FNF (Championship Bout)

Championship Bout

Jesse Black Crow should be the poster-child for the concept of "home field advantage."  Based on reader feedback, Marvel's mystic Navajo hero comes out the tournament champion.  Honestly, I don't see why this should be the case.

In the specified story (Daredevil #225), Black Crow really doesn't demonstrate much in the way of fighting prowess.  As a matter of fact, he doesn't fight at all!!  He doesn't do anything really except watch Daredevil fight the Vulture and then talk to a rock. 

The Voice, meanwhile, single-handedly takes down a gang of insurrectionists (and a building to boot!), and what's he get?  Bupkis.  It's a tragedy, I tell ya...but it is what it is.  Congratulations, Black Crow.  You are the final champion!

FNF (Semifinals): M1 result and Semifinal M2 combatants

Semifinals Match 1


So for the first time in this entire tournament, I must lament a tragic miscarriage of justice.  The readers (whose judgment I committed to respect) have picked Black Crow as the winner.  I whole-heartedly disagree and would offer the following reasoning:

One of the premises of this fight series is that we're judging the combatants based on how they performed in specified issues.  Despite his more expansive and impressive-sounding power set, the only thing I saw Black Crow do in Civil War #6 - 7 was take a vicious backhand from the Taskmaster.

Meanwhile, Ion fights off the Chemo-Golem along with a varied assortment of other super-villains and henchmen in MOST #1. Ion may be unknown, but he deserved this win.  Oh well, I guess that's politics for ya.  Better luck next time, kid.

 

FNF (Quarterfinals): M2 result and M3 combatants

Quarterfinals, Match 2 results

Despite his long-honored history, today is the day that Doc Savage goes down.  Especially given the fact that in the designated story (Doc Savage Annual #4) the Man of Bronze does more soul-searching and internal struggle than external fighting.  This stands in marked to the Voice who single-handedly fights off an entire insurrectionist army.  Apparently, readers shared this opinion, as 100% of votes cast were given to Voice. I guess that settles it.  Voice is going to the semifinals!

FNF (Quarterfinals): M1 result and M2 combatants

Quarterfinals, Match 1 results

This is a fight where I the setting makes a lot of the difference.  Both heroes have an impressively broad range of abilities/powers.  The Wizard's, however, are uniformly explained within the referenced comic (Top Notch #1) as being the result of his "super-brain."  The Black Crow, in contrast, is mystically-powered by the Earth Spirit.

Since this fight is taking place in an undersea cave "full of great mystical power," I just can't see how the Black Crow wouldn't have an obvious advantage here.  My judgment:  Black Crow is going to the semis!

 

FNF (Round 2): M5 result and M6 combatants

Round 2, Match 5 results

Yet again, the oldies prove their mettle. Despite the fact that Captain Boomerang is a seasoned villain/anti-hero who's given the Flash (no slouch himself) trouble on numerous occasions, he's typically (at least as far as I know) done so in the company of the Rogues.  There's  no such "gang" to help him out here.

In a straight-up mano-a-mano fight with the Voice, I just can't see how some specialty boomerangs are going to off-set a guy who can: start a landslide or shatter a house with his voice.  Even if we grant that the Cap'n might come up with a weirdo "laryngitis-rang" (but really...does that sound like a standard piece of equipment?) in a straight up fight, the Voice has been depicted beating down multiple opponents simultaneously.  I don't recall anything similar for Boomerang.

On top of all this, the referenced adventure also depicts the Voice exercising telepathy and carrying a sidearm.  Sorry, C.B. you're just out of your league here.  The Voice goes to round three!

FNF (Round 2): M4 result and M5 combatants

Round 2, Match 4 results


Cardinal is at an obvious disadvantage.  His stomach starts "churning" every time he has to face someone. Doc, for his part, has been throwing down since the 30s.  In the specified tale, God steps in and helps the Cardinal escape.  However, since our hypothetical fight is a good natured spar between two heroes, I highly doubt He'd weigh in.  This one's a no-brainer:  Doc Savage wins this in a matter of seconds.

FNF (Round 1): M10 results and Mockingbird vs. Nemesis

Round 1, Match 10 results

When I first paired the Match 10 combatants, I knew next-to-nothing about the Voice.  Basically, I jus thought he was like a crime-fighting ventriloquist.  Up against that, a quirky-looking martial artist like Osakan Riot would seem to have a pretty good chance...

But then I read the Voice's inaugural adventure in Amazing Comics #22.  In it, not only does the Voice single-handedly taken on a large group of thugs (in contrast to Osakan Riot, who shows up to help Miss Melee take down a gang) but to top it off, the guy can blast bad guys out of trees and even collapse a building by "throwing his voice in a loud roar"!?

I'm guessing this assessment was universal, as the feedback I got from a few Facebook polls uniformly gave the win to the Voice.  The people have spoken, Voice goes to the next round!

 

FNF (Round 1): M9 results and The Voice (Centaur) vs. Osakan Riot

Round 1, Match 9 results

Initially, I really thought this would be a pretty even match.  First, I have to acknowledge that I've read neither Contest of Champions #3 nor Flash #124.  Thus, in both cases, I'm having to base my judgement based on others' synopses of the tales.  With that caveat, I really thought this would've been a more even match, but now--despite being a fan of Peregrine--this looks to me like a pretty easy win for Captain Boomerang.

In the two tales referenced, we have a non-superpowered dude who's repeatedly given the Flash trouble and learned how to throw a boomerang through time, going up against a non-superpowered guy who was defeated by the Angel once the latter was able to secure a stick!? If a stick is all it takes to tip the scales, then tossing a boomerang through time should pretty much wrap it up.

Boomerang for the win!