ander Dingus, I wasn’t necessarily falling in love with them but it was more of like, I feel bad. I can’t do this anymore.”
So why did Luke sign up in the first place? “Peer pressure. It still gets to us sometimes. It’s an issue and I’m dealing with it constantly… constantly.”
Still, Luke conceded that the overarching message of this senior game was good in its intentions. “It’s all fun and games. There are no hard feelings involved when it comes to Senior Assassins. Because if there are hard feelings, quite frankly, you’re just getting booted out. You’re just out of there. Quite frankly.” With this fun game comes a time to reflect on who we are, and what we wish to be. “Love comes in all shapes and colors, but at the end of the day it’s still just two dimensional. What this means is yes, you can love whoever you want. But first, before you love, you need to know what you are. Because you are more than just a two dimensional being. You are three, even four dimensional beings.”
As Senior Assassins come to an end, next year’s senior class gets a little glimpse as to what they can expect in their game during their last semester of high school.I’ve heard that you have started using the word frankly a lot more ever since you got a little. Mr. Zappa, is this true? “Okay, well, as we all know. The music that we surround ourselves with throughout our day life does have a profound impact on the way we carry ourselves. So, yes, if I do get into a bit of an avant garde artist by the name of Frank Zappa, who revolutionized the way modern art could be seen today. Yes, I’m going to take that and use that to influence my daily life.”
