Homestar Runner Wiki - User contributions [en]

Bug In Mouth Disease

68.62.23.4 — Tue, 24 May 2005 00:20:55 GMT

68.62.23.4: /* External Links */

Homestar swallows a bug and fears the end of the good times. Strong Bad is taped to the TV. Strong Sad searches for "the blue ones".

[[Image:Bug_in_mouth.PNG|thumb|The good times are over!]]

'''Cast (in order of appearance):''' {{Film|Strong Sad}}, {{Film|Strong Bad}}, {{Film|Homestar Runner}}, {{Film|The King of Town}}, {{Film|Pom Pom}}, {{Film|Bubs}}, [[The Bug]]

'''Places:''' [[Strong Bad's Basement]], [[The Field]], [[Bubs' Concession Stand]]

'''Date:''' May 9, 2005

'''Running Time:''' 5:10

'''Page Title:''' Don't...kill...bugs.

==Transcript==

''{In the basement, Strong Sad is watching TV.}''

'''TV VOICE''': And that's why come Shakespeare was so awesome.

'''STRONG SAD:''' Oh! I see now.

''(Strong Bad enters.)''

'''STRONG BAD:''' Hey, Dairy Queen.

'''STRONG SAD:''' I already told you, I don't want to be called that any more! I made a mistake!

'''STRONG BAD:''' Oh, sorry, Dairy Queen. Anyways, look. I just thought you should know that all your underwears somehow ended up individually priced and labelled in an online auction.

'''STRONG SAD:''' ''{gets up, runs out of the room}'' Nobody buy the blue ones!

'''STRONG BAD:''' That was too easy. Now to settle down for the 24-hour Caleb Rentpayer marathon! ''{Changes channel}''

'''TUCKSWORTH:''' Caleb, are you making a little tent out of my jacket?

'''CALEB:''' I am now.

'''STRONG BAD:''' Yeah, you make that little tent, Caleb! He's not the boss of you!

''{Cut to the field. Homestar is running along. Cue music beat.}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' ''{singing approximately to the tune of the Homestar Runner Theme Song}'' Hooomestaaar is running. Along. Hooomestaaa– ''{A record scratches as he suddenly stops and starts coughing/spitting profusely.}'' Agh! I swallowed a bug! Bug swallow! Bug swallow! What do I do? What do I do? ''{composes himself}'' Okay, okay, calm down. Calm... down. Remember health class. A-hem. ''(goes down on one knee, speaks slowly and deliberately}'' Sir or madam, are you all right? Do you need medical resistance? ''{anguished}'' Oh, it's not working! The good times are over! ''{runs off}''

''{Cut to another part of the field, where the King of Town and Pom Pom are eating chocolate ice cream bars.}''

'''KING OF TOWN:''' I keep telling him the sun don't rise and set on that pile of whatsit, but he don't want to listen!

''{Homestar runs in.}''

'''POM POM:''' ''{greeting bubbling noises}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Pom Pom! Santa! I think I swallowed a bug! ''{kneels down in front of the King of Town}'' The good times are over! You gotta help me out! I could die!

'''KING OF TOWN:''' Well, what do you want we should do?

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Give me them dang ice creams! ''{grabs the ice cream bars}'' We'll freeze 'em out! ''{scarfs them}''

'''KING OF TOWN:''' Hey! That stuff's prescription!

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' ''{sobs}'' It deliciously didn't work! ''{pokes Pom Pom with the one of the leftover sticks and Pom Pom narrows his eyes at Homestar, annoyed}'' Agh! ''(runs off}''

''{Cut to the basement, where Strong Bad is still watching TV.}''

'''CALEB:''' You throw like a girl, Tucksworth.

'''TUCKSWORTH:''' Caleb, that suitcase was heavy.

''{Strong Sad enters.}''

'''STRONG SAD:''' What online auction? I can't find anything. I even did an image search for "the blue ones" and got nothing. Or… nothing pleasant, anyway.

'''STRONG BAD:''' Well, keep searching. Try putting stuff in quotes or something. Or use "and" and "or". Oh yeah, "and" go away.

'''STRONG SAD:''' Oh, Boolean operators! "Blue ''and'' ones"! Good idea! ''{walks off}''

''{Cut to Bubs' concession stand. Bubs is burning an envelope labelled "EXHIBIT A" with a lighter.}'' 

'''BUBS:''' This is just fine!

''{Homestar runs in and Bubs drops the lighter and throws away the envelope.}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Bubs, you're a doctor, right? I think a bug flew into the side of my mouth. I'm afraid the good times are over!

'''BUBS:''' A doctor, eh? I think I might be one of those. Let me take a look. ''{examines a wad of his business cards}'' Whadda we got here? Bail bondsman, paranormal investigator, normal investigator… Oh, here we go! "Dr." Bubs! Let's take a look atcha.

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Aaaaah. ''{opens mouth}''

'''BUBS:''' Hmm… ''{peers inside; Homestar gurgles}'' Okay… ''{Homestar gurgles again}'' Curious, yes. ''{Homestar gurgles once more}'' Interesting. ''{Homestar makes a noise}'' I've got terrible, terrible news, Homestar.

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Oh no! Is it about the good times?

'''BUBS:''' I'm afraid you've got no pancreas. ''{Homestar looks annoyed}'' But I do happen to have a fresh one for sale right here! ''{picks up a cooler labelled "EXHIBIT B" and places it on the counter}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Bubs, are you an unethical quack?

'''BUBS:''' The most quackinest!

''{Cut to the basement, where Strong Bad is watching TV with a fork in his hand and a skillet in his lap.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{imitating Tucksworth}'' Strong Caleb, did you make the best omelette ever during the commercial break? ''{imitating Caleb}'' I sure did.

''{Homestar runs in.}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Strong Bad! I think I –

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''(silencing him}'' A-na-ma! Not today, McDorkle.

''{Homestar leaves then jumps in from the other side.}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Strong Bad! I think a bug might have –

'''STRONG BAD:''' Can't you see Grandma's watching her stories?

''{Homestar leaves.}''

'''TUCKSWORTH:''' Why aren't you breathing, Caleb?

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' ''{pops up from behind the couch}'' Strong Bad – ''{Strong Bad hits him with his skillet}'' Ugh. ''{falls down}''

'''ANNOUNCER:''' And coming up next on ''Caleb Rentpayer'', find out ''whom'' shot Caleb.

'''STRONG BAD:''' "Who shot Caleb?" Oh, there's no way I'm missing that one. NO WAY.

''{Fade to black. Some time later, Homestar emerges from behind the couch. Couch is empty.}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' ''{yawns}'' That was a great skillet nap! Thanks, Strong Bad. Strong Bad?

''{Strong Bad is duct-taped to the TV.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' Can't… miss… any of the action!

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Strong Bad, the good times are over! I swallowed your computer!

'''STRONG BAD:''' You've ''what''? ''{tears his head from the TV}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Oh, I mean a small bug. I swallowed a small bug.

'''STRONG BAD:''' Aw. Now my head's not taped to the TV.

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Strong Bad, I really need your help!

'''STRONG BAD:''' And ''I'' really need to find out who shot Caleb Rentpayer!

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Oh, that's easy. I did.

'''STRONG BAD:''' You-ka – w-wha?

'''TUCKSWORTH:''' Homestar Runner, did you shoot Caleb?

''{Homestar appears on the TV, wearing the sunglasses he wears in [[the bet]].}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' I sure did.

'''STRONG BAD:''' You traitor! You shot my favorite TV show! ''(throws the remote at Homestar's face}''

'''HOMESTAR RUNNER:''' Hiccup. ''(the bug flies out of his mouth}'' Hey, look at that! A little guy. A bug ''did'' fly in my mouth!

'''STRONG BAD:''' Ugh… the good times are ''definitely'' over.

''{Strong Sad runs in, wearing a blue pair of underwear. Strong Bad opens his mouth in surprise.}''

'''STRONG SAD:''' The world is saved! I found the blue ooooones!

''{end.}'' (after a while, the bug flies over the screen)

==Fun Facts==
===Explanations===
*A [[Wikipedia:Boolean_operator|Boolean operator]] is a logical conjunction describing the relationship between two assertions ('and' and 'or' being primary examples). Some search engines accept them.
*Using quotes refers to putting a multi-word search term inside of quotation marks. Most search engines will find the entire, unbroken phrase instead of the individual words.
*The [[Wikipedia:pancreas|pancreas]] is a large lobulated organ that secretes digestive enzymes and the hormones insulin and glucagon.
*A [[Wikipedia:Bail_bondsman|bail bondsman]] is a person who posts bail in exchange for a fee, usually 10 percent of the total bail.

===Trivia===
*Bubs' cards read:
Bubs
Bail Bondsman,
Extraordinaire

pager: 555-7896
beeper: 555-3421

BUBS
PARANORMAL
INVESTIGATOR

EEEEEMAIL: BUBS@BUBS.BUBS

Bubs
Normal
Investigator

"Not Associated with
Bubs: Paranormal Investigator!!"

"Dr." Bubs

VCR Repair/Fashion Consultant

*Bubs' e-mail address here is bubs@bubs.bubs, but it was bubs@homestarrunner.com in [[unused emails]].

===Goofs===
*When Strong Sad turns around in front of the couch after talking about Boolean operators, his leg appears behind the remote that is on the couch.
*When Strong Bad is duct taped to the TV, there are five pieces of tape. After he turns around, there are only four.
*In the frame in which Strong Bad's head is turned to the right while looking backwards at Homestar, the grey section is visible on both ends of the tape, but the silver, sticky side is the one which should be showing on the end between Strong Bad's head and the TV.

===Inside References===
*Bubs' Doctor card says VCR repair on it, which is a reference to the email [[12:00]].
*The scene featuring Homestar running over darkened hills may be a reference to [[Old Intro 2]].
*Bubs calls himself "the most quackinest". This is in reference to Pom Pom's character video, the page title of which is "The Most Mackinest".
*''[[Caleb Rentpayer]]'' first appeared in [[secret recipes]]. This is the first time the show and Tucksworth have been named.
*"[[Whatsit|Whatsit]]" refers to The Poopsmith's pile of excrement.




===Real-World References===
*The title of the toon is based on [[Wikipedia:Foot and mouth disease|foot and mouth disease]], a disease which affects cattle.
*The page title (Don't...kill...bugs.) is a reference to [[wikipedia:Bob & Doug McKenzie|Bob & Doug McKenzie's]] [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000001EPF/qid=1103258200/sr=8-1/ref=pd_csp_1/104-4330593-4682322?v=glance&s=music&n=507846 "Great White North" album]. Specifically, it refers to the [http://www.mts.net/~marcz/hosers/elron2.htm "Elron McKenzie"] track, where Doug plays a preacher whose sermon deals with the importance of not killing bugs. A Bob & Doug line also appears in [[Revenge of the King]].
*The "Who shot Caleb?" episode is a reference to the often-parodied shooting of J. R. Ewing on [[wikipedia:Dallas_%28TV_series%29|Dallas]].
*When Homestar overreacts after swallowing a bug, it might be a reference to a [[Wikipedia:Seinfeld|Seinfeld]] episode, in which George did the same thing.
*When Strong Sad says, "I even did an image search..." he is referring to the [http://images.google.com/images?q=blue+ones&hl=en Google Image Search] and other such sites which feature search engines that allow you to search for pictures instead of web pages.
*When Strong Bad removes his head from the TV, on the left side of the screen, you can see a Super Nintendo which was a popular video game system in the early and mid 1990's.

*The opening theme is somewhat like the They Might Be Giants song, "Till My Head Falls Off" The beat is the same, but the Bug In Mouth Disease one is slower and has a drum loop and heavier keyboard sounds.

==External Links==
* [[HR:buginmouth.html|watch "Bug In Mouth Disease"]]
* [[HR:buginmouth.swf|view the Flash file for "Bug In Mouth Disease"]]
* [http://forum.hrwiki.org/viewtopic.php?t=3174 forum thread re: Bug In Mouth Disease]

[[Category: Toons]]

best thing

68.62.23.4 — Sat, 19 Mar 2005 23:55:26 GMT

68.62.23.4: /* Goofs */

[[Image:sbemail126.png|thumb|"Limozeen Pilot: Encounter at Groupulon 5"]]
'''Strong Bad Email #126'''

Strong Bad shows us the best thing he's ever seen, done or eaten: the quickly cancelled pilot of [[Limozeen]]: "but they're in space!"

'''Cast (in order of appearance):''' [[Strong Bad]], [[Gary Palaroncini]], [[Larry Palaroncini]], [[Perry Palaroncini]], [[Mary Palaroncini]], [[Teeg Dougland]], [[Strong Sad]], [[Mitch Overlord]], [[Bozar]], [[Nebulon]]

'''Date:''' March 8, 2005

'''Running Time:''' 4:02

== Transcript ==

'''STRONG BAD:''' You got to ''e''-mail, just to stay alive! ''{types "strongbad_email.exe", begins reading}''

<pre>Dear Strong Bad,
How you doin'? I have three quick questions...
1. What's the best thing you've ever seen?
2. What's the best thing you've ever done?
3. What's the best thing you've ever eaten?

Later,
Albin J. (from Maryland)</pre>

''{Strong Bad doesn't read the numbers, and after saying "seen", he immediately follows with "done, eaten." He also whispers "from, from Maryland." Then he clears the screen.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{typing}'' I'm doing real real ''{types "rrll rrll"}'' well Albi. Believe it or not, I've got one answer for all three questions. And that answer is...

''{Cut to an image of a video tape labelled "Limozeen cartoon" and "Don't record over for dang's sake!!!"}''

'''SINGERS:''' VHS!

'''STRONG BAD:''' The only known copy of the failed pilot episode of the Limozeen Saturday morning cartoon shoooooooow!

''{cut back to the Lappy}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{typing}'' It only aired once at, like, 4 a.m. some forgotten Saturday. And guess who was already up and eating brown sugar straight from the box? That's right, Strong Sad. But then I got up and started watching TV. If not for my The Cheat-like VHS reflexes, it would have been as lost as four-armed Grimace. ''{clears screen}'' I'll let you guys see it, but please, no flash photography or video taping. It could damage the precious oils and heavy metals of this priceless piece of television history.

''{cut to the cartoon. It opens with "Metalmation" appearing in large block letters, followed by "presents" in cursive}''

'''SINGER:''' 
Remember those guys from that band Limozeen? 
Well, they turned their tour bus into a space machine! 
But they're still Limozeen!

'''LARRY:''' 
We're still Limozeen!

'''SINGER:''' 
But they're in space!

'''LARRY:''' 
But we're in space?!

''{now the title screen is shown: LIMOZEEN "but they're in space!" The Limozeen members appear in animated form below. Teeg walks in from stage right.}

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. You're in space!

''{one final chord of the theme song plays}''

''{cut to the Couch. Strong Bad is sitting on it, while Strong Sad is leaning on it from behind.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' Oh-ho-ho! So classic!

'''STRONG SAD:''' But why are they in space? There's no reason for them to be in space!

'''STRONG BAD:''' On the contrary, my dear Fatson! There's ''every'' reason for them to be in space.

''{title card for "ENCOUNTER AT GROUPULON 5" by A. Chimendez appears. From there, it cuts to the Limozeen members running away from a pair of flesh-colored hands, a pair of blue hands, and two magenta tentacles}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{narrating}'' So, one of their main goals is to both run away from and give backstage passes to all the hot babe-liens of the galaxy.

''{the Limozeen members run into their tour spaceship}''

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. None of the hot alien chicks from Groupulon 5 have backstage passes to tonight's show.

'''LARRY:''' Then whose midriffs are we gonna sign?

'''GARY:''' What happened to all the passes, Teeg?

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' Galactic Radio gave them all away. To Mitch Overlord.

''{The members of Limozeen gasp, as we cut to Mitch Overlord's lair}''

'''MITCH OVERLORD:''' That's right, Limozeen! I was the one million, six hundred and eighty-five thousand, four hundred and twenty-first caller! ''{raises his claw-like right hand and opens and shuts it twice}''

''{The members of Limozeen are shown running again, this time from nothing that can be seen.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{narrating}'' And sometimes the magical prankster Bozar appears and turns reality upside-down.

'''BOZAR:''' ''{unintelligible}'' Limo-losers! How are you going to play tonight's show after I turn your instruments into Italian noodles?

''{The band is greeted with "boooos" as they attempt to play a concert with their noodle-instruments anyway. The word NOODLES! appears in lights behind the stage. Mary eats his noodles instead.}''

'''MARY:''' This is the best show ever, guys!

''{canned laughter is heard}''

'''LARRY:''' Mary, quit eatin' your drums!

''{Cut to the outside of the tour spaceship flying through space. Nebulon flies past.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{narrating}'' But most of all, the episode centers around the boys making sure metal stays number one throughout the galaxy.

''{Cut to spaceship interior}''

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. We've been knocked off the charts in the Forbidden Zone by an alternative rock band.

'''PERRY:''' But their bassist is a girl!

'''MARY:''' And the drummer's got short hair!

'''LARRY:''' And the lead singer wears glasses!

''{Cut back to the couch. Strong Bad throws the remote at Strong Sad.}''

'''STRONG SAD:''' Ow! What was that for?

'''STRONG BAD:''' For you and your kind destroying metal! Chuck Taylor-wearing, low self-esteemers...

''{Cut back to the cartoon. The band is practicing as Teeg walks up to them.}''

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. Our pilot episode has been cancelled.

'''LARRY, GARY, PERRY, and MARY:''' What?

'''GARY:''' Oh well. I guess I won't be needing this anymore. ''{throws his guitar offscreen}''

''{Cut to the real Larry on Strong Bad's television, who catches the real equivalent of the guitar.}''

'''LARRY:''' Oh, thanks, Space Gary! I can't believe we got cancelled! Weeeeeell, join us next time, kids! In syndication! Or maybe on DVD! ''{plays a short tune as the TV fades out. Strong Bad returns to the Lappy.}

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{typing}'' Whattaya think, Albi? If that's not the best thing you've ever seen, done, or eaten, then may I politely ask you to gouge out your eyes, cut out your tongue, and um, have all your done ''{short pause}'' removed.

''{The Paper comes down.}

== Easter Eggs ==
*Click on "brown sugar" to see a box of "[[Suge Brown]]" brown sugar, with the tagline "Don't borrow from thy neighbor" and a weight of "one whole pound".
*At the end of the email, click "eaten" to see a member of Limozeen question his hair color and size:
*:'''MARY:''' How come they made me fat and have red hair?
*:'''LARRY:''' Because you're the comic relief-uh!
*:''{Mary burps very loudly}''

== Fun Facts ==
=== Explanations ===
*The fact that Limozeen's cartoon takes place in space for no good reason is likely a reference to several other cartoons which also took place in space for no reason, like [http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-5297/ the Partridge Family, 2200 A.D.], [http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-2345/ Gilligan's Planet], and [http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-7865/ Josie & the Pussycats In Outer Space], all of which had extremely short runs (usually only one season).
**The Limozeen cartoon is also likely a riff on Hanna Barbara cartoons that featured bands who solved crimes or fought villians. In addition to ''Josie'' there was ''Jabberjaw'' and ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kids''. Teeg Dougland's repeated mantra of "I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys" is a riff on band managers in such cartoons, who were often only featured as characters for plot exposition.

=== Trivia ===
*Teeg Dougland was voiced by [[Mike Chapman]] who looks almost identical to Teeg.

*The email song could be a parody of the movie "Saw"'s logo 'How much blood would you shed to stay alive'

*Usually, a Strong Bad E-mail has the filename of sbemail###.swf. This one is sbemail126_mx.swf.

=== Remarks ===
*This email gives a good answer to Strong Bad's own question in [[different town]] when he tries to think up the Best Thing Ever, which turned out to be beef stew.
*Strong Bad's tape lacks the little tab you knock out to prevent people taping over it, a chief concern with the cartoon tape.

=== Goofs ===
*Just before Strong Bad sits down at the Lappy, you see almost his entire head, but you can't see the laces on the back of his mask; usually when they show that much of his head (e.g. in [[crazy cartoon]]) you see those laces.
*When the space-mobile is flying at supposed hyper-speed, the stars flying by in the background are streaking the wrong way.
*When we see the TV and VCR in Strong Bad's basement, the VCR shows no sign of a tape being inside it nor of any playback. (VCRs typically have some type of counter or a "play" graphic on their display.)
*When the cartoon plays and shows the band for the first time, Mary's hair is blonde instead of it being red.

=== Inside References ===
*The green alien which floats by in one scene is Nebulon, as seen in [[New Boots]] and [[Main Page 1]].
*The teleplay for Limozeen's cartoon is written by [[A. Chimendez]].
*Teeg Dougland is the name of the director of the [[Moving Very Slowly]] video on the [[strongbad_email.exe]] DVD. He is identified as the manager of the band at the NYU talk during the showing of a Limozeen coloring book 'game'.
*The [[VCR]] is still blinking from [[12:00]] and someone removed the alarm clock that [[Bubs]] duct-taped to it.
*When Space Gary throws his guitar and says "I guess I won't be needing THIS anymore," it is a reference to [[invisibility]]. Strong Bad says the same thing when he gets rid of the broken [[Tandy 400]] and replaces it with the [[Compy 386]].
*The guitar that Space Gary tosses is the same one seen in [[Puppet Time]].
**It looks like a KE3 Kelly model guitar by Jackson

=== Real-World References ===
*When the bus shortens and turned into a spaceship, it looks a lot the opening of The Magic School Bus
*"Metalmation" is a reference to the [[Wikipedia:Filmation|Filmation]] animation studio, with the logos looking very similar. Filmation was famous for churning out cookie-cutter cartoons many of which also took place in space for no good reason.
*The repeated "band being chased" segments may be a reference to a Hanna-Barbera 70's staple of stock-footage chase scenes, which appeared most prominently in Scooby-Doo. Also, this may refer to the Beatles, who spent a good deal of "A Hard Day's Night" -- supposedly a typical day in the life of the band--running away from adoring female fans. [[Image:evil-grimace.jpg|thumb|Four-armed Grimace]]
*"Four-armed Grimace" is a reference to the purple McDonaldland character. Grimace was originally named "The Evil Grimace", and he had four arms -- so that he could hold many shakes at once.
*"My dear Fatson" is an adaptation of "My dear Watson", a way Sherlock Holmes often addressed his assistant.
*The space logo of Limozeen is very similar to the logo of the Nintendo game series Metroid. This isn't the first Metroid reference on the site -- in fact, a Metroid code appeared in an Easter Egg in the Strong Bad Email [[invisibility]].
*"Encounter at Groupulon 5" is a combined reference to [[Wikipedia:Encounter_at_Farpoint|Encounter at Farpoint]] (the first episode of [[Wikipedia:Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation|Star Trek: The Next Generation]]) and the popular science-fiction show [[Wikipedia:Babylon_5|Babylon 5]].
* Mary asking "How come they made me fat and have red hair?" draws attention to the manipulation of characters in cartoon adaptations to clearly defined sterotypical roles. In particular, Mary's question references the cartoon [http://www.tvtome.com/RealGhostbusters/ The Real Ghostbusters], where the Dan Aykroyd character (from the Ghostbusters film) was modified into an overweight redhead. This was done because the real-life actors had contract clauses that prevented likenesses of them being used.
**It may also have been done so that the animated counterparts of Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis (all dark haired and of similar build in the film) could be easily told apart by kids.
* The phrase "Chuck Taylor wearin'..." refers to [[Wikipedia:Converse Shoes|Converse High Top Basketball Shoes]], designed by Chuck Taylor. "Chucks" are a signature look of Grunge, Punk, and Metal that happened after 1990.
**This is also a reference to that particular brand of shoe being popular among fans of "Alternative Rock" (or indie, or emo, etc.) that Strong Bad is so angry about. We know that Strong Sad has a fondness for these bands from his Blog.
*Bozar's huge cranium, love of bizarre magical pranks, and insulting manner of addressing the heroes of the show bears a strong resemblance to the antics of [[Wikipedia:Mr_Mxyzptlk|Mr. Mxyzptlk]], a derby-wearing, fifth-dimensional imp and Superman antagonist who periodically appeared in Metropolis to pester the Last Son of Krypton with his reality-altering powers.
**This also bears a resemblance to [[Wikipedia:The Great Gazoo|the Great Gazoo]] from The Flintstones.
**He also resembles a megalomaniacal antagonist from the 90's show [[Wikipedia:Mighty Max|Mighty Max]] called Dr. Zygote, who had an oversized brain/head, alien-like features, and would construct elaborate schemes to rule/destroy humanity.
*The scene at the end, where the cartoon throws the guitar to the real-life band member, pokes fun at almost every 80's cartoon that had a (semi) famous person behind it -- where the cartoon would transition/interact with the real person from off screen: Fat Albert, Alf, M.C. Hammer, Mr. T, the Harlem Globetrotters, and many others all closed the episode with the real-world people.
*"rrll rrll" is a common short-hand notation for a [http://www.vicfirth.com/education/rudiments/06longroll.html double-stroke roll], which is a percussion rudiment executed by playing two strokes on a single hand followed by two in the alternate hand and repeating.
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_Zone Forbidden Zone] is a really bad cult sci-fi movie most notable for launching the 80's new-wave band [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oingo_Boingo Oingo Boingo]
**It's also the place where George Taylor went in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_of_the_Apes_%281968_movie%29 Planet of the Apes] to learn the horrible truth.
**It could also be a reference to Star Trek's "The Neutral Zone," where Federation ships were forbidden to go.
*Teeg Dougland's reccuring line could be a reference to Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth's from Futurama. Prof. Farnsworth usually entered a scene with the line "Good news everyone!" (or occassionally "Bad news everyone!") followed by something really weird, such as "Tomorrow you'll be making a delivery to Ebola 9, the virus planet."
*The character MITCH OVERLORD has a metal jaw like the character Darth Malak from the popular video game Knights of the Old Republic, and the robotic hand may be a reference to Dr. Claw from Inspector Gadget or any other show with a handicapped villain with a cybernetic prosthesis.
*The entire tape of the Limozeen cartoon includes authentic "VHS grain", though it is most visible during the black METALMATION intro (note how the background appears to be randomly speckled). This unavoidable phenomenon of VHS recording tends to show up after re-recording tapes a number of times, or when using high compression levels (like SLP).

== External Links ==
*[http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail126.html view "best thing"] 
*[http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail126_mx.swf view the flash file for "best thing"]
*[http://www.forum.hrwiki.org/viewtopic.php?t=2214 forum thread re: best thing]

{{Strong Bad Email}}
[[Category: Lappy 486 Emails]] [[Category: Strong Bad Filmography]] [[Category: Strong Sad Filmography]] [[Category: Nebulon Filmography]]

best thing

68.62.23.4 — Sat, 19 Mar 2005 23:51:49 GMT

68.62.23.4: /* Goofs */

[[Image:sbemail126.png|thumb|"Limozeen Pilot: Encounter at Groupulon 5"]]
'''Strong Bad Email #126'''

Strong Bad shows us the best thing he's ever seen, done or eaten: the quickly cancelled pilot of [[Limozeen]]: "but they're in space!"

'''Cast (in order of appearance):''' [[Strong Bad]], [[Gary Palaroncini]], [[Larry Palaroncini]], [[Perry Palaroncini]], [[Mary Palaroncini]], [[Teeg Dougland]], [[Strong Sad]], [[Mitch Overlord]], [[Bozar]], [[Nebulon]]

'''Date:''' March 8, 2005

'''Running Time:''' 4:02

== Transcript ==

'''STRONG BAD:''' You got to ''e''-mail, just to stay alive! ''{types "strongbad_email.exe", begins reading}''

<pre>Dear Strong Bad,
How you doin'? I have three quick questions...
1. What's the best thing you've ever seen?
2. What's the best thing you've ever done?
3. What's the best thing you've ever eaten?

Later,
Albin J. (from Maryland)</pre>

''{Strong Bad doesn't read the numbers, and after saying "seen", he immediately follows with "done, eaten." He also whispers "from, from Maryland." Then he clears the screen.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{typing}'' I'm doing real real ''{types "rrll rrll"}'' well Albi. Believe it or not, I've got one answer for all three questions. And that answer is...

''{Cut to an image of a video tape labelled "Limozeen cartoon" and "Don't record over for dang's sake!!!"}''

'''SINGERS:''' VHS!

'''STRONG BAD:''' The only known copy of the failed pilot episode of the Limozeen Saturday morning cartoon shoooooooow!

''{cut back to the Lappy}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{typing}'' It only aired once at, like, 4 a.m. some forgotten Saturday. And guess who was already up and eating brown sugar straight from the box? That's right, Strong Sad. But then I got up and started watching TV. If not for my The Cheat-like VHS reflexes, it would have been as lost as four-armed Grimace. ''{clears screen}'' I'll let you guys see it, but please, no flash photography or video taping. It could damage the precious oils and heavy metals of this priceless piece of television history.

''{cut to the cartoon. It opens with "Metalmation" appearing in large block letters, followed by "presents" in cursive}''

'''SINGER:''' 
Remember those guys from that band Limozeen? 
Well, they turned their tour bus into a space machine! 
But they're still Limozeen!

'''LARRY:''' 
We're still Limozeen!

'''SINGER:''' 
But they're in space!

'''LARRY:''' 
But we're in space?!

''{now the title screen is shown: LIMOZEEN "but they're in space!" The Limozeen members appear in animated form below. Teeg walks in from stage right.}

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. You're in space!

''{one final chord of the theme song plays}''

''{cut to the Couch. Strong Bad is sitting on it, while Strong Sad is leaning on it from behind.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' Oh-ho-ho! So classic!

'''STRONG SAD:''' But why are they in space? There's no reason for them to be in space!

'''STRONG BAD:''' On the contrary, my dear Fatson! There's ''every'' reason for them to be in space.

''{title card for "ENCOUNTER AT GROUPULON 5" by A. Chimendez appears. From there, it cuts to the Limozeen members running away from a pair of flesh-colored hands, a pair of blue hands, and two magenta tentacles}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{narrating}'' So, one of their main goals is to both run away from and give backstage passes to all the hot babe-liens of the galaxy.

''{the Limozeen members run into their tour spaceship}''

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. None of the hot alien chicks from Groupulon 5 have backstage passes to tonight's show.

'''LARRY:''' Then whose midriffs are we gonna sign?

'''GARY:''' What happened to all the passes, Teeg?

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' Galactic Radio gave them all away. To Mitch Overlord.

''{The members of Limozeen gasp, as we cut to Mitch Overlord's lair}''

'''MITCH OVERLORD:''' That's right, Limozeen! I was the one million, six hundred and eighty-five thousand, four hundred and twenty-first caller! ''{raises his claw-like right hand and opens and shuts it twice}''

''{The members of Limozeen are shown running again, this time from nothing that can be seen.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{narrating}'' And sometimes the magical prankster Bozar appears and turns reality upside-down.

'''BOZAR:''' ''{unintelligible}'' Limo-losers! How are you going to play tonight's show after I turn your instruments into Italian noodles?

''{The band is greeted with "boooos" as they attempt to play a concert with their noodle-instruments anyway. The word NOODLES! appears in lights behind the stage. Mary eats his noodles instead.}''

'''MARY:''' This is the best show ever, guys!

''{canned laughter is heard}''

'''LARRY:''' Mary, quit eatin' your drums!

''{Cut to the outside of the tour spaceship flying through space. Nebulon flies past.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{narrating}'' But most of all, the episode centers around the boys making sure metal stays number one throughout the galaxy.

''{Cut to spaceship interior}''

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. We've been knocked off the charts in the Forbidden Zone by an alternative rock band.

'''PERRY:''' But their bassist is a girl!

'''MARY:''' And the drummer's got short hair!

'''LARRY:''' And the lead singer wears glasses!

''{Cut back to the couch. Strong Bad throws the remote at Strong Sad.}''

'''STRONG SAD:''' Ow! What was that for?

'''STRONG BAD:''' For you and your kind destroying metal! Chuck Taylor-wearing, low self-esteemers...

''{Cut back to the cartoon. The band is practicing as Teeg walks up to them.}''

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. Our pilot episode has been cancelled.

'''LARRY, GARY, PERRY, and MARY:''' What?

'''GARY:''' Oh well. I guess I won't be needing this anymore. ''{throws his guitar offscreen}''

''{Cut to the real Larry on Strong Bad's television, who catches the real equivalent of the guitar.}''

'''LARRY:''' Oh, thanks, Space Gary! I can't believe we got cancelled! Weeeeeell, join us next time, kids! In syndication! Or maybe on DVD! ''{plays a short tune as the TV fades out. Strong Bad returns to the Lappy.}

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{typing}'' Whattaya think, Albi? If that's not the best thing you've ever seen, done, or eaten, then may I politely ask you to gouge out your eyes, cut out your tongue, and um, have all your done ''{short pause}'' removed.

''{The Paper comes down.}

== Easter Eggs ==
*Click on "brown sugar" to see a box of "[[Suge Brown]]" brown sugar, with the tagline "Don't borrow from thy neighbor" and a weight of "one whole pound".
*At the end of the email, click "eaten" to see a member of Limozeen question his hair color and size:
*:'''MARY:''' How come they made me fat and have red hair?
*:'''LARRY:''' Because you're the comic relief-uh!
*:''{Mary burps very loudly}''

== Fun Facts ==
=== Explanations ===
*The fact that Limozeen's cartoon takes place in space for no good reason is likely a reference to several other cartoons which also took place in space for no reason, like [http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-5297/ the Partridge Family, 2200 A.D.], [http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-2345/ Gilligan's Planet], and [http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-7865/ Josie & the Pussycats In Outer Space], all of which had extremely short runs (usually only one season).
**The Limozeen cartoon is also likely a riff on Hanna Barbara cartoons that featured bands who solved crimes or fought villians. In addition to ''Josie'' there was ''Jabberjaw'' and ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kids''. Teeg Dougland's repeated mantra of "I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys" is a riff on band managers in such cartoons, who were often only featured as characters for plot exposition.

=== Trivia ===
*Teeg Dougland was voiced by [[Mike Chapman]] who looks almost identical to Teeg.

*The email song could be a parody of the movie "Saw"'s logo 'How much blood would you shed to stay alive'

*Usually, a Strong Bad E-mail has the filename of sbemail###.swf. This one is sbemail126_mx.swf.

=== Remarks ===
*This email gives a good answer to Strong Bad's own question in [[different town]] when he tries to think up the Best Thing Ever, which turned out to be beef stew.
*Strong Bad's tape lacks the little tab you knock out to prevent people taping over it, a chief concern with the cartoon tape.

=== Goofs ===
*Just before Strong Bad sits down at the Lappy, you see almost his entire head, but you can't see the laces on the back of his mask; usually when they show that much of his head (e.g. in [[crazy cartoon]]) you see those laces.
*When the space-mobile is flying at supposed hyper-speed, the stars flying by in the background are streaking the wrong way.
*When we see the TV and VCR in Strong Bad's basement, the VCR shows no sign of a tape being inside it nor of any playback. (VCRs typically have some type of counter or a "play" graphic on their display.)
*When the cartoon plays and shows the band for the first time, Mary's hair is blonde instead of it being red

=== Inside References ===
*The green alien which floats by in one scene is Nebulon, as seen in [[New Boots]] and [[Main Page 1]].
*The teleplay for Limozeen's cartoon is written by [[A. Chimendez]].
*Teeg Dougland is the name of the director of the [[Moving Very Slowly]] video on the [[strongbad_email.exe]] DVD. He is identified as the manager of the band at the NYU talk during the showing of a Limozeen coloring book 'game'.
*The [[VCR]] is still blinking from [[12:00]] and someone removed the alarm clock that [[Bubs]] duct-taped to it.
*When Space Gary throws his guitar and says "I guess I won't be needing THIS anymore," it is a reference to [[invisibility]]. Strong Bad says the same thing when he gets rid of the broken [[Tandy 400]] and replaces it with the [[Compy 386]].
*The guitar that Space Gary tosses is the same one seen in [[Puppet Time]].
**It looks like a KE3 Kelly model guitar by Jackson

=== Real-World References ===
*When the bus shortens and turned into a spaceship, it looks a lot the opening of The Magic School Bus
*"Metalmation" is a reference to the [[Wikipedia:Filmation|Filmation]] animation studio, with the logos looking very similar. Filmation was famous for churning out cookie-cutter cartoons many of which also took place in space for no good reason.
*The repeated "band being chased" segments may be a reference to a Hanna-Barbera 70's staple of stock-footage chase scenes, which appeared most prominently in Scooby-Doo. Also, this may refer to the Beatles, who spent a good deal of "A Hard Day's Night" -- supposedly a typical day in the life of the band--running away from adoring female fans. [[Image:evil-grimace.jpg|thumb|Four-armed Grimace]]
*"Four-armed Grimace" is a reference to the purple McDonaldland character. Grimace was originally named "The Evil Grimace", and he had four arms -- so that he could hold many shakes at once.
*"My dear Fatson" is an adaptation of "My dear Watson", a way Sherlock Holmes often addressed his assistant.
*The space logo of Limozeen is very similar to the logo of the Nintendo game series Metroid. This isn't the first Metroid reference on the site -- in fact, a Metroid code appeared in an Easter Egg in the Strong Bad Email [[invisibility]].
*"Encounter at Groupulon 5" is a combined reference to [[Wikipedia:Encounter_at_Farpoint|Encounter at Farpoint]] (the first episode of [[Wikipedia:Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation|Star Trek: The Next Generation]]) and the popular science-fiction show [[Wikipedia:Babylon_5|Babylon 5]].
* Mary asking "How come they made me fat and have red hair?" draws attention to the manipulation of characters in cartoon adaptations to clearly defined sterotypical roles. In particular, Mary's question references the cartoon [http://www.tvtome.com/RealGhostbusters/ The Real Ghostbusters], where the Dan Aykroyd character (from the Ghostbusters film) was modified into an overweight redhead. This was done because the real-life actors had contract clauses that prevented likenesses of them being used.
**It may also have been done so that the animated counterparts of Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis (all dark haired and of similar build in the film) could be easily told apart by kids.
* The phrase "Chuck Taylor wearin'..." refers to [[Wikipedia:Converse Shoes|Converse High Top Basketball Shoes]], designed by Chuck Taylor. "Chucks" are a signature look of Grunge, Punk, and Metal that happened after 1990.
**This is also a reference to that particular brand of shoe being popular among fans of "Alternative Rock" (or indie, or emo, etc.) that Strong Bad is so angry about. We know that Strong Sad has a fondness for these bands from his Blog.
*Bozar's huge cranium, love of bizarre magical pranks, and insulting manner of addressing the heroes of the show bears a strong resemblance to the antics of [[Wikipedia:Mr_Mxyzptlk|Mr. Mxyzptlk]], a derby-wearing, fifth-dimensional imp and Superman antagonist who periodically appeared in Metropolis to pester the Last Son of Krypton with his reality-altering powers.
**This also bears a resemblance to [[Wikipedia:The Great Gazoo|the Great Gazoo]] from The Flintstones.
**He also resembles a megalomaniacal antagonist from the 90's show [[Wikipedia:Mighty Max|Mighty Max]] called Dr. Zygote, who had an oversized brain/head, alien-like features, and would construct elaborate schemes to rule/destroy humanity.
*The scene at the end, where the cartoon throws the guitar to the real-life band member, pokes fun at almost every 80's cartoon that had a (semi) famous person behind it -- where the cartoon would transition/interact with the real person from off screen: Fat Albert, Alf, M.C. Hammer, Mr. T, the Harlem Globetrotters, and many others all closed the episode with the real-world people.
*"rrll rrll" is a common short-hand notation for a [http://www.vicfirth.com/education/rudiments/06longroll.html double-stroke roll], which is a percussion rudiment executed by playing two strokes on a single hand followed by two in the alternate hand and repeating.
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_Zone Forbidden Zone] is a really bad cult sci-fi movie most notable for launching the 80's new-wave band [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oingo_Boingo Oingo Boingo]
**It's also the place where George Taylor went in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_of_the_Apes_%281968_movie%29 Planet of the Apes] to learn the horrible truth.
**It could also be a reference to Star Trek's "The Neutral Zone," where Federation ships were forbidden to go.
*Teeg Dougland's reccuring line could be a reference to Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth's from Futurama. Prof. Farnsworth usually entered a scene with the line "Good news everyone!" (or occassionally "Bad news everyone!") followed by something really weird, such as "Tomorrow you'll be making a delivery to Ebola 9, the virus planet."
*The character MITCH OVERLORD has a metal jaw like the character Darth Malak from the popular video game Knights of the Old Republic, and the robotic hand may be a reference to Dr. Claw from Inspector Gadget or any other show with a handicapped villain with a cybernetic prosthesis.
*The entire tape of the Limozeen cartoon includes authentic "VHS grain", though it is most visible during the black METALMATION intro (note how the background appears to be randomly speckled). This unavoidable phenomenon of VHS recording tends to show up after re-recording tapes a number of times, or when using high compression levels (like SLP).

== External Links ==
*[http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail126.html view "best thing"] 
*[http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail126_mx.swf view the flash file for "best thing"]
*[http://www.forum.hrwiki.org/viewtopic.php?t=2214 forum thread re: best thing]

{{Strong Bad Email}}
[[Category: Lappy 486 Emails]] [[Category: Strong Bad Filmography]] [[Category: Strong Sad Filmography]] [[Category: Nebulon Filmography]]

best thing

68.62.23.4 — Sat, 19 Mar 2005 23:51:07 GMT

68.62.23.4: /* Goofs */

[[Image:sbemail126.png|thumb|"Limozeen Pilot: Encounter at Groupulon 5"]]
'''Strong Bad Email #126'''

Strong Bad shows us the best thing he's ever seen, done or eaten: the quickly cancelled pilot of [[Limozeen]]: "but they're in space!"

'''Cast (in order of appearance):''' [[Strong Bad]], [[Gary Palaroncini]], [[Larry Palaroncini]], [[Perry Palaroncini]], [[Mary Palaroncini]], [[Teeg Dougland]], [[Strong Sad]], [[Mitch Overlord]], [[Bozar]], [[Nebulon]]

'''Date:''' March 8, 2005

'''Running Time:''' 4:02

== Transcript ==

'''STRONG BAD:''' You got to ''e''-mail, just to stay alive! ''{types "strongbad_email.exe", begins reading}''

<pre>Dear Strong Bad,
How you doin'? I have three quick questions...
1. What's the best thing you've ever seen?
2. What's the best thing you've ever done?
3. What's the best thing you've ever eaten?

Later,
Albin J. (from Maryland)</pre>

''{Strong Bad doesn't read the numbers, and after saying "seen", he immediately follows with "done, eaten." He also whispers "from, from Maryland." Then he clears the screen.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{typing}'' I'm doing real real ''{types "rrll rrll"}'' well Albi. Believe it or not, I've got one answer for all three questions. And that answer is...

''{Cut to an image of a video tape labelled "Limozeen cartoon" and "Don't record over for dang's sake!!!"}''

'''SINGERS:''' VHS!

'''STRONG BAD:''' The only known copy of the failed pilot episode of the Limozeen Saturday morning cartoon shoooooooow!

''{cut back to the Lappy}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{typing}'' It only aired once at, like, 4 a.m. some forgotten Saturday. And guess who was already up and eating brown sugar straight from the box? That's right, Strong Sad. But then I got up and started watching TV. If not for my The Cheat-like VHS reflexes, it would have been as lost as four-armed Grimace. ''{clears screen}'' I'll let you guys see it, but please, no flash photography or video taping. It could damage the precious oils and heavy metals of this priceless piece of television history.

''{cut to the cartoon. It opens with "Metalmation" appearing in large block letters, followed by "presents" in cursive}''

'''SINGER:''' 
Remember those guys from that band Limozeen? 
Well, they turned their tour bus into a space machine! 
But they're still Limozeen!

'''LARRY:''' 
We're still Limozeen!

'''SINGER:''' 
But they're in space!

'''LARRY:''' 
But we're in space?!

''{now the title screen is shown: LIMOZEEN "but they're in space!" The Limozeen members appear in animated form below. Teeg walks in from stage right.}

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. You're in space!

''{one final chord of the theme song plays}''

''{cut to the Couch. Strong Bad is sitting on it, while Strong Sad is leaning on it from behind.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' Oh-ho-ho! So classic!

'''STRONG SAD:''' But why are they in space? There's no reason for them to be in space!

'''STRONG BAD:''' On the contrary, my dear Fatson! There's ''every'' reason for them to be in space.

''{title card for "ENCOUNTER AT GROUPULON 5" by A. Chimendez appears. From there, it cuts to the Limozeen members running away from a pair of flesh-colored hands, a pair of blue hands, and two magenta tentacles}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{narrating}'' So, one of their main goals is to both run away from and give backstage passes to all the hot babe-liens of the galaxy.

''{the Limozeen members run into their tour spaceship}''

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. None of the hot alien chicks from Groupulon 5 have backstage passes to tonight's show.

'''LARRY:''' Then whose midriffs are we gonna sign?

'''GARY:''' What happened to all the passes, Teeg?

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' Galactic Radio gave them all away. To Mitch Overlord.

''{The members of Limozeen gasp, as we cut to Mitch Overlord's lair}''

'''MITCH OVERLORD:''' That's right, Limozeen! I was the one million, six hundred and eighty-five thousand, four hundred and twenty-first caller! ''{raises his claw-like right hand and opens and shuts it twice}''

''{The members of Limozeen are shown running again, this time from nothing that can be seen.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{narrating}'' And sometimes the magical prankster Bozar appears and turns reality upside-down.

'''BOZAR:''' ''{unintelligible}'' Limo-losers! How are you going to play tonight's show after I turn your instruments into Italian noodles?

''{The band is greeted with "boooos" as they attempt to play a concert with their noodle-instruments anyway. The word NOODLES! appears in lights behind the stage. Mary eats his noodles instead.}''

'''MARY:''' This is the best show ever, guys!

''{canned laughter is heard}''

'''LARRY:''' Mary, quit eatin' your drums!

''{Cut to the outside of the tour spaceship flying through space. Nebulon flies past.}''

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{narrating}'' But most of all, the episode centers around the boys making sure metal stays number one throughout the galaxy.

''{Cut to spaceship interior}''

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. We've been knocked off the charts in the Forbidden Zone by an alternative rock band.

'''PERRY:''' But their bassist is a girl!

'''MARY:''' And the drummer's got short hair!

'''LARRY:''' And the lead singer wears glasses!

''{Cut back to the couch. Strong Bad throws the remote at Strong Sad.}''

'''STRONG SAD:''' Ow! What was that for?

'''STRONG BAD:''' For you and your kind destroying metal! Chuck Taylor-wearing, low self-esteemers...

''{Cut back to the cartoon. The band is practicing as Teeg walks up to them.}''

'''TEEG DOUGLAND:''' I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys. Our pilot episode has been cancelled.

'''LARRY, GARY, PERRY, and MARY:''' What?

'''GARY:''' Oh well. I guess I won't be needing this anymore. ''{throws his guitar offscreen}''

''{Cut to the real Larry on Strong Bad's television, who catches the real equivalent of the guitar.}''

'''LARRY:''' Oh, thanks, Space Gary! I can't believe we got cancelled! Weeeeeell, join us next time, kids! In syndication! Or maybe on DVD! ''{plays a short tune as the TV fades out. Strong Bad returns to the Lappy.}

'''STRONG BAD:''' ''{typing}'' Whattaya think, Albi? If that's not the best thing you've ever seen, done, or eaten, then may I politely ask you to gouge out your eyes, cut out your tongue, and um, have all your done ''{short pause}'' removed.

''{The Paper comes down.}

== Easter Eggs ==
*Click on "brown sugar" to see a box of "[[Suge Brown]]" brown sugar, with the tagline "Don't borrow from thy neighbor" and a weight of "one whole pound".
*At the end of the email, click "eaten" to see a member of Limozeen question his hair color and size:
*:'''MARY:''' How come they made me fat and have red hair?
*:'''LARRY:''' Because you're the comic relief-uh!
*:''{Mary burps very loudly}''

== Fun Facts ==
=== Explanations ===
*The fact that Limozeen's cartoon takes place in space for no good reason is likely a reference to several other cartoons which also took place in space for no reason, like [http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-5297/ the Partridge Family, 2200 A.D.], [http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-2345/ Gilligan's Planet], and [http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-7865/ Josie & the Pussycats In Outer Space], all of which had extremely short runs (usually only one season).
**The Limozeen cartoon is also likely a riff on Hanna Barbara cartoons that featured bands who solved crimes or fought villians. In addition to ''Josie'' there was ''Jabberjaw'' and ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kids''. Teeg Dougland's repeated mantra of "I'm afraid I've got some bad news, boys" is a riff on band managers in such cartoons, who were often only featured as characters for plot exposition.

=== Trivia ===
*Teeg Dougland was voiced by [[Mike Chapman]] who looks almost identical to Teeg.

*The email song could be a parody of the movie "Saw"'s logo 'How much blood would you shed to stay alive'

*Usually, a Strong Bad E-mail has the filename of sbemail###.swf. This one is sbemail126_mx.swf.

=== Remarks ===
*This email gives a good answer to Strong Bad's own question in [[different town]] when he tries to think up the Best Thing Ever, which turned out to be beef stew.
*Strong Bad's tape lacks the little tab you knock out to prevent people taping over it, a chief concern with the cartoon tape.

=== Goofs ===
*Just before Strong Bad sits down at the Lappy, you see almost his entire head, but you can't see the laces on the back of his mask; usually when they show that much of his head (e.g. in [[crazy cartoon]]) you see those laces.
*When the space-mobile is flying at supposed hyper-speed, the stars flying by in the background are streaking the wrong way.
*When we see the TV and VCR in Strong Bad's basement, the VCR shows no sign of a tape being inside it nor of any playback. (VCRs typically have some type of counter or a "play" graphic on their display.)
*When the cartoon plays and shows the band for the first time, Mary's hair is blonde like the others

=== Inside References ===
*The green alien which floats by in one scene is Nebulon, as seen in [[New Boots]] and [[Main Page 1]].
*The teleplay for Limozeen's cartoon is written by [[A. Chimendez]].
*Teeg Dougland is the name of the director of the [[Moving Very Slowly]] video on the [[strongbad_email.exe]] DVD. He is identified as the manager of the band at the NYU talk during the showing of a Limozeen coloring book 'game'.
*The [[VCR]] is still blinking from [[12:00]] and someone removed the alarm clock that [[Bubs]] duct-taped to it.
*When Space Gary throws his guitar and says "I guess I won't be needing THIS anymore," it is a reference to [[invisibility]]. Strong Bad says the same thing when he gets rid of the broken [[Tandy 400]] and replaces it with the [[Compy 386]].
*The guitar that Space Gary tosses is the same one seen in [[Puppet Time]].
**It looks like a KE3 Kelly model guitar by Jackson

=== Real-World References ===
*When the bus shortens and turned into a spaceship, it looks a lot the opening of The Magic School Bus
*"Metalmation" is a reference to the [[Wikipedia:Filmation|Filmation]] animation studio, with the logos looking very similar. Filmation was famous for churning out cookie-cutter cartoons many of which also took place in space for no good reason.
*The repeated "band being chased" segments may be a reference to a Hanna-Barbera 70's staple of stock-footage chase scenes, which appeared most prominently in Scooby-Doo. Also, this may refer to the Beatles, who spent a good deal of "A Hard Day's Night" -- supposedly a typical day in the life of the band--running away from adoring female fans. [[Image:evil-grimace.jpg|thumb|Four-armed Grimace]]
*"Four-armed Grimace" is a reference to the purple McDonaldland character. Grimace was originally named "The Evil Grimace", and he had four arms -- so that he could hold many shakes at once.
*"My dear Fatson" is an adaptation of "My dear Watson", a way Sherlock Holmes often addressed his assistant.
*The space logo of Limozeen is very similar to the logo of the Nintendo game series Metroid. This isn't the first Metroid reference on the site -- in fact, a Metroid code appeared in an Easter Egg in the Strong Bad Email [[invisibility]].
*"Encounter at Groupulon 5" is a combined reference to [[Wikipedia:Encounter_at_Farpoint|Encounter at Farpoint]] (the first episode of [[Wikipedia:Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation|Star Trek: The Next Generation]]) and the popular science-fiction show [[Wikipedia:Babylon_5|Babylon 5]].
* Mary asking "How come they made me fat and have red hair?" draws attention to the manipulation of characters in cartoon adaptations to clearly defined sterotypical roles. In particular, Mary's question references the cartoon [http://www.tvtome.com/RealGhostbusters/ The Real Ghostbusters], where the Dan Aykroyd character (from the Ghostbusters film) was modified into an overweight redhead. This was done because the real-life actors had contract clauses that prevented likenesses of them being used.
**It may also have been done so that the animated counterparts of Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis (all dark haired and of similar build in the film) could be easily told apart by kids.
* The phrase "Chuck Taylor wearin'..." refers to [[Wikipedia:Converse Shoes|Converse High Top Basketball Shoes]], designed by Chuck Taylor. "Chucks" are a signature look of Grunge, Punk, and Metal that happened after 1990.
**This is also a reference to that particular brand of shoe being popular among fans of "Alternative Rock" (or indie, or emo, etc.) that Strong Bad is so angry about. We know that Strong Sad has a fondness for these bands from his Blog.
*Bozar's huge cranium, love of bizarre magical pranks, and insulting manner of addressing the heroes of the show bears a strong resemblance to the antics of [[Wikipedia:Mr_Mxyzptlk|Mr. Mxyzptlk]], a derby-wearing, fifth-dimensional imp and Superman antagonist who periodically appeared in Metropolis to pester the Last Son of Krypton with his reality-altering powers.
**This also bears a resemblance to [[Wikipedia:The Great Gazoo|the Great Gazoo]] from The Flintstones.
**He also resembles a megalomaniacal antagonist from the 90's show [[Wikipedia:Mighty Max|Mighty Max]] called Dr. Zygote, who had an oversized brain/head, alien-like features, and would construct elaborate schemes to rule/destroy humanity.
*The scene at the end, where the cartoon throws the guitar to the real-life band member, pokes fun at almost every 80's cartoon that had a (semi) famous person behind it -- where the cartoon would transition/interact with the real person from off screen: Fat Albert, Alf, M.C. Hammer, Mr. T, the Harlem Globetrotters, and many others all closed the episode with the real-world people.
*"rrll rrll" is a common short-hand notation for a [http://www.vicfirth.com/education/rudiments/06longroll.html double-stroke roll], which is a percussion rudiment executed by playing two strokes on a single hand followed by two in the alternate hand and repeating.
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_Zone Forbidden Zone] is a really bad cult sci-fi movie most notable for launching the 80's new-wave band [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oingo_Boingo Oingo Boingo]
**It's also the place where George Taylor went in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_of_the_Apes_%281968_movie%29 Planet of the Apes] to learn the horrible truth.
**It could also be a reference to Star Trek's "The Neutral Zone," where Federation ships were forbidden to go.
*Teeg Dougland's reccuring line could be a reference to Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth's from Futurama. Prof. Farnsworth usually entered a scene with the line "Good news everyone!" (or occassionally "Bad news everyone!") followed by something really weird, such as "Tomorrow you'll be making a delivery to Ebola 9, the virus planet."
*The character MITCH OVERLORD has a metal jaw like the character Darth Malak from the popular video game Knights of the Old Republic, and the robotic hand may be a reference to Dr. Claw from Inspector Gadget or any other show with a handicapped villain with a cybernetic prosthesis.
*The entire tape of the Limozeen cartoon includes authentic "VHS grain", though it is most visible during the black METALMATION intro (note how the background appears to be randomly speckled). This unavoidable phenomenon of VHS recording tends to show up after re-recording tapes a number of times, or when using high compression levels (like SLP).

== External Links ==
*[http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail126.html view "best thing"] 
*[http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail126_mx.swf view the flash file for "best thing"]
*[http://www.forum.hrwiki.org/viewtopic.php?t=2214 forum thread re: best thing]

{{Strong Bad Email}}
[[Category: Lappy 486 Emails]] [[Category: Strong Bad Filmography]] [[Category: Strong Sad Filmography]] [[Category: Nebulon Filmography]]