Forum - View topicBest Hero/Heroine Tournament: Finished!
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zawa113
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Hmm, yes I can see that being the meaning. I still don't think Simon needed everyone to yell at him after he became a full hero, he took charge and leadership, he didn't just pilot Lagann and listen to everyone else and blindly followed their orders, he took command, and being a commander is an important aspect for heroism that I really never saw in Ashitaka personally. |
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Kirkdawg
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I disagree that leader automatically equals hero or is somehow a necessary attribute of heroism. It may be something that naturally comes along, but it seems our opinions may be different, or am I wrong?
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ccdx
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I was never questioning Simon's awesome story of zero to hero. I just personally don't put much weight into it when judging his heroicness. A good story is great and all, but I need to judge them by their heroic qualities. How they deal with possible heroic situations. The decisions they make. To a lesser extend the deeds they accomplish. I thought that was the whole point of this tournament? Who is the most heroic. And if we look at Simon's early series behavior and add it together with everything he did, it's a seriously damning strike against him considering how much of a coward he was.
Well... yah... 
When did I say that non-planning was a strike against Simon? I just made the point that Ashitaka thinks before he acts and Simon most of time doesn't. Or is planning something ahead of time and thinking before you act the same thing? Whatever. I already mentioned the incident when he's fighting the first anti-spiral ship. Keep in mind he's a full hero by now. Yet instead of thinking of the consequences of what might happen by blindly rushing to destroy it, he causes much more damage and lives lost by doing so. This is the whole reason he was thrown in jail in the first place. And then, clearly wrongfully accused (he couldn't have known that would happen) he just goes along with his death sentence accepting his fate, even though he is clearly still needed to save the world.
Yah, you would be right. Except when you take into account Simon's last conversation with Viral before they were rescued by Youko I think its pretty clear what he was going to do: Viral: Seems like we were left to die. Simon: Yeah, your right. .... Viral: This is boring. To see you die like this. Simon: It's okay... As long as others can survive. I rest my case.
?? Ashitaka was ordered to travel to the west and see what evils were occurring there and if possible to do something about it. He certainly didn't refuse. He had the "drive" to see what he could do to help. How is this not the same thing? But more importantly, "Lucky enough to have the scenario drop on you." You make it sound like all that Ashitaka accomplished was just by pure luck. That his heroic deeds didn't mean as much because as you say, his heroic situations just fell into his lap. Why the hell does this matter? Whether you seek out heroic situations or they happen to find you, shouldn't matter. It's how you respond that counts.
No. What needed to be done was to defeat the evil anti-spiral nemesis and save all of humanity. Hard to accomplish such a feat when your locked in jail and unwilling to try and escape. |
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Mad_Scientist
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Duck campaign post, part 2. Let's discuss some of Duck's merits. Let me tell you why Duck deserves to win this tournament.
I think one thing people are overlooking with Duck is the sheer depth of her heroics. There are many ways to be heroic. You can save lives. You can redeem lives. You can inspire people. You can risk your life, or even sacrifice it (or be prepared to.) You can endure great pain, both physical and emotional. You can give up something other than your life, but still important and precious to you. You can fight against incredible odds or impossible forces and situations. And you can do these and other things not just for friends or those close to you, but for strangers and even enemies. And Duck does all those things. All of them. Duck redeems lives and heals hearts. This is a big part of the show early on, as she uses her powers to free people who have been ensnared by the pieces of Mytho's heart, which even early on proved to be a daunting task. And in some cases, especially later on, a dangerous task. The clip with the knight is an example of that, as Duck risked being killed and healed the lost soul of the knight. But Duck also redeemed people without using her powers as Princess Tutu, redeemed them simply through the strength of her actions and character. Fakir and Rue are two great examples of this. Fakir made it into this tournament, but anyone who just started watching the series now would wonder why. At the start, he is a rude and controlling jerk, someone who binds Mytho to his will and trys to stop him from regaining his heart. Yet by the end of the series, he shows that he definitely deserved to be here. Why? Duck is why. She changed him, transformed him from a horrible person into a truly couragious and caring person. As Fakir himself says near the end of the series, Duck is the one who changed him, who saved him. And Rue is in some ways an even more drastic example. Though Rue starts off as a nicer person than Fakir, her relationship and history with the Monster Raven transforms her. Fakir at least never outright attempted to kill Duck. But by the end of the series, Rue has been redeemed. How? Duck of course. Duck's strange friendship with Rue, her compassion towards her even at the worse times, he insistence that "Rue is Rue" and not Kraehe plays a big part in Rue's salvation, as the series shows through Rue's flashbacks and thoughts during her more conflicted times. Saving lives can be tough, but redeeming lives, saving people from themselves, saving souls, that can be even harder. Duck inspires people. Well, see above. Duck redeemed both Fakir and Rue, and she did so not through magical dancing or special powers. It was her determination, her compassion, her purity, the sheer strength of her character, that saved them. Duck saves lives, and saves people from a fate just as bad or worse than death. Princess Tutu isn't an action series by any means, but there is quite a bit of danger in it nonetheless. From Mytho falling out his window in the very first episode, to the massive and powerful Monster Raven threatening the entire town at the end, there were plenty of cases for Duck to protect people's lives. And she did so, quite well. She also fought to save people from a "fate worse than death," to use a cliche phrase. You can see this when Mytho tries to get a classmate to give up her heart to the Monster Raven. Exactly what happens to someone who has their heart devoured by the Monster Raven is never exactly stated, but I think we can say that it would be death at the best, akin to being kissed by a Dementer in Harry Potter at the worst. Duck saved several people from this horrible fate. Duck risks her life, and is even prepared to give it up. Even though Duck is certainly not an action hero, she does risk her life at times. This is shown in one of the clips, Duck's encounter with the knight. But that is not the only time Duck was in physical danger. The Monster Raven also posed a huge threat to the whole town, and Duck put herself on the line and was nearly beaten to death in the climax of the series. She was also even prepared to die at one point. While Duck may not have as many incidents of actual physical danger as some characters, the series makes it clear that she is ready and willing to risk her life if need be. She is ready to brave any danger. Duck endure great pain, both physical and emotional. Well, for the physical part, I did just mention how she was nearly beaten to death at the climax. She faced this struggle not as Princess Tutu, not even as a girl, but as a duck. A helpless duck. And she endured horrible pain as the transformed townspeople attacked her, and continued to dance no matter how many times they mauled her. As for emotional pain, I think the first two clips should give an idea of what Duck had to face. Duck loved Mytho, but could never confess her love to him. Duck endured hardship and mockery from many people, found herself stuck in horrible situations, braved the sadistic machinations of Drosselmeyer... some of the more extreme pain Duck had to go through is mentioned below, when I describe what Duck had to give up. As the show itself says, Duck was the only one who could accept Princess Tutu's fate, a horrible fate, doomed to have no connection to the the one she loves and saves. Duck showed incredible selflessness, and gave up something precious. Spoiler alert incoming. spoiler[At the end of the series, Duck not only does not get her prince, Mytho, she also gets permanently turned back into a duck, unable to even properly talk to the people she loves or cares for, such as Fakir, whom she has grown very close to by that point.] And yes, Duck knew this was going to happen. She knew, and yet she made the choice anyways. And she showed no bitterness over this at the end, only happiness, happiness for Rue and Mytho and everyone else. They all got a happy ending, and Duck got stuck with what I wrote in the spoilers. Definitely a heavy dose of bitter in that bittersweet ending. Duck fought against some of the most insane advesity any hero or heroine could face. Duck's antagonists could steadily worse as the series went on. First there was Fakir, who was a jerk and a hinderance, but not too bad. Then Rue transformed into Princess Kraehe, and Duck had to deal with someone who was opposing her in a much more direct manner, someone who would attempt to harm or even kill her. Than Mytho got corrupted and became a sadistic and insane heart stealer, and Duck had to deal with how to stop the very person she had been trying to save in the first place from hurting all her friends. And finally the demi-god like Monster Raven got released and threatened the entire town. But all those foes are the type of foes you might find in any series. Duck's greatest triumph is defeating Drosselmeyer. Here is a man who not only has a near god-like power to alter reality, he can also stop you from realizing he is doing so. And even if you do realize it, it probably won't matter. This is a man who had the town completely ensnared ever since his death hundreds of years before, with only a handful having the slightest idea. A family goes to visit the town, and the gates don't open, they just suddenly appear on the other side. The mother has turned into an ox, reflecting Drosselmeyer's bizare whimsy. And a member of the family asks "was mom always an ox? It almost seems like before we came to this town... nah, impossible." And they go on their way, convinced that the absurd state is the way things always have been. A very smart man named Autor, someone who has figured out most of what has been going on and has studied Drosselmeyer his whole life, suddenly finds himself strangely attracted to Rue, aka Princess Kraehe. She intends to steal his heart and make him a sacrifice for the Monter Raven. Autor wonders about his sudden love for her, and even outright states that it might be the influence of Drosselmeyer's story controlling him. He doesn't stop or resist though. Rue changes her mind, and he is saved, but he was perfectly willing to go along with her despite knowing his actions were making no sense. A duck becomes a girl. She doesn't even realize this at first, her only memories of being of being a duck coming out in strange dreams. At first she thinks she was always a girl. She also becomes a magical ballerina, and can restore pieces of a shattered heart. All of the above happens because of Drosselmeyer. He is a man who controls reality, fate itself, and even people's thoughts and memories to an extent. And he carefully uses his powers, just right, to ensure that the people ensnared in his story have the illussion of freedom, but will bring about his end no matter how hard they try to stop it. And the end he desires is a tragic one, full of heart-rending sadness. That is what Duck fights against. And that is what she beats. Duck shows compassion even to her enemies, and tries to save them. Perhaps a minor point after all I've said, but it deserves to be mentioned. Rue/Kraehe is a great example of this, as Duck never gives up on Rue and tries (and ultimately succeeds) to redeem her all the time. What's also interesting to note is Duck also shows compassion for Kraehe before she knows her identity, before she knows she is Rue, at a time when as far as Duck knew Kraehe was simply some mysterious princess clad in black trying to stop Mytho's heart from being restored.
Look at the above qoute from Key, describing the criteria for this tournament, and look at what I wrote above. Duck didn't just meet some of Key's guidelines, she met all of them, and she excelled in all areas. Through her actions and examples, she proved herself worthy of honor and respect at a level beyond any of her competitors in this tournament. |
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_Earthwyrm_
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It seems that a lot of the votes against Simon hinge on this all-too-many-times cited prison incident; apparently he's not a hero because spoiler[he didn't try to break out and save the day.] Has anyone actually thought out what the would require of Simon? It's not heroism that was lacking (quite the contrary). Please bear in mind that in order to do anything about the anti-spiral threat, Simon would not just need to break out, he would also need the Gurren Lagann. The way that I recall it, spoiler[the Gurren Lagann was impounded, so there was no way to get to it without going through personnel loyal to Rossiu; these personnel would almost certainly be armed (potentially with Grapearls, for maximum overkill). Furthermore, Rossiu himself had the core drill at this point, which Simon would also require - to get to Rossiu, Simon would need to get through, at the very least, his bodyguards (on top of any intercepting military personnel).] Getting both the Gurren Lagann and the Core Drill would be no easy feat by any means, and I can only think of two ways that he could have done it. A) If Simon was not able to get a weapon, then he could only reasonably have gotten through on the strength of his status as a hero within the Gurren Lagann universe. This would, very likely, be impossible following spoiler[his foul-up with the first Mugann and Rossiu's subsequent campaign which tore his image to shreds. The crowds were baying for his blood, so he would not be able to get through on the strength of his image.] B) Simon somehow gets his hands on a weapon of some kind. This would allow him to get through any military personnel who bar his way spoiler[(civilians too, actually, he wasn't exactly popular at the time and I don't believe that he could even safely walk the streets).] While this might have been an option, it would hardly qualify him for heroic points. The alternatives to using the Gurren Lagann to defeat the Mugann are these: 1) Use a Grapearl. These are all under the command of the military under Rossiu's command, so this would not be possible. Besides which, I do not think (though I could be wrong) that Grapearls had even been shown to be capable of defeating Mugann at this point. 2) Use an old Gunmen. The belief at this point was that all of the Gurren Brigade's Gunmen had been broken down into scrap, so this was not possible either. These had not been shown to be capable of beating Mugann. What I'm basically saying is that it would have been impossible for Simon to do anything about the Mugann whilst he was in prison without consciously committing some immoral acts along the way. I don't think it really stands, at all, as something which can be held against him as a hero. Can anyone name some other times when Simon showed a lack of resolve following episode 11? He certainly didn't need persuading to spoiler[break through time and space to prevent the suicide of Rossiu, who he had forgiven despite the circumstances]. Nor when he spoiler[proposed the idea that he be rigged with explosives to prevent his escaping when he went out to fight in the Gurren Lagann (actually, Rossiu went and turned his heroism against him by rigging up Kinon instead)]. Not when he spoiler[activated the Cathedral Terra, deciding to place his trust in Nia to allow it]. Hell, when he was spoiler[having his showdown with Lordgenome, everyone thought it was over long before Simon gave up hope - he was the only one who with the resolve to fight to the last]. I don't know. In the show I watched, Simon was the one who gave inspiration to everyone else. Even Kamina; he said so in definite terms. Edit: Removed a passage. |
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Dorcas_Aurelia
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The most recent clip used has Gimmy and Darry using Grapearls to take out a Mugann carrier successfully and safely. This also gives Simon less incentive to escape, as it indicates that he is not the only one who can stop the anti-spirals. |
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_Earthwyrm_
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Thanks Dorcas.
Well, I did say that I could be wrong on that point. 
Previously, the Grapearls had been ineffective. Regardless of that, the rest of my post still stands. Edit: Rewatching that part reminded me. Rossiu told Simon that spoiler[the Gurren Lagann would be destroyed] - was Simon under the impression that Rossiu had followed through on this? |
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murph76
 Posts: 3291 Location: Akron, OH |
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Group C Final
Nausicaa, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind vs. Duck/Princess Tutu, Princess Tutu Voting for Nausicaa. She's a classic heroine. She fights for her people, her friends, her enemies, giant insects that would otherwise trample her. She fights to protect the world, and the natural process that is slowly cleaning it. Group D Final Ashitaka, Princess Mononoke vs. Simon, Gurren Lagann Voting for Ashitaka. He's heroic because he maintains the middle ground, fighting for both sides of the conflict and trying to maintain a balance. |
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Olliff
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I don't agree. This reasoning reminds me of those who justified Tenma's low confidence and self-doubt pointing to the fact that he’s been through a lot and hardships of this magnitude would break anyone. While this may hold true for the average person, in this tournament, we are evaluating heroes, individuals who go far beyond the expectations set for the normal Joes and Janes of the world. While I still agree that Duck's moments of self doubt do not make her a weak candidate - here ability to make this far disproves this ;however, at this point in the tournament every weakness counts, especially when your opponent has a strength in this respective weakness. There's no doubt that Duck has merits and Mad Scientist does a great job of summarizing them, but at the same time I strongly disagree that Duck deserves to win this tournament. Beyond her moments of self-doubt, the early development of her character follows almost every magic girl cliche. While later on, Duck separates herself from this to a certain degree, at certain times, especially in the early episodes, her character becomes slightly more shallow and a tad more generic due to how closely her show adheres so closely to so many cliches. Have a bigger issue with Duck's role in this story. Drosslemeyer plays the dominant role and Duck plays the submissive one. Duck arguably meets Drosslemeyer's plans with defiance, but at the same time she willing does exactly her villain, Drosslemeyer, wills. Obviously, there are large differences of power between Duck and Drosslemeyer, and it would be going a bit too far to argue that he robs her of her free will and that she is completely controlled by him. However, he still strongly influences Duck's decisions and at times she is successfully manipulated despite what eventually comes to fruition at the end of the series. Heroes need to pave their glory by controlling their own destiny, while Duck fights valiantly and pushes back with limitless effort despite the adversity and pain that she faces, there is something in this department that seems a tad lacking compared to other heroes such as Nausicaa or Simon. Duck is a top tier contender, but based on these weaknesses and the support argued for Nausicaa, I believe that Duck is not deserving of the win, though I admit it is a tough call. On to Simon and Ashitaka match -- never thought that the prison incident would turn so many voters against Simon. For many of the reasons argued by Earth_Wyrm I believe that this is a weak reason to base your entire vote against Simon on. Looking to Earth_Wyrm's reasoning no solid option existed to guarantee his escape. Both options presented were reckless, selfish, and risky moves. Simon needed to make a strategic choice, and I believe that he made the right one. To fault him based on this and to even argue that this weakness is so great is should be one of the primary reasons why people shouldn't vote for him seems a little ridiculous. Additionally, his decision was level headed despite the tense circumstances. To act against this choice and try to escape would not only be foolish and rash, but it would only serve to mimic the reckless abandon of his brother, Kamina, and the series makes it clear that in this respect Simon is a much more reasonable person.
Agreed, it's hard to remember that the most adventuresome and aggressive choice is not always the most heroic or most correct.
Agreed again. I remember that a poster argued earlier in this round that Simon needed to go because he was the only left that needed to be encouraged constantly after his heroic transformation in order to do heroic things. This isn't true even in the slightest degree, and again Earth_Wyrm does a great job of outlining why.
Despite the augments trying to persuade people otherwise, this is ironically true. Not only does Simon not require the encouragement and inspiration of his comrades after he makes his transformation into a hero, he also serves an inspiration that inspires others to achieve the same great thing that he has accomplished. Lastly, someone criticized by argument that Simon should win because he accomplishes so much more. To a certain degree that criticism is valid. However, Simon's scope of accomplishments and the much greater impact that Simon had on his world are still two reasons why Simon has the edge in this respect. Simon is also a more versatile hero, his accomplishments are not bound only in the realm of being an action bad ass. He helps develop a complex society from nothing, he rallies the political support of his people, and encourages people with his optimism and words when times are most grim. While unfortunately my bracket doesn't reflect this, I believe that Simon just might have what it takes to deserve to win it all. |
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ccdx
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This has absolutely nothing to do with my previous point. I was not arguing the possibilities and impossibilities of breaking out of prison. I don't care if he had to break out of prison, convince Rossiu to let him go, or whatever. The point was that HE DID NOT TRY. He just sat there, in prison, consigned to his fate of death and wished the people well. I doesn't matter if the Gurren Lagann was destroyed or he infact really couldn't do anything to prevent mankind's destruction. HE DID NOT TRY to do anything that could have allowed him even the possibility to help his people. He totally pulled a Sara Palin, he quit before the fight was done. True heros NEVER quit. No matter how bad the circumstances or how bleak the outlook they keep fighting till the end.
Your right, that was a great heroic moment. But what the hell happened to this heroic spirit at the time of his wrongful imprisonment and eminent execution???
This may have been so, but that doesn't excuse giving up entirely. With the death of every human on the planet looming over his conscious, he didn't even show any thought as to what he could do to help them. Even a "Man, I wish I could get out of here so I could go kick some Anti-spiral ass" or "If only I could get a message out to my friends so they could come and rescue me." would have been better than a "Oh well, the people feel I should die, I guess I'll die then." With such a treat about to destroy the whole planet a true hero would have been trying to think of anyway or anything they could do to prevent it.
What are you talking about. Of course Simon's heroicness pretty much dwells only in the realm of being a bad ass. He clearly doesn't help develop the society at all. Simon is a symbol. A symbol of human defiance against their oppressors that helped rally others to act. Later in the series they make it a point to show that Simon is not all that intelligent. He doesn't help run the society on any major scale. Rossiu clearly is the brains behind it all. Simon just defeats the bad guys when they show up.
Wow. Just wow. The hypocrisy flies free. So it's ok to sweep all the self-doubt that happened with Simon under the rug. But when we're talking about Duck her self-doubt disqualifies her from winning... And before you say Simon's early moments of self-doubt don't count because he grew past them after episode 11...
Apparently what happens early on in a series with a characters development can count against them. |
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nightjuan
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Group C Final
Nausicaa, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind vs. Duck/Princess Tutu, Princess Tutu Without actually having seen the show yet, the arguments people have consistently made for Duck are enough for me to keep voting for her at this stage. The idea of literally or figuratively fighting fate is appealing to me, precisely because of how difficult it is supposed to be, when considering the odds, which makes Duck's efforts all the more important. This can't really be called a vote against Nausicaa, who has all the necessary merits to be considered a heroine in her own right as others have discussed, but just about the only other thing I can say is that I wouldn't mind either outcome for this bracket. Group D Final Ashitaka, Princess Mononoke vs. Simon, Gurren Lagann I've consistently supported Simon so this isn't really a surprise for anyone. He does have moments of what can be interpreted as weakness, no doubt, compared to Ashitaka's firm resolve, but at the same time...I feel that is more than compensated by the extent of his overall character development and his influence on the course of his world's history (or even the universe's history too, but you get the idea). Ashitaka's determination is very admirable, especially considering his own problems, there is really nothing I could say against it. Once again, in some ways I wouldn't really mind who gets to move on to the next round here either. |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18212 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Round 5 is now closed.
And what a competitive finish we had! Both matches were fiercely contested and one was literally not decided until the final vote. In the end, Duck, who has stomped all previous opponents, barely holds on for an 11-10 victory over Nausicaa (what is that going to do to a lot of minigame entries out there?), while Simon managed an only slightly more comfortable 12-9 win over Ashitaka. Excellent arguments were thrown out in both matches, which should make the Final Four match-up of the winners very interesting indeed. And so now we have a proper Final Four left. The survivors are: Shu Maritani, Now and Then, Here and There - A boy with naught but a stick and a powerful strength of character who becomes the embodiment of hope in a setting which desperately needs it. Balsa, Moribito - Guardian of the Spirit - A highly-skilled bodyguard who must protect a young Prince from his own father and, in the process, shape him into a better person. Duck/Princess Tutu, Princess Tutu - A magical girl who is actually a duck who can turn into both a human girl and the magical ballerina Princess Tutu. She helps many while restoring the heart of her story's Prince, but just as importantly, she must struggle against the guiding story itself; in essence, she must overcome Fate and turn what is supposed to be a tragic story into a happy one. Simon, Gurren Lagann - The mecha pilot of the group, he is a boy (later man) who must grow into courage and leadership and forge ahead against the foes of humanity, even when his own people don't always regard him as an asset. Quite a diverse lot, really. Anyway, because of the uncertainty about the outcome, I only just got the video clips, so the Final Four will begin in an hour or so. |
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18212 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Final Four: The Semifinals is now open!
And so there were four. Out of the initial field of 128, these four will vie for the right to face off in the championship. All four are strongly worthy of getting this far, but who will ultimately prevail when the competition is so tough? Groups A/B Semifinal Shu Maritani, Now and Then, Here and There vs. Balsa, Moribito – Guardian of the Spirit Groups C/D Semifinal Duck/Princess Tutu, Princess Tutu vs. Simon, Gurren Lagann |
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LydiaDianne
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I have to say that this has been quite fun...and I never expected the Final Four to be a little boy completly out of his world, a woman trying to atone for sins she didn't commit, a duck and a wuss. Who woulda thunk it!
Groups A/B Semifinal Shu Maritani, Now and Then, Here and There vs. Balsa, Moribito – Guardian of the Spirit Girl power! Balsa because her heroism may have directly affected only a few...it actually reached many. Groups C/D Semifinal Duck/Princess Tutu, Princess Tutu vs. Simon, Gurren Lagann Duck because she didn't wuss out and otherwise give up when the going got tough. Thanks ccdx for REALLY making me come to that conclusion! |
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18212 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Groups A/B Semifinal
Shu Maritani, Now and Then, Here and There vs. Balsa, Moribito – Guardian of the Spirit Balsa is absolutely worthy to be here, as I find her to be the best of all anime female action heroines. However, I am voting for Shu, whose overall triumph in this tournament is, I think, now inevitable (and should be). Shu wins because, unlike the other contestants, he doesn't have a weakness which can be picked at. Unlike the other contestants, he proves convincingly heroic despite having no special skills, powers, equipment, or aid or encouragement of any kind. Even moreso than Duck, he is the embodiment of hope in a setting which has none, and what is more heroic than that? And if you want a specific example of why he wins, go back and rewatch his Video Clip #3. None of the competition can match that. Groups C/D Semifinal Duck/Princess Tutu, Princess Tutu vs. Simon, Gurren Lagann This one is much, much harder for me, and it's possible I will change my mind at some point. Duck is the ultimate reason for everything positive that happens in her series. Sure, she gets help at times, but the others are acting from her inspiration or because her involvement allows them to be effective. This can also be said about the help that Simon gets on most occasions. Duck must confront and overcome Fate; Simon must overcome himself (initially) and the enemies of humanity (later on). Simon deserves to win because his deeds are more overtly and grandly heroic, because of how much he improves himself, and because he ultimately saves all of humanity; Duck deserves to win because her greatest and final triumph comes in her most powerless form and at arguably an even greater expense than Simon's. I'm wavering on this one, but for the moment I'll give my vote to Duck because of the last reason I mentioned above. Either one winning would not disappoint me, and neither, I think, has a chance in hell of beating Shu next round. |
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