Forum - View topicCoolest Character Tournament - Post-Mortem
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Ggultra2764
 Subscriber Posts: 3966 Location: New York state. |
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Have nothing else to do at the moment. So might as well get this outta the way before forgetting.
Match B-25: Captain Harlock (various franchises) D does have his badass moments, but his personality is a bit on the shallow side. My only viewing of Captain Harlock came from the not so good Harlock Saga OVA. But he did display more personality than D and spoiler[ being willing to stand up to the gods] speaks something for the man's bravery. Match B-26: Balsa (Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit) If Lady Oscar were in this round, I'd be voting for her right now. But this not being the case, I'll be sticking with Balsa. While Balsa and Kenshin's characters are similar in the fact they have tragic upbringings, are skilled fighters and vow not to take any lives, the fact Balsa defied an entire kingdom to uphold her vow to protect Chagum from death makes her seem a far stronger character in personality for me. Match B-27: Lady Eboshi (Princess Mononoke) Nana O.'s character deteriorated quite a bit towards later in the series spoiler[when she learns of Hachi's pregnancy to Takumi's child]. Eboshi proves herself to be quite the strong, capable woman with her leadership of the ironworks village, accepting outcasts of society into said village and her defiance of the animal gods in the nearby forest. So this is an easy vote for Eboshi. Match B-28: Revy (Black Lagoon franchises) Both are capable badass fighters in their respective titles. However like D, I found Kenshiro's personality to be a bit bland while Revy has more fleshing-out of her character where there are more sides to see with her personality in her interactions with other characters (a major case being Rock) and her actions when in the middle of intense gun-fights. |
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P€|\||§_|\/|ast@
 Posts: 3498 Location: IN your nightmares |
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Group B-25
D, Vampire Hunter D vs. Captain Harlock, various (see Guide entry) Pick: Captain Harlock - the video I felt was a good representation of Harlock's coolness. Those unfamiliar with him due to the bygone era of anime that he defines should only get a small taste of his sense of honor and justice. But it is definitely apparent no matter which anime he shows up in. Harlock is perhaps the singlemost profound character in Leiji Matsumoto's legacy of space drama with his many recurring themes dealing with helping the innocent overcome oppression. Group B-26 Balsa, Moribito – Guardian of the Spirit vs. Kenshin, Ruroni Kenshin Pick: Kenshin - I have trouble finding words to describe his attitude as other than cool and calm without implying that his swordfighting ability is anything less than swift and miraculous. And what is even cooler is that everything he does seems to have a purpose even if he doesn't immediately explain it, the after effects of his actions often do the explaining themselves. Which indicate he is very aware of his surroundings, even if he doesn't seem like it. Group B-27 Lady Eboshi, Princess Mononoke vs. Nana Osaki, NANA Pick: Nana Osaki - whoever complains that being more familiar with a character works to their advantage in this tournament, I know that is not necessarily the case. I think familiarity being a negative or positive evens itself out overall. In this case Lady Eboshi is someone who has a world view that I vehemently oppose. She sees nature as a tool and a resource to be exploited. To her animals and plants should succumb to human's desire to conquer simply because humans have the ability to do so. What results is war, fighting amongst ourselves and ravaging the beauty of the world. Her calm attitude without really thinking about the consequences disgusts me. Group B-28 Revy, Black Lagoon vs. Kenshiro, Fist of the North Star Pick: Pending - leaving this as a toss up between whichever video I find most convincing. Initially Kenshiro wins hands down in terms of badassery, but this is a cool tournament and I've always been quite intrigued by Revy despite not ever watching Black Lagoon. Edit: And the pick goes to... Kenshiro |
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Olliff
 Posts: 550 |
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Group B-25
D, Vampire Hunter D vs. Captain Harlock, various (see Guide entry) Pick: Harlock Only deeply familiar with D, but Harlock's clip was much more impressive. And honestly, it doesn't take much. D has it down in the style department, but his D might as well stand for dull as his personality is severely lacking. Group B-26 Balsa, Moribito – Guardian of the Spirit vs. Kenshin, Ruroni Kenshin Pick: Balsa - Two similar characters, but Kenshin shows major weakness in certain OVAs while Balsa's calm, venerated, and respectable persona never falters. Beyond being skilled martial badass, she's a role model, and she stands strongly behind her beliefs and convictions. Group B-27 Lady Eboshi, Princess Mononoke vs. Nana Osaki, NANA Pick: Eboshi - Another character who fights for her convictions without fault and is just as respectable as Balsa. The nature of her show does work against her, but I'm not impressed by the arguments made for Nana. Group B-28 Revy, Black Lagoon vs. Kenshiro, Fist of the North Star Pick: Revy Like many choices, this will come down to personal preference. The nail in the coffin for Kenshiro is his dull and inspired personality. I can forgive him for being straightforward but beyond his skills he never leaves an impression. He is also much repetitive, and doesn't benefit from development and interaction with the rest of the cast like Revy. Revy exploits Kenshiro's weakness too well since she radiates a bad-ass attitude. I understand where her detractors are coming from. I just see that as a humanizing element of her character, and not a glaring weakness, but I know it's something that may hurt her down the road. Hmmm, I'm starting to think that the bottom half of this group may be weaker despite what's reflected in my bracket. |
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Unicorn_Blade
 Posts: 1153 Location: UK |
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To be fair, Im really shocked by so many people claiming D has no personality. It's a guy who stops by to save a woman bleeding o death, although he would be better off leaving her behind. He is capable of quite a lot of sacrifice and despite the cold appereance, he is not made of stone.
It's not that he became a hunter for fun or out of boredom- he did it because otherwise, noone else would step in for the role and vampires would kill off as many people as they would like to. He tells Leila at one point that he cannot lead a normal life unlike her. He lives with a curse- the life he leads if far from being glamourous. And unlike Harlock, he needs to deal with things on his own- he is forced to live in solitude, and even if he does find someone who owuld be able to connect himself even remotely, he is likely to see that person die sooner or later. I dont see how it would make him one dimensional or boring or inferior to Harlock. |
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Dorcas_Aurelia
 Posts: 5344 Location: Philly |
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The Revy vs. Kenshiro match should turn out the same way as the Revy vs. Celty match did last round. It's the same situation. Celty had oodles of style, was sexy, and totally badass; she road a ghost horse that took the form of a motorcycle and wielded a scythe made from shadow and smoke. But she lost because when we saw her personality, it revealed the weakness of her character. Revy's the same, sexy badass whose personality undermines her outward appearance. Her interactions with Rock may be some of the more interesting scenes in the show, but her developing feelings for him underscore how shallow her coolness is. Revy, of all people, is afraid to confront Rock and how she feels about him, as evidenced by her talk with Edda in the Greenback Jane arc. Edda's shocked that Revy hasn't just slept with him already, and while Revy claims it's because she doesn't care, the truth is clearly that she's more anxious about it than a high school girl. That's what it comes down to.
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The Naked Beast
 Posts: 1028 Location: A Blue Planet |
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Group B-25
D, Vampire Hunter D vs. Captain Harlock, various (see Guide entry) A great display of D's personality is revealed in Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust. This is spoil-ish but I will keep it to a minimum. In the movie, D and Leila make a pact. After all the evil forces have been vanquished, the survivor promises to bring flowers to the other's grave. Many years later, we see D observing a funeral at a distance. A little girl related to the deceased talks to D. She invites D to stay over at their place. D refuses politely stating that he is there to fulfill a promise. In his words, he is there to "repay a favor to an old friend, who feared no one would mourn her death." Being half-vampire gave me a much longer life span than humans. Even through all the years, he kept his word. This rare display of D's personality shows his moral code and honor. My vote goes to: D. Group B-26 Balsa, Moribito – Guardian of the Spirit vs. Kenshin, Ruroni Kenshin It is really hard for me to think of strong female leads, especially those around Balsa's age. Everything about Balsa makes her a great character. You also do not see many skilled spear-wielding fighters in anime these days. I find most interesting her decision to be Chagum's bodyguard. She knows full well that being an enemy of the the ruling government is not a great idea. However, despite the hardships that await Balsa, she faces them with determination and a strong will. My vote goes to: Balsa. Group B-27 Lady Eboshi, Princess Mononoke vs. Nana Osaki, NANA Living the free life chasing your dream is the way to go. The road may be hard but Nana does it her own way. My vote goes to: Nana Osaki. Group B-28 Revy, Black Lagoon vs. Kenshiro, Fist of the North Star Being the protector of the weak in a post apocalyptic world comes easy to Kenshiro. He will not tolerate evil and quickly extinguishes it with his deadly Hokuto Shinken martial arts style. My vote goes to: Kenshiro. |
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ccdx
 Posts: 312 |
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Group B-25
D, Vampire Hunter D vs. Captain Harlock, various (see Guide entry) Both characters in my eyes are fairly week. They both have very similar styles. In the end I'll vote for Harlock. He has both the badass side and the cool side. A big plus for me in terms of coolness is wisdom, and how one mentors and comforts those around him. Group B-26 Balsa, Moribito – Guardian of the Spirit vs. Kenshin, Ruroni Kenshin Is there really anything else that needs to be said? Balsa is pretty up there in terms of badassness and coolness. She easily wins here. Group B-27 Lady Eboshi, Princess Mononoke vs. Nana Osaki, NANA Nana is way too weak here. I guess if we're knocking characters down for having unstable elements to their personalities, there's no way Nana can move forward. This girl is pretty messed up. Eboshi gets my vote. Group B-28 Revy, Black Lagoon vs. Kenshiro, Fist of the North Star Man, tough one. Both character's are total badasses. Both I guess you could say have character flaws that undermine their badass personas at times. I think I'll vote for Revy because ultimately I find her character more interesting. She's complex and difficult to fully understand. There's more to her than first meets the eye. It may be true that her character flaws will be her undoing, but Kenshiro does come across rather stale. Especially if there is not much more to him than traveling around, find someone in distress or under attack, kick some ass and save the day, travel around, find someone in distress or under attack, kick some ass and save the day.... |
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nightjuan
 Posts: 1473 |
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Group B-25
D, Vampire Hunter D vs. Captain Harlock, various (see Guide entry) Voting for: D This is actually pretty tough and my mind is far from being decisively made up even as I continue to type. I can see myself voting for either character for multiple reasons, to be perfectly frank, but...since I can't really afford to vote for both or neither and the two videos are worthwhile, this time my vote is going to D. On paper, I prefer characters that are closer to Harlock in terms of his particular skills and surrounding context, no doubt, and I'm aware of what his iconic status represents. That was actually my first thought. However, D also has an impressive set of abilities, even if they're mostly physical in nature, and plenty of style to go along with them. Perhaps the deciding factor here, if you can even call it that, would be the arguments reiterating that he doesn't lack a personality at all, despite what some have tried to say. And it's a fairly cool one at that. Group B-26 Balsa, Moribito – Guardian of the Spirit vs. Kenshin, Ruroni Kenshin Voting for: Balsa I've been quite consistent in my support of Kenshin so far and a certain part of me wishes that this would continue...but, unfortunately, this seems to be the end of the line for him. While Balsa's overall character arc, at least as far as I can tell, may not be radically different from Kenshin's on a purely conceptual level, it does benefit from leaving her in a stronger position and exposing her to less weaknesses. Generally speaking this wouldn't be a fatal flaw, in my humble opinion, but a choice must still be made and that's a good enough reason. Group B-27 Lady Eboshi, Princess Mononoke vs. Nana Osaki, NANA Voting for: Lady Eboshi My support for Nana was mostly meant to be symbolic, all things considered, and far from permanent in light of the numerous arguments against her that have already been presented by others. Lady Eboshi, on the other hand, is certainly a formidable yet admirable foe in spite of everything else. The video clip does a good job of summing up the characteristics that make her cool. For the time being, this is a relatively easy choice. Group B-28 Revy, Black Lagoon vs. Kenshiro, Fist of the North Star Voting for: Kenshiro Kenshiro sure seems to be in a bit of trouble here, no? Regardless, I'm going to support him one last time against Revy. She is certainly cool, there is no question about that, and has a far more interesting personality...but while I appreciate depth, in and of itself that isn't enough to convince me she's more of a badass than Kenshiro. There's no way around that considering they belong to the same character type. Last edited by nightjuan on Mon Mar 21, 2011 11:10 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18458 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Round 2 Group B: Mixed Group #1 is now closed.
A mere 18 votes this time - once again a low turn-out! And we have a tie here, too: B-25: Captain Harlock ousts D, 11-7. B-26: Balsa stomps Kenshin, 17-1. B-27: Lady Eboshi overwhelms Nana Osaki, 14-4. B-28: Revy and Kenshiro tie, 9-9. So two big blow-outs and two tighter matches, though B-25 actually wasn't that close after a mid-week tie. I'm quite surprised that Balsa took out Kenshin so easily and will be curious to see how closely that matches with minigame predictions. New Group will be up as soon as I can get it set up - I'm running behind tonight. 
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18458 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Round 3 Group C: General Cool Dudes/Dudettes is now closed.
Results can be found here. So we start with a three-way and end with a match whose outcome I’ll be really curious to see, since my impression has been that Reinhard and November 11th have a lot of overlapping support. That first match is going to be brutal, tough. Anyway, remember that the focus on this group is more on General Cool than feats of derring-do. Oh, and the video clips may not be up immediately, but they should be available on the Guide entries within an hour of this post. Again, you’re encouraged to review them if you’re not familiar with the characters. Group C-25 Kino, Kino’s Journey vs. Letopanyu Spoor, Crest/Banner of the Stars franchise vs. Medicine Seller, Ayakashi, Mononoke Group C-26 The Count, Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo vs. Taichi Keaton, Master Keaton Group C-27 Akira Tokizawa Eden of the East vs. Roy Focker, Super Dimensional Fortress Macross/Robotech Group C-28 November 11, Darker Than BLACK vs. Reinhard von Lohengramm Legend of the Galactic Heroes Last edited by Key on Mon Mar 28, 2011 11:32 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Aylinn
 Posts: 1684 |
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Group C-25
Kino, Kino’s Journey vs. Letopanyu Spoor, Crest/Banner of the Stars franchise vs. Medicine Seller, Ayakashi, Mononoke This match is difficult, since I have to choose between two characters I nominated and both of them I find cool. Like Letopanyu, Medicine Seller is smart, like Letopanyu he can be unpredictable, like Kino he is unwavering in his calm. My vote goes to Medicine Seller, because his mysteriousness exudes a great deal of coolness and charm, he is excellent at keeping his composure in most perilous situations and he is an expert at fighting with malicious ayakashi and mononoke. Group C-26 The Count, Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo vs. Taichi Keaton, Master Keaton Taichi Keaton the use of a wooden spoon did it for me. Group C-27 Akira Tokizawa Eden of the East vs. Roy Focker, Super Dimensional Fortress Macross/Robotech Akira Tokizawa, because RoyFocker's clip didn't convince me that he is the better choice. Group C-28 November 11, Darker Than BLACK vs. Reinhard von Lohengramm Legend of the Galactic Heroes As I stated in the previous rounds, I don’t think so highly of November 11, so my vote goes to Reinhard, who is smart enough to beat a fleet two times bigger than his own and eventually achieves his dreams despite external and internal obstacles, that’s so cool. |
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Unicorn_Blade
Posts: 1153 Location: UK |
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Group C-25
Kino, Kino’s Journey vs. Letopanyu Spoor, Crest/Banner of the Stars franchise vs. Medicine Seller, Ayakashi, Mononoke The only match I really care for really... Medicine Seller is my choice. i hope that unlike D he wont be voted off because of the supposed 'lack of personality':/ Medicine Seller's motives are often unknown, and his person is surrounded by a lot of mystery, which I think adds a lot to his coolness. he does not need deep personality to face some of the most malicious and creepiest spirits that live among humans. There is something scary in the way he approaches them, taking pleasure in the challenge. Also, his art is something really interesting and entertaining to watch, specially once he has his sword out. Group C-26 The Count, Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo vs. Taichi Keaton, Master Keaton Based on the arguments only, and on the clips, The Count definitely has what it takes to go through the next round. I found his clip more convincing. Group C-27 Akira Tokizawa Eden of the East vs. Roy Focker, Super Dimensional Fortress Macross/Robotech I think I will go with Roy Focker, although to be fair, it's hard to vote for a character I dont care much, so it's more of a vote against Akira, who had one cool moment at the beginning of the show. Yes, getting a guy undress himself was quite interesting. However, later on in the series this coolness reduced drastically in favour of bags of pretenciousness that I found really uncool. Meh. Group C-28 November 11, Darker Than BLACK vs. Reinhard von Lohengramm Legend of the Galactic Heroes[/quote] Reinhard November 11... Im more familiar with him, and I actually thought he was one of the brightest point of the whole series. But by watching the clips, I actually found Reinhard quite interesting as well. Self-confident, smart, with a strong screen presence. November had this fatalistic aura surrounding him, which makes him just a tad less cool here. |
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Aylinn
Posts: 1684 |
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Well I don’t know how this argument can be brought up in this match, especially since the remaining two characters are not complex. Letopanyu doesn’t have enough screen-time and Kino is an Everyman in a story where events are more important than she is. |
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Unicorn_Blade
Posts: 1153 Location: UK |
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After D getting voted off, I consider everything possible... |
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Dorcas_Aurelia
Posts: 5344 Location: Philly |
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10-4 in minigame predictions, Balsa favored, so decently close to the actual results. Lady Eboshi and Captain Harlock had roughly the same percentages between the minigame and actual voting. Revy was heavily favored to win her match. Speaking of which, Olliff and Mow are pulling away from the rest of the field, but 3rd place is still very competitive. |
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