Author Topic: The "anti-Invader Zim thread" thread... (Read 12300 times)

Brack · « **on:** September 20, 2006, 08:56:24 am »

*watches how many people start picking up large objects ready to hurl them in my direction*

Never thought that show was funny. Seriously. The jokes were so deadpan that it missed the actual point by trying to find a niche, especially for its time in cultural society. Considering it was on Nickelodeon, Invader Zim didn't hold much ground... especially for the fact that it was right after the suggestive era that Ren And Stimpy created that they were two gay guys living together in random places(although, it was never revealed of what their sexuality really was... but they showed it on and off throughout the show... Jerry Falwell was complaining about the Teletubbies???).

Maybe it's a 90's kid thing, considering I'm one of the earlier 90s kids, being born in 1981. I stopped watching Nickelodeon right after Rocko's Modern Life because all the new shows tried emulating each other, trying to ride off the glory of what once used to be success, now turned into mainstream garbage... seems like that with everything. There's so many people out there who cosplay as Naruto, that all the original Naruto watchers(probably the ones who downloaded the fan-subs a year before the actual seasons came out in english) who look at all the fanboys and fangirls of the show get turned off... they writhe in disgust.

I watched Invader Zim a couple of times. I never laughed, even all the way through the episode. The show didn't even make me think on a level of rationality that there was such thing as plot. Of course, my opinion can be taken several different ways... considering I find things like screenplays by Charlie Kauffman are hilarious. I dunno.

Waffles · « **Reply #1 on:** September 20, 2006, 09:14:38 am »

You Have a very good point and I enjoy that you bring somethin up and have reason behind it. I enjoy the show but I will agree that it is over popular and not always funny at times.

Also for ren and stimpy and rocco's modern life, they are two of my favorite cartoons ever.

pieisexactlythree · « **Reply #2 on:** September 20, 2006, 09:38:43 am »

I've seen about 1.5 episodes of Zim, and my verdict was "meh".

I've enjoyed Jhonen Vasquez's graphic novels, JTHM and Squee, so I thought I'd give it a try. The show just didn't do anything for me though. Also, I couldn't agree more RE. Naruto. Someone on the Sakuracon forums referred to the hordes of Naruto cosplayers as Narutards. I was amused.

This conversation inadvertantly brought me to thinking about the age of some of the most significant American animation, and to my horror, it occured to me that for many of the users of this forum, The Simpsons has been on the air for their entire lives! I remember having a Bart Simpson t-shirt in seventh grade, when the show premiered!

superjaz · « **Reply #3 on:** September 20, 2006, 10:04:11 am »

hieee you all know me probably one of the bigest invader zim fans here
first you are intiteled to your opinion yay you !!!
2nd those it takes more then 2 episodes to juge the entire show , still not to say you've could of seen every ep and hated it
3 part of zims fall was the fact yes it was on nick and they were forcing Jhonen Vasquez to change it(they wanted it to focaus on dib), which is very reconizable in the last few episode and hurt the show, he had limitations the whole thing left him little taste for tv, but yeah movie so looking forward to it, anywho, i love the blind logic of zim and girs crazey randomness
as for the 90s child i was born in 82, so i dont know, were you alowed to be a child when you were little, i had a lot of family resoncibities when little my friends think this is why i am very randon an as kylite said this weekend "act like 24 month maybe" in stead of 24 years
my utmost funny is blues brothers

Brack · « **Reply #4 on:** September 20, 2006, 10:19:10 am »

Quote from: "pieisexactlythree"

Someone on the Sakuracon forums referred to the hordes of Naruto cosplayers as Narutards. I was amused.

That would have been me and about 20 other people^_^.

Sasu-kitty · « **Reply #5 on:** September 20, 2006, 10:31:52 am »

Agreed. And on the point of Naruto...

Yes, I'm one of the cosplayers, but also, I've been watching it since long before it was licensed. I'm one of the ones that's had to watch it get bastardized and turned horribly mainstream.

Why must the good anime become so played out and dulled by American anime fans that only watch it on Toonami and Adult swim? It sucks for the rest of us.

reppy · « **Reply #6 on:** September 20, 2006, 02:10:56 pm »

I've always enjoyed Invader Zim. Never really knew much about it until I stumbled across it. I liked the art style. I thought it had some pretty good jokes, too. Then again, I happen to love cartoons. I don't watch too many of 'em these days but I've always been a fan of many of the Nicktoons. Spongebob. Fairly Oddparents. Invader Zim. Rocko's Modern Life. Ren and Stimpy. Angry Beavers. Hey! Arnold had its moments. I'm sure I'm missing one or two that I really liked, but I think I've made my point!

Is Invader Zim the end all of cartoons? No. Do I like it? Yeah. Am I going to force you to obey the fist if you don't like it? Maybe.

pieisexactlythree · « **Reply #7 on:** September 20, 2006, 02:36:27 pm »

I actually haven't watched more than a couple hours of broadcast TV in the last couple years, so if it's not worth a trip to the video store to rent, I generally won't watch a show.

Incidentally, I've never seen an episode of anime on television. I've rented them all, and then bought the ones I liked. How about y'all?

superjaz · « **Reply #8 on:** September 20, 2006, 02:41:49 pm »

the anime i saw when i was little was on tv like unico and vampire hunter d was first released dubbed,
whhen i was starting 6th grade class started was early in the morning i'd be up at 6, and sailor moon was on i yeah watched dem all

pieisexactlythree · « **Reply #9 on:** September 20, 2006, 03:03:39 pm »

Hmm... Interesting. Check this out: when my current roommate moved into my house she gave me a thank you gift: a dvd of Unico and the Magic Island. It rocked my little world!

superjaz · « **Reply #10 on:** September 20, 2006, 05:48:35 pm »

oooo unico is really rare its like the holy graill of animes
thats the second movie
the first one is the fantastic adventures of unico

BlackjackGabbiani · « **Reply #11 on:** September 20, 2006, 07:01:20 pm »

Quote from: "Sasu-kitty"

Agreed. And on the point of Naruto...

Yes, I'm one of the cosplayers, but also, I've been watching it since long before it was licensed. I'm one of the ones that's had to watch it get bastardized and turned horribly mainstream.

Why must the good anime become so played out and dulled by American anime fans that only watch it on Toonami and Adult swim? It sucks for the rest of us.

Well, that's more than a little elitist. Naruto was mainstream long before it was even picked up by a dubber. Take a look at con pictures from before then.

maetel · « **Reply #12 on:** September 20, 2006, 07:55:23 pm »

yeah, i thought Invader Zim was dumb.

makichan · « **Reply #13 on:** September 20, 2006, 08:48:29 pm »

I actually liked invader zim lol but if we all liked the same stuff it'd become annoying. I like diversity and the fact that we can like whatever we feel like. Kinda nice xD

Dark-hobo · « **Reply #14 on:** September 20, 2006, 11:57:44 pm »

Meh the only good episode of invader zim was the poke of death episode. The rest was *pfft* in my opinion.

The Night Bringer · « **Reply #15 on:** September 21, 2006, 08:47:03 pm »

I have to say, Zim was not one of Johnen's best work. But we have to look at the HUGE jump he made to make it. First of all, it is a cartoon, Johnen originaly did Comic Books for Slave Labor Comics. Secondly we have to look at the maturity jump, Johnny The Homicidal Maniac, Squee, and I Feel Sick are all incredibly dark and mature comics. Nickalodeon is a childrens network that all ready get alot of heat from parents thanks to cartoons like Ren & Stimpy and the temporarily persecuted Sponge Bob (which was rediculas by the way.) Zim was way darker than any thing that could be seen in cartoons today. The only thing that really comes close is The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, but that show is just retarded. Johnen was unfortunate enough to try a cartoon that would push the boundries of cartoons today. You may not like the cartoon, but you have to respect what Johnen was trying to do. Thats really one of the first cartoons that take the perspective of the "villains" side. He truly is a pioneer, its just a pitty that they made him absolutley slaughter his original ideas for Zim. Thats my two cents anyway.

pinkrandomattack · « **Reply #16 on:** September 21, 2006, 09:54:33 pm »

yeah i think part of the problem with that show was that it was on nick to start out and not later in the evening on cartoon network. i think there was probably to much pressure for it to be kid friendly and you can see alot of the jokes fall short of where they may have been at the conseption of any given episode. even now cartoons "for big kids" are only just taking mainstrem popularity (beyond the simpsons).

botom line;

zim was on the wrong station, and before its time.

superjaz · « **Reply #17 on:** September 21, 2006, 11:12:34 pm »

i must say this post just sounds kinda mean saying people think a show a lot of people like is dumb i hope it dosnt start a trend of i hate------
stufff

Vondan · « **Reply #18 on:** September 23, 2006, 03:42:25 pm »

Quote from: "Brack"

*watches how many people start picking up large objects ready to hurl them in my direction*

You sly dog, Acording to Worf hurling Objects is part of Klingon Love play

The Night Bringer · « **Reply #19 on:** September 23, 2006, 03:45:22 pm »

Quote from: "Vondan"

Quote from: "Brack"
*watches how many people start picking up large objects ready to hurl them in my direction*

You sly dog, Acording to Worf hurling Objects is part of Klingon Love play

Oh dear, Klingon love is hazerdous to human life.

babysugarbear28 · « **Reply #20 on:** September 23, 2006, 07:14:13 pm »

K I was born in 89 and grew up with Rocco, Ren and Stimpy and other fairly odd shows from around the time I was born. They were all pretty good and I personally have a liking for Invader Zim. Our zim expert is right... Nickolodian or however you spelll it... can't remember.... anyway they tried forcing the creator to focus the cartoon in such a way that it was killing it. It really does bring back the randomness from the shows I grew up with before my parent's cut the cable. Also watching 1 and a half episodes isn't enough to judge an entire series. That is like saying that one chapter of a book that is lame will make the entire book lame... it doesn't. Try watching the entire series through and then say whether you dislike it or not. Only then will you have a fully rounded opinion. Anyway Zim needed to be on a station and time where those of an appropriate age level and viewer interest could get to it. I agree though it was a very different series when it comes to the mainstream.

As for the Narutards, they bother me. I was into Naruto because of a friend before Naruto was even released to CN. I was reading the manga before I even realized that they had a tv series in Japan. Pretty sad but that is how I end up finding a good deal of series. Even now I detest watching Naruto in english.I much prefer watching it in japanese with subtitles.I mean I was at kcon and there were plenty of Naruto cosplayers that didn't know who I was (Tsunade)... that is really sad... I was happy to see minor Naruto characters though... Minor characters in any series make me happy.

Brack · « **Reply #21 on:** September 24, 2006, 12:56:12 pm »

Quote from: "The Night Bringer"

Quote from: "Vondan"
Quote from: "Brack"
*watches how many people start picking up large objects ready to hurl them in my direction*

You sly dog, Acording to Worf hurling Objects is part of Klingon Love play
Oh dear, Klingon love is hazerdous to human life.

you've been brainwashed by propoganda.

Kexita · « **Reply #22 on:** September 25, 2006, 01:50:52 pm »

Quote from: "Brack"

Quote from: "pieisexactlythree"
Someone on the Sakuracon forums referred to the hordes of Naruto cosplayers as Narutards. I was amused.

That would have been me and about 20 other people^_^.

*waves hand frantically* I was in that crowd too! XD
at least, i think I was. there might have been more than one crowd. but i was definetely in a crowd of narutards! We played ninja hide and seek and did a photoshoot for all!*salutes*

yeah, the american version of naruto kinda sucks, but it doesnt bother me much considering that ive already read all 324 chapters that have been translated right now. *waves hands frantically again* I cosplayed as Sai. A lot more people reconized me than i thought. I was actually quite suprised. I thought, "jeez, no one is gonna know who I am since im after the time skip..." but i was wrong. Not only that, but I saw an obito cosplayer too! it was really cool. Oh obito cosplayer, wherever you are, im sorry if i freaked you out. XD; i was just really suprised to see an obito. didn't mean to scare you with my spaz attack!

...oh, right. this is an invader zim topic. my bad. XD;
well, yeah. I saw roughly 7 or 8 episodes of invader zim. I don't hate the show perse, but i think it might be just a touch over-rated. It has its moments, and other times its just "blah". for the most part though, i think its an okay series. :3 Gir is the best character. <3 the piggies are cute too.

PezCat · « **Reply #23 on:** September 25, 2006, 06:19:48 pm »

GAH! Kexita, I saw you avatar and about lost it - I was wondering exactly how I'd managed to pop up in a thread I hadn't posted in yet, and when I'd said "Narutard"...

It's okay Pez... it's not you, just a lookalike.

I have to agree, Nickolodeon was NOT an appropriate place for Invader Zim. Every time I watch it I think "this was on NICK?!" I could believe that being on Cartoon Network, or even maybe on the late-night Saturday lineup Nick had awhile back with Ren & Stimpy, but not during the daytime. Definitely not a kids' show.

PezCat

EcchiSpice · « **Reply #24 on:** September 27, 2006, 01:11:11 pm »

I like Invader Zim. I find the humor quite intelligent. Same for Spongebob. (Favorite line ever: "You can't fool me! I listen to public radio!") The thing I've always appreciated was the humor hitting both little kids and parent aged people.

I'm pretty sure I'm older than most of you - could the humor relate to age? How old is Johnan? This isn't a statment on maturity at all, just that some of the jokes might be a bit dated for those born in the mid 80's/90's. Maybe Jaz has a strong appreciation for humor meant for an older crowd. (Parent age.) Just a thought.

Brack · « **Reply #25 on:** September 27, 2006, 07:39:56 pm »

Spongebob was more universal than Invader Zim because it was something kids could easily follow(I mean, look how many kids walk around with Spongebob Squarepants merch than Zim), AND adults enjoyed it because of its subtle sense of underlying humor. The levels of enjoyment on that show were enhanced because both kids and adults could watch it and understand the show for what it was... then again, what show doesn't kick ass when they have Ween as guest stars on their episodes?

jaybug · « **Reply #26 on:** September 27, 2006, 08:29:05 pm »

The best part of Zim is the web site. I would interrupt my co-worker from his Internet game playing, and go to the Invader Zim web site, and click on the planet that would say " Loser!". Can't do that anymore, that guy became my boss!

Writer · « **Reply #27 on:** September 28, 2006, 07:37:11 pm »

eeh...It was nowhere near as good as JTHM, but worth a few laughs.[/size]

superjaz · « **Reply #28 on:** September 28, 2006, 08:49:05 pm »

mm parent age well i was the responcible one growing up (thos of you who have met me in person shuu and stop laughting) but mature in the sence of dealing with divorce and i paracticly rasied my younger brother and i did the cooking for my family (a a good chunk of house hold duties like grocery shoping ect) i also have a older brother 27and we watched a lot of the same shows, migh be part of the reson kendo boyfriend and i have much in taste in commen hes 28,
i also just love puns
and i still make the best teriaki around

Washougal_Otaku · « **Reply #29 on:** October 10, 2006, 07:06:18 pm »

I've never seen it, but it looks rather boring, and a little tasteless. However, I have been wrong about stuff like this before. However, I do think that it really does take only two or three episodes, of any show, to see if it really worth watching or not. You may get lucky and only need one to like it, or hate it, but absolutely no more than four should be enough. Anyway, it doesn't look like it's worth my time, so I doubt I'll even bother to watch it.

The Night Bringer · « **Reply #30 on:** October 11, 2006, 01:37:12 am »

Well I don't know. Chromartie High School is one of my favorite animes, but it really doesn't start getting good until half way through the first disk around episode five or six. Gotta give it a chance man.

Kimiski · « **Reply #31 on:** October 11, 2006, 02:14:02 am »

I like all of Zim.

Washougal_Otaku · « **Reply #32 on:** October 11, 2006, 10:39:06 am »

Quote from: "The Night Bringer"

Well I don't know. Chromartie High School is one of my favorite animes, but it really doesn't start getting good until half way through the first disk around episode five or six. Gotta give it a chance man.

You see, that's another one that I didn't care for. Yeah, it had some semi-funny episodes. I did like the where everyone had some song in their head & they were all humming it together, even while peeing. The movie sucked, & I hope whoever wrote it gets eaten by a shark. The part where Mecha-zawa is saying "****" every time he shoots a lazer after it's been "revealed" that he was built by America was the stupidest thing ever.

guspasho · « **Reply #33 on:** October 11, 2006, 08:57:09 pm »

superjaz: what 2-3 Zim episodes would you recommend a Zim newb watch, assuming they were already going to watch the first episode too?

superjaz · « **Reply #34 on:** October 11, 2006, 11:06:40 pm »

i would highly recomend the episodes from vol 2 of zim, episode 15:
mysterious mysteries, where zim dib gaz and gir all tell their verions of a night in question, ala unsolved mysteries re-enactment style
it is an all time fave,
11 door to door , where zim shows people how horrible the world will be if they dont buy his horrible candy made out of saw dust
bestest best friend, is also very funny , is in vol one, that one had some moments where you think "they showed this on nick?!?"
note!!!!
game slave 2 is based around dibs sister gaz and lots like her the sad sad tale of chicken foot, is dib based, these episodes have no zim or gir so they can give the wrong feel of the whole show, also bolognious maximus was odd so i'd steer from these as they dont have a feel for the show
Ps, i just got all the volumes of zim for my birthday and i plan on going to the oct meetting if any one wants me to bring them to watch, there is a halloween episode that is good (also vamp D and moon childe would be good to watch at halloween

guspasho · « **Reply #35 on:** October 14, 2006, 05:22:32 pm »

Cool, thanks!

<runs off to the Pirate Bay>

Sporty_Otaku · « **Reply #36 on:** October 16, 2006, 09:15:01 am »

pirate bay?

The Night Bringer · « **Reply #37 on:** October 17, 2006, 01:15:10 am »

....what about pirate bay?....where the water mellons grow?

Lit_of_Fey · « **Reply #38 on:** October 22, 2006, 08:29:32 pm »

Well c'mon....I mean sure some episodes of invader Zim sucked but it was on NICKELODEAN....it's not the fault of the show or the creators.

If there were just a channel that didn't worry about advertising and making a profit. and wasn't afraid to go out there with obscure/obscene stuff then Zim could've been huge.

But of course everyone's out to make a profit so that is an impossible dream for older cartoon/anime enthuseists.

And basically all american television sucks so why hate just Zim?

pieisexactlythree · « **Reply #39 on:** October 22, 2006, 10:44:18 pm »

Quote from: "Lit_of_Fey"

And basically all american television sucks so why hate just Zim?

Futurama?

Vondan · « **Reply #40 on:** October 22, 2006, 11:00:26 pm »

I like how Zim was the one to capture the alien brain bug

makichan · « **Reply #41 on:** October 22, 2006, 11:03:14 pm »

Quote from: "pieisexactlythree"

Quote from: "Lit_of_Fey"

And basically all american television sucks so why hate just Zim?

Futurama?

teh AWESOME xD and it's making a comeback woohoo!

Lit_of_Fey · « **Reply #42 on:** October 23, 2006, 07:40:55 am »

Quote from: "pieisexactlythree"

Quote from: "Lit_of_Fey"

And basically all american television sucks so why hate just Zim?

Futurama?

Okay okay...I DID say basically okay?

Futurama is an exception...along with a few others.

guspasho · « **Reply #43 on:** October 23, 2006, 08:05:22 pm »

Quote from: "Lit_of_Fey"

Quote from: "pieisexactlythree"
Quote from: "Lit_of_Fey"

And basically all american television sucks so why hate just Zim?

Futurama?

Okay okay...I DID say basically okay?

Futurama is an exception...along with a few others.

Family Guy? Adult Swim? (or does cable not count?)

Lit_of_Fey · « **Reply #44 on:** October 23, 2006, 08:09:05 pm »

Quote from: "guspasho"

Quote from: "Lit_of_Fey"
Quote from: "pieisexactlythree"
Quote from: "Lit_of_Fey"

And basically all american television sucks so why hate just Zim?

Futurama?

Okay okay...I DID say basically okay?

Futurama is an exception...along with a few others.

Family Guy? Adult Swim? (or does cable not count?)

I lost respect for Adult Swim when they started airing peewee's playhouse.

And note I did say "...along with a few others."

It's open to interpretation

superjaz · « **Reply #45 on:** October 24, 2006, 02:00:22 pm »

i dont like that theres a thread called anti zim

anti sounds like you'd do your best to stop not being okay with peeps who like

Radien · « **Reply #46 on:** November 04, 2006, 05:03:49 am »

I saw a small amount of Zim and liked it. Perhaps that's part of it... watching it in moderation. In my opinion, most American television series are too long, period. You end up spending hours and hours of your life finishing them. Yeah, I know, instead I spend hours and hours finishing anime series... but that's why I prefer DVD; watch it any time you want. That's also why I prefer short OAV series to multi-season anime from Japanese TV.

....Er. Back on topic. Yeah.

Anyway, Zim was partially amusing to me just for what it was: the creator of Johnny the Homocidal Maniac got a spot on children's television. I mean, seriously, that's a pretty unlikely scenario.

...Even though it was on Nickelodeon, the most likely network to do something like that.

Part of me also enjoyed seeing something that hinted at the original days of Ren and Stimpy. Personally, I didn't even like Rocko's Modern Life. Ren and Stimpy was the the only "shock cartoon" I watched as a kid. I was (and am) a couple years older than Brack, though. My afternoon cartoon days were nearing an end.

By the way, a friend of mine said she knows someone who worked on the Zim animation crew. And if you mention Invader Zim to him, he will not respond, except to glare at you intensely.

It seems that Zim + Nickelodeon was not exactly a match made in heaven. Whether you think the result was better or worse for it is up to you.

P.S. -

Brack, did the webmaster change the member title for the 90-ish post count to "Narutard" solely so that would be your personal title?

News:

Author Topic: The "anti-Invader Zim thread" thread... (Read 12300 times)