WHY DID THIS TV SERIES NEVER GET MADE? D: That makes me sad. Maybe there's hope for it getting picked up at some point in the future, at least. The concept art is amazing and the story sounds like it has some wonderful potential.
I see the hooded figure standing by looking all plotting-like, just watching as the paranoia and anxiety unfolds, and I realize... This... this isn't even The Thing, is it? It's Day of the Dove!
What in the heck is Brad even doing in the outtake? oO
I seem to have missed something with this 'Craig Golightly' joke.
Oh. My. God. The villain is... Todd in the Shadows?! It's finally happened! All those crappy pop songs have finally made him snap! Oh, I bet it was Want U Back that broke him. I certainly get murderous when I hear that one.
It's been a while since I reviewed. I've been mostly content to sit back and watch. A lot of other people have made the points I wanted to and I decided to let them go for it.
However on this one I have to point out two things. First Galactica 1980 was, and still is, so bad it was good. God awful in the same way as Space Mutiny. I would have taken aim at an 80's soap opera. Mundane, unimaginative, predictable and painfully cliché, but that's me.
Second, where the hell did you get a Federation Phaser? Seriously.
No, really what I have to say is that this whole storyline is a little early after the Gunslingers introduction. A more light hearted approach might have been an interesting change of pace. Especially after the action comedy drama that was To Boldly Flee.
Looking forward to what remains of October, despite my misgivings I can't wait to see how this goes. You've always found away to defy my expectations when it comes to your storylines.
Okay, I will tell you about my thoughts on both the 1951 and 1982 versions of The Thing just for this page alone. I have not seen the 2011 prequel, so I don't have any thoughts on it as well.
I will say that both versions are pretty good especially for the times they were made. The 1951 version is good as a B-horror film mostly because of its use of tension, good characters, and interesting story. The 1982 version I would say it's better, but not by a whole lot. It is a slow movie given its runtime and it could be boring for some, but that's my personal preference. The remake still has plenty going for with Kurt Russell's performance, its special effects, and a terrifying sci-fi concept. Bottom line: both are pretty good for different reasons.
It would be interesting to see that abandoned Thing sequel come about. If the reason was that it's because budget limitations for a made-for-TV movie, why hasn't Universal picked it up for a theatrical release? Even it does get released in theaters, it still wouldn't be as good as the original.
It's funny to hear that John Carpenter himself like this comic. Then again, he did direct Ghosts of Mars. Let that sink in!
Also, watching the Snob sit on his chair all day would be awesomely hilarious. But please Snob, I don't want to kiss your foot.
Thank you for using the "Yeah, F-You too!" clip. About the flamethrower question, was the flamethrower in the first movie handmade since the demand for a flamethrower was met with the question, "Mac wants the WHAT," indicating that they didn't have a flamethrower? I could be wrong. The submarine rising out of the ice does look cool like you said. Props to Nash for the title card. I did not credit him last week and I am making up for my mistake now. Nice choice of ending credit song. On the storyline development: Nice job with capturing the paranoia of the movie. I like how the accusations the characters make at each other seem deep rooted and have been there for a while. And on the shadow creature... interesting.
LOL! The "no signal" phone bit was hilarious! I like the research you do on Twitter. Seeing the "80s reference" stuff develop with people suggesting Brad, and the stuff about a ship being able to break through the ice is fun to see come to fruition.
Nice Freddy Krueger bumper, too!
That submarine plot you thought up is actually pretty damn good. It definitely has potential for a tense, claustrophic, and paranoid story.
I did see it, but not well enough to understand the significance. Google has come to the rescue, though! I really need to remember that Google is my friend.
Also, I went and read 'The Things'. Quite an interesting take, very well-written, and while it does take a few liberties with the movie, it also explains them in such a way that they still make sense. I'm not sure how plausible I find it that /all/ of the inhabited worlds It had visited before had evolved as shapeshifting hiveminds, but it made for some interesting dissonance and realization on the Thing's part.
Ummm.. Since its expected or viewers to nitpick the reviews I shall do the same. Flamethrowers certainly Would be at an antarctic base of that kind. Snowcats get ice in the tread system when left sit a time and flamethrowers would be used to clean them out. For backup historical detail please reference German tanks on the Russian Front of WWII ^,.,^ I enjoy your work Linkara and cause of you have started reading some comics again. Keep it up and Happy Halloween.
I'll say this: I was, quite literally, on the edge of my seat watching that last ten minutes. The writing was fantastic, the acting was great, every small touch from Harvey undoing his bowtie to 90's Kid insisting he wasn't an idiot is perfect. The Halloween 2010 storyline that everybody seemed to just gush over doesn't even compare. Even last year...well, we'll have to see how this goes over the next two weeks, but I'm pretty excited.
Now, the question: who was that shadow on the wall? I almost thought it looked like Shade 1, but I don't know...
Why did Snob part at the end just keep going? Why was it funny to me?! Where is Ninja Style Dancer?! Why is my voice getting so high pitched?! How have you guys not run out of food?
Well Linkara the review of yours that I watched was Action comics #593 which was a 2 parter so there are some who do. Also I think Cloak number 2 or 3 was behind this.
I really liked the brief segment about the failed Thing sci-fi show and was almost expecting a Katamari Damacy joke with the meat ball rolling out of the base.
As for the discussion of the antarctic treaty, firearms, even semi/fully automatic ones, would still be acceptable as long as it was done specifically for self defense, hunting or other non-military purposes. Bolt action rifles, however would be more a common sight, with pistols as a more immediate protection measure. The 80s movie did a good job of this by having most of the rifles locked up in cases. The flamethrowers are more easily explained, since as army surplus it would be a cheap, quick method for a US research station in 1982 to clear out snow quickly.
If the story was set today, I'd say they would maybe have a few small specialty butane torches and settle for using snow blowers for most heavy work like clearing out runways and the helipad, not flamethrowers used in wars of the 60s and 70s.
BUT the SEAL team in the book would be a rather major violation, as it is a team sent on a military operation that's more heavily armed than any rescue operation really should merit, with a helicopter not really suited for taking about 12 extra passengers outside of the team.
Awesome review as always! I actually liked the fallow up story to this in the jungle. The art isn't all bad. Glad to hear you finally talk about the short story and the proposed Thing mini-series SyFy wanted to make years ago! I didn't know though the scripts and full synopsis and concept art! I gotta find those now! i'd love to read what could've been! I'm one of those oddballs that would love to see comic book adaptations of unused film and TV series scripts especially for some of the more interesting things that were never fully produced! Like the Kevin Smith script for the Tim BurtonSuperman Lives movie that had Nic Cage set to start as Supes or even that Superman: Flyby script that was leaked before Superman Returns went into production! They did it with the unmade Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash script!
I knew the part in the submarine was confusing to me it made no sense at all!
I do find it funny that SyFy couldn't make their Thing mini-series due to them not wanting to ruin it with their crappy CGI but yet they still made 2 Return of the Living Dead sequels with little to nothing in-common with the originals or with each other and 2-3 Pumpkinhead sequels that are impossible to tell when they take place!?
Nice Snob cameo by the way!
Ok, I'm calling it Harvey is the THING!!! The SHADOWS know!!!
No wait cancel that the Snob is the THING!! He's acting way out of character there and he's having identity issues!
Wow...I so wish they would have made the TV miniseries! Wait...it's figured out how to get past the blood tests? O.O ...Please excuse me while I cower beneath my bed with a flamethrower.
Exciting review! I really enjoy your story lines...as silly as I sometimes think they can be. But that is what makes them enjoyable. You may have already stated this somewhere, (if you have, boy don't I just feel all smart! :D ) but it feels like an homage to comic book story lines and how over the top and silly they can be. Not that your story lines aren't great, they are. They're planned out, take into account a lot of little details and if you miss something you seem to always address it in a creative way. It's actually quite inspiring for someone who wants to be a writer herself.
Okay, I think I can be done gushing hehe. Once again, fantastic review!
It's funny how Harvey doesn't use the one accusation that he could have thrown at Linkara: the fact that none of them can be sure that Linkara ISN'T still evil. After all, they never saw the scene with Margaret. And, in any case, who's to say "Margaret" isn't herself the shapeshifting intruder?
Also, I still stand by my statement that the shapeshifting intruder can be Iron Liz. We've never seen her in months, there's no in-story explanation for her absence, nobody suspects her, and that shadowy figure looked a lot like the Cloaks (and the single female Cloak happens to look like Iron Liz).
Finally, I doubt Sci-Fi Channel would have done the Thing justice. They screwed up Highlander, Man-Thing AND both Puppet Master and Demonic Toys. What makes byou think thry would get the Thing right?
Nothing like watching slow time with Cinema Snob...
The comic was rather ridiculous in just introducing an obvious character to be Thing-bait, particularly if they were with McReady and the others all book. I mean what was the point other than "Thing runs amuck in Antarctica...again"? The ideas you had, including the creepy New Mexico mini-series or the idea about being trapped on a sub with that monster were creepier than this book...and yeah, it should have ended with the Sarlac...er, Thing pit. Though I do wonder who exactly is the shadow in the BG at the end...
Next week: Clone Saga time...and new opening time!
BTW: every title card with that "Muppet Thing" makes me wish there was a plushy of it. It's just another running gag that has become epic.
"All this issue has done is make me think even more that The Thing is just an Neon Genesis Evangelion prequel. Also loved the Freddy bit!"
Meh, I think "Evangelion" is highly overrated, I never saw the appeal to it. Personally, I'm more of a "Macross" fan. I think "Macross" definetively needs more love. Klan Klan and her Pixie Squadron against the Thing, now THAT is something I would love to watch!
"Was that Phantasm?"
It's either the Gunslinger (who apparently can turn himself into a living shadow), one of the Cloaks trying to get revenge on Linkara, or the Holographic Impostor using his natural holographic abilities to make itself invisible. Or maybe it's an entirely new character...
"WHY DID THIS TV SERIES NEVER GET MADE?"
TV Movie, not TV series. And the Sci Fi Channel has a shit track record when it comes to delivering quality TV Movies, so it would be better off in HBO's hands.
"I seem to have missed something with this 'Craig Golightly' joke."
(I think) the name of the Cinema Snob character in "The Cinema Snob Movie" is Craig Golightly (as opposed to being "Brad Jones")
"Then again, he did direct Ghosts of Mars. Let that sink in!"
The problem with John Carpenter is that he never made a proper comeback. After "Red Eye" and "Cursed", Wes Craven made "My Soul To Take" (which I haven't seen, but judging fromn the trailers it looks a lot better than both "Cursed" and "Red Eye"). After "Alice in Wonderland", Tim Burton made "Dark Shadows" and "Frankenweenie". And after "Rockandrolla", Guy Ritchie made the Sherlock Holmes movies. But John Carprenter never made another movie after "Ghosts of Mars" (or, at least, nothing noteworthy), so his remarkable career ended on a craptacular note.
Linkara: Attempted to stave off the infighting, given that we know Lewis thinks it's stupid to have the thing help out the main group, it's likely not him
Linksano: Nothing more than more of what was already present in the last one.
Harvey: Was the first one to accuse another person, That combined with the Gun bit makes me suspect that he's the thing.
That the thing is:
Mechkara: Nothing new either way.
Vyce: That shadow at the end looked like that of a shade. Though it could have been Todd.
Gunslinger: I could be misidentifying the shadow, it could be an entity working for the gunslinger.
The Entity: I am rather confident that it's not this. It would make no sense for it to be alive, given that it restored everything.
I have developed the hypothesis that 1: The thing is either Vyce or his forces. 2: Harvey is currently infected.
Interesting ideas, but too many bad ideas. Great review of a less than spectacular comic. Wondering who or what that shadow is... hey, where's Snowflame? Is he still recovering from his last PSA? Looking forward to seeing the next Clone Saga review. It and your 200th episode will probably be a better tribute to Spider-Man for his 50th anniversary than what's went on so far aside from the 5 part Spider-Men. From a crappy cartoon to a reboot that misses the point and the idea of why I like Spider-Man. Oh and he's getting replaced by a "darker" Spider-Man for the relaunch... I'm thinking maybe Marvel is run by people who never read Spidey before.
Oh my god... This shaddow freaked the hell out of me. I'm seriously scared now, and it doesn't help it's night and I'm alone in front of my pc... (plus, my cat decides that NOW is a great time to wheeze in it's sleep that sounds like a person JUST BEHIND me... Q_Q)
I'm not so easy to scare, too. But it's just the thing that gets me freaked out most. Just someone standing somewhere unexpected and "looking" at you... Small effect, but HEAVY impact. Really, awesomely done!
That Thing Tc special does sound good, but I like the idea of it being in a Submarine a bit more. Hell, maybe even on a boat in general would be good enough.
If the Thing gets around the blood test it would be interesting to see how you find a new way to out it. That could be a good arc for a few episodes if the series ever got picked up. The heroes have no way of trusting anyone period for the longest time and they'll never be sure again if the new test will ever fail them again.
Although, to be honest, it probably work better as a mini-series. As a show you'd have to concern yourself with keeping a status quo for a period of time, justifying why the Thing just doesn't grab a car and try to leave at some point, how long you can keep the story going when characters are dropping like flies, how long you can keep things from getting formulaic and cliche, that all enters the picture in an ongoing series. In a miniseries you have a whole load of time to tell a really long and comprehensive story without worrying about it wearing out it's welcome.
But that's just how I feel about it.
I'm not sure if this was that bad a comic, but I can see where you're coming from. The ending is a bit of a let down since and it feels like they just retread ground that was previously covered.
Interesting you showed Aliens in there, that was the movie that said "we can't do a better horror story than the original without copying it so we might as well evolve the plot a bit and do our own thing with it." And for better or worse that gave us the ever quoatable and action packed Aliens movie... which was awesome in my opinion.
And yet when they do a prequel for the Thing... they basically just make the same movie only with CGI. It goes to show you, if you must make a sequel, don't copy, find a way to expand, do better or make it fresh. Otherwise you might as well re-release the original film.
I dunno. That ending didn't seem all that ambiguous to me.
Generally, whenever you start feeling warm for no reason or starting falling asleep in a super cold environment like that, it means you're really close to freezing to death.
I took it to mean that our main character was about to die,and the writers were trying to make a downer ending. (Doesn't mean it worked but from what I could tell, that's what they were trying for).
Well, it's nice to see a story where my fellow Latinos are the smart ones for once :D (especially from Argentina, they never get to star in any big stories it seems.)
I think the flaws of this comic were due more because of poor research (both about the movie and real life Antarctica) and the writer giving himself too much artistic freedom for dramatic purposes (like with the submarine breaking the ice.) Still, this was an OK comic, compared to most of the drivel reviewed here.
And the part with the multiple Linkaras was fantastic! Once again, Lewis shows how good a writer (and actor) he is, everyone (even 90's kid) gave very good reasons to suspect the others. Can't wait for the resolution!
...I could have done without the Cinema Snob part at the end, though. *yawn*
You know what stuck out most to me about these comics after watching your review? The whaling ship in the first issue. Or more precisely, how utterly pointless it was.
MacReady stumbles upon it, gets taken on it, then escapes and goes back to the camp. Why was any of that necessary to the plot? Nobody on the ship appears again, it doesn't lead to anything, there's no hints on it being infected or the Thing having anything to do with it at all. I figured it would reappear in issue 2 for like the climax or something, but it doesn't look like it was even mentioned.
It seems to me you could've just started the comic with MacReady and Childs outside Outpost 31 right after the end of the movie, have Childs wander off to eventually find the Argentinians, and have the SEAL team show up find a half frozen, half deranged MacReady burning the bodies, and continued the story exactly how it was told otherwise. The whaling ship just comes off as padding so they could get a second issue out of this.
I am LOVING this storyline so far. Harvey with his bowtie undone and him sweating was a perfect touch, and you brought up a ton of points I was hoping you would. And my favorite part, 90s Kid finally stands up for himself and says he's not an idiot! GO. KID.
If only Mai-Ti's ring wasn't destroyed because everyone in that room needed to chill out and calm down. The Thing does look like a living shade shadow.It was just watching and observing. Maybe it causes paranoia and mistrust which might make a good distraction for a certain Gunslinger.Geeze,this group needs to remember the times that they banded together or friendly moments between the group. Here's a silly guess the thing is Trolling Linkara and Co.
I loved how you called Cinema Snob, realized you called someone, then couldn't call anyone else. It's like those Looney Tunes gags where a character would run off a cliff or something then keep running until they notice they're supposed to be falling.
Good use of shadow stealth in that squabble at the end. And it kinda sucks without the main computer online you don't have access to the files to cross refference the tricorder scans to verify anyone's identities.
I'm a little disturbed to see Brad and I have done similar silly things with tape and cameras when bored.
You'd think, if anything, the working magic gun you shot at the door with might have been some evidence that the magic end got sorted out... But then again that would take a bit of a leap of logic.
Are you 4 the only ones you know of who are currently there? No chance of say Ninja Style Dancer just being out of sight?
It might help to get Link-sano some more tools. Most of the time seeing you using him if he's actually trying to work on something it isn't always that easy to believe. His support prop collection is starting to show how limited it is. At least Trek has many props for various calibration tools modern equivalents for spanners, probes, chip extractors, etc.
I'm not sure I've even seen Link-sano open a single device, Not even Pollo, much less with tools to effect repairs.
Even a soldering gun with a broken tip replaced with a Christmas light and a 9v battery connected to its power cord to let it light it up would be a good quick make-do Sci-Fi tool. Can't use Sonic Screwdrivers for everything. As a matter of fact some forms of crystalline circuitry might not take well to sonics when you have the potential for harmonic resonances leading to unseen damages.
"Even a soldering gun with a broken tip replaced with a Christmas light and a 9v battery connected to its power cord to let it light it up would be a good quick make-do Sci-Fi tool. Can't use Sonic Screwdrivers for everything. As a matter of fact some forms of crystalline circuitry might not take well to sonics when you have the potential for harmonic resonances leading to unseen damages."
Well, to be fair, my tricorder prop was expensive, so I like to get use out of it when I can. XD
To Duncan Scott, I think the Thing has more in common with the Invaders from Shin Getter Robo Armageddon. Great episode, Linkara. You really capture the mood of the film quite well and also puts the "true companions" thing to the test.
The Comic: Hmm, not any better than the first part. Agree with you on the shot with the sub.
Your Arc: I see I was right about things getting tense but I agree with another comment poster in that I'm not sure everybody's in their right mind right now after seeing that shadow figure. Otherwise, I found myself thinking 'who let 90's Kid near that phaser rifle?' Everytime he's gotten near something that shoots, well... Does the term 'Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy' ring any bells? Best case you have to recharge the thing's power cell.
Other: Brad's stuff. ... You know you're bored when... Still thought it was hilarious though.
I love you're Halloween story lines man, and this one was no exception. I have no idea what the thing (not meant to be a pun) at the end of the video was but it was creepy and well done. I had to pause your video and go check out that short story "The Things" and it was pretty good...and kind of disturbing, especially the final line. So far these reviews have been awesome, and I can't wait to see more!
"I'm not an idiot! I am A MAN!" *shoots* Of course I've got reminded to that... though it wouldn't have made much sense from 90's kid... and in THIS context. >.> ^^
Gotta love 90's kid! And the way you addressed the cellphone question - cracked me up. :D
I loved the part with all the accusations. I wonder what that shadow in the very end mean. Could neither of them actually be infected?
And what's up with the HUGE Mechakara hand? Yea, it's probably not story related, and is there to just look awesome... and it does!
You know up until we saw the shadow move at the end of the storyline bit (and that was great by the way I didn't notice the shadow at all until the very end), I was almost 100% certain Linkara was the thing.
The reason was the cellphone gag, we don't see the signal bars on Linkara's cellphone so the Thing could have realized it had made a mistake by using the cellphone and had to cover for itself by claiming to have no signal just after in case any of the other's in the apartment were paying attention to the review.
For this reason I'm still not sure that Linkara isn't compromised Shadow aside... the fact that Linkara was the last to succumb to the bickering would seem to at face value put him further above suspicion, unless the Thing is smart enough to use that very fact to deflect suspicion from itself... after all, Linkara only echoes doubts the others have presented, he's not making any fresh accusations on his own.
I think the Shadow is manipulating Linkara; and Linkara is the thing. And it's the cellophone gag that clinches it, it seems to be a very Lewis like thing to put the clue that gives it all away in the review itself.
The Shadow while no doubt involved, is a red herring to make us believe that all four people present are who they claim to be; that's my theory.
Part of the problem with the TV show would be that it would be really hard to figure out how the military would have any chance of stopping it. One insect, bird, dog, rat or person escaping would be enough to doom the world. Also we get to avoid the stereotypical 'Russian soldiers just are around to be treacherous and get killed'.
On the comic, the guns are even stranger. Ignoring the Antarctic Treaty, there really isn't a reason to have automatic (which is what those things sorta look like) weapons. Seriously, the labs in real life Antarctica get along fine without them.
First off, I adore the fact that you pulled off the text from John Carpenter's "The Thing" perfectly well!
Secondly - great review.
The idea for the series sounds so awesome, I would have THROWN MONEY all day just to see this * ____ *
I loved when you said "The Thing figures out a way to get around the Blood test!" The face you make is so creepy! How do you make a cute smile become something horribly freaky, man?! D8
I loved the bit with the Cinema Snob and Linkara's realization that he could use his phone, only for it not to work when he tries to use it for something more useful than a joke. I guess we finally found out the answer to the age old question "Who you gonna call?!" The Cinema Snob, of course! Maybe Linkara should've just called CS again, see if it worked.
The joke about the Coolaid man was hilarious. Though, I honestly thing he should've said "OH NO!"
Then. The break cosplay.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! AAAAAAAAAAAAH! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! LEWIS KRUGER!!! FREDDY LOVEHAUG! LINKARA KRUGER! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!
(PS: I recently read the Freddy vs Jason vs Ash comic. It was glorious.)
I want that glove e w e;
Seriously?! When the hell did the THING get the time to become THE SARLAAK?! I am... so... confused. Screw you, comic D8<
How many bears did it eat?! D:
I am also very confused as to why they are letting the seal guy, aka. Walking Soldier Stereotype No. 9,001, go ahead and talk on the radio. He could give away what's happening and send people to collect the Thing!
... ooooooooor worse. Thing up and kill people, thus giving himself away.... This comic's stupid!
Thank you for using the Fuse box count. It made me feel less angry about the stupidity of WHAT HAPPENED!!!
Stupid submarine is stupid submarine of stupid submarineness! I love the look of the image, though.
The end of this comic.
It.... it pisses me the FUCK OFF!!! FUCK YOU COMIC! FUCK YOU!!!!!
Everyone blowing up on one another was a nice touch.
Actually flamethrowers are something you'd find in an antarctic research facility, they're important for melting ice off of vehicles and the like as well as other some other things.
So, just out of curiosity, you explained where Pollo is, we know Liz left a while ago, Munro is in his own universe at the moment if I reccall correctly, and I guess Snowflame doesn't count... So what about the Ninja and Boffo ?
Good you mentioned the tentacle grappling hook. This little details almost bothers me as much as the still intact spaceship in the prequel.
I mean seriously? If the Thing has such a fast and handy weapon at hand, why doesn't it solve ALL it's problems with a grappling tentacle to the chest Oo ?
Oh my god, I got legitimitly scared at the end, props! I almost let the water I was drinking flow out of my mouth from the suprise. That thing with the phone was also pretty smart and funny!
On a side note: The hell was Brad doing in the end?XD I laughed pretty hard, but wut?
Thanks for the review. I've been really enjoying these Thing related comic reviews and the Long Box of the Damned segments this October.
I wonder if there would be a way to start a mail-in (or email/twitter) campaign to get SyFy to re-examine this TV miniseries idea. I think it would actually do really well for viewership and if it was actually done competently it would sell well on dvd/bluray.
A quick question for you, Linkara: When you start doing "A Quick Look At..." again, are you planning to do the Thing from Another World and the two Thing films? I know that many people online have talked about them before, but I would enjoy hearing your thoughts on them as well.
I like the art. I think I seen the same artist in other Dark Horse books before. Dark Horse really loves to do continuations of movies and tv series I noticed.
Is that me or the thing mini-serie sound a bit like Tremor tv show (also on Sci-fi)
One of the way they had other creatures other than graboid around was that the small desert town (like in the thing mini-seri) used to be an experience site where they made this chemical that could crosses species together
Good show, as usual... this comic was just weird. Also, it took me a while to even remember the guy who turned out to be infected (I already forgot his name again <__<).
I liked the Krugerface.
Also, the shadow in the end. Frankly, that one creeped me out.
Here's some musings on the identity of shadow person.
I also don't think it's Todd. Mainly, this is because it isn't really in character for him, but there's another reason.
The outline doesn't look like him. The shadow hood is somewhat pointy at the top, and Todd's isn't. Also, the shadow hood bulges at the sides in a way that suggests the hood comes down over the top half of the wearer's face, which Todd's hood doesn't do.
In fact, to me, the outline looks much more like the style of hood worn by the Cloaks in Suburban Knights. This leads me to my newest theory: Cloak #1 (the one played by Last Angry Geek) is behind it all! Here are some reasons why:
1. Last Angry Geek has done crossovers with Lewis before, including one moderately recently.
2. We know he has some magicalish abilities that he could use create a scenario like this. In particular, Suburban Knights established that he has some degree of mind control power, at least over the "phenomenally weak minded." I don't think any character on this show fits that description (except maybe 90s Kid, but he's already been possessed once so I don't think he is right now). Then again, maybe Cloak 1's gotten better at mind control recently. Or he's using a variation on that power to make everyone paranoid without actually controlling them. Either way, this explanation has the advantage of being much easier to undo at the end than actual infection.
3. As for how he would have isolated the apartment so effectively... a few possibilities. He could have used his vaguely established powers. Or gotten help from someone like, say, Dr. Insano or the Gunslinger.
4. Motivation isn't too hard to imagine. We know Cloak 1 has a fairly mercenary personality, and is also a pretty comedic character. If he's behind it, he was either paid to do it by someone else, and/or his motivation will be silly and played for laughs.
The paranoia begins and the mysterious shadowy figure watches while team Linkara turns on each other. I think it's one of the cloaks or maybe the ghost of Malachite. I wouldn't be too surprised if he is actually working with the mysterious Gunslinger.
After hearing about the unproduced sequel miniseries to the Thing, I'm shocked they didn't make this. This could have been a great follow-up to the original movie -- especially since it's set in a remote town. Hell, I'd take the sequel miniseries than this lousy two-part comic sequel.
Say, are you going to do the other Thing from Another World comics?
Hmm. You know, the ending to this actually makes me think of what John Carpenter had ORIGINALLY planned for the ending to "The Thing". From what I read, he wanted the rescue team to come in, and for MacReady to prove he was human via a blood test. Y'know, to end on a more positive note. But then they went for the more ambiguous ending instead.
I still regard "The Thing" as quite possibly his most successful horror film because there's a real sense of accomplishment running through it all. No stupid ending that's a deliberate bit of sequel bait like Ghosts of Mars, nothing that makes everything the protagonist does pointless like in "Mouth of Madness", despite everything they go through, you feel...well...like the characters are really doing something.
You can't help but feel that everything they do serves to help bring real resolution. And besides, in the end, the Thing gets blown up. It's a more optimistic feeling you get, the sense that "we die knowing we did everything we could to stop you...and we die free". You don't get that in many suspense or horror movies lately, the sense that something was actually accomplished and the characters came out stronger for it. And I miss that. I'm not asking for a totally sunshine happy ending. Just one where they...break even, maybe.
I like the implication that at the end MacReady is infected, it's been established that The Thing can survive extreme cold, which is something that a person can't do and given that it's managed to infect others without ever coming anywhere near them MacReady being infected would make things wonderfully ambiguous again, but that's just my 2 cents
A fast moving ball, with many lengthy, flexible protrusions? The Thing is clearly Sonic the Hedgehog. To think, all this time Dr. Robotnik was keeping the world safe by testing all those animals...
So would this be something new then or did the Shades get an upgrade while Vyce was out?
I will admit, you've made me interested in The Thing. I'll definitely follow up on your recommendation and see the movie.
I laughed at the penguin joke, even though they're my favorite animal. My other favorite joke was "Senor Sunglasses", and I liked your logic in why you could continue to call him that.
While Finevoice is ordinarily my favorite among the supporting cast, it was sad to see him be the one who was suspecting everyone else.
I did consider that this could the Entity's return before it was brought up, since you've mentioned that you would bring it back if you had a good enough story, and a story based on The Thing makes the most sense to use it.
Next week is the annual Clone Saga review. I'm really looking forward to that.
Holy crap the story Part was really good. I don´t think anyone if them is infected, if you want to go in that direction Linkara. I think the enemy is trying to get them fighting like they did at the end to have them mistrust and don´t help eachother.
My guess for "The Thing", if someone is infected then i guess Ninja Style Dancer or Bapho (because we haven´t seen them in a while). Other than that it´s the Gunslinger or someone working for him otherwise it would be kind of stupid to bring someone new in or "reaktivate" an old foe like the entity or Vice.
When you ask who'd watch the second before the first, you remind me of a comment on every second audio commentary: 'who'd watch the commentary before the show?' I've never done that, but I've been the cause of it in others - they walk in when I'm halfway through a commentary, and I don't turn it off (would work with a part 2, too).
We knew there were month-long nights at the poles in the 80s... but they don't happen year round.
That's a metal original Freddy glove! Not from the remake! We wants it!
The one problem with the submarine idea is that it doesn't isolate the Thing quite enough. Fish. A spaceship, though...
"That's a metal original Freddy glove! Not from the remake! We wants it!"
It's not metal, just a good plastic replica from several years back. ^_^ I went as the good Mr. Krueger for Halloween my final year of high school. Although I admit I never got the glove in time for Halloween, so I constructed my own out of a work glove, cardboard, and duct tape.
""That's a metal original Freddy glove! Not from the remake! We wants it!"
It's not metal, just a good plastic replica from several years back. ^_^ I went as the good Mr. Krueger for Halloween my final year of high school. Although I admit I never got the glove in time for Halloween, so I constructed my own out of a work glove, cardboard, and duct tape."
You can still buy those for like $10-15 dollars at Halloween/Party supply stores or even eBay! I got one like 2-3 years ago for half price after Halloween at a local Party-N-Things store!
"It's not metal, just a good plastic replica from several years back. ^_^"
No, it's a GREAT plastic replica - I can't even tell, on video.
Sounds like a really good costume, too.
I've checked eBay, and I can get myself a metal 'original', even here in Oz. (I do have a remake one, because I can)... just got to get the money together.
And then a jumper. So I can walk around dressed like Freddy. Or Kurt Cobain.
I actually managed to find the screenplay to Return of the Thing online. Ironically, the second half of it could conceivably be described as "action horror", although the Thing is nowhere near as fast as here, and often times ends up using conventional weaponry in disguise. The ending's quite the downer, though. Still, I had fun with it, and encourage as many people as possible to look for it.
Hey, Linkara, great review. Just a little nitpick, though, a "Factoid" is not a "small, little, neat fact", but a "questionable or spurious (unverified, false, or fabricated) statement presented as a fact, but with no veracity" (quoting Wikipedia here). It's not a big deal, though, so many people use this word in the "wrong" sense, I wouldn't be surprised if the definition soon changes - language is funny like that.
Awesome episode, but here's a little nitpick: I think that insetead of señor sunglasses, it should be don sunglasses, seeing as the charachter is from Argentina (but señor is still allright, and I have also heard that don is not being used as much anymore, so IDEK)
Thank god the Soviets didn't go the stupid movie villain trope and continue their plan to make it a weapon EVEN AFTER they discovered it was intelligent and would NOT be controllable.
Oooo, that's another wonderful cause of tension--the American/Russian tension. Although if ALL the characters upheld the Cold War tensions, it'd be similarly, painfully old-fashioned and stereotypical. Just like the gun-happy military role.
Man, some of those concept works are REALLY UNNERVING. And as for the blood test work-around... *SHRIEKING*
Man, we need to set up a jump-starter fund collection for that series. Either that or they could sell it to STARS or HBO.
Well, MacReady MIGHT have been irate with the whole "congrats, you're clean" comment because being clean is barely any better than being infected when they're still in the Antarctic and with so many people to test and so much Thing still left to be burned.
I suppose the Thing MIGHT have learned by now that the blood test was dangerous and, since its host was unconscious, had no way to avoid it. Still, that was a big risk the Thing took, revealing itself whilst surrounded by so many people who could eliminate it so easily.
They would've had to change how they depicted the passage of time, but the story taking place in eternal day or night would've been AWESOME. Have you heard of how some people get driven mad by the unending day? That would've added even ANOTHER freaky aspect to it!
You know what would've been a better secondary plot for a sequel; better than the military trying to weaponize it? Scientists trying their best to study it--the Thing can replicate any tissue faster than anything on Earth! Could they have figured out how to render it inactive safely, they could've created something even better than stem cells! That's one thing I liked about Deep Blue Sea--that there was a semi-understandable reason why the sharks were super smart: they were trying to cure Alzheimer's and were testing on the sharks' genetically-enhanced brains. It makes the plot a little more tragic--that they must abandon this possible cure for numerous ails to save humanity in general, who will have to endure those ails for who knows how many years because of it.
Gotta admit, I had my doubts about you doing your homage to The Thing last episode, but the distrust from being trapped and wondering why really pulled it off. Also thanks for introducing me to that movie's main theme.
All this issue has done is make me think even more that The Thing is just an Neon Genesis Evangelion prequel. Also loved the Freddy bit!
ReplyDelete...Was that Phantasm?
ReplyDeleteWHY DID THIS TV SERIES NEVER GET MADE? D: That makes me sad. Maybe there's hope for it getting picked up at some point in the future, at least. The concept art is amazing and the story sounds like it has some wonderful potential.
ReplyDeleteI see the hooded figure standing by looking all plotting-like, just watching as the paranoia and anxiety unfolds, and I realize... This... this isn't even The Thing, is it? It's Day of the Dove!
What in the heck is Brad even doing in the outtake? oO
I seem to have missed something with this 'Craig Golightly' joke.
"I seem to have missed something with this 'Craig Golightly' joke."
ReplyDeleteDid you spot what he was holding when he first appeared in the cameo? ^_~
Oh. My. God. The villain is... Todd in the Shadows?! It's finally happened! All those crappy pop songs have finally made him snap! Oh, I bet it was Want U Back that broke him. I certainly get murderous when I hear that one.
ReplyDeleteIt's been a while since I reviewed. I've been mostly content to sit back and watch. A lot of other people have made the points I wanted to and I decided to let them go for it.
ReplyDeleteHowever on this one I have to point out two things. First Galactica 1980 was, and still is, so bad it was good. God awful in the same way as Space Mutiny. I would have taken aim at an 80's soap opera. Mundane, unimaginative, predictable and painfully cliché, but that's me.
Second, where the hell did you get a Federation Phaser? Seriously.
No, really what I have to say is that this whole storyline is a little early after the Gunslingers introduction. A more light hearted approach might have been an interesting change of pace. Especially after the action comedy drama that was To Boldly Flee.
Looking forward to what remains of October, despite my misgivings I can't wait to see how this goes. You've always found away to defy my expectations when it comes to your storylines.
Thomas
Okay, I will tell you about my thoughts on both the 1951 and 1982 versions of The Thing just for this page alone. I have not seen the 2011 prequel, so I don't have any thoughts on it as well.
ReplyDeleteI will say that both versions are pretty good especially for the times they were made. The 1951 version is good as a B-horror film mostly because of its use of tension, good characters, and interesting story. The 1982 version I would say it's better, but not by a whole lot. It is a slow movie given its runtime and it could be boring for some, but that's my personal preference. The remake still has plenty going for with Kurt Russell's performance, its special effects, and a terrifying sci-fi concept. Bottom line: both are pretty good for different reasons.
It would be interesting to see that abandoned Thing sequel come about. If the reason was that it's because budget limitations for a made-for-TV movie, why hasn't Universal picked it up for a theatrical release? Even it does get released in theaters, it still wouldn't be as good as the original.
It's funny to hear that John Carpenter himself like this comic. Then again, he did direct Ghosts of Mars. Let that sink in!
Also, watching the Snob sit on his chair all day would be awesomely hilarious. But please Snob, I don't want to kiss your foot.
Thank you for using the "Yeah, F-You too!" clip. About the flamethrower question, was the flamethrower in the first movie handmade since the demand for a flamethrower was met with the question, "Mac wants the WHAT," indicating that they didn't have a flamethrower? I could be wrong. The submarine rising out of the ice does look cool like you said.
ReplyDeleteProps to Nash for the title card. I did not credit him last week and I am making up for my mistake now. Nice choice of ending credit song.
On the storyline development: Nice job with capturing the paranoia of the movie. I like how the accusations the characters make at each other seem deep rooted and have been there for a while. And on the shadow creature... interesting.
LOL! The "no signal" phone bit was hilarious! I like the research you do on Twitter. Seeing the "80s reference" stuff develop with people suggesting Brad, and the stuff about a ship being able to break through the ice is fun to see come to fruition.
ReplyDeleteNice Freddy Krueger bumper, too!
That submarine plot you thought up is actually pretty damn good. It definitely has potential for a tense, claustrophic, and paranoid story.
I liked Brad's gag reel! LOL!
Actually, I learned recently that Antarctica is a group of islands. Although, I'm guessing the ice would still be pretty friggin thick.
ReplyDeleteHey, I own that razor glove too. :)
ReplyDeleteOMSQUEE LINKARA RESPONDED TO MY COMMENT.
ReplyDelete-cough- -ahem- I mean, I'm not fangirling. What?
I did see it, but not well enough to understand the significance. Google has come to the rescue, though! I really need to remember that Google is my friend.
Also, I went and read 'The Things'. Quite an interesting take, very well-written, and while it does take a few liberties with the movie, it also explains them in such a way that they still make sense. I'm not sure how plausible I find it that /all/ of the inhabited worlds It had visited before had evolved as shapeshifting hiveminds, but it made for some interesting dissonance and realization on the Thing's part.
Just out of curiousity where did you find the leaked scripts? All I found was a deviantart page with dead links.
ReplyDeleteWhat's the deal with the shadow at the end?
ReplyDeleteUmmm.. Since its expected or viewers to nitpick the reviews I shall do the same. Flamethrowers certainly Would be at an antarctic base of that kind. Snowcats get ice in the tread system when left sit a time and flamethrowers would be used to clean them out. For backup historical detail please reference German tanks on the Russian Front of WWII ^,.,^ I enjoy your work Linkara and cause of you have started reading some comics again. Keep it up and Happy Halloween.
ReplyDeleteI'll say this: I was, quite literally, on the edge of my seat watching that last ten minutes. The writing was fantastic, the acting was great, every small touch from Harvey undoing his bowtie to 90's Kid insisting he wasn't an idiot is perfect. The Halloween 2010 storyline that everybody seemed to just gush over doesn't even compare. Even last year...well, we'll have to see how this goes over the next two weeks, but I'm pretty excited.
ReplyDeleteNow, the question: who was that shadow on the wall? I almost thought it looked like Shade 1, but I don't know...
I LOVE the title card for this one! Any plans for your version of 'the Thing' to appear on a shirt? He/it is adorable! Ha ha.
ReplyDeleteSo, Linkara, have you heard about Keith Giffen writing Blue Beetle again for a new comic of his called threshold?
ReplyDeleteWhy did Snob part at the end just keep going? Why was it funny to me?! Where is Ninja Style Dancer?! Why is my voice getting so high pitched?! How have you guys not run out of food?
ReplyDeleteWell Linkara the review of yours that I watched was Action comics #593 which was a 2 parter so there are some who do. Also I think Cloak number 2 or 3 was behind this.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the brief segment about the failed Thing sci-fi show and was almost expecting a Katamari Damacy joke with the meat ball rolling out of the base.
ReplyDeleteAs for the discussion of the antarctic treaty, firearms, even semi/fully automatic ones, would still be acceptable as long as it was done specifically for self defense, hunting or other non-military purposes. Bolt action rifles, however would be more a common sight, with pistols as a more immediate protection measure. The 80s movie did a good job of this by having most of the rifles locked up in cases. The flamethrowers are more easily explained, since as army surplus it would be a cheap, quick method for a US research station in 1982 to clear out snow quickly.
If the story was set today, I'd say they would maybe have a few small specialty butane torches and settle for using snow blowers for most heavy work like clearing out runways and the helipad, not flamethrowers used in wars of the 60s and 70s.
BUT the SEAL team in the book would be a rather major violation, as it is a team sent on a military operation that's more heavily armed than any rescue operation really should merit, with a helicopter not really suited for taking about 12 extra passengers outside of the team.
Wow Linkara, you actually scared the daylights out of me with your Kruger impression. I haven't been that shaken since I first watched the series.
ReplyDeleteAwesome review as always!
ReplyDeleteI actually liked the fallow up story to this in the jungle. The art isn't all bad.
Glad to hear you finally talk about the short story and the proposed Thing mini-series SyFy wanted to make years ago! I didn't know though the scripts and full synopsis and concept art! I gotta find those now! i'd love to read what could've been! I'm one of those oddballs that would love to see comic book adaptations of unused film and TV series scripts especially for some of the more interesting things that were never fully produced! Like the Kevin Smith script for the Tim Burton Superman Lives movie that had Nic Cage set to start as Supes or even that Superman: Flyby script that was leaked before Superman Returns went into production! They did it with the unmade Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash script!
I knew the part in the submarine was confusing to me it made no sense at all!
I do find it funny that SyFy couldn't make their Thing mini-series due to them not wanting to ruin it with their crappy CGI but yet they still made 2 Return of the Living Dead sequels with little to nothing in-common with the originals or with each other and 2-3 Pumpkinhead sequels that are impossible to tell when they take place!?
Nice Snob cameo by the way!
Ok, I'm calling it Harvey is the THING!!!
The SHADOWS know!!!
No wait cancel that the Snob is the THING!! He's acting way out of character there and he's having identity issues!
Wow...I so wish they would have made the TV miniseries! Wait...it's figured out how to get past the blood tests? O.O ...Please excuse me while I cower beneath my bed with a flamethrower.
ReplyDeleteExciting review! I really enjoy your story lines...as silly as I sometimes think they can be. But that is what makes them enjoyable. You may have already stated this somewhere, (if you have, boy don't I just feel all smart! :D ) but it feels like an homage to comic book story lines and how over the top and silly they can be. Not that your story lines aren't great, they are. They're planned out, take into account a lot of little details and if you miss something you seem to always address it in a creative way. It's actually quite inspiring for someone who wants to be a writer herself.
Okay, I think I can be done gushing hehe. Once again, fantastic review!
It's funny how Harvey doesn't use the one accusation that he could have thrown at Linkara: the fact that none of them can be sure that Linkara ISN'T still evil. After all, they never saw the scene with Margaret. And, in any case, who's to say "Margaret" isn't herself the shapeshifting intruder?
ReplyDeleteAlso, I still stand by my statement that the shapeshifting intruder can be Iron Liz. We've never seen her in months, there's no in-story explanation for her absence, nobody suspects her, and that shadowy figure looked a lot like the Cloaks (and the single female Cloak happens to look like Iron Liz).
Finally, I doubt Sci-Fi Channel would have done the Thing justice. They screwed up Highlander, Man-Thing AND both Puppet Master and Demonic Toys. What makes byou think thry would get the Thing right?
Nothing like watching slow time with Cinema Snob...
ReplyDeleteThe comic was rather ridiculous in just introducing an obvious character to be Thing-bait, particularly if they were with McReady and the others all book. I mean what was the point other than "Thing runs amuck in Antarctica...again"? The ideas you had, including the creepy New Mexico mini-series or the idea about being trapped on a sub with that monster were creepier than this book...and yeah, it should have ended with the Sarlac...er, Thing pit. Though I do wonder who exactly is the shadow in the BG at the end...
Next week: Clone Saga time...and new opening time!
BTW: every title card with that "Muppet Thing" makes me wish there was a plushy of it. It's just another running gag that has become epic.
"All this issue has done is make me think even more that The Thing is just an Neon Genesis Evangelion prequel. Also loved the Freddy bit!"
ReplyDeleteMeh, I think "Evangelion" is highly overrated, I never saw the appeal to it. Personally, I'm more of a "Macross" fan. I think "Macross" definetively needs more love. Klan Klan and her Pixie Squadron against the Thing, now THAT is something I would love to watch!
"Was that Phantasm?"
It's either the Gunslinger (who apparently can turn himself into a living shadow), one of the Cloaks trying to get revenge on Linkara, or the Holographic Impostor using his natural holographic abilities to make itself invisible. Or maybe it's an entirely new character...
"WHY DID THIS TV SERIES NEVER GET MADE?"
TV Movie, not TV series. And the Sci Fi Channel has a shit track record when it comes to delivering quality TV Movies, so it would be better off in HBO's hands.
"I seem to have missed something with this 'Craig Golightly' joke."
(I think) the name of the Cinema Snob character in "The Cinema Snob Movie" is Craig Golightly (as opposed to being "Brad Jones")
"Then again, he did direct Ghosts of Mars. Let that sink in!"
The problem with John Carpenter is that he never made a proper comeback. After "Red Eye" and "Cursed", Wes Craven made "My Soul To Take" (which I haven't seen, but judging fromn the trailers it looks a lot better than both "Cursed" and "Red Eye"). After "Alice in Wonderland", Tim Burton made "Dark Shadows" and "Frankenweenie". And after "Rockandrolla", Guy Ritchie made the Sherlock Holmes movies. But John Carprenter never made another movie after "Ghosts of Mars" (or, at least, nothing noteworthy), so his remarkable career ended on a craptacular note.
Okay, so On who is the thing:
ReplyDelete90s Kid: No new information either way.
Linkara: Attempted to stave off the infighting, given that we know Lewis thinks it's stupid to have the thing help out the main group, it's likely not him
Linksano: Nothing more than more of what was already present in the last one.
Harvey: Was the first one to accuse another person, That combined with the Gun bit makes me suspect that he's the thing.
That the thing is:
Mechkara: Nothing new either way.
Vyce: That shadow at the end looked like that of a shade. Though it could have been Todd.
Gunslinger: I could be misidentifying the shadow, it could be an entity working for the gunslinger.
The Entity: I am rather confident that it's not this. It would make no sense for it to be alive, given that it restored everything.
I have developed the hypothesis that 1: The thing is either Vyce or his forces. 2: Harvey is currently infected.
Interesting ideas, but too many bad ideas. Great review of a less than spectacular comic.
ReplyDeleteWondering who or what that shadow is... hey, where's Snowflame? Is he still recovering from his last PSA?
Looking forward to seeing the next Clone Saga review. It and your 200th episode will probably be a better tribute to Spider-Man for his 50th anniversary than what's went on so far aside from the 5 part Spider-Men. From a crappy cartoon to a reboot that misses the point and the idea of why I like Spider-Man. Oh and he's getting replaced by a "darker" Spider-Man for the relaunch... I'm thinking maybe Marvel is run by people who never read Spidey before.
Do you know a website where I can read the screenplay?
ReplyDeleteOh my god...
ReplyDeleteThis shaddow freaked the hell out of me. I'm seriously scared now, and it doesn't help it's night and I'm alone in front of my pc... (plus, my cat decides that NOW is a great time to wheeze in it's sleep that sounds like a person JUST BEHIND me... Q_Q)
I'm not so easy to scare, too. But it's just the thing that gets me freaked out most. Just someone standing somewhere unexpected and "looking" at you...
Small effect, but HEAVY impact. Really, awesomely done!
...
...I'm scared q_q...
That Thing Tc special does sound good, but I like the idea of it being in a Submarine a bit more. Hell, maybe even on a boat in general would be good enough.
ReplyDeleteIf the Thing gets around the blood test it would be interesting to see how you find a new way to out it. That could be a good arc for a few episodes if the series ever got picked up. The heroes have no way of trusting anyone period for the longest time and they'll never be sure again if the new test will ever fail them again.
Although, to be honest, it probably work better as a mini-series. As a show you'd have to concern yourself with keeping a status quo for a period of time, justifying why the Thing just doesn't grab a car and try to leave at some point, how long you can keep the story going when characters are dropping like flies, how long you can keep things from getting formulaic and cliche, that all enters the picture in an ongoing series. In a miniseries you have a whole load of time to tell a really long and comprehensive story without worrying about it wearing out it's welcome.
But that's just how I feel about it.
I'm not sure if this was that bad a comic, but I can see where you're coming from. The ending is a bit of a let down since and it feels like they just retread ground that was previously covered.
Interesting you showed Aliens in there, that was the movie that said "we can't do a better horror story than the original without copying it so we might as well evolve the plot a bit and do our own thing with it." And for better or worse that gave us the ever quoatable and action packed Aliens movie... which was awesome in my opinion.
And yet when they do a prequel for the Thing... they basically just make the same movie only with CGI. It goes to show you, if you must make a sequel, don't copy, find a way to expand, do better or make it fresh. Otherwise you might as well re-release the original film.
"Like some nightmarish version of the Kool-Aid Man"
ReplyDeleteOh, you mean the Cuthul-Aid Man!
I dunno. That ending didn't seem all that ambiguous to me.
ReplyDeleteGenerally, whenever you start feeling warm for no reason or starting falling asleep in a super cold environment like that, it means you're really close to freezing to death.
I took it to mean that our main character was about to die,and the writers were trying to make a downer ending. (Doesn't mean it worked but from what I could tell, that's what they were trying for).
Well, it's nice to see a story where my fellow Latinos are the smart ones for once :D (especially from Argentina, they never get to star in any big stories it seems.)
ReplyDeleteI think the flaws of this comic were due more because of poor research (both about the movie and real life Antarctica) and the writer giving himself too much artistic freedom for dramatic purposes (like with the submarine breaking the ice.) Still, this was an OK comic, compared to most of the drivel reviewed here.
And the part with the multiple Linkaras was fantastic! Once again, Lewis shows how good a writer (and actor) he is, everyone (even 90's kid) gave very good reasons to suspect the others. Can't wait for the resolution!
...I could have done without the Cinema Snob part at the end, though. *yawn*
You know what stuck out most to me about these comics after watching your review? The whaling ship in the first issue. Or more precisely, how utterly pointless it was.
ReplyDeleteMacReady stumbles upon it, gets taken on it, then escapes and goes back to the camp. Why was any of that necessary to the plot? Nobody on the ship appears again, it doesn't lead to anything, there's no hints on it being infected or the Thing having anything to do with it at all. I figured it would reappear in issue 2 for like the climax or something, but it doesn't look like it was even mentioned.
It seems to me you could've just started the comic with MacReady and Childs outside Outpost 31 right after the end of the movie, have Childs wander off to eventually find the Argentinians, and have the SEAL team show up find a half frozen, half deranged MacReady burning the bodies, and continued the story exactly how it was told otherwise. The whaling ship just comes off as padding so they could get a second issue out of this.
I am LOVING this storyline so far. Harvey with his bowtie undone and him sweating was a perfect touch, and you brought up a ton of points I was hoping you would. And my favorite part, 90s Kid finally stands up for himself and says he's not an idiot! GO. KID.
ReplyDeleteIf only Mai-Ti's ring wasn't destroyed because everyone in that room needed to chill out and calm down. The Thing does look like a living shade shadow.It was just watching and observing. Maybe it causes paranoia and mistrust which might make a good distraction for a certain Gunslinger.Geeze,this group needs to remember the times that they banded together or friendly moments between the group. Here's a silly guess the thing is Trolling Linkara and Co.
ReplyDeleteYou know Linkara, that shadowed hood at the end makes it seem like you might be going in the direction with something JUST AS DANGEROUS as The Thing.
ReplyDeleteIt eerily reminds me of a certain faceless Operator...
You know Linkara, that shadowed hood at the end makes it seem like you might be going in the direction with something JUST AS DANGEROUS as The Thing.
ReplyDeleteIt eerily reminds me of a certain faceless Operator...
I loved how you called Cinema Snob, realized you called someone, then couldn't call anyone else. It's like those Looney Tunes gags where a character would run off a cliff or something then keep running until they notice they're supposed to be falling.
ReplyDeleteGood use of shadow stealth in that squabble at the end. And it kinda sucks without the main computer online you don't have access to the files to cross refference the tricorder scans to verify anyone's identities.
ReplyDeleteI'm a little disturbed to see Brad and I have done similar silly things with tape and cameras when bored.
You'd think, if anything, the working magic gun you shot at the door with might have been some evidence that the magic end got sorted out... But then again that would take a bit of a leap of logic.
Are you 4 the only ones you know of who are currently there? No chance of say Ninja Style Dancer just being out of sight?
It might help to get Link-sano some more tools. Most of the time seeing you using him if he's actually trying to work on something it isn't always that easy to believe. His support prop collection is starting to show how limited it is. At least Trek has many props for various calibration tools modern equivalents for spanners, probes, chip extractors, etc.
I'm not sure I've even seen Link-sano open a single device, Not even Pollo, much less with tools to effect repairs.
Even a soldering gun with a broken tip replaced with a Christmas light and a 9v battery connected to its power cord to let it light it up would be a good quick make-do Sci-Fi tool. Can't use Sonic Screwdrivers for everything. As a matter of fact some forms of crystalline circuitry might not take well to sonics when you have the potential for harmonic resonances leading to unseen damages.
"Even a soldering gun with a broken tip replaced with a Christmas light and a 9v battery connected to its power cord to let it light it up would be a good quick make-do Sci-Fi tool. Can't use Sonic Screwdrivers for everything. As a matter of fact some forms of crystalline circuitry might not take well to sonics when you have the potential for harmonic resonances leading to unseen damages."
ReplyDeleteWell, to be fair, my tricorder prop was expensive, so I like to get use out of it when I can. XD
To Duncan Scott, I think the Thing has more in common with the Invaders from Shin Getter Robo Armageddon. Great episode, Linkara. You really capture the mood of the film quite well and also puts the "true companions" thing to the test.
ReplyDeleteTechnically, Snob owed your hologram a joke. ;) I got a chuckle out of it anyway.
ReplyDeleteOk, so someone wants to turn The Sentinels (Get it? They stand Atop Walls!) against eachother.
ReplyDeleteI DOUBT it's Todd.
It looked too..... Scheming..... To be a shade.
Entity is out, if it was Missingno he would have taken Linkara and the others by now.
Mechakara...... No. This is uncharacteristically subtle for him. He's more of a WANT MAGIC, BLARG BLARG BLARG!!!!, Kind of villain.
Vyce.... Maybe, he is living data now, he could have transmitted himself across space.
Nah, my bet is on something new, officially giving this arc the "Too Many Villains" Problem.
Love the review though! Can't wait til next week!
The Comic: Hmm, not any better than the first part. Agree with you on the shot with the sub.
ReplyDeleteYour Arc: I see I was right about things getting tense but I agree with another comment poster in that I'm not sure everybody's in their right mind right now after seeing that shadow figure. Otherwise, I found myself thinking 'who let 90's Kid near that phaser rifle?' Everytime he's gotten near something that shoots, well... Does the term 'Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy' ring any bells? Best case you have to recharge the thing's power cell.
Other: Brad's stuff. ... You know you're bored when... Still thought it was hilarious though.
Fiery Little One
I love you're Halloween story lines man, and this one was no exception. I have no idea what the thing (not meant to be a pun) at the end of the video was but it was creepy and well done. I had to pause your video and go check out that short story "The Things" and it was pretty good...and kind of disturbing, especially the final line. So far these reviews have been awesome, and I can't wait to see more!
ReplyDelete"I'm not an idiot! I am A MAN!" *shoots*
ReplyDeleteOf course I've got reminded to that... though it wouldn't have made much sense from 90's kid... and in THIS context. >.> ^^
Gotta love 90's kid! And the way you addressed the cellphone question - cracked me up. :D
I loved the part with all the accusations. I wonder what that shadow in the very end mean. Could neither of them actually be infected?
And what's up with the HUGE Mechakara hand? Yea, it's probably not story related, and is there to just look awesome... and it does!
what i wanna know is what are we gonna call the Freddy linkara ether Freddy Kara or linkruger what you guys think
ReplyDeleteYou know up until we saw the shadow move at the end of the storyline bit (and that was great by the way I didn't notice the shadow at all until the very end), I was almost 100% certain Linkara was the thing.
ReplyDeleteThe reason was the cellphone gag, we don't see the signal bars on Linkara's cellphone so the Thing could have realized it had made a mistake by using the cellphone and had to cover for itself by claiming to have no signal just after in case any of the other's in the apartment were paying attention to the review.
For this reason I'm still not sure that Linkara isn't compromised Shadow aside... the fact that Linkara was the last to succumb to the bickering would seem to at face value put him further above suspicion, unless the Thing is smart enough to use that very fact to deflect suspicion from itself... after all, Linkara only echoes doubts the others have presented, he's not making any fresh accusations on his own.
I think the Shadow is manipulating Linkara; and Linkara is the thing. And it's the cellophone gag that clinches it, it seems to be a very Lewis like thing to put the clue that gives it all away in the review itself.
The Shadow while no doubt involved, is a red herring to make us believe that all four people present are who they claim to be; that's my theory.
Part of the problem with the TV show would be that it would be really hard to figure out how the military would have any chance of stopping it. One insect, bird, dog, rat or person escaping would be enough to doom the world.
ReplyDeleteAlso we get to avoid the stereotypical 'Russian soldiers just are around to be treacherous and get killed'.
On the comic, the guns are even stranger. Ignoring the Antarctic Treaty, there really isn't a reason to have automatic (which is what those things sorta look like) weapons. Seriously, the labs in real life Antarctica get along fine without them.
And the hell was Cinema Snob doing at the end?
First off, I adore the fact that you pulled off the text from John Carpenter's "The Thing" perfectly well!
ReplyDeleteSecondly - great review.
The idea for the series sounds so awesome, I would have THROWN MONEY all day just to see this * ____ *
I loved when you said "The Thing figures out a way to get around the Blood test!" The face you make is so creepy! How do you make a cute smile become something horribly freaky, man?! D8
I loved the bit with the Cinema Snob and Linkara's realization that he could use his phone, only for it not to work when he tries to use it for something more useful than a joke. I guess we finally found out the answer to the age old question "Who you gonna call?!" The Cinema Snob, of course! Maybe Linkara should've just called CS again, see if it worked.
The joke about the Coolaid man was hilarious. Though, I honestly thing he should've said "OH NO!"
Then. The break cosplay.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! AAAAAAAAAAAAH! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! LEWIS KRUGER!!! FREDDY LOVEHAUG! LINKARA KRUGER! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!
(PS: I recently read the Freddy vs Jason vs Ash comic. It was glorious.)
I want that glove e w e;
Seriously?! When the hell did the THING get the time to become THE SARLAAK?! I am... so... confused. Screw you, comic D8<
How many bears did it eat?! D:
I am also very confused as to why they are letting the seal guy, aka. Walking Soldier Stereotype No. 9,001, go ahead and talk on the radio. He could give away what's happening and send people to collect the Thing!
... ooooooooor worse. Thing up and kill people, thus giving himself away.... This comic's stupid!
Thank you for using the Fuse box count. It made me feel less angry about the stupidity of WHAT HAPPENED!!!
Stupid submarine is stupid submarine of stupid submarineness! I love the look of the image, though.
The end of this comic.
It.... it pisses me the FUCK OFF!!! FUCK YOU COMIC! FUCK YOU!!!!!
Everyone blowing up on one another was a nice touch.
Can't wait for more!
Actually flamethrowers are something you'd find in an antarctic research facility, they're important for melting ice off of vehicles and the like as well as other some other things.
ReplyDeleteSo, just out of curiosity, you explained where Pollo is, we know Liz left a while ago, Munro is in his own universe at the moment if I reccall correctly, and I guess Snowflame doesn't count... So what about the Ninja and Boffo ?
ReplyDeleteGood you mentioned the tentacle grappling hook. This little details almost bothers me as much as the still intact spaceship in the prequel.
ReplyDeleteI mean seriously? If the Thing has such a fast and handy weapon at hand, why doesn't it solve ALL it's problems with a grappling tentacle to the chest Oo ?
Actually, I thought the USS Nautilus navigated under the Artic ice cap in 1958?
ReplyDeleteAlthough from Wikipedia, she never surfaced on that voyage.
I guess even with a double-hull and a conning tower, you wouldn't want to try punching a hole through any thickness of ice at the poles.
Power shortage, huh? Sounds like you need bio-nuclear technology ;)
Oh my god, I got legitimitly scared at the end, props! I almost let the water I was drinking flow out of my mouth from the suprise. That thing with the phone was also pretty smart and funny!
ReplyDeleteOn a side note: The hell was Brad doing in the end?XD I laughed pretty hard, but wut?
Thanks for the review. I've been really enjoying these Thing related comic reviews and the Long Box of the Damned segments this October.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if there would be a way to start a mail-in (or email/twitter) campaign to get SyFy to re-examine this TV miniseries idea. I think it would actually do really well for viewership and if it was actually done competently it would sell well on dvd/bluray.
A quick question for you, Linkara: When you start doing "A Quick Look At..." again, are you planning to do the Thing from Another World and the two Thing films? I know that many people online have talked about them before, but I would enjoy hearing your thoughts on them as well.
I like the art. I think I seen the same artist in other Dark Horse books before. Dark Horse really loves to do continuations of movies and tv series I noticed.
ReplyDeleteIs that me or the thing mini-serie sound a bit like Tremor tv show (also on Sci-fi)
ReplyDeleteOne of the way they had other creatures other than graboid around was that the small desert town (like in the thing mini-seri) used to be an experience site where they made this chemical that could crosses species together
"Actually, I thought the USS Nautilus navigated under the Artic ice cap in 1958?"
ReplyDeletePossibly, but remember - the arctic and the antarctic aren't the same thing.
Good show, as usual... this comic was just weird. Also, it took me a while to even remember the guy who turned out to be infected (I already forgot his name again <__<).
ReplyDeleteI liked the Krugerface.
Also, the shadow in the end. Frankly, that one creeped me out.
Here's some musings on the identity of shadow person.
ReplyDeleteI also don't think it's Todd. Mainly, this is because it isn't really in character for him, but there's another reason.
The outline doesn't look like him. The shadow hood is somewhat pointy at the top, and Todd's isn't. Also, the shadow hood bulges at the sides in a way that suggests the hood comes down over the top half of the wearer's face, which Todd's hood doesn't do.
In fact, to me, the outline looks much more like the style of hood worn by the Cloaks in Suburban Knights. This leads me to my newest theory: Cloak #1 (the one played by Last Angry Geek) is behind it all! Here are some reasons why:
1. Last Angry Geek has done crossovers with Lewis before, including one moderately recently.
2. We know he has some magicalish abilities that he could use create a scenario like this. In particular, Suburban Knights established that he has some degree of mind control power, at least over the "phenomenally weak minded." I don't think any character on this show fits that description (except maybe 90s Kid, but he's already been possessed once so I don't think he is right now). Then again, maybe Cloak 1's gotten better at mind control recently. Or he's using a variation on that power to make everyone paranoid without actually controlling them. Either way, this explanation has the advantage of being much easier to undo at the end than actual infection.
3. As for how he would have isolated the apartment so effectively... a few possibilities. He could have used his vaguely established powers. Or gotten help from someone like, say, Dr. Insano or the Gunslinger.
4. Motivation isn't too hard to imagine. We know Cloak 1 has a fairly mercenary personality, and is also a pretty comedic character. If he's behind it, he was either paid to do it by someone else, and/or his motivation will be silly and played for laughs.
My thoughts anyway.
The paranoia begins and the mysterious shadowy figure watches while team Linkara turns on each other. I think it's one of the cloaks or maybe the ghost of Malachite. I wouldn't be too surprised if he is actually working with the mysterious Gunslinger.
ReplyDeleteAfter hearing about the unproduced sequel miniseries to the Thing, I'm shocked they didn't make this. This could have been a great follow-up to the original movie -- especially since it's set in a remote town. Hell, I'd take the sequel miniseries than this lousy two-part comic sequel.
Say, are you going to do the other Thing from Another World comics?
"The thing isn't that fast"
ReplyDeleteThe thing may have been forming those tentacles during the other two blood test.
No signal? Ah, you must be using AT&T.
ReplyDeleteHmm. You know, the ending to this actually makes me think of what John Carpenter had ORIGINALLY planned for the ending to "The Thing". From what I read, he wanted the rescue team to come in, and for MacReady to prove he was human via a blood test. Y'know, to end on a more positive note. But then they went for the more ambiguous ending instead.
ReplyDeleteI still regard "The Thing" as quite possibly his most successful horror film because there's a real sense of accomplishment running through it all. No stupid ending that's a deliberate bit of sequel bait like Ghosts of Mars, nothing that makes everything the protagonist does pointless like in "Mouth of Madness", despite everything they go through, you feel...well...like the characters are really doing something.
You can't help but feel that everything they do serves to help bring real resolution. And besides, in the end, the Thing gets blown up. It's a more optimistic feeling you get, the sense that "we die knowing we did everything we could to stop you...and we die free". You don't get that in many suspense or horror movies lately, the sense that something was actually accomplished and the characters came out stronger for it. And I miss that. I'm not asking for a totally sunshine happy ending. Just one where they...break even, maybe.
perhaps stuff's not working because the system's flooded with with Tood and Lindsey's complaint mail?
ReplyDeletejust going on a hunch from the schedule... but is Spiderman about to fight the Thing?
I like the implication that at the end MacReady is infected, it's been established that The Thing can survive extreme cold, which is something that a person can't do and given that it's managed to infect others without ever coming anywhere near them MacReady being infected would make things wonderfully ambiguous again, but that's just my 2 cents
ReplyDeleteA fast moving ball, with many lengthy, flexible protrusions? The Thing is clearly Sonic the Hedgehog. To think, all this time Dr. Robotnik was keeping the world safe by testing all those animals...
ReplyDeleteSo would this be something new then or did the Shades get an upgrade while Vyce was out?
I will admit, you've made me interested in The Thing. I'll definitely follow up on your recommendation and see the movie.
ReplyDeleteI laughed at the penguin joke, even though they're my favorite animal. My other favorite joke was "Senor Sunglasses", and I liked your logic in why you could continue to call him that.
While Finevoice is ordinarily my favorite among the supporting cast, it was sad to see him be the one who was suspecting everyone else.
I did consider that this could the Entity's return before it was brought up, since you've mentioned that you would bring it back if you had a good enough story, and a story based on The Thing makes the most sense to use it.
Next week is the annual Clone Saga review. I'm really looking forward to that.
Holy crap the story Part was really good. I don´t think anyone if them is infected, if you want to go in that direction Linkara. I think the enemy is trying to get them fighting like they did at the end to have them mistrust and don´t help eachother.
ReplyDeleteMy guess for "The Thing", if someone is infected then i guess Ninja Style Dancer or Bapho (because we haven´t seen them in a while). Other than that it´s the Gunslinger or someone working for him otherwise it would be kind of stupid to bring someone new in or "reaktivate" an old foe like the entity or Vice.
Calling it now: it's Phantasm from the "Countdown: Part 2" and "Uncanny X-Men #424" reviews.
ReplyDeleteWhen you ask who'd watch the second before the first, you remind me of a comment on every second audio commentary: 'who'd watch the commentary before the show?'
ReplyDeleteI've never done that, but I've been the cause of it in others - they walk in when I'm halfway through a commentary, and I don't turn it off (would work with a part 2, too).
We knew there were month-long nights at the poles in the 80s... but they don't happen year round.
That's a metal original Freddy glove! Not from the remake!
We wants it!
The one problem with the submarine idea is that it doesn't isolate the Thing quite enough.
Fish.
A spaceship, though...
"That's a metal original Freddy glove! Not from the remake!
ReplyDeleteWe wants it!"
It's not metal, just a good plastic replica from several years back. ^_^ I went as the good Mr. Krueger for Halloween my final year of high school. Although I admit I never got the glove in time for Halloween, so I constructed my own out of a work glove, cardboard, and duct tape.
""That's a metal original Freddy glove! Not from the remake!
ReplyDeleteWe wants it!"
It's not metal, just a good plastic replica from several years back. ^_^ I went as the good Mr. Krueger for Halloween my final year of high school. Although I admit I never got the glove in time for Halloween, so I constructed my own out of a work glove, cardboard, and duct tape."
You can still buy those for like $10-15 dollars at Halloween/Party supply stores or even eBay! I got one like 2-3 years ago for half price after Halloween at a local Party-N-Things store!
"It's not metal, just a good plastic replica from several years back. ^_^"
ReplyDeleteNo, it's a GREAT plastic replica - I can't even tell, on video.
Sounds like a really good costume, too.
I've checked eBay, and I can get myself a metal 'original', even here in Oz. (I do have a remake one, because I can)... just got to get the money together.
And then a jumper. So I can walk around dressed like Freddy.
Or Kurt Cobain.
Missed opportunity: The comics has a typo at 12:33. "And if refuse?"
ReplyDeleteI actually managed to find the screenplay to Return of the Thing online. Ironically, the second half of it could conceivably be described as "action horror", although the Thing is nowhere near as fast as here, and often times ends up using conventional weaponry in disguise. The ending's quite the downer, though. Still, I had fun with it, and encourage as many people as possible to look for it.
ReplyDeleteHey, Linkara, great review. Just a little nitpick, though, a "Factoid" is not a "small, little, neat fact", but a "questionable or spurious (unverified, false, or fabricated) statement presented as a fact, but with no veracity" (quoting Wikipedia here). It's not a big deal, though, so many people use this word in the "wrong" sense, I wouldn't be surprised if the definition soon changes - language is funny like that.
ReplyDeleteAwesome episode, but here's a little nitpick: I think that insetead of señor sunglasses, it should be don sunglasses, seeing as the charachter is from Argentina (but señor is still allright, and I have also heard that don is not being used as much anymore, so IDEK)
ReplyDeleteThank god the Soviets didn't go the stupid movie villain trope and continue their plan to make it a weapon EVEN AFTER they discovered it was intelligent and would NOT be controllable.
ReplyDeleteOooo, that's another wonderful cause of tension--the American/Russian tension. Although if ALL the characters upheld the Cold War tensions, it'd be similarly, painfully old-fashioned and stereotypical. Just like the gun-happy military role.
Man, some of those concept works are REALLY UNNERVING. And as for the blood test work-around... *SHRIEKING*
Man, we need to set up a jump-starter fund collection for that series. Either that or they could sell it to STARS or HBO.
Well, MacReady MIGHT have been irate with the whole "congrats, you're clean" comment because being clean is barely any better than being infected when they're still in the Antarctic and with so many people to test and so much Thing still left to be burned.
I suppose the Thing MIGHT have learned by now that the blood test was dangerous and, since its host was unconscious, had no way to avoid it. Still, that was a big risk the Thing took, revealing itself whilst surrounded by so many people who could eliminate it so easily.
They would've had to change how they depicted the passage of time, but the story taking place in eternal day or night would've been AWESOME. Have you heard of how some people get driven mad by the unending day? That would've added even ANOTHER freaky aspect to it!
You know what would've been a better secondary plot for a sequel; better than the military trying to weaponize it? Scientists trying their best to study it--the Thing can replicate any tissue faster than anything on Earth! Could they have figured out how to render it inactive safely, they could've created something even better than stem cells! That's one thing I liked about Deep Blue Sea--that there was a semi-understandable reason why the sharks were super smart: they were trying to cure Alzheimer's and were testing on the sharks' genetically-enhanced brains. It makes the plot a little more tragic--that they must abandon this possible cure for numerous ails to save humanity in general, who will have to endure those ails for who knows how many years because of it.
Gotta admit, I had my doubts about you doing your homage to The Thing last episode, but the distrust from being trapped and wondering why really pulled it off. Also thanks for introducing me to that movie's main theme.
ReplyDelete