LINK TO SECTION BELOW
We now return to Drake and Ashley in the studio. The former definitely looks much better with a deep red blush on his face.
"Um, hey, guys… We are back." Drake said, grinning sheepishly.
"And Drake has officially made a huge recovery!" Ashley smiled.
"Yeah, sorry to worry you all. I am still not used to that stupid "Everyone is Xehanort" twist." Drake sighed.
"Yes… Even I find that absurd…" Ashley frowned.
"So yeah, I will probably never be over it." Drake muttered. He then brightened up. "Butttt… at least I found a coping mechanism."
"Yeah, by destroying every opponent you could find online with Kazuya." Ashley said, rolling his eyes.
"Yeah, I HAD to vent my frustration on SOMEONE!" Drake snapped.
Ashley rolled his eyes. "Anyway, we would like to thank Wally and Catherine for covering for us."
"Oh, don't worry, Ah could totally get where Drake is coming from." Wally said from off-screen.
"And with many of the subnodes covered in the main roster, we will take any screentime we could get." Catherine offered.
"Well, I think you did a great job!" Drake reassured before looking at the camera. "Well then, shall we?"
THE CONTESSA
NODE: SLY COOPER
BIG GUY ALERT!
PUDDING FONG
NODE: TOKYO MEW MEW
CHOWDER & KIMCHI
NODE: CARTOON NETWORK: PUNCH-TIME EXPLOSION/CHOWDER
Drake and Ashley both blinked twice at this. The latter narrowed his eyes.
"Okay, I know that those three were fighting in a Side Battle, literally the last section. But do we HAVE to introduce them individually?" Ashley scolded.
Drake shook his head. "Well, long story short, Pudding, Chowder & Kimchi had run into the Contessa while they were all on their own ways to the Ready Room. However, Chowder and Pudding are insistent to fight the Contessa because they just want a Side Battle."
"...The sad thing is I saw weirder premises for a Side Battle." Ashley said, rolling his eyes.
"In the end, Pudding, Chowder & Kimchi ended up winning by a long margin." Drake said. "Even then, they still want to "continue their Side Battle" in the arena."
Ashley shook his head. "I know the Contessa is not the most sympathetic of characters, even by Sly Cooper villain standards but she definitely has a stacked deck here."
"Yeah, which is kinda sad because she is actually one of the more dangerous villains." Drake noted. "For starters, she is the tournament "brainwasher", taking over the minds of Ichigo, Splash Woman and I think a few other Robot Masters."
Ashley shuddered. "People who have brainwashing as their power always unnerves me."
"Same. Not only that but she is a brutal fighter." Drake added. "She could turn her arms into spider legs to do a deadly attack, stick out a web and swing on it like Spiderman only out of her literal ass…"
"Yuck!" Ashley said, sticking out his tongue in disgust.
"And last, she could send out small cocoons of web that have spiders in them." Drake asid.
Ashley paused. "...Is that even allowed?"
"Considering that they are so easily killed, I think I could give Xero slack for allowing it." Drake reassured.
Ashley blinked twice. "...Like I said, I knew that she wasn't the nicest person, but talk about a bad mother."
"Well, this is a bit of an awkward transition." Drake mused. "But DAMN, did the Tokyo Mew Mew team actually get lucky with their draws."
"Indeed. The "mainstream" Ikari Warriors have all gotten early draws and even Heidern's draw is barely at the halfway point." Ashley agreed. His face then fell. "Unfortunately, three of them are probably not happy about their chances."
"Yeah, Ichigo is currently unconscious after fighting Dedede and Luong while brainwashed, Retasu is captured along with Ariel, Splash Woman, Blastoise and Demyx." Drake said. "And now Pudding with her knowing that her friends are in danger."
Ashley paused. "Yes… So obviously due to her hyperactive personality, she is based on the Golden Ring Tamarin."
Drake blinked twice. "How did you…?"
"Catherine sent the details after we covered Pai all of the way in Section 1." Ashley muttered. He then read his tablet. "Now let's see. It is also known as the golden marmoset. It is native to the Atlantic coastal forests of Brazil. And this is what it looks like."
With that, he pushed a button on his tablet which showed a picture of said Golden Ring Tamarin.
Drake let out a descending whistle. "Okay, even someone like ME has to admit that he looks fluffy as hell!"
"I know, right!?" Catherine shouted from off-screen.
Drake and Ashley rolled their eyes.
"Anyway, due to having monkey DNA in her body, she is obviously extremely athletic and aerobatic." Ashley noted.
"Oh, she is! She actually works as a part-time street performer!" Drake scolded. "Her weapons are the Puring Rings and her attack is called "Ribbon Pudding Ring Inferno"."
Ashley blinked twice. "...Never had I heard such a bizarre attack name."
"Welcome to anime, buddy…" Drake muttered. "Anyway, the attack is not exactly a traditional finisher. At least not against the Monsters of the Week? It traps the victim in a pudding-like force field."
Ashley blinked twice. "...What?"
"Ah suppose now is the best time ta tell ya that the Mew Mews and the Cyniclons are based on food." Wally piped up. "It doesn't show up ALL of the time, but in terms of things like Pudding's attack? Aye…"
Ashley shook his head. "And onto Chowder & Kimchi."
"Take what we initially said about Flapjack and apply it to Chowder." Drake explained. "A good kid, but seems like the type that I want to punch in the face."
"Yes, and his sentient fart cloud, doesn't help things in the slightest." Ashley said with a queasy face. "Wally, Catherine, care to do the honours?"
The camera then went to Wally and Catherine.
"I am going to be upfront here." Catherine said. "I didn't want to cover Chowder. At all. However… Recent things have made me want to talk about it."
"Ah, ya already talked about it with me before." Wally nodded. "Regardless, first things first."
"I know, I know." Catherine nodded. "Chowder is a show created by C.H. Greenblatt, who is formerly a writer and storyboard artist on both Spongebob Squarepants and the Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy."
"It is basically inspired by Dr. Seuss. ...A more twisted Dr. Seuss. But the setting takes place in Marzipan City, a weird place with weird creatures and weird food." Wally explained. "The story is about Chowder, a… Bear… Cat… Rabbit… Thing who is the apprentice of Mung Daal, the chef and owner of his namesake catering company."
"They, Mung Daal's wife, Truffles and the… Oddly cute, Schnitzel, they go on many misadventures with Chowder trying to be a chef, but his monstrous appetite topped only by the likes of Kirby, keep getting in the way." Catherine said.
"The series appeared on November 2, 2007. Normally, we don't go too much into the dates, but Ah am telling ya this because apparently, the series was cancelled in August 2009 because apparently it didn't fit Cartoon Network's new target demographic of "older" boys." Wally said before gritting his teeth.
"Okay, I already said that I do not like Chowder, but imagine having your show on a channel called CARTOON Network cancelled." Catherine said, grunting her head in disgust. "Seriously, what was Cartoon Network thinking by going CN Real."
"Hell if Ah do. Especially when it happened during the Dark age of Cartoons. ...Or was it BECAUSE the Dark Age of Cartoons?" Wally asked in realization. He then scowled. "Whatever. It shouldn't have happened."
"Agreed. Thankfully, they realized this and had the series continue with the finale ending August 2010." Catherine said. She then sighed. "Look, I am not going to say that there isn't something I like. Chowder is adorable and I appreciate that they created this world revolving around food. But still, I don't know about that brand of humour."
"Aye, it is the same as Flapjack. In fact, I actually thought that the two shows were made by the same writing staff." Wally agreed. "Regardless, at least they are doing their own things during the Dark Age."
Catherine nodded. "Hey, Drake, Ashley, considering we had to do your job for five characters, which also includes covering Tom & Jerry and Ratchet & Clank, could we do something kinda related to Chowder, but in this context?"
"Um, sure." Drake said from off-screen.
Catherine nodded her head. "I wish to talk about Jellystone."
Wally returned the nod. "That new show C.H. Greenblatt is making it."
"Yes, apparently, they are not only having the likes of Yogi & Boo-Boo, Huckleberry Hound, Snagglepuss but also the likes of the Banana Splits Gang, Heyyyy, It's The King and even Jonny Quest and Hadji." Catherine said before frowning. "But…"
"Everyone is not what it used ta be." Wally noted.
"I could forgive turning a majority of the male cast like Jabberjaw and Loopy De Loop into girls. Sure, it is… Off-putting. But I could understand doing that to get more female characters." Catherine shrugged. "But… While you could definitely tell who is who… You can't really say about the personalities."
"Aye, aren't Boo-Boo and Cindy supposed to be the Straight Man?" Wally asked.
"So yeah, I am still going to watch it because for better or for worse, this will show kids nowadays cartoons of the old days." Catherine explained. "However, I think I am going to watch Chowder first. So I could get ready for what I am getting in for."
"Aye, that is definitely recommended. Greenblatt's humour is definitely an acquired taste." Wally nodded his head.
"Okay, boys, back to you." Catherine piped up.
The camera then went back to Drake and Ashley, looking stunned.
"...Hanna-Barbera characters in the style of Chowder?" Ashley asked, blinking twice. "I don't know how to feel about it."
"Hey, I actually heard that Greenblatt is a big fan of Hanna-Barbera. So even though the changes will be… Jarring, there will be a lot of heart." Drake reassured. "Now onto Chowder & Kimchi. According to the stats… I think he is the Kirby of the game?"
"I mean Catherine DID compare his monstrous appetite to Kirby." Ashley muttered.
"Yeah, he even has an inhale move like Kirby. But unlike the latter, Chowder can't absorb people's abilities." Drake said. "But otherwise, he seemed like a beginner-friendly character as his stats seems to be balanced except with his air game where he has multiple jumps. And also, he has a few attacks where he throws Kimchi at his opponents."
"I could imagine why for better or for worse, it would be effective." Ashley muttered. He then paused. "The Contessa is doomed, isn't she?"
"Yeah, and while you could say that she was never a good person, her main crime is that she just happened to run into two determined and hyperactive kids." Drake frowned.
SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG
NODE: SONIC THE HEDGEHOG
"And here we have THE rival of Sonic, Shadow himself!" Drake grinned.
"I know that he… Well, looks like an edgelord." Ashley paused. "But I think people give him too much flak."
"Yeah, first off, Nack the Weasel wields guns first and Knuckles the Echidna canonically swore first." Drake said.
Ashley jumped at this. "Wait, really?"
"Apparently, to be fair, it is not Knuckles, but SONIC, but even then, I think it is in KNUCKLES' mind?" Drake asked.
Ashley blinked twice.
"But yeah, Shadow may be moody, but there has been evidence in the past where he is more than that. Like, when Amy mistook him for Sonic, don't ask, and hugged him, he didn't act like "Get off me" and at worst just silently went WTF." Drake explained. "And as much as I really HATE to use Sonic 06 as an example, but HE was the main hero in that game."
"True." Ashley paused. "But I think that even SEGA doesn't know what his personality is anymore."
"For those who are confused at what we are talking about, look up "Character In-Depth" and "Shadow"." Drake said before sighing. "But yeah, about Shadow in a fight."
"Even I know that Shadow has a homing attack move of his Spin Jump and we can't forget his super speed." Ashley agreed.
"And don't forget his Rocket Skates where not only help with his speed, but also use the flames for a blazing kick." Drake said. "And also he has Chaos Control for teleportation, Chaos Blast for an AOE attack and Chaos Spear which sends out spears of light."
"And now…" Ashley said before breathing in and out. "The guns."
"Shadow has a variety of guns to choose from in his titular games. Like pistols, gatling guns and heavy machine guns." Drake noted. "But he has more than run and shoot. He also has bazookas, lasers that ricochet off of walls, lock-on weapons and vacuum pods. Oh, don't even get me started about Special weapons?"
Ashley raised an eyebrow. "Special weapons?"
"Yeah, he has a Black Arms Satellite Gun that locks-on enemies and sends out a laser from the sky onto his enemies, an Omochao gun that… Well, fires Omochao like ricocheting shots and his most powerful gun, the Shadow Rifle." Drake grinned.
"Wow, that is a lot of weapons." Ashley said in awe. He then frowned. "Though if he uses many of them in the ring, he will be judged."
"Yeah, you are right…" Drake muttered. "Because I should limit his titular game weaponry to just the Special weapons."
Ashley blinked twice. "What?"
"What?" Drake said, quickly.
Ashley raised a suspicious eyebrow.
EVEN
NODE: KINGDOM HEARTS
Drake immediately frowned. Ashley noticed this and looked concerned.
"Looks like you are about to have another breakdown." Ashley asked, concerned.
"Oh no, it is just that." Drake frowned. "Even was a scientist and didn't look like he did any fighting."
"Actually, Even has the same powers as he did as Vexen." Ashley explained.
Drake jumped at this. "Wait… What?"
"Even is a scientist, Drake." Ashley reminded. "Do you really think he wouldn't try to replicate his powers?"
"True." The vampire mused, putting his hand on his grin. "So Vexen is a cryomancer who fights with a shield, right?"
"That's right. Even is the definition of a Stone Wall fighter. Even his offensive ice attacks are more of a "Get Away From Me" move." Ashley explained. "Maybe summoning pillars of ice and summoning two giant snowflake shuriken that move in on their foe."
"Snowflake shurikens…" Drake noted.
"And don't forget his most iconic move. Where he concentrates and creates a circle and if someone is standing under that circle for too long, Vexen will create an Anti-clone." Ashley explained.
Drake raised an eyebrow. "Anti-clone?"
"It is like Anti-Sora, a form that Sora takes if he abuses his Limit Forms in 2. Basically, it is a Heartless version of someone. Only they will act feral." Ashley explained. "Of course, Even could only do it if he copies their data a bunch."
"Ah, that is kinda cool." Drake said.
"Yeah, however, he is weak to fire. And that is usually a common element." Ashley frowned. "Also, because Even is NOT a direct fighter, he may have difficulties at this all or nothing battle."
Then, the Mystery Fighter alarm went off. Drake's eyes lit up at this.
"Alright, the second Mystery Fighter alert!" Drake grinned.
"We missed Tom, but we would definitely not miss this one." Ashley said.
JERRY
NODE: TOM & JERRY
Drake and Ashley blinked twice. Then, the latter slapped his forehead. However, before he could say anything, Drake's phone started to ring. Raising an eyebrow, he answered it.
"So care to explain, Xero?" Drake said while turning on the Speaker.
"I-It was an accident, I swear!" Xero's voice insisted.
Ashley rolled his eyes. "Well, at least you are honest about it."
"Hey, Maurice screwed up too!" Xero scolded.
"Unfortunately, I must admit that I am equally responsible for this." Maurice's voice muttered.
"Well, you did worse so I guess it is unfair for anyone to judge you for this blunder." Drake agreed.
"Oi, oi…" Xero muttered before hanging up.
Drake shook his head. "Yo, Walls?"
"Aye?" The boxer said from off-screen.
"It looks like your initial thought about Tom lasting a while…. May be wrong." Drake said, sheepishly.
"Indeed, Jerry may be smaller than Tom, but his track record is much better with his experience of out-smarting and out-witting Tom on a regular basis." Ashley nodded.
"And as Wally and Catherine pointed out, there is War of the Whiskers." Drake offered. "So if forced to fight head-on, he could do it."
"...As if this section is going to be crazy enough." Ashley muttered.
RIDLEY
NODE: SUPER SMASH BROS/METROID
BIG GUY ALERT!
"Hey, isn't Ridley too big to fit in the ring?" Drake asked with a smirk.
"Okay, that is not only cringe, but also forced." Ashley scolded.
Drake's smirk vanished. "Oi, get me some slack! The main thing I know about Ridley being his brutal nature is his meme."
Ashley just rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Let's get into his fighting style."
Drake narrowed his eyes. "Anywayyyyy, like I said, Ridley is a brutal fighting with his sharp claws and stinger tail. Especially with his moves where he literally wipes the floor with his opponent and if he stabs his opponent with his tail at just the right moment, he will deal massive damage."
Ashley shuddered at this. "Not to mention that Ridley could fly so getting him out of the ring would be difficult."
"Andddd HE breathes fire. Not to mention, he is the arch-enemy of Samus Aran for a reason." Drake nodded. "So you know that his foes would have to be on their toes."
PROTOMAN
NODE: MEGAMAN
Drake paused before whistling Protoman's theme.
"That is a nice repetition." Ashley complimented with a smile.
"I should hope so!" Drake smirked. "You can't have Protoman without his trademark whistle tune!"
"Just one question." Ashley piped up. "If he is a robot, why is he wearing shades?"
"Um, because it is cool?" Drake countered.
Ashley rolled his eyes. "...Should have known."
Drake returned the gesture. "ANYWAY, Protoman is similar to his brother, Megaman. He has own Buster and I THINK he may have a few Robot Weapons. He is canonically able to copy them in the Power Fighters. However, there is one main difference."
Ashley raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
"His shield. Not only does he use it to block attacks, but he could only use it like a charge move, not unlike Captain America and Goofy." Drake explained.
"Oh, so he is more defensive." Ashley mused.
"Pretty much." Drake noted. "He IS Megaman's brother after all."
MATURE
NODE: KING OF FIGHTERS XIV
"Ooh, now THIS is the definition of a brutal beauty!" Drake grinned.
"Yes, she may seem harmless, but there is something… Sinister about her." Ashley agreed.
"Oh, there is! Mature may be classy and well-mannered, but while she rarely loses that, she is actually quite sadistic and violent." Drake warned.
Ashley gulped nervously. "W-What do you mean?"
"Well, her hands are sharper than they look." Drake warned. "She is also quite fast, doing multiple attacks at once in a Rekka fashion."
"Oh, just what we need. Another fast claw-wielder in the ring." Ashley winced.
"Well, to be fair, Mature isn't as fast as Choi, but she makes up for it with elegance and style." Drake added.
"Oh…" Ashley frowned. He then realized something. "Hm?"
"What is it?" Drake asked.
"Isn't she canonically dead?" Ashley questioned.
"She is. Apparently, Mature and Vice appeared in XIII and XIV as ghosts." Drake shrugged.
"Wait… What!?" Ashley jumped.
"Oh, don't worry because with Verse being defeated in XIV, they should be fully alive. Just like Yashiro, Shermie and Chris!" Drake reassured.
Ashley blinked twice. "...Well, THIS latest addition to the King of Fighters franchise won't be weird."
"Shatter all expectations, baby!" Drake smirked.
SPYRO THE DRAGON
NODE: SPYRO THE DRAGON
"SPYRO!" Drake, Ashley, Wally and Catherine cried out happily.
"Even though I am more of a Crash fan, I won't deny how iconic this little guy is!" Drake grinned.
"Indeed. Even though Spyro 4 still hasn't been revealed, we just KNOW that it is coming. Eventually." Ashley offered.
Drake nodded his head. "So Spyro has all of the basics, a running charge, gliding, a fiery breath attack and of course, his Supercharge!"
"Don't forget his various elemental breaths like ice and electricity!" Ashley offered. "While he is a quadruped, he is suitable to take on any kind of opponent."
"I mean he already faced his biggest opponent: Being faded into obscurity." Drake noted. "If he could overtake that, he could overtake ANYTHING!"
RAMON
NODE: KING OF FIGHTERS XIV
"Ooh, from a standard Power wrestler like Zangief to a speedy luchador like Ramon!" Drake grinned.
Ashley blinked twice. "But he is not wearing a mask."
Drake rolled his eyes. "He may fight like a luchador, but he is also a secret agent."
Ashley jumped at this. "THAT loudmouth!?"
"Yyyyyep. Actually there is one bigger surprise, but I will get to that later." Drake reassured. "So anyway, unlike Tiz… I mean, the King of Dinosaurs, Ramon is all-around fast, being able to zip around the arena almost to the same speed as Choi."
Ashley blinked twice. "What is WITH the speedy King of Fighters reps this section."
Drake just shrugged. "Anyway, Ramon's main gameplay is to down his opponent and then chain as many throws as he could on them."
"I must admit, I saw many wrestlers fight, but not that many luchadors." Ashley noted.
"Well, Ramon should definitely help show you HOW to fight!" Drake offered.
CORRIN
NODE: SUPER SMASH BROS/FIRE EMBLEM FATES
Drake and Ashley's faces immediately soured.
"Oh, right, I actually almost forgot about her." Drake muttered.
Ashley then realized something. "Wait… HER? But Byleth is male."
Drake just shrugged. "Maybe Xero just chose to balance the gender ratio."
Ashley rolled his eyes. "I am pleasantly surprised that Xero didn't make ALL of the Fire Emblem avatars female. Anyway, Wally and Catherine, it is your turn."
With that, the camera turned to Wally and Catherine… Writing down something on cue cards.
"Um, guys, what are you doing?" Drake asked from off-screen.
A few seconds later, Wally looked at the camera with a grumpy look and showed his cue card. It read "Due to us having decent screentime AND doing our jobs especially during Drake's breakdown, I believe we are in our right to ask Drake and Ashley to do this one."
Then, Catherine read up HER cue card that said. "In layman's terms, F U"
"...Guys." Drake's voice groaned from off-screen.
"Alright, alright, we'll do it!" Ashley snapped from off-screen. "But this better be the last time!"
With that, the camera went back to Drake and Ashley looking grumpy.
"Cowards…" Drake muttered.
Ashley just shook his head. "So anyway, Fates is the fourteenth game in the series. Using the graphics and art style from Awakening."
"The story was apparently penned by manga author Shin Kibayashi, writer of works like Get Backers, The Drops of God and Psycho Busters. Can't really say that these are any good." Drake shrugged. He then scowled. "ESPECIALLY when Fates is a horrible first impression on them."
"Now, now, Fates had a brilliant concept. Just… A very flawed execution." Ashley warned. "The plot is about two kingdoms that are at war. The peace-loving Hoshido and the glory-seeking Nohr. In the midst of this is Corrin, a child who was born in Hoshido, but kidnapped and taken to live in Nohr. If I may skip ahead, when Corrin is a teenager, he is taken back to Hoshido and finds out the truth about his past."
"It is then that Corrin has to make a choice. Go back to his adopted family that raised him over the years or his real birth family that he has missed out on. So it sounds like a great set-up, right?" Drake asked. "Well, here is the problem. Corrin… Is a twat. In the Conquest route, he constantly whines about betraying Hoshido."
"This would be more understandable if kinda did the same to Nohr. But no. In fact, he acts like a completely different person, being more assertive and not in a good way I feel." Ashley frowned. "And Valla. Hoo boy. Corrin isn't the problem there. If anything, he is just there!"
"Exactly! I feel that several characters are severely out-of-character. Especially Yukimura. When he is more diplomatic to Corrin when they were INVADING their KINGDOM!" Drake exclaimed.
"Also, the marriage-child mechanic is back. However, there is no time travel." Ashley sighed. "Just… Deeprealms. Realms where they put their baby in and have them ALL ALONE FOR WHO KNOWS HOW MANY YEARS IN THE DEEPREALMS!?" Ashley pointed. "Even CORRIN, who should knows fully well how that feels like!?"
"Speaking of marriage, you could hook up with your units with Corrin. Even your SIBLINGS!?" Drake exclaimed. He then gave a forced grin. "But it isn't okay because they are not really related. Not even the Hoshido ones! Is the birth family one of the main points of them!?"
"And the gameplay… Is actually decent." Ashley admitted.
"Yeah, they made Awakening's Pair-Up mechanic much more balanced." Drake nodded, "Also, the new Dragon Vein ability really spices up the gameplay."
"But yes, we do not have a strong opinion on Fates. But the most damning evidence against it?" Ashley asked. "It could have been great…"
"Yeah…" Drake frowned. "But yeah, Corrin is another swordswoman. However, she has unique things to make her stand out. Like how she could turn limbs to skewer her enemies, a claw that sends out an orb of water and various things."
"And don't forget, she could turn into a dragon and deal water-elemental damage." Ashley explained. "Considering that aquamancers are quite rare at this tournament, she would want to take advantage of it."
"And as much as I don't like Fates or Corrin, let's give credit where credit is due." Drake said before grinning. "She has the best sword in the entire franchise!"
GANG-IL
NODE: KING OF FIGHTERS XIV
BIG GUY ALERT!
"Ah, yes, Gang-Il. Can't say I am a fan of him, but I am at least interested in his story." Drake mused.
Ashley raised an eyebrow. "What is his story?"
"Well, it isn't shown yet. But apparently in XV, Luong is on the Secret Agent team along with Blue Mary and Vanessa." Drake explained.
Ashley jumped at this. "R-Really? But wait, if they call themselves the Secret Agent team, is that really a secret?"
"FOCUS!" Drake snapped. "So in short, it is hard to say that her love for Gang-Il is genuine or part of the job."
"Wait… Are you saying that Luong has convinced Gang-Il to go back to Kim BECAUSE she knew that Chang and Choi had abandoned him?" Ashley gasped.
"I can't really say, but she definitely didn't get in Gang-Il lap by accident." Drake nodded.
"But wait, if Luong is on the Secret Agent thing, what does that spell for Gang-Il and by extension, Kim." Ashley asked.
"I don't know. I mean Kim is obviously getting in, but Gang-Il?" Drake asked.
Ashley shook his head. "Let's just talk about Gang-Il fighting style."
"Right. I didn't mention this, but he is actually Kim's master so they shared quite a few moves." Drake explained.
"Fair enough, but there has to be SOME difference." Ashley said.
"Yeah, Gang-Il could do a flipkick in midair which is great for catching enemies off-guard and even a counter move." Drake added.
"Hmm… I wonder if he will do better than his master." Ashley mused.
"I don't know… Especially since he looks like a ripped Darksydephil." Drake muttered.
Ashley blinked twice before squinting his eyes at the picture before his eyes bugged out and he held his eyes in disgust.
"DRAKE! Why did you have to tell me that!? Now I am going to have nightmares about that!" He roared.
GANONDORF
NODE: SUPER SMASH BROS/THE LEGEND OF ZELDA
BIG GUY ALERT!
"Huh. Speaking of Kings of Negative Attributes." Drake noted.
"Even now, I am STILL stunned that they made him a semi-clone of Captain Falcon…" Ashley muttered, still trying to get the image of Darksydephil out of his mind.
"Yeah, I don't get it. Especially when Black Shadow is RIGHT there!" Drake added.
"Yeahhhhh, I could think of a reason why Black Shadow wasn't in…" Ashley started.
"DON'T!" Drake spat before letting out a deep sigh. "Well, at least they gave him enough things to differentiate from the good captain."
"Yes, his attacks may be slow, but if he hits you with it, you will go flying." Ashley winced. "And he has his sword to make up for his range."
"Though Ganondorf is well-known for his powerful magic, right?" Drake asked.
"Well…" Ashley said before pausing. "Though off the top of my head, he COULD do Dead's Man Volley."
"Oh, right! He is the most notable Mirror Ball. Basically, he sends out a magic orb at his enemies. However, his opponent could counter it by just attacking it back." Drake said. "But Ganondorf could hit it back. This goes on before someone messes it up."
"Ganondorf may have been defeated time and time again, but his mere presence is a bane on the world." Ashley noted. "And he will continue to do it in Breath of the Wild 2."
"Unless they rehydrated him." Drake muttered.
"DRAKE! Why are you filling my mind with these cursed images!?" Ashley roared, gripping his head.
YURI SAKAZAKI
NODE: KING OF FIGHTERS XIV/ART OF FIGHTING
"Yuri!" Drake shouted.
"I heard that she is a fighting game first if I am not mistaken." Ashley piped up. "Kidnapped in her first appearance and then showed up as a fighter in her second appearance."
"Can't say for certain, but yeah, that was a big leap for women at that time." Drake nodded. He then brightened up. "Oh! Here is some Art of Fighting history!"
Ashley raised an eyebrow. "Um, okay?"
"You know how Art of Fighting looks a lot like Street Fighter, right now to Ryo looking like Ken Masters?" Drake asked, earning a nod from Ashley. "Well, Capcom noticed this and created their own character, Dan."
Ashley's eyes bugged out at this. "Wait, are you saying that Dan…?"
"Is a jab against Art of Fighting. Yes." Drake nodded. "Oh, and SNK has gotten their revenge."
Ashley raised an eyebrow, "Through Yuri?"
"Through Yuri!" Drake grinned. "SNK had her copied several moves from various Capcom Shotos! Like Ryu's Hurricane Kick, Ken's Shoryu Reppa, Sakura's chargeable Hadoken, OH! And she even took Dan's Raging Demon super from IV!"
"Wow. That is quite impressive." Ashley noted in awe. "Blatant plagiarism and pettiness aside."
"Yeah. Don't think Yuri is a mere clone though. She got her own moves like a downwards energy ball and a hip check." Drake warned.
"Well, sometimes it is not how unique you are. It is how well you could fight." Ashley noted.
DARK PIT
NODE: SUPER SMASH BROS/KID ICARUS UPRISING
"Well, this is a stroke of good luck!" Drake grinned. "Even though Pit has lost his chance to double-team with Palutena, he at least has Pittoo!"
"Now this is a team-up I am excited to see!" Ashley smiled. "Especially since they work so well off of each other!"
"Hey! They are an iconic duo and the classic Yin-Yang duo!" Drake grinned.
"Now because Dark Pit is a clone, he still has the same moves as Pit?" Ashley asked.
"Mostly. His arrows are faster and stronger, but don't curve as much and he has the Electroshock Arm." Drake noted. "Also, he has a completely different Final Smash."
"I am still stunned that Dark Pit got in and not Viridi and even Magnus." Ashley noted.
"To be fair, he was supposed to be a costume and nothing more." Drake said. "But then… Well, I will mention it when we get to Lucina."
ALICE
NODE: KING OF FIGHTERS XIV/FATAL FURY
Ashley blinked twice. "Wait… I thought Alice is another Pachinko character."
"She is. From a Fatal Fury-themed one." Drake said.
"Ah." Ashley nodded.
"However, her popularity blew up with the fans and she became the face of the Fatal Fury Pachinko franchise." Drake explained. "She even appeared in a couple of dating games where she is actually a nurse-in-training?"
Ashley raised an eyebrow. "So THAT'S why Xero recruited her."
"Anyway, she is arguably the biggest love letter to Fatal Fury out of everyone in the cast." Drake grinned. "Even compared to the ACTUAL Fatal Fury team."
"Oh? And why is that?" Ashley asked.
"Just like Yuri, she copies from various heroes. However, in this case, the heroes, Terry, Andy, Joe and even Rock Howard!" Drake grinned.
"Oh, that's… Actually cute." Ashley smiled.
"Also, when she uses her attacks, coins pop out." Drake noted.
Ashley's smile vanished. "Wait, what?"
"And apparently she is the only Pachinko character to do that." Drake said, scratching the back of her head.
PRINCESS DAISY
NODE: SUPER SMASH BROS/SUPER MARIO BROS
"HI, I'M DAISY!" Drake grinned.
Ashley winced at this before glaring at Drake. "Hey, I may not have vampiric hearing, but that doesn't mean your shout doesn't hurt!"
The vampire chuckled nervously. "Sorry, sorry! But yeah, screw the haters! I love Daisy!"
"Yes, she may be… Overly loud, but it is hard not to appreciate her energy." Ashley noted.
"I know, right?" Drake grinned. "Also, she has only been kidnapped THREE times. The first is all the way back in Super Mario Land, the second in Super Mario Run, and she makes up for it by being a very good character to play as and lastly was in… Well, Super Smash Bros Ultimate. And considering that everyone who is Kirby and behind a paywall didn't get kidnapped!"
"Yes, about Sarasaland…" Ashley said. "How come we always hear about it, but never see it ever again?"
"...Well, some people think that Daisy Circuit from the Mario Kart series is from Sarasaland." Drake suggested.
Ashley tilted his head to the side. "Why?"
Drake just smirked. "Because there is a golden statue of not only Luigi & Daisy dancing, but also Baby Luigi and Baby Daisy dancing."
Ashley's eyes bugged out at this. "W-Wait, what?"
"Either that or someone is a HUGE shipper!" Drake grinned. "So anyway, Daisy and her Echo fighter Peach is quite floaty, having multiple jumps AND a parasol parachute."
"So she is hard to throw out of the ring." Ashley noted.
"Indeed. Not only that, but she could throw turnips, have Toad as a counter attack AND projectile deflector and even have an explosive ass!" Drake grinned.
"Drake!" Ashley said in disgust.
"No, really? She has a hip check that created an explosion of flowers." Drake offered. "Also, there is what she could do in the Okron Tournament."
"Oh, right, GreyRaine allowed her to have a different Final Smash and fight based on her appearance in Super Mario Strikers, right?" Ashley asked.
"To be more specific, it is Mario Strikers Charged, but otherwise that is correct." Drake said before he perked up. "And I'm really glad to hear that. While I am happy that Daisy is in Smash, I still feel that she is more than an Echo Fighter."
"Indeed. Daisy may be a princess that loves flowers, but she definitely prefers the rough and tumble." Ashley chuckled.
IORI YAGAMI
NODE: KING OF FIGHTERS XIV
"And here we have the eternal rival of Kyo, Iori!" Drake grinned.
Ashley shuddered. "Yeah, he just screams edgy rival."
"Yeah, but at least he is an edgelord with style with his choice of clothes, his purple flames and saxophone songs!" Drake smiled.
"Um, good for him." Ashley said. "So I assume that Iori is a moveset clone."
"Yeah and no, Iori does share a few similarities like their ground wave and jumping spin flame attack." Drake noted. "But he is obviously more brutal. Just like Mature, his hands are super-sharp."
Ashley blinked twice. "Um why?"
"Oh, didn't you know?" Drake asked. "Iori AND Mature both have Orochi blood in their veins."
Ashley's eyes bugged out. "So we have THREE Orochi fighters in the arena?"
"Huh. I never noticed until you asked about the sharp hand." Drake grinned. "If Beetlejuice, Bean and Tom & Jerry didn't make this section more interesting already…"
Ashley rolled his eyes. "You and Xero should be drinking buddies."
DONKEY KONG
NODE: SUPER SMASH BROS/DONKEY KONG COUNTRY
BIG GUY ALERT!
Drake's eyes lit up. "He's the leader of the bunch! You know him well! He's finally back to kick some tail!"
With that, he turned to see a stunned Ashley. After a few seconds, Drake's grin vanished.
"I guess you didn't hear me. I said…" Drake said before taking in a deep breath. "He's the leader of the bunch! You know him well! He's finally back to kick some tail!"
Ashley just groaned and rolled his eyes. "His coconut gun… It fires in spurts. If he shoots ya… It's gonna hurt!"
"Catherine!" Drake shouted.
The camera then went to the pink-haired girl rolling her eyes.
"Fine. But only because it is Donkey Kong." Catherine muttered before stifling a cough. "He's bigger, faster and stronger too!"
"He's the first member of the DK Crew!" Wally shouted, cheerfully.
The camera then went back to a clapping Drake and an exasperated Ashley.
"Now THAT's what I want to hear!" Drake grinned.
"Yeah, yeah…" Ashley muttered, rolling his eyes. "So anyway, Donkey Kong is another heavyweight."
"Well, yes and no." Drake pointed out. "Sure, he is powerful and yes, he could be slower compared to the rest of the cast. But he is actually faster than he looks."
"That's… Makes sense." Ashley noted. "After all, he spends a lot of his time rolling and swinging from vines."
"That's right. If people underestimate his speed, he could give them a Raging Demon just like he did in Returns and Tropical Freeze!" Drake grinned.
"Wow… Suddenly DK is sounding REALLY scary to me." Ashley gulped.
"Oh, trust me. You do NOT want to face a pissed off DK." Drake nodded.
Ashley chuckled nervously. "In any case, that is finally everyone."
"Remember, Bowser, Yamazaki, Xemnas, Zangief, The Contessa, Ridley, Gang-Il, Ganondorf and DK are all Big Guys!" Drake grinned. "So TWENTY-NINE people will be eliminated!"
"Also, we have quite a bit of Side Battles in this section." Ashley said. "We have Harley Quinn from DC Comics and Lady Decibel from Sly Cooper versus the former's nodal companion, Slade and Napalm Man from Megaman and Poison Ivy from DC Comics and Cody from Street Fighter V versus Blue Bayou and Sweet Juliet both from Tokyo Mew Mew."
"And we also have Captain Olimar from Super Smash Bros versus Tigger from Winnie the Pooh!" Drake added. "And Marth and Lucario from Super Smash Bros and Mai from King of Fighters versus THE Slenderman himself! You don't want to miss it!"
LINK TO SECTION: archiveofourown / works / 25531129 / chapters / 79808983
