OT: is Mufasa the most overrated fictional character ever?
Sorry if this offends anyone. This is not meant to be an indictment of James Earl Jones. But if we are being honest, Mufasa has some serious character flaws that cannot be overlooked.
He teaches his son and heir to the crown to be disrespectful towards their servants when he conducts a "pouncing lesson" on Zazu, against Zazu's wishes.
He doesn't discipline Simba AT ALL when he defies his father's wishes and takes his friend to the elephant graveyard.
He loses track of his son and allows him to wander into a ravine where the wildebeests are known to stampede frequently, then looks to his younger brother to get him out of the snafu he has created with his being such an irresponsible parent.
Here's the worst part: Scar gets his shot at being the king, and by sheer coincidence a famine ravages the Pride Lands. Scar has no control over the climate nor the weather patterns of sub-Saharan Africa, and yet he is fully blamed for the problems that arise because of it.
I'm a huge fan of The Lion King, but these issues have rubbed me the wrong way for a long time. Imo, Scar should have been given a second chance.
February 2nd, 2019 at 11:30 PM ^
One had Matthew Broderick for a son, the other had Eddie Murphy?
February 2nd, 2019 at 11:37 PM ^
+1 Princess Bride!!
February 2nd, 2019 at 11:44 PM ^
I... am not left-handed.
February 3rd, 2019 at 6:37 AM ^
Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something.
February 3rd, 2019 at 12:01 AM ^
Outstanding.
February 3rd, 2019 at 6:34 AM ^
As someone said above, there is a person who wrote a PhD thesis on this subject.
And now we know who. Was the defense difficult?
+1 for excellent feedback sir
February 3rd, 2019 at 11:19 AM ^
Wow!
No wonder you have 2 bazillion points.
;-)
February 2nd, 2019 at 10:31 PM ^
No...Jesus (the TV version at least) on The Walking Dead. He was supposed to be some badass and ended up being little more than a bit character. Perhaps overhyped is more appropriate than overrated, though.
February 2nd, 2019 at 10:31 PM ^
This might be the dumbest thread ever
February 2nd, 2019 at 10:34 PM ^
Hi, welcome to Mgoblog, you ain't seen nothing yet.
Love the avi pic. Thank you for joining!
February 3rd, 2019 at 6:41 AM ^
"Hold my beer," said Canned vs Homemade Gravy.
February 2nd, 2019 at 10:35 PM ^
Nah, Mufasa was cool.
The Smurfs, however, were propaganda created by the USSR to indoctrinate American kids about the ideals of Communism.
February 2nd, 2019 at 10:46 PM ^
I dunno. They always got over on Azreal, the red cat.
February 3rd, 2019 at 12:48 AM ^
Do you remember how old you were once you realized Smurfette had the gestational period of a sneeze?
February 2nd, 2019 at 10:48 PM ^
Danny Larusso was the real jerk in Karate Kid
February 3rd, 2019 at 7:36 AM ^
Headshots are fouls; kid wins with a headshot.
-and you thought B1G refs were bad
February 2nd, 2019 at 11:14 PM ^
I don’t think anything about Mustafa. Strange thread
February 2nd, 2019 at 11:29 PM ^
Of course Scar is responsible for the downfall of the Pridelands. It starts with over hunting, which upsets the delicate eco-balance of the land, which eventually leads to the decimated environment you see depicted.
February 2nd, 2019 at 11:38 PM ^
Jar Jar Binks.
And yes, I know most people hate him. He’s still overrated.
February 3rd, 2019 at 12:12 AM ^
Dafuq?
February 3rd, 2019 at 1:27 AM ^
Mufasa was not the problem in the Lion King.
However, every major character from the Deer Hunter was overrated, though the actors that played them had amazing careers otherwise.
You could argue the Predator is vastly overrated. He basically has the success arc of a backup NFL QB, who kills in his first start having not been scouted at all, and then gets taken apart once the opponent has some tape on him.
February 3rd, 2019 at 1:28 AM ^
I think he's a pretty great dad to be honest. The points you bring up are petty and unreasonable. What's he supposed to do? Be a helicopter parent? Keep Simba wrapped up in his tail well into his adult years? Not let him have any fun whatsoever? Wrap him in bubble wrap so he doesn't get hurt? It's a dangerous world out there but kids need to make mistakes in order to grow into good adults.
Also it is implied that Scar allowed the famine to occur because of over-hunting. Actually I'm wrong, it isn't implied it is FLAT OUT STATED BY SIMBA'S MOM near the end of the movie before the big fight. As soon as Scar obtained power he abused it and put the Pride Lands in a damn food crisis just like loads of other movie villains. Because of that he loses my interest after he tells Simba to run away. Bland and pathetic as far as move villains go.
February 3rd, 2019 at 3:31 AM ^
This made me lol. Gold star.
February 3rd, 2019 at 7:01 AM ^
No, the most overrated fictional character is....*drumroll*...Drizzt Do'Urden.
/ D&D nerd
February 3rd, 2019 at 11:31 AM ^
I’m not a d&d nerd, but I like high fantasy. I was hoping to never run into this name again.
February 3rd, 2019 at 7:15 AM ^
And here I thought evenyoubrutus only had dumb ideas when it came to Michigan football. He is truly a renaissance man of idiocy.
February 3rd, 2019 at 8:03 AM ^
GRANDPA JOE!
Lying in bed, invalid, no work. Meanwhile, Charlie is out there busting his ass to support a family.
As soon as Charlie gets a golden ticket, look who can magically fucking walk! Ol Grandpa Joe!
February 3rd, 2019 at 11:05 AM ^
Watching it right now on Freeform. Agreed
February 3rd, 2019 at 8:06 AM ^
Billy Madison. I mean even within the context of these kinds of movies, he was kind of a bad apple. A selfish, borderline retarded manchild whose redemption arc is to pass K12 education (barely) and to briefly play nice so he can get laid with a hot school teacher whose attraction to him is never quite explained. I mean hes a 30 year old whose first instinct is to bully 7 year olds. While hes not without any redeeming features...they are hardly enough to outweigh the negatives.
In contrast, the very similar movie Tommy Boy never gives us any doubt that the protagonist is fundamentally a good hearted, kind guy beneath the wild and unsophisticated surface. The redemption arc also makes a lot more sense and gives us some satisfaction. Tommy Boy is underrated, Billy Madison is overrated.
Also Chris Farley was way better than Sandler.
February 3rd, 2019 at 11:45 AM ^
If he didn’t have a hot love interest it would make sense. But I agree, her attraction to a low functioning person like him makes no sense.
February 3rd, 2019 at 8:48 AM ^
February 3rd, 2019 at 8:51 AM ^
No. Let it go. Let it gooo.
February 3rd, 2019 at 9:10 AM ^
Of all the really odd, puzzling topics posted on this blog, this may be the oddest.
February 3rd, 2019 at 9:28 AM ^
Spoilers!
Come on, guys...
February 3rd, 2019 at 9:34 AM ^
If by Mufasa you meant Darth Vadar, I would agree.
February 3rd, 2019 at 9:44 AM ^
Hakuna Matata!
February 3rd, 2019 at 11:06 AM ^
Read the wikipedia article (here). At a minimum the Lion King borrowed heavily from Kimba.
February 3rd, 2019 at 11:43 AM ^
None of these are strong points, they’re mostly taking cute kids movie scenes out of context. It’s also definitely implied that Scar’s act of evil is what brought on famine.
February 3rd, 2019 at 12:34 PM ^
Pumba is the real hero of the movie.
February 3rd, 2019 at 12:56 PM ^
"most overrated" implies somehow there is someone rating him as a "really awesome fictional character" which I've never seen.
In the movie, he is clearly (a) naive and (b) a pretty good, if arrogant, ruler. The arrogance and naivety combine to get him in the end, like many a fictional character.
Our funny story about Lion King was my first daughter watching it like 100 times when she was young. At some point, I asked her, "doesn't it bother you that the dad dies?" to which she immediately replied, "no! I just watch again and there he is, at the beginning of the movie."
kids! :)
February 3rd, 2019 at 12:57 PM ^
You are trying too hard.
February 3rd, 2019 at 1:51 PM ^
I happened to have the Mahotella Queens up this morning.
I figured what the hell.
This is their version of the Solomon Linda classic for which he didn't get paid ... much.
Mbube, known in many places as The Lion Sleeps Tonight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GvrVIQ3QbE
I have no clue why I can't get stuff to embed here.
February 3rd, 2019 at 2:17 PM ^
I have never seen The Lion King.
February 3rd, 2019 at 5:26 PM ^
That is wild.
February 3rd, 2019 at 2:25 PM ^
Most overated fictional character? hands down, my honest, caring and selfless ex-wife.
February 3rd, 2019 at 3:08 PM ^
Quality post
February 3rd, 2019 at 3:26 PM ^
No, that would be " Jesus "
February 3rd, 2019 at 4:54 PM ^
I would be interested in your breakdown of Romeo and Juliet. Is it truly the quintessential romance or is a satire of teenage hormones and irrational thinking? What is your rationale?
February 3rd, 2019 at 5:09 PM ^
All midway through B1G conference hoops play, when half the board is focused on content, and the other half is posting post-season water cooler chatter.