u/NewMGFantasyWriter

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And I do mean ever. In any media.

Lex is in an impossible position. Brainiac is controlling his body and has made it clear that when his usefulness ends, he'll die.

Then Lex laughs. He laughs.

With Brainiac asking why he's amused, the door has been opened. Now Lex gets to work using his greatest strength: his mind for business.

Lex asks what the point of all this is, and Brainiac levels with him. He's merely programmed to archive and destroy the entire universe.

But what's next? Brainiac merely says his function is complete. That's it.

Then Lex realizes something: Brainiac's talking about ultimate knowledge. Godhood. But with the universe destroyed, what's the point? Thus, Lex says he has something, the ONE thing Brainiac never had: imagination.

Brainiac's power and mind combined with Lex's mind and ambition make them a perfect match. And Brainiac......agrees. He takes Lex up on it, allowing him to join him and fulfill a new mission: making a new universe.

This scene was Lex's single most crucial business meeting ever. Either make his pitch or be disposed of. But he actually managed to convince BRAINIAC, who lacked emotion or regard for any living creature, to become one with him! Seriously, this is a feat among feats!

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1. His design is SO sick! A vicious wolf with bladed kitsune tails, red and black eyes, a golden mane, and those dark plates? Seriously, this guy singlehandedly reminds us how much cooler animalistic Bakugan are than humanoids!

2. His sounds: Not only is his voice awesome, but he gets both the majestic wolf howl AND Tigrerra's roar! Does it make sense? No. Do I care? HELL NO!

3. He's so freaking strong: Even without battlegear, this dude's a badass! His abilities are so cool to see! Fun fact: if Kazarina used Arcadia Sword instead of Wolf Howler, she'd have defeated Drago.

4. Do NOT call him a mutt! Coredem learned that the hard way.

"Speak up, mutt. I can't hear you."

*gets Barias Gear Thunderbolted*

5. His rivalry with Aranaut elevated them both.

Everything about this Bakugan is a 10/10.

I mean in any media, ever.

Remember when Masquerade defeated Dan? He gave Dan a sense of security by using up all his gate cards early, knowing the hothead would take the offensive because he's not willing to lose any Bakugan. Thus, he could save up his ability cards, including one that takes care of any gate cards.

Now, that battle has its own holes. Suddenly a battle can just end despite one opponent being at higher level? Seriously, WHAT the hell was that round with Wall Burst and that HSP crap?! But Masquerade still demonstrated great skill and strategy.

Zenoheld had no skill to speak of because every time he struggled, he brought out that damn Assail System and that Shiny Orichalcum ability that overpowers everything just because. There's nothing to praise about him at all because he NEVER wins fair and square! There's nothing manly about using the Assail System because you can't beat your son without it.

Also, colonizing New Vestroia is one thing, but destroying all the Bakugan makes no sense. Even after that, at least the Alternative could be used to conquer the universe.

Even the most generic evil motivations can be made up for through aura and personality, but......he has neither. He's just a cranky old man with no real ability. He only shows up to order his minions around and cheat in battle. Villains like Darkseid and Emperor Belos have aura and menace. Villains like Jack Spicer keep us watching with personality and surprising competence.

The ONLY interesting thing about Zenoheld is when Hydron finally stood up to him, but it's so quick and late!

Now, is it the deepest, most well-thought-out story ever? No.

"My evil name's Katnappe. I have genetically altered super kittens, and I like to go to cat-themed amusement parks and steal ice cream from little kids."

The show always makes it ABUNDANTLY clear that it's good vs evil. The word "evil" is probably used at least 5 times an episode!

Is it utterly ridiculous that you can challenge conquering witches, a kung fu dragon monster, and a crime lord to a game of tag or a boat race? Yes.

But here's why it doesn't get enough praise and/or deserves better!

1. Creativity: The Shen Gong Wu are SO fun! They're mystical artifacts that give their wielder different abilities. There's super heavy armor for invulnerability, a flip coin for jumping ability, the list goes on! The best part is that these are almost NEVER one-off plot devices, oh no! When most of them are found, they STAY! This means the xiaolin showdowns are spiced up with the use of different Wu! Plus, the Wu can work together! There's one called the Reversing Mirror, and if you use it with one that makes you shrink, guess what? YOU GROW! AND they use it in combination with one that grants intangibility to restore the main threat from a spirit to her physical form. The ways they come up with to use the Wu make it so entertaining!
2. Heroes: The xiaolin warriors are so fun! They come from all over the world and all have different lifestyles and clashing personalities! We get a feel for who they are IMMEDIATELY! Omi's old school and socially inept due to his isolation, Clay's a polite big bro with a heart of gold, Kimiko's a spitfire, and Raimundo's a rebellious dick. They have their jerky moments, especially Omi, but you can see how they grow as individuals and as a team.
3. Jack Spicer: THIS guy is best boy! No, I will NOT say something like he walked so Doofenshmirtz or Megamind could run, because this guy runs just fine! He's so fun to watch and so endearing! He chooses villainy because he feels he's worthless in all other ways. With everyone always looking down on him, I can't help but be glad when he gets a W! One thing I like about Omi is that he consistently and genuinely believes in Jack and wants him to join them. MAAAAAAN, his attempt to turn good should've lasted longer than a damn single episode, because he actually did try! He and the warriors even agree to go out for ice cream sometime when there's no Shen Gong Wu to fight over! This boy needs a hug and friends! Jack totally should've become the Dragon of Metal, damn it......
4. The humor: This show is SO freaking funny! A running gag is Omi's incorrect slang, and not all of it is laugh out loud, but some is GOLD!

Omi: He who is last to be laughing laughs most loudly!

Raimundo: What Omi did to that sentence is what we're gonna do to you!

Omi: The jig is down! You're at the top of your rope! Spoon over the Wu!

*crickets while everyone's trying to figure it out*

Jack Spicer: Ooh, I got it! The jig is up! You're at the end of your rope! Fork over the Wu! *victory dance over being an evil genius*

5. Growth: Raimundo had the best story for sure. He always hated the lifestyle at the temple with all the chores and training while he doesn't even get a bed! A BED! THEN when he disobeys Master Fung because he wanted to help him against Wuya when she attacked the temple, he gets denied a promotion the other 3 get.

Feeling disrespected and unappreciated, he defects to Wuya's side, who says he'll have anything he wants. But what makes it work is that Wuya never lies to him. She keeps her promises, AND even accepts his suggestion to let his friends stay with him if they join her too. And when Rai flips back, it's because his friends still believe in him and insist that this isn't who he is, and nothing's happened that can't be undone. And to drive this home, he rejects the promotion when he's offered it at the end of the episode, knowing he hasn't earned it yet.

BUT this is only the beginning of his story! Omi keeps looking down on him for not being at their level yet, but a few episodes later, he proves he's ready! But Omi's still a tad distrustful and doubts he'd be the first among them to be promoted to the next level. But then they're all promoted as a team, so the next goal becomes who's going to be promoted again to become the team leader. Omi demonstrates more haughtiness and arrogance as the show goes on, while Raimundo keeps showing growth. And in the end, the one Omi doubted since season 1 gets the grand promotion he earned. AND Omi supports him, initially sad but then bowing to his new leader!

Anyway, there's a lot to like about this show! I'm not even saying this as someone who grew up with the show! I saw like 2 episodes back then, and that's it! No nostalgia glasses here!

Also......THE SHOW SHOULDN'T BE SO HARD TO ACCESS! Can't stream it anywhere for free!

It's so funny that his evil cycle is just him losing his meek politeness and uncertainty. But the cool part is that those are the only things truly holding him back, aren't they?

When his mind is set on something, he gets it DONE!

And he saw his classmates, his friends, stuck in a horrible classroom with a professor that seemingly doesn't care (still better than Aizawa though). He then fights to get them a better room, and it pays off! But it's great that it's his past kind self that lets him get all the signatures in the first place. Still, Evil Iruma had to set the challenge in motion.

Evil Iruma isn't a bloodthirsty psycho, he just has more backbone. He speaks truth to power and calls out their mistakes. And I can see even normal Iruma heading there someday! This reminds me of all the MHA fics I used to read where Deku calls people out and is just DONE with all of hero society's bullshit! Why are there so many of those? BECAUSE WE WISH BROCCOLI HEAD WOULD JUST HAVE SOME DAMN SPINE!

One day, Iruma ain't gonna need the evil cycle to become that dude! This man's gonna sit on the throne with Ameri as his QUEEN!

I'm really enjoying Lead's growing bond with Iruma! Asmodeus and Clara are his closest of course, but Lead's a brother Iruma always needed! He tells it like it is like a brother should, and Iruma's significant moments with him are so fun to watch!

"Alright, we're young kings! Cheers to the kings!"

"Now hang on a second, man! You're the little brother here!" "Nope, sorry, but it's you." "WHY, THOUGH?!" (Dang, Iruma got so assertive all of a sudden!)

"Heeey, are you drinking your cider, Iruma?"

And my personal favorite:

"And what gives you the right to act all innocent?"

"Guilty as sin."

"Guilty."

"Guilty."

"Guilty you are."

"Guilty."

"Guilty."

"Guilty." (Even YOU, Asmodeus?!)

"DEATH ROW!"

The serious deliveries from each guy on the jury just get me!

Seriously, it's such a great moment!

The score starts as John approaches Dean. He puts his hand on his shoulder, smiling like "that's my boy. You did it."

Then he smiles at Sam the same way.

As he looks back at Dean, the score swells again (SO good!)

Then it falls again softly, before John starts glowing. His boys don't need him anymore. Azazel's dead, and they can stop what he just unleashed too.

As the boys watch their father ascend, hoping he and their mom can rest together now, the music just......MAN! As he fritzes out, it swells again to its peak!

The S1-S5 soundtrack album actually released barely scratches the surface!

He didn’t attack until the end of Ragnarok. He needed at least Ego and Odin to die. They could have stopped him.

First, he gets the Power Stone by decimating the Nova Corps, the galaxy’s main law enforcement organization. He gets a potential obstacle out of the way AND becomes top dog in raw power, so he could bulldoze his way to the others.

Then he gets the Space Stone, giving himself quick access to the other stones AND eliminating Odin’s sons.

Then the Reality Stone at Knowhere, which could tip the scales against the tricky Time and Mind Stones, which his minions were going after anyway. No amount of raw power can protect you from THOSE things if they're used properly!

With his minions after those, he might as well get the Soul Stone now.

Very good execution.

Oliver's down in the dumps, forced to become the Demon's Head. I know he and Malcolm already had a plan at this point, but still, he can't be the Arrow anymore. It's a difficult position no matter what.

Felicity encouraging him, reassuring him the hero he's become is great. He's done SO much for SO many people, through his heroics and his influence! So many others were opened up to a whole new world, for better or worse. Quentin realized there are more important things than procedure, Thea and Roy got out of the dumps their lives were in, Sara was allowed to come home for a while, Moira was inspired to come forward with the Undertaking and save more people, The Flash was inspired DIRECTLY by him, not to mention John and Felicity.

As Arrow and Oliver, he was a source of light. Him being reminded of that is amazing.

The OST is so nice and beautiful to listen to, including when combined with the intimacy! They portrayed this kind of interaction as the beautiful thing it truly is.

But the scene is missing ONE thing. The chemistry here is zero! I get Felicity having a crush on her handsome ripped boss, but come on! Why would Oliver be in love with HER? There's nothing they can bond over besides the mission, but even then, their roles are so different that any attempts to turn that into romance aren't organic at all!

Remember when Oliver and Sara teamed up for the first time and switched weapons? WHAT happened?!

This scene would be incredible if Oliver and Felicity's romance had any convincing foundation. It has all but one piece.

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Like seriously, I was in middle school when I first saw it, and I was never scared of Joker, but OH MY GOD! One look at this, and I was sleeping with the covers around my head again!

Joker is back, he knows who Batman is, AND Batman's too old to do anything now!

That is the face of a true monster, far worse than anything else Gotham ever produced.