MakeThisBattle Feedback - May 31st (Patreon)

Aloha! Things are at full throttle with editing the upcoming new ERB. But, EpicLLOYD has been going through your match-up suggestions and here is the latest batch of feedback. It's a nice range of ideas. Let's see what he thought of them!  [Do remember to vote for your favorite on the corresponding poll that we've just published]

Ozzy Osbourne vs Prince [submitted by Ozzo & MasterCTRL82]

This isn't awful but it also isn't "Prince vs David Bowie". Nothing is. To me, that's the match-up for Prince. Not quite sure why I love it, but it just works. There is flamboyance and contrast. Ozzy Osbourne is certainly a fun character but I can only name maybe two songs he's ever written and more importantly he has become a bit more of a bumbling joke in later life, rather than a seasoned rock legend. He certainly couldn't hold a purple raindrop to Prince. In life or in an ERB.

Groucho Marx vs Jerry Seinfeld [submitted by Fishbulb]

I do believe Seinfeld has a place among the all-time greats of comedy. I don't personally get it entirely but his success is undeniable. That said, his latest special was garbage. Fight me!  Groucho Marx is an excellent historical character and I don't believe I can truly speak to the level of his fame without having experienced it in his heyday but regardless of that, I believe the hype. However, with regard to Groucho, I immediately put him into a comedy group, the Marx Brothers. Featuring just Groucho would be a little odd for the match up I think. Too much so to beat out other stand-alone comedy greats.

Pope Alexander VI vs Richard Nixon [submitted by PaddyAnarchy]

This is interesting. I've wanted to do Richard Nixon for a long time. He's a really interesting character and that time period in American history is rich with life and details. I didn't know much about Pope Alexander so I looked him up. Not a bad idea. But it's a fairly deep cut choice and I don't think the majority of people will know any of the jokes we'd try and make about him but I like that he's a Pope. As it would be good to feature one in an ERB someday. That said Alexander is too unknown IMO to work well with Nixon. 

Diego Maradona vs Tom Brady [submitted by Crabcakes125, Nick Z, Paddy & GlenOck]

I think we may have a winner here. I've had my eye on Tom Brady for years and with his latest season in Tampa Bay, he has added an entirely new chapter of his legacy. Football vs Football is a fun connection. There seem to be a handful of soccer players who could be considered the GOAT (Pele, Messi etc) but Maradona is a very familiar name and I think globally he'd be a hit. I like it and that's the... gooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaallllll!!!!!!

Gilbert & Sullivan vs Barnum & Bailey [submitted by The Bird Connection]

This is fun. Not super exciting to me but a nice combination of worlds and room for tons of visual and comical sparring. This might be the only way I could be talked into doing a musical theater based ERB. If that is, a tiger from the circus car eats all the people singing.

Yugi Muto vs Bobby Fischer [submitted by Nick Z]

I'm not a huge fan of this but I can see it being a hit with viewers. Characters like Yugi and YouTube videos are like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I do enjoy that Yugi is matched against Bobby Fischer. That's a really nice tie to human history and chess is a really cool little universe that has a giant pool of people who know enough about it to get lots of the jokes and bars. It's a neat match-up. 

Elton John vs Tchaikovsky [submitted by FoxDoc & Dragonsblood23]

Meh. Elton John is a pop and rock and roll piano player. I don't think he'd hold a candle in the wind to Tchaikovsky. He's a great performer and a colorful character so I can see him in an ERB one day but when you pit two piano guys together it becomes about the piano playing and once you go there the battle is over before it began.  

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Our manager HeadMonk offers up a few extra thoughts...

Maradona vs Brady should be the next sports battle we do. I don't actually trust anyone who prefers any other soccer player than Diego. I feel they simply don't know enough about soccer to even consider Pele or Messi or whoever else could be more fun in an ERB. Maradona was an absolute beast on and off the pitch and was a big personality that is a perfect fit for ERB; especially when paired with the more straight laced Brady. 

Ozzy Osbourne is cameo material at best IMO. Prince would need perfect casting but I like the idea of him in an ERB. Elton John might work really well in a royale match-up setup but in a 1vs1 I'm just struggling to get excited. Not when we have so many other musicians to consider. And I'm no rush to do a sequel of sorts to the Beethoven & Mozart battles. I'm gonna disagree with Lloyd and say I much prefer Groucho Marx solo than with the brothers. But I'd rather have him face a non-comedian. 

The idea of Yugi Moto in an ERB has been pushed a lot by a few patrons recently. But I gotta admit I am just not feeling it. The research is just not that fun or rewarding to dig down on. So it's a struggle to get excited for this character. The harder some folk push, the more the idea seems to repel me. Which is the problem with thrusting something in peoples faces! Sometimes its good just to chill out and let things breathe. 

Pope Alexander VI is a nice choice to face Nixon. My first reaction is I really like it. This particular Pope is an interesting and intriguing character. I'm gonna spend some time researching him more and see if this match-up has legs. Hopefully there will be enough juice in the tank. 

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A new round of MAKETHISBATTLE now begins!!

The theme this time is "Art & Design". It could be any matchup that features at least one character that suits the theme. Whether it be a painter, fashion designer, cartoonist, writer, film-maker, inventor etc etc. Any one who loosely fits the idea of the creative theme.

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 Tuesday 15th June

Talk soon!