Hello & welcome back to Vs. Today on Vs., we have a match up that came to me while reading Flynn Riders page on the Disney Wiki showing all the similarities, he has to Aladdin. So today's match up is between the boy who had to live as a thief to survive and someone that became a thief to escape his old life. Therefore, I think this will be a fun match up. By now, you know the drill, Personality, who has the better personality, Desire, what does each character want in their life, Song, who has the better song, Defining Moment, the moment that expresses who the character is, and finally The Film Factor, which character works better in their respective film.
Personality (Round 1)
Aladdin
Aladdin is a good spirited person. He may have a few rough edges but I believe that comes from growing up as an orphan. It's true that he used lies to get by in the film but it almost seems like he has to get by. The people don't exactly understand him because all they see is a Street Rat, Riff Raff. They don't take the time to look past the surface to see even though, he's poor, it doesn't make him a bad person and just because he has to rely on methods that are looked down upon to get by, doesn't mean he wants to live this lifestyle. It really isn't until he meets Genie that he has someone judge him based on his personality instead of his status. Again, I think he is a nice guy that isn't really judged fairly and he does have a good heart but people tend to overlook that.
Flynn Rider
Flynn while shown to have a good heart towards the end of the film, he come off as being cocky and only caring about himself. Which is kind of annoying but I think once he reveals himself, it shows that he is a good person and is willing to put others first. But he is still a bit cocky and that is a little grating. For that reason, I have to give this round to...
Aladdin
Desire (Round 2)
Aladdin
This is perhaps the toughest area to judge as it's pinpoint down what these character's desires are. For Aladdin, I almost think that he wants to escape from his current lifestyle and wants some respect. He just wants out of his current situation and can you blame him? I think this really becomes apparent during his conservation with Jasmine about feeling trapped.
Flynn Rider
I think in a way, Flynn's desire ties into his defining moment. I think that Flynn's desire can be pinpointed down to when he told Rapunzel about growing up in the orphanage and reading The Tales of Flynigan Rider and how Flynn. It's clear that Flynn was inspired by this character and almost seems because of it, he wanted to become someone he knows he's not. Is it a hero? Maybe but it's harder to pin down but I actually think it just goes to the fact that he wanted a reputation and wanted to start a new life fro himself. This is a tough call because these are both good desires. But I think looking at Flynn's, his has more depth to it and he just narrowly beats out Aladdin. So therefore, this round goes to...
Flynn Rider
Song (Round 3)
One Jump Ahead (Aladdin)
Man, I love this song, It is so much fun and such a great introduction for Al and gives us a look at how the citizens of Agrabah view Aladdin. They just see him as a scoundrel because of his lifestyle. Still, it is such a catchy song and one of my favorites from this film. It's a great set up for Aladdin and it's just fun.
I See The Light (Flynn Rider)
Okay, yeah. This is a bit tricky seeing as Flynn didn't have his own song in the film. So instead I'm going with this one and it's a great song and I do enjoy it immensely and it does bring Flynn's character full circle but it's not exactly my favorite song from the film. I think that this song does more for Flynn and Rapunzel as a couple, which is what this song is meant to do. Instead of giving them, individual moments. For that reason alone, I have to give this round to...
Aladdin
Defining Moment (Round 4)
Aladdin
To be perfectly honest, this is my favorite song from Aladdin. I don't know why I latched onto like I did but I think it is great and the main reason, I chose it as Aladdin's defining moment is because I feel it lets us see how Al views himself against the world and it's almost heartbreaking. I honestly feel there are a lot of moments from this film that you could use for this section but I think this one is the best one.
Flynn Rider
For Flynn's Defining Moment, we need to go to the campfire scene and look at the conservation, he had with Rapunzel.
Flynn Rider: Ahh.. yeah, well. I'll spare you the sob story of poor orphan Eugene Fitzherbert. It's a little bit of a... it's a little bit of a downer. [Rapunzel scoots closer to Flynn, anxious to listen] There was this book. A book I use to read every night to all the younger kids. The Tales of Flynigan Rider! Swashbuckling rogue, richest man alive, not bad with the ladies either. Not that he'd ever brag, of course.
Rapunzel: Hmm. Was he a thief too?
Flynn Rider: Uh... well, no. Actually, he had enough money to do anything he wanted to do; he could go anywhere that he wanted to go. And- and for a kid, with nothing, I don't know. It just seemed like the better option. You can't tell anyone about this, okay? It could ruin my whole reputation.
Rapunzel: Ah! We wouldn't want that.
Flynn Rider: Well, a fake reputation is all a man has. [Rapunzel laughs, then they gaze into each other's eyes] Well, I should, um... I- I should- I should get some more firewood.
Rapunzel: Hey. [Flynn looks back] For the record, I like "Eugene Fitzherbert" much better than "Flynn Rider".
Flynn Rider: Well, then you'd be the first. But thank you.
I knew as soon as I came up with Vs., that this had to be Flynn's defining moment. In way for Flynn, this is almost his first step into being Eugene again. There are multiple steps for Flynn to go in this direction and also just as how Aladdin used Prince Ali as a facade to woo Jasmine, I think that Eugene Fitzherbert used Flynn Rider as a way to escape from his old life but here Eugene realized that he can still Flynn while also being Eugene, who is the more likable person. It also reveals who he was and he can still be that person. It's also rather touching. Again just as with Desire, this is a hard area to judge as both these are great moments. Originally, I wanted to give this round to Aladdin but I think Flynn or Eugene (Whichever you prefer) takes this round. The winner is...
Flynn Rider
The Film Factor (The Final Round)
We're all tied up with Aladdin taking Personality and Song while Flynn took Desire and Defining Moment. Which character worked better in their respective film. Let's get this round out of the way, so that we can determine our winner.
Aladdin
Aladdin is a good character, a very good character and I do find that most of his scenes are enjoyable. Honestly, I think the biggest drawback for Aladdin is that there are so many characters in his film that I like more such as Genie, who sometimes overshadows Aladdin. I feel that sometimes when Aladdin is onscreen, he can get lost amongst the other characters because while I like him, I feel that some of the other characters are more interesting. Though Aladdin does have moments, where he shines and when he shines, it is amazing. Two great examples of this in my opinion would be One Jump Ahead (Reprise) and A Whole New World.
Flynn Rider
Flynn is an odd case because I'll admit that even though I started out not liking him, it was clear that while he may not have had a big feel in his film as did Rapunzel. It was at least equal but I do think unlike Aladdin, he is able to stand out a little more in his moments and shines even brighter. I would almost say even though he may start off as an unlikable character, when he's onscreen, he almost seems to have a bigger presence in his film. It works well for him. This really makes all of his moments whether touching such as his back story or funny such as being captured by Rapunzel feel as if you want to pay attention to these moments. Just as with Aladdin there are other great characters in Tangled such as Max and Pascal but I think the key difference here is that where I feel Genie may overshadow Aladdin, I don't believe that many characters overshadow Flynn. Really, I think the only one that comes close to doing this is Rapunzel and for this reason and to my shock, I have to give this round to...
Flynn Rider
The End Result!
Well, this certainly wasn't the outcome I was expecting when I first thought about doing this one but by a score of 3 -2, Flynn Rider is the winner. He had the better Desire, Defining Moment, & Film Factor. Again, Aladdin is a great character and I do enjoy that film but going through this, I just think Flynn edged out barely for this win. This was a really close call. Honestly, the only other Vs. that came this close in deciding (for me personally) was McLeach Vs. Clayton. This is only the second time where the winner is not who I thought it was going to be originally. Go figure! What are your thoughts on this Vs.? Tell me in the comments. Peace!
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