Deathmatch 2022

Special Interest Games
1

It’s that time of year - the time of year called June - when the flowers are in bloom, the birds are all a-chirrup, the days are warmer (Northern Hemisphere rules apply) and there needs to be a big old fight.

Past couple of years of Deathmatches have tended to point to potentially strong favourites for this year’s onslaught, but this year we have a new-ish film to contend with - can it disrupt as much as it did the curious minds of those who could not accept that an already fictional character could die?

Voting opens 1 June for the Villain Deathmatch, to be followed (as with the previous two years) with the Songs and the Films, to the end of June. As an added dimension / desperate attempt to spin-out a tired format (it’s a Bond website; cope), each day in June will have a daily sideswipe one-day vote on a matter of great concern eg preference for the hats of the 1980s Bond films, that sort of tat. Once I think of 30 of them.

Anyway, 1 June - voting opens for the winners of the following groups. Those making it to the second round will start fighting on 3rd June. Etc. Base your vote upon criteria of your own craving.

Yes, I know there are some pairs in there but a) I have a hard time deciding who the principal villain of their respective films is and b) it’s only a game and it honestly doesn’t matter.

Except to those about to die.

Draw taken from a replica Oddjob hat currently on sale at the 007 Store for… how much?

Deathmatch: Villains 2022.

Group A

Dr No
Klebb & Grant
Zorin
Le Chiffre
Oberhauser Blofeld

Group B

Goldfinger
Kananga
Sanchez
Trevelyan
Safin

Group C

Largo
Stromberg
Elektra
Greene
Silva

Group D

YOLT Blofeld
DAF Blofeld
Scaramanga
Carver
Graves

Group E

OHMSS Blofeld
Drax
Kristatos
Orlov & Khan
Koskov & Whitaker

5 Likes
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Bring on the carnage

1 Like
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I’m excited for this!

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Round 1 Group stage voting now open until 3 June. Count The Votes! Stop The Count! etc.

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Round 1 Group stage now closed.

Group results

A Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Goal Diff %Avge Points
Klebb & Grant 4 4 0 0 51 20 +31 71.75 12
Zorin 4 3 0 1 40 31 +9 56.5 9
Le Chiffre 4 2 0 2 38 33 +5 53 6
Dr No 4 1 0 3 35 36 -1 49.25 3
Oberhauser Blofeld 4 0 0 4 14 58 -44 19.5 0
B Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Goal Diff %Avge Points
Goldfinger 4 4 0 0 54 14 +40 79.25 12
Sanchez 4 3 0 1 41 27 +14 60.25 9
Kananga 4 2 0 2 34 34 0 50 6
Trevelyan 4 1 0 3 26 41 -15 39.5 3
Safin 4 0 0 4 14 53 -39 21 0
C Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Goal Diff %Avge Points
Silva 4 4 0 0 49 19 +30 71.75 12
Largo 4 3 0 1 45 23 +22 66 9
Stromberg 4 2 0 2 40 28 +12 58.75 6
Elektra 4 1 0 3 23 45 -22 34.25 3
Greene 4 0 0 4 13 55 -42 19.25 0
D Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Goal Diff %Avge Points
Scaramanga 4 4 0 0 53 16 +37 76.75 12
YOLT Blofeld 4 3 0 1 45 27 +18 63.25 9
DAF Blofeld 4 2 0 2 31 38 -7 44.25 6
Carver 4 1 0 3 28 41 -13 41 3
Graves 4 0 0 4 17 52 -35 24.75 0
E Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Goal Diff %Avge Points
Drax 4 4 0 0 59 17 +42 77.5 12
OHMSS Blofeld 4 3 0 1 54 21 +33 71.75 9
Orlov & Khan 4 2 0 2 28 48 -20 37 6
Kristatos 4 1 0 3 30 45 -15 39.75 3
Koskov & Whitaker 4 0 0 4 18 58 -40 24 0

Round 2

Top two in each group go through

Another six need to go through to make this nonsense work.

Qualification is based on form. Form is determined by average share of the vote they scored in their Group 1 matches.

Form table

Round 1 Round 2 Quarter-Final Semi-Final Final
Goldfinger 79.25
Drax 77.5
Scaramanga 76.75
Klebb &Grant 71.75*
Silva 71.75
OHMSS Blofeld 71.75**
Largo 66
YOLT Blofeld 63.25
Sanchez 60.25
Stromberg 58.75
Zorin 56.5
Le Chiffre 53
Kananga 50
Dr No 49.25
DAF Blofeld 44.25
Carver 41
Kristatos 39.75
Trevelyan 39.5
Orlov & Khan 37
Elektra 34.25
Graves 24.75
Koskov & Whitaker 24
Safin 21
Oberhauser Blofeld 19.5
Greene 19.25

*higher on goal difference
**lower on number of matches won

Accordingly the six lucky losers going through to Round 2 are:

Stromberg
Le Chiffre
Kananga
Dr No
DAF Blofeld
Carver

Conclusions from Round 1

60% of the Craig era villains are out. Spent too much time on Bond and not enough on the villains. That said, 75% of the Brosnan villains aren’t in either.

Safin- only managed to disrupt the bottom of the barrel. Tidy that up, then, sunshine.

Only three villains post-1995 are through. Hmm.

Kananga - with form at 50/50 and a goal difference of 0, he is yer bang average villain. Which feels sort-of right, somehow.

Round 2 draw, balls totally shaken up by Drax’s centrifuge

Winner A v Lucky loser Klebb & Grant v Stromberg
Winner B v Runner-up E: Goldfinger v OHMSS Blofeld (ooh)
Winner C v Runner-up D: Silva v YOLT Blofeld
Winner D v Lucky loser: Scaramanga v Le Chiffre
Winner E v Lucky loser: Drax v Kananga
Runner-up B v Lucky loser: Sanchez v Dr No
Runner-up A v Lucky loser: Zorin v DAF Blofeld
Runner-up C v Lucky loser: Largo v Carver

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On the edge of my seat.

I should mention I have a feeling I’m voting differently this year. If memory serves, the last time we did this it was more in the spirit of “who would kill whom” but this time the question is phrased “who’s your favorite”? And while I seriously doubt Goldfinger would survive in hand-to-hand combat against Sanchez, for instance, I do like old Auric better.

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Analysis (pfft) later but with the second round done, the Quarter Finals are:

Klebb & Grant v Silva
Goldfinger v Scaramanga
Drax v Zorin
Dr No v Largo

Albeit the Second Round match between Dr No and Sanchez was a draw, Dr No’s form (share of the overall vote) increased by 0.15% whereas Sanchez’s form decreased from Round One by 2.05%. Victory to Dr No. Had Sanchez scored one more vote he would have had a clear win. Sore loser. Slightly crispy loser.

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Form table (based on average share of the vote in a match)

Round 1 Round 2 Ranking after R2 Quarter-Final Semi-Final Final
Goldfinger 79.25 75.2 Drax (+1) (-1.3)
Drax 77.5 76.2 Goldfinger (-1) (-4.05)
Scaramanga 76.75 73.2 Scaramanga (-) (-3.55)
Klebb &Grant 71.75* 71.6 Silva (+1) (+0.85)
Silva 71.75 72.6 Klebb & Grant (-1) (-0.15)
OHMSS Blofeld 71.75** 65.6 Largo (+1) (+1.8)
Largo 66 67.8 OHMSS Blofeld (-1) (-6.75)
YOLT Blofeld 63.25 55.4 Zorin (+3) (+4.7)
Sanchez 60.25 58.2 Sanchez (-) (-2.05)
Stromberg 58.75 52.8 YOLT Blofeld (-2) (-7.85)
Zorin 56.5 61.2 Stromberg (-1) (-5.95)
Le Chiffre 53 50.6 Le Chiffre (-) (-2.4)
Kananga 50 45.8 Dr No (+1) (+0.15)
Dr No 49.25 49.4 Kananga (-1) (-4.2)
DAF Blofeld 44.25 39.4 Kristatos (+2) (-)
Carver 41 37.8 Trevelyan (+2) (-)
Kristatos 39.75 DAF Blofeld (-2) (-4.85)
Trevelyan 39.5 Carver (-2) (-3.2)
Orlov & Khan 37 Orlov & Khan
Elektra 34.25 Elektra
Graves 24.75 Graves
Koskov & Whitaker 24 Koskov & Whitaker
Safin 21 Safin
Oberhauser Blofeld 19.5 Oberhauser Blofeld
Greene 19.25 Greene

After Round 2

Beneficiaries are Trevelyan and Kristatos, even though they did not take part. Bond was right - nothing Carver produced was worth watching, and DAF Blofeld, flexing his muscles in Round 1 he may have been, but proves to be an impotent beach boy after all.

Minor scratches for Drax, Scaramanga and Klebb & Grant but OHMSS Blofeld won’t be happy (I doubt he ever is) at the big drop, and 2020’s Big Bad Boo is knocked out in Round 2. Zorin and Largo gained, and last year’s winner, Silva, gains a place and may yet be climbing out of his rat hole. Dr No also seems to be trying to clamber his way out of the boiling abyss but for how long can he hold on?

Stromberg… sinks, for another year.

Biggest loser of Round 2, YOLT Blofeld. This is the price of failure.

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Form table (based on average share of the vote in a match)

Ranking after QF (form) Gain/loss in (form) (ranking) since last round Semi-Final Final
Drax (77.3) (+1.1) (-)
Goldfinger (73.5) (-1.8) (-)
Klebb & Grant (71.6) (-) (+2)
Largo (68.5) (+0.7) (+2)
Scaramanga (66.8) (-6.4) (-2)
OHMSS Blofeld (65.6) (-) (+1)
Silva (65.2) (-7.4) (-3)
Sanchez (58.2) (-) (+1)
YOLT Blofeld (55.4) (-) (+1)
Zorin (53.8) (-7.4) (-2)
Stromberg (52.8)
Le Chiffre (50.6)
Dr No (45.8) (-3.6) (-)
Kananga (45.8)
Kristatos (39.75)
Trevelyan (39.5)
DAF Blofeld (39.4)
Carver (37.8)
Orlov & Khan (37)
Elektra (34.25)
Graves (24.75)
Koskov & Whitaker (24)
Safin (21)
Oberhauser Blofeld (19.5)
Greene (19.25)

So, after Quarter-Final stage, Drax is holding up as the form player (and it remains possible that the Villain with the best “form” as calculated by share of the vote could still be top of the form table if not the “winner” in the Final). Largo seems to be stealthily rising to the surface…

SIlva and Zorin - ouch. Combined failure bumps OHMSS Blofeld further up, but hardly to the top of the alp, really.

Dr No finishing above Kananga simply by dint of having played more games. Kananga did always have an inflated opinion of himself, anyway.

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Insofar as comparing to last year’s form goes…

Current rank 2021 position (form) Rise/dip position (form)
Drax (77.3) Third (69) +2 (+8.3)
Goldfinger (73.5) Ninth (56) +7 (+17.5)
Klebb & Grant (71.6) Twelfth (49) +9 (+22.6)
Largo (68.5) Fourth (68) - (0.5)
Scaramanga (66.8) Sixth (62) +1 (+4.8)
OHMSS Blofeld (65.6) First (73) -5 (-7.4)
Silva (65.2) Fifth (65) -2 (+0.2)
Sanchez (58.2) Eighth (57) - (+1.2)
YOLT Blofeld (55.4) Nineteenth (28) +10 (+27.4)
Zorin (53.8) Second (70) -8 (-16.2)
Stromberg (52.8) Twenty-first (22) +10 (+32.8)
Le Chiffre (50.6) Tenth (55) -2 (-4.4)
Dr No (45.8) Seventh (61) -6 (-15.2)
Kananga (45.8) Eleventh (50) -3 (-4.2)
Kristatos (39.75) Twentieth (28) +5 (+11.75)
Trevelyan (39.5) Fourteenth (46) -2 (-6.5)
DAF Blofeld (39.4) Fifteenth (43) -2 (-3.6)
Carver (37.8) Eighteenth (36) - (+1.8)
Orlov & Khan (37) Seventeenth (37) -2 (-)
Elektra (34.25) Thirteenth (49) -7 (-14.75)
Graves (24.75) Twenty-second (17) +1 (+7.75)
Koskov & Whitaker (24) Twenty-third (8) +1 (+16)
Safin (21) - -
Oberhauser Blofeld (19.5) Sixteenth (37) -8 (-17.5)
Greene (19.25) Twenty-fourth (2) -1 (+17.25)

NB Klebb on her own last year. likewise Khan.

Some conclusions yet to be drawn but - basically - the No Time To Die villains - meh.

For those still in the game, ranking points still matter. It’s like the tennis, without the homoeroticism. Last year’s winner, Silva, finished fifth and the defeated finalist, Sanchez, eighth. It’s all terribly complicated.

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OK, so through to the Final - Goldfinger and Drax.

The Drax v Klebb & Grant semi-final proved a draw but needed to come to an end.

Decision based on the range of the following factors:

Overall gain/loss in form over the course of this year’s Villain Deathmatch - Drax -4.1, Klebb & Grant -3.15. This would shade it to Klebb & Grant. But not done yet.

Form as it stands - Drax 73.4% chance of winning a game; Klebb & Grant 68.6%. This would point to Drax.

Outcome of match(es) played against the two previous winners - Drax beat OHMSS Blofeld 11-8 in Round 1, Klebb & Grant beat Silva 13-5 in the Quarter-Final; both on goal difference and share of the vote, this would point to Klebb & Grant.

On form of the vanquished in those big beast games - OHMSS Blofeld was 71.75 after that point, Silva 65.2. This is a bit of a tie as one could say Drax beat the stronger player, albeit Klebb & Grant inflicted more damage.

The only common enemy to both was Zorin. Drax beat him 15-3 in the Quarter-Final and Klebb & Grant beat him 11-7 in Round 1. On both goal difference and share of the vote, this one goes to Drax.

Both have won all their matches. Cancelling each other out there.

I think that’s 2-2 so far.

Final analysis - goal difference, number of votes gained overall - Drax has gained 96 votes in favour to this point, and 35 against making a difference of +61. Klebb & Grant scored 86 votes in favour and 40 against making +46.

That puts Drax 3-2 on this shootout, so he goes into the final.

4 Likes
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Brilliant analysis and thank you.

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Villain Deathmatch 2022 complete.

Roll of Dishonour 2022

1st – Drax

Runner-up – Goldfinger

3rd – Klebb & Grant

4th – Largo

Drax finishes top of the bloodsoaked pile in the Deathmatches, and is number 1 in the form table for the year (below). He is the only Villain to feature from Semi-Finals onwards in 2020 (3rd), 2021 (4th) and 2022 (1st). Definitively this year’s “winner”.

Ranking 2022 based on form (and movement in rank from 2021)

Drax (+2)

Klebb & Grant (+10)

Goldfinger (+6)

Scaramanga (+2)

OHMSS Blofeld (-4)

Silva (-1)

Largo (-3)

Sanchez (-)

YOLT Blofeld (+10)

Zorin (-8)

Stromberg (+10)

Le Chiffre (-2)

Dr No (-6)

Kananga (-3)

Kristatos (+5)

Trevelyan (-2)

DAF Blofeld (-2)

Carver (-)

Orlov & Khan (-2)

Elektra (-7)

Graves (+1)

Koskov & Whitaker (+1)

Safin (-)

Oberhauser Blofeld (-8)

Greene (-1)

Conclusions?

Only 2 villains from the 21st Century appear in the top 20. They may need to look at the quality of their villainy as much as they want to at their Bond.

Greene stays last and drops due to the introduction of Safin, who beneficially bumps up Koskov & Whitaker and Graves by being more mediocre than them. No Time To Die seems to have affected Oberhauser Blofeld’s ranking too, as it plummets. Good. Safin’s impact seems only to be making the deadzone tidier, and making some pretty poor villains look marginally better than him. At least that’s an explicable plan, rather than whatever he claims to be doing. Given that this is the man WHO KILLS JAMES BOND it’s a solidly underwhelming first showing for the lad from wherever he’s from.

Big equal jumps for YOLT Blofeld and Stromberg, but as they are both the same character in essence, that’s probably right.

Klebb needs Grant. On her own last year, was in nowhereland.

Further analysis imminent. Ten minutes and counnnntinnnng.

3 Likes
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Taking it a stage further and using the last three years’ worth of data

2020 form 2020 form position 2021 form 2021 form position 2022 form 2022 form position Average form Seeding for 2023
Dr No 34 17 61 7 46 13 47
Klebb & Grant 69 1 (4th) 49 12 67 2 (3rd) 62 5
Goldfinger 38 16 56 9 67 3 (2nd) 54 10
Largo 59 7 58 4 61 7 (4th) 59 6
YOLT Blofeld 25 20 28 19 55 9 36
OHMSS Blofeld 66 2 (1st) 73 1 66 5 68 1
DAF Blofeld 31 18 43 15 40 17 38
Kananga 41 14 50 11 46 14 46
Scaramanga 61 5 62 6 (3rd) 67 4 63 4
Stromberg 64 3 22 21 53 11 46
Drax 58 9 (3rd) 69 3 (4th) 73 1 (1st) 67 2
Kristatos 12 21 28 20 40 15 27
Orlov & Khan 38 15 37 17 37 19 37
Zorin 42 13 70 2 54 10 55 9
Koskov & Whitaker 7 23 8 23 24 22 13
Sanchez 59 8 57 8 (2nd) 59 8 58 7
Trevelyan 43 12 46 14 40 16 43
Carver 44 11 36 18 38 18 39
Elektra 27 19 49 13 34 20 37
Graves 0 24 17 22 25 21 14
Le Chiffre 62 4 55 10 51 12 56 8
Greene 12 22 2 24 19 25 11
Silva 59 6 (2nd) 65 5 (1st) 65 6 63 3
Oberhauser Blofeld 47 10 37 16 20 24 35
Safin - - - - 21 23 21

If I remember to do it next June, there will be a seeding to the groups and I will work that one out later.

Most consistent performer over 3 years – Sanchez, solidly in 8th throughout. Weirdly. Orlov & Khan were just Khan in 2021 and it seemed to make no difference in form. Scaramanga. Largo and Silva are pretty consistent, as is Greene although that example is not really a compliment. Suspect Safin might prove consistent in a similar fashion.

Most inconsistent performer over 3 years - Dr No’s a boiling mess, as are YOLT Blofeld, Stromberg and Oberhauser Blofeld.

Form up/down since 2020

This is a false statistic given that in 2020, Round 1 did not run as a group stage but a direct knock-out and Graves, up against Klebb & Grant, scored no votes at all. Not a sausage. Bugger all. Still, the group stages of the last 2 years have not played hugely to the advantage of the weaker players save in their percentage form chances of share of the vote. They’re still a bit rubbish. Ah, the stability of OHMSS Blofeld and Sanchez – a reassuring haven in a world of madness. Oberhauser Blofeld – probably affected by the depiction in No Time to Die, which makes sense as it was very daft. Suspect this is the highest Safin will ever reach in one of these lists. Drax, as ever, lurking high.

Risers

YOLT Blofeld (+30)

Goldfinger

Kristatos

Graves

Koskov & Whitaker

Drax

Dr No

Zorin

DAF Blofeld

Elektra

Greene

Scaramanga

Silva

Kananga

Largo

Sitters – no movement

OHMSS Blofeld

Sanchez

(Safin)

Droppers

Orlov & Khan

Klebb & Grant

Trevelyan

Carver

Le Chiffre

Stromberg

Oberhauser Blofeld (-27)

Villainy by decade – average form

60s – 54 (MVP – OHMSS Blofeld)

70s – 52 (MVP – Drax)

80s – 38 (MVP – Sanchez)

90s – 40 (MVP – Trevelyan)

00s – 27 (MVP – Le Chiffre, by a considerable distance)

10s – 49 (MVP – Silva, and again the gulf is a bit embarrassing)

20s – 21 (M”V”P – Safin)

Brief blip with Silva but the trend is generally downwards here.

Villainy by Bond – average form

Connery – 49

His two Blofelds really don’t help here. Largo perhaps surprisingly strong. Same average as Moore, which is both uncanny and slightly satisfying, if confirmation bias.

Klebb & Grant

Largo

Goldfinger

Dr No

DAF Blofeld

YOLT Blofeld

Lazenby – 68

OK, an anomaly but if for some crazed reason he had done DAF with all other elements including its villain in place (I accept this is, at best, an unsafe premise), the average would be 53, in which event Connery villainy average would rise to 52 so Lazenby would still just come out top. So there. Nurr, with knobs on.

Moore – 49

Big drop-off in quality in the 1980s. How death imitates art.

Drax

Scaramanga

Zorin

Kananga

Stromberg

Orlov & Khan

Kristatos

Dalton – 36

A rare example of villainy improving during a tenure. Although with a very low base to begin with, all Sanchez had to do was show up.

Sanchez

Koskov & Whitaker

Brosnan – 33

It just gets worse. How death imitates art, part deux

Trevelyan

Carver

Elektra

Graves

Craig – 37

Silva is doing a lot of the heavy lifting here. “Fluctuating” is the word. “Massively inconsistent” is two words. “Needs to improve” is three, word-count fans. “Blofeld is never very popular so why did you bother us with it?” is a lot more words and THE TRUTH.

Silva

Le Chiffre

Oberhauser Blofeld

Safin

Greene

Consolidated ranking over three years

OHMSS Blofeld

Drax

Silva

Scaramanga

Klebb & Grant

Largo

Sanchez

Le Chiffre

Zorin

Goldfinger

Dr No

Kananga

Stromberg

Trevelyan

Carver

DAF Blofeld

Orlov & Khan

Elektra

YOLT Blofeld

Oberhauser Blofeld

Kristatos

Safin

Graves

Koskov & Whitaker

Greene

Not totally sure that if asked (no-one asks, sob) to do a ranking just off the top of the old brain-bin, it would be markedly different to this. Oberhauser Blofeld probably lower, Kananga higher maybe.

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Starting tomorrow (10 June)

Deathmatch 2022: The Films (and it is Eon only; cope).

Group A

Dr No

From Russia with Love

A View to a Kill

Casino Royale (2006)

Spectre

Group B

Goldfinger

Live and Let Die

Licence to Kill

GoldenEye

No Time To Die

Group C

Thunderball

The Spy Who Loved Me

The World is Not Enough

Quantum of Solace

Skyfall

Group D

You Only Live Twice

Diamonds are Forever

The Man with the Golden Gun

Tomorrow Never Dies

Die Another Day

Group E

OHMSS

Moonraker

For Your Eyes Only

Octopussy

The Living Daylights

Top two in each group go through to Round 2, with six lucky losers alongside them depending on form. Form depends on your vote, so don’t hold back.

Voting will close 12 June.

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Diamonds ate Forever

It’s true, you know. They really made pigs of themselves.

Only on this site would you find a head-to-head battle between MR and OHMSS. Looking forward to it.

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I am relieved. I can sleep tonight knowing that there is law and order in the heavens.

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To be completely realistic, there’s got to be a way to do “draws”… What’s a World Cup without a good old-fashioned 1-1… :slight_smile:

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Draws are possible; looks like there might be a few coming through in the Films groups. How they get sorted where it’s a knockout match is, I accept, sometimes a little contrived.

3 Likes
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Deathmatch: Films Round 1 has closed.

Group A

Played W D L F A Goal difference Average % share of vote Points
From Russia with Love 4 4 0 0 71 13 +58 84.5 12
Casino Royale 4 3 0 1 64 20 +44 76 9
Dr No 4 2 0 2 37 46 -9 44.75 6
A View to a Kill 4 1 0 3 16 68 -52 19.25 3
Spectre 4 0 0 4 21 62 -41 23.5 0

That’s a fearsome result for From Russia with Love, which handed out some vicious knuckleduster punches along the way. A View to a Kill ultimately the weakest player on form, but it did beat Spectre - but that’s hardly an achievement. Although one tries to stay neutral, three persons out there in the World voted Spectre above From Russia with Love. They might live on your street. They might, indeed, have people everywhere.

Group B

Played W D L F A Goal difference Average % share of vote Points
Goldfinger 4 4 0 0 61 23 +38 72.5 12
No Time To Die 4 3 0 1 46 38 +8 55 9
Licence to Kill 4 2 0 2 36 47 -11 43.75 6
Live and Let Die 4 1 0 3 33 51 -18 39.25 3
GoldenEye 4 0 0 4 33 51 -18 39.5 0

Fairly straightforward, but is GoldenEye not popular any more? Oh dear, how sad, etc. On form it would in theory edge out Live and Let Die and it was a close run thing but it did end up losing there too. All of everything is shabby failure. I think that’s a bit of a surprise? Newcomer No Time To Die makes a solid start, but that low goal difference and average might open up the rocket silo doors to trouble later down the line. It might find itself in Dou-Dou if the form doesn’t improve.

Group C

Played W D L F A Goal difference Average % share of vote Points
The Spy who Loved Me 4 3 1 0 58 23 +35 71.5 10
Skyfall 4 3 1 0 57 23 +34 71.25 10
Thunderball 4 2 0 2 42 39 +3 52.25 6
Quantum of Solace 4 1 0 3 25 55 -30 31.25 3
TWINE 4 0 0 4 19 61 -42 23.75 0

Tighter than Marie’s bra around her neck, this one. Very little between the top two but The Spy who Loved Me just edges it. Decent showing, given the prevailing reputation, for Quantum of Solace, and TWINE - well, the World is also occupied by persons who voted for it above Thunderball, and such persons need finding before they cause any more harm.

Group D

Played W D L F A Goal difference Average % share of vote Points
You Only Live Twice 4 4 0 0 59 24 +35 71 12
Tomorrow Never Dies 4 2 1 1 53 29 +24 65 7
Diamonds are Forever 4 2 1 1 42 41 +1 50.5 7
The Man with the Golden Gun 4 1 0 3 38 46 -8 45.25 3
Die Another Day 4 0 0 4 15 67 -52 18.25 0

In the end, a straightforward win for You Only Live Twice. Die Another Day dies today, and maintains a poor record. Tomorrow Never Dies pips Diamonds are Forever to second place, not least due to the absolute 19-1 hammering it handed down to DUD. The 1 vote is still a massive overachievement and it may yet go to VAR.

Group E

Played W D L F A Goal difference Average % share of vote Points
OHMSS 4 4 0 0 61 23 +38 72.75 12
Moonraker 4 3 0 1 43 41 +2 51 9
For Your Eyes Only 4 2 0 2 41 42 -1 49.5 6
The Living Daylights 4 1 0 3 38 46 -8 45.25 3
Octopussy 4 0 0 4 26 57 -31 31.5 0

Possibly the most true-to-form of the groups here, although the poor showing for The Living Daylights might surpise some. Just not Octopussy’s year, it seems. Moonraker comes through as the weakest of the second place finishers in a group, so the dreams of gold might be off for yet another year - but let’s see.

Round 2

First and second places, whatever their form, go through.

With six lucky losers based on form.

Form table

After Round One

From Russia with Love 84.5
Casino Royale 76
OHMSS 72.75
Goldfinger 72.5
The Spy who Loved Me 71.5
Skyfall 71.25
You Only Live Twice 71
Tomorrow Never Dies 65
No Time To Die 55
Thunderball 52.25
Moonraker 51
Diamonds are Forever 50.5
For Your Eyes Only 49.5
The Man with the Golden Gun 45.25
The Living Daylights 45.25
Dr No 44.75
Licence to Kill 43.75
GoldenEye 39.5
Live and Let Die 39.25
Octopussy 31.5
Quantum of Solace 31.25
TWINE 23.75
Spectre 23.5
A View to a Kill 19.25
Die Another Day 18.25

The six lucky losers are

Thunderball
Diamonds are Forever
For Your Eyes Only
The Man with the Golden Gun
The Living Daylights
Dr No

There is no difference in form nor Goal Difference nor matches won nor points scored nor votes gained between The Man with the Golden Gun and The Living Daylights, so they basically go through in chronological order.

Round 2 matches

Winner A v Lucky Loser: From Russia with Love v Thunderball

Winner B v Runner-up E: Goldfinger v Moonraker

Winner C v Runner-up D: The Spy who Loved Me v Tomorrow Never Dies

Winner D v Lucky Loser: You Only Live Twice v For Your Eyes Only*

Winner E v Lucky Loser: OHMSS v Diamonds are Forever*

Runner-up B v Lucky Loser: No Time to Die v The Man with the Golden Gun

Runner-up A v Lucky Loser: Casino Royale v The Living Daylights

Runner-up C v Lucky Loser: Skyfall v Dr No

*would, in order of form rank, have been Diamonds are Forever playing You Only Live Twice, but they have already had a group encounter. As it were.

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