Post by Roy Batty's Pet Dove on Jan 17, 2014 14:20:15 GMT -5
Cypher Raige: Hey there, ho there! Time for more awesome Homestar Runner reviews! We are starting to get to some good toons here, and the quality will only go up from here for quite a while. This week's toons feature a few holiday shorts, another dreaded answering machine toon, a song, and then one more classic. At this time, most of the Homestar characters have been fully fleshed out, so sit back and watch, and enjoy the... um, the... the reviewing. But first, a few words from our random dude.
random dude: Hey everyone! I don't have a whole lot to add to what Raige said, so to distract from my vaunted "few words" being such a disappointment, let's get on with the reviews!
The House That Gave Sucky Treats
Cypher Raige: The Halloween toons have always been a highlight of the site, and this one sees the Brothers Chaps playing around a bit with the format, incorporating some interactivity and adding in some post-toon dialogue between the costumed characters that would become a permanent, if more streamlined, fixtures of future Halloween offerings. This time, the viewer is allowed to answer the door as the characters each knock and ask for candy. The viewer then drags and drops the candy of their choice onto the character, receiving a different response commenting on the quality of the candy. There is also a surprise Easter egg thrown in: if you click on the jack-o-lantern when the Poopsmith and Pom Pom are at the door, you will receive an extra visit from a special guest. One of the most fun things about HSR during Halloween is seeing what pop culture references the Brothers Chaps will throw out there. My favorties from this toon: Homestar as The Greatest American Hero (his mangling of the theme song is awesome!), Marzipan as Joey Ramone (just too perfect), and Pom Pom as Michael Moore (because he's fat! GET IT?).
random dude: "Oh no, I think this one's my favorite!" Well, not really, but I do like the H*R Halloween cartoons. The Brother Chaps always had a new conceit for each of their Halloween cartoons and this one makes for one of the most interactive toons on the site. The costumes are cool (see if you can spot the classic Simpsons reference; I didn't notice until it was pointed out to me), and I enjoyed Coach Z's blunt, rambling reference to 36 Chambers, because that album is the baaerrrmb. I also enjoyed Strong Mad's perplexed double-take at being given a handful of popcorn. And I liked Homestar's cheerfully oblivious fourth wall breaking.
Some Stupid Turkey
Cypher Raige: This toon is very slight, with a brief song sung by (almost) all of the characters, and other than that, it's not very noteworthy. However, we do get an example of the Brothers Chaps seeming to end a toon before briefly continuing the action. unfortunately, in this case it is cutting the the King of Town being gluttonous, which... well, let's just say we've seen it before. A lot. WORST. CHARACTER. EVER!
random dude: Yeah, not much to this perfunctory little Thanksgiving toon. Even the animation looks pretty hasty here compared with the Brothers Chaps improving standards at this point in their careers.
The Best Decemberween Ever
Cypher Raige: For some reason, in Free Country USA, Christmas is not called "Christmas," but instead "Decemberween." Could it be that the Brothers Chaps are the shadowy figures responsible for the inception of the fabled War on Christmas? But wait, what's this? Marzipan is in fact waging her own War on Decemberween! We got some meta shit goin' on here, people! Anyway, this is a pretty great toon, if a bit plotless. Send Homestar on a quest (buying the perfect present for Strong Bad), send him to the various characters asking for advice, and watch him fuck it all up! The beginning of the toon is again a reference to A Charlie Brown Christmas with Homestar emerging from a house identical to Charlie Brown's, then walking up to a wall to find Strong Sad standing in for Linus, which is pretty great, actually. For me, the highlight from this toon is Homestar's reaction to Marzipan's suggestion of buying Strong Bad a shirt. Homestar and Marzipan are so mismatched, but that's what makes them funny together.
random dude: "And then, he said it was like a great sports play, and I didn't even think that applies to this situation." I love the way that even Homestar, a guy who didn't notice Strong Sad standing less than two feet from him until Strong Sad had spoken to him, is able to pick up on the meaningless triteness of Coach Z's ubiquitously-applied metaphorical advice. I thought that was a pretty clever jab at the general triteness that comprises such a great proportion of the sports mindset. On the other hand, the sing-along at the end of the toon was not one of my favorites. I thought the bouncing sing-along dot was a nice touch, though.
Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 6.0
Cypher Raige: Getting closer to funny here, and there are actually some choice bits in this version. First and foremost is the message left by the King of Town, in which he states the obvious: he is not cool, everyone hates him, and WORST. CHARACTER. EVER! I like that the Brothers Chaps sieze the oppotunity to take a dig at their audience here, saying, "Yes, we know this character sucks. What are you gonna do about it? Huh? HUH?!" God, those Brothers Chaps sound like jerks! Also, Strong Bad's proverbial beating of the dead horse when trying to convince Marzipan that he has a real girlfriend who is totally real provided me with a good laugh. Then Homestar comes back and shows why he is a moron, and why he and Marzipan should never be dating. Okay, this was a pretty good one, I must admit.
random dude: I quite enjoyed those last two messages as well. Strong Bad's pathetic attempts at lying are at their funniest in his insistence on having a real girlfriend. And Homestar is a complete idiot. His bizarre attempt to play the message off as an automated voice is similar a hilarious joke from this week's episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. I doubt the B99 writers took inspiration from H*R when writing the joke, but I think it speaks favorably of the improving quality of these cartoons that a joke that I laughed hysterically at from one of the best sitcoms around reminded me of a joke from this cartoon.
The Cheat Theme Song
Cypher Raige: I am not really crazy about the Cheat's Theme Song. His animation skills are, to quote Strong Bad, "lacking... at best." I do love that he threw some Autotune in there, though. Also, I saw The Skate Party play live* at Bub's back in 2004. Their musicianship was lacking... at best.
*This may or may not have actually happened. Or, more accurately, it totally didn't.
random dude: I'm going to have to disagree on this one, Raige. "The Cheat Theme Song" is definitely the best video game I've ever played. OK, no, this wasn't that great. But I liked a couple of the pop culture references in this one, particularly The Cheat stylizing his name to look like the Aerosmith logo when the song mentions the Cheat starting a rock band, and a Pikachu sliding across the screen at the line "Who's the man who looks like The Cheat?"
Where's The Cheat?
Cypher Raige: This has always been one of my favorite longer toons, mainly just because Homestar is awesome in it. Matt Chapman outdoes himself on Homestar's voice work here, as well as pretty much all the rest of the characters. And listening to him mangle the pronunciation of "veggie burger" is one of the great joys of my life, along with Strong Bad's Homestar impersonation. Also, for some reason, I love that "the stick" is a common meeting place, and commonly known as the stick. And I still yell out "OHHHH NOOOOO, YOU SHANKED MY JENGASHIP!" at key moments during the various competitions I engage in. Mental warfare, people, that's how championships are won!
random dude: This was a pretty good one. I particularly enjoyed Strong Bad cheering up a disconsolate Strong Mad with "Don't worry big guy, we'll cut to a montage...I mean, look for the Cheat." (And the Goblin from the first Halloween cartoon turned up again in said ensuing montage; I love that guy!) We also see Homsar complete his transformation into the site's most nonsensical currently extant character, who makes so little sense that he prompts Bubs to command "Don't you talk to me."
And that's this week's cartoons. Next week we'll be reviewing some more sbemails. Here's the links:
Strong Bad Email #11: i rule
Strong Bad Email #12: credit card
Strong Bad Email #13: i she be
Strong Bad Email #14: duck pond
Strong Bad Email #15: the basics
random dude: Hey everyone! I don't have a whole lot to add to what Raige said, so to distract from my vaunted "few words" being such a disappointment, let's get on with the reviews!
The House That Gave Sucky Treats
Cypher Raige: The Halloween toons have always been a highlight of the site, and this one sees the Brothers Chaps playing around a bit with the format, incorporating some interactivity and adding in some post-toon dialogue between the costumed characters that would become a permanent, if more streamlined, fixtures of future Halloween offerings. This time, the viewer is allowed to answer the door as the characters each knock and ask for candy. The viewer then drags and drops the candy of their choice onto the character, receiving a different response commenting on the quality of the candy. There is also a surprise Easter egg thrown in: if you click on the jack-o-lantern when the Poopsmith and Pom Pom are at the door, you will receive an extra visit from a special guest. One of the most fun things about HSR during Halloween is seeing what pop culture references the Brothers Chaps will throw out there. My favorties from this toon: Homestar as The Greatest American Hero (his mangling of the theme song is awesome!), Marzipan as Joey Ramone (just too perfect), and Pom Pom as Michael Moore (because he's fat! GET IT?).
random dude: "Oh no, I think this one's my favorite!" Well, not really, but I do like the H*R Halloween cartoons. The Brother Chaps always had a new conceit for each of their Halloween cartoons and this one makes for one of the most interactive toons on the site. The costumes are cool (see if you can spot the classic Simpsons reference; I didn't notice until it was pointed out to me), and I enjoyed Coach Z's blunt, rambling reference to 36 Chambers, because that album is the baaerrrmb. I also enjoyed Strong Mad's perplexed double-take at being given a handful of popcorn. And I liked Homestar's cheerfully oblivious fourth wall breaking.
Some Stupid Turkey
Cypher Raige: This toon is very slight, with a brief song sung by (almost) all of the characters, and other than that, it's not very noteworthy. However, we do get an example of the Brothers Chaps seeming to end a toon before briefly continuing the action. unfortunately, in this case it is cutting the the King of Town being gluttonous, which... well, let's just say we've seen it before. A lot. WORST. CHARACTER. EVER!
random dude: Yeah, not much to this perfunctory little Thanksgiving toon. Even the animation looks pretty hasty here compared with the Brothers Chaps improving standards at this point in their careers.
The Best Decemberween Ever
Cypher Raige: For some reason, in Free Country USA, Christmas is not called "Christmas," but instead "Decemberween." Could it be that the Brothers Chaps are the shadowy figures responsible for the inception of the fabled War on Christmas? But wait, what's this? Marzipan is in fact waging her own War on Decemberween! We got some meta shit goin' on here, people! Anyway, this is a pretty great toon, if a bit plotless. Send Homestar on a quest (buying the perfect present for Strong Bad), send him to the various characters asking for advice, and watch him fuck it all up! The beginning of the toon is again a reference to A Charlie Brown Christmas with Homestar emerging from a house identical to Charlie Brown's, then walking up to a wall to find Strong Sad standing in for Linus, which is pretty great, actually. For me, the highlight from this toon is Homestar's reaction to Marzipan's suggestion of buying Strong Bad a shirt. Homestar and Marzipan are so mismatched, but that's what makes them funny together.
random dude: "And then, he said it was like a great sports play, and I didn't even think that applies to this situation." I love the way that even Homestar, a guy who didn't notice Strong Sad standing less than two feet from him until Strong Sad had spoken to him, is able to pick up on the meaningless triteness of Coach Z's ubiquitously-applied metaphorical advice. I thought that was a pretty clever jab at the general triteness that comprises such a great proportion of the sports mindset. On the other hand, the sing-along at the end of the toon was not one of my favorites. I thought the bouncing sing-along dot was a nice touch, though.
Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 6.0
Cypher Raige: Getting closer to funny here, and there are actually some choice bits in this version. First and foremost is the message left by the King of Town, in which he states the obvious: he is not cool, everyone hates him, and WORST. CHARACTER. EVER! I like that the Brothers Chaps sieze the oppotunity to take a dig at their audience here, saying, "Yes, we know this character sucks. What are you gonna do about it? Huh? HUH?!" God, those Brothers Chaps sound like jerks! Also, Strong Bad's proverbial beating of the dead horse when trying to convince Marzipan that he has a real girlfriend who is totally real provided me with a good laugh. Then Homestar comes back and shows why he is a moron, and why he and Marzipan should never be dating. Okay, this was a pretty good one, I must admit.
random dude: I quite enjoyed those last two messages as well. Strong Bad's pathetic attempts at lying are at their funniest in his insistence on having a real girlfriend. And Homestar is a complete idiot. His bizarre attempt to play the message off as an automated voice is similar a hilarious joke from this week's episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. I doubt the B99 writers took inspiration from H*R when writing the joke, but I think it speaks favorably of the improving quality of these cartoons that a joke that I laughed hysterically at from one of the best sitcoms around reminded me of a joke from this cartoon.
The Cheat Theme Song
Cypher Raige: I am not really crazy about the Cheat's Theme Song. His animation skills are, to quote Strong Bad, "lacking... at best." I do love that he threw some Autotune in there, though. Also, I saw The Skate Party play live* at Bub's back in 2004. Their musicianship was lacking... at best.
*This may or may not have actually happened. Or, more accurately, it totally didn't.
random dude: I'm going to have to disagree on this one, Raige. "The Cheat Theme Song" is definitely the best video game I've ever played. OK, no, this wasn't that great. But I liked a couple of the pop culture references in this one, particularly The Cheat stylizing his name to look like the Aerosmith logo when the song mentions the Cheat starting a rock band, and a Pikachu sliding across the screen at the line "Who's the man who looks like The Cheat?"
Where's The Cheat?
Cypher Raige: This has always been one of my favorite longer toons, mainly just because Homestar is awesome in it. Matt Chapman outdoes himself on Homestar's voice work here, as well as pretty much all the rest of the characters. And listening to him mangle the pronunciation of "veggie burger" is one of the great joys of my life, along with Strong Bad's Homestar impersonation. Also, for some reason, I love that "the stick" is a common meeting place, and commonly known as the stick. And I still yell out "OHHHH NOOOOO, YOU SHANKED MY JENGASHIP!" at key moments during the various competitions I engage in. Mental warfare, people, that's how championships are won!
random dude: This was a pretty good one. I particularly enjoyed Strong Bad cheering up a disconsolate Strong Mad with "Don't worry big guy, we'll cut to a montage...I mean, look for the Cheat." (And the Goblin from the first Halloween cartoon turned up again in said ensuing montage; I love that guy!) We also see Homsar complete his transformation into the site's most nonsensical currently extant character, who makes so little sense that he prompts Bubs to command "Don't you talk to me."
And that's this week's cartoons. Next week we'll be reviewing some more sbemails. Here's the links:
Strong Bad Email #11: i rule
Strong Bad Email #12: credit card
Strong Bad Email #13: i she be
Strong Bad Email #14: duck pond
Strong Bad Email #15: the basics