And the winner is…

A few weeks ago, I asked all you wonderful kingdomites to join in a game of blogosphere tug-of-war…  In this addition, the contest was between Team Coke and Team Pepsi.

I should have realized that something was amiss when the first backer came in to support the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group (it’s a thing, I promise)….

And then, for a time, the game dissolved into chaos.  Bloggers were tugging in every which way, and I thought it was going to have to be abandoned altogether.

But then!!!  But then Team Coke showed up, and heaved, and pulled, and tugged, and won in a landslide.

Unfortunately, our official kingdom tally keeper quit, so I don’t have the exact numbers for you.

You’ll just have to take my word for it.

Hey, I’m a Jester.  You can definitely trust me.  Definitely.  I assure you.  Believe me.

Thank you to all the players and CONGRATULATIONS to Team Coke, who once and for all have decided the age old battle of the sodas, colas, pops, carbonated sugary drinks of deliciousness…

Time for Tug-of-War

 

Hear  ye, hear ye…  Gather round… and all that jazz… er, rock, as the case may be.

It is time for another official Matticus proclamation!

A new Tug of War is about to be announced!

Like so many other things here in the kingdom, this tug-of-war is going to start with a reference to music:

“Rock and roller cola wars, I can’t take it anymore.”

– Billy Joel “We Didn’t Start the Fire”

https://genius.com/Billy-joel-we-didnt-start-the-fire-lyrics

If you hadn’t already guessed it, the question that needs answering, the question we are going to solve once and for all is:  Which is the best soda/pop/cola/tasty beverage of sugar and caffeine?  Is it Coke?  Is it Pepsi?

But, before we begin the game, here are some rules (because all games must have rules, except Calvinball, of course):
1) Read the prompt.  (I know what you are thinking, “Reading, bleh, who wants to do that.”  But if you don’t read the prompt then you won’t be able to fully play along.)
2) Choose a side.  (You have to pick a side in tug-of-war, that’s kind of important.)
3) Write a post that supports your decision.  (We don’t need an essay, and we don’t give bonus points for brevity either.  However, we will be your friend if you do something creative.)  (You can also just leave your answer as a comment though in cases where a tie-breaker is needed, I’m going to count comments as only half a pulling point.)
4) Link back to this post so the moderator can count your support correctly.  (If you are super awesome and choose to play along and write a post.)
5) There is no fifth rule – just seemed like there needed to be another one – oh, wait, I know:  The fifth rule of Matticus Kingdom Tug-of-War is “You do talk about it.”  To anyone and everyone.  That’d be great.

The winning side will be the one that gets the most support, and their reward will be the knowledge that they chose wisely and eternal fame across the kingdom.

You have two weeks to get your support behind either Coke or Pepsi.  The first week of September I will begin to tally up the support and write up another post announcing the winner.

The Kingdom is throwing its support behind Coke.

I will admit that in a blind taste test I did a couple years ago, I got them wrong and thought Pepsi was Coke and vice versa, but when I know what I’m drinking I prefer the taste of Coke.  Is that psychological?  Probably.  Is it solely because I grew up in a Coke household?  Most likely.  Is it because I call everything that is a soda “coke?”  Well, yes, that’s maybe part of it too.  But, for the purpose of this tug of war, I’m going to argue it call comes down to the sweetness.  Pepsi is sweeter and when I reach for a coke, or a coffee, or a beer, I’d rather have it be bitter.  I like my food sweet but my drinks bitter.  I’m a big ol’ weirdo like that… but… Jester… so, it is what it is.

Now come on all you faithful kingdomites!  What is your favorite soda and why?  Let’s get this tug-of-war going!

 

……………………………………………………………..

 

In case you were wondering, this is the fourth official tug of war.  The first one settled that chicken and egg thing, the second one explored an important part of childhood, and the third one settled the ultimate Marvel verse DC comic battle.

One side tugged and the other tugged harder

That’s right, the results are in.  The Marvel vs. DC Team Tug-of-War battle royale has finally ended.

The official kingdom tally keeper tallied and counted and added and ran away and then came back and tallied some more.

I must admit that when I started handing out extra points I hadn’t counted on factoring them into the final results.  But then, as I handed out more and more of them I realized I had to.  I swear it was purely coincidental that both teams ended up with exactly 8,000 bonus points:

Team Marvel:
The Cutter received 1,000 points for the thoroughness of his argument.
Laura Lord received 1,000 points for pointing out that Spongebob is mightier than Aquaman.
Brother Jon received 1,000 points for basing his argument on stability.
Grayson Queen received 1,000 points for showing us all X-Babies.
J. Milburn received 1,000 points for sheer brilliance.
ElectronicBagLady received 1,000 points for admitting that her moral compass came from Uncle Ben and Aunt May.
C.C. received 1,000 points for using definitions to decide who to support.
And…
CK Hope received 1,000 points for reminding us all it isn’t wise to anger The Hulk.  He punched one god and repeatedly bashed another into the ground.

Team DC:
Sarah Brekke received 1,000 points for pointing out that goth is part of Gotham.
Little Dude received 1,000 points because he’s ten, and his post was fantastic.
Zoe received 1,000 points for picking sides early and pulling with all her might even when the odds were stacked against her.
NotAPunkRocker received 1,000 points for pointing out that no matter what else Marvel has, they will always have the sorrow of being affiliated with Howard the Duck.
FaithHopeChocolate received 1,000 points for referencing Bones.
AreYouFinishedYet initially received 1,000 points for reminding us all to party responsibly and then received a second 1,000 points for being Freshly Pressed.
And…
Rara received 1,000 points for only using the comics to decide which side of the rope to support.

See?  Evenly matched in bonus points.  Funny that it worked out that way.

Therefore the real struggle came down to the number of people pulling on each side.  The tally keeper freely admits that he may have missed some.  He did his best but there were so many answers spread out across so many posts that it is likely he did, in fact, miss some.  But, here is what he did come up with:

Team Marvel: 38

Cimmy

The Cutter

Kim @ Tranquil Dreams

Laura Lord

Brother Jon

Jaklumen

Steph

Samara

Grayson Queen

moi

nobodysreadingme

J. Milburn

Lily

Controlled Chaos

electronicbaglady

C.C.

Revis

purpleperceptions

theclocktowersunset

Ned’s Blog

vernette

ddupre315

okmegan

CK Hope

jjames36

Monkeyboy

Shannon

tishmoon

Sean Smithson

Glow Worm

E.

The Indecisve Eejit

Rebecca Enzor

Maddie Cochere

helenrj

blimbo2005

kraftycatcreations Madame Weebles

Team DC: 24

The Hook

Sarah Brekke

Sreejit Poole

Little Dude

El Guapo’s wife

Zoe

thycriticman

princessdeloso

JED

Arden

cynkingfeeling

juckanin115

JackieP

NAPR

faithhopechocolate

AreYouFinishedYet

unfetteredbs

Rara

Laura Lynn

Nick Powell

alexraphael

Alice

dflorack

colonialist

Therefore, the trophy, the glory, the victory go to TEAM MARVEL, and Team DC are left in the mud.

Big thank you to everyone who played.  Including these wonderful posts:

The Matticus Kingdom Wants YOU! | rarasaur

How about a game of TUG OF WAR? | Tranquil Dreams

DC vs Marvel, official tug-of-war | JED’s Playhouse

Don’t lose your arms | Posting Tuesdays. I am Grayson.

DC vs. Marvel | Musings of a Dancing Wino

Marvel vs. DC – Tug-of-War | Writing To Be Noticed

Tug of War 2014: Marvel vs. DC | GAMERSCENE.WORDPRESS.COM

My Contribute to a Week of Silliness | To Breathe is to Write

Not a Punk Rocker

Tug of war | Electronicbaglady’s Bag of Bits

Returning to my Youth to participate in a tug-of-war. | Faith, Hope and Chocolate

Matticus Kingdom Tug-of-War: Marvel vs. DC | consciouscacophony

A leap ahead – Zero to Hero Days 9-12 | the tao of jaklumen

Versus: Companies « 33 Grams of Blog

The Superhero Keg Party: A Battle for Superiority | Are You Finished Yet?

…and I shall shed my light over dark. | rarasaur

We Have a Hulk | Daisies from Dust

Zero to Hero Day 22: Draft a Post For (Another) Blogging Event | The Dragon’s Lair

Why So Serious? | Living Dead Girl

Marvel vs. DC: Which Comic Universe Reigns Supreme? | The Cutter Rambles

Tug of War: Marvel or DC? | Tranquil Dreams

In His Words | History of a Woman

Marvel vs. DC! What? | The Seeker’s Dungeon

TUG of WAR: DC vs. Some Other People « A Buick in the Land of Lexus

We Can See Heroes | Brother Jon’s Page

Fall From Grace « 33 Grams of Blog

What should the next tug-of-war battle be between?  Star Trek and Star Wars?  Clint Eastwood and John Wayne?  Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett?

The Superhero Keg Party: A Battle for Superiority

Freshly Pressed madness adding to the raging Tug-of-War battle. If you haven’t read this post yet, click on over and check it out now. It is hilarious. It is logical. It is a great post.

Are You Finished Yet?

Like many mothers of small boys, I am often asked to play superheroes. My son Michael has loved to engage me in this activity for a while now, ever since receiving a Batcave a few Christmases ago. As a five-year-old, he has come to act out the traditional superhero versus villain role plays, but when we first started our imaginary scenarios in the Batcave, he always simply wanted to “have a party.” All the superheroes were invited, including the multiple versions of Batman he owned, which he logically named Dad Batman, Mom Batman, Sister Batman, Brother Batman, and Other Brother Batman. The parties sometimes included the villains, and usually

View original post 321 more words

The Return of the Official Matticus Kingdom Tug-of-War

Disclaimer – this is going to be a week of nonsense here in the kingdom.  It seemed like the blogosphere could used some silliness, and since that is what we are all about here, that is what we are going to provide.  Everything this week will be designed to uplift, make you laugh, etc…  If you aren’t okay with that, too bad, that’s what you are going to get anyway.  Now, on with the show…

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

The rules (because all games must have rules, except Calvinball, of course):
1) Read the prompt.  (I know what you are thinking, “Reading, bleh, who wants to do that.  But if you don’t read the prompt then you won’t be able to fully play along.”
2) Choose a side.  (You have to pick a side in tug-of-war, that’s kind of important.)
3) Write a post that supports your decision. (We don’t need an essay, and we don’t give bonus points for brevity either.  However, we will be your friend if you do something creative.)  (Kim also says you can just leave your answer as a comment and since she is awesome we are going to allow that.)
4) Link back to this post so the moderator can count your support correctly. (Unless you leave your answer in the comments, then you don’t need to link back, because, well that might create an infinite loop that could explode the internet.)
5) There is no fifth rule – just seemed like there needed to be another one – oh, wait, I know:  The fifth rule of Matticus Kingdom Tug-of-War is “You do talk about it.”  To anyone and everyone.  That’d be great.

The winning side will be the one that gets the most support, and their reward will be the knowledge that they chose wisely and eternal fame across the kingdom.

Doesn’t this sound like fun?

Many thanks to Kim and Rara for helping come up with and formulate this idea.  They are amazing.  Go forth and check out their pages.  That’s not an order, per se, but it is an official edict.  (Yes, there is a difference.)

……

For the return of the world famous* game, we have chosen the prompt:  Which universe of superheroes (and villains) is superior: Marvel or DC?

*”World famous” may or may not be an accurate description.  We aren’t going to discount it as a possibility though.

The Matticus Kingdom is throwing our support behind Marvel.  Mostly that is because we are partial to The Punisher and Spiderman.  But, we can’t discount the overall popularity of the Marvel movies: X-Men, Spiderman, Iron-Man, Thor, Captain America, The Avengers, etc…  They have dominated the box office and those billions of dollars cannot be ignored.  Plus, if we didn’t pick Marvel, we are pretty sure that The Punisher would hunt us down and we really want to avoid that.

You want to play, right?

• Choose a side
• Make a post and link it back to this one
• Or leave a convincing argument in the comments

(Rara, in her infinite wisdom has decreed there should be an offical timeframe related to when the winner will be announced…. yeah, she’s a smarty like that.)

The ruling powers here in the Kingdom have decided that participants have until Friday (1/24/2014) one week (five-ish days) to throw their support behind one of the two answers.

Our official counter (yeah, we have a guy for that) will add them up and then one of our minions will post the results at some point next weekend, or the following Monday: bestowing glory upon the winners.

And, we’ll all live in a better world for finally having solved once and for all which is the better comic universe.