Greetings Hero! 

Welcome to the weekly breakdown of the Side Character Showdown. This week will be our longest breakdown so let’s jump right into it. 

The Matchups:  

Quota v. Captain Pom: To be honest, internally this one was very much considered a lock for Quota because of the fact quota has been in every one of The Hero’s Journal products as well as Quota’s sheer adorableness. That being said, it wasn’t necessarily a landslide victory, with Quota getting 59% of the vote. I think the lack of a dominating victory should be a point of concern for Quota fans out there who expect her to make a deep run. 

Tortoi v. Professor Ooze: Internally, this one was a toss up with 3 brackets choosing the Tortoi and the other in favor of Prof. Ooze. Not only did the Tortoi win, but they won decisively with 74% of the total vote. I think Quota fans should be worried about this match up in the next round, which makes sense, I mean Tortoi are giant Turtle/Tortoise creatures what is there not to love?

Volgrimm v. Wolly Lop Dragon: This is probably the biggest surprise for the team. Only one member of the team picked the Wolly Lop Dragon to take the victory in the first round, and not only was it a victory, it was not really even close. With 79 votes and 61% of the vote, the Wolly Lop Dragon just told the world that they aren’t going anywhere. Cinderella run maybe? We will have to see. 

Snappie v. Goll: I think that we are going to start seeing a pattern after the early loss of Volgrimm and now the Goll. The characters that have an antagonistic vibe have not been performing well thus far. Snappie takes this one, but it's not too surprising, we love a winning smile and so do you.. 95 votes for Snappie. 

Outlaw Yew v. Shadow Hunter: Our first battle between two antagonistic vibed side characters. I think it's important to note that these characters seem to be a bit misunderstood, and with that being said, it looks like you all wanted to take a chance on Outlaw Yew, or you all just love mustaches. Either way, 82 votes for Outlaw Yew, they make it to the next round. 

Climbers v. Fuzzlebugs: Much like our last round, we have our first showdown between two adorable characters. For years, the climbers have been the face (in my opinion) of the adorable creature side of The Hero’s Journal world, and it looks like that longevity paid off with a first round victory. 90 votes and 71% of the total vote for the climbers. There are a lot of deep runs projected for the climbers, definitely a favorite to watch out for. 

Baby Peng v. Mousadillos: This is probably the most mismatched of a match up in the entire first round. Baby Peng, since their introduction, has been a bit of a cult of personality with fame and notoriety seemingly following them around. This one was a rout: 106 votes for Baby Peng for a staggering 84% of the overall vote. 

Castle Mice v. Cat: It’s a match up as old as time. Honestly, one I wish we could’ve seen later in the showdown, but the cat and mouse showdown found us early. This one played out very differently than Tom and Jerry with Cat taking the first round victory with 59% of the vote. 

Twig v. Cat King: Two cat related matchups back to back, unfortunately for the Cat King, he ran into a juggernaut in Twig. Since Twig’s introduction, they have had a fervent following of fans, and it showed in this first round match up with 63% of the overall vote. Twig might be a character to watch later in the tournament. 

Broccules v. Quorgs: This matchup may have been the biggest matchup of the whole tournament and we got it in the first round. What else is there to say, you have an elite athlete and nutrient dense warrior in Broccules facing off with a jack of all tradesmen who can fix or build anything in Quorgs. The showdown was so close actually that it ended the first day in a tie calling for a rematch where Broccules took the overtime victory. Quorgs, we will remember your hard fight. (Can you tell Quorgs is my favorite character?) 

Baby Trike v. Queen Florastina: Baby Trike was one of the early favorites in this tournament, I mean with the bandana, the box, and us watching grow up before our eyes, it was almost not fair. Baby Trike wins this matchup handedly with 100 total votes.
Author's note: I am kind of happy because it took me three attempts to spell Florastina correctly, saving me some time in future breakdowns. 

Will O’ Wisp v. White Rabbird: The seeding was very favorable for William Oliver Wisp this go around. White Rabbird is pretty new to the scene and hasn’t really had the chance to make a name for itself quite yet, whereas Will O’ has been on the scene for quite some time and has been a hit the whole time. Will got a staggering 85% of the vote with 102 total votes. 

Shadow Buddy v. Booster: This is another situation where it feels like Booster caught the short end of the stick. Shadow Buddy has been a massive hit since their first appearance on the scene. Not close.. Shadow Buddy takes it with 81% of the vote. 

Planters v. Gogo the Snoot: We love matchups like this, two characters from the same storyline matching up. Unfortunately for Gogo, their going up against a character that has a plushie and a whole host of other fandoms around them. The Planters put the bracket on notice and showed that they will be a force to be reckoned with in the coming round(s). Planters win with 76% of the vote. 

Kuma v. Super Poppio: Internally, we have talked about it could be unfair for a lot of the characters from the planner because of how new the story is and people haven’t had a chance to quest with a lot of these characters. Super Poppio is probably the best example of a great character that just hasn’t had the time with heroes to make a name for themselves. Kuma is loveable and is a great character and wins this one with 82% of the vote. 

Istelle v. Sherlock Roach: For the last matchup, we have one that people picked pretty 50/50 on internally. I think that Sherlock Roach is a polarizing character, people love Sherlock, but people also have a general disdain for roaches so that battle seemed to be too strong for Sherlock Roach in this first round matchup. Istelle also has a cult following among heroes, maybe Sherlock wins a different matchup, but not this one, Istelle takes the first round with 63% of the vote. 

That wraps up the first round of matchups, this was a super fun week with a lot of great showdowns to go over. We would love to hear who you think will take the whole tournament. I will be back next week with another breakdown, until then make sure to check our instagram stories each Monday during this challenge so that you can cast your votes!

Kyle