Based on what Team Rocket Elite and Eater of All have argued, I looked over the recent ISML 2012 results, and paid special attention to matches involving two or more girls from the same anime series.
In doing so, what struck me is how much/often they
weren't hurt by it. I have to be frank - I'm honestly wondering where Team Rocket Elite and Eater of All are seeing a pattern at all.
In
Stella 1 for
Phase 1, Day 2 Results, we see Mikoto totally dominate the arena
and Index finished a
very close third behind Hecate. Doesn't seem like in-series vote splitting played much of a role here.
In
Stella 3 of
Phase 1, Day 2 Results, we see Azusa easily win the arena with Mugi coming in a solid third behind Shinobu. There's reason to believe that Shinobu is simply getting a Nise bounce, and hence
may be legitimately stronger than Mugi now.
In
Nova 1 of
Phase 1, Day 3 Results, we see Kanade totally dominate the arena and Asami finish a close third behind Shiori. Maybe Asami was hurt slightly by in-series vote splits, or maybe Shiori has decent strength. Kanade certainly wasn't hurt by in-series vote splits here.
In
Stella 8 of
Phase 1, Day 3 Results, we see Tomoyo and Kyo finish 2nd and 3rd behind Haurhi, and comfortably ahead of everybody else...
entirely in line with the relative strength of these girls. Doesn't seem like in-series vote splitting played a role here.
In
Stella 11 of
Phase 1, Day 3 Results, we see what to me seems like a strong counterargument to the in-series vote-splitting argument as Saber and Rin comfortably finish 1st and 2nd.
In
Stella 12 of
Phase 1, Day 3 Results we had Last Order pull off a victory that stunned many of us and she had another Index girl in that match with her. Kotomi and Fuko both do well, finishing 3rd and 4th, very much in line with their perceived strength level (if not slightly above it). This arena really seems to fly in the face of the In-Series Vote-Splitting argument.
In
Stella 2 of
Phase 1, Day 4 Results, we have Yuki Nagato pull off a decisive victory while Mikuru finished a very respectable third behind Nagi. Heck, if anything, this arena makes me wonder if Mikuru benefited from a SOS Brigade bounce, lol.
In
Stella 5 of
Phase 1, Day 4 Results, Taiga pulls off a decisive victory while Minori finishes middle of the pack. Given who finished ahead of her (Kagami and Mugi), Minori finishing fourth is the best she could have reasonably hoped for here anyway. And Taiga certainly didn't seem to be held back by Minori's involvement.
In
Stella 6 of
Phase 1, Day 4 Results, we see two Index girls finish fourth and fifth. Hina is unquestionably the strongest girl here, and Holo is arguably 2nd strongest. Ushio finishing third is a little bit surprising so
maybe in-series vote-splitting had a slight impact here. It's one of the better cases for it, I'll admit.
In
Nova 2 of
Phase 1, Day 5 Results, we see Kuroneko finish a decisive first and Ayase finish a close 3rd behind Shiori. Either Shiori is the master of taking advantage of in-series vote splits, or she really is decently strong, going by how she did in Nova 1 of Phase 1, Day 3 Results.
In
Nova 5 of
Phase 1, Day 5 Results, we see Kyouko and Madoka finish a solid 2nd and 3rd behind Yuri. Kyouko and Madoka's vote totals are fairly in-line with what I noticed them get in other matches.
In
Stella 7 of
Phase 1, Day 5 Results, we see Mio decisively win the arena while Mugi finishes a solid third behind Holo. In-series vote-splitting didn't seem to play a role here.
In
Stella 10 of
Phase 1, Day 5 Results, we see Kyo and Nagisa finish second and third behind Nadeko. They also both finished ahead of Fate, it should be noted. In-series vote-splitting didn't seem to play a role here.
In
Stella 12 of
Phase 1, Day 5 Results, we see Last Order finish a very respectable 2nd to Rin, while Kaori was also in the match. Kaori is fairly weak, and her performance reflected that. I don't see much evidence of in-series vote-splitting here.
In
Stella 3 of
Phase 1, Day 6 Results, we see Azusa totally dominate her arena, and Ui finished 3rd behind Nagi and ahead of Fuko. Nothing seems out of the ordinary to me here.
And... I'm getting exhausted at this point, so I'll leave it at that.
No doubt I missed some "multiple girls from same series in one match" matches (and I skipped over a few since I'm not very familiar with the strengths of the girls in them), but from what I focused on, I certainly don't see a pattern of in-series vote-splitting causing significant vote shifts.