WORKING. HAMMERS. SWEATING. POWER. CIRCUITS.

November 21, 2008 10:39 AM

This is my Milwaukee (SLYTP-esque)

No, I have no clue what it is either.

posted by cobra_high_tigers (59 comments total)

Just watched this over at the SA forums.

It's almost certainly a viral for something. That being said, it is about as weird as anything I've ever seen. Funny too, but mostly just bizarre.
posted by Damn That Television at 10:49 AM on November 21, 2008

Yeah, I was thinking viral ad or (very weird) ARG rabbit hole.
posted by sveskemus at 10:52 AM on November 21, 2008

Just remember to take your rebreather and a flare gun

Words to live by.
posted by doctor_negative at 10:57 AM on November 21, 2008 [3 favorites]

VEGETARIAN OPTION

This reminds me quite a bit of Look Around You.
posted by boo_radley at 11:01 AM on November 21, 2008 [1 favorite]

At first I thought, Milwaukee doesn't have a Tourism Commission, it has a Convention and Visitors Bureau. But then again, the CVB is a bit strange too.
posted by dhartung at 11:20 AM on November 21, 2008

this is great
posted by SJLaw at 11:20 AM on November 21, 2008

Now I really want a Ham Burger

(barring that, a "Hammed Burger")

(possibly a "Steamed Ham")
posted by Senor Cardgage at 11:20 AM on November 21, 2008

Is that a celeriac?
posted by boo_radley at 11:24 AM on November 21, 2008

Did you call the number?
posted by These Premises Are Alarmed at 11:41 AM on November 21, 2008

*FACT

Do not remove the M-rotor. Do
not push on the M-rotor in an
atempt to re-seat during spin-up
or cross-spin. In the event of a
successful re-seat, catalogue
"leaks" (real and anticipated)
and jettison all affiliated
personnel. Do not feel upset
or confused - the re-seat was
successful.

effing bizarre, that
posted by owtytrof at 11:43 AM on November 21, 2008 [1 favorite]

No, but a bunch of people at SA have. Apparently one is just a voicemail, but there's a second number where you can talk to a representative, and if you play along, you can ask him questions about the movie and he'll stay in character.
posted by Damn That Television at 11:44 AM on November 21, 2008

Milwaukee's Canning District in that video looked an awful lot like Bleecker Street here in New York City...
posted by jrb223 at 11:50 AM on November 21, 2008

Also:
Countdown timer in the top-right of the page(about 55 days, 22 hours), link to www.syndyne.com that is a useless page with only a "contact" email addy and a link to itself, and Tale of Games Studios in the video credits make me think this is leading to some kind of video game announcement.
posted by owtytrof at 11:52 AM on November 21, 2008

No, wait, I think that's fennel.
posted by boo_radley at 12:01 PM on November 21, 2008

They also thank The Mountain Goats in the credits, so.... I don't know, but it's notable!

Whatever it is in ad for, I like it.
posted by malphigian at 12:01 PM on November 21, 2008

probably what a tourist ad would look like after a lovecraftesque catastrophe
posted by kolophon at 12:02 PM on November 21, 2008

owtyrof:
Tales of Games is the guy who made Barkley, Shut up and Jam, Gaiden -- which while kind of it's own amazing thing, is not a real game studio.
posted by malphigian at 12:04 PM on November 21, 2008 [1 favorite]

@ boo-radley

You and I are going to get along just fine. Look Around You is one of my favorite things ever.
posted by Hachijuhachi at 12:07 PM on November 21, 2008

Here's a somewhat-related video about Halifax.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 12:08 PM on November 21, 2008 [1 favorite]

I can't listen to it at work, but after watching the first minute of it, I can definitively say that none of it was filmed in Milwaukee. (born and raised there, lived there for 32 years)
posted by desjardins at 12:14 PM on November 21, 2008

Also in the credits are thanks to Murderfist, a NYC-based improv comedy troupe. Other individuals thanked in the credits are members of this group, so it could just be a video by and for them.
posted by schleppo at 12:15 PM on November 21, 2008

Milwaukee's Canning District

no such thing
posted by desjardins at 12:17 PM on November 21, 2008

This is completely awesome.

Despite actually having nothing to do with Milwaukee, the strange tonal disparity between the big-city NYC locations, the "No, really, we have culture! And famiies!" jokes, the disconcerting J-Pop and the absurdist, post-apocalyptic vibe actually captures the feeling of being in Milwaukee. 10 years or so ago, Milwaukee woke up from its rust belt roots, rebuilt itself, became genuinely worldly and urbane, but never shook the vibe of the elements carried over from the city that it used to be. I'm not sure you could use another city for this kind of gag.

I love Milwaukee.
posted by eschatfische at 12:18 PM on November 21, 2008 [2 favorites]

However, the organizations listed at 10:18 are all real, except "The Jagoda Museum Center," which I've never heard of and neither has Google. (Also, VWM Post is a typo, surely meant to be UWM Post.)
posted by desjardins at 12:24 PM on November 21, 2008

The more I watch this, the more detail I notice, like a weird fever dream that you stop and think about. It also gets funnier upon repeat viewings.
posted by Damn That Television at 12:26 PM on November 21, 2008 [1 favorite]

absurdist, post-apocalyptic vibe actually captures the feeling of being in Milwaukee

what

Milwaukee woke up from its rust belt roots, rebuilt itself, became genuinely worldly and urbane, but never shook the vibe of the elements carried over from the city that it used to be.

OK, I'll agree with you there. We still like beer.
posted by desjardins at 12:26 PM on November 21, 2008

Ok, before any rumors get started... I swear I had nothing to do with it!!
posted by raster at 12:40 PM on November 21, 2008

I can definitively say that none of it was filmed in Milwaukee

What, don't you regularly ride the Milwaukee subway and Circle Line? You know, around Milwaukee?
posted by dhartung at 12:51 PM on November 21, 2008

Thanks for setting me straight malphigian. I should have checked that instead of assuming it was the name of one of the myriad small-games-studios-with-strange-names. I knew I recognized the name, and that was the best category my mind put it into right away.

Still curious about that countdown timer, though.
posted by owtytrof at 12:54 PM on November 21, 2008

What, don't you regularly ride the Milwaukee subway and Circle Line? You know, around Milwaukee?

I do but we call it 894
posted by hexxed at 12:57 PM on November 21, 2008

Fennel.
posted by fixedgear at 12:59 PM on November 21, 2008

How did they get a camera into my dreams?
posted by The Whelk at 1:07 PM on November 21, 2008

I'm hoping for a followup post on Monday, 12:01 AM EST.
posted by desjardins at 1:49 PM on November 21, 2008

This Milwaukee-centric video from Barack Obama makes me miss my old hometown.
posted by ferdydurke at 1:56 PM on November 21, 2008

Genius. And yes, it's Fennel. I counted five of them. One for every star I'd give this video.
posted by Manhasset at 2:17 PM on November 21, 2008

I can't believe they mentioned Sector 21; that is so not cool. I love my town, but there are some things that are just better left undiscussed.

Every time it gets back in the public consciousness, all sorts of kids decide that the warding runes don't apply to them, and they slip in, and then a couple of weeks later we have to send in the cleanup crews.

It's hugely expensive, and it creates a massive drain on our NBCS (Nuclear Biological Chemical Spiritual) resources.

Still, I have to give them some credit for reminding people to always carry their flareguns. I can't believe that it hasn't become a mandatory law, like seat-belts and anti-dazzle goggles.
posted by quin at 2:21 PM on November 21, 2008 [3 favorites]

I got up to "Completely foritifed apartments" until I lost it. Brilliant.
posted by The Whelk at 2:27 PM on November 21, 2008

Man, I hope (tiny hope) this is something awesome for Fallout 3.
posted by boo_radley at 2:41 PM on November 21, 2008

This is what you get when you hire the people from "Look Around You" to promote your city.
posted by drezdn at 2:57 PM on November 21, 2008

from the makers of robot lawyer?
posted by boo_radley at 3:03 PM on November 21, 2008

In the Children's Activity Center, one of the posters has the words "Jessica [and? can't tell, more words] years old. My father was taken by Blackstar for a problem he did. I am sorry Blackstar." Jagoda, as in Jagoda Museum, evidently means "berry" or "strawberry".

And what's with the plant thing introduce when talking about family trees? The same poster has an coloring book style image of it with the phrase "These belong underground" and "Where is yours?" Then the plant (root? tuber??) shows up in the jobs section, where it is again put "under" (a bench).

Ok, and here's Blackstar again, where "many young professionals" spend time.

Ooh. Freeze frame..rewind..aaand...pause.

"Fact. Do not remove the m-rotor. Do not push the m-rotor in an attempt to re-seat during spin-up or cross-spin in the event of a successful re-seat, catalogue "leaks"(real and anticipated) and jettison all affiliated personnel. Do not feel upset or confused - the re-seat was successful."

Weird.

Ok, here's another poster from the Children's Activity Center. It's the COOL DOG one, and it's on the church steps in the teenager section. Also another reference to "hoop it up", which was on the concert listing towards the beginning. It was something like a reference to Remember the Titans and 9/11.

God seed fragments? Ok, sure. And look, there's that plant root again.

And in the slideshow, here's Blackstar again. Who/What is that anyway? Don't know, but current and former residents get "Dark Dollars" from them, so hey, that's good. Looks like the give out jobs housing too. Hmm. They made a new God? That's hot.

More plant-esque things. The last one has glowing letters, but I can't make them out. Hey, wait..maybe those tuber-things that belong under ground are god seed? Dunno.

Ruby? Ok. What's the dew (do?)?
Ok, what's with the weird emphasis on HAMburger? Are they just ham sandwiches now?

The credits song references flax seed, which was mentioned previously as Milwaukee's biggest export.



Well, looks interesting. Anyone else catch anything?
posted by niles at 4:30 PM on November 21, 2008

Ok, something awful says it's fennel bulb, a.k.a flax seed. Evidently it's featured in the Japanese anime "Blackstar no Blackstar" (which is at the end of the video), but that phrase doesn't seem to exists outside that page. Google hasn't heard of it, and I can't figure out when that section was added to Wikipedia. Recently, perhaps?
posted by niles at 4:42 PM on November 21, 2008

god DAMMIT we knew it was fennel HOURS ago. We won't crack this open if we keep goi ng in circles&lt/string>.
posted by boo_radley at 4:47 PM on November 21, 2008 [1 favorite]

Heh. I saw those comments and subsequently disregarded and forgot them since I had no clue what fennel is or what y'all were talking about. In other news, I think I'm going to try to con my brother into coming with me tomorrow to the address they figured out over in SA. I knew living near Milwaukee would pay off some day.
posted by niles at 5:29 PM on November 21, 2008

Fuck something awful, I said it was fennel in this very thread.
posted by fixedgear at 5:31 PM on November 21, 2008

Also, fennel has nothing to do with flax seed. Fennel seeds, yes. Anisette? Biscotti?
posted by fixedgear at 5:34 PM on November 21, 2008 [1 favorite]

Fnord.
posted by The Whelk at 5:37 PM on November 21, 2008

A documentary from the same folks:
Midwest Witches: "Hoopeston's"
Hoopeston

The doesn't seem to help clarify anything for me.
posted by malphigian at 5:39 PM on November 21, 2008

This is fascinating.

And I'd never heard of Look Around You before, so thanks!
posted by graventy at 9:04 PM on November 21, 2008

Fact: The "Milwaukee Margarita" substitutes vermouth for tequila.

That's about where I lost my shit. Also, the blatantness of using NYC - singular landmarks and all, to stand in for Milwaukee simply amazes me. Later:

"Teens. You're moving to Milwaukee."

I don't know what it is about this whole thing, maybe just the Wes-Anderson-does-Resident-Evil feel to all of it, but I'm fascinated and confused.
posted by Navelgazer at 2:08 PM on November 22, 2008

There's now apparently a Wiki about it now.
posted by burnmp3s at 9:11 AM on November 26, 2008

Here's another wiki courtesy of the fine folks at Unfiction which has a great thread on the game.
posted by sveskemus at 11:29 AM on November 26, 2008

Related YT video (according to the wiki)
posted by desjardins at 12:21 PM on November 26, 2008

How'd they manage a press release on an (apparently legit) website? What happens when the real visitor's bureau catches wind of this?
posted by desjardins at 12:36 PM on November 26, 2008

desjardins: "What happens when the real visitor's bureau catches wind of this?"

In recent days, a video entitled "This is My Milwaukee" has been circulating via the internet. VISIT Milwaukee is not associated with this video and is focused on redirecting attention toward continuing to promote Milwaukee as a prime tourist and convention destination. We continue to promote the entertainment, celebration and fun offered in our jewel of the great lakes, Milwaukee!

The "This is My Milwaukee" video was created as part of an Alternate Reality Game by Synydyne. It is not associated with any legitimate tourism entity in Milwaukee. While we think the video is clever, we have so much more to offer visitors then just flak seed. And our Historic Third Ward has now replaced the Canning District as one of our must-see stops in Milwaukee.

(source)
posted by sveskemus at 1:42 PM on November 26, 2008

Also, a lot of websites will send out your press release for a fee. And they don't fact-check them. :)
posted by sveskemus at 1:44 PM on November 26, 2008

I knew exactly where they were talking about, but had no idea it was ever called the Canning District. Huh.
posted by desjardins at 3:06 PM on November 26, 2008

What's their obsession with canning, anyway?
posted by desjardins at 3:07 PM on November 26, 2008

Woohoo! The information pack is here!
posted by sveskemus at 2:47 PM on December 2, 2008