I mean, I get what you're saying, but I've obviously never seen a detaching FITREP before, hence my question. I mean, if you got your ticket punched as a #7 of 12 at the CoC and then 2 months later you get your 1 of 1 detaching FITREP and it's written "My #1 of 12 water-walking LTs!"... is that typical? Sure you can say whatever you want when you're detaching and 1 of 1, I just didn't realize that was typical. Seems a bit transparent, unless I'm misunderstanding something.
If you got a #7 of 12 hard break-out on the last completive cycle I don't know if the CO would write "My #1 water-walking..." when you detach. A CO may, but it won't matter to the board.
The board values competitive FitReps primarily because the is little room for the CO to maneuver with the limits placed on EP's and MP's. The 1 of 1's may be considered in a tie-breaker situation but the soft-breakout isn't considered. Info in the write-up is considered especially results (inspections, etc.) or quals. But the soft-breakout is fodder.
When it comes to detaching FitReps about the only thing that matters was how your Trait Average compared to the Reporting Senior's Average (RSA). If you have a 1 of 1 and your Average is at or below the RSA, then the message to the board is you are 1 of 1 but you are average or below average. Regardless of the write-up, you are in the 50% of every FitRep the CO has signed.
If a CO tells you that he/she marks down the Trait Average on your detaching FitRep in order to keep his RSA lower, you are getting screwed.
If your Trait Average is well-above the RSA then that sends a message to the board as well. I will say that it is highly unlikely that an Officer will be a "pack player" but get a Trait Average well-above the RSA.
So a 1 of 1 can help if there is 'meat' in the write-up. It can hurt if your Trait Average is at or below the RSA. I've seen a couple of FitReps that have glowing write-ups but the Trait Average is at RSA. That is a direct message to the board about the CO's perception of that individual.