Duck Match
The Duck Match (or Duck Battle) refers to the match-up in Mr. /co/lympus between Looney Tunes' Daffy Duck and Disney's Donald Duck, based on their shared species, similar characteristics, and status as Golden Age cartoon characters. The prospect of this match-up ended up becoming somewhat of a legend during the tournaments, with many eagerly waiting for it to finally line up in the first few years of the tournament. The closest it got was formerly during the 2020 tournament, where Donald was narrowly kept out of the Elite Eight that year by Daffy's final challenger and eventual winner Tom Cat from Tom & Jerry.
Due to Daffy coming 2nd in 2020, the next contest the two were potentially able to meant up was in the 2022 tournament. Amazingly, due to the randomized first round brackets, the two were able to finally meet up during the second round of the tournament. The match ended up being quieter than had been anticipated, even if the match still generated roleplaying and several pieces of OC throughout the course of the round. Some attributed the lower attention around it as a result of it coming so early into the tournament, while others just felt it had simply been oversold all along. In the end, Daffy ended up winning by a definitive margin, as many had predicted.
In the years since then, the Duck Match has often been looked back as underwhelming at best and a flat-out disappointment at first. Some have used it as an example of the cons of overhyping potential thematic match-ups. As of 2024, the term "Duck Match" has turned into short-hand for any specific match-ups between two characters that get heavily anticipated, particularly well in advance or even over the course of years. During Mr. /co/lympus 2024, many compared the match between The Joker and Commissioner Gordon favorably against the actual Duck Match from two years prior. Some have even directly referred to it as a "duck match that delivered".
