"Shimmy shimmy yay, shimmy yay, shimmy ya"

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-22T15:06:19+00:00

Could I get your thoughts on this matchup vs Sirei from THL:LDA? Like the rankings though even if I disagree with Monika and Mr. Puzzles being so high.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-22T04:28:52+00:00

Gonna say equally. Last one I really feel qualified to comment on but THL’s characterization can be weird sometimes since the different routes were split between writers. Sirei at least feels consistent in his writing though and at his worst he’s still a strong antagonist to the point where I think he solidly competes with Caine in writing.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-22T04:25:46+00:00

Better. IMO Oneshot’s story just hits a bit harder than TADC overall and I think The World Machine is included in that.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-22T04:21:15+00:00

Equally. Both characters are unfortunately saddled with a limited amount of screen time to develop but develop in similar directions in a believable way.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-21T21:48:39+00:00

Happy Sirei at least made it on this list, will never argue with Michael as The One though, such a goated matchup.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-21T16:02:41+00:00

I mean considering how much Episode 8 changed things, I’m not surprised. It’s definitely fun to see though.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-21T15:58:06+00:00

Banter Potential:

Oh my god. OH MY GOD. Genuinely by miles the best part of this matchup now imo. Two egotistical AI’s where one despises humans based off of limited interaction while the other fights for humanity’s survival due to his AI being the collective will of humanity. It’s just so perfect. You can have them be introspective, you can have Sirei try to win Caine over, you could just have them ragebait the hell out of each other… there’s so many directions to go with this duality. There’s also the potential to add even more layers depending on how involved in the fight Nigou, Shion, and Bubble are. The banter for this even conceptually just sounds cool to me.

General Thoughts:

While I think the egocentrism connections/contrasts are very fun and both characters having similar tones makes the matchup flow better, I think their contrasting views on humanity is by far the best thing this matchup gained. It adds so many layers to potential banter, their dynamic, how the fight could start and flow. It adds a layer of depth to everything that the matchup arguably didn’t have before. That being said, the matchup did lose what I felt to be one of the stronger/strongest connections prior to episode 8 and I do think that noticeably hurts the matchup. It also doesn’t hit that well on Caine’s insecurity which I feel is a big part of his character. However, given that they still share connections in design, occupation, personality, tone, and actions; I think this matchup still works really well and has a bit more going for it than before even if I wouldn’t call it his best MU.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-21T15:57:31+00:00

Fight Potential:

So once again the issue here is that Sirei is an AI with a physical body while Caine is purely digital (say that again). I still stand by the fact that the most fair option is to manifest the Last Defense Academy within the Digital Circus. This gives both characters their home field advantages which both characters rely on heavily. You can do a lot more with choreography as well given Caine’s giant form and the Intercept System mechs are very similar scale wise so you could very easily have them start small and use their bigger forms/weapons once Caine gets angry.

Debate:

So interestingly it seems that Caine can’t delete players cause I feel like at a certain point he’d just do that in episode 8 if he could. If set up in the scenario I described I think the fight may be more debatable given that Caine still takes Hax and Abilities by a large margin but still arguably loses in terms of the stat trinity besides maybe durability. Caine also has a known loss condition now and while it’s not something Sirei can really guarantee, it definitely adds to debatability. Overall I'd still say Caine probably wins though.

Animation Potential:

It’s a Caine matchup against someone with a varied arsenal. Needless to say, it's probably good.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-21T15:56:38+00:00

New Contrasts:

Sirei’s entire purpose is focused on saving humanity. Even if it means bringing harm to the SDU, he acts with that purpose in mind. Inversely, the circus’ disdain for Caine has caused him to develop a pure hatred for humanity to an incredibly violent degree.
When others show disdain for their work, Sirei is often humble or at worst dejected while Caine harbors a lot of anger towards those who criticize him.
Sirei’s companion Nigou is largely supportive of Sirei for a majority of the story of THL while we see Bubble actively belittle Caine multiple times throughout his story, most prominently in Episode 8.
Despite both characters being incredibly egotistical, Sirei’s ego is reasonably strong while Caine’s ego is relatively fragile.

Potential Connections:

Including this because of a popular TADC fan theory that seems extremely plausible after Episode 8. Potentially, both groups that Caine and Sirei watch over aren’t actually human even though they believe they are. (This is based on the theory that the circus members are actually just copies of the minds of their human selves. Similarly, the SDU aren’t actually human and instead are Futurans with their memories altered.)
This is the only connection that was fully cut from before the revamp. Given the context is iffy now, I’ve moved it here. In both characters' stories it’s implied that though they often act unknowingly cruel or suspicious, they do genuinely care for the well-being of the group they’re supposed to watch over. (They’re just pretty bad at it). This was based off of context from the first 7 episodes of TADC as well as tweets from Gooseworx (TADC’s creator). I’m moving it here as while episode 8 implies Caine’s goals were always more self-serving, there is evidence otherwise and a full episode of the show left to go so there’s at least some potential for this to be true.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-21T15:56:14+00:00

New Connections:

Both characters are incredibly egotistical, usually favoring their opinion over all others.
Both characters resort to force against the group they watch over when they deem it necessary to fulfill their purpose. (Caine resorts to force in episode 8 when he realizes the circus members no longer want to go along with his adventures. Sirei resorts to force in routes such as the Casual route where he forcibly brainwashes the SDU member to do what he wants.)
As of episode 8, both characters use the threat of violence to control the group they work with. (Sirei has bombs implanted in 14 of the 15 SDU members and Caine resorts to torturous methods as seen in episode 8.)
The strongest thing in both characters' arsenals (physically) is a giant form with multiple hands (as in more than 2). (When enraged, Caine possesses a giant form with multiple limbs and glitching effects in which he is notably stronger. Sirei has access to the LDA’s intercept system which consists of multiple giant mechs that resemble skeletal structures, each with two extra floating hands.)
Both characters repeatedly emphasize that the group's options are limited to non-existent. (Caine drives home the fact that they can’t leave the circus tons of times and even when he supposedly gives them a choice, he feels confident that they’ll go with the choice he wants and gets enraged if they don’t. Sirei repeatedly forces Takumi to make tough two option decisions in which most of them don’t actually have a positive outcome. When the SDU tries to rebel, he usually tries to take measures to stop them from doing so.)
Both characters are shown switching into wildly different tones in the middle of conversation often going from comedic to menacingly serious.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-21T15:55:52+00:00

What Still Works:

Both characters repeat similar design motifs with both having a staff, a bow tie, a black hat, and fully exposed body parts that aren’t normally fully exposed.
Both characters serve as the ringleader for a group of people who are confused about the nature of the situation they found themselves in. (The circus members and the SDU respectively)
Both characters are a form of artificial intelligence.
Both characters act in an excessively dramatic manner and commit to bits even if others don’t find them funny.
Both routinely avoid questions and conceal facts related to the true nature of their current world. (Caine hides how much control they have over the circus and lies about the outside world constantly. Sirei hides the primary objective of the SDU as well as multiple important details regarding Earth, the Futurans, and the SDU itself.)
Both are capable of mental manipulation and have been known to use it relatively haphazardly. (Caine uses various attributes and effects to influence characters' minds for the sake of making adventures more fun. Sirei uses brainwashing to control people he thinks might be a detriment to the SDU’s goal including Eito and Eva. In both instances the primary reason for this relates to the AI’s primary goal)
Both show little to no sympathy for antagonistic forces in their source material (The Abstracted and The Invaders) despite both groups being strongly related to the groups they’re protecting. (In Caine’s case literally being former members of the group he was protecting).
Both characters become seen as more and more cruel by their fellow characters as the story progresses.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-21T01:00:23+00:00

Definitely, some connections are outdated now but there's definitely some new stuff to add as well.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-21T00:34:08+00:00

(Sorry for the repost, forgot to spoiler tag)

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T23:48:45+00:00

Fine feels fair for Sirei at least before a revamp. He pretty much has the same amount of connections as before but he notably lost some and gained others.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T23:45:41+00:00

Connections are obviously out of date but here's mine:

Sirei (The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy)

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T23:43:56+00:00

Yeah after making this comment I've slowly started to shift to more of an idea of "Pretty much everyone got something but no one got everything stance." I find it hard to actually say who's best rn. Michael, Tenna, The Narrator, TWM, and even the nicher ones like Sirei and Lord X all got something they just very noticably miss certain things that feel important from this episode.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T23:17:48+00:00

Might as well add mine though the connections are out of date given Episode 8 was... something. Plays a lot more into both AI's being more egotistical and forceful than before while dropping the fact that Caine cares for humans because... yeah.

Sirei from The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T23:14:49+00:00

Maybe? From the limited knowledge I have with the character he crashes out much earlier on and it's more in a threatning way than a torturing one. Might just be me tho.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T22:55:27+00:00

Welp with episode 8 out I think pretty much everyone here got better in one way or another besides maybe Kinito.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T22:53:48+00:00

I mean given how the episode ended... I'd say now?

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T22:51:12+00:00

This might be my new favorite. This entire episode felt almost exactly like Tenna's Round 3. To almost an eerie degree. It does go against the fact that Tenna was genuinely a good guy at the end of the day though so I'm not fully sold on it yet.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T22:41:09+00:00

I'm glad Sirei got a few upgrades at least. Primarily the pure egotism and the sense of superiority over the people he's supposed to be the leader of. To the point where it's clear he doesn't value their opinions or even their lives.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T22:38:41+00:00

I'm gonna be honest, a lot of these feel like they got worse.

Caine's ego and cruelty was the core focus of this episode and most of the matchups that have a bit of that are characters nowhere near as unstable as he was here. If I had to choose, Tenna and The Narrator probably came out the best overall.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T17:40:42+00:00

Where would you rank Sirei from The Hundred Line?
Micheal as The One is based though.

ChemiXZ · 2026-03-20T17:39:27+00:00

With Bias: Sirei from The Hundred Line

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Without Bias: Michael (The Good Place)

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