Music Tournament of DOOM Vol. 2 ~Pool 2~

[Yakumo]

Second verse, same as the first(mostly).  Rules are outlined in pool 1, and just like that pool, pool 2 will also close midnight EST on Sunday, March 29.  Enjoy the music!

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

Full pool download is available here: http://www.flyupload.com/?fid=535443316

[Sierra]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8): Don't dig any of the singing in Shall Never Surrender. The spoken word part is better but it's only the middle.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve): Always liked this one.
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12): FFXII music =/= memorable, and this is one of CC's best tracks.
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia): Always liked this one and the opposition's rather dull.
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI): Is totally corny, but not in a way I find disagreeable. And Silver Will's won enough, nomming it was lame.
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story): Balcony seems like a pretty random choice to represent Cave Story, I've gotta say.
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3): Suikoden games tend to have one or two tracks at most that I care about. This is not among them.
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent): subdued, but doesn't fail to leave an impression. Nice mood piece.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade): Not understanding why Edge of Soul is in the failure bracket. I mean, it's a big slice of cheese, but that's more than a lot of other tracks have going for them. Honeybee Manor, now? Dear god. I'm not cutting that any slack even if it was meant to be bad.

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell): Eh. Both are decent but not great.
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion): Hanabi sounds like pretty standard OP material. Not a big fan of the Eva track, but at least it's distinctive.

[Fudozukushi]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion):  THAT was Hanabi?  I've had the damn thing stuck in my heads for days without knowing the name.

[Hunter Sopko]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)- Apathy. DMC4 one sounds like it's by the people who did Burning For Your Life
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)- Started questionably, turned out awesome.
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)- Seconding Cid. Edge of Soul has a campy goodness to it.

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

[Cmdr_King]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)- Ohhh, so that's the name of that song.  DMC music is okay and works in context, but is kinda interchangable.  Meanwhile I really like that FFVIII song.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)- ToL track is very pretty... I rally like the feel of telling a story that Flying in the Midst of the STorm has though.
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)- Pass.
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)- Hum.  Like Dance Like You Want to Win conceptually, but Bleach song is catchy.  Eh, sure.

[Random Consonant]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8) - FF8 music versus Otherworld's somewhat more comprehensible younger brother?  Lovely.

Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve) - Horribly generic versus That Was In The Game?  Then again I can never keep PE music straight so I suppose it's only natural that I'm somewhat bewildered.  Not great, at any rate, but it's enough here.

Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12) - Yep.

Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia) - Yep.

Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI) - And I thought Otherworld was bad.  HotD fails based on the opening alone, and subsequent parts certainly don't do much to save it.

At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story) - On the one hand, Heart has some things which drag it down some, on the other hand, haha Cave Story music.

Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3) - Yep.

Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent) - Eh.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade) - Yeah, Edge of Soul is more campy than fail.  Honeybee Manor, on the other hand, belongs with Shion/KOS-MOS date music.

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell) - Eh.

Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion) - Bleach music is lame by default.

[SnowFire]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8) - Surrender isn't really my style.  Stage is Set is great, meanwhile.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve) - Nice organ music, but Primal Eyes is really good.  Hmm, I should ask someone more familiar with classical music to see if they can "spot the imposter" by sneaking Juno in next to some Bach.
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12) - Touch match for Cerobi, it's good setting music.  But Time of the Dreamwatch is probably the best piece on the CC soundtrack and is generally awesome.
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia) - Very tricky, both are awesome.  Sunlight feels better as the standalone piece as a tiebreaker.
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI) - Mm, evil choir + progressive rock.  Also the remix definitely improved on Silver Will; the orchestration in the original isn't as good - the synth at 2:00 particularly.
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story) - A bye for AtFDotH?  Not that Balcony's *bad*, but it isn't good either.
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3) - A personal favorite from Suikoden 3 despite the weird name, along with Glittering Sword (S3's boss theme).  Big Bridge is awesome too, of course.
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent) - Just better, though Soul Ablaze is all right.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade) - Ugh.  I concede the point that to some degree Edge of Soul wants to be that cheesy, with the bizarre violins to ridiculous lyrics...  but Honeybee Manor is also non-offensive aside from the beep-boop percussion.  And gets authentically okay halfway through.  Close, they're different flavors of fail.

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell) - Britain is solid but dang do they phone in the percussion background, which is a major count against it.  Reincarnation is slow and not particularly gripping, though.  Meh.
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion) - Hanabi is kind of generic J-Pop.  Where the heck does the Dance Like you Want to Win track play in Eva, though?  I don't recall it at all.  Did it play in the dreaded "you must synchronize your attacks to music" episode of fail?

[Talaysen]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)
- Not DMC4 music.

Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
- Decent enough organ music I guess?  But uh yeah Primal Eyes rocks face.

Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
- Chrono Cross music > FFXII music works as a general rule.  Here as well.

Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs.Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
- Argh both of these are good.

Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
- Howl of the Departed almost makes me want to go back to playing LO.  Almost.

At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
- uh

Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
- Psyducks.

Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)
- Mrf.


FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)
- Edge of Soul doesn't belong here at all.  It's awesome.  Better than some of the tracks in the main tourney, even.


ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
- Comment removed.

Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)
- Actually Hanabi is better than I originally thought.

[Tonfa]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8): DMC music.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve): PE2 version is superior, but this'll do here.
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12): Pretty.
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI): Hello LO track. I think you would find the bracket below this more suitable.
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story): ... Cave Story.
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3): Yay, Bridge~.
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent): Mood pieces are not supposed to feel repetitive fast. UtS does just that. Soul's uninspiring but not bad.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade): Lance, explain yourself. Edge of Soul in failure? *crosses arms*

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell): Eh. Chant takes a hell of a long time to get going, but...yeah, I'll give it the match based on the latter parts.
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion): Ikimono Gakari >>> whatever that is.

[Excal]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8) The Stage is Set isn't that bad.  As for the DMC4 piece, I fail to see the comparison to Otherworld.  Otherworld is short and constantly doing interesting things with the guitars and vocals.  SNS just kinda sits there for the most part.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve) - Primal Eyes is alright, but Juno is sublime.
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12) - Not CC's best track, but still good stuff.  Cerobi is more just filler.
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia) - Sunlight is stronger by itself, though, again, just the Into the Wilderness part would have won it.  Why can it not be just by itself?
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI) - No terribly strong feelings here.
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story) - Instawin?
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3) - Suiko 3 wasn't that strong musically.
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent) - Soul Ablaze isn't bad.  Just, Under the Stars is such a wonderful atmosphere piece.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade) - Can this be in the regular bracket please?

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell) - Never liked the Ghost in the Shell stuff much by itself.  While that RoD piece oddly gives me a Phoenix Wright vibe.  Just generally nice and stately.
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion) - Bleach OPs are generally quality stuff, but they dance like they want to lose.

[dude789]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

[Hunter Sopko]

Sidenote: Hanabi is an ED.

[Nitori]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8) - That's a pretty pointless FF8 song~
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve) - Like a hundred billion times less boring
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12) - oh god it's that annoying ffxii song that's everywhere in some variety
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia) - This is not a match that excites me~
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI) - Anti-RICHARD vote
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story) - I only vote for hilarious trainwreck. This is just a thing that is Cave Story so it autoloses
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3) - More Richard content
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent) - MEGA MAN MUSIC hey there's a cool part in the middle

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade) - Whoever put Edge of Soul down here is heavily, heavily unbalanced. The failure bracket needs 100% more Cave Story

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell) - Cooler name~
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion) - ~?

[Lance]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8) - Shall Never Surrender is...questionable. Not bad, but questionable. The Stage is Set is solid enough.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve) - Last Battle Physique is nice for a while, but it gets repetitive about midway through. Primal Eyes, on the other hand, is one of the best tracks in Parasite Eve. It's been on my playlist forever.
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia) - Once again, the ToL soundtrack is win.

Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI) - Oh, so that's what the original Silver Will sounds like. Neat. Unfortunately, Howl of the Departed Souls -- while strange -- is very catchy. Close match.
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story) - Huh. I thought Balcony was the track that plays as you're climbing up the Outer Wall. That track would have stood a chance here.
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3) - Big Bridge is classic.
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)


FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade) - ...seriously? People actually like Edge of Soul? I honestly was not expecting that. I just think it's terribly lame and cheesy -- and not in a "so bad it's good" kind of way, either. Having said that, the lameness of Edge of Soul simply cannot compete with the suckitude of Honeybee Manner.

EDIT: Okay, this is really getting on my nerves. Just because I don't like a certain song, I'm "heavily, heavily unbalanced" and need to "seek help"? Heaven forbid I have an opinion that differs from everyone else's. I don't care what you people say; I don't like Edge of Soul and that's all there is to it. Deal with it.

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion) - Generic? *indignant sputtering* Hanabi is one of the prettiest songs I've ever heard -- anime or otherwise. Generic my keister. I'll generic your face.

[superaielman]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)- Sure.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)- PE's music and style is by and large the reason I score it so highly.
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)- Prettier.
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)- Just a prettier overall piece. I can imagine wandering through a forest duengon with that playing in the backround. It's in the style of FF7's world map theme, and that generally wins for me.
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)- Howl of the Departed has a cool style but it gives me a burning headache. Augh. That early section is actively painful.
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)- Balcony's an aural crime.
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)- Not a huge fan of stupid ducks, but I really dislike battle on the big bridge.
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)- Soul Ablaze gets filed under the 'way better than expected' catagory, but it still ca'nt compete with Under the Stars.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)- Seek help Lance.

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)- Has a Legend of Zeldaish feel to me. Chant III fails.
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)- I take exception to Snowfire's generic quip about Hanabi. Calling it generic implies that it has a certain level of quality that made it worth copying somewhere down the line.

[Yoshiken]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8) - Both amazing songs. I'm guessing whoever nommed SNS either is or should be a KMFDM fan, as the first half is very much like them. Anyways, Stage is Set just about wins this one.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve) - Oh, how Dancing Mad-esque. And I think DM is better than Primal Eyes, as is LBP. Primal Eyes only has one or two good moments, whereas LBP is consistently almost-good - which is better, IMO.
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12) - Purely amazing song. Seriously, should make it to the finals.
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia) - Takes a while to get into Midst of Storm, but it's damn good once it does. Sunlight, on the other hand, never seems to get into it.
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI) - OWW THE INTRO IT HURTS MY EARS. Good past that, although a little too chanty for my liking. Silver Will... Nothing special, but it just about wins this one. Just.
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story) - When Balcony loaded, I assumed it was for the fail bracket.
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3) - I've never agreed with Piggy on music taste. Him liking Stupid Ducks is just one of these cases.
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent) - UtS is too repetitive  - is unoriginal music something that runs throughout Ivalice? Soul Ablaze, on the other hand, is good.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade) - Yeah, I can see how that one does fail, but... memories of Mog House & the Honeybee Inn just add to the fail of that song, which is bad enough as it is. >.>

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell) - Don't like Chant at all.
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion) - Doesn't hurt my ears to listen to it. >.<


Comment here refers to this pool & the other - It's good to see my noms for this are actually being quite well received, as opposed to all my non-Lucia noms for the beauty contest. XD

[Soulgain]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8) - DMC is a mixed bag, the middle part sounds like another song altogether.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve) - Good one
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12) - Haven't heard any FF12 music, but this one doesn't have much on Dreamwatch
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story) - What the
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent) - Under the Stars isn't bad I just don't know the context since I haven't played Tactics, Soul Ablaze is pretty intense for a boss in any Mega Man game.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade) - Burn it with fire

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

[AndrewRogue]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)
Andy: Does not have The Orphanage Scene.
Ash: Shall Never Surrender should have fewer personalities. It was clearly made to be spliced to hell to suit the game/sountrack duality, and that annoys me. Unfortunately, even though the three pieces sound weird TOGETHER, the three pieces are individually decent. Stage is Set is nice, but it does its job -- fading into the background -- a little too well against Shall Never Surrender.

Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
Andy: Reminds me of Behind Blue Eyes.
Ash: The pipe organs of Juno are cool, but so incredibly generic and forgettable. And Castlevania. Primal Eyes has really cool layering, instrument choice, piano solo and deconstruction. Easy win.

Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Andy: Reminds me of Zelda. Zelda was a fun game. Fun games belong to Nintendo. Nintendo made the Wii. KEVIN BACON OWNS A WII.
Ash: Time of the Dreamwatch could have come from any world-sized RPG ever made. I swear they have some template they adapt. Anyway, Cerobi Steppe was just much more musically complex. Even if it did remind me of fairies.

Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Andy: Was getting a drink during this discussion. Lost my say because I didn't share.
Ash: Sunlight Filtering Through the Trees wins, despite neither song being particularly captivating, because of the piano and the story-like progression.

Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
Andy: [Insert a witty justification here yourself, you lazy bum]
Ash: Words cannot describe how irritating the opening was -- I believe I said something along the lines of "Someone needs to depart the Departed better" -- but the rest of the song was goddamn epic.

At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Andy: I want a balcony in my castle. Where I will live with Princess Ashley for all years, until a Dragon eats us.
Ash: I liked the second half of the Wild ARMs song, but why did it have to wait until the second half to get interesting? Despite its relative brevity and low technology, Balcony did what it had to do, was interesting, and didn't bog itself down with stupid artistic notes and transitions where it didn't need any.

Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Andy: While I find that the tribal motif in Suikoden 3 is excellent (and the composition does wonders for enhancing the general feel), it just isn't particularly gripping, enthralling or at all memorable. Though I hated the Black Mages Remake of BotBB (cool abbreviation!), the actual game version shows a fairly spiffy use of MIDI techniques: a really competent compositional construct, constantly compelling continuous... uh... energetic listening. A clear winner.
Ash: Suikoden 3 is boring to watch.

Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)
Andy: My soul is on fire! I hope I didn't catch something ;_;
Ash: Epic hero-on-a-mission music versus competent but rather dull and easy-to-ignore background music? Yeah.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)
Andy: Edge of Soul sounds like Soul Edge. Soul Edge belongs to Nightmare. Nightmare is a kind of horse. KEVIN BACON OWNS A WII... er... wait.
Ash: I have to agree. Why is Edge of Soul in the failure bracket? No one listens to lyrics anyway.

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Andy: As long as the Shaman has an Ankh, this ability means you can never really wipe! <3
Ash: They were both kind of boring, honestly. Chant III was at least emotive.

Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)
Andy: In a blind taste test, 6 anime fans to 1 thought NGE sucked. I rest my case.
Ash: The vocals in Hanabi were sexy. The NGE song had no vocals. It also made me think of [insert generic fantasy ball dance here].

[Dark Holy Elf]

For what it's worth, Frozen Depths is really two tracks strung together, from in-game - one is an atmospheric dungeon piece (which I like but I agree is slow), the other being a character-specific boss theme. So that's why it seems to take so long to switch from one to the other.

Votes...

At the Frozen Depths of the Heart - In addition to what I said above, I predictably really dig the boss theme. Add in general WA5 OST love and the Cave Story track being... uh... not good to me... and you have my vote.

Stupid Ducks - Underdog vote. I like Bridge a bit more, I think, but town themes were a welcome exception to the general unimpressiveness of the S3 soundtrack, so I feel like backing one. At least this one features two tracks I both recognise immediately AND like a fair deal! Go away pool 1.

Honeybee Manor - Edge of Soul could hold its own in the main bracket. The vocals do it no favours, but I've heard worse.

[Niu]

Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)

[Yakumo]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

[Unoriginal]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve)
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

[MC50]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8)
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve) - I wanted to like the Mega Man song, but it got repetitive.
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12)
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia)
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI)
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story)
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3)
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent)

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade)

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell)
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

[Meeplelard]

MAIN TOURNAMENT
Shall Never Surrender (Devil May Cry 4) vs. The Stage is Set (FF8): Not an FF8 song I was fond of.  Also, I kind of get the feeling wtih all the "Otherworld" comparisons that some people didn't listen to the entirety of SNS.
Juno - Last Battle Physique (Mega Man Legends) vs. Primal Eyes (Parasite Eve): Generic Organ song (aka a style I'm really not a fan of) vs. kind of average.
Time of the Dreamwatch (Chrono Cross) vs. Cerobi Steppe (FF12): FF12 Music is good atmospheric stuff! By which I mean it does nothing by itself.  Time of the Dreamwatch, meanwhile, is pretty awesome.
Flying in the Midst of the Storm (Wild ARMs 3) vs. Sunlight Filtering through the Trees (Tales of Legendia): No contest, song that's typical by WA3 standards > ToL's OST as a whole.
Howl of the Departed (Lost Odyssey) vs. Silver Will (Legend of Heroes VI): So not a fan of Legend of Heroes music I've heard thus far!
At the Frozen Depths of the Heart (Wild ARMs 5) vs. Balcony (Cave Story): Not a fan of the former, but at least it doesn't sound completely boring and uninspired.
Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) vs. Stupid Ducks (Suikoden 3): No real explanation needed.
Under the Stars (Final Fantasy Tactics) vs. Soul Ablaze (Megaman ZX Advent): Better than I expected!  Under the Stars is alright, but eh, not really my style, so yeah.

FAILURE BRACKET
Honeybee Manor (Final Fantasy 7) vs. Edge of Soul (Soul Blade): Edge of Soul is not really that good...but at the same time, I struggle to call it bad.  Honeybee Manor is all kinds of horrible though, even if intentional!

ANIME
Bring all the Wisdom to Britain! (Read or Die OVA) vs. Chant III Reincarnation (Ghost in the Shell): Neither impressed me, the former at least was a bit upbeat.
Hanabi (Bleach) vs. Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! (Neon Genesis Evangelion): Not one of Bleach's better songs...heck, its pretty much one of its generic EPs...but the NGE song isn't very good either.

[Yakumo]

Just a friendly reminder that pools one and two close at midnight EST tomorrow, so you have slightly over 24 hours to vote!