The Disney Sidekicks/Henchmen Bracket -- Round Five

Well. It’s been a hell of a last few days masquerading as an eternity. I won’t spend too much time (really, beyond this paragraph) acknowledging the horrors that occurred in Washington, D.C. But the last week has been incredibly hard for a lot of people. I can’t imagine that these brackets are going to give you more than a second or two or a break from that horror. If that. But maybe they will.

Let’s see if discussing the Final Four can be as fun as previous rounds, hmm?

(1) The Genie vs. (3) Baloo: Of the four remaining competitors, the Genie would have to be the obvious one. He’s an unstoppable force, or feels that way. And yet, as in the last round, I’m voting for his competition. Baloo, I would argue, is the foundational basis for characters like the Genie, charming comic-relief friends who end up being vastly more interesting than the leads. Just as Mowgli is a drip, so too is Aladdin.

And if we’re being honest…I like the songs Baloo sings more than I like the songs the Genie sings. Ashman/Menken numbers are nigh unbeatable…but “The Bare Necessities” and “I Wan’na Be Like You” are the songs to beat “Friend Like Me” and “Prince Ali”. I’m sure the Genie will win this round. I get why. But I vote for Baloo.

(3) Kronk vs. (1) Smee: Not really a tough one. Kronk is just so strange, such an oddly delightful henchman (in a film I don’t overall love, admittedly), that he wins this one in a walk. I imagine the Top Two will be the Genie vs. Kronk.

Should be interesting.