Here we are in the second round of Movie Madness. We’ve separated the strong from the weak, and now we’re left with a group of contestants who have been whittled down to a trim 32. Vigilante Paul Kersey moved through on Wednesday along with crazy Jack Torrance. Now it’s time to get down to the nitty-gritty. Time to make the tough choices. Time to start sending characters we care about to the proverbial grave. Today, we start out the second round with Han Solo versus wizard boy wonder Harry Potter, while Scott Pilgrim goes up against the dark Sith Lord himself, Darth Vader.
We’ve already discussed every character’s weaknesses and strengths, so I don’t really want to retread that ground. In the second round, we’ll be focusing on what tools each of these characters use to dispense death.
Scott Pilgrim – Going up against fan-favorite Darth Vader is going to be difficult, if not damned near impossible for Scott Pilgrim. It’s going to be a tough road to travel. Pilgrim may be able to take on any of Ramona’s exes, but she never dated Vader (that we know of).
Tools of the Trade: Pilgrim uses his spontaneous fighting abilities to dispatch opponents. If Vader whips out that old lightsaber, Pilgrim will be able to one-up him (literally) by pulling out a flaming pixilated sword.
Darth Vader – A scrawny kid from Toronto going up against the dark emperor of the known galactic universe? Doesn’t seem like that fair of a fight, does it? Pilgrim may have a bunch of fancy moves, but Vader’s got The Grip.
Tools of the Trade: His lightsaber is just one of the many weapons Vader can use. He’s got the dark side of the Force, which gives him the ability to strangle people without even touching them. He’s also adept at building large weapons of mass destruction (though they tend to be easy to destroy).
Scott Pilgrim vs. Darth Vader
- Darth Vader (86%, 215 Votes)
- Scott Pilgrim (14%, 34 Votes)
Total Voters: 249
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Han Solo – Solo is another odds-on favorite to go far in this tournament. I wouldn’t be surprised if we end up seeing a Darth Vader/Han Solo final. Until then, Solo has a tough road ahead of him, fanboy support or not. This may be one of the hardest matchups out there. Solo has the backing of ‘Star Wars’ fans, but Potter has the backing of approximately one billion-trillion of his own fans worldwide.
Tools of the Trade: He uses his blaster efficiently (better than anyone else in the ‘Star Wars’ universe, who all seem to just shoot wildly without actually aiming). He’s also captain of one of the most famous spaceships in the galaxy. But, will having a spaceship and being able to blast beams of energy really help him in a battle with Harry Potter?
Harry Potter – He had a relatively easy go in the first round against Zurg, but now Harry is going up against one of the most famous characters in cinema, ever. He’s going to need a lot of help to overcome someone as tough and well known as Mr. Solo.
Tools of the Trade: Harry knows magic, and has gotten better at using it over the course of the movies (even though Hermione could best him in most matches). His wand carries the power of magic and has defended Harry against the forces of darkness. Maybe if he were going up against Vader, this would be a fantastic advantage, but Solo isn’t really considered a force of darkness. Will this finally be the time where a convenient plot device doesn’t come to Harry’s rescue? We’ll see.
Han Solo vs. Harry Potter
- Han Solo (75%, 187 Votes)
- Harry Potter (25%, 62 Votes)
Total Voters: 249
Loading ...Here is the updated bracket with all of the winners from the first round moving on into the second round. What matchups are you most excited to see?
Click picture to enlarge.
Josh Zyber
Bye bye, Scott Pilgrim. That match is going to be a slaughter.
The second match is a little tougher. I expect the fans to come out for Han Solo, but honestly Harry Potter’s magic gives him a decisive edge.
Aaron Peck
AuthorYeah, if we’re going strictly by who would end up killing who, I think magic has a clear edge.
Alex
It’s kinda weird though. You’d think magic would always connect, always succeed, almost… magically. But if you look at the movies of Harry Potter and also the descriptions in the books, the spells react almost like the blaster bolts from Han’s weapon. It’s possible to miss, to hit other stuff, to cause collateral damage. That being the case, assuming one Avada Kedavara will kill and one shot from a blaster will kill (think Greedo), then I have to give this to Han, since he’s going to be quicker on the draw and tighter on the aim than Harry.
Alex
Oh and Darth Vader crushes Scott Pilgrim. Doesn’t matter how many lives he has. Vader survived getting lit on fire and losing several limbs and that was while he was still that sniveling little ponce. If he that tough as a whiny little douche, then think how powerful he must be once he is in full Dark Lord of the Sith mode. Oh yeah, Pilgrim is going down.
Gareth Callenby
I like Pilgrim, and, to his credit, Pilgrim doesn’t have any raging familial issues, but Vader’s got this one in the bag. Pilgrim can survive a fight through trickery; Darth knows trickery better than anyone else when you consider he’s a Jedi.
Ian Whitcombe
I was totally confused by the Horcrux/Deathly Hallows nonsense in the last book, but doesn’t those plot devices (plus the prhophecy stuff) completely negate any single person besides Voldemort from killing Harry?
motorheadache
Pffftttt… wizards and magic. It’s all a lot of simple tricks and nonsense.
RBBrittain
This is Hogwarts, not Houdini. 😉 If it weren’t for the Star Wars fanboys (and Luke Skywalker not even qualifying for the tournament 😮 ), Potter would anihilate Solo.
motorheadache
Going up against sneetches is one thing, but going up against the living? That’s something else.
Michael S. Palmer
what if Han shoots first?
motorheadache
Yeah, I think it depends on which Han we’re dealing with here. Original Han will shoot first and win, but Special Edition Han will let Harry attack first, assuming he’ll miss and point-blank. Bad news, Han– Harry ain’t Greedo.
Shannon Nutt
There’s going to be a late Pilgrim surge…but not from this voter! I would say Vader was a shoo-in, but I thought that about Hannibal Lecter as well. But at least this provides another opportunity to proclaim that SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD was an complete mess of a film (in fact, the worst I watched last year).
Aaron Peck
AuthorDifferent strokes.
It’s in my top five of last year 😉
Dick Ward
Same here – I loved that flick 🙂
Alex
Really?! The worst movie you watched last year??!! You must have had an absolutely unbelievable year in terms of watching great movies for Scott Pilgrim to be labelled the “worst.”
Shannon Nutt
Granted, I don’t waste time with stuff I know is going to suck (I didn’t, nor will I ever, see “Grown Ups” for example). I didn’t say Scott Pilgrim was the worst movie made last year…but it was by-far the worst movie I watched/went to see. Iron Man 2 is a distant second. 🙂
motorheadache
Aaron’s right– different strokes and all that. I enjoyed Scott Pilgrim at first but I found it to become tiresome by the last half-hour or so. My girlfriend at the time absolutely hated it and couldn’t wait for it to end. But then there are a ton of people that absolutely love the movie. Very divisive film, I’d say.
Nate Boss
Pilgrim has 2 votes? 2 people smoke crack.
as for Solo vs Potter, if both go into it knowing its life or death, Han Solo by a fucking MILE. he’s hard. he’s a rough mother fucker…sorry, nerf herder. he’d blast first, and fly the fuck off. Falcon vs Broom? advantage: Falcon.
RBBrittain
I diagree with you on Potter vs. Solo, but alas it’s now 10 people on crack. 😉
besch64
The HDD Facebook link to this page is titled “It’s time for America to make some tough decisions.” I have to ask, is there anybody out there who finds either of these decisions tough?
RBBrittain
Potter vs. Solo is tough. Vader vs. Pilgrim really isn’t, but it’ll hurt the fanboys who see Pilgrim as one of them. (Which, unfortunately, is his big weakness against Vader.)
RBBrittain
Vader vs. Pilgrim: Let’s face it, Pilgrim has about the same odds of beating Vader as you or me (assuming there’s no REAL Jedi Knights on this board). Vader would kill him with a flick of a lightsaber, without even thinking.
Potter vs. Solo: I wish you hadn’t stuck this one with Vader, because it unfairly favors the Star Wars fanboys. As I said the other day, I think Voldemort has no equal in the DVD Bracket; Potter vs. Voldemort in the Final Four is a better showdown than Vader vs. Solo in the championship. (I’d rather see the Solo fans latch onto Indiana Jones–they’re the same person, ya know–to take out Boba Fett and then Vader, even though it would knock out my favorite Wolverine.)
Though the fanboys are supporting Solo for now, I’m sticking with Potter. But then, that’s why I said the top half of the VHS Bracket was the toughest grouping of the whole tournament–Potter vs. Solo, Batman vs. Joker.
Shayne Blakeley
Everyone throwing the word “fanboy” around about Scott Pilgrim and Harry Potter in defense of fucking STAR WARS, is cracking me up. Denial much?
Shayne Blakeley
Reading back through, it seems both sides are guilty of this, fanboys on both sides, accept who you are!
Joe C
I think I have to stick with the Star Wars Characters this round. 1st because no fair wand is a match for Han’s trusty blaster. And although I’ve never seen Scott Pilgrim, I think Vader could crush him with his voice alone.
Pedram
Hey, if Scott Pilgrim can make a huge neon gorilla appear that’s gotta count for something right? In his world he’s a lot stronger than he appears. If not for the Force, Pilgrim wouldn’t have such a tough time against Vader.
Ryan Megan
I find it really funny those that think pilgrim has no chance against darth, and then say potter has no chance against Han.
Darth is basically a wizard after all. Han is certainly cooler than Harry, but Harry is a freakin wizard who defeated the most powerful evil force in his universe.
and to be fair to Scott, I’ve never once seen Vader destroy a vegan, EVER.