Teh Epic Episode 1

Teh Epic: Episode 1
Directed by Justin Wawrzonek and Mike Belfance

How exactly does one follow up Videogame Nightmare 2, which was itself a shamelessly goofy (though much expanded and improved) retread of its predecessor? By writing a Futurama-style tribute/satire of a niche genre of literature, of course! I didn't know it was possible to make a good-natured, easily accessible comedy about anything more obscure than videogames, but Justin and Mike have served up a brilliant introduction to what may be the best written 3DMM show this side of Community Clash. Teh Epic assembles conventions from the most well-known timeless fables and fairy tales to more modern fantasy classics like The Lord of the Rings to more obscure RPG references ranging from Dragon Warrior to the first Final Fantasy to Mario RPG and beyond. It really IS like Futurama in that it pokes fun of every tier of mideival fantasy cliches from obvious to really obscure, and crafts an adventurous journey of its own in the same style as the genre it pokes fun at. Like all of the best parodies, Teh Epic is neither a joyous celebration of fantasy nor a satirical deconstruction of its flaws, but something in between.

It kicks off brilliantly, with a title sequence that pays this sort of nudge-in-the-ribs style homage to the Big One itself; you'll see what I mean when you watch it. We're dropped unceremoniously into the series' world to follow the lead of a clumsily omniscient narrator, who explains away the buildings and roads as having not been invented yet, and they disappear with a world-shaking puff of smoke. Our hero's name is Bob -- voiced by Tuna Hematoma, who sounds like he's having a lot more fun here than he did on The World Around Igby -- and he's on a quest to, er. Save a princess. The device of the shifty, uncomfortable narrator allows Justin and Mike to make everything up on the spot a bit more gracefully than in Videogame Nightmare 2, but it also allows them to skewer various fantasy conventions by having the first thing the narrator thinks of be those cliches we all know and love. Bob is pompous, narcissistic, cowardly, and lovably dumb, everything the main character of a Justin/Mike movie should be. The unnamed squire serves an important function as well; as the only person in the story with an ounce of sense, he's there to be snickered at, overlooked, and otherwise completely ignored. By the way, I actually kind of like Jonny Anson's mic distortion. It's weirdly appropriate for the squire's character.

The biggest surprise to me was how well it looked, though it makes sense in retrospect. VGN2 was produced over a four-year period of time and almost certainly rushed out the door, animation-wise, near the end. Where the best-looking segments of that movie were the short videogame cameos in the music video sequence, Teh Epic manages to look good throughout its entirety. The use of the expansion pack certainly helps, but it's a good knowledge of how to make forests, blobs, mountains, and 10th-century roads and villages that wins the day here. Animation is much improved as well, with actor and HMC animations exaggerated for comic effect, magic effects being servicable if not stellar, and even introducing some interesting camera pans and zooms closer to the end. There's one excellent shot in a village that reveals sight gags as the camera pans rapidly to the left, following Bob and the Squire walking in profile as Bob blabbers on enthusiastically about finding adventurers to join them.

Now, when you're making a comedy about fantasy stories, obviously some people are going to be alienated. From what I understand, there are people who hate fantasy altogether (may god have mercy on their souls, the poor bastards). Because of this, Teh Epic takes a cue from Futurama in form as well as in style, by presenting a broad, more generic fantasy premise and making the more distinct, specific references to other works narrow down into jokes and side mentions so as to more easily cut their losses if a viewer doesn't pick up on what's being parodied. So the main story thread involves Bob and his faithful squire/minstrel on a journey to gather adventurers and save a princess, while along the way they run into complications involving a high random battle encounter rate in the forest, and end up fighting RPG battles using the systems from Mario RPG and Final Fantasy 1. As the jokes get more obscure, the time spent on them is shorter to include as many people as possible. It's very intelligent writing and planning, and it's done so that even when you don't quite understand the punchline, the joke seems funny anyway.

Speaking as someone who DOES get all the punchlines, this movie is a joy to watch. Fantasy fans, you now have your own animated show; and to make one last comparison to Futurama, Teh Epic promises to be just that even from the start -- while there are several incidental jokes, many of which Bob and the squire are the butt of, there's something slowly starting to build here in the background, and I don't mean the quality of the scenery. This is why the ending feels stunted and a bit disappointing; we're really, really starting to get into it and we've just been introduced to the new character of Rudolph when the narrator cuts in with the traditional "WILL OUR HEROES" ending monologue. In future episodes, be sure to wrap up story arcs a little tighter, even if there isn't an obvious stopping point for the plot in sight....you want the audience to feel more of a smiling satisfaction than mild frustration at the fact that it's come to an end and now they have to wait for the next one.

Over the past few years, I've observed that there are two constants in the history of 3D Movie Maker: The rise and fall of various directors, and the Justin Wawrzonek/Mike Belfance team. There is no reason to believe these guys will ever throw in the towel, though it's probably due in part to the fact that they're sitting right here and the towel is way over there. HAH. But in short, Teh Epic, obscure as the source material might seem to be, is for anyone who appreciates the Justin/Mike combo of self-deprecating humor with surprising depths, and this one works on a much more solid level with characters that are actually not Justin and Mike themselves. Great job, guys, now get to work on episodes 2 through 9.

Critical Score: 85/100.
Personal Score: 90/100.