"The world did not need the Belligerwitch, but it thought it did. The ideas and theories of the amateur extremist group appealed to only a few in the beginning, but soon the number of followers grew. Those who saw the evil in their ways formed the Peace-Bull. With America split into two, a civil war has sprung with no clear winner in sight. Now, for the first time, the Belligerwitch's ever-growing army feels the foam-related presence of fear."
The Great Nerf War is a web series created by SaulsburyStStudios
, premering in 2011.
As the title and above quote implies, the premise of the series features an Alternate Universe Civil War between the Peace-Bull and the Belligerwitch, where the primary weapons used are Nerf guns. The series has a serious outlook, but it has a fair amount of funny moments from both factions.
The first episode can be seen here.
The Great Nerf War provides examples of:
- Armed Farces: technically applies to the entire series but is most apparent in Season 1 when Captain Edgar is still portrayed as partially incompetent. This fades as the stakes get higher with each season.
- Band of Brothers: Basically the entire 59th Company but specifically the M.I.N.O.T.A.U.R.S.
- Benched Hero: Captain Edgar during Season 2 and to a lesser extent sometimes Donnie, Baineswolf, and Harry
- Bloodless Carnage: Since Nerf guns are the weapons that are used in the series, no blood can be shed from getting hit by darts. However, injury and death are still relevant.
- Bond One-Liner: Multiple instances, for example:
- Oliver Rhodey:"Zombs away"
- Solomon:"Those aren't yours"
- Captain Edgar:"You're on thin ice, boy"
- This is also made fun of when Harry asks "How come I don't have any fun one-liners?"
- Color-Coded for Your Convenience: The Peace-Bull side has black and blue while the Belligerwitch side has green and gray.
- Cowboy Episode: Season 3, Episode 3:Reanimation Starvation! is filmed in black and white (except for Captain Edgar's green eye in the last scene) and has Captain Edgar suddenly wearing a much more Western inspired outfit.
- Dramatic Unmask: This sort of happens to Florentine in Season 3,Episode 6:The Good Withstood when Lion manages to open Florentine's visor during the fight. However, we don't get to see what Lion saw before Florentine closes the visor again.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: Several examples in Season 1, Episode 1: Rescue Cue:
- Florentine speaks with a New York accent instead of a British accent.
- Commander Nhine doesn’t get the hooded vest he’s frequently seen in until Episode 2. In Episode 1, he’s wearing a fitted sheet.
- The character Mexico never appears again despite being set up to be one of the main three antagonists of the series. She is later replaced by New Mexico.
- Enemy Mine: The Peace-Bull and Belligerwitch often get into this situation when zombies are involved.
- Evil Power Vacuum: Happens off camera between the 2nd and 3rd Season after Florentine kills Commander Nhine in the Season 2 finale and is addressed by Florentine in the beginning of Season 3.
- Feedback Rule: The radio feedback noise is used a few times, usually to show that someone who shouldn't be there has just hacked into the commlinks.
- Vic and Rhodey also use it as a weapon against Florentine in Season 4,Episode 3:Forebode's Road.
- Foreboding Fleeing Flock: Season 4, Episode 5:Suit Pursuit opens on Wattson saying that he's worried about Silas stalking them and that hasn't even seen a squirrel.
- the last scene of the episode shows a squirrel returning to the area, showing that Silas is gone and the danger is over.
- Forced Friendly Fire: In Season 4, Episode 5:Suit Pursuit Silas attempts to force Wattson to shoot Donnie.
- Gosh Dang It to Heck!: All curse words in the series are replaced with "Nerf."
- Green and Mean: The Belligerwitch are the series antagonists. Their colors are green and grey
- Hopeless War: From Season 4, Episode 7: Full on Bull on out with countless innocent civilians brainwashed to fight for the Belligerwitch.
- Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: Almost all the episode titles rhyme. For example:
- Rusted Trust
- Snowball Brawl
- Split Hit
- Suit Pursuit
- Macross Missile Massacre: Both the "Bull-Shark" and the "Bulls on wheels"-Manouver or whenever the Hailfire is used.
- Stock Scream: A Wilhelm Scream can be heard in Season 3,Episode 4: Behold the Cold when Jade throws an axe at an off-screen Peace-Bull.
- Take It to the Bridge: The plot of Season 5, Episode 2: Belligerwitch Bridge revolves around a tactically important bridge and even has it in the title.
- The Dragon: Florentine throughout most of the series, even though this position partially shifts to Silas and Tremor in the last two Seasons
- You could even call him a Dragon-in-Chief
