Forum - View topicBest Hero/Heroine Tournament: Finished!
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18212 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Yes, that comment really wasn't necessary or appropriate, arachneia. You'd do well not to repeat such behavior.
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murph76
 Posts: 3291 Location: Akron, OH |
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Group C-29
Nausicaa, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind vs. Kurau Amami, Kurau Phantom Memory Voting for Nausicaa. Reason: I give Nausicaa the edge here because not only is she fighting to protect her people and her enemies, she's fighting to save the one thing everyone else wants to get rid of -- the poison forest. Only Nausicaa truly understands what the Sea of Decay is doing to clean the world, and she and her people have learned to live in balance with it. Everyone else wants to destroy it, thinking they can reclaim the land by doing so. Plus, Nausicaa risks her life to save a baby ohmu, injuring herself in the process and later sacrificing herself to placate the ohmu stampede. Group C-29 Monkey D. Luffy, One Piece vs. Duck/Princess Tutu, Princess Tutu Voting for Duck. Drosselmeyer admitted it himself: The addition of a single character to his story -- Duck -- completely changed its outcome and his control over it. Duck's singleness of purpose impacts those around her, changing everything for the better. |
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Mad_Scientist
 SubscriberModerator  Posts: 3011 |
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Group C-29
Nausicaa, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind vs. Kurau Amami, Kurau Phantom Memory My vote: Nausicaa Both sound like strong heroes, and both are from series I haven't seen, so it's a little difficult to make a choice. But Nausicaa just sounds like a stronger candidate; Key in particular makes some good arguments in her favor. If Nausicaa has all or most of Kurau's strengths in equal or superior measure, but lacks her weaknesses, than Nausicaa deserves to win. Group C-29 Monkey D. Luffy, One Piece vs. Duck/Princess Tutu, Princess Tutu My vote: Duck No surprise here, but I'll be brief about my reasons because I don't have tons of time, and huge arguments in Duck's favor aren't really needed yet. Duck is one of, if not the, most selfless and brave characters I've seen in any anime, or any show for that matter, and she struggles against not just other people (or waterfowl  ), but against the forces of fate and the story itself.
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nightjuan
 Posts: 1473 |
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Making up for last time, at least in a way.
Group C-29 Nausicaa, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind vs. Kurau Amami, Kurau Phantom Memory Voting for Nausicaa. Kurau is certainly heroic as well, but a lot of her efforts are seemingly centered around protecting Christmas and though that's not a bad thing at all, being mostly circumstantial and not out of mere choice, in practice that gives her opponent the opportunity to display a wider range of actions, even if we're comparing a movie to a TV series, going by the clips and descriptions. Group C-29 Monkey D. Luffy, One Piece vs. Duck/Princess Tutu, Princess Tutu Voting for Duck, in large part due to the clips and previous arguments, which show how she is able to radically alter the outcome of situations that are supposed to be way beyond her capabilities. Luffy is more of a straightforward action hero, with enough courage and devotion for his friends to be sure, but doesn't really have to face the same kind of challenges and risks. In a way, he's doing what's expected of him, over and over again. |
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18212 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Round 4 Group C is now closed.
Though Kurau made a valiant comeback after an early big deficit, she ran out of steam barely short of taking the lead, allowing Nausicaa to ultimately secure a 13-8 victory. The indomitable Duck once again proved indomitable, whipping yet another opponent 19-2. With such powerful support, does Nausicaa even have a chance of keeping her out of the Final Four next round? The last two matches of the round of 16 are coming up shortly. We have what could be a couple of good ones on tap, though I suspect that a Gurren Lagann showdown could be on the horizon. . . EDIT: Originally posted vote totals were slightly off but have now been fixed. Last edited by Key on Mon Jul 06, 2009 11:54 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18212 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Round 4 Group D is now open!
Two representatives from Gurren Lagann vs. representatives from two of anime's most respected fantasy titles. Can Youko and/or Ashitaka handle the overwhelming manly spirit of the other two? That remains to be seen. . . Group D-29 Ashitaka, Princess Mononoke vs. Kamina, Gurren Lagann Group D-30 Simon, Gurren Lagann vs. Youko Nakajima, The Twelve Kingdoms |
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LydiaDianne
 Posts: 5633 Location: Southern California |
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Group D-29
Ashitaka, Princess Mononoke vs. Kamina, Gurren Lagann I'm going to go with Ashitaka, in the long run he's the better hero and probably saved more people than Kamina did. Group D-30 Simon, Gurren Lagann vs. Youko Nakajima, The Twelve Kingdoms Sticking with Youko for all of ther previous reasons that I've stated before. She overcame her situation, defeated her self-doubt and madness, and became a good Queen. |
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zawa113
 Posts: 7358 |
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D-29: Kamina
Sure Ashitaka wants to unite man and nature to live together nicely, but my problem with him is he's too much on an idealist and I don't find him believable. On the other hand, Kamina does the impossible and is one of the most inspirational characters I've ever seen in anime. Kamina's heroism doesn't necessarily come from his awesome fighting skill or his manliness (not that those hurt), but from being the inspiration for just about every character in the entire series. spoiler[He manages to remain a main character even after his death and his presence helps snap Simon out of the alternate realities towards the end of the series]. Ashitaka might be a good fighter with his heart in the right place, but compared to Kamina, Ashitaka really isn't enough for me. D-30: Simon I do find it rather ironic that Kamina's clip shows one of Simon's least heroic moments ever. But anyway, he's a clear world saver, he even spoiler[punches a hole through time and space to stop a character that, by that point, has most likely greatly offended the audience and tried to have Simon put to death, from killing himself. LET'S SEE YOU GRIT THOSE TEETH!]. He also gets Duck points spoiler[meaning that no matter how hard both characters worked, they weren't the ones with the happy ending. In Simon's case, Nia] |
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18212 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Group D-29
Ashitaka, Princess Mononoke vs. Kamina, Gurren Lagann This match is a contrast of two individuals at the polar opposite ends of the action spectrum. Kamina is bold, brassy, and driven by an indomitable spirit to face any threat head-on (with occasional lapses of dignity along the way - see the hot springs episode). Ashitaka is down-to-earth, pragmatic, and devoted to trying to find the most peaceful path for man and beast. Both are incredibly resilient and perform all manner of heroic deeds. Kamina has an edge because of the way he inspires others and helps Simon to realize his potential. Ashitaka has an edge because of the nobility of his purpose and the way he unflinchingly confronts his fate. I want to vote for Kamina, and think he'll win by a healthy margin because he's ultimately a more colorful personality, but I feel that Ashitaka is actually the better hero by a slim margin. In such a tight race, I have to point to Kamina's behavior in the hot springs episodes, and his disinclination to ever pay attention to common sense, as minor negatives against him that Ashitaka doesn't have. Group D-30 Simon, Gurren Lagann vs. Youko Nakajima, The Twelve Kingdoms Whereas the other match was a study in contrasts, this one is more a study in similarities, as it pits anime's two greatest examples of developmental heroes against each other. Simon and Youko both start out as fairly pathetic individuals but gradually learn to grow out of it and assume great responsibilities as leaders of their respective peoples, in the process becoming worthy individuals themselves. Both struggle with self-doubt but successfully battle to overcome it. Simon is a more dynamic figure who performs deeds on a greater scale, while Youko must ultimately deal with more complicated issues of justice, responsibility, consolidation of power, and governance. Simon will ultimately win this match (and probably should), but like with last round, I can't let a character as good as Youko go down so easily. As this new clip for her (which I rate among my all-time Top 5 Anime Scenes) shows, she isn't just trying to inspire others or fight to protect her kingdom; she's trying to change the hearts and minds of her people for the better by rejecting one of the fundamental tenets of life in her world. That has to be respected. |
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Dorcas_Aurelia
 Posts: 5344 Location: Philly |
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Current mini-game standings here.
Key pulls ahead again, returning to a 7 point lead Mad_Scientist. Both Olliff and mow slipped back to third and fourth place, respectively. Abunai remains solidly in fifth place, fourteen points behind Key. In addition to Key's point lead, none of his later round picks have been eliminated, while several of the others near a few of the others near the front of the pack have lost one of their final four picks. At this point of the game, just over half of the mini-game entrants have been knocked out (for those of you who had been paying attention and think this seems like a major spike, I apparently forgot to eliminate some contenders from my calculations a few rounds ago and just corrected the mistake), but of the remaining ten, nine could still possibly win it all. |
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ccdx
 Posts: 312 |
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All brackets and mini-game scores updated at: http://home.comcast.net/~unirizer2/
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DarkGyraen
Posts: 34 |
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Group D-29
Ashitaka, Princess Mononoke vs. Kamina, Gurren Lagann Vote-Ashitaka: This one is very easy for me. I’ve always thought Kamina’s “Heroics” were incredibly over rated, as all he ever did was charge head first into everything without thinking about any of the consequences. He’s the kind of guy who points at a giant robot and says, “I want that!” That’s not heroic, that’s just stupid. He manages to inspire others through that, I don’t know why anyone would follow him, but they do and I’ll give him some credit for that. Ashitaka on the other hand, is one of those pinnacles of heroism and self-sacrifice to me. He doesn’t ask to be cursed for defending his village, but he does it because someone needs to, and then he pays the price of exile for having saved lives. Even then, he doesn’t get angry about it, he simply accepts what has happened and sets out to try and change the world. He’s not afraid to use violence when necessary, but he also doesn’t resort to it instantly. He’s calm, collected and strong, and he’s willing to make personal sacrifices when needed. spoiler[Kamina did sacrifice himself, but I’ve never believed it was intentional, I just think the world caught up to his antics is all.] In the end, beyond blind love for Gurren Lagann, which will keep Kamina in this fight far longer than he should, he simply doesn’t match up on any level in my eyes to Ashitaka. Group D-30 Simon, Gurren Lagann vs. Youko Nakajima, The Twelve Kingdoms Vote-Youko: I’m sure after this one, I’ll come across as a Gurren Lagann hater, and while I have my qualms with that show, my decisions here are based on the fact that I think both characters are going against stronger contenders. I’ll give that I like Simon better than Kamina, but again, he doesn’t match up in my eyes to Youko. If you think about it actually, Simon never stands on his own two feet at any point during the show, so he’s not as heroic as people seem to think he is. spoiler[In the beginning, he’s simply riding Kamina’s coat tails, and once he dies, then Simon has to find someone else to latch onto to get him out of his stupor, eventually having Nia support him. With a lot of support from the Gurren Brigade, they go and earn their freedom. When Nia gets turned into the Anti-Spiral messenger, Simon again goes off into a corner to die, until Viral and Yoko come and snap him out of it. At the end of the show, when they save the day and Nia disappears, he again goes off into a corner to curl up and be forgotten, only this time, nobody snaps him out of it and he spends the rest of his life being a loser, despite what he could offer the society he’s ultimately responsible for. Even throughout the fights, he doesn’t do anything on his own; his crappy leadership requires the sacrifice of nearly the entire Gurren Brigade in order to cover up his faults. ]Personally, I find him to be a particularly mediocre hero, but one that has rampant fan love with little reason. Youko on the other hand, is a much stronger character and hero. She does a lot of what she has to, on her own, and in a tougher situation in my opinion. She’s simply a young school girl pulled out of her world, thrown into a mystical world that she believed shouldn’t have existed, and had enemies try to kill her from the outset. She has help too, but most of the time she has to find her own inner strength to overcome her obstacles. On top of which, she has to learn to become a good leader, to know the sacrifices she must make for the better of all the people. I think it’s beneficial to a degree for Youko here that you see her grow and mature over the course of a longer series. With Simon, there’s the time skip, and you don’t see the growth and maturing with him that you get with Youko. Either way, she’s easily my pick as I don’t think Simon really matches up with her at all. Last edited by DarkGyraen on Tue Jul 07, 2009 1:14 am; edited 1 time in total |
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ccdx
Posts: 312 |
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Group D-29
Ashitaka, Princess Mononoke vs. Kamina, Gurren Lagann I feel this matchup is a lot easier to decide between than most. Ashitaka clearly wins against a bold but otherwise weak hero. Kamina is considerably more of a inspirational leader than a hero, and he plays this role well. He uses his loud mouth to challenge most people he meets to a fight and to inspire others to band together. That's how he solves the problems he is faced with, through tough manly, out of control at times, aggressiveness. He often doesn't think things through. He doesn't stop to consider what negative consequences his actions may reap. He is just trying so hard to show his toughness and inspire others to act. spoiler[Sadly his run is cut short. There are only eight episodes he appears in before he dies. Would he have "grow up" a little? Become more mature? No one will know. Probably not...] Ashitaka is an incredibly sharp contrast to Kamina. He's calm, cool, collected, thinks very rationally and acts accordingly to the situation presented before him. His cause is always noble and just. He works to stop the fighting, not propel it further. His understanding of the world around him and ability to gain the trust of others is unparalled. I'd be much more interested to see a Ashitaka vs. Simon matchup, as it is quite clear what would happen in a Kamina vs. Simon matchup. Group D-30 Simon, Gurren Lagann vs. Youko Nakajima, The Twelve Kingdoms Simon all the way. Even despite Simon's obvious early weaknesses as a hero, he slowly becomes what Kamina never could have. A mixture of the two. A quick thinking inspirational leader always with the people's best interest and safety in mind. |
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18212 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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If it's any consolation to those pursuing me, I will again assert that I likely picked at least one, and possibly two, of the Final Four wrong. (Of course, I'm also fairly confident that if one certain of my Final Four picks goes down, he'll take a lot of other contenders down with him.  )
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guet
 Posts: 492 Location: Sparta |
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Group D-29
Ashitaka, Princess Mononoke vs. Kamina, Gurren Lagann Voting for: Kamina Reason: Kamina is the inspiration for a planet-wide uprising, a leader who despite the lack of experience brings humans together and gives them hope where they had none. In my mind this match should not even be close, but more and more I'm finding my view of heroics much different from the majority in this tournament. Group D-30 Simon, Gurren Lagann vs. Youko Nakajima, The Twelve Kingdoms Voting for: Simon Reason: If Kamina is the inspiration that starts the fight for freedom, then Simon is not only Kamina's inspiration, but he also grows over the course of the series to the point where he surpasses Kamina in both leadership and heroics. |
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