Made-up Real Things

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Revision as of 02:32, 7 December 2024

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"Wait, is Senor Cardgage real?!"

From the Decomposing Pumpkins FeedBurner description:

STRONG BAD: I kinda black out a lot lately and when I wake up sometimes things I made up in my brain come to life. I practically pee my pants every time a Cheat Commandos comes on.

In the continuity of the Homestar Runner universe, it's often unclear if things genuinely exist or are merely make-believe. Occasionally, something that is clearly made up later appears as a real thing, typically without any particular reason or cause. While a fair number of these instances have been fruits of Strong Bad's imagination, the other residents of Free Country, USA have periodically created something in their heads that mysteriously becomes real later on. Whether or not the inventors of these mind-bending, reality-defying creatures and creations had anything to do with them or if they had existed before their alleged conception is never revealed nor explained for the most part. This bizarre, blurred line between fantasy and reality remains one of the great inexplicable mysteries in the Homestar Runner universe.

Appearances

• The Goblin and the Gremlin were made up (by Homestar Runner and Bubs respectively) in Homestarloween Party. They became real in Where's The Cheat?.
  • Similarly, Strong Bad made up the Visor Robot in the aforementioned Halloween toon. It became real in Senor Mortgage.
  • Strong Sad made up The Sad Kids. They later became regulars in commercials for Fluffy Puff Marshmallows.
• When Strong Bad listed Limozeen and Taranchula in band names, it was implied that he was making them up on the spot (indeed, that's what The Brothers Chaps were doing), not listing bands that already existed in the Homestar Runner universe.
• Crazy Go Nuts University was a school Strong Bad invented and made a fake diploma for. It now has its own sports team and mascot. Its campus was first shown in bike thief. Students were heard attending orientation in On Break. However, in Fan Costumes '08, Strong Bad implies that the university is indeed made-up.
• Litigation Jackson was a movie character featured in an eponymous film in A Decemberween Pageant and in a sequel, Legal Rampage, in rampage. In Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 17.2, he calls up Marzipan claiming to be the attorney prosecuting Coach Z and suggests Marzipan would make a useful witness in the case.
• Biscuitdoughhandsman started out as a police sketch drawn by Bubs and named by Coach Z when misrepresenting The King of Town's description of Strong Bad as a criminal perpetrator. He eventually licensed his likeness on paper towel rolls in licensed, and Coach Z supposedly found his "severed hand" in an Easter egg in myths and legends.
• Stinkoman from 20X6 was originally made up by Strong Bad to describe himself as a Japanese cartoon. Stinkoman makes an appearance in Free Country, USA in the Halloween cartoon 3 Times Halloween Funjob. 20X6 was shown to be real in the email time capsule.
• Trogdor was drawn by Strong Bad in the email dragon. He later became the title character of a real video game, TROGDOR!, as seen in Arcade Game. Trogdor became a real creature when he appeared outside Strong Bad's window in Trogday 08.
• Sweet Cuppin' Cakes was made up by Strong Bad in response to an email asking him to create a crazy cartoon. Later, Homestar Runner and Strong Bad are seen watching an episode of it on TV. Unlike other instances of this phenomenon, Strong Bad actually notices, and asks "didn't I invent this cartoon?". The Sweet Cuppin' Cakes characters and Sweet Cuppin' Cakes Land became real in mini-golf.
• Senor Cardgage was Strong Bad's description in kind of cool of what he would be if he wasn't cool and handsome until Strong Sad compares it to a creepy neighbor the brothers have. Senor Cardgage shows up in person in Easter eggs in that email and flashback, eventually first appearing during the plot of a toon in Senor Mortgage.
  • The TV Time Toons Menu description for Senor Mortgage originally read: "Wait, is Senor Cardgage real?!"
• In army, The Cheat dressed up as Firebert, an identity he most likely made up. Firebert later appears as one of the Cheat Commandos, an actual television show in Free Country, USA.
• Vector Strong Bad was made up by Strong Bad for the game StrongBadZone, but became real in Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 10.2.
• Li'l Brudder and Tendafoot were drawn by Strong Bad, but starred in a TV show in The Li'l Brudder Show.
• The Wagon Fulla Pancakes was made up by Strong Bad in the email montage. It later appeared in Senorial Day.
• When introduced in animal, the Lappy 486 was referred to as a male. In dreamail, Strong Bad imagined the Lappy as female, and the Lappy has stayed female in every appearance afterward.
• Da Huuuuuudge and Sterrance were both made up by Strong Bad in animal but became real in alternate universe.
• Jurvy-Skat was a hypothetical board game inspired by Pom Pom's hypothetical family in Family Resemblence. In the Trogdor!! The Board Game video, it appears as an actual Boardelectrix product.
• Saddy Dumpington was originally a folk hero that Strong Sad claimed to have made up in Strong Sad's Lament and A Folky Tale. Saddy appears on a television show in Toikey TV.
• Strong Bad made up Brainkrieg in death metal to illustrate how not to write lyrics. The band later made three reappearances in Teen Girl Squad-style toons, but in the October 19, 2009 FeedBurner entry, Strong Bad implies that the band is real.
• The SBLOUNSKCHED! bar originally appeared in candy product as Strong Bad's hypothetical candy bar. Pom Pom later pulls out a bag of Fun-Sized versions of said candy bar in Most in the Graveyard.
• she likes cloth was a band Strong Bad made up in Teen Girl Squad Issue 12. It became real in email independent, where the band for Pom Pom's indie film, city (comma) state, was called "she likes cloth".
• Blubb-O's was first mentioned in the DVD commentary for Drive-Thru, when Strong Bad tried to guess what restaurant the Drive-Thru Whale has connections with. Its evolution into a real restaurant was briefly mentioned in nightlife later.
• Dartmouth and Stink's Reach started as hypothetical TV shows in underlings before apparently becoming a real super hero show and mystery drama respectively in the Easter egg. Additionally, Stink's Reach appears as an apparently real part of the Strong Badian Empire, as shown on the Maps and Minions board.
• Onion Bubs was first mentioned in original as being a stand-in for the departed Original Bubs, though both Bubs and Marzipan indicate Strong Bad made the whole story up. Nevertheless, Onion Bubs shows up again in Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective.
• Strong Bad invents The Pizz as a front to meet college girls, and is flabbergasted to discover that his ruse has become real within a matter of minutes during pizza joint.
• Coffee Town with Homestar + Mike was originally the subject of a series of fake thumbnails on YouTube before a real episode was broadcast live on Instagram. Puppet Homestar himself is confused that the show is real and that they have apparently done 85 episodes before.
• Humidibot was originally a character invented on the spur of the moment by Strong Bad to mock fans dressing up in highly inaccurate costumes during Fan Costumes 2015. In Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 17.2, he calls up Marzipan.
• Anew App appeared as an incidental background character in several illustrations of Decemberweenvent Calendar, only to be revealed on Decemberweeve as a new character by Homestar Runner to Strong Bad's confusion and chagrin. Strong Bad even questions how it's possible, only for Homestar to brush off questioning the magic of Decemberween.
• The Fighting Growlbacks first appear as the name for the school sports teams in Teen Girl Squad Issue 4, but their logo appears on real baseball caps in Fanstume [singular] '24 with Strong Bad holding two of them.

See Also

• Firsts
• Allegedly Real Things
• Strong Bad Email Spin-offs