So much more than the sum of its parts...
I just came across this series a while ago, expecting it to be "just another sprite battle." Instead, I was surprised to find a fun and original story, that only grew more complex as the episodes passed. I was instantly addicted, and I lost about a week's worth of my free time just catching up with the series on NG.
Needless to say, 073.2 is wasily the best episode yet. The animation, voices and story keep getting better. I'd immagine it keeps on imrpoving throughout 2007 as Kirbopher and the other contributors continue to hone their skills, but I haven't seen the newer episodes yet. (I don't dare google this series, for fear that I'll lose another week of my life! I'll just digest the new epsiodes as they show up one by one on NG, thank you.)
For the rest of this review, I'll not only be reviewing this episode, but also the series as a whole.
Art & Animation: What began as a series of recolored sprite rips has grown into so much more. Even compared to the other "movie" episodes, this ep. stands out as another step forward. Pixelly line art has given way to anime-influenced vectors and chunky motion tweens. He still has a way to go before anyone will be comparing this series to Bitey, but he gets closer every time he does a toon segment. The simple pixel fight sequences featured in the rest of the series are great, too, and they keep getting better over time.
Style, Theme, and Concept: This is where this series scores big. Kirbopher has taken the concept of VR and run with it. To be honest, I'm not sure how much of the credit to give the marshmallow himself... he's probably gotten one character design each from a ton of his friends, and they all seem to have created their character by modifying a classic video game sprite. Nevertheless, the differences vastly outweigh the simmilarities, and with each redesign the characters become a bit more original. More to the point, the world of TOME is vast and complex, yet familiar. Somehow he creates the illusion that these recycled game graphics really are part of an MMO, and the backgrounds evolve as the characters do, with a fresh coat of paint every season. (Except perhaps for :purplecave. But hey, the simplicity is almost a hallmark of the region by now.)
Story: What was once a simplistic BDZ ripoff has blown through an anime phase, an afterschool special phase, and with this episode touches on new emotional territory... Hope. You don't get a lot of emotional stuff on NG or on the internet in general, and the last place I expected to shed a tear was on the MMO Battle Sequence Show. But it's there, and it's well-executed. I wholeheartedly support this type of writing! Placing it at the end of the episode as a quick, poignant twist was probably a good idea, as it can quickly become sappy and annoying if the writers drag it out.
Having played Second Life, I can tell you that a real MMO that allows the user full creativity would NEVER end up as something this interesting, this colorful, or this fun. Instead you'd see all the male characters looking like professional wrestlers and all the female characters looking like barbiedolls, ugly malls and casinos covering the entire landscape, everyone complaining about the lag, real creativity being stifled by peer pressure and stamped out by capitalism, fears of crossplaying (which were briefly touched upon, way back in Ep. 1) Premium Membership tolls, and of course, trolling, griefing, spamming, and flame wars.
I can only assume that for the same of telling an optimistic story about a utopian MMO VR game of the future, Kirbopher has chosen to rule that Motherboard, the Netkings, and the Moderators have delt with all of these issues. But if Motherboard is truly joined with the minds of all logged-in users, based on what I've seen in Second Life, you'd think she'd be a LOT nastier and more corrupted by the thoughts of her user-base than by any virus. But of course, that's Kirbopher's call, as author. My job is to suspend my disbelief, and enjoy. :)
Overall: Great show. More please! :)