Tuesday, September 21, 2010

HHD: Who Shot Haiku Hump Day???? CLIFFHANGERS!!!

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As a somewhat fitting close to what amounts to Season 2 of HHD (on the air since December 2008!!!), the topic of the week is The Cliffhanger (not the stupid Stallone movie in the picture, obviously, but the larger concept).

To heighten tension, results will not be posted until at LEAST November 1st, or whichever day becomes convenient after the red tide of bloody October reviews bubbles back into the frothing sea. (Those of you familiar with First or Second Beach in Newport, RI know what I’m talking about. I used to boogie-board through a literally red ocean. Then I’d scrub red seaweed off my balls four hours later.)

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I probably need an intervention on digressions (somebody contact A&E for THAT documentary. Fuck, I’m doing it again). In any event, much like last year, we had a fantastic situation where we had a nice hiatus from the weekly intellectually-rewarding toil and drudgery of 17-syllable-brilliance, in order to make way for the eponymous raison d’etre of the blog itself. So this year, in true season-ending fashion, we’re ending it with The Cliffhanger.

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Fortunately, none of our Horrorthon contributors got shot. Or discovered Patrick Duffy in the shower. Or woke up and realized it was all a dream. Or discovered it was actually Maggie Simpson by accident. Or found out Vader really is Luke’s father. Or witnessed how Flash Gordon just narrowly and miraculously made it out of that exploding spaceship parked on the rim of an erupting volcano. Or marveled at the fact that Buck Rodgers revealed that he’s gay at the beginning of Season 3*. (SPOILER ALERT! There were spoilers in that last paragraph.)


Any one of these is as good as the other. For the record, I didn’t even watch this whole clip; pretty much just skipped to the end where the heroes pretty much die a very convincing death. There’s no WAY they survived that! Tune in next week…

So here we are: The Cliffhanger. Whether it was Lost, with its weekly patented WTF scenarios (the smoke monster totally just slept with the tropical polar bear, but Not Really Locke just met Actual Locke on the base of the Four-Toed Statue back in 1977, and they’re all going to detonate a hydrogen bomb!!!), to Stallone quite literally hanging off a cliff in true Stallone lips-curled errrrrrhhh fashion (a movie that actually did not have any thematic cliffhangers, interestingly), the trope of the cliffhanger has been with us forever.

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Is he coming back??? Was it all just a dream??? Or was it just some shit somebody made up???


To help with the thematic buildup, here’s something to chew on:

Catfreeek is hosting a “Cat-Free for 37 Days!” celebratory gala benefit at the local Stonecutters Shrine. All of Horrorthon is there. Octo (over his spring water) & 50 (over his shot glass of liquid peyote) have been eyeing each other uneasily from across the room all night. JSP and JPX have gotten into a shoving & shouting match, only to have the conflict dissolve into murmurs, a brief exchange of still-in-the-package Underoos, and many furtive, slanty-eyed glances at 50 & Octo. Stan is at the bar, surrounded by a dozen blonde sorority girls, all with tight-fitting Star Wars T-shirts on. Mr. AC, AC, DCD, The Mr. & Julie sit huddled in a corner, poring over their manifesto “How We Will Rid The World Of Doofiness By 2015.” Their eyes cast daggers at JPX & JSP for some reason. The party has an air of forced levity; the tension coloring the atmosphere like the static buildup before a lightning strike.

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Whatever. I’ll telegraph my narrative with pictures all I want.

A gunshot rings out. Some screams. The partygoers turn. None of the Horrorthon players are seen. From the shadows, Puffinslayer, nowandzen, G, miko and Jordan slowly emerge from behind party guests, each smiling in a very mysterious, quizzical way, looking down at the victim. They turn meaningfully to each other as....................[quick black fade]

Love you all. See you in November with The Answer.

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* = obviously, there was no Season 3 of Buck Rodgers. That whole Searcher bullshit in Season 2 was the death knell. The hammer blow was really when Erin Grey went brunette in Episode 8 or whatever of Season 1. For the record. And here’s an Erin Grey money shot, because I want to.)

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25 comments:

HandsomeStan said...

Are Bo & Luke gone???
Who are these other two rubes?
Don't jump the General

Robot cars face off
KITT couldn't beat KARR, could he?
Oh shit. Goliath.

50 did Octo
It's the only solution
Unless...is Puff dead?

Catfreeek said...

Stop looking at me!
I know what you're all thinking!
I didn't do it!

Catfreeek said...

Biggest cliff hangers
The daytime soap operas
bullshit never ends

They bring back the dead
Every town has a psycho
and all spouses cheat

50PageMcGee said...

fitty's cliffhanger
30 days have come to pass
bun in the oven?

50PageMcGee said...

seriously though
how much time does LA have
before "the big one?"

50PageMcGee said...

and for the last time
50 didn't *do* Octo
we're just friends, really.

HandsomeStan said...

Cliffhanger theory:
Everybody just got killed
Stan leaves with his babes

Johnny Sweatpants said...

Green Hornet's mistake
Hiring an Asian driver
Drove car off a cliff

Johnny Sweatpants said...

Who ate the pudding?
A Cliff-Huxtable-hanger
My guess is Rudy

Unknown said...

Sledge Hammer: Nuke bomb?
They stopped trying to answer
next show: "5 years pre"

Now: Community!
Jeff kissed Ann! Britta loves Jeff!
Can't wait for Thursday!

HandsomeStan said...

TV history
J-Woww fights Sammi "Sweetheart"
Ratings explosion

Catfreeek said...

The big cliffhanger
Who will win this Horrorthon
well I will of course

HandsomeStan said...

Poor Agent Cooper
No cliffhanger killed career
Hope for more dead girls

HandsomeStan said...

Thelma & Louise
More like a "cliff-plummetter"
Those wacky dead chicks

Catfreeek said...

JPX thinks me
Who will end up on Hoarders?
He, house filled with toys

JPX said...

That Seinfeld ending
They end up going to jail???
At least they're out now

'Member Golden Years?
Stephen King mini-series
Cancelled before end

Empire Strikes Back
Most tense cliffhanger ever!
Han Solo is gone???

JPX said...

How will Catfreeek end?
Buried in a bunch of cats
Imagine the stench

JPX said...

Star Trek: Wrath of Khan
What do you mean Spock is dead???
Star Trek III, he lives

Back to the Future
Part 2 was simply awesome
Part 3? Pure suckage

HandsomeStan said...

Reloaded: GREAT end
Revolutions: How To Fail
Stupid machine truce

Two Towers: GREAT end
ROTK: How To Win
"You bow to no one"

Catfreeek said...

Oh poor JPX
House barricaded with toys
He ate his own toes

He would have survived
Had he adopted a cat
instead of those toys

Whirlygirl said...

One hour, two, three...
Layover in Chicago
Will I ever leave...

Man plays solitaire
Scratches his head and moves cards
Will he ever win...

Woman screams on phone
Annoys everyone here
Will there be blood shed...

Man stares at ceiling
Doesn't waver for a sec
Will he find something...

French fries, burgers, shakes
McDonalds downed ounce for ounce
How many pounds gained...

AC said...

anticlimactic
cliffhanger resolutions
kind of like blue balls

Whirlygirl said...

Cliffhanger theory:
Maybe Whirlygirl did it?
Wait, she wasn't there

JPX said...

Finally reach Neil's home
Dell Griffith meets Neil's cold wife
Then the credits roll

What would happen next?
Dell would annoy Neil's cold wife
He'd be shown the door

DKC said...

I just noticed that money shot of Erin Grey totally looks like she has Mickey Mouse ears.

Sorry I missed the haikus!

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