My picks for the round of 16 for Luthor’s Masterminds
Vandal Savage over Ocean Master: Vandal has done his research on this entire bracket. Orm is easy to play mental games with, much to Vandal’s delight. Hydrokinesis and weather manipulation are may be good for going up against mortals, but, there’s the rub. VS isn’t mortal. Orm, quite literally, can’t kill him.
Brainiac vs Maxwell Lord: What’s Max got but the ability to mind control others, and Brainiac’s circuits don’t roll like that. Lord is cunning and that is a weakness Brainiac has that can be exploited, but he goes into this match virtually powerless against his opponent.
Brother Blood over Bane: Bane is not the sharpest tool in this shed of Masterminds. So what keeps Bane from breaking Brother Blood like he once did the Bat? His hypnotic abilities. If anybody in this bracket is the most susceptible to hypnotism, it’s Bane. This is literally a mind over muscle match-up.
Deathstroke over over Talia Al Ghul. They were both trained under Ra’s. Talia has the psychological edge here. She knows how to pushed Slade’s buttons. (Which is something Vandal will be observing quite closely…shhh…don’t tell the refs.) Yet, Deathstroke’s enhanced abilities save his bacon get and him out of this very tight scrape.
Riddler over Dr. Sivana: This might be the biggest natural upset of the tournament. The proverbial 12 beats a 5 we historically see. The Riddler always has to prove he’s the smartest man in the room. Sivana just isn’t quite as driven if the big red cheese ain’t involved. It’s a game of 20 questions before Riddler the realizes that the smart move is just to strike Sivana with his cane and match over.
Ra’s Al Ghul over Mr. Mind: It’s debatable who is the smarter of these two. Ra’s is a great strategist and tactician. Mr. Mind is a creature that feeds off supernatural power. Ra’s knows the calculation to win and it’s all about cold steel in the hands of a cold blooded assassin. Ra’s swordsmanship comes through.
Amanda Waller over Black Mask: She’s just as, if not more, lethal with a gun than Black Mask. Waller’s rep proceeds her and Black Mask knows it. Black Mask isn’t afraid of the other crime bosses in Gotham…Waller would eat them breakfast if it served her purpose. This may be the first TKO in the the tournament because if Black Mask is smart, he just doesn’t even show up.
Lady Shiva over Ozymandias: Sorry Ozy, I appreciate your vast intellect and quite good martial arts skills. However, Lady Shiva is a killing machine. It comes down to a simple equation, Lady Shiva is a lethal as you smart. In this match-up, lethal wins over brilliant intellect.
I think Black Mask and Ozymandias may both give their respective matches a no-show and go have a really nice meal instead.