sigh. Brace yourselves for the inevitable wave of HFY / Humans are Space Orcs / You Never Realize You're from a Hell world Until You Leave it, pitches and movies ...
sigh. Brace yourselves for the inevitable wave of HFY / Humans are Space Orcs / You Never Realize You're from a Hell world Until You Leave it, pitches and movies ...
I would love that, honestly, but I don't have much faith that Hollywood would be able to pick out the good themes in HFY. "Humans are monsters lol" is schlocky and dumb. "Humans are monsters..."...
I would love that, honestly, but I don't have much faith that Hollywood would be able to pick out the good themes in HFY. "Humans are monsters lol" is schlocky and dumb. "Humans are monsters..." is vastly more interesting subject matter.
I think that there has been a general conflation of HFY and Humans are Space Orcs. The former, especially the stand-outs, highlights a lot of positive qualities of humanity in an alien setting,...
I think that there has been a general conflation of HFY and Humans are Space Orcs. The former, especially the stand-outs, highlights a lot of positive qualities of humanity in an alien setting, although there were elements of humanity being hidden monsters as well. The latter feels more like it leans on Humanity WTF, and it really feels like newer series incorporate that more.
I really miss the old classics and Must Reads, old being 5+ years ago. Early Deathworlders, Retreat! Hell, The HEL Jumper, Prey, First Contact Protocols, they all had something that just feels missing when I browse top stories today. Maybe that's just me being elitist about a subjective difference, but I do feel like the HFY genre has shifted for the worse as it has grown popular, and I don't know if I should be happy or sad that it has grown popular.
Stories on HFY felt good to read because, like you said, they tended to focus on innate positives in our humanity. The capacity to learn from mistakes, continuously improve our species and plant...
Stories on HFY felt good to read because, like you said, they tended to focus on innate positives in our humanity.
The capacity to learn from mistakes, continuously improve our species and plant that tree now for the children of tomorrow, reasoning and diplomacy, kinship, and more.
Eventually the stories started presenting humans as inherently evil or the apex predator compared to other species. Learning from mistakes became relentless, improving our species became growing the empire, reasoning and diplomacy became strategy and warfare, kinship turned into patriotism.
Some of the darker themed stories were great too, but eventually it turned a bit too rahrah for my tastes.
You pointed this out, but best of the best hinted at the dangerous undertones of the positive traits without being too overt.
I still like the theme even if I haven't read any of those stories in years. Humanity can sometimes use a reminder we can be pretty cool if we try.
Totally. I think part of it is just the selection effect; we tend to remember the standouts of the past but there was an awful lot of slop then too. Though I really like exploring the darker...
Totally. I think part of it is just the selection effect; we tend to remember the standouts of the past but there was an awful lot of slop then too.
Though I really like exploring the darker aspects of humanity, the space orcs thing I just don't find interesting at all. The sort of archetypical example for me is A Call to Arms by Alan Dean Foster (1991), where humans are the only species that can psychically tolerate warfare for extended periods without going catatonic, and the implications and reverberations that has throughout the galaxy.
That's why I mention comparing the old good ones with the ones that get the most attention now. I know popular doesn't necessarily mean good, but that was basically the metric back then. The...
That's why I mention comparing the old good ones with the ones that get the most attention now. I know popular doesn't necessarily mean good, but that was basically the metric back then. The difference seems to be that readers were more discerning, or at least had different tastes, if you go back a decade.
I do admit that I haven't gone through as much of the newer entries in the "must read" list on r/HFY as I did when I first got into the genre. I should probably do that before making much more of a judgement, but I have been checking the recent top stories (usually one-shots and short series) more recently.
This is the first thing I thought of. But IIRC, he actually did send this to Hollywood, I remember reading about what they did to the script, and the botch job they did was horrible. They turned...
This is the first thing I thought of. But IIRC, he actually did send this to Hollywood, I remember reading about what they did to the script, and the botch job they did was horrible.
They turned it from "how cool is this situation" to "Well, the focus point can't be the situation, it has to be a main male character, like that guy from Gladiator. Okay, well now that the focus is on one guy instead of the marine unit, he's going to need character development. Well, we can't focus both on the plight of the marines, and this guy in one movie, so let's focus on this guy. Wait, if we're just focusing on a guy going back to ancient Rome, doesn't that make him a bit like a super hero? Well, we're not going to have time to introduce a superhero and Ancient Rome, so let's just rely on standard ancient tropes of ancient people for the backdrop. So basically, its Rambo: Rome version".
Maybe this would get it rewritten correctly? That would be cool. Something like a western version of the theatrical (not the shortened) version of Red Cliff would be amazing haha
Oh yeah, just found the wikipedia page on Rome, Sweet Rome. And it includes this gem about the Hollywood rewrite: "Other than the general concept, Miller did not use Erwin's work as the basis for his script.[7] In Miller's version of the story, U.S. Special Forces would replace the Marine unit as the modern time-traveling fighting force.[17]" *facepalm
They don't even need to go further than the backrooms. Nobody owns the IP, so it's essentially public domain, and there are literally thousands of different levels with their own aesthetics and...
They don't even need to go further than the backrooms. Nobody owns the IP, so it's essentially public domain, and there are literally thousands of different levels with their own aesthetics and quirks. Let's see a pool rooms movie, parking garage movie, infinite suburbia movie, endless grocery store... I mean if execs are going to learn the wrong lessons anyway they might as well do it in the most comical way possible.
Not necessarily, at least not full exploration of well established lore that shows up in the wiki. The issue is because of the wiki license that a lot of those ideas are published under. Any of...
Not necessarily, at least not full exploration of well established lore that shows up in the wiki. The issue is because of the wiki license that a lot of those ideas are published under. Any of these internet lore fandoms with a wiki released under a creative commons share alike license is something a lot of production companies don't want to touch.
I remember a decade ago a guy who wrote a story on r/nosleep had his story optioned but nothing came from that. Also Backrooms started as a post from 4chan, shouldn’t they look at 4chan? I have my...
I remember a decade ago a guy who wrote a story on r/nosleep had his story optioned but nothing came from that. Also Backrooms started as a post from 4chan, shouldn’t they look at 4chan? I have my pitch
I'm not embarrassed to say that every time I come across the story/comment now referred to as "Today You, Tomorrow Me," it brings me to tears. I live in Minneapolis. I haven't read the story in a...
I'm not embarrassed to say that every time I come across the story/comment now referred to as "Today You, Tomorrow Me," it brings me to tears.
I live in Minneapolis. I haven't read the story in a few years, but I have no doubt that it would be an even more emotional read for me today than ever before. Mexicans and latino/hispanic people are the backbone of my community—I've been blessed enough to eat many "tamales out of a cooler" as mentioned in the story, and have experienced so much kindness from my immigrant neighbors. As a Minnesotan, the story represents some of the most sacred virtues of humanity, and the value of choosing to be a small beacon of warmth in a cold world. Always has, always will.
It's probably best as a short piece of casual literature, it's certainly effective in that format. I do wonder what a good script writer could do with it. Particularly, a short film seems like a good option for adaptation.
Almost certainly not what Hollywood is looking for, but it's a compelling idea. I really think the world would be a better place if more people were compelled and inspired by the themes of that story.
As soon as I typed the words "short film," I wondered if someone in the know would come along and let me know that a film does exist. And how promptly you did! Thank you.
As soon as I typed the words "short film," I wondered if someone in the know would come along and let me know that a film does exist. And how promptly you did! Thank you.
I feel like this syncs up with the book world: Dungeon Crawler Carl caused a surge of interest in self-published books (especially the LitRPG and progression fantasy genre) by readers and...
I feel like this syncs up with the book world: Dungeon Crawler Carl caused a surge of interest in self-published books (especially the LitRPG and progression fantasy genre) by readers and mainstream publishers.
Extraction is always easier than development for resources, as near as I can tell. When it's something like art, though, it's a sign the gates of the industry are too tightly kept for their own good.
Extraction is always easier than development for resources, as near as I can tell. When it's something like art, though, it's a sign the gates of the industry are too tightly kept for their own good.
sigh. Brace yourselves for the inevitable wave of HFY / Humans are Space Orcs / You Never Realize You're from a Hell world Until You Leave it, pitches and movies ...
I dunno, I'm kind of here for the Poop Knife Saga.
This is the only good that can come of it...
American Pie reboot involving a coconut?
The Cbat romcom - where our MC will find the woman who likes his, er, rhythm.
I can't forgive you for making me think that of that cursed post, lol
Forgiveness cannot be given, only earned to the beat
The Museum of Reddit archive
What's In This Thing (2029)
The Cylinder Must Remain Unharmed (2031)
Colby the Adventurous Dog (2035)
3am chili soap fuck yeah (never)
I really want to curse you for reminding me, lol
I have a soft spot for that literature since it's what I fixated on to quit smoking. I recognize it's cheesy and pulpy but I don't care.
I would love that, honestly, but I don't have much faith that Hollywood would be able to pick out the good themes in HFY. "Humans are monsters lol" is schlocky and dumb. "Humans are monsters..." is vastly more interesting subject matter.
I think that there has been a general conflation of HFY and Humans are Space Orcs. The former, especially the stand-outs, highlights a lot of positive qualities of humanity in an alien setting, although there were elements of humanity being hidden monsters as well. The latter feels more like it leans on Humanity WTF, and it really feels like newer series incorporate that more.
I really miss the old classics and Must Reads, old being 5+ years ago. Early Deathworlders, Retreat! Hell, The HEL Jumper, Prey, First Contact Protocols, they all had something that just feels missing when I browse top stories today. Maybe that's just me being elitist about a subjective difference, but I do feel like the HFY genre has shifted for the worse as it has grown popular, and I don't know if I should be happy or sad that it has grown popular.
Stories on HFY felt good to read because, like you said, they tended to focus on innate positives in our humanity.
The capacity to learn from mistakes, continuously improve our species and plant that tree now for the children of tomorrow, reasoning and diplomacy, kinship, and more.
Eventually the stories started presenting humans as inherently evil or the apex predator compared to other species. Learning from mistakes became relentless, improving our species became growing the empire, reasoning and diplomacy became strategy and warfare, kinship turned into patriotism.
Some of the darker themed stories were great too, but eventually it turned a bit too rahrah for my tastes.
You pointed this out, but best of the best hinted at the dangerous undertones of the positive traits without being too overt.
I still like the theme even if I haven't read any of those stories in years. Humanity can sometimes use a reminder we can be pretty cool if we try.
Totally. I think part of it is just the selection effect; we tend to remember the standouts of the past but there was an awful lot of slop then too.
Though I really like exploring the darker aspects of humanity, the space orcs thing I just don't find interesting at all. The sort of archetypical example for me is A Call to Arms by Alan Dean Foster (1991), where humans are the only species that can psychically tolerate warfare for extended periods without going catatonic, and the implications and reverberations that has throughout the galaxy.
That's why I mention comparing the old good ones with the ones that get the most attention now. I know popular doesn't necessarily mean good, but that was basically the metric back then. The difference seems to be that readers were more discerning, or at least had different tastes, if you go back a decade.
I do admit that I haven't gone through as much of the newer entries in the "must read" list on r/HFY as I did when I first got into the genre. I should probably do that before making much more of a judgement, but I have been checking the recent top stories (usually one-shots and short series) more recently.
Or Hollywood Isekai movies with light novel-ass long titles
Maybe we can finally see a Rome, Sweet Rome movie.
This is the first thing I thought of. But IIRC, he actually did send this to Hollywood, I remember reading about what they did to the script, and the botch job they did was horrible.
They turned it from "how cool is this situation" to "Well, the focus point can't be the situation, it has to be a main male character, like that guy from Gladiator. Okay, well now that the focus is on one guy instead of the marine unit, he's going to need character development. Well, we can't focus both on the plight of the marines, and this guy in one movie, so let's focus on this guy. Wait, if we're just focusing on a guy going back to ancient Rome, doesn't that make him a bit like a super hero? Well, we're not going to have time to introduce a superhero and Ancient Rome, so let's just rely on standard ancient tropes of ancient people for the backdrop. So basically, its Rambo: Rome version".
Maybe this would get it rewritten correctly? That would be cool. Something like a western version of the theatrical (not the shortened) version of Red Cliff would be amazing haha
Oh yeah, just found the wikipedia page on Rome, Sweet Rome. And it includes this gem about the Hollywood rewrite: "Other than the general concept, Miller did not use Erwin's work as the basis for his script.[7] In Miller's version of the story, U.S. Special Forces would replace the Marine unit as the modern time-traveling fighting force.[17]" *facepalm
I came to comment this. It’s a shame the studios have sat on it for so long.
They don't even need to go further than the backrooms. Nobody owns the IP, so it's essentially public domain, and there are literally thousands of different levels with their own aesthetics and quirks. Let's see a pool rooms movie, parking garage movie, infinite suburbia movie, endless grocery store... I mean if execs are going to learn the wrong lessons anyway they might as well do it in the most comical way possible.
Not necessarily, at least not full exploration of well established lore that shows up in the wiki. The issue is because of the wiki license that a lot of those ideas are published under. Any of these internet lore fandoms with a wiki released under a creative commons share alike license is something a lot of production companies don't want to touch.
This short video has a pretty good explanation of the naunce about why Kane Parson's work specifically could be picked up: https://youtu.be/n8y626Uc_nU?si=UZwnSQre3cl-SDbk
I remember a decade ago a guy who wrote a story on r/nosleep had his story optioned but nothing came from that. Also Backrooms started as a post from 4chan, shouldn’t they look at 4chan? I have my pitch
I'd definitely give autistic Frasier a watch. I can only imagine the oblivious hijinks he'd get up to, like a suave Mr. Bean.
I was hopeful someone would mention this. A shame, it was fun.
I'm not embarrassed to say that every time I come across the story/comment now referred to as "Today You, Tomorrow Me," it brings me to tears.
I live in Minneapolis. I haven't read the story in a few years, but I have no doubt that it would be an even more emotional read for me today than ever before. Mexicans and latino/hispanic people are the backbone of my community—I've been blessed enough to eat many "tamales out of a cooler" as mentioned in the story, and have experienced so much kindness from my immigrant neighbors. As a Minnesotan, the story represents some of the most sacred virtues of humanity, and the value of choosing to be a small beacon of warmth in a cold world. Always has, always will.
It's probably best as a short piece of casual literature, it's certainly effective in that format. I do wonder what a good script writer could do with it. Particularly, a short film seems like a good option for adaptation.
Almost certainly not what Hollywood is looking for, but it's a compelling idea. I really think the world would be a better place if more people were compelled and inspired by the themes of that story.
There actually is a Today You, Tomorrow Me short film and I think it's really good.
As soon as I typed the words "short film," I wondered if someone in the know would come along and let me know that a film does exist. And how promptly you did! Thank you.
I feel like this syncs up with the book world: Dungeon Crawler Carl caused a surge of interest in self-published books (especially the LitRPG and progression fantasy genre) by readers and mainstream publishers.
Extraction is always easier than development for resources, as near as I can tell. When it's something like art, though, it's a sign the gates of the industry are too tightly kept for their own good.
Time for the nosleep classics like woman holding an orange and Borrasca.