My England Squad

The World Cup is only 34 Days away! Soon the European seasons will end and countries will pick their teams for the biggest sporting event in the world.
We (I) here at Big Dunc are very excited about the World Cup. It is the best sporting event around. Over the next month I'll being picking my squad for the USA and England if I were in charge and giving my finals predictions. Exciting.

First off, England. I am not predicting what the final 23 man squad will be. I'm just choosing who I would take if I were coach. It is kind of sad I know many more English players than American, but that should make the picking of the final 23 much more interesting. Here we go.

Goalkeepers: David James (Portsmouth) Joe Hart (Birmingham), Robert Green (West Ham)

Defenders: John Terry (Chelsea), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United), Glen Johnson (Liverpool), Micah Richards (Manchester City), Matthew Upson (West Ham), Leighton Baines (Everton)

Midfielders: Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), James Milner (Aston Villa), Gareth Barry (Man City), Joe Cole (Chelsea), Aaron Lennon (Tottenham), Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Ashley Young (Villa)

Strikers: Wayne Rooney (Man U), Peter Crouch (Tottenham), Gabriel Agbonlahor (Villa), Emile Heskey (Villa), Carlton Cole (West Ham)

Preferred Starting XI
........................Hart........................
..G. Johnson Terry Ferdinand A. Cole
......................Barry.........................
.............Lampard Gerrard..................
Lennon....................................Young
.....................Rooney......................


You could call it a 4-5-1 or a 4-3-3, but I think it really plays to the strength of the England players. Rooney is the only real world class striker and goal scorer and anyone that comes in up top would only be there to help him out. Johnson and Cole are both great going forward and would work well with the two pacey wingers. Barry as a defensive mid allows a bit more freedom for Lampard and Gerrard and supports Terry and Ferdinand in the middle. It is definitely an attacking line-up and may lack some height up front, but I think speed is much more important.


Variable: Gareth Barry just got injured and may miss the World Cup. That would be a big loss for England because he has been playing great as that defensive midfielder. If Barry cannot go, Michael Carrick takes his stop on the squad, but the changes do not end there. Milner comes in for Barry, Gerrard goes to the left middle field for Young, Crouch in for Young going up top playing more of a traditional 4-4-2. This is probably the more likely squad and formation to face the USA on June 12th.

Rationale: A few of my more odd picks are C. Cole, Ashley Young,Leighton Baines, and Micah Richards. With such are large squad of 23 players, your last picks really need to be someone that brings something different to the picture. I don't see Defoe doing that. Cole has pace and size. Young can provide and attaching option down the left side, which is often times missing for England. Richards is a beast and can play inside or outside, but his raw strength is something I think a lot of teams would struggle with. Baines, well, you need an Everton representative, and his ability to come forward and cross the ball is something others in for the last stop like Michael Dawson and Stephen Warnock do not have.
Shawn Wright-Phillips is just behind Walcott.
Heskey and Crouch give Rooney a need strike partner.
Based on the season and the lack of Beckham, I think Lennon should get the starting nod over Walcott, but they are basically the same player.
It is also likely that Hart will not be the starter between the posts, but I think he has had the best season of any English goalie. He is getting lots of practice at Birmingham and makes the spectacular saves without making many mistakes. Unfortunately, Capello seems more likely to go with someone with more international experience.

Overall, this is a super strong 23. A few new guys, a few veterans, a few risky picks, but again, with 23 players you have the opportunity to take a few gambles.

Winner

What's longer - the NBA playoffs or Big Dunc's Comic Book Bracket Madness?
I'll go with the NBA playoffs, but not by much.
In the end, Dr. Doom beat out the Silver Surfer 9-7 in the final round. Voting decreased after some of the most popular characters were out, but in the end, Doom was victorious.
I have to think that one-on-one matchups really helped Doom. He is used to fighting at least 4 super powered characters at a time. Before the much anticipated final, Doom stated about the Surfer

"time is endless...as is my hatred! When he least expects it, when he's most unprepared; Doom will strike again!!"

And after the hard fought victory Doom threatened the life of a few reporters who asked him if he was feeling the effects of the hard fought match

"Pain? Pain is like love . . . like compassion! It is a thing only for lesser men. What is pain to Doom?"

Each person celebrates victory in their own way. However angry and hateful he remains, Doom was the last character standing in the 2010 Comic Book Character Bracket. Congratulations Victor von Doom

P.S. I found this great shoes while looking for Dr. Doom pictures. Pretty fly.

2010 Brewers

Many people have jumped on the Bucks bandwagon, myself included, but I will not forget about the Brewers, and it is unlikely that I will ever blog about the Bucks, so let's take a look at the 2010 Milwaukee Brewers.
As of now, the Brewers stand at 9-13. That is pretty poor. I'm a huge Brewers fan and an optimist, but I really don't see the Brewers doing much better than .500 this season, but you never know. I'll stick with them

Positives: Ryan Braun - sick
Prince Fielder - fat, needs to get his stroke back
Randy Wolf - looking to be a pretty nice signing
Todd Coffey - fat, sprints to the mound every appearance
Sausage Race- still getting the fans to stand up
promos - I think the Brewers have the best marketing team in sports, tons of half off days early in the season, bobble-heads, and this 40 year anniversary should provide some fun too
small ball - Brewers got speed this year and are using it, even Brauny.

Negatives: There is a lot to be worried about.
Bullpen - I thought the Bullpen was going to be the strength of this team. Boy was I wrong. Four blown saves for Hoffman already this year. That is his total for last season. I believe he has already given up 6 homers this year after only giving up 2 last year and he has never in his career given up homers in two straight games, until Tuesday and Wednesday that is. Hawkins had some rough outings too, and I never really have faith in Vargas. The Brewers when leading going into the 8th inning have given up the lead 6 times already this season! That is dreadful. But, at the same time, think if we would have won half of those games (we did win one), we would be 11-11 and people would be a lot less down on the Crew.
Doug Davis - not a good signing. Did anyone really think he would be any better than a 10-12 pitcher or so? And now, even that is a stretch.
Gallardo's pitch count- This kid has great stuff, and gets W's and K's, but can't pitch more than 5 or 6 innings for some reason.
Corey Hart

Keys to the season
We know Fielder and Braun will be beasts, but there are a few key spots that will tell the tale of the Brewers' 2010 season
Carlos Gomez - batting # 2 this guy needs to get on base. He has the speed and seems to be alright with the bat, but with Ricky in front and Braun and Fielder behind, Gomez must take advantage of what he's given
Casey McGehee - if he can stay hot, the Crew will score a lot of runs
Escobar - most important stats for this guy will be errors and OB%
LaTroy Hawkins - I feel he has the stuff to be an awesome set up man, maybe even a closer, hopefully he can lock down the 8th
Dave Bush - is there a more inconsistent player in the league? I feel this guy can pitch a 3 hit shutout and then the next start give up 8 runs in two innings. I just don't get it. Small margin of error I guess.

Hopefully those 5 guys will play to their potential and the Brewers will compete. If not, it will be a long season, and that may mean "See you later Prince."
But, I am not a bandwagon Brewer's fan, so I will be there for it all.

Survivor Season 20

Well, just like Lost, my comic book tournament has led me to neglect Survivor, but now you get my stunning analysis of this season - Heroes vs. Villains.

I'm pretty sure I've stated multiple times that I don't like it when people on Survivor already know each other. That totally changes the game. All-Star seasons tend to focus entirely on strategy, as contestants think and rethink every possible outcome, and sometimes that is boring for the viewers. That being said, Mark Burnett and Survivor Producers know what they are doing. I'd say about 16 of the 20 Survivors have been perfectly cast. I like a lot of the cast members - Rob, Jerri, Coach, Tyson - a lot better than I did the first time around. This season has been solid, and has been very entertaining the last few weeks, starting with the Rob/Russell feud. The Heroes vs. Villains theme is working well too. Once the inferior players were out of the games, this one really heated up. I love the Heroes team of Colby, JT, Amanda, Candice, and Rupert. They really took over in challenges.
A couple things to point out.
-Rob passing out.
-James getting injured again.
-Coach crying.
-Tyson getting voted off due solely to his not following the plan.
-JT giving Russell the idol. Seriously? Wow. You have to conclude that none of the other contestants saw Russell's Samoa season.
-Parvati's double idol give away - best Survivor move ever? Yes. I think so. It starts with totally having Russell wrapped around her finger and giving her the idol. She keeps the second one secret. Then she assesses the situation perfectly, giving up both the idols to the Jerri and Sandra, the two players the Heroes have been contemplating voting off. Man, I think this puts her as the favorite for "Best Survivor Contestant Ever" not necessarily meaning she is favorite for this season. I'm hoping for Sandra to join up with the Heroes as it appeared in the previews.

Who's gonna take it home? I don't think Russell or Parvati will win it or past winner Sandra. Don't sleep on Danielle and Candice, both similar players, unremarkable the first time, and in good positions this year partially because of that and partially because of prowess in challenges. I could also see Candice flipping pretty easily, though. So, my predictions - Russell off next and some point down the line Candice and Amanda flipping to join Parvati and Danielle, leaving Colby, Rupert, and Jerri the odd people out. Though I am rooting for Rup and Colb.



Yes, so I am glad this is once again an entertaining season. I hope it remains that way. It has shown me that I would definitely not be a Survivor All-Star. These people are just crazy good at reading people, and then manipulating them.

LOST Thoughts

So, I've been stuck in the lovely comic book world for a while and haven't had a chance to comment on the final season of Lost. As you know from numerous post, Lost of one of my favorite shows, one of the few I look forward to each week. I have to say without reservation that this season is disappointing. There have been a few episodes that I had trouble finishing because they were so slow or disjointed. Here are some of my critiques.

1. This season seems to be making all other seasons inconsequential or even moot.
Does it really what mattered in season two? Did Boone's death or Eko's death or Charlie's death really do anything? All the character development in seasons 1, 2, and 3 pretty much doesn't matter right now. It seems like it's all about Jacob and fake Locke and maybe a few other key characters. I don't think if Widmore had taken over the island that anything would have changed. It wouldn't have matter if the "Others" would have won against the Oceanic Survivors. Characters like Ben and Richard that for seasons seemed powerful important really don't matter anymore.
What's worse, it is pretty much forgetting the whole Oceanic Six story. All of season 4 was about getting off that island. Half of season 5 was about getting back to the island, and now they're trying to get off the island again. This repetition was not mentioned until Jack brought it up in the last episode. Also, all the time travel was pretty much forgotten, like it never happened. And, the temple and Dogen and the characters introduced in the first half of this season, who cares?

2. Sideways Reality - It's like a bad issue of Marvel's "What if..." and also reminds me of the Marvel Ultimate line. "Let's tell the same story again but alter it slightly and put one or two characters in different positions." I understand the idea of fate, and stressing that certain things are meant to happen regardless of circumstances, but do we really need to see Kate on the run again, Jack stressing over his father's death, Locke wrestling with his disability, Claire having issues with her baby? No not really. And we get it, the realities are connected. Like we didn't see that coming. Also, they really take away from the island story. Just when things are beginning to get interesting on the island, we spend way too long in the other reality.

3. Mysteries and mysteries revealed - I feel the story telling has changed over the years. Before viewers would be in the same shoes as the character - what is this island? this smoke monster? who are the others? But now I feel it's kind of different. The producers and writers are just playing with the audience, withholding information, giving false clues, producing mysteries and answers that do not evolve the plot. Before you could actually make educated guesses on what was happening and what was going to happen, kind of playing the detective. Now, that is really tough.
And, there is going to be tons of stuff that is not answered. That is a fact. And, even when stuff is revealed, it still is kind of lame and might not be the truth. Case in point - Christian was actually Flocke, Flocke is the smoke monster, Desmond was the package. Eh, there was not a real wow moment there.

Yeah, there you go. So, my love for Lost is fading. Only a few episodes left. I am confident that everything will be tied together, but that doesn't mean that these will be good episodes, even after the fact. My biggest example of this season's inferiority would be this season's Desmond Episode. It just wasn't very good compared to past Desmond episodes. He's already been been reunited with Penny twice. We've already seen him in a reality that he does not belong. It contained Desmond and Daniel, my two favorite characters, but still wasn't good.

Well, I'm done ranting. I'm confident the end will be cool, and hopefully I'll be made salty.

Comic Bracket Final Analysis

A pretty special tournament has made it to the final round. Two contestants remain.
Doctor Doom and the Silver Surfer.
Both contestants have long histories. Both were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in Fantastic Four. Both has some of the most impressive arsenals in the comic book world. Both have some amazing victories and some devastating loses.
It is the alien power cosmic versus the human pushing the limits of technology and sorcery, the villain versus the hero.

Let's take a look at history.
Being key members of the Fantastic Four world, these two have crossed paths in the past a good number of times. The first, and maybe the best example of a one-on-one battle is in Fantastic Four #57. Doctor Doom tricks the Silver Surfer and steals his power cosmic.
It will be a great battle. Please vote.

So who do I think will win? Well, there are a few ways to look at it.
In a straight up one-on-one battle the Surfer would definitely have the edge. His power cosmic would be too much for Doom, despite the fact that Doom has defeated him in the past and even taken the powers of the godlike Beyonder. Doom has a pretty poor track record as far as won-loss record goes, but he is usually fighting solo against 4 or more.
But, if Doom again had the element of secrecy, and could get an early leg up, he would have a strong chance.
Also, Doom is a much better character. He has much more depth than the Surfer. Despite his many faults he is human. He is way more creative. In a battle he could transport the Surfer to Hell, he could use his time machine, he could force the Surfer to encounter the refugees of all the planets he destroyed. Doom really has nothing you could use against him as leverage. He is arrogant, yet uncompromising.
Well, that's about all I got. Vote for who you think will win. Vote for who you like better. Enjoy.

Comic Book Bracket Final

Silver Surfer vs. Dr. Doom.
You decide the winner. Voting on the right hand side.
More analysis to follow soon.

Comic Book Bracket Final Four

Well, we are on to the Final Four. We had some very close matchups in the previous round. Spider-Man dominated the Invisible Woman 24-11. Thanos started slow, but came back in the end, but Dr. Doom was just too strong, winning 20 -14.

Thor overcame the Thing 19-17 in a great match. I was hoping for the upset. And Silver Surfer beat Batman with the buzzer beater.

Vote for who you want to make the championship.

Who Will Win this Battle?
	Spider-Man
	Silver Surfer
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Who will win this battle?
	Dr. Doom
	Thor
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Comic Book Bracket - Elite Eight

We made it to the final 8. We have a few surprises, but as you can see by the field, all contestants are worthy of being here, and any of them can win it all. Let's get to the matchups.
Now it is your turn to decide the winners!


4. The Invisible Woman
Greatest Hits: Fantastic Four 245, 259-261, 280-284 (Malice)
Weaknesses: Power's still unexploited, Jessica Alba, lets teammates do lots of the work

vs.

2. Spider-Man
Greatest Hits: Amazing Spider Man 31-33, 121-122 (Death of Gwen Stacy and Green Goblin), 229-230 (Juggernaut)
Weaknesses: Women, can't eat with his costume on, kissing Kirsten Dunst

Who will win this battle?
	The Invisible Woman
	Spider-Man
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1.Batman
Greatest Hits: Year One, The Long Halloween, No Man's Land
Weaknesses: wussy as a young boy, hangs out with boys

vs.

2. The Silver Surfer
Great Hits: Silver Surfer #1, Fantastic Four 121-123, Fantastic Four 55
Weaknesses: Girl he is looking for most likely died hundreds of years ago, guilt, loads and loads of guilt, Silver genitalia (Maybe that is a strength)

Who will win this battle?
	Batman
	Silver Surfer
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5. Dr. Doom
Greatest Hits: Fantastic Four 236, 246-247. 257, 67 (new series), Dr. Strange and Dr. Doom: Triumph and Torment
Weaknesses: hubris, no friends, family hates him

vs.

3. Thanos
Greatest Hits: Thanos Guest, Infinity Gauntlet, Captain Marvel 25-33
Weaknesses: Loves Death, ability to steal defeat from the clutches of victory

Who will win this battle?
	Dr. Doom
	Thanos
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1. Thor
Greatest Hits: Thor 165-169, 337-340 (Beta Ray Bill), 380-385 (Ragnarok)
Weaknesses: Split ends, Kenneth Branagh

vs.

3. Thing
Greatest Hits: Fantastic Four 40, 51, 236, 274
Weakness: propensity to get seasick, love of catch-phrases, easily revolts and terrifies women and children

Who will win this battle
	Thor
	The Thing
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Comic Book Bracket - Metropolis Region

Metropolis Region

This region does not look quite as daunting as the last two, but certainly promises some great battles. I'm looking forward to second round match-ups Thing/Rouge and Blackbolt/Captain Marvel. Woo!

Round 1

1. Thor vs. 16. Deadpool

Deadpool is a likable character and may be under-seeded, but Thor will blow him out of the water.

Winner: Thor

8. Colossus vs. 9. Nightwing

Another interesting 8/9 match-up here, one that could go either way, and again, a nice DC/Marvel Battle. We have already seen in this tournament that power isn't everything, and I question whether Colossus would be willing to deliver the killing blow. Dick Grayson is one of the best characters in comics, at the very least, one of the most underrated. He learned from Batman, so there is no way he is going down in the first round, c'mon people.

Winner: Nightwing

5. Blackbolt vs. 12. Hawkman

The 5/12 upset? Nope. We already had that one. Blackbolt is only a 5 seed because he lives on the moon. Media has a huge earth bias, never stays up to watch battles on the moon.

Winner: Blackbolt

4. Captain Marvel vs. 13 Black Panther

Captain Marvel may not be too well known, but he is a powerful cat, think of him as maybe a Keith Van Horn led Utah. The wisdom of Solomon; the strength of Hercules; the stamina of Atlas; the power of Zeus; the courage of Achilles; and the speed of Mercury. The Black Panther is the first black superhero, so you know he has come out on top against some incredible odds. I'm pretty sure Captain Marvel has beaten Superman in the past, so…

Winner: Captain Whitebread

3. Thing vs. 14. Cable

An interesting match here. We know the Thing will win, but Cable will inflict some pain before all is said and done. Lots of guns. Lots of punches.

Winner: Thing

6. Rogue vs. 11. Nightcrawler

I like the X-man vs. X-man battles. Some feel Rogue is a sleeper at 6, but she has never really showed anything else but brute power. Her skill set – super strength, flight, and power draining – is impressive, but does she have the brains to excel in this tournament? Not sure. I do like Nightcrawler, but I much more like the prospect of Rogue absorbing his powers, turning blue and some crazy flying, teleporting, punching action.

Winner: Rogue

7. Storm vs. 10. Namor the Sub- Mariner

We have another king of the sea here against the weather controlling X-Man. I'm sure people have put Aquaman up against Namor before, but this may be a first time match up. Lots of variables. How does Lightning effect water? Will it hurt Namor? Will his control of water and the seas overpower Storm's? This is definitely a match-up I would like to see. In the end, Storm will come out on top because of her Mohawk and Namor's weird ankle wings.

Winner: Storm

2. Green Lantern vs. 15. Hawkeye

I don't know the full extent of Green Lantern's powers, but I know they are a bit stronger than Hawkeye's arrows.

Winner: Green Lantern

Round 2

1. Thor vs. 9. Nightwing

Well, this matchup could be a good rehearsal for Thor is indeed he makes it all the way to the final against Batman. Nightwing is a Batman Jr, but a little more in touch with humanity and normality. He will frustrate Thor for a good chunk of time. Thor will have to bust out Mjöllnir to settle things down. And yes, this is the first time (maybe surprisingly) that I have mention Mjöllnir in this blog. Grayson's savvy and tricks and traps will only work for so long.

Winner: Thor

4. Captain Marvel vs. 5. Blackbolt

Damn, this is hot second round matchup. Two participants that might not get enough love. This match actually starts with Shazam played by Shaq, or is that Kazam? Either Way Shaq is present and Blackbolt is confused. The battlebegins by Captain Marvel asking Blackbolt for the time. After asking a few times without answer, Marvel gets infuriated. Shazam, a punch-fest begins. These two are really going at it- on the ground, in the air, in the water. Shazam gets the upper hand, and Blackbolt finally says in his mountain shattering voice, "Time for you to die". The resulting force knocks both fighters out. Think WWF match when both wrestlers are unconscious and you are waiting for the first one to come to. This one will last as while. Blackbolt is the first to arwise, being a bit more acclimated to his voice. He is about to pin Marvel when Shaq comes in with a steel chair! Knocking out Blackbolt. The king of the Inhumans is laid out. Marvel places an arm on him. 1-2-3!

Winner: Captain Marvel

3. Thing vs. 6 Rogue

A slugfest indeed. But do to the grotesque nature of the Thing and his thick hide, Rogue will not absorb his powers. So it will just be a fist fight. Rogue will often times seem to have the upper hand, but the Thing will not go down. His resolve will win the day.

Winner: Thing

2. Green Lantern vs. 7. Storm

Storm has no yellow on her costume.

Winner: Green Lantern

Sweet Sixteen

1. Thor

Affiliation: Avengers, Norse gods

Big Wins: many times versus Loki, Ultron, Kang, Bet-Ray Bill

Bad Losses: Ragnarok

Claim to fame: Golden locks, impressive hammer, Olde English speech patterns

NCAA Equivalent: 2004 Duke

Vs.

2. Captain Marvel

Affiliation: Justice League, Justice Society

Big Wins: Superman in Kingdom Come

Bad Losses: Coolness over the years, many comic series

Claim to Fame: Shazam! Captain Whitebread

Battle: There is lots of fire power for these two, but Thor will have much more. Marvel is still beat up from Blackbolt, whereas Thor didn't expend too much energy in his first two matches. The crowd is pulling for the underdog Marvel, but he can't conjure up his future elseworlds Kingdom Come self.

Winner: Thor

3. Thing

Affiliation: Fantastic Four

Big Wins: Dr. Doom, Hulk, Galactus

Bad Losses: Human appearance, true love to the Human Torch then to the Silver Surfer, title of The Strongest Man in the Marvel Universe to the Hulk.

Claim to Fame: "The everloving blue-eyed Thing, idol of millions, 'nuff said"

NCAA Equivalent: 2002 Maryland

Vs.

2. Green Lantern

Affiliation: Justice League, Justice Society

Big Wins: Zero Hero?

Bad Losses: Zero Hour? Hal Jordan, Guy Gardner's haircut

Claim to fame: Power Ring

NCAA Equivalent: 2006 UCLA

Battle: The Green Lantern has never really lived up to his potential, even when Hal Jordan was the Spectre. His powers are inconsistent. The Thing is much smarter and crafty than he leads on. He will wear yellow and not allow himself to lose.

Winner: Thing