ROTTEN TOMATOES: "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" Movie Marketing Fiasco Blows Up

"Aqua Teen Hunger Force" Movie Marketing Fiasco Blows Up

by Jen Yamato | February 02, 2007

You Adult Swim fans already know the big-screen "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" movie is coming soon (yay!), but thanks to the flick's recent marketing campaign-gone-wrong, even your parents may be wondering what a Mooninite is (...weird).

In just one day, the city of Boston has launched cartoon antiheroes Meatwad, Master Shake, and Frylock (a talking meatball, milkshake, and box of French fries, respectively) a little bit higher into the arena of public awareness with the massive stir (we will refrain from calling it "overreaction") that has erupted over a guerilla marketing campaign involving wire-ridden devices. Blinking magnetic devices. Blinking devices with lights in the shape of...block-shaped two-dimensional aliens with pixilated faces.

These aliens are Mooninites, two of the more recognizable frenemies from the "ATHF" cartoon series. Their names are Ignignokt (the green mastermind) and Err (the mean sidekick), and any "Hunger Force" fan worth their salt would giggle with unbridled laughter if they saw a Mooninite stuck to the side of a building flipping them off.

Ignignokt, Err, and one of the offending devices; hear them talk here!

But such is not the case with the alarmed officials of Boston, who not only shut down parts of the city's infrastructure (bridges, subways, buildings) Wednesday, but later that night arrested two of the men responsible, both employees of a New York-based marketing firm promoting awareness of the March 23 release. Peter Berdovsky and Sean Stevens were charged with placing a hoax device and disorderly conduct; both pleaded not guilty today in court. And then proceeded to give a press conference fielding questions only about hairstyles.

For the record, similar Mooninite-planting efforts were made in nine other metropolitan cities at the same time (reportedly weeks ago) with no resulting legal fuss: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Austin, Portland, and Philadelphia. (Anyone in those cities take pictures before the devices were removed/posted on ebay/removed from ebay?)

The incident already has it's own Wikipedia page (and is alternately being called "the 2007 Boston magnetic light scare" and the way funnier "Aquagate").

In all seriousness, the perpetrators (who face up to five years in prison) did make efforts to express regret to a city whose officials remain adamantly offended, even in the face of nationwide ridicule.

The Hunger Force trio in their movie trailer debut

Though the criminal charges (hopefully) won't stick, it seems parent company Turner Broadcasting (whose Cartoon Network airs "Aqua Teen Hunger Force") might get hit with a lawsuit; over in Los Angeles, the producers of "Mission: Impossible III" made a similar misjudgment in marketing back in April of 2006, when Paramount decided to promote the Tom Cruise actioner with theme song-playing music boxes. Music boxes inserted in news racks. News racks (well, one) that were subsequently blown up by the LA County Sheriffs department; cops also evacuated a veteran's hospital because of another news rack device.

As of Thursday, Paramount and The LA Times will be consequently sued by federal prosecutors over the stunt. It seems the "ATHF" brouhaha is destined to follow suit; let's just hope that the "Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theatres" box office take makes up for the legal costs and potential monetary fines of the Boston Mooninite Affair of 2007.

"Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theatres" opens March 23; watch the trailer here!

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(1-20 of 35 posts) | Reply

adml_shake writes:
on Feb 02 2007 02:43 AM

Hopefully the city realizes how much they OVER reacted, and how stupid they will look if they decide to push this and just drop it.

(Reply to this)

baufan2005 writes:
on Feb 02 2007 04:56 AM

[b]Well[/b]
On our moon, which is a millions times more advanced, you would be considered a moron for taking something like a glowing lightbright and think it was a bomb.

(Reply to this)

Merlin235 writes:
on Feb 02 2007 07:12 AM

Better safe than sorry. They should have known better than to put those up all over the city. Nice one boobs

(Reply to this)

randal1013 writes:
on Feb 02 2007 07:20 AM

looks like the terrorists have won afterall. we're so afraid of little things that glow or play music that we'll actually close down buildings and bridges and blow up a newstand before asking a single question. GO USA.

(Reply to this)

dOiNk writes:
on Feb 02 2007 07:51 AM

[b]...another sad day[/b]
Our country is officially going to shit. These people should not be arrested or even get in trouble. They did absolutely nothing wrong or illegal. Basically the city overreacted and now are embarassed due to their stupidity and feel they have to take it out on someone... nice job boston!

(Reply to this)

dodadoof writes:
on Feb 02 2007 08:10 AM

I wouldn't call it a marketing fiasco.. They got more press then they could ever dream of and will probably do wonders for the show. Mayor Menino just has the IQ of a fetus.

(Reply to this)

Foxtalker writes:
on Feb 02 2007 08:12 AM

[b]Take it easy...[/b]
Yes, Bostonians (Bostonites? Boston....tards?) overreacted. But this is much more than the ATHF creators could have hoped for. This kind of ridiculous out cry over a bunch of lightbrites is bringing sooo much publicity to the show that when the movie comes out, everyone will know about it whether they've seen the show or not.

And don't take what these New England idiots are saying too, too seriously. I mean, did you see the AFC Championship game? I'd be looking to bust some heads to if I blew a game like that...

(Reply to this)

Thre31189 writes:
on Feb 02 2007 08:19 AM

haha did anyone see the press conference video where two guys(who had the charges dropped) were talking to the media? The media was getting pissed because all they would talk about was 70s hair cuts lol .... http://alternet.org/blogs/peek/47507/

(Reply to this)

frogleg writes:
on Feb 02 2007 08:20 AM

Yes, this is completely an overreaction and completely asinine. To say they should have known better than to put Lite-Brites up all over the city as a marketing campaign is ridiculous, and implies they deserve the treatment they're getting. I can't believe they're even trying to pursue criminal charges. This whole thing mystifies me. But the news conference was hilarious, at least.
ATHF: 1
Boston: 0

(Reply to this)

synergyred writes:
on Feb 02 2007 08:25 AM

As someone who grew up around Boston, I can honestly say that I'm both amused and disgusted over this. The publics over-reaction to the lite-bright signs just makes me giggle. On the other hand, this is nothing but a missunderstanding. Why is there even the possibility that these men might have up to five years in prision?

Also, I know a lot of people, after viewing the press conference, are being very critical of Peter and Sean for their inability to take things seriously. To those people I have to say this. These men are ENTERTAINERS! They have one of the strangest shows ever shown on television. I'm surprised all they did was talk about hair. We live in a scary, scary world. Our best defense against it is having a good sense of humor. I hope this whole thing is over and done with soon.

(Reply to this)

the-russian writes:
on Feb 02 2007 08:30 AM

Yes! Long live the mooninites!
Yeah, just watched the press conference video, f*cking hilarious. Boston won't be living this one down for a while.

(Reply to this)

Zap Rowsdower writes:
on Feb 02 2007 08:50 AM

Who did they think was planting the bombs. . . The Joker???

(Reply to this)

FireflyFan4evr writes:
on Feb 02 2007 08:58 AM

Just another example of how the American people have been scared into submission by their dumbass Republican government. ALL HAIL BUSH!

(Reply to this)

medicineman writes:
on Feb 02 2007 09:13 AM

The surreal news footage out of Boston looked liked something you'd expect from Borat. This kind of fear mongering and over reaction is exactly what Michael Moore was talking about in Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 911. A hilarious but sad day for America.

(Reply to this)

Kid_Ikarus writes:
on Feb 02 2007 09:14 AM

We should be thanking these 2 guys for tightening up our security. These things were in place WEEKS ago, and no one the wiser. If they were real WMDs, we would have been screwed already.

(Reply to this)

Cindy_Lou_Who writes:
on Feb 02 2007 09:22 AM

In reply to this comment (#854604)
Yeah, they were just like the WMD that Simple George found in Iraq. Talk about getting screwed!

(Reply to this)

Darkness My Old Friend writes:
on Feb 02 2007 09:56 AM

Now if only this would make the movie not be terrible.

If only.

(Reply to this)

Merlin235 writes:
on Feb 02 2007 10:14 AM

You know, I kind of think that if anyone who posts here actually had a job where there were responsible for other's safety, or were personally ON the bomb squad when something like this was called in, you might have a different appreciation for this situation. Rather than making fun of the people responsible for your safety, you should make fun of that one person who first saw the device and thought it was a bomb. The city reacted exactly as it should to such a call.

(Reply to this)

calitranx writes:
on Feb 02 2007 10:20 AM

I can picture, perhaps, maybe on a bad day, if they had absolutely no knowledge of the show, seeing one of these devices and thinking that it looks threatening. But after you determine that the first one is just a lite-brite why then would the bombsquad need to respond to the rest of the 30 some devices in Boston.

Furthermore, I would like to know who exactly(cop, elderly lady, etc) first saw this device and called the bombsquad. Early descriptions were �a device with a bunch of wires�?????? Is that all it takes to insight panic is a few wires and a plastic box?

(Reply to this)

Defmonkey writes:
on Feb 02 2007 10:23 AM

[b]Come to America for a good laugh![/b]
5 years after 9/11 and we still can't truly tell what is a bomb and what isn't a bomb.

I'm gonna start attacking police officers in broad daylight because they confused me that they could be a bomb or have one strapped to them. Let the Fear control you!!

(Reply to this)

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