Crappy Blah

If you are a budding young Flash artist and are considering doing a "What if Egoraptor did" style video, let me please beg you to reconsider. Making such a video is a no-win situation for you for two reasons.

1. The artists on Newgrounds who don't like Egoraptor's work are going to tear you two new assholes. The first is simply because you're copying the style of a flash artist. The second asshole will be because it's an Egoraptor "style" flash you're copying.

2. The people who love Egoraptor's work are going to tear you a new one as well, because your work is going to be compared to Egoraptor's and unless you are really good at copying styles and have really good comic timing, you're going to come off second best.

This post isn't meant to be a referendum for or against Egoraptor. I'd say the same thing about any other Flash videos you're likely to see on Newgrounds. Look at the styles of all of the artists. If you don't have your own style, work on one. Find your own niche and attack that. Take direction from bits and pieces of other artists and modify them to create a style that suits you. Don't just try and wholesale copy any one animator's style.

Crappy Blah

I was genuinely touched by the nice things Arin had to say about me in the interview on Kira aka Rina-Chan's podcast Behind the Flash.

Just for the record, I don't troll on his behalf. I troll because sometimes it's fun to push people's buttons. But on the whole, I can't get into most of the drama I see in the forums and in comments. Life is way too short to be so bloody a)angry, b)serious, c)anal [pick your choice, there are no wrong answers] about life in general.

Since you come to Newgrounds, you are either someone who does flash animation, creates music or enjoys watching the results of the labor of those who do create. I'm in the second category, because I can't draw and I haven't done anything musically creative since some time in the mid-1970's.

If you're one of the creative ones, I applaud you and encourage you to continue. But remember, if you put your work up here for the world to view, be prepared for those who aren't necessarily going to love it the way you do. There are those who will love everything you do. There are those who will see what you do and offer criticism. Those who offer constructive criticism can help you improve as a creative artist. Those few people are to be cherished for their opinions, even when their opinions hurt.

It won't always be constructive criticism either, so if you're going to post your work, grow an extra layer of skin. Otherwise, those who delight in belittling the work of others will surely break your creative spirit. They may have a valid point or two, but overall they tend to think themselves to be the ultimate expert. Read between the lines and see if there are any valid points to be taken from their posts, but don't dwell on them.

Then there are the downright mean people who enjoy tearing the wings off butterflys. Ignore them. They're morons. They're as entitled to their opinions as anyone, but like some great philosopher once said, "Opinions are like assholes. Everyone has one and they all stink!"

It's an old cliché that if you are lucky enough to be able to make a living doing something you love, you'll never have to work a day in your life. To take that down a notch, if you're happy doing something creative, don't let those who will talk you down have any significant impact on your life. To steal a line from an old tune from the late Ricky Nelson's song Garden Party, "You can't please everyone, so you got to please yourself."

I just felt a little silly about having a birthday post up a week after my birthday.

Nothing to see here. Please move along.

Yep.... I turned 55 today. No big deal. Hey, I wonder if I'm the oldest Newgrounder.

I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who lent a voice to Arin's birthday Flash to me. I won't mention any names because you all know who you are. I personally want to thank each and every one of you for your part in the video. I really appreciate the fact that a group of young guys such as yourselves would take the time to wish an old fart like me a happy birthday.

And I think the DVD of Knight Rider is hands down the best.... next to the picture of you, Ross.

If you're reading this and have no idea of what I'm talking about, well you had to be there!

Thanks Guys!

I've been waiting for the shoe to drop. This is one thing that Arin (Egoraptor) and I both figured would happen within a few days of the release of Metal Gear Awesome. This is the only point in this post on which I can be reasonably sure I'm not wrong.

"What were we waiting for," you ask? Some kind of rant by Ryan Miller, better known to Newgrounds regulars as rtil.

No, I don't have anything against him. Actually, I would like to think that he's probably a decent young man in person... But as surely as I make that assumption, he'll probably let me know in no uncertain terms that I'm wrong and I have no idea of who he is. OK, I can deal with that. Enigmas are cool!

I think he's an incredibly talented artist. Aww crap. I don't think he likes being called talented. I'm not even sure he likes being called an artist. OK, he's a person who draws pictures and using Flash animation he makes them move. Someone provides voices and they sort of tell a story. Personally, I think he's damn good at it, but I think accolades really annoy him, so maybe I better not say that.

Anyhow, based on what he wrote, I think he's annoyed that Metal Gear Awesome is on the front page, and that Egocaptured is right next to it. Oh, there's a T-shirt ad for Awesome as well. But I could be misreading what he wrote. Or maybe he's annoyed that it's by and about Egoraptor. No, I have to be wrong on that matter too. He told me so in a response to his rant. At least I think that's what he said. I really can't say for sure, because it seems a lot of people (myself included) read his stuff and then miss his point.

Then there's something about all the Awesome movies being in the top 100... Apparently that's a bad thing. But again, maybe I'm misreading what he said. Then he appears to have a moment of self doubt as, "It makes me wonder sometimes if pursuing anything but half-assed cartoons making mildly funny observations about video games laced with profanity is even worth it." Personally, I think completely-assed cartoons would be better. But that is just my own opinion. Apparently making people laugh is a bad thing when it is coupled with video games and profanity. I'm probably wrong on that point, though.

Oh well, let's move onward. A couple paragraphs further down rtil says "I understand that it's a dog eat dog world in the online entertainment business, and to compete you have to pretty much put up content that a majority of internet browsers would click on." Bingo! We have clearance, Clarence! Except he goes on to villify the very practice he realizes feeds the machine that keeps Newgrounds alive.

You know, I started this blog entry out to try and be funny. But a sudden attack of angst has overtaken me (seriously). I'm not going to prove anything by attempting to assassinate Ryan's character and ad hominem attacks really aren't my thing. His circle of friends will still like him, and think me a jerk for challenging their hero (and whether you want to admit it or not Ryan, you are a hero to many). I know... it's very presumptuous for me to even think you would read my blog.

Those who aren't enamored of you still won't be. It's just a hunch, but that probably won't make much difference to you either.

I apologize for calling you a fraud in your own blog. However, before I wrote that, I added up everything I have seen, written by you, and your relatively constant "you missed my point, you're wrong, that's not what I said" evasive maneuvers to so many who wrote to you. I repeatedly came to that conclusion. After thinking it over a bit I think it's a bit harsh. I do think you're guilty of believing a little bit too much of your own PR. I'm sure you will think that observation is also wrong.

I have no doubt you are passionate about preserving and advancing the art of animation. In fact, that is one thing that is obvious to anyone who spends any time watching one of your videos, visiting your website or reading your blog. However in the post, you wrote in bold face, "this post is not about me." Who was the boldface for? Who were you trying to convince?

If you're a regular Newgrounder and you are reading this post (?), then obviously you are aware that Metal Gear Awesome 2 has been released.

It wouldn't be fair for me to write a review about it, since I am anything but an objective observer. After seeing the effort that went into it, I couldn't give it anything but 5/5 and 10/10.

Having said that, I'm keenly interested in the feedback through the reviews. Of course there are people out there who won't like it, for a number of reasons. And who am I to argue with them? I'm Egoraptor's dad, that's who! But still, everyone is entitled to his or her opinion. Even those who don't like it simply because the name at the top says Egoraptor. Hey, it's a free country and a free Internet. I still get a kick out of the ones that say it's overrated. I guess if you don't find it funny, then there's good reason to think it's overrated. Makes perfect sense to me.

I read one or two reviews taking issue with the fact that there's no shading or shadows in it. It's not meant to be a representation of real life. It's meant to be a freakin' cartoon. It sounds a little like a classical musician dissing a metal guitarist because the music doesn't achieve the same depth of emotion as a symphonic piece. It's not meant to. It has no cerebral impact. It's strictly 5 minutes of escapist comedy. There's nothing to "get" about it. If you laughed, you "got" it. There's no long lasting impact or deep meaning that makes you think about your own personal reason for being on the planet.

MGA2 is a joke... a very funny (as far as I'm concerned) joke. If you laughed, Arin succeeded with you. If you didn't, then he wasn't successful with you. In either case, come back and play another time!

Hi there.
If you're reading this it is no doubt as a result of a post I placed somewhere on Newgrounds. Either you saw a review or a comment in someone's blog section. I am not a Flash artist, but am instead a fan of you artists who do new and creative things with Flash.

I watch quite a few videos on Newgrounds. The videos that grab my attention are those who tell a story and tell it well. I'm not terribly concerned with the creator's ability to draw pretty pictures as I am with their ability to tell a story. For a Flash to get a high rating from me, it has to tell me a story well. It has to make me want to stick around until the end of the flash. The story doesn't have to be complicated and it doesn't have to be original, but it must have something to hold my interest. I'll watch a poorly drawn animation with an interesting storyline much more often than I will watch an animated photo album of exquisite drawings with no real point.

Normally, I don't write reviews for Flash movies, but I vote on every one I watch. Sometimes, if I'm really impressed with a video, I'll write a review, but normally that doesn't happen.

Thanks to all of you who submit animations to Newgrounds.

Oh, yes... a member of my family does regularly submit animations to Newgrounds.