A Brief History of Homestar Runner

2014-12-06 · explainer · Hank, Ryder Burgin · 4:00 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Internet & YouTube · mode: Explainer · tags: guest or collab, recurring series

In a collaborative episode of Ryder Burgin's A Brief History, Hank and Ryder trace Homestar Runner from a 1996 children's-book parody to a Flash web phenomenon, its 2009 hiatus and 2014 return; Hank argues it pioneered the online video industry; Ryder asks whether its Flash-era interactivity can survive in a YouTube internet.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — Intro: special episode of Ryder Burgin's A Brief History on Vlogbrothers, a Hank-Ryder collaboration; today's topic Homestar Runner

★★ Hank introduces a special episode of Ryder Burgin's show A Brief History, airing on Vlogbrothers as a Hank-Ryder collaboration; the topic is Homestar Runner. — 00:00:00 · Vlogbrothers

00:00:13 — Origins: the 1996 children's-book parody by Mike Chapman and Craig Zobel; the Brothers Chaps learn Flash and launch homestarrunner.com in 1999; early cartoons and characters; first recurring series Strong Bad Email

★★★ Ryder Burgin: Ryder says in Atlanta in 1996, University of Georgia students Mike Chapman and Craig Zobel, finding children's books bad, wrote a quasi-parody starring Homestar Runner, Strong Bad and The Cheat. — 00:00:13
★★ Hank says Mike and his brother Matt worked in graphic design while teaching themselves Flash, then launched homestarrunner.com in late 1999, Mike doing most design and Matt most voices. — 00:00:31
★★ Ryder Burgin: Ryder says the early site's simple children's-book-style cartoons introduced regulars: Marzipan (voiced by Missy Palmer), Strong Mad, Strong Sad, Bubs, Coach Z, the King of Town and the Poopsmith. — 00:00:48
★★ Ryder Burgin: Ryder says that after a couple of years and a redesign the site took off with its first recurring series, Strong Bad Email. — 00:01:07

00:01:17 — Success: Strong Bad Email's concept, spin-offs (Teen Girl Squad, Trogdor), no analytics, merch lets the Chaps go full-time, CD, outside references, Telltale game

★★★ Hank calls Strong Bad Email's concept beautiful; its consistent schedule, humor and fan interaction made it an almost instant success; Hank names the spin-off series Teen Girl Squad and the character Trogdor the Burninator. — 00:01:17
★★★ Ryder Burgin: Ryder says Strong Bad emails massively boosted traffic, but with no analytics viewership is unknown; thousands of emails arrived daily and merch sales let the Chaps go full-time. — 00:01:34
★★ Hank says the Homestar universe grew with shows, games, DVDs, toys and a 20-track CD, and references appeared in Seventeen Magazine, Guitar Hero and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. — 00:01:52
★★ Ryder Burgin: Ryder says Telltale Games approached the Chaps about a point-and-click adventure game, and Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People was announced on April 10, 2008 for WiiWare and PC. — 00:02:07

00:02:17 — The 2009 silence: over 200 sbemails, then a break that stretched to four years while Matt worked in LA

★★★ Hank says by 2009 the Chaps had released over 200 sbemails, but from late 2009 Homestar went virtually silent, unexplained because, they said, they didn't know how to explain it. — 00:02:17
★★★ Ryder Burgin: Ryder says after ten years the two took a break; Matt moved to LA, writing and directing for Yo Gabba Gabba and Gravity Falls; it unexpectedly lasted four years. — 00:02:37 · Los Angeles

00:02:56 — The April 2014 return and the question of how to bring a Flash-era interactive site into the YouTube age

★★★ Hank says on April 1, 2014 the Chaps released their first full-length Homestar cartoon in four years and have confirmed plans to bring Homestar Runner back; Matt has moved home. — 00:02:56
★★ Ryder Burgin: Ryder says the internet has changed: Flash sites are past, everyone uses YouTube, and Homestar's interactivity can't be done there, so its modernization remains to be seen. — 00:03:18 · YouTube

00:03:33 — Hank's conclusion: Homestar Runner pioneered online video, predates YouTube by five years, and is back

★★★ Hank says Homestar Runner pioneered the online video industry, doubts many of us would be here without it, and says it predates YouTube by five years yet still feels fresh. (hedged) — 00:03:33 · YouTube

00:03:50 — Sign-off; thanks to Ryder Burgin; pointer to their Brief History of Harry Potter collab on his channel

★ Hank thanks Ryder Burgin for helping with the episode and asks viewers to check out their other collaboration, A Brief History of Harry Potter, on Ryder's channel. — 00:03:52

In the description and comments

★★ The description calls Homestar Runner the first broadly successful online video project and says nearly everything done on YouTube builds on trails the Brothers Chaps blazed. — video description · YouTube
★ The description credits the Brothers Chaps art to dbzkenny and points viewers to the companion episode A Brief History of Vlogbrothers. — video description

Mentioned

Central: Homestar Runner (web series) · Matt Chapman · Mike Chapman · Ryder Burgin · Strong Bad · Strong Bad Email · The Brothers Chaps

Also: Works: A Brief History · A Brief History of Harry Potter · Buffy the Vampire Slayer · Gravity Falls · Guitar Hero · Strong Bad Sings and Other Type Hits · Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People · Teen Girl Squad · The Homestar Runner Enters the Strongest Man in the World Contest · Yo Gabba Gabba!

Organizations: Seventeen · Telltale Games · University of Georgia · YouTube

Places: Atlanta · Los Angeles

Characters: Bubs · Coach Z · Compy 386 · Homestar Runner (character, “Homestar Runner”) · Marzipan · Strong Mad · Strong Sad · The Cheat · The King of Town · The Poopsmith · Trogdor

Products: Adobe Flash · WiiWare

Only in the description or credits: A Brief History of Vlogbrothers · Craig Zobel · dbzkenny · Missy Palmer

Also centred on Homestar Runner (web series): Pre-History of Online Video

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