And can we stop making movies/books/tv shows where some human is the bad guy too? I’m tired of depictions of what selfish, materialistic, ungrateful, superficial assholes humans are.

Look, if scholars are able to publish papers in peer-reviewed journals lauding the critical views presented by of all things Hong Kong action cinema and even pornography, then I think I’m in the clear when it comes to using the word to describe an animation on a web forum.

I shall now beef up my jargon – satirical critique :P

(I’d also check the video for OK Go’s “There’s a Fire” for another take on the “post-rescue” moments.)

If the artist was expecting this to be a good portolio piece then he’s in for a rude awakening.

Really, if I was the “Barbarian hero” (of some fantasy world, game, etc.) and looted some horrible desert temple and came back to the city to settle with my share of the loot I’d not spend 90% of my haul buying the “Silver haired light skinned foreign princess” from the slaver. I’d just spend 5-50 gold pieces on a cute, petite dark skinned girl who could cook, clean, be good in bed (as in keep you warm, snuggle) and see a guy who provides and doesn’t treat her like a punching bag as a ‘good person’, not the very least a man should be before he’s allowed to indulge her shopping whims.

The “Tree Ninja” guy wouldn’t even get off that lucky as this video game character did, he’d be going on deadlier quests to pay the “Interest” on all the stuff his “Princess” wanted. On top of that she rarely if ever lets him bed her.

My “Barbarian” character would just then have to go on “Easy” local quests, like “Wipe out bandit gang”, “Fight pack of Desert worms”, “Fight rogue mummy”… to secure his place as “Local Hero” versus “Wild loose cannon” as most “Adventurers” are seen as. That’d be a really wonderful “Fantasy Life” with a nice arabesque desert home, a cute gypsy dressed wife, managing some simple honest businesses like camel merchant and going to the Kaffe house for hookah and drink while discussing poetry and philosophy with friends and peers.

—–Take note, I’m “Genre Specific” most fantasies/RPG games, etc. the players RUN from the “Desert area” quick once they’ve killed the “Lich King and found one third of the magic talisman” or other such nonsense, preferring the “European” forest areas. Therefore, just get used to fighting the monsters and the nasty environment, less competition from other “Adventurers”… And a “Barbarian from the Northern wastes” is used to a “Harsh Desert”, but this one’s warmer. Make sure to secure the water supply, get a tan, learn from the locals, easy.

As far as the “Moneylender” character goes, well my personal opinion is “Pigs that devour usury must be beheaded.” But I’d keep polite and just watch, listen and learn. Then when I saved the town from a rampaging “Desert Dragon” (calling on other “Adventurer” friends to help) I’d have a direct word in the Sultan’s ear about it and he’d probably (maintaining his own “princess” wife’s desires) have problems with that guy too…

For clarification purposes, I’m a pansexual genderqueer biologically female Wiccan. And the interpretation as put forth by the creators was exactly the one I took away from it. If you over-analyze humor you kill it. It’s meant to be read superficially and often involves things that would be cruel or offensive in other contexts. Humor is a flensing knife that scrapes off the top layer of skin and holds it up to the light. The best humor cuts a little, stings a little, or a lot. It’s meant to show us the world and make us laugh at the ridiculousness of it. Loosen up people.

Contains women? Must be misogynistic.
Contains a man vaguely resembling a Jewish stereotype? Must be anti-semetic. (To be completely honest, I think that says more about whoever picked it out in the first place than the video itself.)

Stop over-analyzing things and enjoy them for their satirical value, and stop complaining about things that don’t exist. It’s funny because poor Treeninja was taken advantage of by the princess, and that makes you empathize with him. Then, Treeninja gives the princess what she deserves, and you feel happy for him.

Simple as that.

Glad to see people aren’t actually trying to be funny or anything. I mean, we wouldn’t want to strain ourselves to be humorous when we can just insult women and perpetuate stereotypes instead.

Also, el oh el at the people that say boing boing is HORRIBLE because they put an artistic video up. If you want something to bitch about being too “misogynistic” watch Trucker’s Delight http://vimeo.com/7670880

What’s funny is that the video shows that as a guy, you shouldn’t put up with women that are materialistic just because they look pretty, you can’t beat up everything, and winning isn’t always as straightforward as you think it is.

Lurrn to not be SRS MODO all the time and just take things with a grain of salt. It’s not trying to persuade ANYONE to be misogynistic, but if somehow you garner that idea from the video and say “YEAH! THIS video REALLY speaks to me! I’m going to hate women now and call them ALL materialistic bitches!” or “What a filthy video, disrespecting women like that” you’re kind of… out of it.

What makes you so sure that the woman represented all women and the man represented all men? I interpreted the message as ‘avoid romantic partners who try to take advantage of you’, and ‘there’s more to the game (life) than finding a romantic partner’. I totally agree with both of those messages!

The bearded old gentleman is a classic capitalist, so you could see it as a Marxist piece. Then again he vaguely looks like a Jewish stereotype to me, which would make this piece anti-semitic.

Or perhaps it’s a reference to the tale of Gilgamesh, where Enkidu the simple forest dweller was taught the ways of civilization by a woman and in the end paid for it with his life.

Interpretation is as great as it is useless. You can make it go in any direction.

Movies, books, and games always have two people falling “in love” basically because they were at the right place at the right time, which, consequentially people try to do in real life and this is pretty much how it turns out in real life.

That being said, all this thoughtful analysis is RUINING the hilarity.

(not that thoughtful analysis doesn’t have a place in comedy)

The princess matches well with one of the guys but not the other. Ultimately the main character just gives up on the mis-match and hands her over to someone she’ll be happy with. He just got done fighting, to the death, to keep her and then chooses not to make the same mistake again.

That despite her good looks, it was her personality he didn’t like.

How is that hateful of women? Isn’t this gender empowering, that a bad attitude trumps physical beauty?

Not everyone gets along with everyone else. Certain people share certain goals and values. I had trouble dating a girl who’s prime concern in life is her religion (I’m an atheist) – we just wanted different things.

A princess who wants cars and shopping trips, big screens and designer pets… and is unhappy without them… matches best with a guy who can give it to her.

The hero is better off finding a girl who shares similar interests and goals to his own.

But when it comes to the princess: I ain’t sayin’ she a golddigga, but she ain’t messing with no treeninja.