Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2007 January 30

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[edit] January 30

[edit] Common type of Character in a Series--what's it called?

Hey, do you guys know what it's called when:

  • a character who was previously hailed as being incredibly strong is defeated by a bad guy/antagonist to show how bad they are
  • only for the purpose of making the good guy/protagonist look even cooler because they defeat the bad guy in the end

You know, cartons that involve fighting tournaments such as Dragon Ball and Beyblade usually have them. I think of them as 'stepping stone characters', but what are they really called? Thanks. --JDitto 06:06, 30 January 2007 (UTC)

Tragic hero satisfies the first half of your criteria, while underdog (competition) satisfies the latter half of your criteria; it seems that you've stumbled upon a new blend of the two? V-Man737 06:57, 30 January 2007 (UTC)
I don't think it's a tragic hero, because those guys fall because of their own doing. These characters fall for the sole purpose of making the antagonist become more fearsome to the reader/viewer. However, I have to commend you for providing a good answer with links.--JDitto 07:08, 30 January 2007 (UTC)
Token loser? =S (Or perhaps Wikipedia is not the place for neologisms...) 惑乱 分からん 11:37, 30 January 2007 (UTC)
Cannon fodder? (Unless they're female, in which case they're cannon mudder.) Redshirt? Clarityfiend 18:59, 30 January 2007 (UTC)
Can you clarify some things? When you say "to show how bad they are," are you referring to how bad (as in evil) the antagonist is or how bad (as in weak/unheroic) the "character" is? Also, who defeats the bad guy? Is it the "character" or the protagonist? - Zepheus <ゼィフィアス> 22:02, 31 January 2007 (UTC)
Bad is probably evil, Strong Guy A gets defeated by Bad Guy B, who himself gets defeated by Good Guy C, what's the role of Strong Guy A referred to as? (That grammar looked weird...) 惑乱 分からん 23:39, 31 January 2007 (UTC)
Umm.. Ajax? That's one interpretation I've read of the purpose of his character, anyway.--Pharos 06:33, 2 February 2007 (UTC)
Sorry I didn't define it too well. Wakuran, your definition is exactly what I was looking for! Back to my original question, what's it called? --JDitto 05:51, 5 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] ABC2

I just found out that Australia has a channel called ABC2. This is news to me. How do I get it? Battle Ape 06:40, 30 January 2007 (UTC)

The section "How to get ABC2" on this page should help you--Melburnian 07:50, 30 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] need info about an old movie

hi,

the serial it was adout a man and a boy traveling and correcting the time with a old (gold) pocket clock as a time machine.

i don't know the mame of the serial if you can help me

thanks —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 85.74.48.49 (talk) 12:34, 30 January 2007 (UTC).

So was it a serial or a movie? When was it shown? In which country did you see it?--Shantavira 13:08, 30 January 2007 (UTC)
Sounds like Voyagers! to me. --Richardrj talk email 13:34, 30 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] how many watts are needed for .....

ive been itching my head trying to find an answer!!!

approx how many watts (from a generator) are needed to power turntables (decks) and speakers (playing fairly loud).  ??

plz help !! —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 172.206.48.117 (talk) 22:52, 30 January 2007 (UTC).

It depends on the turntable and amplifier/speakers you use. Check documentation(or maybe somewhere listed on the back) for your turnable and amp&speakers to see how much power they both draw. —Mitaphane ?|! 03:17, 31 January 2007 (UTC)
A formula that you may find useful is P = E x I. Power (in Watts) equals Energy (in Volts) times Current (in Amps). So for example, I found out that a Technics SL-1000 is rated at 20 Watts thanx to Google. My receiver is rated at 110 Watts per channel, times five channels. So at full tilt, it would draw 550 Watts. But the actual specification given in the manual is given in Amps- it draws a max of 7.2 Amps. That's actually a lot more than 550 Watts, so use the formula to calculate the full wattage. Converting 7.2 Amps into Watts is 7.2 Amps times 120 Volts = 864 Watts.
So running one turntable and my receiver would require close to 1,000 Watts. That's a little over 8 Amps, at 120 Volts. So there you go. Find out how many Watts, or how many amps at what voltage your equipment draws, and select your generator accordingly. 71.113.119.179 05:47, 31 January 2007 (UTC)