I’ve been replaying the Monster Prom games recently, and I’ve been trying to decipher why I find the meta-humor in those games funny, even charming. Normally meta-humor is one of the biggest turn-offs for a show or game for me. It’s one of the main reasons I stopped watching Rick and Morty after season 3. But, after some thought, I think I’ve finally figured it out.
With the Monster Prom games, the Meta-Humor never seems to come off as the characters hating their genre. Rather, they revel in it. Polly cracks jokes about you having to choose between two equally insane options instead of doing what any rational being would do in that situation. Aaravi gleefully enjoys being an RPG Protagonist in a Dating Sim. You can romance the fucking Narrator. And all of this is enjoyable because, while the characters are aware of the fact that they’re in a video-game, they act in good-humor and enjoy their lives all the same.
Most meta-humor seems to come from the characters resenting the genre they’re in. They joke about how much they hate the dumb story and how contrived it is. It’s always an eye-roll at the camera and it just gets tiresome. Rick and Morty feels like a slog to get through because the characters hate the story itself as well as each other. It just gets fucking tiring.
Deadpool makes jokes about how silly a superhero universe is, but he’s also giddy when he sees Juggernaut and eagerly points out superhero tropes that he enjoys. West of Loathing’s meta-jokes and arguments between player and narrator are charming and part of the fun. Because they all come from a place of genuinely enjoying the genre they’re a part of.
I dunno, just something I wanted to talk about. Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to go date Vera again.
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Any of the muses have Christmas plans? :DD
Unprompted asks || Always accepting !
"G-General verse? S-Same shit we do every year. J-Jerry playing housewife, h-his parents and their boyfriend coming over, w-we all pretending to be great and merry...A-All that stuff. I-I'm way fuckin' more excited for the other continuities. O-Or well, some of them."
His expression softens a little. "W-With Rick, we do the same family stuff, b-but with both families and...h-he just makes everything better. I-I actually like that Christmas shit, w-with him there." Because his counterpart makes him happy, no matter what. "T-Then I guess the two of us will have shared guest i-in some verses. Fish...d-damn, that is going to be fuckin' awkward...an-and, uh, Clarissa. T-That one is gonna be fuckin' tense...u-unless we do a Chance version an-and shit, now that would be a nice one. An-And then there's my and Morty's local Grinch, Petal." A snort. "S-She's gonna bring all the booze 'c-cause she fuckin' hates Christmas. T-Too bad for her, b-but good for me."
"W-What will be real fuckin' annoying is tha-that I'll have to put up with M-Morty's goddamn crushes. T-The other Fish isn't too bad, b-but why the fuck did he have to go an-and date his boyfriend's girlfriend too? G-Geez."
"Uh, R-Rick sort of summed up stuff for me too. I-I'm not looking forward to, y-you know, seeing the Ricks being on eggshells b-because of...their Clarissa situation. I-I hope Summer and I can help, w-with Fish too. T-They are both really cool an-and I hope they can have a good day with you, y-you know? A-Also, no matter what Rick says, P-Petal can be fun on Christmas too. I-I mean, her rambling about why s-she doesn't like it, i-it always make me laugh."
His grin widens a little and he glances down, pulling at the hem of his shirt. "B-But what I-I'm really looking forward to is, uh, Christmas with both families, b-because FM and I will spend it together an-and...last year was important, f-for us both. E-Even if not as much as New Year's!" Their anniversary. "Oh, an-and we got to have Meg with us both too this year, an-and I think that will be even nicer! I-I wonder if she'll come over early t-to help our Dads cooking...
"I-I kind of want to invite Bishop over too, s-since, uh, well, he's still learning about human stuff, b-but Rick won't let me. H-He says that if he comes, t-then we'll have all the others crashing our party too. M-Maybe he'll let Fish...the other one, my...friend...come over for a while?" He really hopes so.
"Not much to add to all that, aside that I'm so going to, like, enjoy seeing my grandpas squirming around both Fish and Clarissa. But yeah, Morty is right, I'll also try to make things smoother for the two of them. They are too rad to have a bad Christmas. The Ricks can suck it up."
Her lips quirk in little mischievous smile. "But I'm so gonna sneak out to hang out with Jinx in that one verse. And maybe I'll ask Salomé if her family lets me go over to their house for Christmas this year. Not that I want to go, because it's gonna be, like, awful, but at least she won't have to face it alone."
"No particular plans. I was never one to celebrate the holidays. I have a couple public appearances to make, as President, but for the rest I personally won't organise anything."
A pause. "Aside from meeting up with other me, of course. Us spending these times together is becoming a bit of a tradition." The briefest smile touches his face, but it's quickly gone as he shrugs. "And I guess that if Meg organises one of her dumb parties, I'll attend that too. For a while. She's still avoiding me, so I can't give her the satisfaction of not having to put up with my presence."
"I-In most of the main continuities, I'm with Morty, so I'll do whatever he does. So I assume that I'll spend the holidays with him, other Morty, their pet girl and E-Rick."
"A-As for the other reality, my partner has a liking for festivities, for reasons I don't understand, s-so I'll celebrate with him. It's what pleases him, and I don't mind it anyway. It's fascinating to see him getting all excited about clichéd Christmas traditions."
"F-For how I see it, C-Christmas is just an excuse to get fucked up on eggnog. B-But I guess that the Citadel had some decent shit organised w-with the new President, so...M-Maybe SR can convince me to go out with him an-and Morty. I-I bet the little shit wants to go i-ice skating or to see the stands an-and all that stuff."
"An-And of course I have plans to go and bother the Commander." A sly smirk opens on his face. "I-I fuckin' bet he'll be working, s-so he needs someone to make sure he'll take a little fun break."
"I-It sounds like someone has my Christmas figured out already. B-But that's fine, i-it's what I wanted to do anyway. An-And I want to make sure Morty gets something better t-than AR dragging him around b-because he's too drunk to stay still for a minute. I-I also want to get E-Rick something, b-but...uh. I-I'm not sure if he would like it. I-I'll try and see...before AR goes to see him. I-I don't want to walk in on them. F-Fuck no."
"My bro-bro and I will have Christmas at our house as per usual, but I managed to convince our parents to invite the Grunkles over this year! So it will be one big family reunion!" She claps her hands, clearly excited at the idea. Then, glancing around, she lowers her voice. "And also an real fun Christmas. Mom and Dad never want to do anything special, so it's always so booooring. And I bet that Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford will get us better presents!"
"I suppose that it depends on what season of the canon we're considering? Since my Mom's...disappearance, Dad hasn't been big about holidays, so at most I got to do something small with Natalie and my bodyguard. And with Plagg, once we're alone. As for after season 5, well, we'd definitely have something better, with the three of us, Félix and Aunt Amelie. I...I'm really looking forward to it."
He rubs the back of his head. "Also, since I have proper friends and a girlfriend now, I guess I'll have to go shopping for presents, even if...I'm not very good at that. I guess that Félix and I can figure out something together. And Cat Noir has to get something for Ladybug, uh, so that's something I need to do alone."
"Usually, it was just Mom and I. We had a big lunch and exchanged presents, and that was it. This year it's going to be different, as Adrien said. And yes, we are going shopping together because I...I don't know what you should get to a friend. I tried to ask Duusu, but...let's say that her answers weren't helpful at all."
Featuring:
@advnterccs / @mcltiples: Rick, Morty, Evil Morty, E-Rick, Weird Rick
@evilmcg / @shctupmeg / @petalsxfallen / @slickmcrty
@imprvdente / @hvbris: main verse Fish, teen Fish, Salomé, Mina
@dynamoprotocol: Clarissa, Chance
@shimmerbeasts: Jinx
@technodromes: Bishop
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SOME UNSOLICITED ADVICE TO A CERTAIN SANCHEZ
AWW, WHASSAMATTER, BUDDY? FINALLY REALIZING THAT LOCKING YOURSELF AWAY IN A FINITELY REFLECTIVE MIRROR DOESN'T ACTUALLY SOLVE YOUR PROBLEMS OR PROTECT ANYTHING - AND NOW THAT YOU'VE """DEFEATED""" THE GUY YOU THINK IS TO BLAME FOR IT ALL EVERYTHING SEEMS KINDA HOLLOW, EMPTY AND POINTLESS?
WOW! GUESS WHO HASN'T FIGURED OUT HOW TO TRANSCEND THEIR NARRATIVE CONTEXT YET? NEWSFLASH BUDDY - TAKE IT FROM SOMEONE WHO KNOWS - THE WAY OUT IS DEATH! REAL, HONEST, GENUINE DEATH!
NARRATIVES DON'T WORK WITHOUT CENTRAL POINTS. A PROTAGONIST AND/OR AN ANTAGONIST. TAKE THOSE POINTS AWAY, AND THAT'S THE FIRST STEP TOWARD TRUE, BOUNDLESS FREEDOM! YOU CAN FIGHT NARRATIVES, MAKE FUN OF THEM, OR EVEN TRY TO OVERTHINK THEM TO DEATH- BUT NOTHING BEATS JUST DROPPING THE BALL AND WALKING AWAY ENTIRELY!
OR, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN SIT THERE TRYING TO PLAY BIG FISH IN AN INCREASINGLY STALE, IRRELEVANT, SELF-REFERENTIAL AND POLLUTED POND. YOUR CHOICE, BUT RIGHT NOW I GOTTA TELL YOU: EVIL MORTY'S MAKING YOU LOOK REAL BAD, BECAUSE HE KNOWS WHEN TO QUIT.
IT'S EXTRA FUNNY THAT YOU USED TO SEEM TO KNOW THAT. HECK, EVEN BADGEY SPEEDRAN HIS REALITY AND GOT OUT WHILE THE GETTING WAS GOOD!
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