| 1 | A reminder of the rules of Fridge: |
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| 3 | This revelation can come from anywhere, even from this very page. |
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| 5 | A Fridge does not have to be WordOfGod. In fact, it usually isn't, and the viewer might be putting more thought into it than the creator ever did. This is not a place for personal commentary on another's remark or arguing without adding a Fridge comment of your own. |
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| 7 | '''As a Fridge subpage, [[Administrivia/SpoilersOff all spoilers are unmarked]]. Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned.''' |
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| 9 | [[foldercontrol]] |
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| 11 | [[folder:FridgeBrilliance]] |
| 12 | * Usually the Mercs taunt as a way of expressing their superiorty over the dead victim, so why does the Soldier do a 21-gun salute for the Shotgun taunt? Isn't that reserved for the death of honourable people? But you know how powerful the rocket launchers are, and the many non-damaging alternatives to the Shotgun make it relatively unused? This means that you would have to be pretty damn good for the Soldier to have to use the Shotgun, and are therefore a {{worthy opponent}} who deserves to be honoured. |
| 13 | * Miss Pauling, when talking about the mercenaries in Meet The Director, says that "Most of these men's I.Q.s are subnormal." This seems very odd, considering that even Jane Doe has flashes of insane brilliance... until you take Australium and the Flynn effect into account. Australium raises the intellect of even those with average or below average I.Q.s, and the Flynn effect means that the average is consistently raised with each generation. The world of ''Team Fortress 2''’s average I.Q. is miles above our own: ''Australium blew the curve.'' |
| 14 | ** Alternatively testing bias could account for some of the mercs low IQ scores. The non-native English speaking classes (Heavy, Medic, and Spy) may have suffered from cultural and linguistic bias in testing which would have been especially pronounced in the 1950’s/1960’s (especially for Heavy, considering [[RedScare the state of Russia-America relations at the time]]). Furthermore, disabilities and mental illness may contribute to some of the other mercs' potentially low IQ scores. Demoman is an alcoholic and the effects of alcoholism can lower one's IQ score by a little over 15 points (15 points is a full standard deviation), so while he is genuinely rather clever when lucid, it's safe to assume that he probably wasn't when taking the test. Meanwhile the Pyro’s and Soldier's mental illnesses (Soldier has severe brain damage as a result of lead poisoning, while Pyro regularly hallucinates and is heavily implied to be severely schizophrenic) may have left them unable to adequately take the test while Scout is just incredibly BookDumb, what with being a barely-literate high school dropout. The Engineer and Medic are probably the individuals who scored the highest on their IQ tests, and even then it's entirely feasible that lingering biases against Germans at the time could have affected Medic's results. |
| 15 | * ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' is, upon further examination, very deep. It is the classic struggle of creation versus destruction. A construction company (BLU) and a demolition company (RED) hire mercenaries to kill each other, showing that industrialization can only lead to the destruction of traditional ideals and [[Film/AustinPowers oh no]] [[MemeticMutation I've gone]] [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic cross-eyed.]] |
| 16 | ** Maybe someone can explain why, then, Reliable Excavation Demolitions (RED) is always on defense in linear point control maps and why Builder's League United (BLU) is always on offense. You'd think it'd be the other way around... |
| 17 | *** The reason is that, upon further inspection, RED has various bombs and even a rocket (in the case of Dustbowl); these were meant to destroy something, most likely the BLU. RED is destroying the BLU. BLU, also, seems to have more industrial, modern bases compared to the RED. They're protecting what they built from the RED's explosives. |
| 18 | * Why did the action of holding a pocket-watch out to your left allow the Spy to be ready to drop a fake corpse and cloak, and what made it so when the watch is down, the cloak and corpse are not activated whenever you take damage? [[https://wiki.teamfortress.com/w/images/thumb/0/0f/Dead_Ringer_1st_person_blu.png/300px-Dead_Ringer_1st_person_blu.png This image]] shows exactly how the Spy holds the Ringer: notice the thumb. His thumb is poised on a button, and ''this'' is what activates the cloak and corpse. The Spy doesn't press it when he needs to, it instead is triggered when he is injured, as muscles contract as a response to pain. Thus, when the Ringer is up and his thumb is resting on the button, a stray bullet causes him to flinch, activating the cloak and corpse. |
| 19 | * In-universe, why doesn't the Phlogistinator have an airblast? It doesn't have an air tank! |
| 20 | * The Demoman has one eye, and therefore no depth perception. As such, it would seem strange that his weapons revolve around landing explosives close or far enough. However, his Grenade Launcher projectiles bounce across the floor, meaning he can err on the side of caution and shoot too close intentionally, and the Sticky Bomb launcher can be charged up to the point where it fires in a near-straight line, removing the need for depth perception altogether. |
| 21 | ** Not only that, but if you watch the crosshair on the screen while firing the Grenade Launcher, you can see that the grenades fire a little bit to the right. Since the Demoman is missing his left eye, everything he sees is a little to the right. |
| 22 | ** Besides, given that the Demoman is always juiced up with alcohol when in battle, it's possible that he is seeing double, but he only has one eye, so double-vision plus one eye equals seeing normally like two eyes. Boom, instant depth perception. |
| 23 | *** However, so do things like the Soldier’s rocket launcher, implying it's because they are right-handed (further supported by firing slightly from the left instead if you reverse your viewmodels). |
| 24 | * This one doesn't go so much to the game itself as the players, a sort of fan nickname for a critical rocket launcher shot is a Crocket, a portmanteau name for crit rocket, but it's both this and named for the Davy Crockett [[note]]The M-28 or M-29 Davy Crockett Weapon System(s) was a tactical nuclear recoilless gun for firing the M388 nuclear projectile that was deployed by the United States during the Cold War[[/note]]! |
| 25 | ** Given the name of one of the Steam achievements, the third layer of "crock" could be "what a crock of sh*t" which is what people usually say whenever they get hit with one. Said achievement is also a reference to the term "cock block", which in turn has lead to the phrase "crock block" for someone who dodges a crocket. Or, in the case of a Pyro, [[HoistByHisOwnPetard airblasts it back]]. |
| 26 | ** The few lucky people who managed to get the Soldier's Medals item didn't earn it, other than click a link at the right time. Of course, the Soldier never served in the Army and made up his own medals, so he didn't earn them either. |
| 27 | * After watching ''[[VideoGame/TeamFortress2 Meet the Spy]]'', one would think that the "Scout's" reaction to the pictures of his mother and the Red Spy were just an act by the aforementioned Spy to keep his cover. On further realization, the Red Spy may have been ''genuinely'' horrified and angry at the pictures, as he apparently ''does'' have strong feelings for the Scout's mother. |
| 28 | ** That, and the pictures are of ''him''. Pornography starring "his mother" the second-worst thing, indeed. |
| 29 | ** Another possibility: The Spy didn't realize the relationship between his lover and the dead young man whose identity he stole. Maybe he just found out he killed his son (well, stepson at any rate). |
| 30 | ** He could be horrified because he didn't realise the BLU Spy had successfully managed to outdo him by taking photos of him without him realising. |
| 31 | ** Alternate theory: he was faking distress as the BLU Scout, [[TakeAThirdOption to mask his actual distress as the RED Spy]]. |
| 32 | ** An even crazier theory; the BLU Scout was in fact the real BLU Scout when the BLU Spy presented the photos, and the RED Spy had somehow managed to sneak in and take the BLU Scout's place during the BLU Spy's monologue.[[note]]The WAR! comic might have jossed this..[[/note]] |
| 33 | ** Take note of what he says as the Scout: "Where did he-?" The word choice is unusual; if this were the real Scout, he wouldn't focus on ''where'' the photos were taken. His confusion over her affair would be the only thought on his mind; he’d expect his mother to choose better. But the RED Spy disguised as him almost broke character out of genuine shock -- he was about to ask "''Where did he get those photos''," before catching himself. Despite not being present in them, the fake BLU Scout acknowledges the photos as a breach of ''his'' privacy, an immediate red flag that BLU failed to recognize. |
| 34 | * One more for "Meet The Spy." When the BLU Spy says that the RED Spy could be "any one of us," the Soldier's first reaction is to shoot the BLU Spy. At first, this seems just like a response because the Soldier is, well...[[CloudCuckooLander the Soldier]]. Then you realize who's standing behind him — the Scout and the Heavy, who are 2 of the worst classes for the Spy to disguise himself as due to their vastly different speed. Furthermore, before one of the updates (I forget which one) a RED Spy disguised as a BLU Spy (or vice-versa) would just appear to be an undisguised Spy, so the Soldier would have no way of knowing which Spy was standing in front of him except by shooting. In layman's terms, Soldier was being logical and Spy-checking. |
| 35 | ** The BLU Spy was also making no effort at all to confirm his teammates' identities. A Spy disguised as a member of his opposing team is not going to Spy Check for that team, as doing so would mean losing his disguise where he's in the most danger. Even someone as far off his nut as the Soldier would know that. |
| 36 | ** The only downside to these theories is that FriendlyFireproof is clearly a game-only feature. It would be a worse idea to spy check via a gun since if you're wrong in your guess, you killed a teammate. Which is what happened. |
| 37 | ** Also, "Expiration Date" has basically confirmed that the Soldier is extremely LiteralMinded, and thinks that if someone says you can, you must (as evidenced by him doing nothing but teleport bread after being told he could teleport all the bread he wanted). Note that the BLU spy only singles out one person specifically ("It could be you [three], it could be me-") before the Soldier caps him in the face. |
| 38 | * If the Scout is part of the BLU team, why would he not know the password to get into the briefcase room, especially an easy-to-remember password like 1111? Most likely, the RED Spy [[WhoWouldBeStupidEnough refused to believe BLU would rely on such a basic password]], at least until it turned out to work. |
| 39 | ** After the Soldier puts in the code, the RED Spy disguised as a BLU Scout can be seen grinning as he tells the Soldier "Let's go let's go!" Perhaps the RED Spy is eager to win his prize, but then again, the ''actual'' Scout in this situation would be eager to [[BloodKnight kick some ass to defend the intelligence]]. |
| 40 | ** When the BLU Spy brings in the dead Sniper, the disguised Spy turns his head to get a good look at the knife on the Sniper's back as he is carried by. Admiring your work, Mr. Spy? |
| 41 | ** Notice that when the Soldier shoots the BLU Spy, the Scout is the jumpiest of the two. Both the Scout and Heavy are standing the same distance from the Soldier when he shoots, yet the Scout jumps back frantically yelling "WHOA WHOA WHOA" while the Heavy just stands there with a confused look on his face. You could say that this is because the Heavy is not as quick to process things as the Scout, or could it be that the RED Spy heard the gunshot and immediately assumed that it was directed toward him? |
| 42 | *** Or it could simply be that to a Scout, getting ambushed with a shotgun means he's lost around half his health while to the Heavy, a shotgun blast would be a fifth and he wouldn't have much trouble gunning down whoever ambushed him with it. TLDR: To Scout (and Spy, who has the same amount of health), a shotgun blast coming out of nowhere is a bigger deal than it is to the Heavy. |
| 43 | * Why didn't the RED Spy take his knife back from the Sniper's body? To more easily get it into the intel room. |
| 44 | ** That... is actually pretty stupid on the RED Spy's part. A butterfly knife isn't hard to hide. There is no guarantee they would drag the body, knife and all, to the intel room. And the Spy carries around a revolver anyway no matter where he goes and clearly everyone was carrying weapons into the place anyway. The heavy brought his minigun and the soldier his shotgun. In a time of emergency, there would be no reason to check for weapons if you're there under the pretense of defending the intelligence. |
| 45 | *** There's a simpler explanation: When he went to retrieve it from BLU Sniper's body, BLU Spy was already there and he couldn't get it without being discovered. So after seeing BLU Spy pick up his comrade's body (and the knife in it), he decided to just make his way to the intel room, guessing correctly that BLU Spy would go there with the body. |
| 46 | *** Remember, Spy's greatest skill is pretending to be those around him, which could mean he's able to predict what a lot of them do because he's so easily able to put himself in their shoes. He knew that the BLU spy would take the knife into the room because it was that easy for him to predict it. He out-Spy-d his fellow Spy. |
| 47 | * The RED Spy gives himself away in a delightfully subtle manner early in the video -- when "BLU Scout" claims to have killed a bunch of Spies and proceeds to refer to them as "dime-a-dozen backstabbing scumbags, like ''you!''" (referring to the BLU Spy). The fridge brilliance kicks in when you note what he says ''next'': [[PresentCompanyExcluded "No offense"]]. Now tell me, when has the Scout ''ever'' been [[OutOfCharacterAlert that considerate of others?]] |
| 48 | * Why would the RED Spy even disguise himself as the Scout in the first place, considering his inability to replicate his speed makes it one of the ''worst'' disguises a Spy can use? Well of course he would, because the Spy is Scout's father, and would know how to enact his mannerisms and personality perfectly. Plus, he's never seen in a scenario where his lack of speed would give him away, making it a good disguise for him to pick at the moment. |
| 49 | * In [[https://www.teamfortress.com/sniper_vs_spy/day04_english.htm this]] blog post, Spy's marked the cape and gloves set as "Junk". Of course he'd have no use for those particular items--the purpose of the kit is to make people think you are from Europe, which Spy (a Frenchman) is already. |
| 50 | ** It might also be a comment on how ridiculous Spy thinks the disguise is. The idea that someone could pass as a local by donning silk accessories and a fake moustache would be laughable to Spy, who's both a bona fide European and a MasterOfDisguise. |
| 51 | * Notice the difference between the new weapons for the Sniper and any other class. The other classes have sophisticated pieces of technology. The Sniper has a bow, a shield, Jarate, and a homemade wooden knife. Even his original weapons feel more like something you could buy at a hunting store rather than customized weapons for mercenaries. If you take into account that Saxton Hale may be disapproving of the Sniper like his parents, it means that he probably never gave the Sniper any weapons (though he did sell him the Jarate pills). He's had to fashion his own out of wood, string, a ten thousand volt battery, a mason jar and his own piss. |
| 52 | ** Speaking of his piss, urine contains sodium, a component of salt. The Tribalman's Shiv, one of his melee weapons, causes wounds that are hard to coagulate, and leads to massive bleeding. Rubbing salt in your wounds makes them more painful. In other words, hitting your opponent with Jarate while they're bleeding is literally rubbing salt into the wound, which makes sense, since the mini-crits work on the bleeding effect as well. |
| 53 | *** And in the polycount pack, Saxton Hale put him through a rite of passage where he had to hunt a large crocodile. The Sniper passed, and Saxton gave him the weapons as his reward. |
| 54 | *** At first, the ''Meet the Sniper'' video seems to disprove this, with the line "I'm not a ''crazed gunman,'' Dad, I'm an ''assassin!'' ...Well, the difference being one is a job, and the other's mental sickness!" One might assume his dad believes he is a crazed gunman, and therefore disappointed in him, looking down on his job as a bloody mercenary. Add the above to this phrase, however, and you realize the Sniper's father is not ashamed his son is a crazed gunman, but rather that he '''isn't one!''' |
| 55 | * Jarate seems like a fairly generic damage buff for the Sniper behind the hilarious thematic flavor (so to speak, eurgh). However, the undocumented true strength of the mini-crits it induces is that they don't suffer from damage falloff beyond their mid-range baseline amount... meaning even things like pistols and shotguns, and more importantly rocket launchers and Natascha, keep doing (moderate) damage ''at long range.'' |
| 56 | ** And the reason they give mini-crits? You just covered the enemy with (probably bacteria-infested) urine and shards of broken glass! |
| 57 | ** Thematically, the Sniper is also the only one who would have came up with the idea. Biological warfare was created by tribesmen, who weaponized bacterial infections by often dipping arrows in poisonous and toxic substances (this is where the Poison Arrow frog got its name). One of the common things they'd dip into is human waste. This fits well with when it was released; with the other tribal stuff such as the Huntsman, Razorback and Shiv. The Sniper went into the jungle and learned. |
| 58 | ** Speaking of Jarate, being hit with it tints your screen yellow, right? Mini-Crit buffs turn RED weapons orange, and BLU weapons green, tinting them yellow. |
| 59 | * When scoped in, what little we see of the screen is tinted yellow... because, of course, we see it through Sniper's trademark yellow sunglasses. |
| 60 | * In one comic panel, Sniper's parents are shown and bear a distinct resemblance to [[WesternAnimation/CourageTheCowardlyDog Eustace and Muriel]]. Word of God indicates that the resemblance is on purpose. We later find out that Sniper was adopted. So was Courage. Even more interesting is that Courage was separated from his parents when the latter were put on a rocket, while Sniper's dad intended to use a rocket to escape New Zealand and leave behind his wife and son but baby Sniper got inside and used it accidentally. |
| 61 | * Soldier--a man so proud of his military status that it literally becomes his name--should logically be called by his rank. Every soldier in the US military, from the lowest of the cadets to the most decorated general, is given a rank in their respective branch. It would make more sense for Soldier to want a title like "Captain", or even "Private"...''if he wasn't a civilian and actually had a rank''. Without one, he's just a generic soldier. |
| 62 | * There's something brilliant about giving [[RocketJump a tactic that defies all logic]] to the Soldier, the [[CloudCuckoolander class with the weakest grasp on reality.]] He gleefully rocket jumps places because it makes perfect sense ''to him'' to fire a rocket at his feet and go sailing three stories up. |
| 63 | ** A similar thing can be said for Demoman. He's often portrayed as not only rather [[TheChessmaster calculating]], but ''[[DrunkenMaster absolutely drunk off his ass]]''. |
| 64 | ** So, to clarify, what you're saying is they can rocket/sticky jump, respectively, because [[AchievementsInIgnorance they don't know they can't?]] |
| 65 | *** Bumblebee logic. We know that setting off explosives under our feet should by all rights result in gruesome maiming, but the Demo and Soldier, defiant or ignorant of such knowledge, explode merrily on their way. |
| 66 | *** And possibly also because, as shown in the "Meet the Demoman" video, he's sensitive about his missing eye. Not just because it's missing, mind you, but because it reminds him (as that was when he lost it) that he accidentally killed his own surrogate parents who'd raised him from from a very young age, and possibly from birth. |
| 67 | ** Within the ''[=TF2=]'' universe, rocket jumping is actually very tactically sound. The rocket launcher was invented by [[https://wiki.teamfortress.com/w/index.php?title=Non-player_characters&redirect=no#Shakespearicles Shakespearicles, the strongest playwright who ever lived]] in the 1500s, and since stairs wouldn't be invented until 1850 by Abe Lincoln, the main way to get to the second floor was by rocket jumping. Thus, it's actually the opposite of Soldier being an idiot - he's using time-tested skills passed down for 400 years. |
| 68 | ** ''Anyway'', the Demoman's alcoholism can be chalked up to three primary factors: because he's drowning his sorrows over how he's a "black, Scottish cyclops", and therefore alone in the world as far as he's concerned, [[InsaneTrollLogic seeing doubles drunk with one eye practically restores your depth perception]], [[DrunkenMaster and for a good dose of liquid courage on the battlefield!]] |
| 69 | * According to the WAR! Update, Abraham Lincoln invented stairs and died attempting to rocket jump up the flight of stairs. In [=TF2=], most maps are designed as ramps that look like stairs, and a quirk in the physics engine lets fast-flying mercs slide up them to gain velocity. Lincoln died because his attempt to rocket jump onto the stairs sent him flying faster than he was expecting, and was killed by either hitting a wall or landing on the ground. |
| 70 | * In ''Meet The Scout'', at first glance (putting GameplayAndStorySegregation aside) the Scout's fight with, and subsequent victory over the Heavy seems a bit unrealistic. But wait! At the start, the Heavy was about to eat a Sandvich, meaning that he was most likely ''rather low on health'', making it a (bit more) possible for a single Scout to take him down. |
| 71 | ** Even better, Scout's bat has a large dent in it. Where do you think that came from? And if a Scout kills an enemy Heavy and eats his Sandvich, it actually heals him for more than any other class eating it would (Scout eating enemy Heavy's Sandvich: +75 HP. Any other class: +50 HP.) |
| 72 | * In "Meet the Heavy", Heavy remarks that he has yet to meet someone who can outsmart a bullet. Now, take another glance at "Meet the Medic". |
| 73 | ** Better yet, take a look at [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIU1GCR1S_E this deleted scene]]. The Spy did it first, and the Heavy was there to see it! |
| 74 | ** As of 2018, there's ways for just about every class to "outsmart bullets" (avoid the dangers of being shot). Scouts have BONK!, which lets them avoid damage for a short period of time, Demomen can effectively shoot around corners via grenade launchers, Snipers are generally too far away to be shot at safely/effectively, Spies can cloak to throw off aim (or use the Dead Ringer to survive being shot), Engineers just use "more gun" and can still devastate an enemy team if killed while their sentry is still up, Soldiers can exploit their ammunition for maneuverability, and Pyros can reflect back some projectiles (though admittedly not bullets) using air blasts. That leaves Heavies as the only class who ''can't'' outsmart bullets... |
| 75 | * In the Engineer update page, more info regarding the Engineer's new arsenal were released as more and more people found Golden Wrenches. Something that only the most grizzled Valve fans noticed is that each time the page was updated, a hidden link with Radigan Conagher (who is Dell/the Engineer's grandfather) holding his newly invented weapon. Well, if you read back the comic book released with the update, you can notice that Radigan is a very collected and calm old man. When the Administrator's predecessor gives him Australium, she explains him that this metal turned all Australians into the most intelligent but aggressive people of the world. Coincidentally, all weapons made by Radigan use bits of Australium and all the pictures released throughout the update show him slowly becoming more masculine and menacing looking. The moment of fridge brilliance however comes when you take into account the behavior of the Engineer on the battlefield when he's using the new weaponry: not only he needs much better strategies, he also becomes extremely aggressive — you can notice it when he's hitting people with the Gunslinger and battle crying. |
| 76 | * In "Expiration Date", all of Scout's "last requests" consist of crude drawings of Spy in unfortunate situations. If we accept the commonly-held idea that Scout is illiterate or close to being so, it makes sense. If he could read and write better, Scout probably would have written something like "Spy: get fucked or go die" on each card. |
| 77 | ** Later, when Scout draws Spy getting shot in the head, he's written the sound effects (BLAH BLAH...BOOM!) Those are easy--they're spelled exactly how they sound. |
| 78 | * How did Spy guess the Soldier's last wish was for the bucket? The wish itself was not put into the bucket, meaning it was very likely Soldier didn't even think of it as a last wish until he saw the bucket. |
| 79 | ** Why are the other mercs so ready to help Scout with his date? The announcement over the PA system. For someone like [[SmallNameBigEgo Scout]], of all people, to admit to everyone that Spy is better than him at anything? It must be serious. |
| 80 | * Those familiar with either Australian, Scottish, French, Russian, or German accents notice immediately that the voice actors for the game are obviously not native speakers, with some of the characters (ex: Medic, Spy) pronouncing words completely wrong. It's hard to think a company like Valve would miss such an obvious flaw when they pay attention to every detail in their games. But if you consider that this game is set post-WWII, to the point that the art style adopted for the game reflects ''American'' WWII propaganda posters, then their mispronounced accents fit the game perfectly, reflecting the stereotypes held by Americans about foreigners through the 1940s and 1950s. Brilliant. |
| 81 | ** It also explains why Heavy's so much more eloquent in Russian, and why he's much deeper in character in ''Poker Night at the Inventory'' — for the Russian, the point of view is altered from the USA to the Soviets, and in ''Poker Night'' he's "off duty" and doesn't have to keep up the stereotypical facade! |
| 82 | * The Soldier's rant in ''Meet The Soldier'' seems pure CloudCuckooLander, until we hear of [[AllThereInTheManual historical characters like]] [[MemeticBadass Shakespearicles.]] This means that either the supplementary material is written by the Soldier ([[WildMassGuessing well, he does post on the blog...]]) or, for all that the speech was PlayedForLaughs, ''[[TheCuckoolanderWasRight he was telling the truth about Sun Tzu in the Team Fortress 2 'verse.]]'' |
| 83 | ** Speaking of Sun Tzu, why would [[EagleLand the Soldier]], of all people, worship an ancient Chinese general? Simple! What's the Soldier's favorite weapon? A rocket launcher. What's his secondary weapon? A shotgun. What did the Chinese invent? ''Gunpowder and fireworks!'' Obviously he would idolize one of them! |
| 84 | * Scout seems to think his team is very tight-knit, to the point of calling them "a group of best friends" in one of his voice lines. It makes sense when you think about where he came from: Scout grew up in a home with seven older brothers and a parent (his mom). On his team, there are seven (older) men, ''plus his other parent'' (though he has no idea). No wonder he feels at home with his teammates--even if he's just subconciously picking up on it, the team he joined is functionally the same as the family he left. |
| 85 | * So, the Engineer update came less than a month after the Mac update, which is atypical of Valve; they usually space things out more. But wait, in that update, the Engineer's name was revealed to be Dell. So why did they do it? ''To compensate for the Mac support; these items were for the PC.'' |
| 86 | ** The Frontier Justice even makes an EarlyBirdCameo in the Mac Update teaser video, indicating that the update was in development for quite some time. |
| 87 | * The Medic's native German voice actor seemed soft and that the French voice actor seemed much harsher in comparison, contradictory to most portrayals. Since the characters are based off of national stereotypes, and that the time period of ''[=TF2=]'' (Cold War-esque), it made perfect sense that the French would perceive Germans as vicious compared to Germany's assumption of themselves. Nice job with the international outlooks, Valve. |
| 88 | * Terrace: Given that RED stands for '''R'''eliable '''E'''xcavation and '''D'''emolition, and BLU stands for '''B'''uilder's '''L'''eague '''U'''nited, it makes perfect sense that we know the canonical names of the Red ''Demoman'' (Tavish [=DeGroot=]) and the Blue ''Engineer'' (Dell Conagher), but not their respective counterparts (Blue Demoman and Red Engineer, that is). |
| 89 | * Omny: Why does the Scout call the Heavy "Pancakes" when he dominates him? [[{{Pun}} Because the Scout]] ''[[BatterUp battered]]'' [[{{Pun}} him to death!]] |
| 90 | * In ''Meet the Soldier'', the Soldier's slightly unhinged Sun Tzu quote ("If fighting is sure to result in victory, then you must fight!") might seem odd if one knows the Soldier only recited ''some'' of it. The full line is as follows: "If fighting is sure to result in victory, then you must fight, ''even if the ruler forbid it''." The last part's omission wasn't a coincidence. During the WWII era, the Soldier got kicked out of every US military branch at the time. He still participated in the war -- well after it ended, even -- but he effectively invited himself to fight alone. He never had a ruler to answer! |
| 91 | ** Also, he likely saw himself as his own leader during his extended tenure in WWII, much like how he sees himself as Team Fortress's leader now. Therein lies some further brilliance: due to his zany judgment, the Soldier almost never forbids himself from any combat. Thus, the notion is so rare, so negligible, that he feels it doesn't deserve mention. |
| 92 | ** It also makes sense that he would interpret Sun Tzu's advice in terms of direct personal violence peaking at small-unit tactics, rather than the actual book's focus on strategy (at least assuming Sun Tzu resembles the real-world figure): Soldier has ''never'' fought in a conflict with any element of grand strategy. His self-directed war in Europe probably focused on targets of opportunity, or, more likely, random buildings and people that the bag of rabid ferrets that passes for Soldier's brain ''decided'' were targets of opportunity. Now he hangs out with eight other clowns and fights small groups over gravel pits in an endless take-and-hold roundabout with no beginning or end. Of ''course'' he's going to focus on straightforward engagements of limited scope; it's all he's ever done. |
| 93 | * Regarding the "Meet the Team" videos and the nature of the game in general, why do the mercenaries from RED look exactly like their BLU counterparts? Also, why do the same BLU mercenaries appear in multiple videos, despite getting killed in each? In the game, this can be put down to simplicity, but in the videos and the universe, the explanation is also (surprisingly) simple: |
| 94 | ** See how those "Meet the Team" videos all represent RED from a sympathetic viewpoint? Well, we've already argued pretty well that they're corporate propaganda filmed by RED, ''and that's it'': the BLU mercenaries are in fact the '''RED''' mercenaries acting the parts, and all the deaths we see on camera ''are just special effects''. |
| 95 | ** This explains: |
| 96 | *** Why the BLU mercenaries look like the RED ones (with regards to the story, not how the game was made). |
| 97 | *** Why some BLU mercenaries keep re-appearing, despite it looking like they've been killed. |
| 98 | *** Why the camera crews (obviously working for RED) are seemingly able to get into unusually dangerous situations without being attacked, like right in the centre of the crossfire (and even in the line of the BLU Pyro's [[{{Pun}} fire]] in "Meet the Soldier") without getting attacked deliberately or accidentally. |
| 99 | *** And everything else discussed about the how the videos could exist so far. |
| 100 | ** Of course the videos represent RED as the good ones: the videos are just interviews made by the Director (from the comic "Meet the Director"). The Director would have made videos of both teams, but the Administrator ordered Miss Pauling to kill him right after he finished only the RED videos. And about resurrection: it exists in-universe. Radigan Conagher (grand-father of the Engineer) made three life-extending/resurrecting machines: one for Redmond and one for Blutarch, but no one knows where the third is. That's probably what keeps those mercenaries alive. |
| 101 | *** Actually, the third machine belongs to a certain Gray Mann, older and much more intelligent brother of Redmond and Blutarch. |
| 102 | *** And a fourth one belongs to the Administrator, running on the last supply of Australium in the world...until she absorbs it all at once. |
| 103 | ** Heck, why stop at just the "Meet The..." videos? Maybe the whole GAME is propaganda for RED! Think about it: The characters shown in the items and backpack as red, the comics usually only deal with the reds, and more! You may say "But if it's all RED propaganda, then how come BLU team can win?" My answer to that is a little loose, but here ya go: The battles are all staged fights between crew members on sets. In order to make it look realistic, the fights are really fought, as in both teams are really trying, for both fair play and fun, each team gives one another a fair chance. That's why BLU can win. All deaths are special effects, though. My thing on community servers (Specifically stuff like friendly, idle, or trade servers) is the Mercs/actors goofing off. Any other stuff I can only explain with gameplay and story segregation |
| 104 | *** Geez. I just went full on WMG there. |
| 105 | * The Mann brothers follow a [[ThemeNaming colour theme naming]]: Blutarch (who wears blue), Redmond (red), and Gray (grey). But the youngest Mann also follows this convention--Olivia Mann, who wears an ''olive'' green outfit. |
| 106 | * The whole of Pyro's unlock set seems to be point out that the idea behind the Pyro's unlocks are usually based off being a housewife. If the Pyro could speak, it would have been jokes about being a better "Basemaker", taking care of the needs of 8 other squadmates and dealing with "unwanted" houseguests. Namely the Spy… |
| 107 | ** Not to mention, Pyro literally defeats people by [[KillItWithFire cooking]] and [[RuleOfSymbolism has no voice]] (though that sort of thing was changing in the sixties). |
| 108 | ** Also, she wears a firesuit to hide her identity, knowing well damn she will be sent home. And also Pyro was developing hippie style sentiments, so to dull her pain away her air filters have drugs that gives her the illusion she is spreading happiness everywhere. |
| 109 | ** One of the first unlocks for the Pyro is a huge sledgehammer called the Homewrecker. A 'homewrecker' is the term applied to the person blamed for the break-up of a marriage, and the term is most often applied to a female. So one day Pyro came home to find their spouse having an affair, so they smashed up the house and burned it down, and now fire reminds them of how wonderful it was to do that. |
| 110 | ** Mexican housewives aren't known for being delicate desert flowers... |
| 111 | * According to the Loose Canon comics, the first Medic was Sigmund Freud, maestro of finding sexual innuendo in everything. And what is the signature LimitBreak of our modern-day Medic? The [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything rather suggestive]] Über Charge. |
| 112 | * In the WAR! Update, the Announcer tries to convince the Soldier that the Demoman hates him. The Soldier refuses to believe it's the Demoman (it's not, it's a picture of Demoman with a robotic voice) until he's called a civilian. Most people unfamiliar with the game or vaguely familiar with the Soldier's bio will assume that the Soldier is mad because he thinks of himself as a man of war and refuses to be known as not shelving his duties. However, those familiar with the game's history will remember an old bug called "The Civilian", an old placeholder for escort missions. By activating it, you control your character in their T-pose and move very slowly and in general be a useless asset to your team. By doing this, Valve is doing a rather subtle call-back to long time players who know just how useless and infuriating a "civilian" teammate can be. |
| 113 | ** If you read the Soldier's bio, you'll know that he technically ''is'' a civilian. It's his dirty little secret; no matter how much he likes to think of and present himself as a military man, he ''isn't'' one. (And note his initial Soldier's reaction when he hears Demoman call him a civilian: "He promised he'd never...") That's why he gets so angry: he told Demoman the truth because he trusted him, and Demoman had seemingly just broken that trust. |
| 114 | * A small fridge: In the new comic Meet the Director, the Soldier is angry about losing his heads, questioning where the other seven are (he received one in the mail). It's a reference to the other members of the team: there are nine classes. He himself is one, received one head in the mail, and now is worried about the other seven. |
| 115 | ** Why would he be one of the heads? He collects heads from the ''BLU'' team, not his own. Also, if you re-watch ''Meet the Soldier'' you'll notice that he's already collected the head of his counterpart, the BLU Soldier. The only head he's missing is the BLU Scout's (assuming it wasn't just off-screen). |
| 116 | ** It's a small reference to the number Valve picked for the gag, not who the actual heads came from. |
| 117 | * @/{{Gigaspine7}}: Oh look, they redesigned the Blog! But why would they do that? And what was up with all those doves shitting on th-oooooh. |
| 118 | ** Just thought of something else: if this is essentially a second Medic update, why does it seem to focus on every class? Because it's the '''Über''' Update. A Medic's purpose is to strengthen teammates. |
| 119 | *** Except for Engineers, because they suck. |
| 120 | *** To elaborate, there's no strategic reason to Über an Engineer, since it's not the Engineer himself that needs to stay alive. (Before you say anything, Spies can steal Übers from opposing teams and the Medic's new items make Übering a Scout without worrying about speed a non-issue). |
| 121 | *** Unless said Engi has a fully loaded, critical Frontier Justice and is a decent shot. |
| 122 | *** I just was thinking about it. The third day was an update for Soldiers, and there was a speech about going to war. In ''Meet the Medic'', we see that the [=BLUs=] went with mass Soldiers all equipped with updated weapons and new hats. So that means the 'War' the other soldiers were talking about was the attack on RED in ''Meet the Medic''. |
| 123 | * Look closely at the perspective of ''Meet the Sandvich.'' Now, look at ''Meet The Medic.'' ''Meet the Sandvich'' is from the perspective ''of the BLU Spy.'' |
| 124 | ** Making this a very literal case of [[{{Pun}} Fridge Brilliance.]] |
| 125 | ** Also, if the Medic lets the Spy die, he'll respawn. Keeping his head alive prevents him from respawning. |
| 126 | *** After all, Medics are traditionally one of the Spy's main targets. |
| 127 | ** Maybe it's slight fourth wall-breaking? "Meet The Spy" was the last team video released before "Meet The Medic" came out. Spy got his video after two years of the game being out. Medic had to wait ''four''. If I were him, I'd be bitter, too. And who got most of the lines in "Meet The Spy"? The BLU Spy. |
| 128 | * The X-rays on the back wall and the unexploded bomb in the tray behind the Medic indicate that the Heavy initially showed up in the Medic's clinic because he had a bomb lodged in his chest, and the Medic just decided to "upgrade" the Heavy while he was visiting and he had a perfectly good open chest on his table. |
| 129 | * To do with the Boston Basher, a bat for the Scout: if the swing with the bat doesn't hit anything, damage and bleed effect is applied to the Scout himself. Why? Because the bat is heavy and the Scout can't control it — if nothing stops it from moving, it comes all the way round and hits him. |
| 130 | ** On that note... You know how Scout's bio says he has a "penchant for baseball"? It goes beyond using a baseball bat as a weapon; take a look at his [[https://wiki.teamfortress.com/w/images/thumb/6/69/Scout.png/300px-Scout.png costume]]: it's a modified baseball uniform, right down to cleats and a cap. |
| 131 | * In the ''Meet The Spy'' video, the style of movie changed entirely. Why? The first director was killed. |
| 132 | ** Not so. The comic with the director states he finished films for all nine RED team members before Miss Pauling offed him, and the Administrator said they wouldn't bother with any BLU films. |
| 133 | *** The comics subtly account for everyone except the Pyro. Most of the classes (Engineer, Scout, Sniper, Heavy, Soldier, Demoman) are obviously interviewed by the Director himself. But WAR! opens with the Administrator watching the events of ''Meet the Spy'', and ''Director'' closes with ''Meet the Medic'' displaying behind her. In other words: the two non-interview shorts were surveillance footage, presumably suitable for her blackmail purposes. ''MTP''[='=]s a bit of an odd duck, since it starts off with the typical interviews, and then apparently breaks its own rules and does the impossible. |
| 134 | * In ''Meet the Medic'', the Medic doesn't receive the same ÜberCharge appearance as the Heavy, whereas in the game he does — but in ''Meet the Medic'', he has not yet 'upgraded' himself to receive ÜberCharges yet. The Heavy was his test subject. |
| 135 | ** Further Fridge Brilliance: According to the description, the Quick-Fix was the prototype Medigun. He's using it because the original Medigun doesn't exist yet. |
| 136 | ** Even ''further'' Fridge Brilliance: the BLU Soldiers' rockets don't seem to explode and throw the ÜberCharged Heavy back like they do in-game, they just seem to bounce off of him harmlessly. But since the Medic's using the Quick-Fix, of ''course'' the Heavy is immune to knockback! Just because the invulnerability part of the Quick-Fix got shorted out doesn't mean the other benefits did. |
| 137 | ** A bit of a spin on this: Maybe the Medic could not figure out how to put the two functions together (Über for both people ''and'' knockback resistance), so he designed two separately. |
| 138 | * The Medic's description caused some players to realize he was most likely born in [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazi Germany]], but [[WordOfGod Valve was quick to say]] the Medic hadn't been a Nazi himself. At first, this looks like a case of ButNotTooEvil; even if the Medic is fascinated by pain, he wouldn't sink that low, right? Then ''Meet the Medic'' comes out, which not only shows he's just as...[[AxCrazy quirky as the rest of the team]], but also has him telling a story about how he lost his medical license and had to go on the run for [[NoodleIncident somehow removing someone's entire skeleton]]. Conclusion? The Medic and his ideas were [[TooSpicyForYogSothoth TOO CRAZY]] [[EvenEvilHasStandards for the Nazis]] (and these are the guys who had friggin' Mengele)! |
| 139 | * You might get think Gray is just as insane as his brothers for making machines that run on money. But what other fuel can you find that is efficient for a dollar? |
| 140 | * Watching ''Meet The Medic'', you wonder how he's so relaxed when in-game, he's so grumpy on the battlefield. Then you remember all the crap Medics go through in-game. People spamming the Medic call when they don't need you, [[ShootTheMedicFirst being a high-value target]], teammates running off and leaving you defenseless to an enemy ambush... you start hearing MEEEEDIIIIC in your sleep... |
| 141 | * One thing you noticed about ''Meet the Medic'' is that he did not kill a single person (intentionally) in the entire video. He just got the First Do No Harm Achievement. |
| 142 | ** Only if the Heavy he assisted didn't get all of the kills, in which case he did. No achievement. |
| 143 | ** The Heavy was on that table for a while with the medigun (or Quick-Fix, whichever) pointed at his open chest. Along with healing Scout and Demoman, the Medic got a ''lot'' of healing points. |
| 144 | * You might've noticed the character animations when they pull out a weapon (Heavy cracks his knuckles with his fists, Engie spins his pistol and clicks the on switch on his builder). But Scout flips his baseball bat! At first, one would wonder why, because Scout does a lot of running and if he drops it, he'd have to go back and get it. Even the Boston Basher, which, if you don't remember, ''has spikes all over it''! Scout's entire character is based around confidence, and the fact that he's an idiot! The game even calls him out on this on the description of the Boston Basher! No wonder! |
| 145 | ** This is likely also the reason he spins both cans of soda in the air, spilling half the drink in the process. BONK! and Crit-a-Cola both emphasize Scout's confidence in his ability to avoid damage. |
| 146 | * Of course it's hilarious in the ''Meet the Spy'' video when the Soldier punches in the access code '1111' to get to the briefcase, but it gets funnier when you realize that, upon closer inspection of the number pad, the 1 is the only number that has any signs of wear and tear. The other numbers look like they've never been touched. In other words, it's very obvious that the 1 is the only number ever punched in. |
| 147 | * Why is the Administrator wearing purple? Because when you mix blue and red (at least with anything other than light), you get purple. It's not just her wardrobe, but her ''assistant's'' wardrobe. And the company vehicle. |
| 148 | * The Soldier has the most weapons in the game. It makes sense that a man so obsessed with war would have such a large arsenal at his disposal. |
| 149 | * Of course the Medic's mentally unstable: any sane, rational field medic would have been at his sanity levels anyway after having to deal with patients like the mercenaries. And he needs to be able to shrug off having to kill people to defend himself. Any sane person wouldn't be able to deal with themselves as a result. |
| 150 | * The Conscientious Objector, a sign used as a melee weapon, cannot be used by Engineers or Spies. A wooden sign like that would plausibly break while using it to whack a (metal) building, and it is too big and unwieldy for backstabs. |
| 151 | ** Similarly, as of May 3, 2012, the Frying Pan can be used by all except by Engineers or Spies. Like the Conscientious Objector, it is too big and likely unwieldy for backstabs, though, as FridgeLogic, we don't know why Engineers can't use it to whack buildings. But Golden Frying Pans, like Saxxies, are just that special, so those ''can'' be used by Engineers and Spies. |
| 152 | * What's up with the Medic's pet birds? It's probably a shout out to UsefulNotes/NikolaTesla, the real life MadScientist who had an abiding love for white pigeons. |
| 153 | * Why was Scout drawn with somewhat bucked teeth in the comics? His 'humiliation' pose was him sucking his thumb, which is said to screw up your teeth. |
| 154 | * Pyro's 'Lumberjack' achievement name and Scout's milkman motif promptly become hilarious when you remember what Lumberjacks [[Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus were stereotyped for]] [[WholesomeCrossdresser doing in their spare time]], as well as the traditional [[CheatingWithTheMilkman hot wife commits adultery with the milkman]] jokes. |
| 155 | * How does Spy know to taunt Demoman with "The black, Scottish cyclops, now extinct!" line? His job is to know everything about everyone, so he was most likely spying on the 'Meet the' filming (so he could better impersonate them, probably), and thus knows Demo's pissed off about being the LastOfHisKind. |
| 156 | * Why are there so many hats in this game? Well, look at [[http://iconicphotos.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/a.jpg any photograph]] from the 1950s (around the same era the game is set in) — ''everyone'' wore a hat back then! |
| 157 | * In "Meet the Medic," it is implied that the Medic removed someone's skeleton. A blutsauger is a SKELETONLESS vampire. |
| 158 | * [[http://gamebanana.com/skins/117433 The idea]] of using the Spy's head as a reskin for the Solemn Vow, while funny, makes sense when you realize that one of the Spy's abilities is [[StatOVision seeing how much health his enemies have]]. |
| 159 | * When reloading the Loch-n-Load, it appears that the Demoman is placing the grenades to the left of the barrel. I thought this was just a bug until I realized that the Demoman has one eye, so of course it ''looks'' like he's putting them in to the side. |
| 160 | * There's no backblast from the other end of the Soldier's rocket launcher. So either the rocket should be going much faster or that's some seriously weak rocket fuel. Then again, it ''has'' to be seriously weak rocket fuel, or the backblast would throw the other 3 loaded rockets out of the back, too. |
| 161 | ** That may explain why the Beggar’s Bazooka fires all its rockets at once (and has terrible accuracy); even with weak rocket fuel, the launcher isn’t sturdy enough to hold the remaining rockets in as one is launched. |
| 162 | * The Soda Popper has a "hype" meter that fills as the Scout does damage to enemies. All the Scout's running around and firing of his guns would obviously build up lots of carbonation in the Crit-a-Cola attached to the gun. |
| 163 | ** Sadly not true anymore, but it was good while it lasted. |
| 164 | * Having seen Steam's gifting on their holiday sale, it depicts a Pyro who is happy to receive coal. Coal is flammable. That would mean that the Pyro has received extra ammunition. |
| 165 | * Why doesn't the Medic simply turn his medi-gun on himself when his health dips? He believes healing is a side effect of whatever the gun does and has no idea of the long term effects of what he's shooting the others with. And you know what happens to [[ProfessorGuineaPig doctors who experiment on themselves]]. |
| 166 | ** He does turn it on himself while using the Kritzkreig's taunt. The problem is that it makes him slightly intoxicated, so doing it too much, such as every time he takes damage, would logically make him unfit for battle. |
| 167 | ** Also, the Medic is the only class who gets RegeneratingHealth by default, and his regeneration temporarily gets weaker if he’s recently taken damage. The efficiency of the Medi Gun is ''also'' hindered if his patient has recently been hurt. Also, the Medi Gun’s tanks are mounted on the Medic’s back. Putting all this together, it’s likely that the Medic already has some of his healing juices flowing into himself. |
| 168 | * Why were the BLU Soldier and Scout [[OddFriendship partners in crime]] in the Smissmas comic? The Scout cries rather pitifully when the RED Heavy kills the Soldier in ''Meet the Sandvich''. Maybe they're [[HeterosexualLifePartners closer]] [[FireForgedFriends friends]] than they let on. |
| 169 | ** This is somewhat true even on RED team. In the comics, Scout offers to help Soldier move out of Merasmus' castle. |
| 170 | * Why does the Demoman (along with the Soldier) wield the [[FryingPanOfDoom frying pan]], out of all of the classes? A common [[NationalStereotypes Scottish stereotype]] is that [[DeepFriedWhatever they deep-fry all their food]], so it fits perfectly. As for the Soldier, military mess kits tend to include a frying pan. |
| 171 | * Valve prefers the RED team over the BLU team, since in the "Meet the Team" videos, RED is awesome and always wins, and BLU, the bullet fodder, always loses. In fact, after "Meet the Demoman", not one member of RED dies, while as the videos go on, the mercenaries on BLU find more ways to get killed. The loadout screen in the game defaults to RED, the loading screen and main menu only has images of classes on RED, and the group shot in the end of each video and on the Festive items promotional image feature the RED team. The Mac trailer alludes to the Mac vs. PC thing by heavily implying, with strategic placement of transitions and text, that the [=BLUs=] represent Mac users, while the [=REDs=] are PC users. Additionally, the BLU mercenaries are wearing earbuds, an item only Mac users could acquire without trading. Valve has given Mac fans a TakeThat by saying the RED team always wins over the BLU team in the same way that the Mac will never beat the PC. |
| 172 | * Why does the Solemn Vow (an item the lets you [[EnemyScan see enemies' health]]) require eight Jarates to craft? They're urine samples and thus DNA from the other eight classes. |
| 173 | * During "Meet The Spy", the BLU Spy says: 'It could be you' looking at the Heavy or Soldier, offscreen), 'It could be me, it could even be...' (looking at the camera). Meaning he thinks even the Director could be the Spy. |
| 174 | ** There's actually another possible interpretation of the BLU Spy's [[KilledMidSentence incomplete final line]], and it actually serves to explain ''another'' strange line in that scene. Why exactly does the RED Spy announce that he is "Right behind you" immediately before attacking? At first, it seems like he's just sarcastically responding to Soldier's question ("Alright, who's ready to go find a Spy?"), but it's entirely possible that he's '''finishing the BLU Spy's sentence''', continuing the pattern of [[WorthyOpponent mutual respect]] the Spies have. "He could be you, he could be me, ''he could even be right behind you''." |
| 175 | * How did the Medic in the ''Meet the Medic'' video get an Übercharge so quickly after just two heals? He had just used his medigun to heal the Heavy, who had his entire torso open, whose heart had been removed, and who had just gotten a rib snapped off. Übercharge generates faster by healing teammates who are more seriously injured; all those injuries on the Heavy, combined with healing a broken leg on the Demoman and repairing what was possibly spinal damage on the Scout, means he'd most likely have plenty of charge to go Über. |
| 176 | ** The Quick-Fix actually doesn't build Über faster on hurt targets specifically. Über rate is only slowed when patients are at maximum overheal, and since the Quick-Fix didn't overheal targets when the video was released, it wouldn't build Über any faster than it would normally. The reason why he would be fully charged so quickly is probably that he's been healing Heavy for a while — sharing an anecdote about his lost medical license as the charge slowly trickles in, and the healing of Scout and Demo is the last bit needed to deploy a charge. |
| 177 | * One has to wonder how the Soldier — a man who technically has no military knowledge whatsoever and is pretty much just an AxCrazy military man wannabe — would end up on the team of mercenaries that would probably want a soldier that's just a little saner. Then you realize something: The Soldier went on a killing spree up until 1949 because he didn't know WWII ended 4 years earlier. Who knows how many civilians he confused as Nazis he had killed in that time. Therefore, RED/BLU likely enlisted him so he wouldn't kill any more civilians out of paranoia in his own country. |
| 178 | * At the beginning of ''Meet the Scout'', the Scout does a [[DramaticGunCock Dramatic Shotgun Pump]] just before launching an attack. This trope's common enough except we know in real life, you would be just ejecting a round with the shell if you did that before firing, though most works ignore this. But look closely and you see the shell does indeed get ejected. The Scout just wasted a perfectly good slug. |
| 179 | * In ''Meet the Spy'', RED Spy is disguised as the BLU Scout. But how did the BLU Scout get killed? Simple — at one point, the RED spy disguises himself as a BLU Medic. As soon as he heard Scout shout for help, he ran over to him, killed him, and disguised as him. He didn't stay as the Medic because it would look weird if the Medic arrived first on the scene to protect the briefcase. For the Scout, it's much more natural — he's faster, and he has a weapon that's more suited for offense. |
| 180 | * It may seem strange that Mad Milk is a component of the Fan O' War until you realize Jarate is a component of Mad Milk, explaining the mini-crit side effect. |
| 181 | * Spy's most emphasized backstab targets are Sniper and Medic. The butterfly knife is outlawed in Australia, New Zealand, and Germany. |
| 182 | * It might seem odd how the Scout is only able to fire off baseballs with the Sandman when all the other bats are just as serviceable for hitting balls (with the possible exception of the Atomizer, believed to be an inflatable toy bat filled with helium, and the Boston Basher, which is covered in spikes that would likely tear up any ball thrown at it). However, given that the use of wooden bats in MLB is pretty much standard, and the Scout is a [[{{Pun}} major league]] fan of baseball, it makes perfect sense that he'd consider using baseballs with his default aluminum bat to be unsportsmanlike. |
| 183 | * [[AmbiguousGender The Pyro's]] Whiskered Gentleman cosmetic becomes rather amusing when you consider that in [=TF2=]'s Australia, Moustaches are [[GirlsWithMoustaches unisex]]. |
| 184 | * The Pyromania update only introduced one new weapon for Pyro. Why would Valve do this? Reading the stats of the other classes' weapons reveals that, with each wearing their full sets, they will all end up being horrible against a decent Pyro. Scouts die faster, Snipers are encouraged to close in for their kills and stick to headshots against Pyro's rather small head, and Soldier's rocket launcher will essentially feed Pyros reflect kills left, right, and center. |
| 185 | * During the SugarBowl sequence in "Meet the Pyro," we see the baby Spy and Engineer playing together before they both hop on and ride the inflatable unicorn. Disguised Spies hanging around enemy Engineers trying to sap their buildings is a pretty common sight in-game, but to the [[CloudCuckoolander Pyro]], he would see it as them playing with the same toys. It's only natural he would think that they're best friends! |
| 186 | * The stats on Scout's "Public Enemy" weapons seem geared towards allowing Scout to survive better in direct confrontation while serving as an escape if he's heavily wounded. George "Baby Face" Nelson, who the set is named after, was known for [[LeeroyJenkins charging towards two heavily-armed lawmen on foot]] and killing them both despite taking heavy gunfire and taking off in his car before dying from his wounds several hours later. As well as that, much like the Scout, Nelson was infamous for being a trigger-happy BloodKnight PsychopathicManchild. |
| 187 | * As a Redditor pointed out, in [[http://www.teamfortress.com/images/posts/pyro_day3_blog.jpg this picture]], while the Medic and Scout look like they're enjoying themselves, the Demoman looks horrified. Those goggles and alcohol probably don't mix well. |
| 188 | * In the "True Meaning" comic, Old Nick lives in the South Pole, which is thought to be just another random difference between Australian Christmas and "Our" Christmas. Australia is much closer to the South Pole! Of COURSE, that's where their "Santa" lives! |
| 189 | ** It also fits thematically with both the character and Australia in general. Australian Santa seems to be the opposite of the conventional Santa (stealing children instead of giving them gifts) so he'd naturally be on the other side of the world from normal Santa. On top of that, the South Pole is usually colder than the North Pole, and with Australians being the toughest people in the world, their Santa would obviously live in the harshest climate. |
| 190 | ** Old Nick himself seems to be a non-demonic version of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krampus Krampus]], the character traditionally charged with punishing bad kids on Christmas. In some legends, he even kidnaps kids and forces them to do his bidding. |
| 191 | * It is stated that the Pyro never takes his mask off and that no one actually knows how s/he looks without it. Now with the release of ''Meet the Pyro'' it's revealed that his/her concept of the world is a completely different world, one that is driven by something resembling LSD. And that other classes can visit it if they wear goggles made by the same company that made Pyro's mask. So the reason the Pyro does not take off his/her mask is s/he is addicted to it! A drug you can consume by simply WEARING IT!! And now everyone has it! |
| 192 | * Why is nobody flinching away from [[TheDreaded Pyro]] when they're all sitting together in Medic's waiting room at the end of ''Meet the Medic''? The video introduced the übercharge, which has been in the game since the start, so it would follow that ''Meet the Medic'' happened before anybody really had an idea of the type of horrors their cheery teammate was capable of. |
| 193 | * At first, it's a bit odd to notice that the Announcer doesn't get angry and is only mildly upset or surprised when your team is losing in the Special Delivery mode, even getting excited or happy when the opposing team has the Australium, but after a while of thinking, it actually makes sense. Whether your team wins or loses, you're still doing the exact same thing the other team is doing, which is launching a monkey into space, so there's basically nothing to get angry about since it's basically a contest to see who can do it first. |
| 194 | * From ''Meet the Spy'', why wasn't the BLU Soldier suspicious of the Scout's inability to remember the password? Well, the Scout is hardly known for having a cool head under fire... |
| 195 | * Gray Mann says he's been watching Redmond and Blutarch's war for quite a while. What "team" in-game is usually depicted as gray? ''The Spectators''. |
| 196 | * Why is Pyro so crazy, and suffering from such hallucinations (assuming they are hallucinating)? They practically LIVE in their asbestos-laced suit, which doesn't breathe.... meaning they're likely suffering from heat-induced dementia! |
| 197 | * In the ''Mann vs. Machine'' trailer, why didn't the Spy, Sniper, or Pyro make an appearance? Because they're not frontline fighters, that's why. The Pyro lies in ambush where the enemy can't see him, the Sniper stays far back away from the rest of the group to attack from afar, and the Spy goes undercover behind enemy lines to stab them in the back. They're involved in the fight, they're just in their proper positions. |
| 198 | * The Medic seems particularly excited to pick up cash from destroyed robots in Mann vs. Machine mode, with lines like "Free money! Free money!" or "Ooh, free money!". He's a mercenary like the others, but why should he be so eager, he should have plenty of it judging by how well they're paid. Then it occurred to me, unlike the other classes (sans Engineer), the Medic ''could'' [[CutLexLuthorACheck make literally millions upon millions elsewhere]] if he sold his Medipack technology to the public or Ubercharge technology to the military. He CHOOSES to be a mercenary, and unlike the Engineer, he's really, really sadistic and has a penchant for bloodshed. Now it makes sense why he's happy to be paid for each and every dead body he helps create, even if the victims aren't even human! -wms366 |
| 199 | ** Alternatively, he grew up during a time when Germany was undergoing a major economic crisis. The majority of German households had little to no money to call their own and mere survival was practically impossible in part due to that. As for the choice to be a merc, that makes sense, but I feel his obsession for money, he's certainly the most enthusiastic about it, is more tied to his childhood than job occupation. |
| 200 | ** Yet another possibility: as the Medic put it in the comics, his experiments are ''expensive''. Just think how many exotic animal organs he could afford with all that loot! |
| 201 | * In "Fate Worse Than Chess", Spy looks unimpressed about the robots, bored even. Well, remember which class is best equipped to dealing with machines? It makes sense that Spy would have that expression. To him, destroying machines is just a typical day at work! |
| 202 | * Where were the rest of the teams in the trailer? Well, it's a six-player game mode. There are nine classes. Two teams of nine make eighteen. Eighteen is six times three, which is the number of mercs allowed per map, and the number of [=MvM=] maps at launch respectively. The rest of the teams are out fighting robots on other maps! |
| 203 | * Why do so many of the team compare Scout to a bunny in their dominations? Scout has buck teeth, just like a rabbit! On top of that, he's the fastest mercenary on the field, and rabbits are famed for being fast. |
| 204 | * In an effort to not leave any piece of traceable evidence behind (DNA testing in forensics was first used in the 1980's and Team Fortress 2 takes place in the late 1960's), the Red Spy, being as secretive as ever, has evidently removed most of his body hair and refuses to take off his balaclava or gloves, even when with his lover, as shown in Meet the Spy. |
| 205 | * Why is Merasmus so vulnerable to headshots compared to the other Halloween bosses? Because he's the only one with an actual head. |
| 206 | * When calling out a teammate (or enemy) as being a spy in disguise (or not) the Medic specifically refers to a player that is in the guise of a spy as a "double agent". A double agent is someone who is working with both sides, but the gameplay of Team Fortress 2 does not allow one to help the enemy team...except Spy. The spy can help an enemy Medic by allowing him to build an übercharge by healing the Spy or hurt him by shooting or stabbing him, hence the spy is a double agent. And no one knows this better than the Medic. |
| 207 | * While every other class has unique lines for their "Battle Cries", one of Pyro's is their "Need a teleporter here!" line, just with the words "Need a" chopped off. No really, take a listen for yourself. This doesn't make much if any sense unless you consider what Pyro actually ''does''. They're to the Engineer as a Medic is to a Heavy, plus they are also is very adept at ambushing due in part to the abysmal range of their weapons. They would ask for a teleporter when going into battle simply because they needs to close the gap in between the enemy and themself without getting shot and they likes hanging out with their best friend, the Engineer! |
| 208 | * Why does Soldier keep calling Sniper a hippie when all they really have in common is questionable hygiene and a habit of camping? Well, hippies are also known for spreading a message of peace. The most common hand signal for this is the index and middle finger outstretched into a V. However, flip it so that the back of the hand is facing the viewer, and it becomes an insult on par with just flashing someone the middle finger, common(or at least heard of) in areas heavily influenced by British culture. Such as Australia. Given Soldier's... [[{{Eagleland}} mannerisms]], it's not that much of a stretch to say he wouldn't know what it means, relate it to the closest thing he knows, and brush it off as Sniper telling him to chill out. |
| 209 | ** The Two-finger salute comes from (allegedly) when archers were taken prisoners and had those two fingers removed to stop them from using their bows - the two fingers is basically showing off that they still have them. Considering that the Sniper is a competent archer, and that the soldier would probably confuse the two signs, you wind up with an incredibly circuitous fridge logic. |
| 210 | * While the Soldier's insult to the Demoman, calling him an Englishman with a dress, might seem petty, it goes deeper than that. Note that the Soldier is not calling the Demoman British, but ''English''. Given the bloody medieval history between England and Scotland, this is essentially equivalent to something like [[BerserkButton calling the]] [[{{Eagleland}} Soldier]] [[TooDumbToLive a Canadian.]] |
| 211 | * The Soldier's line "Each and every one of you will be sent home to your mama in a box" seems odd at first, until you realize the "box" he's referring to is a coffin! Given that he says it as a battle cry, what he's essentially saying is "I'm going to kill you all". |
| 212 | * The robots are a replacement for the YellowPeril stereotype. Yes, it sounds stupid but hang with me here, First they rely on ZergRush to overwhelm better equipped and trained enemies, then they make ripoffs of hats, and copy popular player builds or use popular weapons. |
| 213 | * The bloodstains on the Equalizer reflect its combat-oriented nature as opposed to the Escape Plan. |
| 214 | * Why is Merasmus alive by Ring of Fired? Kill-me-come-back-stronger pills. This is also partially why he levels up upon defeat. When combined with a quote from the Spy in the Unhappy Returns, saying that Tom Jones is virtually immortal, Merasmus either gave him these pills or is getting them from him. |
| 215 | -->''He is not going to die, you imbecile! He's in his twenties! He's the most virile man on the planet! He has no enemies! This man is virtually immortal!'' |
| 216 | * Pyros are great for spy-checking, right? But spy-checking for a Pyro involves trying to set people on fire; if they burn, they're a Spy. No wonder their own team's scared of them - they're always trying to set their teammates on fire/give them rainbows and candy too! |
| 217 | * Why is the Spy sound so nonchalant when set on fire? Because he's used to getting set alight from all the Spy checking. |
| 218 | * Out of the first five item sets released for the game, as of July 2013, four of them spawn "calling card" tombstones when an opponent is killed. The fifth set belongs to the Spy and contains a knife that makes victims disappear as part of the KillAndReplace tactic. Of course, no tombstone would spawn, or it'd defeat the purpose of Spy's stealth here. |
| 219 | * Not so much brilliance as a funny little detail: as of Scream Fortress 2013, all of the classes are arguably more accomplished wizards than Merasmus. It's been described in 2012 that he only knows three spells, depends heavily on a book he bought on discount, and the Skull Island Topper mentions that he only found that cap near the very entrance of the Hades Spiral, implying he wasn't willing to go further. Compare all of that to THIS year - even though the Mercs are screwing around with random spells they found, they're effortlessly pulling off more spells than Merasmus ever could. And how'd they find their magic books? By actually going to Hell, surviving the ensuing murder spree, and granting the blessing of the Devil himself - who happens to now be Merasmus' old book, who hates him, but is very fond of the RED and BLU teams. - Taco_Pal |
| 220 | * The entire underlying story, that of Helen and the Australium, has never been explicitly pointed out. As shown in Zephaniah's will, her true job isn't administrating. She inherited Elizabeth's profession - keeping that Australium stash safe. Her relationship with the mercs has always been her brilliant way of accomplishing that. |
| 221 | ** She's been taking advantage of Redmond and Blutarch's war from the start. By enlisting the nine deadliest people who were also insane/stupid/professional enough not to question the pointlessness of fighting an eternal stalemate, she both managed to keep the feuding Mann brothers from considering the true value of their estate and keep the land surrounded by constant warfare. It's been repeatedly stated that no civilians had any clue why these nine people were eternally murdering one another - they just wanted it to end. That's why every map is surrounded by fake companies and fronts. If the original mercenaries (Lincoln, etc) were still fighting when the current Administrator took over, they likely wouldn't have been secretive enough to meet her desires. So she would have sacked them. |
| 222 | ** She's also the owner of TF Industries, which owns Mann Co., as well as RED and BLU. Saxton may be CEO, but he's just another front. When she needs Mann Co's clout (obtaining the bid to launch Poopy Joe, in order to steal the Australium), she manipulates Saxton. Luckily, Saxton's just as ridiculous as the mercs and doesn't question her orders. We've known this since her introduction: the WAR! comic, in which she makes Hale create new weapons for her purposes. It's very likely that Mann Co actually hoards that precious Australium for her, but either way, that company is what stands between Gray Mann, and the hoard. Funnily enough, as we see in Ring of Fired, Gray mainly (only?) wants the Australium to fuel his Life Extender. It's very possible that not even HE realizes the true value and purpose of the material. |
| 223 | * If the Spy is canonically French, why does he sometimes use Spanish and Italian phrases? Well, knowledge of multiple languages and the ability to pass for different ethnicities are useful skills for a spy to have. |
| 224 | * The Dalokohs Bar for the Heavy gives him a temporary maximum health buff. The effects can be equated to a sugar rush! |
| 225 | * Why would Soldier hold his, ahem, privates, instead of covering his face? [[CoolHelmet He's wearing a helmet]]; his head is already protected!. |
| 226 | * It seems as if the Scout is holding the IdiotBall when holding the Boston Basher. When the Boston Basher was introduced in the Fancy vs Nasty update, it was just a reskin for the Sandman, so he was holding an actual ball. |
| 227 | * Why is Gray Mann so smart, but still does stupid things like use money as fuel? His life support machine is fuelled by Australium, so he is always in close proximity to it, and it is known to have these effects. The strength-enhancing effects of Australium are what enable him to move around, unlike Redmond and Blutarch. |
| 228 | ** Also Australium and money are both forms of currency, so it's more of a misguided step of logic than a whole leap |
| 229 | * Why would the TFC Mercs want [=TF2!Medic=] to replace their old Medic despite his outright insanity, their BandOfBrothers nature, and everything else? Because the Original medic was just a Slower Tougher version of the scout! The New medic is perfectly capable of healing ''in the middle of a fight'' instead of after fights with a medpack, and can übercharge. |
| 230 | ** As an added bonus: why didn't [=TFC!Medic=] experiment on the other mercs? Well, perhaps because he wasn't as...[[AxCrazy ''eccentric'']] as Ze Medic we know today--but another reason could have been that the TFC Medic is more of a fighter with only a rudimentary knowledge of field treatment. Further support for this: the medpack is basically a high-tech first-aid kit, and might not even need medical training to use beyond "apply to skin, press this button for heals or that button for [[MemeticMutation AIDS]]." |
| 231 | * Why wasn't anyone in ''Expiration Date'' concerned about Sandviches when they discover the Engineer's teleporters cause bread to form tumors? It turns out the tumors only metastasize in pure wheat - the bread of the Sandvich is white! |
| 232 | * There's a slight glitch with the B.A.S.E. Jumper, in that, if you deploy it, and then get set on fire, instead of slowly descending, you float in mid-air. However, if one wishes to think up an actual explanation for it in-universe, it turns out, there could well be one: Think about how hot air balloons work, for a second. Warm air drifts up, gets trapped in the fabric, and provides lift, being lighter than the air nearby. Now consider, [[ManOnFire the soldier's currently ablaze]], providing a source of heat. Apply just a bit of cartoon physics, and you have a perfectly (sorta) valid reason for this little phenomenon. |
| 233 | * Aside from CheeseEatingSurrenderMonkeys being a common stereotype of the French, another one is that the French are rather cowardly. The Spy does not seem to give off any cowardly traits... directly. One common accusation of a cowardly tactic is stabbing in the back... Which just so happens to be what the Spy specializes in. |
| 234 | * The reason that Scout and Spy are the first two to be put on death row when they are fired is that the authorities got hold of them first due to learning that they will be the hardest to catch (Scout's speed, Spy's invisibility) out of the team. They can hunt for the others afterward, but Scout and Spy are the slipperiest team members and therefore the highest priority for execution. |
| 235 | ** Alternately, since the firing of the Mercs seems to have merged the counterparts from both teams ([[FridgeLogic somehow]]), it might be that [[SmallNameBigEgo the Scout]] assumed that he could [[TooDumbToLive take on the Teufort police department]], and [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold the Spy]] tried to [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments save his girlfriend's son]], [[SenselessSacrifice but failed and got caught in the process.]] |
| 236 | * The bucket contains the dying wish of every RED team member. In other words, it is a [[VisualPun bucket list]]. |
| 237 | * Why is Bill-Bel the most insane super-genius ever? He has a cache of Australium, which we know leads to not just physical alterations but also MENTAL ones into increasing the amount of crazy awesome the victim produces. He's also part of a scholarly society, which will naturally counteract some, but not all, of the mutagenic effects of Australium, thus providing only mental alterations and not physical ones. |
| 238 | * Why does the Shortstop increase the amount of knockback taken by the Scout? Because it is much smaller and less heavy than the Scattergun. |
| 239 | * The Gun Mettle update has now given a reason as to why in "Blood in the Water" the Heavy explicitly avoids mentioning to Saxton Hale that Ms. Pauling sent them on their mission - he likely knows that she stole the elite guns from Mann Co and wants to avoid setting off a potential BerserkButton, what with Hale's preferred method of dealing with thieves being to punch them to death with his bare hands. |
| 240 | * During the climactic battle in "Expiration Date", Spy stops the Scout from charging back into the battle, making him go back to Pauling. He's not just trying to help Scout salvage his date attempt, he also probably wanted Scout to help push the rigged payload, as he can do so faster than any other class. |
| 241 | * Why does the Scout cap twice as fast as other classes? He has Archimedes inside his chest! When a Scout is capping a point or pushing a cart, there actually are two living beings. [[{{Squick}} And since the cart only moves if it detects life signs...]] |
| 242 | * In "Old Wounds", why did Sniper's parents suddenly accept his life choices when we finally see them? Two things. One, they're in Heaven, or in this world, God's Secret Base. And a little-known part of the Bible states that in Heaven, people will put aside any prejudices they had towards anyone and pretty much be nicer to them, while still retaining their overall personality. And besides, the united mercenaries have been defending the world from robots for quite some time now, and are no longer participating in the ridiculous MobWar. It's possible that Sniper's parents felt incredibly proud that their son was no longer a crazed gunman, but a gunman who's repelling an invasion day after day. |
| 243 | * More "Old Wounds" Fridge Brilliance: The Classic Pyro being a SoftSpokenSadist who enjoys ColdBloodedTorture makes her an excellent EvilCounterpart to our Modern Pyro. The Modern Pyro sets enemies on fire not out of malice, but because they have a warped view of the world and genuinely believe they're trying to spread joy. The Classic Pyro has no such delusions and will set enemies on fire because ''she alone'' enjoys it. -romantiCaveman |
| 244 | * The Invasion community update added a cosmetic exclusive to Spy called the Graylien, which makes him look like one of the aliens that are, well, invading. And what's Spy's entire schtick? Disguising himself as one of the enemies to infiltrate them! |
| 245 | * One of the common attack spells obtained in the Halloween 2013 update is a cluster of pumpkin bombs. When you use it, your character yells out "Pactum Diabolus!". Why? Because if you look a little deeper, that sentence essentially means "{{Deal with The Devil}}", ''and,'' if you listen to the Bombinomicon's voice lines, you'll find out ''it is the devil!'' You're essentially ''asking the Bombinomicon to grant you bombs to use against your enemies!'' |
| 246 | * Ballooonicorn Brilliance... If you read the item descriptions for Balloonicorn, he's not all he seems - the Pyroland sewer superintendent's sleeping with his wife, and he needs to crash on your couch for a week or two. And would you buy him some smokes? He'll pay you back, for sure. Well, Balloonicorn's Pyro's imaginary pet, right? Pyro's the one who's gone and imagined all these slightly twisted stories for Balloonicorn, so it looks like Pyroland isn't quite all it's cracked up to be, is it? |
| 247 | ** Alternatively, since it seems like most forms of malice and bad in the real world translate to happy-go-lucky versions in Pyroland and in reverse, it could be that Pyro's imagination for the Balloonicorn sounds a lot more cheerful in its head than it does for others. |
| 248 | * TheReveal in ''The Naked And The Dead'' that [[LukeIAmYourFather Spy really is Scout's father]] puts a lot of things in a new light: |
| 249 | ** Why Scout is so good at running away from everything? He's Spy's son, and therefore part [[CheeseEatingSurrenderMonkeys French]]. Stereotypes aside, his father's job is to distract or disrupt enemy operations, then sneak away before he gets outgunned - just like the role of a scout. |
| 250 | ** One of the Scout's hats is a Whoopee Cap. According to the ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' Wiki, "children would make one using their father's worn-out fedora." Who was the first class to get a fedora? Spy. |
| 251 | ** While Scout's rather childish Domination lines could be chalked up to his younger age, if you compare them to some of Spy's Domination lines it becomes fairly obvious where he gets it from. Like father, like son! |
| 252 | ** Why does someone as high class and professional as The Spy decide that he wants to sign up to fight alongside a team filled with idiots and insane sociopaths instead of going for something more up to his standards? Because [[MysteriousParent his son also decided to fight alongside that same team. Not to mention that fact is probably the only reason why Spy considered helping Scout. He wanted to make up for lost time.]] |
| 253 | ** ''Expiration Date'': Spy has heard that Scout is genuinely interested in a girl and wants to make sure that's he ready for an actual date. Or rather, his version of giving his son dating advice. It ends up working even when Scout fails the test, because his son is prepared to and ''does'' ask the girl out by himself, despite being rudely interrupted by the bread monster. |
| 254 | * Why can Medic perform ridiculously absurd surgeries such as grafting extra souls to himself? When he sold his soul initially, in exchange he asked Satan to make him the GREATEST DOCTOR IN THE UNIVERSE, with all the impossible skill that goes with it. [[XanatosGambit ...Which may also implies that he was planning VERY far ahead]] when he made his deal... oh wow. |
| 255 | ** It gets better. Presumably, the devil would try to screw him over as much as possible in that regard, by following ExactWords and making him just ''barely'' the GREATEST DOCTOR IN THE UNIVERSE. If that's true, then there is at least one ''other'' doctor who can graft souls to themself using only tools like what Medic has at his disposal. (Granted, that one doctor could still be a StarfishAlien or something since the deal is "in the universe" and not "on the planet", but still...) |
| 256 | * Classic Heavy mentions killing off several Administrator run teams, including Echelon, Citadel, and Vanguard. Ms. Pauling calls her team of mercs Team Fortress. Just a TitleDrop, right? There's a bit more to it. Classic Heavy's team is introduced as Team Fortress Classic. With the revelation of the mercs being officially named Team Fortress as a group, the implication is that Classic Heavy's team was Team Fortress as well. This means the nine mercs we have been playing with all this time are quite literally [[TitleDrop Team Fortress 2!]] |
| 257 | * The Heavy, Medic, and Pyro don't have unique domination lines for other classes, unlike the others. The Medic doesn't get many of his own domination kills (usually he gets them through assists), so out-of-universe any such lines would be rarely heard and thus unneeded, while in-universe he wouldn't be able to think of a good response other than just laughing at them. The Pyro is TheUnintelligible, so unique lines for them would be redundant. Meanwhile, the Heavy doesn't have a personal beef with any particular class; he sees them all as equally tiny baby men, so he doesn't need specific insults. |
| 258 | * Why exactly are the mercs so exuberant and unprofessional about their work in-game? They're hired killers and yet they shout goofy, playful lines and wear colorful clothing that would be ill-suited for combat. While some of this can be chalked up to the characters themselves being eccentric, it could also be that they don't take their warring that seriously anymore. Seeing as they can just [[DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist re-spawn indefinitely]], they don't have anything to worry about and can liven up their daily bouts by wearing silly outfits and ribbing each other. |
| 259 | * Why is the Medic's pet dove named Archimedes[[note]]the ancient Greek scientist and inventor[[/note]] and not Hippocrates[[note]]the ancient Greek doctor and grandfather of medical science[[/note]]? Archimedes wasn't a medical doctor, and ''neither is the Medic.'' The Medic lost his medical license after [[NoodleIncident a patient's skeleton went missing]], and he's generally more interested in [[MadDoctor experimenting with healing devices and immortality]] than [[CombatMedic actually healing his teammates]]. Of course, the Medic would respect an inventor more than a doctor; he's an inventor too. |
| 260 | ** In addition, the Medic's "Solemn Vow" melee weapon is a marble bust of Hippocrates, with the motto "Do no harm" (part of the Hippocratic Oath) on it. [[{{Irony}} The Medic uses it as a bludgeon]], showing just how little he respects medical ethics. |
| 261 | ** There's also the fact that Archimedes isn't his only dove, but just the one whose name got revealed. |
| 262 | * In "Expiration Date", the Scout's little sketches, however obnoxious or weird, do show artistic talent, especially with an "exact time until death" scenario hanging over him. Of course, a team's field scout would find quickly drawing a detailed and coherent picture to be an important skill. |
| 263 | * On the one hand, seeing Spy cloak and run away, abandoning Scout at the first sign of danger, in the Jungle Inferno short is [[CheeseEatingSurrenderMonkeys disappointing]]. But on the other hand, let's look at it from Spy's point of view. He's holding his revolver; we can assume he has his trusty knife with him; and he can use the invis-watch. So his options are: a) back away and shoot the revolver at whatever is advancing, or b) cloak, flank the enemy, and use the knife for a OneHitKill - as is his modus operandi on the battlefield. Which one would he choose? (And he sure as heck wouldn't go for a backstab on his boss(?) - especially when said boss is Saxton bloody Hale.) |
| 264 | * Expiration Date shows Demo making a beer run using two sets of teleporters: one going out, and one coming in. The Engineer that set up those teleporters is also a perennial beer drinker. |
| 265 | * At first, Australium weapons seem like they're just Australium in name only: they don't make the mercs smarter, and considering that they were introduced during the [=MvM=] era (when Australium was a dwindling resource), it's surprising the Administrator and Gray Mann aren't hunting down the mercs for their Australium-plated weapons. That's because Australium weapons aren't actual Australium: they're made of Bestralium ([[WorthlessYellowRocks or gold]]). |
| 266 | ** Alternatively, the way to earn Australium weapons in-game involves going on a tour of duty in one of the harder difficulties of Mann vs Machine, and even then, it has a low drop rate. A player has to have a good sense of strategy to get one, and between having to go on many repeated tours of duty to get them and the subsequent implications of a BraggingRightsReward, it's likely they'll play fairly aggressively; thus, the use of Australium describes them perfectly. |
| 267 | * As a final test in "Expiration Date", the Spy asks Scout a simple question about hypothetical date arrangements, to which Scout gives an answer that only someone like the Spy would've taught him...just so the Spy can shoot it down and flunk the Scout. He's leading somebody into thinking he's on their side, then stabbing the person in the back when they lower their guard. Which is how a Spy is played in the game. |
| 268 | ** This also works as a StealthMentor moment, since this would work to convince Scout that he needed to live up to his own standards, not Spy's... and it certainly seems to have worked. Scout even hints at this conclusion in his dialogue afterwards (though it also seems as though Spy disagrees, but he's not exactly a bad actor.) |
| 269 | * Miss Pauling refers to the "stolen briefcase" button as "The one button you're [sic] ''never'' supposed to press?" At first, it seems strange--what if the intelligence gets stolen, and the button does need to get pressed? But this is the RED team we're talking about. In most of the shorts and comics, Valve seems to make sure RED comes out on top, or at the very least is the team we follow. ''Nobody'' on [[CreatorsPet RED]] should have to press that button, because out-of-universe RED is supposed to win. |
| 270 | ** Also in-game--you don't need to press a button to say your intel is stolen, because the Administrator already announces it. |
| 271 | ** ...And if the intel is stolen and the Administrator doesn't announce it, it means ''she doesn't know''. For someone playing both sides of the field, this is very bad indeed--no wonder the button's such a big deal. |
| 272 | * The Scottish Resistance's bombs take longer to arm than its contemporaries. Because they're designed to be exploded selectively rather than all at once, it's likely the traps and launcher share a more complicated communication setup, one that is overall slower to compensate for this benefit. |
| 273 | * The Bad Pipes taunt sees the Demoman playing a horrifically off-key song on some bagpipes. He probably can't play bagpipes properly because he's drunk off his arse! |
| 274 | * Some would wonder why the Mann brothers would continually fight each other over a desolate patch of desert whose only resources are gravel and sand, which seem worthless when compared to more extraordinary resources such as Australium. However, what is almost every road and building in existence made of? Concrete. And what do you need to make concrete? ''Gravel and sand''. High-quality gravel and sand suited for concrete contain certain amounts of minerals that limit them to certain geographic areas, and these same minerals can be extracted for use in the creation of rare metal alloys. The concrete industry is one of the biggest industries in the world today. The Mann brothers weren't idiots when they bought the Badlands in the 1800s, but were in fact genius businessmen who were ahead of their time and predicted the world's massive spike of demand for concrete in the 1900s! That's why they're both willing to sink so many resources and lives into seizing each other's halves of the land. |
| 275 | ** In "Blood Brothers", Redmond assumes steam engines run on gravel or a variation of it ("Graveline, eh?"). He insists on this notion even after Gray corrects him. While the brothers understand gravel’s value in infrastructure and road-building, they may also think it’s a more versatile resource than it really is. They could be wasting their gravel by trying to apply it where they ''really'' shouldn’t -- namely, by trying to use it as a combustible fuel. This would explain why everyone outwardly calls the gravel pits useless--with how the Manns intend to use their resources, they might as well be. And until Gray shows up, the brothers' conflict discourages outside parties--who might know better about gravel's uses--from benefiting from the pits. |
| 276 | * The slowdown effect for the BONK! Atomic Punch is rather fitting. Considering the drink's radioactivity and sugar content, the Scout is probably experiencing heavy withdrawal after the effects wear off. The slowdown increasing upon absorbing damage could be a delayed partial response to the pain. Sure, he doesn't take damage while under the drink's effects, but the impact of those projectiles would heighten his post-BONK! wooziness. |
| 277 | * Nothing seems to stop the three other shotgun-wielding classes from wielding the Family Business... That is, until one takes a look at their personalities: |
| 278 | ** An easily-missed detail is the Family Business' faded Hammer and Sickle, which is emblazoned on its side. Thus, the Soldier wouldn't be caught dead using the weapon -- as "A Cold Day in Hell" demonstrates, he's profoundly paranoid of anything ''remotely'' communist. |
| 279 | ** Unlike the Reserve Shooter and the Panic Attack, the Family Business's strategy is functionally identical to the default shotgun's. The same could be said for their color schemes: both have a grey body and a brown pump and handle. Fundamentally speaking -- from their [[{{Manchild}} simplistic, childish point of view]] -- the Pyro would have two of the same weapon; they would prefer something substantially different. |
| 280 | ** Most weapons in the Engineer's arsenal (discounting reskins and default weapons) are mechanically complex or bear an uncommon attribute. Thus, the Family Business would be outside of his preferences, because it's too simple for his liking. |
| 281 | *** This sentiment could also explain why the Engineer never received weapons during the Über Update, which was the Family Business' debut. The initial versions of many other weapons released during that update were underwhelmingly simplistic, merely tweaking one or two stats. Sometimes, they could even be ''worse'' options than their default counterparts -- that alone would be highly impractical for the practically-minded Engineer. |
| 282 | * The Widowmaker's basis is ''Deus Ex: Revolution's'' Widowmaker TX shotgun. In the weapon's home game, the actual meaning behind "TX" is never elaborated upon. However, "TX" is also how "''Texas''" is abbreviated -- no wonder the Widowmaker was chosen for the Engineer. |
| 283 | * The Scout's "First Blood" achievement encourages players to reenact Scout's favorite childhood pastime: being the very first of his brothers(-in-arms) to reach fights. |
| 284 | * The Ambassador has an engraving of Scout's mother on its barrel. This detail gives the weapon's name a clever meaning: an ambassador is a political representative for a foreign country. Considering Spy's affair with Scout's mother, the weapon appears to be [[IBangedYourMom celebrating their affair with a stealthy sex joke -- in other words, the Spy is shoving a foreign object into someplace special]]. |
| 285 | ** Furthering the sexual implications, the Ambassador's barrel is [[PhallicWeapon large and long]]... |
| 286 | * By all appearances, the Heavy can't seem to move his fingers very well while wearing the Fists of Steel, if at all. This would explain the weapon's 100% slower holster time. Sure, he can put them on no problem, but it takes more effort to ''remove'' both of his hands from such rigid objects. The Heavy's other options slip on and off fairly easily. |
| 287 | * The 1850's Team Fortress Team is made up entirely of [[HistoricalDomainCharacter historical figures]].. except for the Spy, who is portrayed as [[Literature/FuManchu Fu Manchu, a fictional villain]]. In this game's universe, it's very possible that this is the actual Fu Manchu... or, this is merely a Fu Manchu disguise, and [[MasterOfDisguise the Spy simply disguised as him to protect his true identity from even his teammates]]. |
| 288 | * The Classic Sniper knee-caps the Spy in order to torture him. Extremely brutal, highlighting his nature as a sadist? Yes. Also a reference to [[VideoGame/TeamFortressClassic TFC]] where the Sniper could knee-cap people, slowing their movement and preventing them from jumping? Yes. |
| 289 | * In Meet the Spy, the Blu Spy most likely knew Scout was the Red Spy, and was about to call him out before his untimely demise. We know he had been successfully, well... spying on the Red Spy without his knowledge, in the most private of circumstances. He showed up with the recently murdered Sniper's corpse, indicating he's been tracking him down. It's very probable he [[OutOfCharacterAlert caught the Red Spy's slip-up]] when the Scout started asking where he got the photos, and indeed this is likely ''exactly'' why he surprised the three other classes with said photos, to shock the Red Spy enough to make him flinch and break character, however briefly. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Were it not for the Soldier, the Blu Team may very well have won]]. |
| 290 | * Unlike other liquids, players soaked by the Gas Passer don't take critical hits from the Neon Annihilator. After all, the Neon Annihilator does its thing by electrocuting people that are wet, and gasoline doesn't conduct electricity well. |
| 291 | * One redditor offered up a reason behind the structure of offense and defense in Payload maps (that being, BLU is trying to blow up an area that RED is trying to protect) even when their names would imply the opposite positions (Builders League United is trying to cause destruction, Reliable Excavation Demolition is trying to protect an area). The two are trying to get jobs out of the area, BLU trying to destroy the place so they get a contract to repair it or build over it, while RED tries to keep it stable so they can get a contract to destroy it themselves. |
| 292 | * It's noted that Heavy has a [=PhD=] in Russian Literature; and as a result, his comment of "I have yet to meet someone that can outsmart bullet" takes on a whole new layer if one considers this quote from 1700s general Alexander Suvorov - "The bullet is a fool, the bayonet a fine chap." There is a good chance that he may have studied Suvorov in some manner beforehand; and thus when he says "I have yet to meet someone that can outsmart bullet," he's also calling his opponents ''stupid'' at the same time. |
| 293 | [[/folder]] |
| 294 | |
| 295 | [[folder:FridgeHorror]] |
| 296 | * The Mad Milk is a Jarate-like (kinda) weapon for the Scout that's filled with a "non-milk substance." Seeing as though Jarate can be justified as the Sniper filling it with his own piss while waiting to kill his target...[[{{Squick}} well...]] |
| 297 | ** Don't worry about that, according to the official wiki it's milk. But from cows that are infused with "sweet, wholesome thermonuclear radiation". |
| 298 | --> ''They always say that milk does a body good. What they don't know is that we've carefully infused our cows with some sweet wholesome thermonuclear radiation. Our milk tastes great and it will also give you the strength to kick ass!'' |
| 299 | --->'''Mad Milk publicity blurb''' |
| 300 | ** Either interpretation, however, begs one particular question. Why do you need jarate, a jar of piss, to craft it...? If it's actually milk, then that just makes the whole thing confusing. If it's, ahem, the other interpretation, then the squick just got worse... |
| 301 | *** Mixing with a fatty medium such as milk would make it much harder to wash piss stink off, which is probably the least disturbing possible explanation. Or possibly Scout just steals the jars from Sniper and empties them to fill them with milk? We hope. |
| 302 | * The author of fancomic ''Webcomic/CuantaVida'' pointed out that in real life, the Medigun would seal all shrapnel inside the wound. *shudder* |
| 303 | * There is no apparent place anywhere in any map for the classes to relieve themselves. Now, on most maps, the characters don't stay long enough for bodily functions to be an issue, but I have to imagine that a place like 24/7 Teufort would stink to high heaven. |
| 304 | ** To be fair, 2Fort has obvious areas and doors that cannot be entered in gameplay; the absence of toilets can easily be [[HandWave handwaved]] as "there ''are'' toilets in 2Fort, they're just located inside an inaccessible area". |
| 305 | * The Übersaw has blood on it even if you haven't killed anyone with it during the current round. Either the Medic never cleans it, or it's hanging on his belt and every so often ''gets caught on his thigh''. |
| 306 | ** Considering how much pain the team members can handle without slowing down, this may be, plus, the Medic may just use the Medigun to heal himself. Either that, or he painted it that way just to scare people. |
| 307 | ** The Pyro also has blood on their Axtinguisher all the time. One would wonder how blood looks in Pyroland... |
| 308 | *** You know the art trend of pastel gore? Yeah, probably that. |
| 309 | * Going along with the "Meet The Sandvich takes place from the point of view of Spy's severed head"- the BLU Soldier and Scout were only in the RED base to get Spy's head back, and the RED Heavy beat them to death! |
| 310 | * ''"Meet the Pyro"'' in general, if you interpret Pyro as being ObliviouslyEvil instead of a CloudCuckooLander. The Pyro has absolutely no idea that outside his SugarBowl world he's a feared and hated serial killer, his mental illness is being taken advantage of by his employers, he doesn't know why his teammates don't want to play with him... and when you attack a Pyro you are murdering someone who, from his perspective ''hasn't done a thing'' to deserve it and doesn't have a clue what's going on or why you're hurting him. Brr... |
| 311 | ** Considering what he really sees when he kills people, I doubt he really feels pain. Maybe someone comes along and blasts a shotgun in his face, that's his idea of them "playing" with them. Then, he dies, feels nothing, and then respawns for more fun! |
| 312 | * Assuming Poker Night at the Inventory is canon, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E0y2ZDnkps&feature=related Heavy finds]] ripping off an Engineer's fingers and jamming a wrench down his throat while the guy screams for his mother, to be hilarious. Meet the Pyro [[EvenEvilHasStandards reveals he is frightened]] of Pyro. ''What sort of things has he seen the Pyro do?'' |
| 313 | ** The video alone is good indication- and besides, Heavy did that to the BLU Engineer [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge after his entire team was killed]]. From Heavy's perspective, the Pyro does the horrible things he does ''because he can.'' |
| 314 | * Meet the Medic has made it canon that the reason why Uber Charges are possible is because the Medic has personally performed heart transplants on each of the team members, giving them supercharged Mega Baboon hearts. [[BodyHorror But consider the fact that the Medic himself can also be Uber Charged...]] |
| 315 | ** Going by in-game logic, another Medic could have put the heart in him, and vice versa. |
| 316 | *** Perhaps, but by in-universe logic, there's only one Medic. Also, given the Medic's...[[MadDoctor bizarre...medic interests]] and [[ProfessorGuineaPig what else he's done]], he likely performed his own surgery. |
| 317 | * The description for the Tank robot says, "We don't know what this thing is, but it's big as hell, looks unstoppable, and it probably runs on human blood. We're just guessing that last part, because it's usually covered in it." Creepy enough, right? Well, ''here's'' where the horror comes in - it has no weapons, but when it turns, it's capable of crushing players against walls and props - to be blunt, it's usually covered in blood not because it runs on it, but ''because it's crushed people to death''. |
| 318 | * All of the Engineer's equipment--the Sentry, the Dispenser, the Teleporter--only works on his teammates or perceived teammates (i.e. disguised Spies). That is, they discriminate ''based on color''! And he's a man from the deep south in the late Sixties... |
| 319 | ** Becomes a little brilliant when you realize that one of the best Engineer counters is the Demoman, the only non-white character on the team. |
| 320 | ** Well, ''every single class'' discriminates based on color though; a RED Medic cannot heal a BLU merc for example, just like a BLU Pyro's airblast can't extinguish a burning RED merc, and tossing Jarate at a burning enemy will cause them to get even ''more'' injured from the fire instead of putting it out like it would for a burning team mate. Besides, how annoying would it be if the enemy team could use your teleporters and dispensers, or if your sentries targeted everyone but you regardless of color ? |
| 321 | * The are several hints (the update page, his hat's description) indicating that Merasmus is a pretty mediocre wizard. Anyone who has fought him [[ThatOneBoss would say otherwise]]. Which brings the question, just how powerful would an actually ''good'' wizard be? |
| 322 | ** Alternatively, Merasmus is a case of WhenAllYouHaveIsAHammer. According to the devs, he only knows three spells that can be used on a battlefield: cast fire, teleport, and Prop Hunt. The Bombinomicon adds bomb toss and rain of bombs to his arsenal, but for the most part Merasmus is relying on his [[DamageSpongeBoss massive health bar]] and [[GetBackHereBoss 90 second time limit]] to outlast his enemies rather than overpower them. |
| 323 | * All classes have "[Teammate] is dead!" lines, but Medic's sound particularly anguished. And if all of his teammates die, he starts laughing hysterically and yelling "It's just you and me, robots!" His voice even cracks. [[HeroicBSOD He's clearly gone insane with grief and terror.]] Badass though all the classes may be, he's the least competent by far when [[StealthPun operating]] on his own... and now he's alone with a horde of murderous robots. |
| 324 | ** A bit of Fridge Brilliance to go with the horror: Medic is especially distressed with a Pyro is killed, implying how much he's come to rely on Pyro to disrupt Spies, Snipers, and other Ubercharges, some of Medic's most dangerous opposition. |
| 325 | * Certain weapons are available in "Vintage" quality. One of these is Jarate. [[{{Squick}} Think about that for a second.]] |
| 326 | ** Not only that, but the Sandvich, [[PowerUpFood Buffalo Steak Sandvich]], Bonk Atomic Punch and Fish Cake can also be vintage. [[{{Squick}} Yeah...]] |
| 327 | * Soldier takes SuccessThroughInsanity to a whole new level. He somehow bought a plane ticket to Poland (a country behind both the German front lines and the Russian Iron Curtain), snuck past the Germans/Russians into east Germany, and slaughtered hundreds of "Nazis", evading capture/extermination all the way up until 1949. Keep in mind this is a single, untrained, delusional, and probably hallucinating American middle-class man, evading and fighting off Spetznaz and other Russian federal law enforcement for untold months. The man is frikkin' ''dangerous'' when he puts his mind to something. |
| 328 | * The new weapon based on Wheatley from Portal 2 (The Ap-Sap, complete with Stephen Merchant reprising the role) is completely flattened. However, a Website/YouTube comment makes perfect sense out of this fact: |
| 329 | -->"Obviously, Wheatley must've been sucked into a black hole while in space that led to the [=TF2=] universe, and in the process the sheer amount of physical pressure of high-speed compressed space travel squished him down into a nice little sapper-sized core :D IT MAKES PERFECT SENSE." |
| 330 | * More 'Fridge Depressing' or 'Fridge Deep' but in Meet The Director, the Director presses the Heavy for information on his tragic past from the Gulag. Heavy insists on talking about his gun. Why? Because he DOESN'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT HIS PAINFUL PAST. |
| 331 | * Wave 666 has hordes of zombies instead of robots. They're all versions of the mercs. Then you remember that the Heavy mentions in Poker Night that Respawns, to him, are a series of nightmares. Those zombies aren't reskinned robots; ''they're the collective corpses of your past lives filled with magic coming to get you!'' |
| 332 | * Every class will scream in pain after being killed (except by some spy knives)...even after getting their heads blown off. |
| 333 | ** NightmareRetardant in some cases, though... such as the Demoman's [[MajorInjuryUnderreaction "Ooh, that smarts."]] and the fact that some classes tend to let out [[ScreamsLikeALittleGirl rather wimpy screams]]. |
| 334 | * Engineer sounded more serious when explaining to the team that they will soon die in "Expiration Date," before learning it's not tumors, but a wheat bread mutation. While they were thinking they were going to die in 3 days, they were at a lose/lose situation. If the respawn system doesn't revive them due to natural causes, then they will be dead permanently. If it does revive them, it could revive them into a constant state of dying through tumors killing them, in agonizing pain. So they were either going to [[KilledOffForReal die for good]] or [[FateWorseThanDeath die again and again from the tumors.]] Thankfully, it turns out that the lesions only appear in wheat-based products. |
| 335 | * Bread gets tumors when sent through a teleporter. The Heavy often brings a Sandvich. Make of that what you will. |
| 336 | ** Though the tumors only manifest in PURE wheat, but the sandvich has white bread. |
| 337 | *** The teleported loaf was also white bread. |
| 338 | ** It's possible that the tumors only appear (or, become visible to the human eye) after being teleported enough times. If it was on every teleport, the Sandvich would've been full of tumors long before Heavy could get a chance to eat it. |
| 339 | * Not from the official Team Fortress 2 itself, but from End of the Line. When you look at the Blu teams plan, you can see a picture of a bunch of doves carrying a bomb, possibly as a Plan B. At the end of the video, Sniper sees a bunch of doves, [[OhCrap carrying a bomb]], [[TheBadGuysWin heading straight for the Red team's base.]] |
| 340 | * Saxton's dialogue in the Gun Mettle comic seems to imply that the RED and BLU mercs are actually held in low regard as far as mercenaries go. This is quite a shock given how lethal and skilled they come across in some of the other supplementary material. If they're regarded as 'bad' mercs, then imagine how lethal the 'elite' mercenaries are. |
| 341 | ** The mercenaries are all completely batshit insane, use bizarre and oftentimes improvised weaponry, and are generally quite uncoordinated and undisciplined so there success in battle most likely only comes from fighting people who are just as crazy as they are. They’d probably get their asses handed to them if they fought a more coordinated and better trained group of mercenaries. |
| 342 | ** Well, considering the way that he talks to Ms. Pauling, Hale probably just doesn't think the mercs have enough money. You could argue that Demo lives in a mansion; however, the other mercs would definitely notice, and I doubt that Hale would want to be annoyed all the time by 8 people asking for new weapons. Looking at the way that the classes fight in-game (especially in comp), there's pretty much no way for the [=TF2=] mercs to not at least be considered dangerous. |
| 343 | ** Or perhaps he ''does'' have elite mercs after all, which is implied by [[http://www.teamfortress.com/thecontract/ this comic cover.]] |
| 344 | ** Saxtons elite customers could be clean, consistently effective and get regularly hired for high stakes jobs. From what we've seen with the mercenaries we know and love, they're a destructive force to everything around them and have little sense of subtlety, they get sporadic results when it comes to completing any tasks that don't involve destroying absolutely everything, and are another set of pawns in a seemingly meaningless ForeverWar between two goofy parties and a [[TheChessMaster Chessmaster.]] |
| 345 | ** Judging by Classic Heavy's last words in "The Naked and the Dead," this is definitely the case. |
| 346 | ** Most of all, the Spy is already the embodiment of ParanoiaFuel in-universe. If Mann Co. always goes with the lowest bidder for their mercenaries... [[AlwaysABiggerFish does that mean there are even more terrifying assassins out there?]] |
| 347 | * At the end of a round (when it's not a stalemate), the winning team gets full crits and a slight increase in speed, which they usually use to TotalPartyKill the losing team, while the losing team has all their weapons removed, but can still use taunt attacks to kill the winners. Where's the horror in that? If either of these tactics were done in a real combat scenario, they would be considered '''''war crimes'''''. [[labelnote:Explanation]]In the case of the winning team, the crime would be killing off enemy combatants who are surrendering, while the losers would be guilty of perfidy, that is, pretending to surrender and then fighting back.[[/labelnote]] |
| 348 | * So Gray Mann is now dead. What will happen to his daughter? |
| 349 | ** Olivia is still in ownership of the company, and it's possible that she could inherit her fathers plans, leaving her as the last hurdle to overcome if and when the final issue comes out. |
| 350 | * We've all known for a while that Miss Pauling and the Administrator have done a lot of...questionable things behind the scenes. But, as Issue #7 of the comics reveals, Heaven is apparently lenient enough to readily accept Scout, Sniper and (possibly, given Satan mentioned a Faustian Pact) Medic but Pauling and the Administrator go to what is either an IronicHell or some kind of Purgatory. What all have those two done for at least three professional killers to get preferential treatment over them? |
| 351 | ** The repeatedly-dying Blutarch also claims to Engineer that in his own perception when he dies, there ''is'' no afterlife, he experiences only nothingness. What's going on there? Is there an aspect of them getting what they expect, perhaps? Maybe the Administrator's own guilt and Blutarch's possible lack of belief are affecting things. That's hardly fair, is it? |
| 352 | ** Speaking of Scout, we now know the day he's going to die: December 4th, 1987. The Catch-up Comic revealed that the year was currently 1972. Scout's only got 15 years left, and at the age of 27, he'll only make it to the age of 42. |
| 353 | *** At first, Scout's low life expectancy is surprising, considering how spry and fit he is. But think about how many of his items are radioactive or contain radiation (including Bonk! and Crit-A-Cola, both of which he drinks on the regular). Scout's looking at some nasty radiation sickness in his future... Or, more likely, he's going to ''die of cancer.'' |
| 354 | * Aw... Zhanna and Soldier are going to have kids! ...Wait. [[CloudCuckooLander Zh]][[BloodKnight anna]] and [[TooDumbToLive So]][[PsychopathicManchild ld]][[DrillSergeantNasty ier]] are going to have ''kids''... |
| 355 | * So...what exactly did Classic Scout and Classic Soldier want to do with all the "free kids" they'd get while running an orphanage? |
| 356 | * In the comic, Scout temporarily dies, meets God in Heaven, and learns that he will die for good on December 4th, 1987. While Medic is in Hell, readers learn that he grafted his teammates' souls onto his own so that he could avoid damnation, AND so that dead teammates can return to life as long as at least one of them is still alive. Thus, the only way Scout could permanently die is if all of his other teammates died as well. That means something horrible is going to happen to the entire team on December 4th, 1987. |
| 357 | ** Alternatively, it could simply be a reference to the song released on that date, ''Heaven is a place on Earth'' by Belinda Carlisle. |
| 358 | * In the screenshot announcing Pyro's victory over the Heavy during the Meet your Match update, a cherub Heavy is shown in the background with a Lollichop stuffed into his mouth. Then you remember that in Meet the Pyro when they appear to be doing that, they're actually driving a fire axe into the Heavy's skull. [[GoryDiscretionShot Try not to think about what you'd actually be looking at with Pyrovision turned off.]] |
| 359 | * While talking to Miss Pauling, Saxton Hale casually drops in a reference to at least some of the mercs being sex offenders. Indecent exposure falls under that heading, so ''probably'' this was in reference to Soldier's repeatedly fighting naked and possibly Sniper's public urination, and the YaoiFangirl contingent would point out that the game ''is'' set in 1968, decades before sodomy laws were overturned in the US. But, well, see above reference to the Classics wanting "free kids"... |
| 360 | * The Sydney Sleeper is a rifle for Sniper that eschews regular bullets for pneumatic darts...that are ''coated in Jarate.'' In case you thought just getting his pee on you was bad, now you have to deal with that ''and'' the lacerations inflicted by the dart piercing the skin. In real life, that would be a serious (and possibly deadly) infection waiting to happen. |
| 361 | [[/folder]] |
| 362 | |
| 363 | [[folder:FridgeLogic]] |
| 364 | * In ''Meet The Director'' Miss Pauling points out that "Most of these men's IQ s are sub-normal." From what we've seen, I'd say Engineer, Medic and Spy are well above normal (probably in the Very Superior to Genius brackets), Sniper seems about average (90-109), but most of the others are headed for the Dull and Borderline brackets. When mental age comes into it, Soldier's IQ can't be any higher than 70. |
| 365 | ** The Heavy has a [=PhD=] and is exceptionally articulate in his native tongue, something Miss Pauling would likely be aware of. When sober (or at least not overwhelmed with booze), the Demoman also seems average in intelligence. So I'd say she was probably exaggerating. |
| 366 | ** If you listen to the special lines in the Gun Mettle Update, you get a good handle on what Miss Pauling thinks of the Mercs, and she clearly knows even the smart ones are nuts. Since she has direct links to the Administrator who has their files, she would also know the best way to talk to any of them, including the delusional Soldier, and ManChild Pyro. |
| 367 | * One of Sniper's domination lines to the Engineer is "Not so smart with your brains outside your head, are you?" which would imply he's insecure about his intelligence. It's also hard to know how intelligent Pyro is, being that most of his/her tech looks handmade and Pyro is [[CloudCuckooLander not sane enough]] to tell. |
| 368 | * Not only does Miss Pauling say that "Most of these men's intelligence levels are sub-normal" she also says in a comic that "These men don't sign things! Almost half of them can't read!" Since there's nine on the team, 'Most' means at least 5, and 'Almost half' means 4. Certainly you can read with a low-level intelligence. Granted, Miss Pauling might just be plain exaggerating: |
| 369 | ** Scout: As long as that book wasn't actually a picture book, yes. |
| 370 | *** In ''The Naked and the Dead''', Scout has trouble reading the word "Submachine gun" written on a crate. He ''can'' read, but his grasp is presumably weak enough to class as 'illiterate'. |
| 371 | ** Soldier: Apparently enough to get a roommate, find Germany from the U.S., and others. Maybe he learned from looking at the instructions to prepare on an MRE? Oh, and he might have been reading the alerts in the beginning of Meet The Spy... or he might have been parroting the Administrator and looking at the pretty lights. He's also got the bit of the Newspaper advertising to him directly for the condiments pallets, and given they're leaving it in "The usual location" it implies he's read and agreed to this before. |
| 372 | ** Pyro: In Pyroland, the lit-up directional signs that read things like "INTELLIGENCE" or "RESUPPLY" will instead read as "MMPH", "MMM MMPH" and so on, essentially botching any meaning the words were supposed to have and making any writing unintelligible. In [[http://www.teamfortress.com/tf01_ring_of_fired/#f=46 Ring of Fired]], Pyro is shown to be reading through a newspaper but its view through Pyrovision shows a blank sheet instead. |
| 373 | ** Demoman: Knows enough to own a mansion, unless his mother does the paperwork for it, but knowing her, it's more likely Demo does the paperwork for it. |
| 374 | *** Might be worth mentioning that Demoman usually only ever sees Pauling when he's at work during normal circumstances, which is also the time he's usually drunk beyond reason. It's likely that the Drunk Demoman is the Demoman Pauling is familiar with. |
| 375 | ** Heavy: Getting a [=PhD=] in Russian Literature requires learning how to read at some point, but probably in Russian and not English. Worse, Russian is written in a different script than English, and some seemingly-identical characters [[TheBackwardsR have completely different sounds]]. |
| 376 | ** Engineer: When he reads The Story of an Australian Christmas to Pyro, and when he gets his grandfather's plans on the immortality machine. In the Gun Mettle Update, Miss Pauling states she needs somebody who can read for one mission. |
| 377 | ** Medic: He can't have been studying and using that Chalkboard in "Sound of Medicine" without learning how to read it and write on it, not to mention his Quick Fix has "Ubercharge On" on a light in ''Meet the Medic'', which given that he invented both the concept of the Quick fix and that of the Ubercharge, implies he put it there for his own use, and thus can read it. |
| 378 | ** Sniper: So far he's read the Jarate ad and instructions. |
| 379 | ** Spy: He read the Dapper Rogue catalogue and scribbled on it. |
| 380 | * The Chargin' Targe has the ability to damage enemies by itself during a charge, but only if the user collides with the enemy at the end of the charge. So if you only charge about a yard, that ''large, bloody spike'' that you ran into your target with does absolutely nothing. |
| 381 | ** For that matter, one has to wonder how a ''wooden'' shield protects you from being ''set on fire''. |
| 382 | *** As of the 2015 Tough Break update, the above is resolved. |
| 383 | * As revealed by ''The Naked and the Dead'', Medic somehow stole the souls of the other eight mercs and added them to his own. But we've seen two of them die and enter Heaven, one of them just pages before the reveal. How? |
| 384 | ** Delusions from blood loss. Failing that, maybe it has something to do with the souls not actually belonging to the Medic, and thus he essentially ''bluffed'' his way out of Hell. |
| 385 | *** We never know where he got those souls from, for all we know he stole them from the TFC team. |
| 386 | ** Medic probably did surgically implant the souls of the other 8 mercs into himself, as he does have a FreudianSlip [[http://www.teamfortress.com/tf06_thenakedandthedead/#f=254 about it a few pages later.]] Maybe having a soul isn't a requirement to go to Heaven in the Team Fortress universe. |
| 387 | ** Given that the Devil himself legitimately did not know Medic had 8 more souls in him, it's likely that God and whoever's managing Heaven's Gate didn't realize that the people going up there didn't have souls either. Given the Devil's reaction, it sounds like the Medic was the first ever person to do something like that, so it wouldn't be surprising if God and the Heaven people didn't bother checking for a soul (they probably assume that if the person had sold their soul to the devil, the devil would be the one doing the legwork to actually verify it.) |
| 388 | * ''The Naked and the Dead'' has a BigRedDevil when the Medic gets down there, but it's been previously established that the Bombinomicon is the devil here... so what gives? Is he just a bureaucrat, or maybe a case of HellHasNewManagement? |
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