Last Monday, I decided to poll people to find out their top five favorite Marvel characters and their top five favorite Fire Emblem characters. The point was to show off the diverse love for the casts of both series. I’ve got to admit, the results were pretty interesting. So let’s take a look at them.
I received votes via Facebook comments, messages directly to the Spidey’s Soapbox page, and even text messages. I received far more votes for Marvel characters than I did for Fire Emblem characters, so the results for both will look quite different. Now, let’s look at the Marvel side.
Marvel
Now, if you’re having trouble reading this pie chart, don’t worry. I’ll explain it a bit.
We received quite a few votes that spread over twenty-eight different characters. Spider-Man was the most picked character, with 17% of the vote. That’s total among the characters, which is a big number considering everybody had five votes. 73% of voters put him on their top five.
That being said, Spider-Man actually wasn’t the most picked for their top favorite. He actually came in second for that standing, tied with Iron Man. No, the honor of most picked number one character actually goes to Captain America. He received 13% of the overall votes, appeared on 67% of the top fives, and was the number one choice on 20% of the actual votes.
Marvel Observations
Obviously there is a wide love for Marvel super heroes, according to this poll. And I think it is probably a good representation of the general public concerning Marvel. Marvel is most known for their movies, and Captain America has been absolutely fantastic in his films. Perhaps if you would have gone back in time to when the X-Men films were first coming out, they would have done better. But the results would have also likely been significantly less diverse.
I mean, one only has to look at how many votes that Dr. Strange received to know how influential these movies are. Many people didn’t know who Dr. Strange was five years ago. But the main heroes, the cultural icons, will always have more power. In fact, I think that Tom Holland’s run as Spider-Man will just increase Spidey’s popularity. Likewise, unless they do something quick, Iron Fist may not be on anybody’s radar.
Going against that cultural icon idea, however, is Wolverine. Wolverine only has 1% of the votes. He appeared on only 6% of the polls. That surprised me thoroughly. I think that may be because people didn’t really consider him Marvel, due to Hugh Jackman’s interpretation not being a part of the MCU. But, I could be wrong with that. I am certain that his popularity would go up significantly if he appeared among the Avengers.
Nightcrawler actually got more votes than Wolverine, though. That’s quite the oddity. Nightcrawler is pretty unique, personality wise, so I figure that has a lot to do with it. If you know who Nightcrawler is, you probably love him.
Thor is an interesting thing as well. He came in third of overall appearances on people’s top five, but he actually took the 2nd place spot on 40% of the votes. Apparently Thor is a lot of peoples’ second favorite character. Again, we have the MCU to credit for his popularity.
You’re welcome to give the pie chart some more looks to see if you can notice anything else that’s interesting. The one that I found the most heartwarming was Hawkeye’s great showing. He tied with Hulk and Dr. Strange! I love Hawkeye. He one of my favorite Marvel characters. I love his grounded personality. I’m glad I’m not the only one.
With that, here are my top five picks for Marvel.
#5. Hawkeye
I know that not everybody will agree with me here, but I loved Age of Ultron, especially for the leaps and bounds that it did for Hawkeye’s character. He’s the heart of the Avengers. He’s the everyman. I love it when characters are relatable and Jeremy Renner pulls of the sarcastic wit and heart of gold that is so important with Hawkeye. Plus, I love archers, mostly due to Legolas.
#4. Captain America
I loved Captain America before the MCU came around, but let’s all just admit that Marvel, Chris Evans, and the Russo Brothers all elevated this character to an absurdly awesome level due to his appearances in the MCU. It doesn’t matter who he’s fighting… you believe that he’ll power through as the underdog. Like, imagine for a moment him fighting Vision. Even if it doesn’t make sense, part of you thinks he could pull off that win.
#3. Iron Fist
I refuse to let my love for Iron Fist be tainted by Netflix’s… misguided attempt at a portrayal. Iron Fist is supposed to be a fun Kung Fu master. No depressing angst. He’s supposed to be among the most skilled fighters in all of the Marvel universe. I love the character, and I hope that Netflix didn’t kill his chance at being widely loved.
#2. Nightcrawler
I love Nightcrawler. He’s got a pretty simple power set that makes him incredibly fun to watch. He’s got a pretty lighthearted personality. But most importantly, he’s a devout Christian. There’s nothing quite like seeing the faith represented by a lovable character.
#1. Spider-Man
Well, duh. Do I really need to explain this one? Spider-Man is one of the best written characters of all fiction. He has limitations. He makes mistakes. But he has a heart of gold. He’s very relatable and a ton of fun. I love his banter.
So those are my top five! Let’s look at Fire Emblem real quick.
Fire Emblem
Again, Fire Emblem had significantly less voters. Still, there are a couple of things that can be gleaned from this poll.
Ike and Owain were tied for the most amount of votes. Ike has plenty of fame from Smash Bros, so I’m certain that was a contributing factor. He’s also a fun character in his own right. Owain is absolutely hilarious. I quote him all the time.
Fire Emblem Awakening easily has the most representation of any of the Fire Emblem games. It’s personally my favorite game. What’s also interesting is that Fire Emblem Shadows of Valentia didn’t get a single character on the list. The remake that was recently released was a great game. Perhaps the characters didn’t resonate with people in general. Or maybe it wasn’t played as much.
Other than that, there’s a great spread of diversity. Look at all the characters with four percent of the vote. There are main characters and supporting characters. There’s plenty of guys and gals. Like I said in the debate, everyone has their favorite character.
As far as what I picked goes…
#5. Owain
“Down, sword hand!” Seriously, Owain is pretty epic. He’s like an overexcited anime fanboy. He names all his weapons. He comes up with grand plots of the destructive power of his sword hand, his darkness, or his bloodline. Everything Owain does is hilarious.
#4. Severa
I’ll be the first to admit, I don’t really know why I enjoy Severa so much. She’s a spoiled brat. But I do, and apparently the general population does as well, considering she was brought along for Fire Emblem Fates. She’s just got this lovable grouch thing going on for her.
#3. Inigo
Inigo is easily my favorite child that comes from Awakening. First of all, he can get some pretty awesome stats and wreck anybody with ease. Second, he’s got a ridiculously fun personality. Third, he reminds me of many swashbucklers of old. I just smile every time Inigo joins the party.
#2. Robin
Robin is so much fun to play as in Smash, being significantly different than the rest of the Fire Emblem cast. He’s also one of the most versatile units of all of Fire Emblem. He can do just about anything. He’s got a personality that exudes intelligence, but it also is one that is easy to relate to. You can feel like you’re Robin and it will make sense.
#1. Chrom
What can I say? I absolutely love his game, I love his personality, and I love his character in Smash. I even have a Chrom costume. There’s an epicness to the way that Chrom talks that just exudes leader. He and Robin make an excellent duo that pushes forward the narrative of Awakening in a believable manner.
And there you have it. What did you guys think? Anything about either poll surprise you? Let me know.
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