Saturday, October 29, 2022

StarPunch Girl Stars in DEATH BATTLE!

  

StarPunch Girl, the StarGod

StarPunch Girl was created by TryrushStardust, it can be read on Tapas (it can also be read on ComicFury—note that chapter 1 is different on both sites, as the central conflict is updated in the Tapas link. Would recommend reading it there, as it is also more up to date.)


DISCLAIMER: The Imgur Purge of May 2023 deleted most of the linked scans. Until I am aided in reclaiming all missing images, this message will remain here.



Welcome back to the blog! Here, I'll be discussing a character I feel has a lot of potential whose story is unfortunately likely going to remain incomplete. Many webcomic creators stop updating their series for whatever reason, and this is one of them. It ran from 2013 to 2017, with none of the creator's other series updating since then, and completely ceased communication after 2019. It's a shame, because StarPunch Girl is a really fascinating story with amazing art and cool action. How so? Well, why don't I show you?

Background

"The creations here have modeled their lifestyle on a particular perception of Creator, citing legends that state she observed her creations from a cloud above. In living above the earth as Creator once did, the creations from this Land of Clouds hope to become closer to her presence. The creations here explain that they one day hope to attain some of Creator's "wisdom" and "grace". I do not have the "heart" to tell them Creator left potato-chip crumbs and residue in the "sacred" clouds she rested on as she's viewed her land-monkeys."

This big blue ball in space we call Earth has come a long way since its inception. What was once a giant mass of uninhabitable flames has since become a world full of diverse flora and fauna, culture, technology, and rich history. There are various faiths that ponder on humanity's inception and how everything came to be. Today, I'll be discussing one such story, which is certainly a deviation from standard belief systems' ideas.

Far out in another dimension was a young princess who lived a happy life in her kingdom. One day, her parents were killed by a knight sent by the dreaded Blackhole Boy, who wanted to steal her away in marriage. However, the knight misinterpreted 'taking her hand in marriage' as 'taking her hands,' and straight up just chopped her hands off. Her cries of anguish activated a sealed away weapon that swiftly dealt with the knight: a pair of gauntlets that became her new hands. She flew away from her kingdom to avoid Blackhole Boy's forces.

She became a cosmic traveler who ventured to another dimension to find a place to plant the seeds of revolution to fight her nemesis. Her adventuring would take her to the planet Earth. After causing the mass extinction of the dinosaurs, she grew humans like sea monkeys and watched them evolve and change over the next thousands of years. In the meantime, the mute girl would laze about and play video games and snack in her home in outer space: the StarBed. Humanity was always aware of her, and would form a religion dedicated to their creator, with traits that differed from culture to culture.

Millions of years passed, and after saving her planet from a meteor shower, the humans had the technology to personally invite her to their planet and show their appreciation for her and how far her world has come. Welcomed by a futuristic President Obama, her big blue planet has certainly grown into something special. There are underwater and sky cities, monuments modeled after her likeliness, even a sector where aliens come to reside.

Everything was going great until there was an assassination attempt by one of Blackhole Boy's spies. She knew she could not keep her secret any longer, and announced to the world the threat they were created to fight, and they were more than willing to help her.

Now, the war begins between humanity and Blackhole Boy's forces… and that is unfortunately where her story has come to a halt.

Although we may never find out how her story concludes, StarPunch Girl will be immortalized as humanity's creator and mobilizer.

Equipment


Star Gauntlets

Chapter One - Page 31
The trademark weapons of her namesake, these gauntlets are her new hands. Aside from packing a serious punch.

Binoculars

These aren't any ol' binoculars. Yes, they're able to see things closer from far away, that's what they do. But can YOUR binoculars see detailed images of Earth from space like a telescope? Didn't think so.

Spectacles of Time

A pair of spectacles that lets her briefly see into the future.

Toolkit

Chapter Three - Page 14
Sometimes a lazy god's gotta take up the mantle and get to work.

Abilities


Spatial Manipulation and Dimensional Travel

Chapter One - Page 01

SPG can quite literally cross dimensions by punching holes in space. In addition, her body is able to withstand being able to travel through dimensions while humans normally cannot.


Weather Manipulation

She can just do that apparently.

Immortality (Type 1)

Chapter One - Page 07

SPG never ages during the comic, having lived for thousands of years watching humanity evolve.

Electricity Generation

Electrifying~

Flight

She doesn't need wings, simply able to soar through space using her Star Power energy.

Self Sustenance (Types 1 & 2)

Chapter One - Page 14
She doesn't need oxygen, food, water, or even sleep to survive.

Statistics Amplification

Chapter One - Page 26
She's able to do this after drinking Star Cola or rigorous training.

Heat Resistance

Chapter Two - Page 16

She quite literally goes sunbathing.

Enhanced Reflexes

When you're able to fight while dodging meteors, you surely gotta have some impressive reaction times.

Sound Manipulation

Chapter Two - Page 38
She once cried so loud she could make buildings shudder

Technology Manipulation

World Tour Entry Two: Giza, Egypt
She is able to use her Star Power to awaken technology.

Aura Absorption


One time she absorbs the aura of pharaohs of the past. It isn't clear if they are spirits or holograms, simply described as aura.

Energy Manipulation

Her energy source called Star Power can inadvertently power objects and even other people, but be wary. Absorbing her Star Power will lead to a complete overdrive, overwhelming the one who absorbed it.

Rainbow Manipulation

TASTE THE RAINBOW MOTHERFUCKER!

Constellations

Chapter Three - Page 39
Later on, her gauntlets received an upgrade where she has different abilities based on the constellations shared by the main zodiac signs. Unfortunately the webcomic went inactive before all of the powers she gained could be revealed, but at least we have the following:


Leo

(Fire manipulation)
Her gauntlets turn into lion heads that can shoot fire balls.

Cancer

(Elasticity)
Chapter Three - Page 44
Her gauntlets transform into durable crab claws she can extend and expand.


Techniques


Oh hey, new category! None of these have official names since the series doesn't have dialog, so I'll just be making them up on the fly.

Dash Combo

SPG can tag any incoming projectiles at blinding speeds, causing them to explode

Rocket Punch

She can detach her fist and shoot it like a rocket.

Drill Attack

She's able to spin fast enough to drill through stuff, leaving a rainbow trail behind.

Rapid-Fire Blows


[insert Jojo onomatopoeia here]

Money Shot

Chapter Two - Page 15

It's like she's playing pool. Hit one thing and it'll cause a chain reaction that hits everything else.

Feats

Overall


  • She's responsible for the extinction of the dinosaurs
  • Created humanity as if she were growing sea-monkeys, resulting in a population of 6 million people that worship her.
  • Concentrated on a video game so intensely, it took half a solar system's orbit to finish
  • Destroyed a cluster of meteors headed towards Earth
  • Went through rigorous cosmic training to enhance her durability
  • Set out on an expedition across the world to see what has become of Earth after thousands of years
  • Revived long-since decommissioned ancient sphinxes, which are actually highly technologically advanced
  • Destroyed monsters and vehicles belonging to Blackhole Boy's army
  • Assisted humanity in creating a fleet to attack Blackhole Boy

Strength


Speed



Durability


Weaknesses

  • Her Mega League card states that she has very low defense stats… but her durability training greatly enhanced it, so her lowest stat now is her middling intelligence.
  • SPG seems to run on "Star Power," an energy source she can fuel some of her abilities and even objects, but she grows weaker as she runs out. If she were running low, she'd need to replenish herself with Star Cola to regain her energy

Matchup Potential


StarPunch Girl vs Zoe (StarPunch Girl vs League of Legends)

(thumbnail by Vibe Check)

Vibe Check


Connections are as follows. Both used to live out fairly uneventful lives until both came in contact with something that provided them with unimaginable powers, leading to both becoming known as renowned cosmic entities of immense strength who enjoy sightseeing the evolving world and interacting with it with childlike wonder. Both are enthusiastic, nonchalant, and adventurous, but can also be lazy and easily distracted. Also both have the same blonde to violet hair color scheme I guess.

I'd imagine the analysis for the fight would be really fun with Wiz and Boomstick having meltdowns at how shockingly powerful both girls are, along with their zany lore.

With how visually stylistic both League of Legends and SPG can be, I'd imagine the fight would have a really colorful and sparkly visual aesthetic compared to other cosmic matchups. Especially when factoring in stuff like SPG's video game text and Zoe's star projectiles. Although Zoe is fighting someone silent, I think SPG still has a clearly defined personality that can play off of Zoe's more playful and less serious attitude, which would be a big highlight in the fight. I mentioned before that this could be a cosmic battle, and I could see that being really played up in the animation. It should definitely start out in space, but I can see the fight progressing to the planet below, other dimensions, inside the sun, or even other points in time... which could probably show SPG nuking the dinosaurs again when trying to put down Zoe. There can be a scene where both are fighting in an asteroid field with SPG punching through asteroids or hitting them towards Zoe, and Zoe just destroying them with star projectiles or using her portals to redirect them at her. It could definitely end on a really high scale to show off Zoe's true potential.

And that brings me to the verdict. Yeah, Zoe should probably wipe. Zoe's one of the strongest characters in League of Legends and the feats she'd scale to should be quite above SPG's multi-cont feats. Regardless, I think it could be a really fun fight!

StarPunch Girl vs StarHopper (StarPunch Girl vs Invader: The Adventures of StarHopper and Husky)

(thumbnail by Vibe Check)

Vibe Check

Oh hey, it's a matchup here where both characters are from webcomics! Unfortunately I can't say too much about this matchup because Invader isn't in a state where it's ready to be properly discussed in VS. However, once Invader receives enough content, I could see the matchup really working out.

Connections: Star-themed space travelers with cosmic abilities who are way stronger than their colorful appearances and youthful attitudes make them out to be. Both are royalty sent away from their original worlds to fulfill a specific goal (SPG needs to cultivate and mobilize a civilization to fight Blackhole Boy's army and StarHopper needs to go on a "happiness quest" across the galaxy to discover her true purpose. Both are worshipped in worlds different from their own, but they keep secrets from their admirers that relate to their homeworld (SPG hiding Blackhole Boy's existence and StarHopper hiding that she's an asterian princess).

In terms of what StarHopper is capable of at the moment, she has her trusty star she can ride around like Kirby, she can enhance her speed and strength, has telekinesis, is able to move around in stopped time, and has the potential to rival the power of a god once she fully embraces her powers. Given how the narrative is framed, she has the potential to get to SPG's level. At the moment she's city block level, so it's an easy win for SPG. What really sticks out to me however is the music potential. StarPunch Girl has a chiptune soundtrack (Update: for whatever reason the person who made the ost deleted their Soundcloud account. If anyone is able to find an alternative source for the ost, that would be mighty appreciated) I'd highly recommend and Invader was made by synthpop and nerdcore musician Twill Distilled, who made a theme song for the series. Thus, I could see it being a cool spacey electronic track with chiptune influences.

NEXT TIME ON WCAB… whenever I feel like it

Monday, October 10, 2022

Serenity Rose Conjures DEATH BATTLE!

 

Serenity Rose, the Crestfallen Witch

Serenity Rose was created by Aaron Alexovitch, it can be read on his personal website


WARNING

This blog will discuss themes of anxiety, trauma, and nervous breakdowns. Viewer digression is advised

DISCLAIMER: The Imgur Purge of May 2023 deleted most of the linked scans. Until I am aided in reclaiming all missing images, this message will remain here.

Welcome back to the blog! This character from the first series I've ever covered that's considered completed! Thus, I won't have to worry about frequently searching for updates to see if Sera's got any buffs. Not to mention, this means the background section is gonna be meatier than usual and spoiler filled. Hopefully it's not too bad of a read xD If the early art style of this webcomic reminds you of Invader Zim, you wouldn't be too far off the mark. The author Aaron Alexovich was actually involved in the show's production and is the one who drew the Invader Zim comics. The dude's mad talented, he's even worked on Avatar: the Last Airbender as a character designer! If that at all intrigues you, I'd definitely recommend checking this series out, its visual style is pretty much perfect. But what about Serenity herself? How does she fair on the battlefield? Let's find out for ourselves!

Background

"She of a thousand sorrows."

Serenity Elizabeth "Sera" Rose is many things. Out of the world's 57 known witches, she is the 10th youngest 8th shortest, 6th gothiest, 22nd most powerful, 38th most respected, and 5th most reclusive. To the town of Crestfallen, she is a beloved icon adored by its citizens. To many outside the city, she's deemed an unstable and satanic monster that needs to be regulated before she causes any more controversy. While there is a lot of false and overdramatized information, I seek to relay to the masses who the witch named Serenity Rose truly is.

Sera is a misunderstood young woman who doesn't want to put anyone in danger. She's deeply shy, reclusive, and terrified of social situations. Unlike how the public thinks she eats babies and performs blood rituals, she has a passion for making cute and creepy doodles in her sketchbook. She's gentle, kind, grimly charming, has great gothic music tastes, and has a really weird voice. What's not to love? Serenity goes through a journey where she questions her identity, her sexuality, and her future. It all builds up to her facing her past head on.

Sera's life hasn't been easy. When her mother died when she was four, little Sera froze a big chunk of Lake Michigan out of grief. This turned her into an infamous controversial figure despite being so young. The mayor of the town of Crestfallen reached out to the Roses to coax them into moving there, which is supposedly far more accepting of witches. It's a town that celebrates all things supernatural and weird, so it would be the perfect home. However, Sera's dad knew that it would render Sera a tourist attraction, so he wanted her to live a normal life instead. And that she did, her dad refusing all of the mayor's offers as they reside in their new town. She didn't fit in at school, but she did manage to find some friends and the time to practice her interest in art.

Everything was going pretty decently until she reached 16. Her father was killed in a car accident. It was a deeply sorrowful event, but what really drove her off the edge was a traumatic event involving her close friend Madeline. Maddy was severely bullied during high school and Serenity was always too shy to defend her. When Sera gave her a note telling her how much she appreciated her, Maddie took the letter the opposite way, believing it was to make fun of her. She blew up at Sera for not being there for her to stop the harassment. After Maddy stormed out of the bus, that's when Serenity's most notorious moment occurred: The Bus Incident. She experienced a meltdown, hijacking the bus and flew it six miles through the sky. All the while her classmates onboard were subjected to horrific imagery conjured by her own mind.

This event gave her unwanted fame from all over the world. Newscasters called her an unstable monster, goths everywhere worshipped her and created their own messed up lore regarding her, and she became even more of a synonymous attraction at Crestfallen. It became so dire that she defended herself during an assassination attempt by the SSI (Supernatural Shield Initiative), in which they sent a group of troopers to her house. In the end, she was ultimately sentenced to nothing more than counseling.

Seven years go by without incident until she's brought back into the public eye when she stops a vampire from rampaging a nightclub. Her life starts to go in all sorts of directions: a mysterious witch is attacking and stalking her and she is asked by her idol Vicious Whisper to become her apprentice, giving her the opportunity to destroy the schoolbus that haunted her past.

Her issues with the peculiar witch increase when Sera is repeatedly jumped. Not only that, but she's experiencing strange dreams and the SSI is led to believe that she is conjuring Revenants in her sleep who go around killing people. She even discovered that there is a cave filled with fifteen years worth of ectoplasmic conjurings from her anxiety-ridden dreams.

Eventually, it is all revealed that it was caused by the mysterious and hateful witch who's been pursuing her named Stiletta. Born into obscurity and sealed away in a mine for most of her life by her unloving family, she never had the chance to have a good life. And here is Serenity, a woman with caring family and friends, a town that admires her and celebrates her for what she is, and thousands of sympathizers across the world even after she nearly killed a busload of children. She never had to work for it, yet constantly pushes them away. That's why she stole Sera's dreams to create Revenants in order to put the blame on her, making the world think she's a killer. And the only way to stop her from destroying everything she holds dear is to engage with her in a fight and put in the effort to live. And that she does, besting Stiletta in combat and stopping her from causing any further harm.

Since then she's began being Vicious Whisper's apprentice. After all the distraught caused by Stiletta, Sera finally appears optimistic. However, she comes face to face with Maddy again. Although it's nerve wracking, the two seem to regain their friendship, which all culminates in Maddy kissing her. However, their rekindled bond is short-lived when it's revealed Maddy arrived in Crestfallen to document Sera's ectoplasm creations, including the dream cave, to benefit a researcher. Although lied to, Sera decides that she owes Maddy and lets her take pictures. When she tries to explain to Vicious Whisper what happened, she learns that her mentor tried to set her up with her assistant Crawlsie to try and play matchmaker between them. She has another meltdown, but Crawlsie assures her that Vicious' actions aren't worth being angry over. On their own terms, they decide to date.

While she is still a figure deplored and worshipped by the world for wrong reasons, Serenity has finally figured out what she wants to do with her life. She pushed through all the negativity to get to this point, and she has a bright outlook on what's to come.

Equipment


N/A


Abilities


Y'know what? I'm feeling a little spicy today. I'm gonna let Sera's best friend/enemy Tess take over this section for a bit because she sums them up fairly concisely in her 'Witch Way to Hell Segment.'

Flight


Telekinesis


Elemental Manipulation

Hi, Vibe Check here. I'm gonna delve into this one a bit to show the sorts of powers she has demonstrated with her elemental manip.

Fire Manipulation


Weather Manipulation


Ice Manipulation


Electricity Manipulation


Heat Manipulation

She's able to adjust her own body temperature and create heat movable heat bubbles.

Metal Manipulation



Ectoplasm Manipulation

This is Sera's most prolific ability, so I'll go more into detail regarding this. Basically, Sera can break down molecules and reassemble them to create a substance called ectoplasm, which she can use to create or alter matter. Thus, she can use this for…

Ectoplasm Constructs

GOODBYE CRESTFALLEN (PAGE 117)

There's no limit to what she can create with ectoplasm. She has made 8 ft tall man-eating ponies, freaky floating goblin faces, gothic chairs, and plenty of other things. Hell, there's an entire cave full of ectoplasm beings conjured from her messed up dreams that she has full control over (which hardly move when she isn't around). Some of the ectoplasm summons can appear mobile and alive while others are simply tools for her to use in combat. When her conjurings are semi-sentient, they are known as Revenants.

Armor Generation

Her ecto-armor tends to come in different forms. Whether it be her face with limbs or a slimy ghoul, she's able to protect herself well with it. It's impervious to bullets, and due to being made of a substance she can manipulate, it can change forms at will.

Transmutation and Molecular Manipulation

She can alter anything from the molecular level and turn it into something new. For instance, she turned a douchebag's car into something silly-looking. Another witch named Stiletta was able to transform a crowd of people into miniature minions shaped like Serenity's head. As witches share all the same primary abilities, Serenity is likely capable of this too. Not to mention, she was able to later control them despite not being the one that mutated them. Her abilities extend to plants too, able to alter their appearance with her ectoplasm.

Projectiles and General Manipulation

Aside from forming it into intricate objects and beings, she can go the simple route and just manipulate pure ectoplasm. She can shoot slimy balls of it or wield it as if she's painting on a canvas. It's gooey, so she can submerge herself inside it or trap others within it.

Low-Mid Regeneration

Although she has not done this on her own, another witch named Valentine was able to regenerate a man's arm with ectoplasm after it was cut off. As the abilities are shared between witches, she's likely able to do this too.

Ecto Beams

It appears that she can shoot concentrated beams that are able to alter the properties of anything with ectoplasm. She uses this when she shoots a tree that forms various etched artwork on it.

Shapeshifting


Appreciated, Tess. Now shoo.

OH RIGHT, she forgot to mention one other ability.

Command Over Trolls

Unlike our Earth, this version is home to various creatures like goblins and ogres. Crestfallen's trolls were created long ago to take orders from any witch. Thus, she is able command these creatures at will, which are very aggressive towards anyone who isn't a witch.

Feats

Overall


  • Is considered the 22nd strongest witch in the world.
  • Saved a nightclub from a vampire.
  • When she was sixteen, she stole a bus which she telekinetically rode through the skies full of her classmates during a nervous breakdown.
  • That same year, she took on an entire platoon of SSI shock troops. Neither she or the soldiers received any injuries as she made her escape, nonviolently dispatching them with her ectoplasmic constructs.
  • Her artistic skills got the attention of one of the most famous yet controversial witches Rivet Hed, who wanted her to design creatures for his performances. It was a job she turned down.
  • A cave exists with fifteen years worth of her dreams manifested into ectoplasmic beings conjured from them.
  • She defeated Stiletta, a witch who stirred chaos in Crestfallen by stealing Sera's dreams to make ectoplasmic killers. She was hellbent on mentally torturing Sera, whisking away her easy life she's taken for granted from her and make the world believe that she's a killer. Thankfully, she was able to best her in combat and stop her from killing everyone she loves.
  • She was chosen by famous witch and singer Vicious Whisper to be her apprentice
  • Telekinetically lifted the entire audience during a concert off the ground
  • Sera was able to fully push through her negativity, confront her anxieties and trauma, and finally be sure of what she wants to do with her life

Strength


Speed


Durability


Weaknesses

  • Sera is emotionally vulnerable, freezing during times of serious anxiety.
  • Her mind is exploitable, as the witch Stiletta stole her dreams to conjure ectoplasmic monstrosities to terrorize Crestfallen.

Matchup Potential

Unfortunately I have nothing to say on this front, as I haven't seen any characters that could contest well with Sera. The only suggestions I've received for her are Brightburn and Cameron/SCP-2241, both of which are different archetypes that really don't suit her. She looks vaguely similar to the protagonist of the webcomic Star Cross'd Destiny, but judging by the series description it doesn't sound similar to Sera.

I could see her having the sort of appeal that Omori has on getting on Death Battle… which is a double edged sword considering the heavy topics the characters experience and are ingrained in their combat style. The implications for Sera matchups certainly aren't as bad as what Omori detractors say regarding him, but wanting a character on Death Battle that can jump someone with a cave full of manifestations of her anxiety-ridden dreams could raise heads for better or worse. Let me know if you've got any opponent sections in the comments below. If any of them really vibe with me, I'll write up a blurb here like I did for the previous blogs!



NEXT TIME ON WCAB… whenever I feel like it

Emperor Schorl is Fearless in DEATH BATTLE!

                     Emperor Schorl, Lord of the Rats In Our Shadow was created by Kitfox Crimson, it can be read on DeviantArt and  Webtoo...