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The editors have devised a rating system known as "tocks," alarm clocks, in honor of Milo's faithful watchdog guide in The Phantom Tollbooth. 

Scalar ratings are an imprecise and incomplete way of conveying the feelings of a reviewer.  The Phantom
Tollbooth provides the scalar rating as a convenience to our readers--a quick way to gauge the reviewer's overall feeling toward the material.  The ratings do not denote excellence or deficiencies in any one particular area, but a combination of all of the reviewer's standards of judgment (such as musical ability, production, lyrical quality, alignment with Christian views, etc.).  Because reviewers differ, their standards for judging an album will differ. Therefore, The Phantom Tollbooth urges the reader to not use the scalar rating as an authoritative opinion on the material, but to read the review itself.  This will provide a more complete understanding of the material's merits or downfalls according to the reviewer's individual standards--something that 1 to 5 tocks just can't do. 

Each album is awarded up to five tocks according to the following ratings: 

     5 - great album - a must buy 
     4 - a strong album - worth checking out 
     3 - a decent album - but nothing great 
     2 - below average - for the serious fan 
     1 - a very disappointing album