Post by CountVonNumenor on Aug 29, 2020 0:39:24 GMT
Back in May, I have written a thread about a web series called Meta Runner, created by SMG4//Glitch Productions. Today, I was thinking about writing a bit of my thoughts on the channel itself, especially after reaching a special milestone.
But first, a bit of channel history, at least from what I understood. Everything started back in 2010 or 2011, when Super Mario 64 machinima videos were a trend on YouTube. One of the creators at the time, Luke Lerdwichagul (SMG4), started making such videos just like most other creators, just that he managed to become ever more popular, and even when the trend died out, he was still getting more and more subscribers. In time, Luke developed his machinima videos more and more, adding new characters and improving the quality and techniques. Around 2017, his brother created the company known today as Glitch Productions, which in the end got to produce Meta Runner in 2018-2019. At the moment, the channel is close to 4 million subscribers, and has some big plans for the future, something I will be explaining later. A more detailed history can be found here supermarioglitchy4.fandom.com/wiki/SMG4_(series)
In order to understand where we got today, we need to go back in time, and see where everything started from:
How I discovered SMG4
I think there have been several moments I have watched this channel. First of them, which I have too little memory about, was many years ago, during the ”classic” era of the Mario bloopers. Second time was at the end of last year, after watching some reaction videos on the newest episodes at the time. Third time, and the time it actually stuck, was in April-May 2020. At the time, I remembering about an incredibly silly Mario and a shy girl with blue hair (my favourite character at the time and still my favourite), and these things brought me to watch more. And so we get to the point I was looking to make.
Future plans
Since SMG4//Glitch Production has had so much success in time, the company got into the creation of animation (I detailed in the Meta runner thread how it was created), and yesterday/today, August 28th 2020, Luke and Kevin officially announced the creation of a new Youtube Channel, called Glitch, that will host their animated series and pilots. Since many have complained about their web series having a completely different tone, perhaps not very fit with the silly nature of SMG4, the idea of creating a new channel has been spread among the fans for quite a while, and now it has been confirmed. Even if being one day old, the channel is growing quickly, already getting to over 75K subscribers. I was a bit concerned about the idea a new channel may bring them less audience for their series, and it would take a long time to grow the channel until it becomes relevant, it seems everything is working fine. Also, this way, the original channel would come back to the ”classic era”, before the creation of Glitch Productions. And according to the guys, both channels will be active, SMG4 receiving videos every week and even new, experimental Mario series. I am quite excited for anything new, and the following 12 months seem to provide a lot:
1) The movie cut of Meta Runner season 1 (released on August 28th 2020)
2) Ultra Jump Mania (September 2020)
3) Meta Runner Season 2 (October 2020)
4) Sunset Paradise (2021)
5) Unnamed Meggy Spletzer series (2021)
6) Unnamed project (2021)
Conclusion
The way TV tropes explains the following paragraph is perfect: ”The ENTIRE journey of the SMG4 channel. Anybody who's been subscribed to it since its humble beginnings can tell you that although the bloopers looked crappy by today's standards, the text was rife with errors and inconsistencies, and they frequently featured jokes that wouldn't have a snowflake's chance in Hell of flying in this day and age, they were made with dedication and heart. Back then, SMG4 lived in the shadow of other Super Mario 64 Machinimists like MarioMario54321, who had been in the game longer and had more subscribers than him. But as time went on, those channels more or less fell to the wayside while SMG4 grew more and more skilled at his craft, gaining new subscribers every day. The editing improved, the character models began emoting, and the humor became funnier and more refined than just "Hehehe, toilets!" Suddenly, this tiny but persevering channel gained 100K subs. Then 200K. Then 400K. And finally, out of nowhere, one million subscribers! This kid who made the stupid Mario bloopers had now risen to the YouTube big leagues! And it's now over triple that number! Hell, it didn't stop there—Luke and Kevin got fan mail, have their own line of merchandise, and now completed several tours! And all of this was because one boy found something he liked doing and never stopped doing it, making it one of the most inspirational success stories in all of YouTube.”
I am very impressed. Since everything started with an 11 years old guy making machinima videos of SM64 by filming a TV screen, in 10 years having to have a successful animation company, may be seen as one of the most successful stories. For me, it is one of the best examples of someone just doing what they love, and actually having success with it. All my respect, and I cannot wait to see more from these guys. Especially this year, knowing the depressing nature quarantine may have, their videos helped me quite a lot in getting over any sort of sadness and anxiety caused by isolation. Another effect, maybe more unexpected, is that their videos actually made me want to improve my human drawing skills, process on which I am still working. So again, a very big thank you to the two brothers who followed their dream and managed to create a successful story.
But first, a bit of channel history, at least from what I understood. Everything started back in 2010 or 2011, when Super Mario 64 machinima videos were a trend on YouTube. One of the creators at the time, Luke Lerdwichagul (SMG4), started making such videos just like most other creators, just that he managed to become ever more popular, and even when the trend died out, he was still getting more and more subscribers. In time, Luke developed his machinima videos more and more, adding new characters and improving the quality and techniques. Around 2017, his brother created the company known today as Glitch Productions, which in the end got to produce Meta Runner in 2018-2019. At the moment, the channel is close to 4 million subscribers, and has some big plans for the future, something I will be explaining later. A more detailed history can be found here supermarioglitchy4.fandom.com/wiki/SMG4_(series)
In order to understand where we got today, we need to go back in time, and see where everything started from:
How I discovered SMG4
I think there have been several moments I have watched this channel. First of them, which I have too little memory about, was many years ago, during the ”classic” era of the Mario bloopers. Second time was at the end of last year, after watching some reaction videos on the newest episodes at the time. Third time, and the time it actually stuck, was in April-May 2020. At the time, I remembering about an incredibly silly Mario and a shy girl with blue hair (my favourite character at the time and still my favourite), and these things brought me to watch more. And so we get to the point I was looking to make.
Future plans
Since SMG4//Glitch Production has had so much success in time, the company got into the creation of animation (I detailed in the Meta runner thread how it was created), and yesterday/today, August 28th 2020, Luke and Kevin officially announced the creation of a new Youtube Channel, called Glitch, that will host their animated series and pilots. Since many have complained about their web series having a completely different tone, perhaps not very fit with the silly nature of SMG4, the idea of creating a new channel has been spread among the fans for quite a while, and now it has been confirmed. Even if being one day old, the channel is growing quickly, already getting to over 75K subscribers. I was a bit concerned about the idea a new channel may bring them less audience for their series, and it would take a long time to grow the channel until it becomes relevant, it seems everything is working fine. Also, this way, the original channel would come back to the ”classic era”, before the creation of Glitch Productions. And according to the guys, both channels will be active, SMG4 receiving videos every week and even new, experimental Mario series. I am quite excited for anything new, and the following 12 months seem to provide a lot:
1) The movie cut of Meta Runner season 1 (released on August 28th 2020)
2) Ultra Jump Mania (September 2020)
3) Meta Runner Season 2 (October 2020)
4) Sunset Paradise (2021)
5) Unnamed Meggy Spletzer series (2021)
6) Unnamed project (2021)
Conclusion
The way TV tropes explains the following paragraph is perfect: ”The ENTIRE journey of the SMG4 channel. Anybody who's been subscribed to it since its humble beginnings can tell you that although the bloopers looked crappy by today's standards, the text was rife with errors and inconsistencies, and they frequently featured jokes that wouldn't have a snowflake's chance in Hell of flying in this day and age, they were made with dedication and heart. Back then, SMG4 lived in the shadow of other Super Mario 64 Machinimists like MarioMario54321, who had been in the game longer and had more subscribers than him. But as time went on, those channels more or less fell to the wayside while SMG4 grew more and more skilled at his craft, gaining new subscribers every day. The editing improved, the character models began emoting, and the humor became funnier and more refined than just "Hehehe, toilets!" Suddenly, this tiny but persevering channel gained 100K subs. Then 200K. Then 400K. And finally, out of nowhere, one million subscribers! This kid who made the stupid Mario bloopers had now risen to the YouTube big leagues! And it's now over triple that number! Hell, it didn't stop there—Luke and Kevin got fan mail, have their own line of merchandise, and now completed several tours! And all of this was because one boy found something he liked doing and never stopped doing it, making it one of the most inspirational success stories in all of YouTube.”
I am very impressed. Since everything started with an 11 years old guy making machinima videos of SM64 by filming a TV screen, in 10 years having to have a successful animation company, may be seen as one of the most successful stories. For me, it is one of the best examples of someone just doing what they love, and actually having success with it. All my respect, and I cannot wait to see more from these guys. Especially this year, knowing the depressing nature quarantine may have, their videos helped me quite a lot in getting over any sort of sadness and anxiety caused by isolation. Another effect, maybe more unexpected, is that their videos actually made me want to improve my human drawing skills, process on which I am still working. So again, a very big thank you to the two brothers who followed their dream and managed to create a successful story.
