Wednesday, January 31, 2007 at 3:32 pm
BREAKING: Mooninites Invade Boston!
Let me say this first: Kids, terror hoaxes are not funny. They cost money and disrupt lives. Terrorism kills. Stay in school.
So it is with great, great seriousness and gravity that I must report the Aqua Teen Hunger Force angle to today's bomb hoax in Boston, the subject of wall-to-wall non-coverage of a non-threat by the cable non-news networks. Opening the non-bomb "suspicious packages," the police reportedly found pictures of these guys (not entirely SFW):
...who Aqua Teen Hunger Force fans will recognize as the Mooninites, the tiny, Space Invader-y, pot-smoking aliens from the funniest cartoon on late-night television. Let's hand it over to Fox anchor Shepard Smith, doing his best impression of Joe Friday in Dragnet 2007:
This stupid alien image is from, I am now told, a Cartoon Network program named Aqua Teen Hunger Force. Yes. Aqua Teen Hunger Force.... It's stoner kind of stuff, you know? ... And now, these little alien guys called Mooninites have shut down a great American city... Stoner stuff is what it is. You know, not that I have that much against that, I'm just saying that's what this is... This will not be funny to much of anybody.
It is, indeed, not the least bit funny. Smith's report on the Mooninite threat did not, for instance, make me laugh so hard that my coworker in the next office telephoned to make sure I was all right. And also: CNN, MSNBC and Fox devoting uninterrupted, breathless afternoon coverage to the non-threat of non-bombs not exploding--long after it was clear there was no danger--all while giving a massive free ad to Adult Swim? Not even a teensy bit laughable.
11 Comments to “BREAKING: Mooninites Invade Boston!”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
About Tuned In
James Poniewozik writes TIME magazine's Tuned In column, about pop culture and society. Tuned In, the blog version, is about the stuff we used to call "TV," whether it's in your living room, on your computer or -- once the networks figure out the technology and line up the advertisers -- in your dreams themselves. Read more
RSS Feed
 |
Daily Email
Recent Posts
Tuned In - TIME.com Archives
Blogroll
- Aaron Barnhart’s TV Barn
- About Last Night
- Alan Sepinwall
- Arts & Letters Daily
- Blogher Career
- Brazen Careerist
- BuzzMachine
- Defamer
- Heather Havrilesky
- James Wolcott
- Matt Zoller Seitz
- Maureen Ryan
- Melanie McFarland
- Metafilter
- Peter Ames Carlin
- Popwatch
- Romenesko
- Television Without Pity
- Tim Goodman
- TV Guide blogs
- TV Newser
- TV Tattle
- Undercover Black Man
- Virginia Heffernan
- Zap2It’s TV Blog
More TIME Blogs
Top Stories
- Obama's Stimulus: Jump-Starting His Long-Term Agenda
- Prospects for a Truce Still Dim in Gaza
- New Data Says House Prices May Be Nearing a Bottom
- Dying for Journalism: Lasantha Wickrematunge of Sri Lanka
- The Bush Administration's Most Despicable Act
- Why Can't Big Oil Match Hugo ChÁvez?
- The Great California Fiscal Earthquake
- Why Are Deer Being Smuggled into Texas?
- Pakistan Continues to Resist India Pressure on Mumbai
- Where Has Bernie Madoff Buried His Loot?
Top Photoessays and Slideshows
- China's Electronic Waste Village
- Photos: Heartbreak in the Middle East
- Alfred Shaheen: Pioneer of the Hawaiian Shirt
- An Album of Presidents and Their Children
- Israeli Soldiers Sweep Into Gaza
- The Science of Snowflakes
- Five Years Roving the Red Planet
- Presidential Days at the Beach
- New Ways to Boost Energy Efficiency
- Fidel Castro in the Jungle
Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 5:04 pm
As a fan of the show, I find this wild goose chase hilarious! Incompetent public officials, an overreacting public, and out of touch news organizations combine to give Cartoon Network free advertising! I never thought I'd see the day when the Mooninites would be shown on Fox News above a map of the United States flipping the whole world the bird!!!
THE MOON RULEZ!!!!
Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 8:14 pm
Make WAR not cartoons!!! Throw away your television and your internets and go pick up an automatic assault weapon and kill some Iraqis. Long live the Republicans, especailly the ones from Texas.
Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 8:14 pm
I liked the whole "event". Someone in boston is just trying to make a name for him or herself, the two "terrorists" gave the best press conference in the history of press conferences, and it seemed that evil litebrites brought boston to a stop fast than the "big dig" ever could. If the mayor of Boston had the Foreigner belt none of this would have happened.
Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 8:31 pm
i love this! i think boston police should just kill them selves,dont get me wrong the terrist is a big deal but come on look at the mooninites there no threat,there 2 deminsion watch out for the laser block!!! its comeing stright for you! boston just made the U.S. look like a dumbass country and i laugh in thier face!!! they had the hole city shut down for nothing i think the guys should be freed and arrest BPD for stupidity. o wait if they do that well then we would have to do the same to the president. i love this country but the goverment sucks!!!!!! we are going to hell with our eyes wide open.
THE MOON RULES!!!!!!!!
Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 9:41 pm
Whew, thank God We have Homeland Security to protect us from vicious attacking cartoon characters. Next thing You know they'll be ransacking Santa's sleigh and confiscating all electronic toys. Hey kid, drop the l.e.d. blinking sneakers!
If this doesn't get Ted Turner on the no-fly list with Road Runner and Coyote, nothing will!
Sheesh!
Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 9:58 pm
I can't believe the Boston PD thought this was a bomb!!! Come on...Look at it. Couldnt they have realized that it wasnt a bomb after the blew up the first one and let the public know that there was no threat. I place all the blame on the Boston PD. 9 other city's had these things in them and no-one over-reacted there... What a bunch of DOPES...
Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 10:05 pm
I did stay in school James, and it IS funny. I graduated from college with a BFA in graphic design and advertising, and I think this idea was great. I wish I could have been on that guerrilla team. It's NOT solely about corporate gain, they just wanted to add a moment of discovery, stir things up (not like this though) and add some humor to this sealed in plastic country. It's unfortunate that this wasted tax payers money, but hey, I pay taxes for something right... and it might as well be entertainment like this. I support Turner Broadcasting and Adult Swin, keep up the good work. And James, as you can see from the previous comments, they do know their demographic.
So what is going to happen to CP+B for hiding fake body parts in trash cans... GASP... where were the homicide detectives? It's unfortunate that we do live in different times in the post 9/11 era, and we DO have to be careful, but lighten up... maybe lighten up a pixel-creature giving you the finger!
So to the Boston officials, I hope you can see this.... because I'm doing it as hard as I can.
I
I
I
IIII'
Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 10:24 pm
boston is a bunch of dumb asses, they freak out to much about everything this was nothing but a great advertising campaign!! The mayor of Boston, and governor of the state overreacted completely!!! This was a simple advertisement that everyone in the whole city of Boston overreacted!!!
Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 11:20 pm
i wonder if drugs are bad in boston?cuz i think evrybody was trippin bad on something. someone has some really bad crack up there.i dont know how one simple little thing like the mooninites made such a big deal.HEY BOSTON PD KEEP HITTIN THE CRACK PIPE AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!!!!THE MOON RULES!!!!!!
Friday, February 2, 2007 at 12:11 pm
ahahahhaa... some freaking ppl its stupid... we are concerned! ahahhaha wtf! wasnt it the logical thing tat after the first one was found and saw no explosives on them to stop? naaaaaaah lets create panic!! booh! i was laghing my ass... and i need no pot to get such laughs.
Now they are trying to xplain the stupidity by saying... ohh from here its where the bad guys came to blew the twin towers.. all i want to sa its "GET OVER IT". You will be under more atacks very often but not by Moononites... lol
Sunday, February 4, 2007 at 10:24 pm
I think all the boston officials who showed there face on tv and supported the overreaction should now resign from there posts. They have proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that they are incompetant and not fit to be in a position of authority. When the hammer comes down on this one its gonna hurt worse then 8 bitches on a bitch boat.