#MakeThisBattle Feedback - 31st January 2022 (Patreon)

Oh hello there patrons, you just caught me red handed! I was stealing your attention for another exciting edition of… Make This Battle. :)

I'm your host... Nice Peter! Shall we dive in? I think so! Let's see what ideas we have...

Judge Dredd vs Hammurabi vs Judge Judy [submitted by abuck0310]

Oh wowie, off to a scintillating start. I’ve always hated Judge Dredd, and Judge Judy for that matter, but Hammurabi in the middle somehow makes it all okay. I won’t go so far as saying it makes it amazing, but in my book, making "Judge Judy vs Judge Dredd" actually acceptable is a significant achievement. Judge Judy has been one of the more consistent suggestions over the years, and I just don’t get it. She yells and insults people, and looks like Lloyd, where would we go with it? Judge Dredd has also been popular, and I don’t get that either. He has the word “Judge” in his name, is that really it? Were they even popular movies? Maybe I’m just ignorant of Dredd's brilliance. Hammurabi ties the room together for me, his history is fascinating. He’s heard-of but not especially well-known at all, I think he’s right there in the sweet spot. B+

Malcolm X vs Spartacus [submitted by Radiocarbine]

I feel like I’ve already talked about this on Discord before, and how much I love it. Do I love it? I guess I’ll talk about it again. Oh wait… I’m mixing up my civil rights luminaries, I’ve talked about "Harriet Tubman vs Spartacus", which I actually do love. I do not love this. Malcolm X vs Spartacus doesn’t feel right to me. Two great characters, two great stories, but just not the right matchup for me. C-

Wu Zetian vs Elizabeth I [submitted by theformerprez]

I love 90s rap music that came out of NYC, cultural ignorance, and meat substitutes, so this is perfect. Who's Wu again? Oh… yes, she's actually very interesting, the only official female sovereign of China, in their very, very long history. That’s a nice tidbit, but it throws the matchup off for me as there were a few English power-queens, were there not? Yes, a quick search is confirming, there are several options. It’s still a nice matchup, rich flavor and history. I’d definitely like to learn more about Wu Zetian at some point. B

Winnie the Pooh vs Attila The Hun [submitted by Violet & Dragonsblood & abuck0310]

Hahaha, this makes me laugh. Always a good start. Why do our horde based conquerors seem to pair so well with lovable furry fiction? There’s a temptation in the air to do Winnie The Pooh because he’s just become public domain and all, but seeing as we’ve used Disney-esque characters by the dozens in the past without reprimand, I almost think using Pooh puts a larger target on our back, if Disney is on the prowl for anything that resembles their…. ahem… shit. But, I do like this idea. A-

Link vs Cloud Strife [submitted by Neo]

There's a little bit of deja vu with this one. I know we've discussed it in the past and we had a writing room for it too. But I'm told its not been on a previous MTB polI. I actually just recently stumbled onto the 3D background work we had started for this matchup when I was 100% certain we were going to do it. Then we didn’t. I still like it, I like the big sword, I like Zelda stuff, I like it all. I think it would get views and laughs… but maybe only to such a niche audience that it doesn’t quite feel right. Maybe I’m wrong there, maybe it’s a huge niche, but for whatever reason, Lloyd and I aren’t that into it. I think that is what’s kept this matchup, and a few others, on the radar but not on the map, know what I mean?  We know something could be good and well liked, but it doesn’t tickle our specific funny bones, so it never gets that boost of love that makes an ERB go from sperm to senator. A-

Optimus Prime vs The Power Rangers [submitted by Doctor Octacle]

Haha. Left field. I love it. Why? I don’t mean why do I love it, I mean why this matchup?   Both…. Big robot machine things…. but so different, on so many levels. Sadly I don’t really see any Optimus Prime or Power Rangers battle being possible in the real world. Now an animated Power Rangers; that could be cool. But, I do question the lore. Is there enough depth and detail to the world of Power Rangers to make a real Epic Rap Battle? I feel like it would be a lot of color humor and some great jokes about how hot the pink ranger was. Optimus Prime has the lore, great stuff there, he seems more likely to win both this matchup and the quest for ERB glory. B-

Marie Antoinette vs Boudica [submitted by Cheske]

Every time I see that name, Boudica, I think of that song from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. I do have to Google it now. Wow, sheesh, that’s a lot of torture. Oh, and with Marie… okay I get it.  Very dark stuff. Tons of death. Queens. More death. Fun. This is probably my favorite ERB suggestion of this bunch, there’s a lot to unpack, a lot to talk about, a lot of depth and legend. The costumes could be amazing, I like it.  A.

Well that concludes this edition of Make This Battle. Remember to vote for your favorite match-up in the poll we have posted up. Stay tuned for next time when I do the whole thing in Latin. Castigat ridendo mores -np

========

Our manager HeadMonk offers some extra thoughts on a few of the ideas...

If we are searching for a historical character even lesser known than Mansa Musa, then Hammurabi is probably a good option. But I do think we need to avoid the trap of trying to go out of our way to find potentially "worthy", but largely unknown characters, cos the lyrics and punchlines can easily fall flat. That said, I do think there is some scope to a judge and/or lawyer based rap battle at some point. There's something there for sure.

Wu Zetian has a similar problem in the unknown stakes, but there seems to be more actual material to work with and strong, historical female characters are always welcome. Likewise Elizabeth I has always been a character I've been fond of for ERB. Not sure how she would translate to a largely USA based audience, but I was very happy with our use of Richard I, and I think we should certainly consider more European Kings & Queens.

Link vs Cloud has sat there fairly unloved by Pete & Lloyd for a while now. I appreciate they probably wouldn't enjoy the research and that's one big obstacle. Casting is also an issue (I don't particularly think Pete or Lloyd suit either role) and making these two characters work in live action without being corny, might also be tricky. We certainly need more video game representation in ERB. But the likes of Lara Croft and Kratos etc are probably both a little more accessible and appealing to Pete and Lloyd and could work versus non-gaming opponents. All that said, I believe "Link vs Cloud" still remains a solid idea - we just need to wait or persuade Pete & Lloyd to take the plunge.

========

So as ever, another round of MTB starts now...

The theme for this new round is 'Science & Technology'.

Throughout ERB's existence I think battles featuring an element of science or technology have seen some really memorable performances, whether it be Zach's Einstein, Weird Al's Newton, Peter's Oppenheimer or Lloyd's Edison etc.

So, for this round we will be looking for a few match-ups that specifically feature at least one character with a science or tech background. Let's keep it wide open and say they can be historical or fictional characters to include characters like Bruce Banner for instance.

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 particularly suit 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 Sunday 13th February.