For The Love of Comics

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A new viral game kicked off today resulting in a new poster being released. If you don’t really care about the path taken, feel free to skip to the end of this post. Otherwise, read on!

Those who received phones from the Joker in one of the previous games received a text message today:

Wake up, clown! You have *one hour* to reply to be a part of today’s fun. /operator

Through past experience, it was quickly surmised that “/operator” referred to http://whysoserious.com/operator. Those that replied received:

Good. Do not reply again. I’ll be in touch…

…and once the deadline passed:

Work together, clowns. Your code-word: XXXXXXXX. Your partner: XXX-XXX-XXXX. Do NOT call until told to. Do not publicize this number.

Wait for a call - you will receive one or more code words. Relay these words to your partner.

You’re the first in the chain. Call your partner and relay your code-word NOW.

Once the relays were completed, chains dropped on the /operator page and we were shown five words.

All of the words can be followed by the word “house”. Enter this into the box at the bottom and we’re given a new game, “Punkdrop”.

I’m not going to lie to you here, I never could get the hang of this one - I had to wait for someone else to do it to get to the end of this thing, but I’m told that if you hit one of these punk thing, a light appears next to another one. Hit that dummy, and the light moves to another, and so on. If you can pull that off three times in a row, you’re taken to the final page, Stupid Bats”, where you receive a new poster featuring a defaced photo of Batman with scrawled messages all around.

Could that be the end of the Dark Knight viral, or will we get a bit more?

Technorati Tags: Movies, The Dark Knight, Batman, Joker, Why So Serious, Phones, Operator, Punk Drop, Stupid Bats, Poster, Viral Campaign

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Why So Serious, the main page for pretty much the entire Dark Knight Viral campaign, has been updated with the Joker’s to-do list as a creative way to recap the campaign up until this point. Each crossed off item has a date of completion and links to the corresponding page. The only things left on the list are “Be good to my guests”, “Gather all my fans”, and “Leave a big mark”.

The page also features souvenirs from all of the games so far, including a slice of cake, bowling shoes, and a defaced portrait of President Lincoln.

Technorati Tags: Movies, Batman, The Dark Knight, Viral Campaign, Joker, Why So Serious, To-Do List, Checklist

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Image via Wikipedia

The wait is over!

The second trailer for The Dark Knight is now available at http://www.whysoserious.com/happytrails/trailer.htm.

Unfortunately, it’s not the Jokerized version, but it’s still pretty awesome. And I’m pretty sure that scene with Harvey’s head in profile holding the gun by his face is actually a shot of Two-Face. You can almost get a glimpse of some crispy edges on the side facing away from us. It’s much more noticeable on the big screen. Also, as The Dreaded Mike Haynes pointed out in comments, you can see the shoulders of his suit are different colors and patterns. Good catch, Mike!

Here, check it out:

(click the image for a bigger version)

You can see this trailer on the big screen (where it looks very cool) before Iron Man, which lives up to the hype and then some.

Technorati Tags: The Dark Knight, Trailer, Happy Trails, Why So Serious, Two-Face, Batman

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Image by Morning Magician via Flickr

After a scavenger hunt in cities around the world (you can read CBR’s on-the-ground reports from New York and Los Angeles here), participants were treated to a viewing of the new Dark Knight trailer. Someone at the Sao Paolo, Brazil, showing managed to record the trailer.

The bad news is that the quality is crap and the video will likely be pulled any time now.

The good news is that there’s a new site and it looks like the trailer will be released there on Sunday, in a similar method to the release of the last trailer. If you just want the url of the new site and don’t care how it was found, just skip to the end of this post.

During the scavenger hunt, the people on the ground were being fed clues by accomplices at home checking the It’s All Part of The Plan site. The final clue led them to a grid full of J’s.

These J’s corresponded to a set of letters that, when unscrambled, spell out “Sitting Ducks”, leading us to http://www.whysoserious.com/sittingducks/. According to people far more clever than I am, the ducks represent bianry code (blue for 0, yellow for 1) spelling out…

1. 1st row: “To win shoot”
2nd row: “Only row two”
3rd row: ybbyyyybbybby

Following these instructions gets you a “You Win” sign. Click on that gets you…

A new site called “Happy Trails”, with language implying that the new trailer will be released into the wild on Sunday, presumably after premiering before Iron Man.

Technorati Tags: Batman, The Dark Knight, Viral Campaign, Why So Serious, Sitting Ducks, Happy Trails, New Trailer

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I was messing around on the new “Why So Serious/It’s All Part of the Plan” page with the Jokerized portraits of presidents and I noticed that the portraits are clickable.

When you click those portraits, you get the name of a city and a countdown to Monday evening, around 5:30pm local time.

Scroll down a bit and you get some coordinates and instructions to gather at those coordinates on April 28th. Instructions on what trail to follow will be posted then. It looks like some people are going geocaching!

Of course, there’s nothing for Orlando or even close to Orlando, so I won’t be actively participating, but I’ll be following closely online!

Technorati Tags: The Dark Knight, Viral Campaign, Joker, Why So Serious, It’s All Part Of The Plan, Geocaching

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Viral Participants who received phones with their retrieved cakes, bowling balls, or fugitive packages” received the following text this evening:

“I wouldn’t worry about Gordon. ITS ALL PART OF THE PLAN”

Naturally, some genius on the SuperHeroHype! boards figured out that this was a clue to a new page of the Why So Serious Site with Jokerized portraits of US presidents and… a switch.

Flip that switch by clicking on it and you’re taken to yet another site with a new poster.

Now that’s cool on its own, but if you go back to the previous page with the Jokerized portraits of presidents and scroll down, you see a note that says “Four days”.

Might we be getting to see the new trailer in four days?

Technorati Tags: movies, the dark knight, viral campaign, joker, poster, gordon, why so serious, it’s all part of the plan

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Hollywood Chicago is reporting that the phones from last month’s Step Right Up marketing finale are receiving text messages from the Joker.

Here is the email sent to Hollywood Chicago from the person who found the Chicago Cake:

I have the cell phone and I just got a text message from the Joker today from humanresources@whysoserious.com. Here’s what it said:

“You still out there, clown? Reply and let me know.”

I replied “yes” and I got another response:

“See you found my little message. So do you think you have what it takes to be a part of my circle of friends? Are you a backstabbing, self…”

Then the message gets cut off. Others I have talked to with the phone have said the same thing. I am sure this is an automated response.

I replied back “yes” to the last text and I am waiting to see what happens. I will keep you updated!

~ Vlkers54

Let the games begin again!

And give me something to do down here in Orlando, WB!

Comics, Movies, The Dark Knight, DC, Batman, Joker, Step Right Up, Why So Serious

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Technorati Tags: Comics, Movies, The Dark Knight, DC, Batman, Joker, Step Right Up, Why So Serious

This is not the 6-minute prologue (which I will be seeing tonight!), but the shorter trailer being shown on regular screens.

It’s a crappy video that someone shot on their camera phone, but it’s clear enough to hear the voices and make out what’s going on.

Watch it fast, I expect it to be pulled any second!

Until I figure out how to embed this video or get it downloaded and hosted on my own server (or it gets yanked), here’s the link.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjG2q5itxVM&rel=1&border=0]

Update!! There’s a new viral site, A Taste For the Theatrical, just launched.

There are notes to “Watch This Space!” and “Sunday - It’s what you have been waiting for! Sure, you can see it on display, but beginning this Sunday, you can take it home for your very own“, implying that the trailer will be released for general consumption this Sunday.

Keep your eyes open, and you’ll know more as soon as I do!

Edit: It’s Live!

For now, I’m off to the Imax!!

tag: Joker, Taste for the Theatrical, The Dark Knight, Trailer, Why So Serious

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Image from Wikipedia

Hollywood Chicago had the scoop on the next - and maybe final - page for WhySoSerious.com:

Moments ago, I received via e-mail from humanresources@whysoserious.com a new WhySoSerious.com message and code for “The Dark Knight” viral marketing.

“Heads up, clown! Tomorrow means that there’s one last shifty step left in the interview process: Arwoeufgryo”

By moving each letter one to the right on a QWERTY keyboard, the word “steprightup” is spelled.

This led to a new WhySoSerious.com page at the URL www.whysoserious.com/steprightup with a countdown to 12 p.m. EST on Dec. 4 along with a stuffed monkey with an exposed stomach.

Ok, I didn’t get the countdown in there, which was at mere seconds, but you get the idea.

When the countdown finished, the page reloaded into this:

Click on that note and you get:

Each of those stuffed animals is holding a note card with an address:

And I’m certain that something is going on with that test your strength light show, but I can’t figure it out.

If anyone happens to get these prizes, please let me know - I’m curious what the payoff is!

UPDATE: There are more addresses! And CAKES!! AND CELL PHONES!!! As always, the collaborative genius of the Superhero Hype boards is on the case. Also, it looks like the weight on the strength tester goes higher as more cakes are found - I knew there was a purpose for it!

ANOTHER UPDATE!!! All the cakes have been found. Ring the bell and two flags and some confetti pop out. Click that and you are taken to a new page, Pair Of Jokers.

Click on one joker card, you’re taken to a
page with a list of IMAX theaters that will presumably have some kind of special event surrounding the 6 minute prologue I wrote about in in the post before this one.

There is also a form to register for free tickets. Too bad none of these theaters are close to me.

Click on the other joker card, and you’re taken to a page with a new poster:

I’m sure there will be reports on these events, and I’ll write about them as well as my own experience with I Am Legend and the prologue.
tag: Address, Animals, Joker, StepRightUp, The Dark Knight, Why So Serious, Whysoserious, Cakes, Poster, Pairofjokers, Prologue, IMAX

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Image from Wikipedia

I received a rather threatening voicemail this afternoon from phone number 000-000-0000. The call seemed to be regarding a message I left with a DA’s office and told me I should be more appreciative of the boys in blue putting their lives on the line for me. I could only assume that this was about a tip I left on Harvey Dent’s We Are The Answer webpage. I saved the message to transcribe it or transfer it onto my computer for posting, but it looks like someone already beat me to it, or at least the last 23 seconds of it:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSFhfcLHVzI&rel=1&border=0]

I’ve yet to figure out what “Document LC6551″ is, or where I’m supposed to look. Hopefully someone will figure it out soon.

UPDATE!! Those crazy kids at the Superhero Hype boards have got skills!!

In other news, page 4 of the Ha Ha Times has a clue leading to the next phase of the Joker treasure hunt, The Perfect Getaway:

This seems to correspond to maps strewn about the other Gotham sites, but I’m still working on how it’s all supposed to work.

For now, Superhero Hype’s message boards seem to have a good collaborative effort going.

UPDATE!! Via the geniuses on the abovementioned Superhero Hype message boards, I learned that if you map out the routes, they spell “Out of Time”, which leads you to this page, featuring a note from the Joker:

If you click on this image (on the actual webpage), you’re taken to this image:

On Page 4 of The Gotham Times, in the article “Crime Victim Sues Batman for Loss of Car”, the carjacker’s name is Frederick Alder. There is a rumor that Joker will frame Batman for the murder of a carjacker.

It looks like the final round of this game will be coming soon.

tag: batman, Document LC6551, Harvey Dent, The Dark Knight, The Joker, The Perfect Getaway, We Are The Answer, Why So Serious

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