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Movies Your favourite time when the (or a) Primary Protagonist gets owned?

650lb Sumo

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We're used to the goodies running through enemies like a ball through skittles, and even when it's a plucky underdog protagonist, we don't usually lose hope that he will triumph against adversity eventually. When the protagonist suddenly meets his or her match, gets shook and runs away, or (apparently) is killed by the formidable enemy it can be quite unnerving. It makes you uncomfortable as a viewer. It's disappointing. But a well-crafted story can use this scenario to good effect.

I expect a lot of people are already thinking Rocky, and Rocky does lose to Apollo Creed at the end of Rocky I. But it's a kind of moral triumph, better than expected result and trampolines his career so I wouldn't use that fight. From the Rocky series I think a good example is Rocky vs Thunderlips in the charity exhibition match in Rocky III.

Rocky is the champion after beating Creed in II and defending the belt ten times, and is well established as a super tough character who can batter just about anyone and take their worst. Ok there's the threat of Clubber Lang on the horizon (Primary Antagonist) but Rocky's the King of the Castle.

However with the introduction of Thunderlips it's like a curtain is pulled back introducing a whole new world in which Rocky is completely out of his depth. Thunderlips physically dwarfs him and is also much more sexy, charismatic and stylish. Remember Rocky's embarrassing failure at advertising in II. Thunderlips also has an entourage of beautiful girls while Rocky has mousy, autistic Adrienne. He makes Rocky look like a joke in every category, and helplessly brutalises him in a comical manner, ie entertaining the crowd and not even trying hard. Even when Rocky gets the upper hand at times it's only Thunderlips letting him work (some people disagree). At the end of the match Rocky is shocked, asking him why he got so crazy out there, and Thunderlips is just relaxed like that's what I do every night. Rocky even asks to get a picture with him.



Then as far as I remember Thunderlips disappears down the corridor and that's the only time wrestling has appeared in the series. A really humbling, if not emasculating experience for the Primary Protagonist and I never looked at him the same afterwards. It adds a whole new, not completely comfortable dimension to the storyline of the films, while making Rocky more relatable to ordinary people. Even as champ he's still kind of an underdog, and suffers unpleasant things he is powerless against. He goes on to get rekt by Lang, Mickey dies and he has a breakdown. In fact the first signs of Mickey's heart troubles are during the stressful mayhem of the Thunderlips fight. So Rocky goes on his redemption arc and ends up defeating the Primary Antagonist, Clubber Lang, but Thunderlips was a great and really damaging Secondary Antagonist that kept us on our toes as supporters of Rocky, and as I said the situation isn't resolved, he is neither defeated nor redeemed. Clever writing.

TL.webp
 
Comedies probably shouldn't count, but





And I know you want movies, but nobody ever did it better than The Sopranos.


It's a TV show, so it doesn't have to be so concise. They can show how it is eating away at Tony and hurt his masculine ego. At this point in the series, Tony is probably like 10-0 lol.



 
Aizen all the time in Bleach. Yeah I mentioned an anime so what. Bitches aren't lining up anyways so I really don't care.
 
We're used to the goodies running through enemies like a ball through skittles, and even when it's a plucky underdog protagonist, we don't usually lose hope that he will triumph against adversity eventually. When the protagonist suddenly meets his or her match, gets shook and runs away, or (apparently) is killed by the formidable enemy it can be quite unnerving. It makes you uncomfortable as a viewer. It's disappointing. But a well-crafted story can use this scenario to good effect.

I expect a lot of people are already thinking Rocky, and Rocky does lose to Apollo Creed at the end of Rocky I. But it's a kind of moral triumph, better than expected result and trampolines his career so I wouldn't use that fight. From the Rocky series I think a good example is Rocky vs Thunderlips in the charity exhibition match in Rocky III.

Rocky is the champion after beating Creed in II and defending the belt ten times, and is well established as a super tough character who can batter just about anyone and take their worst. Ok there's the threat of Clubber Lang on the horizon (Primary Antagonist) but Rocky's the King of the Castle.

However with the introduction of Thunderlips it's like a curtain is pulled back introducing a whole new world in which Rocky is completely out of his depth. Thunderlips physically dwarfs him and is also much more sexy, charismatic and stylish. Remember Rocky's embarrassing failure at advertising in II. Thunderlips also has an entourage of beautiful girls while Rocky has mousy, autistic Adrienne. He makes Rocky look like a joke in every category, and helplessly brutalises him in a comical manner, ie entertaining the crowd and not even trying hard. Even when Rocky gets the upper hand at times it's only Thunderlips letting him work (some people disagree). At the end of the match Rocky is shocked, asking him why he got so crazy out there, and Thunderlips is just relaxed like that's what I do every night. Rocky even asks to get a picture with him.



Then as far as I remember Thunderlips disappears down the corridor and that's the only time wrestling has appeared in the series. A really humbling, if not emasculating experience for the Primary Protagonist and I never looked at him the same afterwards. It adds a whole new, not completely comfortable dimension to the storyline of the films, while making Rocky more relatable to ordinary people. Even as champ he's still kind of an underdog, and suffers unpleasant things he is powerless against. He goes on to get rekt by Lang, Mickey dies and he has a breakdown. In fact the first signs of Mickey's heart troubles are during the stressful mayhem of the Thunderlips fight. So Rocky goes on his redemption arc and ends up defeating the Primary Antagonist, Clubber Lang, but Thunderlips was a great and really damaging Secondary Antagonist that kept us on our toes as supporters of Rocky, and as I said the situation isn't resolved, he is neither defeated nor redeemed. Clever writing.

TL.webp

I have a black and white shirt of Rocky RNC Thunderlips
 
The Batman

The Riddler>>>>>Emo/Grunge Batman
 


The one Joker thug beating the shit out of Batman. It showed he was human and could be weak. It also was a great Batman moment because he never stops fighting. At one point, the thug slings him to the ground and Bats just immediately pops back up ready for more. Love that moment. It kinda ruins being a Batman moment that he kills the dude but oh well
 
Nina does a number on Jack season 1 24. Literely fucks him to get close, causes jack and his wife's split, does her job passing on info, frames people to advance her mission. ultimately kills his wife. Jack is left crying. Damn. All hail Nina
 
There are films where the Primary Protagonist dies. Gladiator or Alien 3 for instance. But it's a sort of victory in death. They kill (or ensure the imminent death of) the Primary Antagonists first and generally achieve their goals. Alien 3 is pretty dark in general. All the survivors on the lifeboat die. Hicks and Newt die in the crash, Bishop is catastrophically damaged and asks to be permanently switched off, and Ripley refuses the offer to be frozen and have the alien removed, and jumps into the furnace. Albeit only two seconds before the alien bursts out, which would have killed her anyway. And being on a bleak prison planet and all. In fact I think Morse is the only survivor from the prison.

It's the equivalent of black metal, too harsh for most people's taste. I tried to think of a film where the Primary Protagonist just gets wrecked and fails, The End but couldn't. Rudy was the closest I could think of, which is such a bleak and unpalatable story, where he is obviously never going to succeed and suffers constant degradation. But even Rudy has a kind of victory at the end in that he gets to play for Notre Dame, albeit only as a token concession.

I don't know much about cape stuff but I get the impression Batman is at the darkier and grimier end of the spectrum there as well.
 
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There are films where the Primary Protagonist dies. Gladiator or Alien 3 for instance. But it's a sort of victory in death. They kill (or ensure the imminent death of) the Primary Antagonists first and generally achieve their goals. Alien 3 is pretty dark in general. All the survivors of the lifeboat die. Hicks and Newt die in the crash, Bishop is catastrophically damaged and asks to be permanently switched off, and Ripley refuses the offer to be frozen and have the alien removed, and jumps into the furnace. Albeit only two seconds before the alien bursts out, which would have killed her anyway. And being on a bleak prison planet and all. In fact I think Morse is the only survivor from the prison.

It's the equivalent of black metal, too harsh for most people's taste. I tried to think of a film where the Primary Protagonist just gets wrecked and fails, The End but couldn't. Rudy was the closest I could think of, which is such a bleak and unpalatable story, where he is obviously never going to succeed and suffers constant degradation. But even Rudy has a kind of victory at the end in that he gets to play for Notre Dame, albeit only as a token concession.

I don't know much about cape stuff but I get the impression Batman is at the darkier and grimier end of the spectrum there as well.
F126FAD7C6603F50003730E067875D379A959840
 
Wouldn't call this schmuck a protagonist, but this was
F-U-U-U-N!!!

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Scene is incomplete though, needs the build up of protagonist sparring with the kid before that
 
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