MakeThisBattle Feedback - July 1st

Hello and welcome to another fabulous edition of MakeThisBattle.  I’m Nice Peter, I’m dizzy from playing a VR game, and I’m glad you’re here. Let's see what delightful array of match-ups we have today....

Note: vote for your favorite idea at: https://www.patreon.com/posts/53173328

Coco Chanel vs Cruella de Vil [submitted by Neo & J-Star]

I really like this. First some ERB trivia - Emma Stone is married to the original director of ERB. Crazy, right? Coco Chanel has blipped up on the matchup radar a few times now, and I am intrigued every time. I didn’t think another fashion designer was the way to go, but Cruella de Vil brings some nice spice into the mix. I think it could get vicious, I know it could look fantastic, and I like the idea of two female contenders with zero quote unquote sex symbols.

He Man vs Lion-O [submitted by SkyXWolf319]

Really? Is this real? It’s awesome, but it doesn’t feel like a real matchup possibility. There’s some fun jokes, the characters are over the top, and enjoyable, and essentially exactly the same. They both seem dated in a way that would doom their success. Here’s my overall thought - next time we do a live concert with an improvised battle section, shout this out a lot. I think that is the perfect venue for this matchup, and there it would crush.  

King Tut vs John F. Kennedy [submitted by blaisesanti]

Ooooo, I like it! I don’t know why I like it, but I do. There’s something about the died too soon, something about the well known leaders, it’s nice. I think it definitely satisfies the “argue in line for the bathroom” test. These two would not be polite to each other. Tut would think he was a god and Kennedy should stand out of his way, Kennedy would be snobby to the upstart little kid with the back even worse than his own.  It’s juicy history, it’s a really loose but somehow tangible connection, and it gets two historical giants that are still left on the table into one matchup. Grade A suggestion.

Jack Nicholson vs Nicolas Cage [submitted by Paddy & FoxDoc]

Haha, also funny.  It has a nice ring to it, just the title, doesn’t it? Both impressions could be so fun, and Jesus what a wealth of material to reference. I would definitely want to play both of these in their prime, I think both men have become just a little too puffy in recent years.   

Salvador Dali vs David Lynch [submitted by Crabcakes125, Violet, RegalMania, Vivian & Paddy]

Dark, twisted, weird, somehow sexy, niche, interesting. This matchup has a lot going for it, but I don’t think it quite hits the mark. David Lynch feels like one of those guys many people would say “who?” to even after you explain who he is.  Dali is a must, he has to get into a battle someday, if only for the moustache, but I don’t think Lynch is the way to go. I’m a little bias, I’ve never really seen any of his movies or Twin Peaks. Sorry.

Jack Sparrow vs Tony Stark [submitted by Nick Z]

Jack Sparrow brings back so many early YouTube memories, doesn’t it? Something about the recent Johnny Depp misadventures puts an air of sadness on all his roles, maybe this one most of all, as it just kept going, and you know he was sad. Tony Stark makes me a little sad now too, I don’t like that he died, left the little one behind. Obviously it’s nice that he saved the Universe, but still sad. There’s some great potential jokes to this battle, and the characters are rich, but the sadness, just too thick to make the whole thing fun.

Jules Verne vs. H.G. Wells [submitted by The Bird Connection]

Fun. Talk about fun. Wow this is cool. I like this. It’s nerdy in the right way, it’s got richness to the characters and their stories, god the visuals could be so cool. This feels like the right kind of quasi-educational battle. Exact opposite of Dali vs Lynch, I think when you answer the question of “who?” with either of these giants you get a solid “Ohhhh yeah” in response.  I love this suggestion. Best in show.

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Some extra thoughts from our manager HeadMonk...

I really like Coco Chanel vs Cruella de Vil and I think it's possibly the only way I see us being able to do a fashion based matchup. Matchups like Chanel vs Versace just seem far too stuffy to me. (Sorry Maryam) I didn't love the new Cruella movie but the character endures over time and I think she suits being in an ERB.

As for King Tut vs John F. Kennedy it's probably my most favorite idea for a Tut match-up. He doesn't excite me as much as Ramesses I personally but as Pharaoh's go Tut is undoubtedly the most well known. Teaming him with JFK works really well. It is a solid combination. I could see us making this one happen.

I absolutely love Nicholas Cage. I've watched all his crappy movies. He churns them out these days like no one else. But, no matter how bad they are I find him entertaining. Jack Nicholson is also great but for him you'd need to lean in more on his movie characters whereas Cage could just be Cage. I like it. But, don't love it. If the next Mortal Kombat movie features Johnny Cage I could maybe get excited by Cage vs Cage.

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A new round of MAKETHISBATTLE now begins!!

The theme this time is "Let's Play". We'll be looking out specifically for matchups that feature at least one character from a video game.

You can of course always ignore the theme completely if you prefer. But, when selecting the match-ups for feedback we will select 2 or more suggestions that match the theme.

Same rules apply. Seven match-ups in total will be selected. Three suggestions per person. You can post them in the comments below, email them to erbpatreon@gmail.com or post them on the Discord server in the dedicated '#make-this-battle' channel.

Deadline for submissions is... 5pm PT on Wednesday 14th July. Talk soon!