ELITE EIGHT: Bracket finals

Mar. 27th, 2010 at 11:53 PM

This is the last of the brackets. After this, they will fight with each other. It's interesting that the Xena Bracket came down to two Discworld characters.

VOTE FOR WHO YOU THINK WOULD WIN IN A FIGHT.

Poll #1544040 Elite Eight

This poll is closed.

Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All. Participants: 138

ALICE BRACKET FINAL: Alanna of Trebond (Song of the Lioness) versus Minerva McGonagall (Harry Potter). Who wins?

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Alanna

56(41.8%)

Minerva

78(58.2%)

BUFFY BRACKET FINAL: October "Toby" Daye (Rosemary and Rue) versus Hunter (Neverwhere). Who wins?

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Toby

82(66.1%)

Hunter

42(33.9%)

RIPLEY BRACKET FINAL: Cordelia Naismith (Vorkosigan Saga) versus Meg Murry (Wrinkle in Time). Who wins?

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Coredlia

65(54.6%)

Meg

54(45.4%)

XENA BRACKET FINAL: Susan Sto Helit (Discworld) versus Granny Weatherwax (Discworld). Who wins?

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Susan

48(39.0%)

Granny

75(61.0%)

ETA: Oh goody. I spelled "Cordelia" wrong. You'd think I wasn't a Buffy and Shakespeare fan and didn't know that name at all. Sorry! You know what I mean, right?

Comments

( 14 fights — Enter the Fray )

labellementeuse

Mar. 28th, 2010 04:04 am (UTC)

Anyone else think Alanna and Minerva could get along weirdly well? They both like cats! And fighting evil!

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renshai

Mar. 28th, 2010 05:37 am (UTC)

That's exactly what I was thinking! They'd have tea, and commiserate about a) the younger generation and b) their coworkers.

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hamsterwoman

Mar. 28th, 2010 04:16 am (UTC)

Maaaan, these are getting TOUGH!

For the Discworld face-off, I'm going with Granny. Susan may be Death's grand-daughter, but Granny and Death are practically peers, so. GRANNY!

Minerva vs Alanna, man, that's tough... So far, all of Minerva's opponents were magical girls, and she could take them down easily. I'm not sure she would fare so well against a seasoned fighter who also has magic, though less of it than Minnie. I might change my mind, but going with Alanna for now.

I'm new to Toby, but while she seems like a scrappy and resourceful lady so far, Hunter is the one who is a natural at something like a cage match, and has got a lot of experience on her side. So, Hunter it is, as far as I'm concerned.

And Cordelia, obviously (even misspelled :P)

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labellementeuse

Mar. 28th, 2010 06:38 am (UTC)

I'm not sure she would fare so well against a seasoned fighter who also has magic, though less of it than Minnie.

Imagine me being a wikipedian protester. Now, do not get me wrong, I think McGonagall is hot stuff, and I'm not even holding a grudge against her taking down my girl Hermione (much). But I would say that Tortall-verse magic is actually more flexible and potent than HP-verse magic. Where HP magic is, IMO, fairly limited and focussed, Alanna - although she has focussed mostly on healing - also has access to a wide range of fairly seriously destructive magic that she could use. I mean, Dumbledore is fairly impressive at the end of Order of the Phoenix, sure. But compare Dumbledore there to Numair's battles in some of the Daine books... I think you could make a case for Numair being sliiiightly more impressive in cage match fights than Professor D. Slightly. And then I think it's not unreasonable to put McG and Alanna on around the same level.

Anyway, we don't actually disagree about the eventual victor, so! :P

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hamsterwoman

Mar. 28th, 2010 07:17 pm (UTC)

That's an interesting point... it's really difficult to compare magical power across universes, as the endless discussions in the Suvudu cagematches have also shown, without even going into the sophistry of would their magic work the way they are used to wherever it is they're fighting, depending on what the source of the magic is.

I probably wouldn't disagree that the maximum amount of magic someone can pull in Tortall-verse is equivalent or greater to that in HP-verse (Numair is very impressive), but it seems like the less spectacular but still quite powerful magic in HP-verse is more accessible to the magic users than in Tortall. Granted, some of it is through potions and things that would be harder to access in a cage match, but considering what kids learn at school and extrapolating to what an adept would know, I think even the things that require nothing but a magic wand are pretty powerful.

I would agree with you on the flexibility of magic being higher in Tortall -- though I think the fact that McGonagall spent her whole life perfecting it and that her area of expertise is Transfiguration, which seems to be one of the most flexible of the HP-verse magic branches, would mean she could do quite well in a magical cage match battle.

But anyway, yeah, I think Alanna can still take her because of her dual specialties, so we agree there :)

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esc_key

Mar. 29th, 2010 03:48 pm (UTC)

I dunno. I know Alanna is a better fighter but I keep thinking about that time Umbridge's ministry goons attackedd Hagrid and it took FOUR stunning spells to bring McGonagall down. I sort of imagine her coming at Alanna like the knight in Monty Python's Holy Grail. Alanna will injure her and she'll just keep coming like it's nothing.

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hamsterwoman

Mar. 29th, 2010 05:49 pm (UTC)

I sort of imagine her coming at Alanna like the knight in Monty Python's Holy Grail.

XD!

That's a priceless image! It seems like McGonagall is winning anyway, so the argument is probably moot. And, in any case, I don't disagree about McGonagall's supreme badassity. :D

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elucreh

Mar. 29th, 2010 03:40 pm (UTC)

Toby fights like a rat in a trap, though; she's scrappy. Nothing damn well keeps her down, and she's uncannily willing to throw herself past all sane limits.

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hamsterwoman

Mar. 29th, 2010 05:57 pm (UTC)

I'm about halfway through Rosemary and Rue, but, yeah, I've definitely seen the scrappiness already. From what I've seen so far, though, I don't see her taking Hunter out by magic, and in terms of a physical fight, I do think Hunter would be on home turf in a cage match. I mean, fighting is what she does for fun and profit. But it's entriely possible there's future further Toby badassery I haven't gotten to yet.

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elucreh

Mar. 29th, 2010 06:02 pm (UTC)

It's the second book, A Local Habitation, that will really convince you, I think.

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hamsterwoman

Mar. 29th, 2010 07:34 pm (UTC)

I'm looking forward to it! :)

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