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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsWoW Moviewatch: LFG: This is war
by Michael Gray 
Dec 10th 2008 at 12:00PM
We've known for a while that the comic LFG has been working on a feature-length film. Well, they've now released another teaser, just to make sure we keep it in mind and keep looking forward to it. It's a rough animation, without the full suite of effects. But it does include another Disney-inspired song, which makes me wonder if the final movie is going to be a musical. (Which, I think, would be cool.)
I like this teaser much better than the earlier one. The first teaser was cool if you're into Richard, the all-evil all-the-time character. It was mostly a display of him walking around and killing people. I totally dug the animation and song, but the action just didn't really hit my funny bone. "This is war," however, really did it for me -- I think the contrasting characters brought more depth to the "plot."
Thanks to Andrew for the tip!
If you have any suggestions for WoW Moviewatch, you can mail them to us at machinima AT wowinsider DOT com.
Previously on Moviewatch ...
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Machinima, WoW Moviewatch, Comics
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 2)
Jun Dec 10th 2008 2:14PM
Speaking as someone who worked at Disney (in animation), I am baffled at all the effort these guys are putting into something that, if they attempt to make money with it, will immediately result in them being taken to court by Disney, one of the most litigious companies in the world. I suggest they significantly change the music and melody if they want to avoid this fate.
If they aren't planning to make money off of this, it's even more baffling - why put such a tremendous amount of effort (and yes, animation is a tremendous amount of effort) into a product that you can't own?
As for the film itself - meh. The animation is primitive and the jokes aren't funny. I applaud the enormity of the work put into this. But they really need a new writer.
Zhiva Dec 11th 2008 12:20PM
Maybe you will not move a finger if you aren't paid for it, but not all people are like you.
You know, some people do things because they like it.
Jun Dec 11th 2008 12:27PM
Some people have families and mortgages and bills. Get out there in the real world before you make a naive statement like that. I might have agreed with you when I was 20, but the years have handed me a big fat reality check.
Ooglie Dec 10th 2008 2:22PM
The comic is just so-so and this animation sample is crap (The whole story, disney rip-off idea that is; whoever is animating it has skills). But I guess this strip appeals to the younger crowd whose taste is all in their moths anyway.
Call it a troll if ya want but they ain't gettin my money and I doubt I'd even bother watching it if it's free.
Eversor Dec 10th 2008 3:12PM
You know, I rather watch this (and probably will, hell, I am even ready to PAY for it) than watching yet another *insert name here* Movie, that spring up nowadays. Those things are such blatant ripoffs and horrible parodies, that I am not even sure how they are being funded. Sure, toilet humor is not bad and all... but when it is weakly used, it is not that funny if only the only joke there is not the very stupidity of the joke itself.
Now please tell me, is LFG, where so much song lyrics are rewritten in a whole new context, even comparable to those lame *insert name here* Movies? The effort and thought going into this is far greater, and unlike those movies, it is not being made to grab as much cash possible, no. It is made simply for fun, and the arbitrary cost you will be asked to pay is for the production. I, for one, am ready to pony up some cash for this.
PalominoMule Dec 10th 2008 3:22PM
I'd say that the parody of multiple Disney songs pretty well indicates that this is a work of parody, and especially so if elements of Disney animated films appear in the plot as well - it *is* commenting on Disney's animated works. Often the muddy areas with parody are whether or not the would-be parody is actually *saying* something about the existing work it's using, or just using it as a vehicle to accomplish something else entirely.
For instance, that infamous "American McGee's Strawberry Shortcake" strip that Penny Arcade did really wasn't a parody of Strawberry Shortcake, so Hallmark was justified in acting against it. Strawberry Shortcake was being used as a vehicle to parody the American McGee line, and could easily have been replaced with some other characters without the work's message being changed at all.
I do not pretend to say with authority that if this were brought to court that it would go one way or another, but I do believe that the LFG movie would have a solid defense to work with.
Jun Dec 10th 2008 7:56PM
Parody cases can go both ways in court and it's not necessarily a given that the defendant will be the winner. I don't see the song from Aladdin being really "parodied" here, for example, it's just using the music of a Disney song to make a sarcastic counterpoint to a violent scene - it's not making a specific parody of the song itself - so in my opinion the parody doesn't have a rock-solid case.
Gizen Dec 10th 2008 9:30PM
When you look at just this one song, then yes, it doesn't look much like parody. However, the creators of LFG have said they intend on including seven musical numbers during the movie, each implied (though I don't believe outright stated) to be based on famous disney songs. And an entire comedy film filled with numerous disney song references (among other things, since the rest of the movie itself would also no doubt have satirical elements as well) probably wouldn't have any difficulty classifying itself as parody.
Jun Dec 11th 2008 12:36PM
Well, I can only comment based on this one piece as I know nothing about the rest of the film. I guess we'll see when all is said and done. I was just trying to suggest that it was a mistake taking on, of all possible things, the big dog Disney, a company known to be extremely protective of their properties. Don't say I didn't warn them.
uncaringbear Dec 11th 2008 8:10PM
Good luck to the guys behind LFG. A project of this scale is ambitious to say the least. Having said that, I am probably one of only two commenter here who are not fans of LFG. The humor and storylines have always been derivative and utterly devoid of imagination and creativity.
Ganja-Master Jan 9th 2009 5:37AM
to jun are you that much of a square, they are making a movie that is not suppose to take itself so seriously. i don't know if there making ti for money or for the sake of just making a movie and whats wrong with just making a movie for the sake of it? its a movie based on a web comic its not the latest kids movie to be released in movie theaters. it is a relatively low budget movie and i think the animations may all be done on a computer but why do you have to have your head shoved so far up your ass and be an asshole about it why not let people have fun and enjoy life and doing things they like (e.g making the lfg movie)
also try smiling and laughing once in a while, and yes your are a conservative square so stop baging people out without all the facts.
your friend
Ganja-master
AJ Feb 15th 2009 5:04AM
I hate to say it but the only halfway decent character in LFG is Richard, which isn't saying much. There are already hundreds of existing characters just like him, mostly in video games or fan-created chars. When a comic/story has only one quasi-amusing or intriguing character in it, the whole thing just stinks.
Come to think of it, I think I took a shit with more substance than a typical LFG comic strip...
Kalundas Feb 24th 2009 6:21AM
Well for starters im a WOW player and was introduced to LFG online comic strip last summer being aug 2008 and read it from start to finish in 3 days. I personally thought it was a hoot due to the fact i am a world of warcraft player and understood the humor. I dont know if any of the people posting such negative comments have played the game that this comic takes its foundation from but i do know that atleast 500 people that i know that play this game all love this comic strip and all have read every page. Now mind you not all the pages are that great but as a whole its pretty damn funny. So if 10 million wow players out there enjoy the game i dont think LFG has too much of a problem keeping up the good work and in regrards to the movie that is coming out some day Disney can try and file suit against them but even though they are the big company Jun is going on about such negative press can be very harmful too. 10 million is a big number.
AJ Feb 16th 2009 4:44AM
10 million is a big number. Hmm, a lot of losers out there I guess...
There are employers out there I know of who won't hire people who play WoW. And is it any wonder? Every WoW player I come across is either 1) so obsessed that they completely forget to eat, sleep, bathe, go to work/school or 2) a dumbass who acts like a mentally-challenged 15 year-old with ADHD. Or a combination of both. I actually feel really sorry for these guys and can only hope that they get their heads out of Blizzard's ass before all hope is lost :(
Yessir Feb 18th 2009 5:29AM
I kinda agree with you. Mind you, to each his/her own, but overall I get what you're saying and respect the fact that you're ballsy enough to post these things on a WoW site. Most WoW fans are ITGs who love throwing cheap, infantile insults at anyone who dares insult their precious addiction. And it IS an addiction, people. But it's their choice nonetheless. I was an avid WoW fan at one point and rarely left my room because I was so immersed in it. It's a very engrossing MMO that very well deserves its rank as #1, but I'm done with it. And having said that I don't mind speaking out a little about it. you can tell a lot about a franchise by the fanbase behind it. Yes, WoW fans are a very loyal bunch, but rarely the most pleasant. Personally I never found the LFG comics to be entertaining, even though I understood the WoW-oriented humor... it got dull after a while not to mention once I realized that Richard was the only reason I'd even bother continuing to stop by and read the newest LFG comic strip. Sure it has a few halfway funny moments, but guess who is responsible for those moments? Yup, good ol' Dick. Overall I think the WoW fans are biased in their opinion of LFG...
*runs before getting lynched*