Monday, December 30, 2013

Episode 253 - The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 11-12

Episode 253: The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 11-12

So angry, his eyes regenerated and exploded again!


Tom Dyron, the Ultimate Angel of Something, has been defeated. Now the fate of all creation lies on the shoulders of it's greatest champion, Steven. Can he alone defeat Xeruel the angel of dark darkness where others have failed? Of course not. He gets punked out in half a chapter. And what did you expect, really? It's Steven. Falling down and being an arse is what he does. However, since there's still another seventy-three odd chapters to go, clearly we need someone else to grunt and thrust at Xeruel some more. Who will it be? The answer to this question, dear reader, won't shock you at all.

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Episode 252 - Wings of Gibraltar, Issue 2

Episode 252: Wings of Gibraltar, Issue 2

Only Wings of Gibraltar would dare to present a story about lasers blowing things up.

Despite the best efforts of all involved, the plot finally arrives at the top secret space lab in space of Gibraltar. No amount of block exposition can hold back the forces of Major Generic Bad Guy and his armies of faceless hordes, so it's up to our designated protagonists to save the day. Fortunately, they're armed with the powers of Science and the fact that you know they're going to live anyway, which would ruin the suspense if there was any to begin with. Add in a robot arm (Whose purpose will shock you) and a clumsily shoe-horned anti-war message and you have the sequential art-like substance that is Wings of Gibraltar! Two!

Riffers: Rebecca Bartley, Natasha Isavia, Mat Simmons and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Rick R.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Episode 251 - Girl on Fire, chapters 9-10

Episode 251: Girl on Fire, chapters 9-10

"These people aren't ordinary," said the evil sorcerer to the demigod from ancient Egypt and the guy with a nuclear skull for a head..


Girl on Fire takes it up a notch as the plot arrives! That's right, it's only eight chapters in and we finally find out where the Injustice League (remember them?) are hiding, and what they've come to Moose Tailings, Alaska for. And for the terminally hard of thinking, it happens to be the only thing that matters in this fic - Jake's Bar and Grill. I mean Stephanie, the titular Girl on Fire, Robin's beloved, amazing fighter, tragic waif who can take a hit from a gorilla without flinching but tears up the very moment the existence of mothers is even hinted at. Fortunately, the Justice League is here to stand around and do nothing (again) while Robin and Phoenix fight off the villains (again). It's everything you've come to love about Girl on Fire, just with less doors and more inappropriately dressed teenagers.

Riffers: Dan, Maya Gold, Celena Harte and Tsuneo Tateo
Written by: Zogster

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Episode 250 - Wings of Gibraltar, Issue 1

Episode 250: Wings of Gibraltar, Issue 1

I think Chase is only peripherally aware of the existence of other people.

From the depths of the ninties comes Wings of Gibraltar, a fanfic totally legit for reals comic about awesome new robots, top secret research bases and the incredibly dull people who develop them. Thrill as Rick Hunter and Max Sterling go on a guided tour and have weapons demonstrated to them! Be amazed as percentages are discussed in detail! Gasp in wonder at the description of a fusion reactor! Hold on to the sedge of your seat as the villain tries to edge the plot along and gives up trying! Check your watch to wonder how much time you’ve lost as you realise this is only a two-issue series! That’s right, if you love lectures about how asteroid mining works, then you might like this!

Riffers: Rebecca Bartley, Natasha Isavia, Mat Simmons and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Rick R.

Monday, November 18, 2013

Episode 249 - The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 9-10

Episode 249: The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 9-10

Sending the disposable extras into battle against the unstoppable cosmic horror that already effortlessly defeated them? I see no way that this can go badly at all.


After only three dozen chapters of preamble, The Apocalyptic Battle finally gets down to its central message that it has been building to since day one: Explosions. For in this chapter, everything explodes. Be it buildings, mountains, Evangelions, Japan, the planet Delta X, Random Planet Q, Asuka or entire galaxies, everything in this explodes. In fact, about the only things that don’t are Tom and Xeruel who wail on each other for about a hundred pages or so without actually achieving a thing beyond padding the fic out some more. So watch as the fate of all creation hangs in the balance, Steven doesn’t contribute, Tom gets a new haircut and scale is completely forgotten in the latest chapter of this fanfic-like substance!

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Thursday, November 14, 2013

November Update

As readers have probably noticed, there's not been much activity over the last couple of weeks. Real Life has been odiously busy, which along with Episode 249 ballooning out of control, has slowed us down a lot. Things are still going, just... slowly for the moment.

Fear not, however! Ep 249 is in progress and hopefully will be done either late this week or early next one. Early work is also in progress on 250 and 251, and we're hoping to have one of them out not too long after 249 is. Finally, we have several more episodes after that in the planning stage with fics selected for them.

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Episode 248 - The Assassin

Episode 248: The Assassin

Yes, Kev, your life is one big bleak void of pain and suffering. Now go get in your plastic robot dinosaur and effortlessly beat the entire world.

One of the golden rules of being an assassin is to not get caught. And one of the best ways to avoid getting caught is to not draw attention to yourself. So you shouldn't do things like have an incredibly distinctive mode of transport, plan getaways that will alert everyone to your presence, wander around with a near-extinct and attention-grabbing animal companion, have breakfast where your target's daughter can see you or make up a cover story that only serves to make you look even more guilty. In short, don't do a thing that the so-called world's greatest assassin in this fic does. Of course, since it's Big Kev, you probably shouldn't do a thing that he does anyway. I know I wouldn't.

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Episode 247 - Dreamstar and the Court Of Dreams: The Gathering of Dreams, chapters 1-2

Episode 247: Dreamstar and the Court Of Dreams: The Gathering of Dreams, chapters 1-2

Starring such illustrious characters as Pinky Pyro, Red Rocket, Gone Fission, Iron Manx and World's Toughest Mailman.


It's an ordinary day in Med city for an ordinary girl. Sure, Allegra Powers may be the inheritor of unlimited magical power with her own realm, mystic trainers, devoted friends and a twin sister, but she has problems too. Like the attack of the 300lb canine killing machine and the torrential wave of slobber left in its wake. Or the sheer indignation of wearing high heels to school. There's also something about her power being out of control and defending the earth, but that really seems secondary. When such bothersome matters do pop up, she's charged to find a team to share her magical power with. All she's got to do is inflict horrifying nightmares on her friends and endanger the lives of innocents (and possibly the fabric of space and time), but it's all in fun right?

Riffers: Dan, Maya Gold, Celena Harte and Tsuneo Tateo
Written by: Zogster

Episode 246 - The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 7-8

Episode 246: The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 7-8

Steven used to work as a male stripper and going super Sayajin was a part of his act. It’s amazing what he could make glow yellow and stand on end.


Warning: Contains explicit sex

Let’s look at that above line and consider the implications of it. An explicit sex scene in a fic of the ‘quality’ of The Apocalyptic Battle, co-authored by the same creative genius that bought you Delta Invasion. If that doesn't fill you with terror, then you are a braver man than I. However, should you be brave enough to continue, dear reader, you would be treated to a delightful exploration of the character of Steven. Yes, Steven, a man who rewards the dedication shown by his wife/fiancée (Or something, the fic can’t decide) who stayed by his bedside for three weeks in the only way he can. That’s right, by immediately sleeping with another girl who he’s lusted after since before she was legal. As you can see, Steven, just like the rest of this chapter, is pure class.

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Saturday, September 21, 2013

Episode 245 - The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 5-6

Episode 245: The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 5-6

That’s the plot, folks. Only took us five chapters of grunting and knees to the groin to get there.

In many ways, The Apocalyptic Battle is like Delta Invasion. For example, it has Matts, which are kind of like Charleses only not in the slightest bit interesting. However, these latest two chapters add another couple of similar features: Nonsense theology and an Invador Alert. So while Tom converses with the agents of the almighty, Steven, Matt, some other Matt and this Asuka chick that nobody’s ever heard of fight against goofy monsters from beyond! Can NERV prevail over Xeruel, the Angel of Forcing The Plot Along? Will Steven be turned into Tang? Will Tom eat an apple? Is Los Angeles the best place for place? Will Misato manage to turn herself into a phoenix? And will I be able to think of any more random questions to pad out this promo any longer?

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Monday, September 16, 2013

Rebuilding Elmer Studios - The Wandering Star Saga



When we were looking through the list of old fics that we wanted to rebuild, one name in particular came up. That was, of course, The Wandering Star Saga. The last fic of the “old” Elmer Studios era, the riffing had never been completed. That in ad of itself had moved it high onto the “to do” list, but there were a number of other factors. Back in the day, we considered the fic to be ‘prime’ material for a number of reasons, not the least of which was our resident new villain, Krokojam.

(And yes, rebuilding Recollections of a Tekkaman was a prelude of sorts to this project. It helped us to get a degree of context and to ‘set up’ material for the rebuild).

However, there were also a number of problems that needed to be resolved in order to make this happen. These would end up making the project a lot more complicated and involved then any prior rebuild.

Monday, September 9, 2013

Episode 244 - Showdown in San Rivera, chapters 7-12

Episode 244: Showdown in San Riviera, chapters 7-12


This whole thing feels like some eighties action film. And I mean a bad one, likely starring Dolph Lundgren and shot in some place with dubious safety laws.

As the battle for San Rivera continues, the situation heats up as the intrepid task force sent to do something (No idea what) manage to find new ways to get themselves killed. Against this grim situation, there is a single light of hope against the oppressive forces of Baron Ironblood and his minions, Black Scarab, Red Scorpion, Blue Donkey and Purple Monkey Dishwasher. That’s right, it’s Agent Seizure; video store clerk by day and high-tech urban terrorist by night. Armed only with a chainsaw riot shield and his strict late return policy, Seizure fights the fight to liberate San Rivera’s absurdly spacious sewers! And as the final conflict approaches, many questions will be asked. Principally they’ll be about what’s going on in the fic, as I have no idea. If you do, please let me know.

Warning: Fic may contain traces of Action Force.

Riffers: Rebecca Bartley, Natasha Isavia, Mat Simmons and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Rick R.

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Episode 243 - The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 3-4

Episode 243: The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 3-4

As the audience, you inherently know who these characters are, without needing any introduction.

The Horrible secret of space continues! And what better way to signify the coming of the end times and the ultimate battle between good and evil for the fate of all creation then with a few quick knees to the groin? Much bumping and grinding and grunting ensues (But given the connection to Delta Invasion, that was probably inevitable) as the ultimate evil angel of ultimate evil fights off an army of poorly realised shallow guys based off a lengthy in-joke that nobody’s bothered to explain. Can the ultimate savior of all mankind – a dude named Ken – prevail over evil? Will everybody develop more nonsense superpowers? How many levels of Super-Sayajin can one guy have? Will the bus load of school kids (no, seriously) escape from their inevitable imperilment? And will the fic actually go anywhere or just keep repeating the same things over and over for a dozen pages? It’s like Girl on Fire only with less stew and more grunting!

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Episode 242 - The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 1-2

Episode 242: The Apocalyptic Battle, chapters 1-2

Two guys meet in a carpark to fight with swords. I demand an accompanying wrestling match and a Queen soundtrack.

No good can come of a fanfic based on internet RP. And when one of the participants in said RP is Tom Dyron, then you know that it’s going to be bad. But this time, Tom’s not alone! Joined by his friends Steven, Matt-Ak, that guy, the guy with the stupid hair and not John Barren, they stand together as a sort of “angry teenage hormones” version of the Superfriends. And what does this combined army of might do with their incredibul chi powerz, you may wonder? If your answer is ‘go to the mall, buy dresses and threaten shopkeepers with firearms’, then you’re getting pretty close to the obvious subject matter of a fic-thing called The Apocalyptic Battle! That’s right, it’s Evangelion fanfic in the same way that Dragonball GT is Journey to the West!

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Episode 241 - The Wandering Star Saga, part 2

Episode 241: The Wandering Star Saga, part 2

Enough forced levity, time for forced drama

The incomplete original MSTing of Wandering Star Saga (Not to mention the original fic’s vanishing from the interwebs) left a lot of unanswered questions on the minds of many (Well, maybe some. Maybe), probably chief of which was ‘Who the hell are Minerva and Paladin and why do I even care?’ Well if you’ve lost precious sleep over that for the past years, prepare to be disappointed by the answer you get! That’s right, not only are our two Self Insertions barely in the chapter, there’s not even the slightest appearance by beloved alien warlord Krokojam! So what is there you might ask? The answer is wangst, block exposition and recaps. Disappointed? I know I am and I’ve been working on this.

That’s right, it’s the rebuild that took nine years to get to you, and you’ll realize why!

Riffers: ?, ?, ? and ?
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Episode 240 - The Wandering Star Saga, part 1

Episode 240: The Wandering Star Saga, part 1

I like Krokojam for his subtle, nuanced chracterisation..

Having composed her wangst potry epic My boyfriend was a clone and now he’s dead, Dana Sterling finds herself abducted by a random space thingy and sent to another franchise. Once there, she’s abducted again by the utterly gooney and yet utterly awesome Krokojam! An evil and sinister alien with a voice that is both monotone and full of ham at the same time, this vile overlord has a plan for the floating naked space chick he just found. What is it, you might ask? Well, we don’t actually know because the fic decides to digress into hilarious practical jokes and their near-fatal consequences. Throw in some visiting Mary Sues who can’t quite figure how to take over the fic and gratuitous use of stock footage and blatant author favouritism and you have the first chunk of the Krokojam Saga!

Riffers: ?, ?, ? and ?
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

The Episode 240 teaser

Since it's Comicon season, I felt it was fair to hand out a teaser trailer of sorts for the perpetually in-progress Episode 240 (Which, incidentally, is now on the final micro-chunk of riffing before we get to edit, cleanup, host segments and stuff). As such, I can reveal three things about it:
  1. It is a rebuild
  2. It has a different cast to the original version
  3. It reintroduces a character not seen so far in the "modern" Elmer Studios MSTings.
Feel free to speculate wildly and see you soon for Episode 240!

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Episode 239 - Macross the Transformers Saga

Episode 239: Macross the Transformers Saga

Well enough hanging around and delivering plot points. Time to go back to killing space robots.

Imagine, if you will, the potential that might be in a Macross/Transformers crossover. Now imagine that said crossover simply consists of crossing out the word “Zentraedi” and writing “Decepticon” over it in crayon. That’s right, while they may be a different type of soldier warlord from deep space, the fic rigidly enforces pre-existing dialogue, scenes and characterization. Sure there might be some small changes like the odd horrific aviation accident or floating hat, but by the time the crossover starts, you’ll be wishing the fic was over! So instead focus on the intense rivalry between Roy Fokker and Axle and ask yourself the big question that comes from it: who is Axle and why do I care anyway?

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Sunday, July 14, 2013

July Update

As you can tell, there hasn't been much activity for the last few weeks. Unfortunately, ep 239 wound up blowing out and be a lot harder going then expected; as such, it's taking a lot of time to get done. The good news is that it is getting there; the last micro-Chunk is in editing now for compilation and then the final edit and host segments. ETA is later this week, fingers crossed.

On the good news update, Episode 240 is already in the early riffing stage with a good amount of material down so far. Material has been selected for Eps 241-246, with some riffs already in place. So once we get past this, new material should start coming fast.

Thursday, June 20, 2013

Episode 238 - Girl on Fire, chapters 6-8

Episode 238: Girl on Fire, chapters 6-8

It seems we only have a half dozen characters. Phoenix, her family, Robin, and the poorly-defined mass that is everyone else.


Girl On Fire! Returning once more with amazing action and unbelievable danger! New villains appear! Watch teen super sensation Phoenix very nearly fight with her very own arch enemies! The Justice League are rendered helpless by a perfectly ordinary door! Witness amazing spectacles of the superhuman world! A secret mountain lair! A tragic past! Magic cure-all lotion! Things that are hotter than lava! Fake replacement parents! A nightmare inducing fireball! Familial relations repeated again and again! Mind-link conversations and people speaking in a foreign language! It’s everything you could want in a superhero fic, without all the inconvenience of having an actual cast or story!

Riffers: Dan, Maya Gold, Celena Harte and Tsuneo Tateo
Written by: Zogster

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Episode 237 - Showdown in San Riviera, chapters 1-6

Episode 237: Showdown in San Riviera, chapters 1-6

My name is Inigyo Montoya. You killed my donkey. Prepare to die

When revolution comes to the generic fictional South American nation of San Martino, the UN responds in the best way it can. That’s right, sending in a team of generic guys that nobody cares about who all promptly die horribly of their own ineptitude while attempting to fulfil some nebulously defined mission with no discernable goals. But what is the insidious plan of Baron Ironblood and his minions, Renegade Shepard, Colossus and Red Laser (who is Japanese) and why does he want this one non-existent nation? Actually, we have no idea, and the fic doesn’t give us a clue. What it does give us, however, is a strangely compelling video store clerk and the deadliest anti-personnel weapon ever devised: A donkey.

Riffers: Rebecca Bartley, Natasha Isavia, Mat Simmons and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Rick R.

Friday, June 14, 2013

Episode 236 - Blasts from the past

Episode 236: Blasts from the past

Sherry’s idea of ‘easing her in’ seems to be ‘one hammer blow after another’.


Welcome to the futuristic year of 2112, where cloning has made death a minor inconvenience, DNA works differently and the oppressive reign of the robot overlords means that mankind is brutally oppressed by their harsh Zoning laws. Bought back from the dead, Priss, Nene and the other one must struggle with the emotional hammer blows of seventy years lost and their horrific demises. Fortunately, unsexy nonagenarian Sylia is here to shamelessly manipulate them into getting revenge for her. That's right, its BGC fic only in the future some more!

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Status Update

While May was an insanely busy month for MSTing, June has so far been a little slow. Real life (and by that we mean exams, assignment deadlines, work hell and so on) has been slowing us down considerably. However, all is not lost! Episode 236 is nearly finished with only the host segments to be done, and hopefully will be out in the next few days. Eps 237 and 238 are in progress as well.

In the mid-to-long term, we have solidly booked everything up until episode 241, and have plans beyond that as well. So we're not going away any time soon

Friday, May 31, 2013

Rebuilding Elmer Studios - Celena

Celena Harte was the second member of the B-Team to appear in the “classic” Elmer Studios era. While popular, her she also had her share of problems. However, in her case the issues came less from character and more from utilisation. And while the new approach to the B-team solved a lot of those problems, it was still good to take a look at the character and see what could be done with them.

It seems to have worked. So far, Celena has put in as many “modern” appearances as she did classic, with more on the way.

Monday, May 27, 2013

Episode 235 - The Legacy

Episode 235: The Legacy

If the chase scenes in
Consider Phlebeas or the hospital hallway battle in Hard Boiled or even the final battle between Superman and Doomsday had stopped for people to list all the plastic toys involved, they would have been so much better for it.

What could be worse then Badfic? How about Badfic of a Badfic? If that thought doesn’t scare you off, then you might just be ready for The Legacy, a fanfic based on the ‘fantastic’ Dark Spiner series. (If it does scare you off, you might as well stop reading now. Trust me, it gets worse). Set an indeterminate and oft-fluctuating time period after the last fic, this one doesn't so much genre shift as it genre lurches drunkenly across the street and falls down in a puddle of its own vomit. What starts as a simple sports story turns into a grim and gritty war drama as armies of Plastic Robot Dinosaurs clash against each other in an epic struggle between two poorly defined powers! New characters are introduced and swiftly forgotten as the day is saved by a random nameless person! Bad guys make ineffectual plans that come to nothing! Siege gets a new origin that doesn't involve dinosaur poop! And some other stuff! I think!

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Episode 234 - Green Lantern Regenisis and Spider-Girl Begins

Episode 234: Green Lantern Regenisis and Spider-Girl Begins

We can pretty much assume J. Jonah Jameson will call her a menace.


More Green Lantern Regenisis! That’s right, it’s time for Cassidy to go to school with Haley at her side. And what makes school complete? How about an ineffectual and one-dimensional bully to go with her one-dimensional friend? How about an utterly pointless cameo to justify the fic? How about the return of the killer who – wait, those aren’t Cassidy’s parents! No, they’re the parents of Vanessa Thorne, an almost identical character in an almost identical fic, just with Green Lantern scratched out and Spider-Man scrawled in crayon. But never fear, fans of Gruud; there’s more Regenisis too! In fact, it’s the bit that should have been in the last one, but is on top of this one instead. Just be sure to stick around when Green Lantern Regenisis is done, because then Spider-Girl Begins!

Riffers: Dan, Maya Gold, Celena Harte and Tsuneo Tateo
Written by: Zogster

Monday, May 13, 2013

Rebuild of Elmer Studios: The Terrible Secret Of Space

For a long time, it was assumed that the original, "raw" version of Delta Invasion was lost. Pulled from the Interweb by it's author as it "no longer represented his vision for Evangelion" (though the fact that it had become a byword for Bad Fic might have helped) and hosted on a now-dead Geocities page, it was generally assumed that Delta was long gone, and that this was not a bad thing at all. Various Delta-related projects from a TV Tropes Entry to a dramatic reading and even our own Rebuild of Delta were based on reverse-engineering of our original MSTings. This, naturally, resulted in a lot of creeping errors; between our own terrible original formatting, the need to remove riffs and the sorts of things that can filter between the cracks in the process, there's a lot of room for error.

Until now.

A black magic ritual performed with some half-remembered URLs, a crappy version of Firefox, archive.org and the entrails of a goat yielded something amazing and yet terrifying, something that must be shared with the world in one of those "group up to reduce the damage" mechanics. I give to you, the terrible secret of space: the original, raw, un-MSTed Delta Invasion.

Click the link, of you dare.

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Episode 233 - Recollections of a Tekkaman

Episode 233: Recollections of a Tekkaman

I'm glad these new characters had such a detailed and memorable introduction to avoid confusion.

Did you know that pouring liquor onto sensitive electronic equipment may harm it? If you did, then you’re one step ahead of Brandon, frontier cartographer and the alleged hero of this newest fic. However, while he may be the hero, the real star of this fic is the mighty and enjoyably evil Tekkaman Shrapnel, all around nasty person and eater of kittens and puppies on toast with vegemite! Armed with a vast array of contrived-as-the-plot-needs-them powers and deadly cheesy dialogue, Shrapnel is set to carve a path of destruction across some remote corner of Canada or something. Throw in a bunch of random run-ins and a team of Zoanoids (No, really) and you have something that might just resemble a fic! Or not!

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Monday, April 29, 2013

Rebuild of Elmer Studios, year one


It’s been a year of the rebuilt Elmer Studios (or, if you prefer, the sixteenth year all up). Wow. That went by fast.

It was a busy year too; thirty-two MSTings. Of them, which eleven were B-team episodes, fifteen were rebuilds (technically, sixteen were, but one was a rebuild of an unfinished MSTing) and eight were based off franchises that were new to Elmer Studios (nine if you count Transformers Prime on its own). That’s a pretty good run by any standards; true the front-loading of Rebuild of Delta probably accelerated the process somewhat, but the point still stands that it’s been a pretty big and fun year.

(For comparison, thirty-two would have been a good year for the ‘classic’ Elmer Studios. Wow, that says a lot right there and then.)

Monday, April 22, 2013

Episode 232 - Ripple In Time

Episode 232: Ripple in Time

Apparently we can do this now

Time travel is a plot device that is hard to use well, and this Robotech fic exists largely to prove that point. Having decided that they can indeed travel back in time, the Haydonites decide that the best course of action is to go to one specific point for no readily defined reason other than it makes for a decent team up. Fortunately, the Invid Regis can also travel in time, so why she doesn’t use that power to stop centuries of intergalactic conflict form ever occurring is a mystery. Instead she sends out heroes (and by that I mean Communications Officer and some other guys) back to five minutes after when the bad guys went to. Confused? So am I and that’s only the first chapter!

Spoiler: Alex Romero dies.

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Monday, April 8, 2013

Episode 231 - Tech Wars

Episode 231: Tech Wars

And do I creep you out?

In a techno-thriller, a mixture of action, intrigue and romance makes for a powerful story. And Tech Wars delivers that balance in spades. Well, that is if you define "action" as "one-sided beat-downs," "intrigue" as "block exposition" and "romance" as "creepy obsessive staring and stalking." If you don't, then you might not get much out of this fic (not even Shatner) save for some random inappropriately inserted Gundam technology. It's a fic written after extensive research reading other fics, and it shows!

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Episode 230 - Forever and Always

Episode 230: Forever and Always

If you want to be taken seriously, go off and form your own teen hero team. Then you can have all sorts of adventures and save the world and die horrible, horrible deaths so that the adults will acknowledge you as their equals

When you think Transformers fanfic, you naturally assume that it’s going to be about long-winded boring cliché anime villains drippy teenage girls with superpowers. Because certainly that’s what this fic is all about, and let me tell you now, it doesn’t hold back on the details. Our hero Grace manages to take time out from her exciting life of wangst, self-pity and locker combinations to get zapped by a Cybernet Space Cube and gain the power to levitate iPhones. Armed with this unique gift, she does the most logical thing that anyone would do – take a walk through the desert to the bad side of town in the middle of her night with her two best friends (even if one of them doesn’t seem to exist). Oh sure, there might be some giant alien robots that turn into cars in there, but you won’t care as you’ll want to know what colour her folder is! So come on in and roll your eyes in derision at the fic!

Riffers: Rebecca Bartley, Natasha Isavia, Matt Simmons and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Rick R

Friday, March 22, 2013

Episode 229 - Poisoned Minds

Episode 229: Poisoned Minds

Great, I’ve either figured out the plot in advance or I’ve broken the fic again.

Meet Ashina Takara. Who is this intriguing woman of mystery? Well that's a good question, because we truthfully don't know. Is she some kind of engineered transhuman construct, combined from the features of multiple subjects yet lacking in every single way? Is she a perfect fighting machine despite the fact she loses in every single fight she gets into? Is she the specially cloned body which can't seem to hold up under normal day-to-day use? Or is it her special guns, one of which is ludicrously described the other she may have lost, may have had stolen or may have sent to some guy nobody knows who doesn't show up until the end? Regardless, this is her story. What? The fic, you ask? Well... Actually, after all that, do you really want to know?

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Episode 228 - Girl on Fire, chapters 1-5

Episode 228: Girl on Fire, chapters 1-5

In shocking news the city of Moose Tailings, Alaska was burned to the ground while the Justice League looked on.

For a Young Justice fanfic, the title The Girl on Fire is a bit of a misnomer. Although there is a lot of girl in it, the fire in question seems to be fairly optional. And while Stephanie is adored by everyone, sings like a former Justice League member (not Blue Devil) and is the heir to the majority of an unspecified subdivision of oil companies, she doesn't actually spend that much time On Fire. Instead, she flits around her home, has a shower, sings a forgettable pop song, gets a haircut, flies to school, and eats her grandmothers stew* while two teams of superheroes look on. And while Robin gets embarrassed, Wonder Woman gets a duplicate and Icon gets a line, all you'll get is the gripping** superhero romance of The Girl on Fire.

*All this actually happens.
**Gripping is optional.

Riffers: Dan, Maya Gold, Celena Harte and Tsuneo Tateo
Written by: Zogster

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Episode 227 - The legion of the mysterious Black X-1 VT Fighter, parts 3-4


Episode 227: The legion of the mysterious Black X-1 VT Fighter, parts 3-4

I think we're at all points in continuity at once.


As Legion of the Mysterious Black X-1 reiterates its way towards its inevitable conclusion mysteries lie before us like discarded fast food wrappers, begging to be picked up. Who is the mysterious pilot of the Black X-1? What is the thermodynamics-defying secret weapon, and why did they test it on a well-known and popular war hero without telling him first? Why does Gloval have a contingency plan against a weapon that nobody knew existed? Will Khyron ever calm down and learn to respect his soldiers? What is in the red folder and how is it different from any other folders? Will Kyle ever get over the Chicken Pots? And finally, most importantly, why Brick?

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Rebuilding Elmer Studios - Maya

If Natasha was the “leader” of the B-Team, then Maya Gold was certainly the most popular. She had appeared in ten different episodes of the “classic” Elmer Studios series, more then any other B-Team member, and had developed the most distinctive personality and presence of them along the way. These distinctive traits and popularity meant that she was a certainty for the re-tooled B-Team.

However, they also presented a problem in being incompatible with the new, unified Elmer Studios continuity and background. The result was that, while Maya might have changed very little in terms of personality, her appearance and abilities are dramatically different.


Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Episode 226 - The legion of the mysterious Black X-1 VT Fighter, parts 1-2

Episode 226: The legion of the mysterious Black X-1 VT Fighter, parts 1-2

Oh noes! Not the chicken pots!

In the annals of human conflict, never before has one man been owed so much by so many as Brick. That's right, Brick Hecter, fall-down drunk, derelict of duty, a mechanic who harasses superior officers in public. But it's not all laughs and sunshine for our man Brick; sabotage is afoot aboard the SDF-1, and his struggle with his personal demons is only compounded by the appearance of a mysterious fighter full of improbable technology backed by a conspiracy that even a  three year old could see through. That's right, Legion of the Black X-1 may be the title, but really it's all about Brick.

Who's Brick?

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Episode 225 - Old Conflicts Renewed, chapters 11-20

Episode 225: Old Conflicts Renewed, chapters 11-20

Four score and seven years ago, our robot dinosaur fathers bought forth on this franchise a toyline conceived in the marketing department and founded on the proposition that all plastic is moulded equal.

The Empire’s campaign of mild inconvenience continues, and it is up to Kevin to stop them!  Armed with nothing but whatever powers he has contrived for himself today, his ambulatory pile of robot dinosaur poo and his ability to effortlessly crush anyone who faces him, can Big Kev save the day? Of course he can. Don’t be silly. Not a single hint of suspense will be given as the war lurches to its shambolic conclusion in a long list of different types of plastic toys. So join all your favourite characters; Big Kev, Siege, Isaac Cloud, Zephyr, General Drack, Mick, Tom, John, Charles and Charles, Our Hero Raven, Captain Gruud, Lancetaka Solyaku Foo Foo Cuddlypoops Askakura the third, Mike the Human and Bob Anglerfish for this gripping tale of something or another that the whole family will likely forget all about.

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Episode 224 - Old Conflicts Renewed, chapters 1-10

Episode 224: Old Conflicts Renewed, chapters 1-10

It seems that the Empire is less an invading army and more of a force that occasionally comes around to annoy them.

Revolution! War! Governments fall! Armies invade! In a time of crisis such as this, the world cries out for a hero, a man who will step forward and save the say. And that man is… Kevin! That’s right, it’s the return of Big Kev. Armed with a clumsily executed genre shift (because “sports drama” and “war” work so well together), our so called hero and his sidekick, a pile of robot dinosaur poop (no, really) set out to fight the forces of mild inconvenience by listing off what toys he owns and how they’re arranged! Written without a hint of research as to what a military is actually like, this is less war the only way it can be told and more a schoolyard brawl over who took who’s juicebox.

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Monday, January 28, 2013

Fanfic Retrospective - Delta Invasion


Delta Invasion? What more can be said. Well quite a lot, actually.

Of all the old Elmer Studios MSTings, Delta is probably the best known and most popular of them. Something of a meme within the MSTing and Evangelion communities in its day, largely because of its ‘fantastic’ content and writing style. Even then long after the demise of Elmer Studios (and the MSting community at large), it would still have its followers. This reputation was not undeserved, as I hope to discuss.

Before I go any further, however, I’d like to thank Douglass Weeks. Back in 1998 or so, he originally ‘dibsed’ Delta Invasion, but he passed it off to us, feeling that we’d be better suited to handling it. Thanks Douglass!

Saturday, January 12, 2013

Episode 223 - Rebuild of DELTA, part thirteen

Episode 223: Rebuild of DELTA, part thirteen

The last chapter of Delta Invasion is going to be nothing but weddings and babies and babies and weddings and four hundred babies

It's hard to know what to expect from the end of Delta Invasion. Between goofy monster battles, destroying an omnipotent conspiracy, Italian restaurant menus, martial arts tournaments, going into space, being special, blowing up a planet and Charles (Not Charles anything, just Charles), the series has constantly thrilled and delighted (not to mention terrified) us with its whacky and unpredictable nature. And after that, how could the last part be any different? What would be an appropriate finish to send off the sheer screaming insanity of the Delta we know and love? I can say now that it's certainly not this!

Riffers: Dan, Rebecca Bartley, Tsuneo Tateo and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Zogster and Rick R.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

Episode 222 - Green Lantern Regenesis

Episode 222: Green Lantern Regenesis

Ermigerd it is like, so totally unfair and stuff! I so wanted a Blue Lantern ring because it like, totally goes with my hair dec and junk. My life is so ruined!

It's superhero time, and that means origin story. But this is an origin story for a character like no other. After all, who else is  teenaged science expert songwriter heiress with their own one-dimensional prop girlfriend and cheer squad? And who else can take on the red-butted forces of space captain Gruud with nothing more than a barrel, a blaster and the eidetic memory they just remembered they had? Yes, thrill as Cassidy Blake remembers more skills for herself, talks down to everyone around her, forgets an entire chapter and is generally loved and adored by everyone without any sense whatsoever. It's classic Mary Sue in a Regenesised bottle!

Riffers: Dan, Maya Gold, Celena Harte and Tsuneo Tateo
Written by: Zogster

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Episode 221 - "Zoids Genesis Fanfic"

Episode 221: "Zoids Genesis Fanfic"

Usually the bad guys in these fics stand there and let the hero kill them. He decided to be more pro-active and kill himself.

Not so much a fanfic as a vague start of one that was mercifully abandoned, this fic none the less still has plenty of badness to offer the discerning reader. A random mysterious person is hangs around the outskirts of an isolated hapless village being mysterious, which naturally prompts random bandits to attack it. The resulting hostage standoff, with two giant robots holding an entire community at gunpoint is resolved by our apparent heroine running straight into them and starting a brawl in the middle of a crowd of innocent bystander people. Naturally not a single person is hurt, and the villagers thank the alleged protagonist for bringing this evil down upon them. And then it ends. What?

Riffers: Rebecca Bartley, Celena Harte, Natasha Isavia, Matt Simmons and Rick R. Mortis
Written by: Rick R