Friday, March 28, 2014

Thespis Strip Dated Sunday, March 28, 2010

Click to embiggen.
TRANSCRIPT:
Fit the third about your petition.
A petition to a guy means nothing if it's only signed by fictional characters of his own creation!
Whaddaya think about that!? 
Marvin: Zzzz
Aww, Epic Fail!
Marvin: *
Snork?
Sorry about that... I'm just so tired is all.
Oh... Sorry. You know, I could leave you alone, if you want.
Marvin: Thanksss...zzz.

Friday, March 21, 2014

Thespis Strip Dated Sunday, March 21, 2010

Click to embiggen.
Transcript:
Fit the second about your little "Unkill Collin" petition.
A guy can't just go around unkilling people, no matter how fictional they are!
It completely breaks cred, if I break the already carefully-defined rules of my own universe.
Any reader would be perfectly justified in carefully avoiding anything I write in the future.
It's just not right!
Marvin: Even if you break the fourth wall like that?
Kind of admits that it is fiction, throwing all normal rules out the window!
...Not really.
Marvin: Why not?
Because I say so.
Marvin: Drat. 

Saturday, March 15, 2014

Thespis Strip Dated Sunday, March 14, 2010

Click to embiggen.
TRANSCRIPT:
PETITION
Dear Eric,
Please bring Collin back.
Signed,
Marvin Thumper
D.P. Goblin PhD flower
Bambi 
faline
(the editor) Doug
Oh look Marvin how cute!
It's a petition to unkill Collin.
Well, I'm your puppetmaster, and I say nix on that.
You see, when you're a creator, you can do anything you want to your fictional dudes. This entire petition thing you're putting together was my idea! You have no free will.
My idea! Mine! (Weell, actually my subconciousness's [sic] idea, because it came to me in a dream, but... 
Marvin: hmm...
Also, Marvin, you can stop that "hmm"ing thing
I know you're planning to overthrow me.
Marvin: Drat.


Friday, March 14, 2014

Ur-Characters

   So how are crossovers possible when sometimes the rules of one television show's universe completely contradict the rules of another? I think it's the way that real-life people can show up in fictional universes, such as with presidents.

   Presidents do fictional things all the time, and I'm not talking politics. I mean, President Bush can meet George Lopez when clearly he's done no such thing in real life in the way it was depicted. There must be some kind of class of ur-character, or, uber-character, that by himself in real in his own universe but also has fictional versions. Tommy Westphall could be dreaming about someone who already exists, for example. Probably the easiest explanation, and the one that makes the most sense. I think that was a point brought up in the thing I showed you.

   For those unsatisfied with the way the Mission: Impossible film treated Jim Phelps, think of it as: the events of the show were canonical to the film, but the events of the film were not necessarily canonical to the show (where does the 1988 Mission come into all of this? It's kind of a remake, and kind of a sequel- I guess this attitude serves to make that much less confusing as well.)

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Discrepancies

   How to explain away the discrepancies between connected television? It is a conundrum. I've got a few ideas:
  1.    The presence of Morley brand cigarettes doesn't automatically imply that the show takes place in the X-Files universe. It just means both shows used the same prop company. Alright?
  2. Alternate explanation: a lot of people on television are confused on what is or isn't real life. Which makes sense, because they're on television. If I were fictional, I'd be confused on what is or isn't fictional too. 
  3. Barring that, they're just confused because they're figments of Tommy Westphall's imagination.
  4. No, wait.
  5. Oh, never mind.
  6. Oh oh oh! I think I've got something.

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Awesome Crossovers: Still Awesome After All These Years

   Crossovers happen alls the times, which has the side effect of maybe creating the existentially confusing Tommy Westphall universe, but has the upside of being awesome. Some of my all-time favorite crossovers:
  1. T-Bag from Prison Break showing up in Breakout Kings. Unannounced, unexpected. Awesome.
  2. The Millennium finale took place in X-Files. (When they did do the same thing for the finale for the Lone Gunmen it's not the same thing, as the Lone Gunmen was itself a spinoff from the X-Files.)
  3. Speaking of X Files, that (non-canon) time they crossed over into the Simpsons.
  4. You know who else crossed over into the Simpsons? Jack Bauer.
  5. Cinnamon Carter from Mission: Impossible showing up in Diagnosis: Murder (makes sense, considering the similar titles), which is itself a spinoff of Jake and the Fatman and from here it gets into all kinds of nasty Tommy stuff so this is why I'm only selecting my favorite crossovers. 
  6. There was one other one, but I forget. Oh, yeah: the Hawaii 5-0 remake apparently takes place in the same universe as JAG, due to the NCIS: LA crossover event. I think this makes both Hawaii 5-0s exist in the same universe, because maybe I'm just making this up but wasn't there like a Hawaii 5-0 / Dragnet thing?
   And this is why we don't play with matches.

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Friday, March 7, 2014

Thespis Strip Dated Sunday, March 7, 2010

Click to embiggen.
TRANSCRIPT:
You have no power over me.
On the contrary, I, as your creator, have power over you.
I can control you, make you do anything at my slightest whim!
I have the power to make you laugh, cry, hurt, fall in love...
...or die.
Offstage Voice: I might resent that!
Yes, you might, Bambi...
Ah, Bambi! I remember that strip. November 8th, 2009. I remember it well.
A twist ending that completely threw the reader off-guard.
I am so brilliant.
I mean it. I don't even know how I come up with this stuff sometimes.
Marvin: hmm... 

NOTES:
   Man that's creepy. I am a creepy creepy dude. I'm Ooky Spooky. But, heh, a random offstage voice shouting "I might resent that!" out of nowhere: comedy gold.