Best Caper Ever

"It doesn't touch!"

Strong Bad and The Cheat somehow manage to pull off the best caper ever... if they could only remember how they did it.

Cast (in order of appearance): Homestar Runner, Strong Bad, The Cheat, Strong Sad, Bubs (Easter egg)

Places: The Arctic, Computer Room, Bubs' Concession Stand (Easter egg)

Date: Monday, February 9, 2009

Running Time: 2:43

Page Title: Total Coincidence! Not Intentional!

Transcript

{slow fade to a closeup of Homestar Runner}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Man, what should I do today? {turns the other way and takes a deep breath} I just wonder what I should be doing today, you know? {shakes head} I just can't seem to stop wondering what I maybe might could be should be doin' today!

{cut to a long shot of Homestar standing alone on a tiny ice floe, with an iceberg visible in the background}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Man. {the echo is heard; Homestar looks around}

{cut to a closer shot}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Ooh, I know! I can pretend one leg is shorter than the other again. {Homestar lifts his right leg and lets it swing freely, making whooshing sounds with his mouth} {softly and mock-sadly} It doesn't touch...

{cut to a long overhead shot of Homestar drifting which crossfades to a slightly grainy black and white picture with the legend "SATELLITE FEED" in the lower right corner}

{camera pulls back to reveal the TV is sitting in The House of The Brothers Strong}

STRONG BAD: So you have, like, no idea how we pulled this off?

{reverse shot of Strong Bad and The Cheat watching the television}

THE CHEAT: {shrugging} {negative The Cheat noises}

STRONG BAD: All right, let's retrace our steps. We stole Homestar's melonade...

THE CHEAT: {nodding} {affirmative The Cheat noise}

STRONG BAD: You made pee-pee in said melonade...

THE CHEAT: {embarrassed affirmative The Cheat noise}

STRONG BAD: And now he's on a tiny ice floe in the middle of the Arctic somehow.

THE CHEAT: {enthusiastic affirmative The Cheat noises}

STRONG BAD: I think we might be missing a couple key steps there.

THE CHEAT: {shrugging} {uncertain The Cheat noises}

STRONG BAD: Come on, man! This is like our best caper ever and we don't even remember what we did!?

{cut back to Homestar. A black lump with whiskers can be seen floating off to frame left.}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Okay! Bye, bloated sea lion carcass! {singsong} Thanks for stopping by! {cut to a closer shot} Marzipan, we've got to have them over more often. They are a riot! {Homestar looks over his shoulder, annoyed} Hm! {He starts shaking his body erratically and grunting before taking out a satellite phone} Oh, that is it, satellite phone! You've poked me for the last time! {He tosses the phone into the ocean} You too, flare gun. {He takes out a flare gun and drops it into the ocean}

{cut back to Strong Bad and The Cheat lying on the carpet}

STRONG BAD: You're sure you don't remember like, tricking Homestar into getting onto a cargo plane, {a sketch of Homestar, with his tongue sticking out, running towards a plane with a sign saying "Free Pile" appears over them and fades} maybe bribing some walruses, {a sketch of The Cheat (with strange, long legs) handing a wad of cash to three walruses appears and fades} or like experimenting with the folding of space-time? {a sketch of a diagram of a black hole, The Cheat with glasses, and several math equations appears and fades}

THE CHEAT: {negative The Cheat response}

STRONG BAD: So, the only thing we know for certain is that you made wee {a sketch of a glass of melonade appears} in Homestar's melonade...

THE CHEAT: {affimative The Cheat noise}

STRONG BAD: And now he's stuck {a sketch of a globe appears with a circle around it pointing to a tiny Homestar} on the other side of the globe, of which we mysteriously have satellite coverage. {a satellite appears next to the globe}

THE CHEAT: {affirmative The Cheat noise}

STRONG BAD: That's it, I'm taking you to the vet!

THE CHEAT: {leaps up} {scared The Cheat noise}

{cut back to a medium shot of Homestar standing on the ice floe}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: All right. At this point, I'm willing to admit that maybe, just maybe, this {close-up of Homestar} isn't Marzipan's new patio. I should probably yell for help.

{cut to a long shot}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Larry! {echo is heard}

{cut back to a close-up}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Larry sounds like the kind of guy that could help me out of this jam!

{cut back to long shot}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: {voice breaking} Larry! {echo}

{cut back to close-up}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Homestar? {echo}

{cut to a medium shot. Strong Sad is drifting in frame left on an ice floe similar to Homestar's, holding a book}

STRONG SAD: Oh, would you please keep it down?

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Oh, great! Strong Sad! You're a polar bear, right?

{close-up of Homestar}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Use your frost breath to turn me into an ice cube, so future generations can thaw me out {cut back to a medium shot of the two of them} and marvel at my same length legs!

STRONG SAD: Boy, did I pick the wrong hemisphere to aimlessly drift through this year...

{black card with an iceberg and the word "end." appears}

Easter Eggs

• At the end, click on the period to see a scene with Strong Bad and The Cheat at Bubs' Concession Stand.

{The Cheat is on the counter of the stand, beside Bubs, while Strong Bad looks on. A sign is taped on the counter, reading, "BUBS A VET NOW! GET IT?"} BUBS: {to Strong Bad} And I'm gonna need you to fill this up. {He takes out a trash can, which has a fill line drawn on it and a "Grody Sample" label taped to it} STRONG BAD: Whoa-ho-ho. Sorry, The Cheat. BUBS: {suddenly angry} I'm not looking at The Cheat! {Strong Bad looks surprised}

Fun Facts

Explanations

• Space-time is a mathematical model that combines space and time into a single entity.
• The "Total Coincidence! Not Intentional!" title is referring to the cartoon's unfortunate timing; it was released the day after 134 people were rescued from a freeflowing sheet of ice that broke off into Lake Erie.

Trivia

• The YouTube description for this toon is "Strong Bad tries to remember how he pulled of the best caper ever."

Remarks

• When Homestar yells, his voice echoes, even though there is nothing around him for his voice to echo off of.
• Homestar mentions a "bloated sea lion carcass" despite the fact that sea lions do not actually live in the Arctic Ocean.
• The Cheat bends his arms as if he had hands.
• The globe showing where Homestar is resembles more of the United States globe, rather than that of Free Country, USA. There also appears to be no Arctic on the previously shown globes of the Homestar Runner world.
• When the camera zooms out to show the satellite footage, Homestar is missing his eyes, his star, his buzzer, and the lip of his hat.

Goofs

• In the black-and-white satellite footage, the ice sheet that Homestar is standing on has a colored outline.
• When Homestar yells for Larry, the water sparkles extend over the horizon.

Fixed Goofs

• The running time for this short was listed as 2:43 on the New Stuff menu, but 3:09 on the Shorts menu. This was fixed the following week.

Glitches

• You can still access the Easter egg before the music ends.

Inside References

• The Cheat is said to have tainted Homestar's melonade by peeing in it.
• One of the people to whom Homestar called for help was himself.
• The tune played at the end of this short resembles the song The Cheat is Not Dead, which originates from caper, as well as the music at the end of Play Date.
• The emails garage sale and space program also have Easter eggs that end with Strong Bad making a surprised face in response to a suggestive comment.

Real-World References

• The pan pipe musical riff that plays on the third cut to Homestar (and returns on the appearance of the word "end") is a reference to the opening cut-scene of The Curse of Monkey Island, which begins with a similar tune and a shot of Guybrush Threepwood drifting across the sea in a floating bumper car.

External Links

• watch "Best Caper Ever"
• watch "Best Caper Ever" on YouTube
• watch "Best Caper Ever" on the old Flash site
• view the Flash file for "Best Caper Ever"
• forum thread re: "Best Caper Ever"