Talk:bike thief

From Homestar Runner Wiki

[edit] Easter Egg, what does Homestar Say?

I hear "burger wrapper". this makes more sense, as it's a kind of garbage, similar to how SB was listing parts of the bush earlier. "Murder weapon" makes no sense. — Defender1031*Talk 12:43, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Murder weapon. —BazookaJoe 12:45, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

How does that make any sense? — Defender1031*Talk 12:46, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

You'd put a murder weapon in the trash after using it, wouldn't you? —BazookaJoe 12:46, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

WHAT?! THAT'S the best you can come up with? No, you wouldn't necessarily put a murder weapon in the trash. You WOULD however, necessarily put a burger wrapper in the trash. — Defender1031*Talk 12:51, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

It's not a question of what makes more sense. It's a question of what he's actually saying. --phlip ^T_C 12:53, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

I very definitely hear "murder weapon", and can't hear anything like "burger" or "wrapper" no matter how hard I try. It couldn't be any clearer. --phlip ^T_C 12:47, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Personally, I heard "Mortor Weapon". That sounds closer to Murder Weapon, and I doubt my opinion means much here.--147.133.211.123 12:49, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Okay, just listened to it again, with the sound all the way up, it is most definitely "murder weapon". I stand corrected, and bid you all a good day. — Defender1031*Talk 12:58, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

I realize that you've agreed it is "Murder Weapon" so i'm not saying anything other than I agree. But to the person who asked why that makes sense, it's to do with Strong Bad's line where he asks if Homestar is a trash can or a robot, some robots would probly have some sort of gun of some sort, which is a murder weapon - that is why it makes sense. 15:36, 10 September 2007 (UTC) MJN SEIFER

How does "murder weapon" not make sense as something in a trash can? There are plenty of references to this in popular culture, particularly on crime shows like CSI. Bloody knives wrapped in towels tossed in a dumpster, etc. The first one that came to mind for me was Harrison Ford in The Fugitive, but I recall now that's a mailbox. -ReverendTed 19:20, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

I'm confused. When did we start worrying about whether Homestar made any sense?--.Johnny Jupiter! ^talk _cont 19:58, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

I heard mortar weapon, but because of Homestar's speaking skills "mortar" and "murder" would probably sound the same...... S a l t y^Talk! 23:38, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Ocean's Eleven

When Strong Bad tries to steal the bike seat off the couch, he says, "I'll have to employ some Chinese acrobatics!" When I saw this, I thought of the 2001 film Ocean's Eleven, in which thieves rob a Las Vegas casino. In the heist scene of that film, one of them (a Chinese acrobat) uses his talents to break into the vault. As a side note, two thieves also have to bypass laser security in a long vertical shaft, although they get through the shaft by rappelling rather than using suction cups.

I think that at least the Chinese acrobat bit is a real-world reference; anyone agree? Unless I'm mistaken, the combination of Chinese acrobatics and thievery is uncommon enough that it's almost certainly a reference to that film, but I wanted to post here first and see what others thought... Trey56 13:10, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

No, many movies i've seen make use of acrobatics to avoid lazer security. — Defender1031*Talk 13:22, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Sure, but Chinese acrobatics?

Trey56 13:30, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Nah, i think he just picked a country famous for martial arts. — Defender1031*Talk 13:31, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

BEH! its Ocean's Eleven (series of movies). Name one other (reasonably famous) movie where they avoid lasers with chinese acrobatics? Not Mission Impossible. And what does martial arts have to do with acrobatics? -Jdhannan 15:32, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Ocean's Eleven was certainly my first thought when I heard it, but I'm still not entirely sure it's an obvious enough reference. -ReverendTed 19:22, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

Lucy Liu is Chinese, she was in Charlie's Angels. She did that stuff.--71.203.169.248 18:43, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

There's no reason to believe it's a reference. Acrobatics are very commonly used for getting around security in movies, and China is known for acrobatics. It's likely just a joke. Exhibit A (talk · edits) 19:28, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

yip—Supuhstar*

05:11, 20 June 2008 (UTC)

[edit] College References

One wonders just how many college references need to be included in the Real World section. Are backwards baseball caps a uniquely American cliche/frat-boy joke? Wannabe hippies with dreads carrying generally ignored petitions? Or should the jokes be allowed to stand on context in the hopes that a viewer in, say, Bangladesh who has never set foot on a university campus will infer the references?

I bet more people in Bangladesh are wearing backwards baseball caps than fratboys in America are. You know why? Because there are more people in Bangladesh than in American frats. In short, everybody in the world who has ever seen a baseball hat has seen a backwards one. What makes you think frats have anything at all to do with it? Now, if the hat was 1/3-frontways-sideways, or 1/4-sideways, I would concede that you're probably justified in making a Fun Fact about West Coast ricercar-racers, or hyphy kids of any color.

What on earth are you talking about? Are you honestly telling me that you have never heard anyone connecting frats with backwards baseball caps? Strong Bad himself mentioned it in theme party, along with every stand-up comedian who has ever ripped on college life. It's an enormous cliche, and I was asking if it were a particularly AMerican cliche or recognized elsewhere, like donut-eating cops or butt-crack plumbers. I don't think the snippiness was warranted.

I've heard of backards caps being associated with the totally cool styles of kids these days, but never specifically college fraternities. I mean, yeah, a lot of college students wear backwards ball caps, but that's just 'cause a lot of people that age wear 'em regardless of their educational status. I don't think it deserves a mention. And what's the deal? Was signing disabled on this thread somehow?--.

Johnny Jupiter! ^talk _cont 05:30, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

I'll concede that it may not be worth a mention, but I'm confused as to why so many people on here keep saying "I've never heard of this!" Even if you've never set foot on a college campus, once again , SB himself mentions it as a frat cliche in theme party, so surely this information has been assimilated at some point.

He doesn't say anything about them being backwards in theme party. Maybe it is a stereotypical frat boy image, but either way, I just think it's unremarkable. And appearantly signing is disabled for everyone 'cept me.--.

Johnny Jupiter! ^talk _cont 06:14, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

Oop, my mistake, you're right on the cap reference. I dunno, I guess I'm the only one that equates backwards caps with college kids on this forum, but the Chaps also seem to share the opinion, since Homestar as a college kid suddenly has his hat backwards. Probably a coincidence. And yes, we get it, posts without sigs make you anxious. Take deep, cleansing breths. This will pass.

[edit] Ivory tower

Another debatable RWR: when I saw the CGNU tower off in the distance during the scene in the Field, I immediately thought of Stanford University's Hoover Tower, a similar tower that is often used as a symbol of the university. I've also seen it silhouetted like that in illustrations (PhD comics, for example). Probably won't get people to agree it's a reference, but thought I'd mention it here. Trey56 13:48, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Perhaps if we just mention that many university campuses (at least in my travels and inferences, which may be inaccurate) have a generally-recognized tower that is used in a lot of said campus' signage...For example, when I first saw the CGNU tower, I thought of the Coughlin Campanile, here on the campus of South Dakota State University...even though we do not have SDSU branded on the outside. Rosseloh 18:43, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Agree with the original poster that they do look similar. Also agree with OP that they would have a diffiult time convincing anyone of such specificity. The Berkey campus has a remarkably similar tower, as I'm sure many campuses do. One instance where I'm sure the Chaps snigger over the fan base's tendency to nitpick over every joke.

I think its supposed to be similar to the Tech Tower of Georgia Tech.

Wow, I think you've got something there:

It's got the letters on the top.
It's got a peaked roof, unlike some of the other towers.
It's a Georgia school, and TBC like to make references to their home state.

I think it should be included in the article...

Trey56 13:41, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

I think we have a winner. Tech Tower for sooth. —BazookaJoe 05:55, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

It looks nothing like it, except for the letters. I'm not so convinced, but will be content if there's is enough support for it here. Loafing

05:58, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

4. They were at GA Tech this spring.

Loafing, I wouldn't expect TBC to copy every detail exactly from the Tech Tower, especially not for a quick-draw silhouette. What I'm saying is that they are modeling the CGNU Tower off of the Tech Tower, not copying nor necessarily referencing it. Even if it's not a reference, this still is a "remark"able fact to some extent. After all, which college building would be a better fit for TBC to model than the Tech Tower? (Answer: Probably a building from a campus they've been to. But how many college buildings have they seen with a pointy roof, white letters, a ledge, and a few windows under the ledge?) —BazookaJoe 06:14, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

Wait, if this could be Stanford, or South Dakota, or Georgia Tech, or Berkley...then isn't this the exact definition of TTATOT? Flashfight

Only if it's equally likely to be any of the four. In this case, I think there's strong evidence pointing to Georgia Tech but not so much the others.

Trey56 22:29, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] CHiPs

I think, rather than "Punch" and "John", Strong Bad is actually exclaiming "Ponch" and "Jon" who are the main characters in the 70s TV show CHiPs.

Definitely agree. Transcriber dropped the ball on that one.

Well, I'm so sorry for not being an active US TV watcher, or alive, in the '70s. :-P But yes, that does make sense. --phlip ^T_C 00:17, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] MIT

Can someone verify my explaination for MIT? I'm not sure about it. It could also refer to NIT. Awexome 16:38, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Sure — he's referring to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (I changed it).

Trey56 16:42, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Bromide

Bromide is not a compound. A compound contains two or more elements. Bromide is an ion based on the element bromine. --H-ko 19:16, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Technically, a bromide is a compound. A bromide ion is not, but rather a single atom. — Lapper (talk) 19:38, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Technically, "bromide" refers to the ion... it's just in common usage that it refers to a compound containing bromide (because, once it's dissolved, it doesn't matter what the cation is... just that there is one). Like how the "fluoride" in toothpaste is generally sodium fluoride, which is a compound. But the fluoride itself is only one element. --phlip ^T_C 00:15, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

All of you are missing the point. The word bromide here is employed as a frat-boy slang/cliche, just a play on the word "bro." It has nothing to do with the actual element or chemistry, and most certainly does not refer to its somewhat archaic use to mean "boring."

I am a college student and I have never heard anyone use "bromide" to mean "bro". When I saw this the only thing I thought of was Bromine and Br₂ being Bromide and NaBr being Sodium Bromide, etc.... As for boring, what the pfargtl? Bromide, or any pronoun used to mean bromide, and boring never belong in the same sentence. Not even that one. I can't believe you mentioned that. They never have similar meanings. Kevin G. Dannerson 20:24, 27 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Peasant's Quest Bush

Maybe I'm reaching, maybe not, but did anyone else find that SB's bush disguise looked remarkably similar to the berry bush in the Peasant's Quest video game? — 87.69.106.165 (Talk | contribs) 21:49, 10 September 2007 (UTC) (left unsigned)

Hmm, it does, now that you mention it. Not sure it's good enough for a reference though. — Defender1031*Talk 21:55, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

I thought the same thing when I watched it.

Trey56 21:56, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

I thought it too, especially on the mention of berries by Strong Bad. --DorianGray 21:57, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Vote!

I'd have to say that it deserves a reference. Or at least a "is possibly a reference to".

yeah, I think it deserves a reference --

Geoblu2

00:51, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

I noticed the music introducing Strong'Bush' sounds like as if when we're introduced to Sterrance in sbemail animal. --Cardgage Forty Twone 05:29, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

Whoops. It's stupid late/early and it somehow didn't register that this was already mentioned in Inside References. Blargh. --Cardgage Forty Twone 05:41, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Spray Can

What does it say on the spray can he uses on the lasers? I'm lazy and can't find it anywhere on the page. -Telamon 22:10, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

It reads "C'mon! It's Fog!" You're right, it should be added somewhere. — Has Matt? (talk) 22:17, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

It seems too specific to not have a reference, but I can't think of what it might be...

I think having it in the transcript is enough, but if you were going to mention it elsewhere, i guess it would go under trivia. -Telamon 22:55, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

"It seems too specific to not have a reference"... Hilarious! C'mon! It's fog! Y'know, like the fog spray that movie burglars always use to see laserbeams! How much more specific? C'mon! It's fog! 76.200.159.237 04:23, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] College Girl

Not sure if it's worth noting, but in hygiene Strong Bad complained about receiving email from kids, and wanted more email from college girls, which this one presumably is. Don't know any guys named Virginia. Xerzes 23:33, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Sounds good to me, i hadn't even noticed the relation. -Telamon 03:00, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

I third.--.

Johnny Jupiter! ^talk _cont 05:45, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

Ehh... isn't Virginia a city in Michigan?

Why do you say that? Have you heard of or been to that city before? According to mapquest and google it doesn't exist. I give a fourth agreement that it's worth noting.Some kind of scientist 23:36, 15 September 2007 (UTC)

I noticed this instantly. I'm surprised it hasn't already gotten more of a reference than it already has. btw, there is a city called Wyoming in Michigan, and also a city in Michigan called Hell, but I'm pretty sure Wyoming is the only city in Michigan that has a state's name. Kevin G. Dannerson 22:00, 25 September 2007 (UTC)

I think that it is a girl named Virginia from the state of Michigan. I'm sure that people have emailed Strong Bad with only their state after their name...StrongBadFan99998 05:41, 23 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Ban Roll-On

Incidentally, when Strong Bad said "to ban roll-on", my immediate assumption was that it was a reference to the common urban myth that deodorant causes cancer. This theory was particularly common amongst health enthusiasts for a quite a while, and in fact, persists to this day. In the context of the cartoon, it doesn't really make much sense for him to be talking about "a petition to Ban Roll-On" (the brand); since the brand name is a noun, this would be akin to "a petition to tree" or something, wouldn't it? I know that we don't hear the rest of his sentence, but grammatically, I can't think of any way for that statement to end. Meanwhile, for him to be trying to ban roll-on deodorant (because it causes cancer) makes a fair amount of sense, particularly when coupled with his later comments about vegan food and brotherhood (indicating a sort of hippie/health nut image). I know this is Strong Bad we're talking about, and he rarely makes complete sense, but could my explanation be considered, at least?--Tally Solleni 00:07, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

I think you are right that "ban" is being most likely used as a verb, but that doesn't change the fact that Ban Roll On is a brand name, so it makes sense to mention the word play for the benefit of people unfamiliar with the brand. Incidentally, one way the sentence fragment could be interpreted so that "ban" is a noun was if Strong Bad were saying "...signing this petition [addressed] to Ban Roll On". (pretty unlikely). 74.136.220.105 00:51, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

It's probably due to the fact that the Marzipan type would be against aerosol, to save the ozone layer, so Strongbad is therefore trying to stop roll-on.--71.203.169.248 06:27, 18 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Trashcan Robot Explaination

When Homestar says "Murder Weapon" he's not referring to a robot having a murderous weapon. He is indeed referring to something thrown in the trash. Strong Bad asks if he's a robot because of his monotone robot-like voice he's using, which doesn't necissarily befit a trashcan as much as it would classically be associated with a robot. That, or it's a reference to his trash can shape looking similar to the Visor Robot. I don't expect anyone to listen or agree even though it's pretty obvious, but there you go. -- 208.60.233.130 02:18, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

More power to ya IP Address man, I wholeheartedly agree 24.35.69.29 04:07, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

The only reason I know what you're teekin bot is because I already read the separate topic where they're teekin bot this. Why don't/didn't you put your comment up there? 76.200.159.237 04:26, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

I figured it was more about the tone and why he's a robot than what specific words he said. Perhaps this was a GRAVE MISTAKE! :O I also think the Visor Robot possibility is worth exploring, and I dunno if it would UP THAR. :C -- 208.60.233.51 17:29, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Jump Back?

When Strong Bad just throws out the words "jump back", it reminded me of Kevin Bacon in Footloose saying that line in response to what he thought was absurd (that dancing in town was banned). I'm thinking it might be worth mentioning. The phrase is common, but only in sentences where it is elaborated on, like, "jump back in time", or, "jump back 5 feet". By itself, I can only think of Kevin Bacon here. Thoughts? PlasticDiverGuy 03:39, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

Think James Brown, who in Superbad said "Jump back - I wanna kiss myself!". I doubt that was the first use of Jump back in a soul or R&B song, but certainly earlier than Kevin Bacon, who like every white person in American history tried to be cool by imitating a Negro.

[edit] Fitty Fitty Cent

Since we said in Email that "Fitty Cent" was a refrence to rapper 50 Cent, should the same thing be said here about Fitty Fitty? I'm personally not sure it belongs on either page, but since the consensus on Email was to keep it, I think it should go here too. Another words, either fitty is a ref to 50 Cent and his slur or it's not. It should be the same on both pages.--.Johnny Jupiter! ^talk _cont 05:12, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

Well, Email includes the word "cent", where as this doesn't... I think that's enough for it to be not considered a reference here. Random unverifiable statistics: in a Google search I just did, about 2/3 of the results for "fitty" didn't include "cent" ("fitty" returned just under 300k results, "fitty -cent" returned just over 200k). --phlip ^T_C 08:50, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Earf

Personally, I had no idea what Marzipan was talking about -- the pheonetic spelling of her Earth-friendly "ebonics," as it were -- until Googling it. Am I thick or does this require explanation?

I didn't get it until reading this post... — Defender1031*Talk 09:45, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

I added something after the transcript of her petition. Hope it suits.

[edit] Outside CGNU?

OK this is pretty minor, but...

In the scene where Strong Bad and Homestar (and then Marzipan) are supposedly outside CGNU, they are obviously just at the field (as we can see the stick), not somewhere new. I don't think this scene should count as being at CGNU or as the "first time we see the outside of CGNU". It's the same old field badly disguised as being CGNU. In the transcript it says "Cut to The Stick. A CGNU sign is visible in the background". This backs up what I'm saying - that it is just the field with a CGNU sign propped up in the background. What do other people think?--Nallan 03:45, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

I hadn't even realized CGNU was listed as a location. I would have placed that scene at "The Stick". (An unrelated thing I noticed while looking into this is that "The Field" and "The Show" are under listings F and S on the HRWiki Places list, but several others starting with "The", including "The Stick", are listed under T.) -ReverendTed 19:30, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

I made some edits in the light of these comments. Feel free to discuss/revert -Telamon 00:42, 17 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Homestar/Strong Bad Discussion, RW?

First poster, be gentle to the newb. Now, during "The Awkward Swindle," Strong Bad and Homestar give a lot of real world references that seem to be of questionable relevance to this page, including Strong Bad commenting that Homestar looks like he "Likes to progress," likely a mention of how American college campuses are usually perceived as having a lot of political discourse, usually liberal or 'progressive' leaning. Other instances include 'Drum Circle,' 'Computer Lab,' and 'Meal Plan.' Is there a reason these are not included, or have they simply not been added yet? 74.130.122.80 00:24, 14 Friday September 2007 (UTC)

Heh, I tried to open that discussion a few postings up and got nowhere with it. I eventually convinced myself that it would be too much bother to explain every joke and/or convince other members that they were even worth explaining.

[edit] I know who submitted this email!

The person claiming to have written the email is Tachyon42 on deviantART. I mostly watched her page for the fractal art.

I couldn't find the page (if any) where it lists who we know wrote which emails, or if we're supposed to put it on the sbemail page itself, so I'll leave it to you guys. ¡ɯooz + 21:39, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

Some reason, we usually only list it when it's confirmed a wiki user sent it. One of our own. --DorianGray 21:42, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

Interesting. So if we were to somehow find out who Fhqwhgads was, or Ali and Ali's Sister, we should ignore it?

¡ɯooz + 21:48, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

Unless it's a user on the wiki. Homestar-Winner (talk) 21:50, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

Here's a discussion in a similar vein. We solved it, but didn't do anything about it. --DorianGray 21:51, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

Well, we're primarily here to document TBC's work. We do sometimes recognize those among our community who have emails answered (though even this has been controversial), and have been known to explain names (Yami Yugi, for example). But explaining who Fhqwhgads is would most likely be outside our domain, even if we could confirm it. It would likely add nothing to our knowledge base. Heimstern Läufer

21:52, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Backwards pizza box

azziP dlO 'sbuB
It's-a really backwards!

The label on Bubs' Old Pizza appears to be backwards in this animation. Anyone want to confirm and add to a goofs section, if it belongs?

Indeed, it is backwards, as the image to the side clearly shows. --DorianGray 04:16, 17 September 2007 (UTC)

Heh, I have to commend you on the image subtitle, if that is what it's called, hilarious.--~ SlipStream 06:30, 17 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Sterrance Music

Just noticed that when the email cuts to the bush disguise, the music that plays is a repeat from the music that played when SB created Sterrance. Not sure how to note this on the page, though. 76.114.206.220 16:57, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Um...huh?

First, I think the whole catburglar-breaking-through-laser-security thing is about as original as...um...something copied. Secondly, I've never heard of any "Adaci family," so I'm guessing they're not relevant enough to the world as a whole to get their own got milk? commercials. You usually have to be fairly well-known to be in one o' dems. Google, in fact, lists only four hits for 'adaci got milk,' and the only one of them which is relevant is, um...the hrwiki page. That being said, I believe Awexome is usually more trustworthy with factual-type edits than this. Awexome, can you tell me what exactly you're talking about? -- Onamuji 01:53, 5 March 2008 (UTC) (sorry I named a name! please let us not flame!)

[edit] Song Sad?

That intro... is that Strong Sad's lyrical rampage? Have fun, --Jellote 17:30, 17 December 2008 (UTC), QLD.

[edit] Talking and typing

I think it's worth a mention that Strong Bad has essentially no difficulty saying one thing while typing another, but I can see that this might be controversial. Tell you what: if you disagree, type your response while reciting the Pledge of Allegiance or singing your national anthem. If you finish your reply promptly, I'll concede defeat and offer my admiration.--Bobo the King 05:19, 22 October 2010 (UTC)

It's entirely possible to do so, as many people are skilled at multitasking. This is similar to the act of rubbing your belly while patting your head. I don't think this needs mention in the article. DENNIS ^T/_C 13:32, 22 October 2010 (UTC)