Black Lushus

see, my problem with Yoda/Tyranus is that it seemed, as someone said earlier, too much like an ECW trainwreck spotfest whereas the Luke/Vader duels actually had drama and pyschology worked in... I would have gave Obi-Wan/Darth Maul 5 stars had it gone a little longer...

I hate to say it, but I think a HHH/JBL fued would be good up until they actually get into the ring together...

Okay, we're a little less than 3 weeks away from the (hopefully) movie of the year for us Star Wars geeks, so, I was thinking to myself, to pass the time, let's decide what was the best duel (so far) in the entire series? I thought it'd be kinda dorkish fun to list every matchup and apply star ratings and break them down in wrestling review terms, kinda. I'm curious to see how YOU all would rate them as well...Now let's limit these down to actual duels as opposed to, for example, the Jedi against the Droid Army on Geonosis. Here we go: -Qui-Gon Jinn V. Darth Maul-Tatooine-**. Decent, quick match to introduce us to Darth Maul...fast paced, not too many flashy spots...ending sees Qui-Gon bailing out at the last minute with an assist from the Naboo...we'll give the win to Darth Maul as he certainly wasn't going anywhere and had nothing but death on his mind. In fact, the match was clearly going to be in his favor until Qui-Gon was able to make the escape... -Qui-Gon Jinn/Obi-Wan Kenobi V. Darth Maul-Handicap match-Naboo-****. Fun matchup as we really see how powerful and underrated Darth Maul was as a Sith. The Jedi think this is going to be an eaasy encounter, telling the Naboo folks to go ahead and beat it because they got this one, that is until Maul busts out the double-blade lightsaber, a definent crowd favorite. Maul is able to hold his own really well against a Jedi Master and a future Master in Obi-Wan. The match doesn't have a true finish though as Maul is able to completely take Obi-Wan out of the picture long enough to lead into... -Qui-Gon Jinn V. Darth Maul II-Naboo-**. This was Maul's only true shining moment here as he seemingly breaks through the glass ceiling with a rather decisive win over Jedi master Qui-Gon. Not much of a match, though better than their first encounter on Tatooine as Qui-Gon is blown up following that handicap Match and begans to be exposed as the poorer worker in the Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan tag team. The end comes abruptly when the younger Maul catches the wiley veteran Qui-Gon off gaurd long enough to jam his lightsaber through Qui-Gon's midsection, scoring the victory... -Obi-Wan Kenobi V. Darth Maul-Naboo-****. Total spotfest here as an enraged Obi-Wan opens up heavily on the redhot Maul who seems to be showing no signs of slowdown following 2 intense matchups. Both men show their best work to date, trading lightsaber blows left and right until, ONCE AGAIN, Maul is able to catch another Jedi off gaurd with a force push, chucking him into some sort of pit (Lucas has a thing for pits and such in his cities) and making him lose his lightsaber in the process. Maul, of course, being the cocky heel that he is, thinks he has this one in the bag as he toys with Obi-Wan, who is hanging on for dear life as the match has taken on Over-The-Top elimination rules. Maul's cockiness proves to be his downfall, though as Obi-Wan leaps out of the pit, grabbing Qui-Gon's lightsaber through the Force and slices Maul through the midsection, causing the once promising newcomer to fall to his demise into the pit. Winner and NEW Jedi Master: Obi-Wan Kenobi! -Obi-Wan Kenobi V. Jango Fett-Kamino-***. Obi-Wan takes control early on, overwhelming Jango Fett with a flurry of fast paced offense. The match seems like it will be a total squash until outside interference from 2nd Generation Superstar Boba Fett turns the tide into Jango's favor. Boba evens the odds for Jango by firing a huge volley of lasers in Obi-Wan's direction, sending him flying away. Big spot of the match comes as Obi-Wan goes for his lightsaber, only to have Jango fire his cable at him to keep him away from it. Both men go flying over the side of the landing pad, still attached by the cable, but Jango is able to gain traction on the side of the wall to stop his fall. Realizing he's still attached to Obi-Wan and it will spell his eventual doom, he detaches the cable, sending Obi-Wan to certain demise and then makes his escape. Obi-Wan is able to recover and return for more, but Jango is able to take advantage of the break in the action to beat a hasty retreat. Winner is Jango due to outside interference. -Mace Windu V. Jango Fett-Geonosis-*. Really a nothing match as Jango makes mistake after mistake leading up to his demise from decapitation from Windu. Total squash and a let down from two men who came into this thing with a lot of hype. -Obi-Wan Kenobi V. Darth Tyranus-Geonosis-**. Oh how the mighty have fallen or was a certain other individual (Darth Maul) overrated? Obi-Wan starts off hot, deflecting away dirty lightning force heel tactics by Tyranus right from the get go, making it seem as if this could be another victory for the Jedi Master. They finally lock up after a bit of stalling and trash talking and it's pretty intense. Obi-Wan's offense is, literally, cut short, though as Tyranus, seemingly out of nowhere is able to pick up the quick victory by slicing into Obi-Wan's arm and leg, rendering the Jedi defenseless. Tyranus goes for the final blow, when out of nowhere, young rookie Anakin Skywalker flies in to make the save on his mentor. This, in turn leads to... -Anakin Skywalker V. Darth Tyranus-Geonosis-***. Really not that great a match, I may have overrated it, but the drama and psychology are running sky high as potential Jedi master and rookie Anakin Skywalker steps up to the plate and challenges the second-to-the-top heel Tyranus to a duel. High spot of this encounter sees Anakin snatching up Obi-Wan's lightsaber to go into daul lightsaber mode, winning the crowd, albeit briefly. Tyranus is far too crafty to be outdone in that fashion as he's able to knock the second lightsaber away. Anakin actually tries some heel tactics by knocking out the power to the room, but Tyranus proves that heel tactics will not beat a heel. A win here could have elevated Anakin to main event status, but the veteran Tyranus proves to be too much as it quickly turns into a match rivaling HHH/Hurricane proportions. Tyranus again picks up the victory by slicing off Anakin's arm and sending the would be Master sprawling to the floor, crashing into Obi-Wan and rendering him unconscious. -Yoda V. Darth Tyranus-Geonosis-***. Master V. Former Apprentice. They start off with Force powers to try to gain the psychological edge over the other. Tyranus appears to be extremely confident, only to be shot down by Yoda, who knows every trick in his book. Yoda seems to have won the psychological battle as Tyranus decides that only a lightsaber duel will settle this. The confidence seems to be slowly oozing out of him at this point as Yoda does not back down from this at all. Spotfests abound as Yoda goes BONZO GONZO~! all over Tyranus, showing no signs of slowing down. Not bad for a guy in his 900s! Yoda appears to be on the verge of total victory when Tyranus resorts to devious heel tactics by bringing a huge object down on the two fallen Jedi, Obi-Wan and Anakin. Yoda immediately calls of his lightsaber attack to aid his friends as Tyranus takes that break in the action to get out of dodge. The win definently goes to Yoda, but the finish really sucked. Would have been more stars with a better finish. -Obi-Wan Kenobi V. Darth Vader-Death Star-*. Boring showdown, not living at all to the hype here as Obi-Wan is clearly no match for his former pupil, Vader. Vader appears to be ever cautious though, not quite going for that deathblow, knowing full well what his former master is capable of. Obi-Wan eventually decides to job out to Vader, knowing that his time has passed and that a Vader win here could make a future victory by the hottest new Jedi, Luke Skywalker all the more meaningful. Vader gets the win with a slice through the midsection, sending Obi-Wan on to the land of the Living Force. Psychological edge goes to Obi-Wan, though, as he knows what is in store for Vader soon. -Luke Skywalker V. Darth Vader-Cloud City-*****. Probably the best match of the entire series. Vader has everything over Luke at this point: experience, pshycology, a better worker. This does not at all deter Luke though, as he starts off immediately going for the kill, knowing full well he is is clearly outmatched, but he's not going to let that stop him. Vader no sells a lot to start and is able to knock Luke down a set of stairs to gain the advantage. He swoops in for the kill, but Luke does his best to show that this won't be an easy squash for the reigning Sith Lord, striking back the best he can, trying to stay in this matchup. Vader is able to get in another rough looking spot as he backs Luke into the Carbon Freezing Chamber. His overconfidence shines, though, as Luke quickly leaps out of there before Vader is able to freeze him. Vader is very impressed by this, even stunned and now realizes he can't take this new kid lightly. The battle commences again and Luke is able to get a quick shot with a steam hose, sending Vader out of the battle for a brief moment. Being the evil heel that he is, Vader manages to sneak off, leaving Luke perplexed, looking for his opponent. Luke thinks he may have finished his rival off when Vader leaps in out of nowhere to catch him off gaurd. Luke maintains his vigel, however, and battles back without showing signs of letting down. Vader realizes he may have to cheat to win here and begins invoking his Force powers on Luke, who has yet to fully unlock his own abilities. He catches Luke of gaurd with numerous flying foreign objects before sending him crashing through a glass window to his doom...or so Vader thought...Luke again impresses him by holding on for dear life above yet another huge pit. Luke is able to recover once again and resumes his search for Vader, but the crafty Vader continues to stay one up on his foe. They battle once more, but now Vader is begining to quickly gain the advantage. Clearly outmatched and exhausted, Luke is not able to deflect a lightsaber shot that takes his hand completely off and thus takes him pretty much out of the match. Then, in one of the most shocking cinema developments ever, Vader teases a face turn by revealing to Luke that they are father and son. The face tease, however would turn out to be a way to lure Luke into turning heel. Luke is able to see through it all though, and leaps off the platform down into the pit. Vader picks up the win on this one, gaining a psychological edge on his rival. -Luke Skywalker V. Darth Vader II-Second Death Star-*****. The second matchup between these two lives up to the hype and then some. Vader, this time is accompanied by the top heel himself, Emperor Palpatine. The heels work hard to try and goad new Jedi Master Luke into joining their stable, but Luke is able to resist every temptation to turn and that ends up resulting in this matchup between Luke and Vader. Vader is not able to play any head games this time as Luke had spent all of his time since their first encounter preparing for this inevitable showdown and thus proves to be a far better adversary than before. They battle back and forth, much to Palpatine's delight, and eventually Vader gains the edge, forcing Luke into hiding to regroup. Vader begins with the head games again, trying to get Luke to reveal himself by using the sneakiest heel tactic to date: telling him he'll go find his sister if he doesn't join their stable. naturally, this sets Luke off in a big way, as signs of heel-ness show themselves in the Jedi master, as his fury and rage allow him to completely take Vader apart to the point where he cuts HIS hand off and leaves him near breathless, down on the floor. Palpatine, of course, is ecstatic about all of this, as his plan all along was to toss Vader out of the Sith faction and bring in the newer, younger Luke. Again, though, Luke is able to resist the lure of being a heel and refuses to side with Palpatine. Realizing that Luke's decision is final, Palpatine sees no other course but to bust out the Force Lightning on the unsuspecting Luke who takes the shot full on, not able to soften it at all. The end appears near for Luke when, suddenly, Vader pulls off one of the biggest face turns in cinema history by grabbing Palpatine and tossing him over the top down to his doom. Luke has won this battle, with a little help from the face turned Vader and is now THE Undisputed Jedi Master. Father and son are able to reconcile afterwards as Vader eventually passes on to become one with the Living Force. Coming May 19th, 2005-Episode III-Revenge Of The Sith (card subject to change): -Obi-Wan Kenobi/Anakin Skywalker V. Darth Tyranus-Handicap match -Anakin Skywalker V. Darth Tyranus II -Mace Windu and his Jedi stable V. Emperor Palpatine -Mace Windu V. Anakin Skywalker -Yoda V. Emperor Palpatine -Obi-Wan Kenobi V. General Grevious -MAIN EVENT: Obi-Wan Kenobi V. Anakin Skywalker

In general, don't go to a movie aimed at a black audience if this is your issue...

I don't care for the entire album, but I will definently agree that Cry Me A River and Rock Your Body are good tunes...

Rolling Thunder is getting the love!

find someone who loves working on cars and become their friend QUICKLY! I have about 4 like that, sure have come in handy over the years...

Yeah I only heard of the Headmasters recenetly when my Japanese friend sprung it on me after learning how much I love the Transformers...

strangly enough, my brother fits that stereotype to a T...

RID was actually halfway decent once they brought in the Combaticons...err Decepticons...then it disappeared...

does that mean you're short and squaty, Jingus?

You've never felt the true meaning of "being insulted" until you've been called a sellout by your own race...

as much as I hate when others do this, it's been covered in other threads...

"Get Right" by J.ello...hell anything by her...

the sad thing is that us minorities are the main purchasers of said products...

okay so we've established what that chick is saying...now where is it from? GGW?

Does that include labor? If not, you're really hosed...sorry, no better way to sugarcoat it...

Nicew to see you, Rip...

it's funny, ever since I got married, my wife just buys her own shit for birthdays, christmas and anniversaries like a month in advance and informs me it's her present for that occassion...I just sit back and go "Uh okay, honey"...then when that occassion does actually hit, if I fail to buy a card or a rose or even write a little note, I'm fucked!

you can get a vasectomy all you want, just don't go all Ron Mexico on the bitches...

I don't know much about Kylie other than the fact that I want to jam my penis in her, but I do like that song of hers "Slow"...

I would recommend, if you can find them, episodes from Japan's "Headmasters" series...it takes place right after TROOP and completely ignores that 3 episode load of horseshit known as "Rebirth"...it features the return of the Matrix, the death of Optimus Prime (again), Rodimus becomming leader again, Ultra Magnus getting waxed by new Decepticon badass Sixshot, Season 1 and 2 characters actually appearing side by side with Season 3 characters amongst other things...the focus is on the Headmasters, of course, but it's non of that silly Nebulan garbage...it's the same animation studio so it's basically like watching Season 4...I don't know if it's dubbed though, so I recommend having a Japanese friend who can explain it all to you as you watch!

I found Britney Spear's "Toxic" to be one of her few songs I actually dig... and as I've said before, I like a lot of Backstreet Boys and NSync tunes...if that makes me "teh ghey" then so be it...

awww come on Korgath, we couldn't have that match go that much longer, we wouldn't want the next WWE Champion to be exposed to the marks as a piss poor worker would we?

SWEEEEEEEEEEEET!