Well, we didn't find the droids we were looking for...
November 28, 2012 12:39 AM Subscribe
Stormtrooper Cops [slyt]
I have a bad feeling about this.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 1:08 AM on November 28, 2012
posted by obiwanwasabi at 1:08 AM on November 28, 2012
"Is there anyone left on the internet that hasn't seen this?"
Well we could do this, or instead we could post all of the great COPS parodies we know:
COPS: Skyrim
posted by Blasdelb at 1:12 AM on November 28, 2012 [5 favorites]
Well we could do this, or instead we could post all of the great COPS parodies we know:
COPS: Skyrim
posted by Blasdelb at 1:12 AM on November 28, 2012 [5 favorites]
Is there anyone left on the internet that hasn't seen this?
Me! Tom Servo cameo was great.
posted by Drinky Die at 1:20 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
Me! Tom Servo cameo was great.
posted by Drinky Die at 1:20 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
I loved that show and was sad when it got cancelled. I blame the Network for scheduling it opposite Dancing with the Stars Wars.
posted by twoleftfeet at 1:36 AM on November 28, 2012
posted by twoleftfeet at 1:36 AM on November 28, 2012
Just for some perspective (and to make people like me feel old), this video is 8 years older than YouTube itself.
posted by Philosopher Dirtbike at 1:42 AM on November 28, 2012 [19 favorites]
posted by Philosopher Dirtbike at 1:42 AM on November 28, 2012 [19 favorites]
Almost Live's Seattle neighborhoods COPS series was always a highlight, and still surprisingly accurate in a few ways, for nearly twenty-year old jokes (!): Redmond, Kent, U-District, Wallingford, Ballard, Mercer Island, Leavenworth.
posted by lantius at 1:55 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by lantius at 1:55 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
this video is 8 years older than YouTube itself
That's not possible under the laws of physics unless two parallel videos both travel through the Internet; one at ordinary speed, noted by observers in 1998, and the other video, seemingly identical, is observed in 2012.
This is what Einstein, a notorious YouTube user, called "the Twin Paradox"... which means that the temporality of YouTube videos depends on the reference frame, (or frame-rate, to avoid buffering.)
posted by twoleftfeet at 1:55 AM on November 28, 2012 [3 favorites]
That's not possible under the laws of physics unless two parallel videos both travel through the Internet; one at ordinary speed, noted by observers in 1998, and the other video, seemingly identical, is observed in 2012.
This is what Einstein, a notorious YouTube user, called "the Twin Paradox"... which means that the temporality of YouTube videos depends on the reference frame, (or frame-rate, to avoid buffering.)
posted by twoleftfeet at 1:55 AM on November 28, 2012 [3 favorites]
Just for some perspective (and to make people like me feel old), this video is 8 years older than YouTube itself.
Thanks for making me feel old. Jesus Christ, 8 years older than Youtube??
posted by EndsOfInvention at 2:36 AM on November 28, 2012
Thanks for making me feel old. Jesus Christ, 8 years older than Youtube??
posted by EndsOfInvention at 2:36 AM on November 28, 2012
That's not possible under the laws of physics
You forgot to consider bandwidth: people with ADSL connections were able to see the video in 1998, while those with dialup are only beginning to observe it in 2012.
posted by Smart Dalek at 2:37 AM on November 28, 2012 [10 favorites]
You forgot to consider bandwidth: people with ADSL connections were able to see the video in 1998, while those with dialup are only beginning to observe it in 2012.
posted by Smart Dalek at 2:37 AM on November 28, 2012 [10 favorites]
You forgot to consider bandwidth
We actually have observer reports for this YouTube video for the last four years, so we can extrapolate from that history.
The first comment, from Leonshearth four years ago, was "AHAHHAHAHAH".
Three years ago, Anders1479 remarked "LOL!"
Two years ago, homsapiensbydarwin said "cause he is gay XD".
And just one year ago, enterprisenx08 made this comment: "all suspects are giulty LOL"
So I think it's pretty clear, if you review the observer data, that the video is actually traveling backwards in time, and neanderthals will comment soon.
posted by twoleftfeet at 3:02 AM on November 28, 2012 [5 favorites]
We actually have observer reports for this YouTube video for the last four years, so we can extrapolate from that history.
The first comment, from Leonshearth four years ago, was "AHAHHAHAHAH".
Three years ago, Anders1479 remarked "LOL!"
Two years ago, homsapiensbydarwin said "cause he is gay XD".
And just one year ago, enterprisenx08 made this comment: "all suspects are giulty LOL"
So I think it's pretty clear, if you review the observer data, that the video is actually traveling backwards in time, and neanderthals will comment soon.
posted by twoleftfeet at 3:02 AM on November 28, 2012 [5 favorites]
I love the little details-- one of the Storm Troopers has a North Dakota accent.
posted by seasparrow at 3:13 AM on November 28, 2012
posted by seasparrow at 3:13 AM on November 28, 2012
Yep, I remember spending a few hours downloading the Quicktime videos for this one on my university's "lightning-fast" residential network back in 1998 or so. Where does the time go?
posted by Strange Interlude at 3:44 AM on November 28, 2012
posted by Strange Interlude at 3:44 AM on November 28, 2012
we could post all of the great COPS parodies we know...
Ok then.
posted by orme at 3:50 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
Ok then.
posted by orme at 3:50 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
When are the new episodes of Pawn Trek coming out? I can't get enough of that charismatic Ferengi family, the Harrisons.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 4:05 AM on November 28, 2012
posted by Kirth Gerson at 4:05 AM on November 28, 2012
Yep, I remember spending a few hours downloading the Quicktime videos for this one on my university's "lightning-fast" residential network back in 1998 or so. Where does the time go?
Hah! I remember downloading this over dialup cut up into 4 or 5 sections, a few (3-6) of hours each night for each one. That's were the time goes, dialup.
posted by Hello, I'm David McGahan at 4:06 AM on November 28, 2012
Hah! I remember downloading this over dialup cut up into 4 or 5 sections, a few (3-6) of hours each night for each one. That's were the time goes, dialup.
posted by Hello, I'm David McGahan at 4:06 AM on November 28, 2012
Just for some perspective (and to make people like me feel old), this video is 8 years older than YouTube itself.
So you're saying it was made a long time ago...
posted by dragonsi55 at 4:09 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
So you're saying it was made a long time ago...
posted by dragonsi55 at 4:09 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
In his madness, Lucas declared this was canon.
Get to work, Disney. TROOPS now airing following a new episode of Modern Family!
posted by robocop is bleeding at 4:17 AM on November 28, 2012 [2 favorites]
Get to work, Disney. TROOPS now airing following a new episode of Modern Family!
posted by robocop is bleeding at 4:17 AM on November 28, 2012 [2 favorites]
I remember downloading this over dialup cut up into 4 or 5 sections, a few (3-6) of hours each night for each one.
Me, too. That brings back memories.
Bad, bad, bad memories...
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 5:08 AM on November 28, 2012
Me, too. That brings back memories.
Bad, bad, bad memories...
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 5:08 AM on November 28, 2012
YouTube is younger than you think.
I remember an NPR piece about this exciting new thing that let you watch great musical performances from any era... like a magical time machine!
And so it was. We just took it for granted in record time.
posted by Egg Shen at 5:18 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
I remember an NPR piece about this exciting new thing that let you watch great musical performances from any era... like a magical time machine!
And so it was. We just took it for granted in record time.
posted by Egg Shen at 5:18 AM on November 28, 2012 [1 favorite]
Yeah, iirc YouTube basically hit the scene for real with Lazy Sunday. That was the first "must see" video I remember being hosted on YouTube. Which really wasn't that long ago at all.
posted by nathancaswell at 6:01 AM on November 28, 2012
posted by nathancaswell at 6:01 AM on November 28, 2012
Oh man. This was probably the first long video I ever saw on the 'net. Like others, I spent hours and hours over several nights downloading it in chunks over dialup.
I had seen COPS a few times and of course I was a huge Star Wars fan so this was right up my alley. At the time, homemade CGI was still somewhat new and the concept of homemade Stormtrooper armor was all but unheard of, so this thing was pretty revolutionary. The only other fan made Star Wars film I knew of was probably something like Hardware Wars done on Super-8 in the 1970s.
After howling over this watching it on a postage stamp-sized window on my Windows 95 machine I called my wife into the room to see it. I was married less than a year at the time and we were still getting used to sharing things like this with each other. I said "Oh man, you HAVE to see this it's the funniest thing ever..."
I fired it up, she watched it for a few minutes, then she looked at me and said "I don't get it. I mean, I get that it's Star Wars but I don't really get what it's about."
Turns out she had never seen COPS. She didn't watch Married with Children or The Simpsons (but she really is a good person, I promise!) so she had never even seen a commercial for it. She knew nothing about it, not even enough to get that this was a parody of it. Certainly not enough to see how brilliant this was.
She didn't get it. She didn't fucking get it.
Somehow we've still managed to remain married for over fifteen years.
How the hell could she not get this?
Fifteen years.
What the hell is wrong with her?
I think we need to talk.
posted by bondcliff at 6:13 AM on November 28, 2012 [6 favorites]
I had seen COPS a few times and of course I was a huge Star Wars fan so this was right up my alley. At the time, homemade CGI was still somewhat new and the concept of homemade Stormtrooper armor was all but unheard of, so this thing was pretty revolutionary. The only other fan made Star Wars film I knew of was probably something like Hardware Wars done on Super-8 in the 1970s.
After howling over this watching it on a postage stamp-sized window on my Windows 95 machine I called my wife into the room to see it. I was married less than a year at the time and we were still getting used to sharing things like this with each other. I said "Oh man, you HAVE to see this it's the funniest thing ever..."
I fired it up, she watched it for a few minutes, then she looked at me and said "I don't get it. I mean, I get that it's Star Wars but I don't really get what it's about."
Turns out she had never seen COPS. She didn't watch Married with Children or The Simpsons (but she really is a good person, I promise!) so she had never even seen a commercial for it. She knew nothing about it, not even enough to get that this was a parody of it. Certainly not enough to see how brilliant this was.
She didn't get it. She didn't fucking get it.
Somehow we've still managed to remain married for over fifteen years.
How the hell could she not get this?
Fifteen years.
What the hell is wrong with her?
I think we need to talk.
posted by bondcliff at 6:13 AM on November 28, 2012 [6 favorites]
YouTube is younger than you think.
Indeed. For instance, the memorable video where Steve Chen and Chad Hurley told everyone they'd sold -- in which they maintain their demeanor for only the first 60 seconds -- came a mere 20 months after launch. That video is now six years old.
More measures: they did a "ten years later" director's note, in which he notes that the proto-South Park video Santa vs. Jesus had just been a viral hit.
Finally, what some of the Troops creators are working on now: IMPS -- The Relentless.
There does seem to be a dearth of higher-quality versions of the movie available. I dunno if this is because it was eventually included on a COPS DVD as a bonus feature.
posted by dhartung at 7:07 AM on November 28, 2012
Indeed. For instance, the memorable video where Steve Chen and Chad Hurley told everyone they'd sold -- in which they maintain their demeanor for only the first 60 seconds -- came a mere 20 months after launch. That video is now six years old.
More measures: they did a "ten years later" director's note, in which he notes that the proto-South Park video Santa vs. Jesus had just been a viral hit.
Finally, what some of the Troops creators are working on now: IMPS -- The Relentless.
There does seem to be a dearth of higher-quality versions of the movie available. I dunno if this is because it was eventually included on a COPS DVD as a bonus feature.
posted by dhartung at 7:07 AM on November 28, 2012
This and Star Wars: Uncut come closest to tapping into the original Star Wars experience in my books.
Troops really taps into the Tatooine as the ass-end of the universe and the feeling that any schmo can have a hand in the greater scheme of things. The world presented is worn, relatable, and kind of cool.
All of those elements deteriorate in official cannon as the series marches on.
And Uncut presents such an outpouring of creativity and joy -- a presence I haven't felt since... !
posted by mazola at 7:23 AM on November 28, 2012 [4 favorites]
Troops really taps into the Tatooine as the ass-end of the universe and the feeling that any schmo can have a hand in the greater scheme of things. The world presented is worn, relatable, and kind of cool.
All of those elements deteriorate in official cannon as the series marches on.
And Uncut presents such an outpouring of creativity and joy -- a presence I haven't felt since... !
posted by mazola at 7:23 AM on November 28, 2012 [4 favorites]
Oh. I first watched this around the time I had a 28.8kbps connection, and a 200 megabyte per month download cap, if I remember correctly.
I like the fact it looks like it was a .rm file. It adds an authenticity you just can't get anymore.
posted by Mezentian at 5:48 PM on November 28, 2012
I like the fact it looks like it was a .rm file. It adds an authenticity you just can't get anymore.
posted by Mezentian at 5:48 PM on November 28, 2012
I saw this in, maybe 1998? It came in six parts that we had to download sequentially over dialup that took about 10 minutes apiece to download. My friend's dad gave him a major bollocking for being on the 'phone' to the only ISP serving Edinburgh at the time (Compuserve represent!) for over an hour and running up a massive bill.
It was worth it.
Just watched it on my three year old iPhone. In well under 10 seconds to load.
Crazy.
posted by Happy Dave at 2:29 PM on November 29, 2012
It was worth it.
Just watched it on my three year old iPhone. In well under 10 seconds to load.
Crazy.
posted by Happy Dave at 2:29 PM on November 29, 2012
I can top all of you: I first saw it on VHS, a dubbed copy that made its way through the grapevine to a friend visiting me in college around 1998 or so.
posted by waxpancake at 2:09 AM on November 30, 2012
posted by waxpancake at 2:09 AM on November 30, 2012
I saw a copy of your friends copy that had been photographed a frame at a time on Polaroid film and bound into a flip book.
posted by nathancaswell at 5:28 AM on November 30, 2012
posted by nathancaswell at 5:28 AM on November 30, 2012
I think when I first saw this it was a series of pictograms carved on a cave wall, and you had to run past them blinking really fast.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 6:29 AM on November 30, 2012
posted by EndsOfInvention at 6:29 AM on November 30, 2012
I saw this when it was first etched into the stars by the slow turn of time.
posted by Happy Dave at 7:04 AM on November 30, 2012
posted by Happy Dave at 7:04 AM on November 30, 2012
I first saw this when I was singing the "huh" bits in the Bad Boys theme.
posted by Mezentian at 7:11 AM on November 30, 2012
posted by Mezentian at 7:11 AM on November 30, 2012
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It's still just as good as it ever was though!
posted by pharm at 12:49 AM on November 28, 2012 [2 favorites]