This week’s Top 10 show had a cool concept behind it.  It was a Boss Hog Patreon suggestion and Matt and John counted down the Top 10 Final Battles in Movies.

Now, this was a bit of a challenge for me as many of the battles are very much one on one struggles and I did not want them to make the list.  Admittedly, there is one on here that kind of cheats, but it is such a great battle with stakes up the wazoo that I excused it.

There also may be an excess of MCU movies on the list.  Hm… I wonder if that is my personal bias.

Here we go…

#10.  Shazam, “The Marvel Family Arrives.”  Shazam discovers that the way to defeat Sivana is to keep it in the family.  And, while there is a subtle message that the handicapped and overweight people are only important once they become strong and in fit, I do believe that they did not intend for that to be the theme.  It was a fun battle with some scary monsters and one of the better DC movies.

#9.  Guardian of the Galaxy, “The Dance Off,” This one is included because it is a frickin’ hoot.  Star Lord challenges a completely shocked Ronan the Accuser to a dance battle as a way to distract the villain from destroying Xandar.  This all leads to a rousingly emotional scene with Peter and his teammates grasping an infinity stone together.  Ooooooh Child!

#8.  Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, “The Battle of Hogwarts.”.  The final battle in the Harry Potter series saw a ton of our favorite characters fall, and Harry Potter and his friends stand tall.  There was also a one on one final battle between Harry and Voldemort and it brought the long time series to a satisfying close.

#7.  The Avengers.  “The Battle of New York.”  The invading Chitauri army, led by the God of Mischief, Loki, tried to invade New York, but they were stopped because of a group of heroes who joined together to face the foes that no one else could face.  The original Avengers film was one of the greatest battles around and highlighted the individual Avengers abilities and skills beautifully.  This started a trend of fantastic Avengers fight scenes that may show up later on this list.

#6.  Captain America: Civil War, “Cap & Bucky vs. Iron Man.”  This is the one that I have eon the list that may be a bit of a cheat.  Even Rocha removed it from his list when Matt questioned him.  I am not taking it off because this is a fantastic final battle filled with emotion and intensity.  It even had to compete with the amazing airport fight scene from earlier in the film.  Despite that being one of the best fights ever, this holds its own with such a personal struggle between a man grieving for the loss of his mother and a friend trying to save his oldest friend.  It is a beautiful end and a shake up that is not resolved until Endgame.

#5. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.  What a great conclusion to this story.  Little did we know that this would be such a suicide mission.  We expected that something was going to be strange since these characters were never heard of again, but we did not know how it was going to happen.  It was a noble end to these heroes.  AND we got a kick ass Darth Vader scene as well.

#4.  Avengers: Infinity War.  “The Battle of Wakanda.”  How many of these battles were won by the bad guy?  Well, Thanos is able to claim all of the Infinity Stones and snap his fingers, moments after taunting Thor that he “should have aimed for the head.”  Half the known universe faded out of existence in a pillow of dust including our beloved Marvel characters Black Panther, Spider-Man, Groot, Bucky, Star Lord, Dr. Strange to name a few.  Then, when the screen went to black, the feeling in the theater was unlike any I have ever felt.

#3.  Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, “The Battle of Endor.”  The final battles of Return of the Jedi are fantastic.  Sure, maybe the arrival of the little teddy bears known as the Ewoks was too much, but the Luke Skywalker/Darth Vader/Emperor struggle more than made up for the cuddly Ewoks. And…come on, when that little Ewok died, you teared up…didn’t you?

#2.  Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.  “The Battle of Helm’s Deep.”  Two Towers was my absolute favorite Lord of the Rings film and this battle at the film’s climax was utterly breathtaking in every way.  There was no way that this group that had barricaded themselves in at Helm’s Deep was going to survive.  It was just a matter of time and you had no idea how they were going to live.  Then, Gandalf the White arrived and everything changed.  This was the best moment of the trilogy and was gorgeously shot.

#1.  Avengers: Endgame.  “Avengers Assemble.”  I cried through this entire battle, every time I saw it.  Everything was pitch perfect.  It all started with the three main Avengers, Cap, Thor and Iron Man, facing off against Thanos.  We get the Cap is worthy moment which was one of the most epic moments ever.  Then, Cap is alone against the entirety of Thanos’s horde.  Goosebumps.  The example of why Cap is such a hero.  Then… “On your left.”  Mystic rings appearing everywhere and all the dusted heroes were back, ready to assemble.  Whoa!  When Chris Evans finally delivers that iconic line.. “Avengers…Assemble” he does it with the perfect note of grim determination.  And then all hell breaks loose ending with one of the saddest moments in the MCU… “I am Iron Man”.  This was an epic conclusion to the 22 movie franchise that started with Iron Man all those years ago.  Endgame deserved to be the highest grossing film of all time.

Honorary mentions:  Not too many.  Avengers vs. Ultron in Age of Ultron is one I liked more than many.  The Tropic Thunder final battle was good.  I did not love Mad Max Fury Road as much as others, but the end battle was great.  Skyfall was the best Bond in years and its final firefight was a great finale to the film.  The Return of the King had a great battle before the film ended like seven times.

The Re-List (RELIST!  RE RE RELIST! Buzz Buzz Buzz) is back out today with what i thought was one of the most challenging topics that I have ever made a list of since I started.  Top 10 Pixar Voice Acting Performances was the choice made by Patreon Coty Rexford, and a list from Keith Below, & Steven Anderson.

I started writing down possible choices prior to my making my actual list and there were some that I wrote down that I said to myself,  “This one is definitely on the list,” only to find out that they failed to make it.  This could have easily been a Top 20 list without any trouble.  Unlike many honorable mentions, most of the list could have been in the Top 10 for me.  There are almost none that are just there as a shout out.

I enjoyed the list quite a bit, despite the difficulties I had compiling it.  This was one of those lists that John and Matt haven’t done and they haven’t done too many like it which is very fun to listen to.  I would love to know what Matt and John would have on their lists.

Starting off…

#10.  Ned Beatty, “Lots O’Huggin’ Bear”, Toy Story 3.  He is my favorite villain in all of Pixar, and perhaps all of Disney because I understood that character and his motivation so well.  Legendary Ned Beatty provided a perfect voice for the disgruntled teddy bear.  When he betrays the group and leaves them to potentially die in the fire, Lotso cemented his place as the evilest of evil.  And I loved it.

#9.  Anthony Gonzalez, “Miguel Rivera”, Coco.  This was a performance that wasn’t on the initial list I made, however, after review, I wanted something from Coco to make the list because I enjoyed that movie quite a bit.  The performance of the lead character’s voice was excellent and the moment he sings “Remember Me” to his grandma after returning from the Land of the Dead turned me into a blubbering mess.  I considered several other voice performances from Coco (see honorary mentions), but I went with the lead protagonist.

#8.  Albert Brooks, “Marlin,” Finding Nemo.  Playing the desperate father who has lost his son to the vastness of the ocean, Albert Brooks brings the perfect level of anxiety and uneasiness to the role of Marlin and still is able to drive the comedy found in the film.  The story was really the journey that Marlin went on to discover the whereabouts of his son, but also to discover that it is alright to let his son grow and let him live his life without hovering over him.  Brooks handled the performance beautifully.

#7.  Peter O’Toole, “Anton Eye,” Ratatouille.  Ratatouille was one of the most under rated Pixar films of the early days of the studio and the performance of Peter O’Toole as the restaurant critic Anton Eye is one of the standouts of the film.  He may not have as large of a role as some of the others, but his time on screen is as impactful as any character.

#6.  Holly Hunter, “Helen Parr/Elastigirl,” The Incredibles.  Holly Hunter truly brings Helen Parr to life with such a bravado that you know why we all love her.  In the first film, she was trying to find where her husband was at and her children stowed away.  The fear and desperation in her voice when she called on the radio to the people shooting missiles at their plane that, “There are children on board” really hit you in the gut.  Her performance in Incredibles 2 was really great too, but I still think her best work was the original.

#5.  Tim Allen, “Buzz Lightyear,” Toy Story franchise.  “To Infinity, and Beyond!” will always bring people back to the Toy Story franchise, one of the most well known and beloved quotes in any animated movie (if not any movie).  This was delivered by Tim Allen himself.  The connection between Buzz and Woody is really what sold this franchise to the public.  Tim Allen may not be as huge of a star as he was when Toy Story originally came out, but he certainly will always be remembered for this role.  Falling with Style!

#4.  Craig T. Nelson, “Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible,” The Incredibles.  Craig T. Nelson provided a perfect voice for the iconic super hero Mr. Incredible, while showing all of the uncertainty and the self-doubt of Bob Parr.  The shock when Mr. Incredible believes his entire family has been blown out of the sky is absolutely heart wrenching.  His joy when he learns that they survived fills everyone full of happiness.  And the line, “I can’t lose you again” cements how much he loves Helen and his kids.  Nelson’s voice is great for the heroic superhero.

#3.  Ellen DeGeneres.  “Dory,” Finding Nemo/Dory.  Ellen was not on either lists on the Relist today and I was really shocked because this is a voice that was so beautifully done and a character so epic that it spun off into its own movie.  The performance of Ellen in this movie completely revitalized her career and led her to become the classic talk show host that she is today.  Dory was such an enjoyable and creative character that I was happy to spend more time with her without the main cast of Finding Nemo.  And… she can speak whale.

#2.  Richard Kind.  “Bing Bong,” Inside Out.  Inside Out was one of the films that I had multiple voice choices to include on the list, but I only wound up with one.  Bing Bong makes the most impact on the film in the shortest period of time.  “Take her to the moon for me” he says as he fades away forever.  I just rewatched this scene seconds ago to make sure I had the quote right and I am crying right now.  It is amazing how emotional this scene of this animated creature can make an adult male.  Richard Kind’s work with this character is perfect and utterly crushing.

#1.  Tom Hanks.  “Woody”  Toy Story franchise.  “Reach for the sky!”  Woody was the absolute break out character from the Toy Story franchise and the fact that movie star Tom Hanks voiced the sheriff was amazing and put Pixar on the map.  The work of Hanks, along with Tim Allen, made this an iconic pair and led the way for three sequels that were all just wonderful.  Woody is an fully developed character with wishes and needs and desires.  Heck, he is more developed than many other movie characters out there.  Toy Story 4 felt like the end of Woody’s story and, if that is truly the case, all I can say is “So long…partner.”

Honorary Mentions:  Holy heck, I have a bunch of these.  Honestly, Lewis Black had originally made my list as Anger in Inside Out, but he got dropped because he is really just doing himself.  I loved that character though and he would probably be #11, if I had that number.  Billy Crystal as Mike in Monster Inc. was a great performance.  It is not my favorite Pixar movie and that probably hurt Billy’s chances.  I love him though.  Patten Oswalt‘s role as Remy in Ratatouille was career making for him.  Heck, I wrote down Ed Asner as Carl Fredricksen in Up with the intent of him making the list, but he did not make the final cut.  I had a couple of Coco choices with Benjamin Bratt as Ernesto de la Cruz and Gael Garcia Bernal as Hector, but I went with Miguel.  Keanu Reeves nearly snagged #10 with Duke Caboom from Toy Story 4, and there were a bunch of other Toy Story choices such as Don Rickles as Mr. Potato-Head, Wallace Shawn as Rex, Keegan–Michael Key and Jordan Peele as Ducky & Bunny, and Michael Keaton as Ken.  Ken was a tough omission.  Jason Lee was the villainous Syndrome in The Incredibles and Brad Bird‘s work as Edna in that franchise is iconic.  The one shout out to make is for John Ratzenberger who has voiced a character in every Pixar movie so far.  I probably left off several great performances because Pixar has been so filled with quality that it makes this list really difficult.  Congrats to all of them.

Welcome back to EYG Top 10 lists.  This week, John and Matt did the Top 10 Brad Pitt Movies.  They are bigger Brad Pitt fans than I am, but there were plenty of possible films to consider.  It was in honor of the release of Ad Astra this weekend, which looks as if it could crack this list.

Jump right in…

#10.  Megamind.  Animated film where Brad Pitt was the voice of the heroic Metro Man and the movie plays with the idea of how the hero and villain are connected, how that without one of them, there is nothing for the other.  It is an early idea of the Dark Knight concept with the Batman/Joker being two sides of the same coin.  This animated film surprised me and I was very pleased with it.

#9.  Killing Them Softly.  I had completely forgot about this movie when Matt brought it up on his list today.  With each explanation, I kept thinking… I’ve seen that.  I have only seen it the once, but I remember liking it (at least after Matt reminded me.)

#8.  The Big Short.  A small role but a really great movie.  The way this film covered the bank crisis and made a subject that was nearly impossible to understand and made it easier to understand was fantastic.  There is an amazing ensemble cast of this film and, despite, Pitt having a small role, this film will make my list because it is so good.  It was down a bit because of the part, but The Big Short was great.

#7.  World War Z.  The zombie movie that everybody claimed was going to be a total mess and flop hard turned out to be really pretty solid, surprising everyone.  There have been rumors of a sequel for years, and, if they ever finalize the film, I will not doubt it at all.

#6.  Fight Club.  I had not seen this movie for years.  It was only recently that I attended a screening of the film by Fandom and I saw what most people had already seen.  This was a great movie but the twist seemed less powerful because I had seen it so many times before.  However, that is because so many other films took the twist from Fight Club.  It is one of David Fincher’s classics and is certainly worth the consideration as a classic.

#5.  Moneyball.  The story of Oakland A’s general manager, Billy Beane and his use of sabermetrics to try to field a competitive team with a small budget against the heavyweights such as the Yankees and the Red Sox.  The story of Moneyball changed the way Major League Baseball did business for the rest of time and, though Oakland never won that elusive championship, Moneyball changed the game.

#4.  Inglourious Basterds.  “Bon Jour-No!”  I have not laughed so hard at a single line in a movie in a long time when Brad Pitt’s character, Lt. Aldo Raine, was trying to go undercover in Italy and he was his unit’s choice because he can speak Italian.  I took two years of Italian in college and when he broke out this big ole American accent and said, in his booming voice, proud and loud, bon-jour-no… I howled.

#3.  Twelve Monkeys.  One of those weird time travel films that really make you think and challenges your thoughts.  Then, everything you thought was happening gets all messed up and goes in a different direction.  Brad Pitt was just tremendous as the crazy Jeffrey Goines, who may or may not hold the key to the release of a deadly virus that would sent humanity underground.  Bruce Willis is sent back to take care of Jeffrey, but things get mucked up.  I enjoyed this film from Terry Gilliam.

#2.  Seven.  This was another movie that I did not love that much on first viewing.  I did not like Seven when I saw it in the theater, but I revisited it within the last year or two and I have found a much more deeper appreciation for the film.  The anguish that Pitt gives at the end as Fincher revealed his big reveal was just palpable.  Pitt and Morgan Freeman were great together and Gwyneth Paltrow was also very wonderful as the wife of Pitt.  This film is dark and deeply disturbing.  I am glad I went back to see it a second time so I could readjust my thoughts.

#1.  The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.  That is a mouthful of a title and a fantastic movie.  This is another movie that I first heard about thanks to John and Matt on the Top 10 Show and I finally watched it this past summer.  I just found it completely compelling and fully engaging.  Brad Pitt was perfect as the outlaw Jesse James and just how mythical he was.  Some might claim the film is slow, but I found every moment engrossing and I would not change a thing.  I did not expect this one to end up at the top of my list, but here it is.
Honorable Mentions:  I don’t have a ton more.  Just a couple of mentions.  Fury was good.  Allied was a film that really went under the radar.  I was not as much of a fan of Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood as many people, but Pitt’s performance was the standout performance in the film.  I was underwhelmed.  The Devil’s Own with Harrison Ford was okay.  He had an epic cameo in Deadpool 2 of course.