Tag Archives: Keirsey Temperament

Entertainment

Visceral Tactics

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Marvel Studios president Kevin Fiege talked recently about the future of Marvel and the Avengers 2, saying that the roster in the next avengers films will be decidedly different from that of the first Avengers.  “Absolutely, that’s the fun of it — introducing new characters.”  Of course what Kevin does NOT know is that the current line up is of course optimal, seeing as that it has all four temperaments and therefore is at a perfect equilibrium.  Someone should really contact him and let him know.  Let’s however hope for the best and proceed with analyzing the Avengers ‘go-to’ green monster the incredible Hulk.

Doctor Robert Bruce Banner had a tough childhood as his father hated him, was an alcoholic, and murdered his mother.  His father did however do one good thing, in giving his son a pre-disposition to gamma radiation, which saved his life, and created the big green monster that we all know and love.  Bruce Banner after being caught in a gamma radiation explosion turns into an emotional and impulsive humanoid monster known as the Hulk when angered.  Instinctive, fearless, and exploding with brute strength, the not-so-jolly green giant is undoubtedly a Crafter Artisan.  Inspired by the classic tale of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the Hulk is a representation of our primal instincts and animal nature.  Indeed the Hulk is a ferocious and savage creature, with a visceral mentality that any Artisan can relate to.  Certainly the Hulk does much of the heavy lifting for the Avengers, and is an irreplaceable asset, as are all Artisans within any successful organization.  In Avengers footage shown at NYCC, Loki brags “I have an army,” to which Stark replies “We have a Hulk.”

Quote1.png … You won’t like me when I’m angry! Quote2.png

—Robert Bruce Banner (Earth-616)
Entertainment

Solid Steel Logistics

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Russel Crowe and Michael Shannon (Boardwalk Empire) allegedly will go toe-to-toe in Zack Snyder’s Superman reboot Man of Steel.  Russel Crowe is playing Jor-El (Superman’s father) and Michael Shannon is playing Kryptonian villain General Zod.  And apparently, Supermans dad smokes cigarettes.  Crowe tweeted about the fight saying Michael Shannon “is very hard to put down”.  While the above picture looks pretty decent, I fear that the film most certainly will not be, seeing as that it is being directed by Zack Snyder.  Zack Snyder has indeed botched several other films, and is clearly out of his league here.  Let’s however give the poor man the benefit of the doubt, and proceed with analyzing the Last Son of Krypton’s temperament.

Superman is the quintessential comic book hero and a dearly beloved cultural icon.  Super-dependable, outstandingly dutiful, and extremely persevering, the Big Blue Boyscout is undoubtedly an Inspector Guardian.  Characterized by his indestructible physicality and strict code of ethics, Superman knows that with great power comes great responsibility.  Indeed Superman adheres to the idea that actions speak louder than words, and takes the responsibility of defending Earth and its inhabitants very seriously.

Man of Steel will reportedly NOT BE connected with a Justice League Universe, despite Warner Bros. saying that a JLA film is the studios top priority.  Some ‘in the bizz’ of course say that this is because the studio thinks Snyder helming the project is a huge risk, after the god-awful job he did on Sucker Punch.  Snyder, who has directed other comic-book adaptations like 300, is an idiot, and has an aggregate rottentomatoes score of 54%.  Meaning that if directing movies is like taking a class, he failed.  Clearly Warner Bros. figured out that they hired a moron to reboot the most iconic superhero of all time and tried to damage control by disconnecting the project from their future aspirations (a JLA film).  Who knows, this imbecile could get REALLY lucky and turn out a DECENT film, in which case Warner Bros. would probably change their mind and use the film as solid footing for a JLA movie.  Solid footing that they desperately need.  Man of Steel‘s release date has been pushed back to Summer 2013.

Entertainment

Thunderous Diplomacy

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The Avengers Trailer (released last week) was downloaded over 10 million times in a 24 hour period, smashing previous records for trailers.apple.com.  The Marvel Team followed up such exciting fan-fare with a strong presence at New York Comic Con, where they discussed filming and shot some never-before-seen footage.  If you’re a closet nerd like I am, or just a straight-up nerd, you can watch the full NYCC Avengers panel here.
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Tom Hiddleston somewhat dominates the panel as people seem to really love his portrayal of supervillain Loki.  The panel ends with Kevin Fiege (Marvel’s President) talking about Marvel moving into what he refers to as ‘phase two‘.
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While a DC/Warner Bros. Justice League of America film is a looming threat for Marvel, The Dark Knight rises is an immediate one, as many predict that it will beat out the Avengers at the summer box office.  Many argue that Chris Nolan’s ‘rooted-in-reality‘ darker, more gritty tone is much more accessible to audiences than the sci-fi otherworldly aspects of the Avengers.
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If this be true, Marvel’s woes with DC/Warner Bros. would seemingly be over after The Dark Knight Rises seeing as Batman is the only ‘superhero’ without any actual superpowers.  Indeed it would be difficult to make a gritty, ‘rooted-in-reality’ film about Superman.  DC/Warner Bros. however, is trying.
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Christopher Nolan is undoubtedly the biggest power player that DC/Warner Bros. has access to, and although he’s done with Batman after TDKR, he is artistically and financially attached to other DC/Warner Bros. projects, including Man of Steel.  It seems obvious that if DC/Warner Bros. wants to actually beat out Marvel in Hollywood it is absolutely paramount that they stick to the realistic tone that has been wildly successful for Christopher Nolan and The Dark Knight franchise.
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That being said, let’s take a look at Marvel’s most otherworldly superhero, the Asgardian God of Thunder: Thor.
Thor Odinson is the Crown Prince of the mystical realm of Asgard.  Our dear friend Thor is based off of the Norse God of Thunder, and acts accordingly.  A brave and mighty warrior Thor won many battles as a child, growing headstrong and proud.  In his arrogance, Thor put his realm and people on the brink of war after breaking a truce with Asgard’s enemies the Frost Giants.  Teaching his son a lesson in humility, Thor’s father Odin banished him to earth, and stripped him of his powers.  Thor came back humble, gentle, empathetic, and sympathetic to his fellow man.  Altruistic, enthusiastic, inspirational, and yet fiercely independent, Thor is undoubtedly a Champion Idealist.  Indeed Thor’s high-spirited attitude and warm enthusiasm for defending his realm is often mistaken for arrogance, a typical problem with most Champions.  In true Idealist fashion, Thor was only able to wield his hammer Mjolnir ‘the day that great deeds of selfless valor had proved him worthy of it’.  Indeed only those ‘pure of heart‘ are able to wield Thor’s mystical hammer.  A hopeless romantic, Thor fell deeply in love with the Goddess Sif before the age of 20.  Certainly Thor has several deep love interests over his Godly life span (including that of Jane Foster seen in the film) Sif however being his main squeeze.  Thor has undoubtedly proven himself as self-sacrificing over the years, most notably in the subject of his mischievous kid-brother Loki.  Indeed Loki has made countless attempts at Thor’s life, but Thor however always spares Loki, hoping (to no avail) that Loki has learned his lesson.  Indeed Thor has tireless faith in his fellow man, and time and time again Thor is sacrificing himself to save innocent people from Loki or any other dangers for that matter, as he will no doubt do in The Avengers.
Quote1.png Even the life of a Thunder God can offer no greater satisfaction than this! For I have helped a fellow man! Quote2.png

—Thor Odinson (Earth-616)
Quote1.png We are gods, ’tis our purpose to set aright the path of lesser beings. Quote2.png

—Thor Odinson (Earth-616)
Spoilerish: Marvel head honcho Kevin Fiege discussed Loki’s purported ‘alien army‘ saying that “it’ll be extremely extremely large and something that links not only into the movies we’ve made but the movies we’re going to make.  So it’s a big play that we’re not quite ready to talk about.”
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This hint/suggestion of course goes hand-in-hand with theories that Loki’s army will indeed be the Skrull army from the comics.  If you don’t know what that is, then you’re probably normal.  Anyway this goes hand-in-hand with the ‘otherworldiness‘ described above.
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The question is will such ‘alien army’, otherwordly concepts ultimately win over audiences or disconnect them?  Which would you rather see, a team of superheroes battling alien armies?  Or a vigilante billionaire fight a bad-ass prison-escapee on drugs?  Stay tuned as the Marvel/Disney vs. DC/Warner Bros. battle for Hollywood dominance rages on.
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Entertainment

DC/Warner Bros. Strikes Back

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DC/Warner Bros. launched a bit of a news counter-attack this week no doubt in an attempt to ‘one-up’ it’s rival Marvel/Disney as the epic battle between the two stellar organizations rages on.

The highly anticipated console game Batman:Arkham City hit counters yesterday and was met with rave reviews across the board (97/100 on Metacritic).  The game is extremely well done, has a great story arch, hosts a slew of bat-villains, and allows you to beat the sh*t out of people as Batman.  Need we say more?

Warner Bros. Studios also got a reasonable amount of free publicity last night at Spike TV’s Scream Awards as it took home several trophies.  The Dark Knight Rises took home the ‘most anticipated‘ award beating out it’s bitter rival the Avengers.  Ralph Phiennes won ‘best villain‘ for his phenomenal portrayal of ‘he who must not be named’ (Lord Voldemort).  Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows – Part 2 also took home several other (6 total) awards last night including the top honor (‘Biggest Scream‘), culminating a series of relatively irrelevant victories for the good folks over at Warner Bros. Pictures.

In related bat-news The Dark Knight Rises is reportedly set to occupy Wall Street starting October 29th for 14 days, which very well might overlap with the on-going Wall Street protests currently taking place.  Being the film-making gangster that Christopher Nolan is, the protests apparently will not interfere with his plans, as he will “simply be using the protests as a back-drop or stand-in for something that already exists in the film”.  And that ladies and gentlemen, is how you turn a frown upside down.

Given this slew of bat and bat-related news, let’s take a look at The Dark Knight Rises’ primary villain, the hard-knock bad-ass known as Bane.

Bane spent his childhood and early adult-life in prison, serving a sentence for his fathers crimes.  Bane’s ‘natural abilities‘ allowed him to develop ‘extraordinary skills‘ within the prison walls: reading all the books he could get his hands on, building his physique in the prison gym, and picking up a plethora of martial arts.  Bane has since evolved into a ‘super intelligent world-class fighter‘ and a ‘tactical genius‘.  Bane indeed turned out to be a truly brilliant tactician, as he is most known for causing a prison break to overwhelm Batman, and infamously breaking the Bat’s back while he is weak and tired.  Impulsive, fearless, and ridden with brute strength, Bane is undoubtedly a Crafter Artisan.  Indeed Bane utilizes a variety of different ‘tools‘, including the super-drug ‘Venom‘, a reported army of mercenaries, a couple of ‘tumblers’, and evidently a ‘doomsday machine’.  Bane like all Crafters communicates primarily through his actions: bringing his prison mentality to Gotham City, Bane decided to go after the man that everyone feared: Batman.  Indeed a physical specimen, actor Tom Hardy packed on 30 pounds of muscle to play the role.  Like his fellow Crafters, Bane is ‘fascinated by weapons of all kinds‘ and wields them with ‘lethal virtuosity‘, taking ‘pride‘ in his ‘prowess‘.

Quote1.png You know nothing of strength, little boy. I know strength. Such as the strength that comes from numbers. And the strength one gains from knowing his enemy’s weaknesses. Checkmate. Quote2.png

—Bane (DCAU)

Without getting too spoilerish: it seems Bane will indeed break Batmans back in the The Dark Knight Rises, as evidenced by Christian Bale limping out of a Lamborghini.  This is supposedly when the Dark Knight will take a break, and a valiant young man named Joseph Gordon Levitt will temporarily step in as Batman’s sidekick, Robin.

As shooting on Wall Street will no doubt beget a new wave of on-set spy photos and footage, stay tuned for more bat and bat-related temperament news.  Same bat time, same bat channel (blog).

UPDATE: Warner Bros. Pictures will release an 6 minute IMAX prologue for The Dark Knight Rises that will be attached to the IMAX release of Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol.  This also strongly suggests that Warner Bros. will also give us a new TDKR trailer with their big holiday release Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.  Full story here.

Entertainment

The Dark Prince of Strategy

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Living in the wake of The Avengers Official Trailer release and with NYCC (New York Comic-Con) this weekend, let’s take a look at primary antagonist and iconic supervillain Loki Laufeyson.  Loki will indeed serve as a the main bad-guy in the film, with aspirations of ‘enslaving humanity‘.  Rumors say, he’s not doing it alone.

Thor’s villainous step-brother Loki aptly named after the Norse God of Mischief starts off as a resentful and jealous Asgardian Prince but evolves into a truly loathsome and malevolent evil genius.  Growing up step-brother to the Mighty Thor indeed  left Loki with a tragic sense of inferiority and not belonging.  What he lacked in physical strength and bravery however, he eventually made up for in cunning and malice.

Always strategizing and conceiving ingenious schemes and plots, The Asgardian God of Mischief is undoubtedly a Mastermind Rational.  Diabolically ingenious, highly pragmatic, outstandingly intelligent, and a powerful sorcerer, Loki finds ‘difficulties highly stimulating’, as do other Masterminds, as he loves responding to a problem that requires a ‘creative solution’.  

Being the God of Mischief, Loki indeed seems to thoroughly enjoy creating problems for himself, and is well-equipped to solve them.  Finding out that he was actually an adopted frost-giant, Loki is wrought with feelings of abandonment.  Indeed Loki’s malicious and malevolent behavior are quite reminiscent of David Keirsey’s ‘distracting rituals’ that serve as defense mechanisms for hiding one’s shame. Young Shakespearean actor Tom Hiddleston talks in-depth about Loki’s tragic evolution from jealous ‘God of Mischief’ to loathing ‘God of Evil’.

This weekend actor Tom Hiddleston (who plays Loki) will be on hand among others at New York Comic-Con to present never-before-seen footage of the highly anticipated comic-book movie.  My best bet says The Avengers won’t be the only time we see the God of Mischief on the big screen.

Quote1.png My, my, my… a world for the taking. Quote2.png

—Loki Laufeyson (Earth-616)

 

 

Entertainment

Marvel's Super-Squad Assembled

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The Avengers Official Trailer was released yesterday online giving us our first glimpse of Marvel Studios‘ purported blockbuster movie franchise.  Given such thoroughly exciting news lets take a look at Marvel’s four flagship superheroes and the steadfast Logistical Administrator that leads them into battle.

Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Pictures have strategically released independent films providing backstory for the Avengers’ four major characters.  Those being Iron Man, the incredible Hulk, Captain America, and Thor.  And like any dynamic and complex set of major characters, these four ‘Avengers’ together represent all four basic personality types.  Captain America is of course the stalwart Guardian who defends justice with his iconic shield.  Hulk is likewise the emotional and impulsive Artisan who transforms into a raging beast when angered.  Iron Man is the Rational industrialist and ingenious engineer that utilizes a mechanical suit.  Finally Thor is the championing Idealist God of Thunder who fights ‘for Asgard’ and is constantly learning life’s lessons.  Together, they assemble to fight against threats to humanity.  Much like the four temperaments assemble to do the same.

Captain America is the hard-hitting Guardian who actually leads The Avengers into battle, with his infamous battle-cry ‘Avengers Assemble!‘.  A born leader, defending  justice with his iconic indestructible shield, The Sentinel of Liberty is undoubtedly a Supervisor Guardian.  Strong, dependable, and hard-working: ‘Cap’ is a poster-boy for the ideals of our nation, a nation that was indeed founded by a Guardian.  Dutiful, commanding, and disciplined Captain America is the vocal leader of the Avengers, and knows like all Supervisors do that one must ‘lead by example‘.  The ‘first avenger‘, Steve Rogers is very much the back-bone of The Avengers, much like Guardians are the back-bone of society.

DC/Warner Bros. has made it known that it has similar aspirations to assemble it’s own superhero team in a similar way and put a Justice League Film together by 2013 in order to directly compete with Marvel’s The Avengers.  One could argue that they are slightly behind schedule, since Chris Nolan’s Batman franchise will not be connected with a JLA (Justice League of America) film, and neither will Zack Snyder’s upcoming Man of Steel.  That leaves DC with only one established character in the Justice League Universe that of which being Green Lantern who’s film without being too cynical was quite the thespian blunder.  Warner Bros. president Jeff Robinov has made it clear however that a Justice League film in 2013 is the studios top priority despite all evidence to the contrary.  Earth’s Greatest Hero’s assemble in theater near you on May 4, 2012.

Entertainment

The Bat Squad

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With the Dark Knight Rises filming in major cities Pittsburg and now Los Angeles naturally a plethora of on-set spy photos and videos have surfaced all over the web, most of which have been quite spoilerish.  This most recent spy video is perhaps the most revealing one as it shows Bruce Wayne ‘limping’ with a cane out of his Lamborghini into a party. This of course strengthens arguments that the film will borrow plot points from the story arch “Knightfall“ in which antagonist Bane badly injures Batman and infamously breaks his back.

Without giving too much away let’s take a closer look at the titular Caped Crusader, and his well-rounded supporting cast.  Bruce Thomas Wayne had the unfortunate luck of witnessing his parents murder by a mugger as a young child, an event that no doubt had a major impact on his life.  Arrogant billionaire industrialist and notorious playboy by day, and a ruthless masked vigilante by night, Batman/Bruce Wayne is undoubtedly a Promoter Artisan.  Bold, daring, and audacious with a tough-minded persona Bruce knows as most Promoters do that ‘nice guys finish last‘.

Primarily trusting his impulses with a knack for tool usage, Batman is definitely an Artisan, but certainly doesn’t get the job done all by himself.  Alfred Pennyworth is Batman’s faithful and tireless Guardian butler and confidant.  Lucius Fox is Batman’s Rational financier, gadget man, and behind-the-scenes business manager of Wayne Enterprises.  Commissioner Gordon is Batman’s Idealist link to Gotham City’s Police Force who is strictly and naively concerned with ridding Gotham City of evil.  Given such a well-rounded bat-squad let’s hope that even with a broken back Batman will be able to best his powerful nemesis Bane in Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated conclusion to his blockbuster trilogy.

Word on the streets is that the Dark Knight Rises’ ending sequence is so over-the-top that it is only known by five people including Christopher Nolan and will be done entirely in CG.  So apparently Nolan’s conclusion is so epic that it has to be done entirely in visual effects?  Guess we’ll find out July 20, 2012!

Entertainment, Leadership

One Powerful Dyad

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Star Wars:  The Complete Saga has broken global sales records and become the most purchased Blu-Ray title of all time, despite some star wars fans negative reactions to Lucas yet again altering his masterpiece.  Such a described act has even spawned the term ‘pulling a Lucas’ referring to altering something that was great already for arguably no tangible reasons whatsoever.  Regardless of the relevance of Lucas’ alterations, let’s take a look at the supremely villainous duo that ruled the galaxy with an iron fist.  Darth Vader is the head military officer of the Imperial Army and commander-in-chief of the Great Jedi Purge.  A ruthless mobilizer and commandingly efficient leader of leaders, Vader is undoubtedly a FieldMarshal Rational.  Darth Sidious is the ingenious Dark Lord of the Sith who’s master plan overthrew the Republic and Jedi Order and replaced it with his brutal authoritarian regime in one fell swoop.  A brilliant master planner and a highly efficient organizer, Darth Sidious is undoubtedly a Mastermind Rational.  Together, they make an extremely powerful and mercilessly efficient Strategic Coordinator tandem that ruled the Galaxy.  With Darth Sidious orchestrating cunning strategies and his powerful right hand man Darth Vader enacting and enforcing them, few can stand in their way.  Not all goes according to plan however, when Vader has a change of heart, saves his sons life, and redeems his wrongdoings.  This crucial and climactic scene of course was one of the main and controversial changes that Lucas recently made, giving fuel to the nerd complaint fire all over the world.  Vader now screams “NOOOO!!” before killing the emperor, making him a huge panzy and detracting from everything I just said.  Kidding aside, if you are a Star Wars fan, Star Wars:  The Complete Saga will indeed make a great Holiday gift!

Entertainment

Stupidity Abroad

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With MTV perpetually shaming our nation every week by airing episodes of The Jersey Shore Season 4  filmed in Florence, Italy perhaps it’s time to take a look at what makes these morons so delightfully entertaining.  Indeed the premise of the show is quite simple: put a couple of young wild Italian-Americans in a house together, chuck booze at ’em, and watch what happens.  The Jersey Shore has since evolved into a pop-culture phenomenon and TV ratings juggernaut.  The Jersey Shore is undoubtedly pop-culture for the sake of pop-culture: teenagers and young adults alike can flip to MTV, watch these idiots gets drunk, and forget about their day.  Given that the original cast of the show has in fact been let go after wrapping production on season 5, let’s take a look at the imbecile’s lucky enough to have signed fairly lucrative ‘spin-off’ deals.  Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino is a classic and shameless Promoter Artisan and rampant dimwit.  DJ Pauly Delvecchio is a Crafter Artisan playboy and resident jokester with a slew of popular catch phrases.  Jennifer “Jwoww” Farley is a another tough and heavily siliconed Crafter Artisan.  Finally Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi may be a loud-mouthed, infamously trashy, and largely obnoxious Performer Artisan, but is actually a genuinely sweet-hearted girl and serves as the heart of the show.  The idea behind firing the current cast of course is to keep the Jersey Shore cash cow going with an all new and much cheaper cast, while still retaining their current ‘stars’ in spin-offs.  That way America can be once again blessed with an entirely new and fresh group of utterly classless morons.  Jersey Shore airs Thursdays 10/9 Central on MTV.

Uncategorized

Super Brawl

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DC Comics is relaunching its entire stockpile of 52 comic book titles this month in hopes of reaching a broader audience.  Such a ‘reboot’ goes hand-in-hand with DC’s parent company Warner Bros. aspirations to put a Justice League Film together by 2013 in order to directly compete with Marvel’s The Avengers.  Warner Bros. new president Jeff Robinov has made it clear that such a project is the studio’s top priority with the company looking for a new cash cow in the wake of Harry Potter’s franchise concluding.  Regardless of the logistic reality of such a task let’s take a look at the four main characters of DC’s flagship team of superheroes.  Superman is the indestructible Guardian known as the Big Blue Boyscout who is steadfastly reliable and follows a strict code of ethics.  Batman is the billionaire playboy industrialist Artisan who dons a mask at night and ‘beats criminals to a bloody pulp with his bare hands’.  Green Lantern is the nurturing Idealist who wields a ‘power ring’ that translates his imagination into green energy using the strength of his willpower.  Finally The Flash is the Rational scientist who thinks at superhuman speed, travels through time, and defies the laws of physics.  Marvel/Disney clearly has an advantage in Hollywood having almost wrapped principal photography on the Avengers after solidly establishing all four major characters.  DC/Warner Brothers on the other hand has it’s work cut out for it having not successfully established any major characters yet outside of Chris Nolan’s Batman franchise.  Robinov however has made it clear that a Justice League of America film will happen in 2013 regardless of how many characters have been solidly established with audiences beforehand.  Given these two supersquads I think the question on everyones mind is: which one wins in a streetfight?