History Webcomic / EightBitTheater

* DestructiveSaviour: That is, when they're saving. Which is quite rare these days

''[[http://www.nuklearpower.com/8-bit-theater/ 8-Bit Theater]]'' is a SpriteComic by BrianClevinger that ran from [[WebcomicsLongRunners 2001 through 2010.]] Its plot, an AffectionateParody of the original ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyI Final Fantasy]]'', follows the four Light Warriors (who really aren't the best for the job): [[AwesomeMcCoolName Fighter McWarrior]], an [[RalphWiggum astoundingly stupid]] sword-obsessed warrior with [[DumbassHasAPoint rare good ideas]]; BlackMage [[MeaningfulName Evilwizardington]], an AxCrazy [[HeroicSociopath sociopath]] who is only saved from being a CompleteMonster by the RuleOfFunny and a [[ButtMonkey tendency to get hurt]]; [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Thief]], a fugitive prince of elf clan [[PunctuationShaker Khee'bler]] armed with extreme greed and an expertise in [[MiserAdvisor manipulative contracts]]; and RedMage Statscowski, a [[TheStrategist strategist]] who considers life to be a [[TabletopGames tabletop game]], is [[{{Munchkin}} obsessed with his stats]], and also likes to [[CrossDresser cross dress]].

-->-- '''Red Mage''', [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2008/08/05/episode-1021-open-with-a-joke/ summing up one half the comic.]]

''[[http://www.nuklearpower.com/8-bit-theater/ 8-Bit Theater]]'' is a SpriteComic by BrianClevinger that ran from [[WebcomicsLongRunners 2001 through 2010.]] Its plot, an AffectionateParody of the original ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyI Final Fantasy]]'', follows the four Light Warriors (who really aren't the best for the job): [[AwesomeMcCoolName Fighter McWarrior]], an [[RalphWiggum astoundingly stupid]] sword-obsessed warrior with [[DumbassHasAPoint rare good ideas]]; BlackMage [[MeaningfulName Evilwizardington]], an AxCrazy [[HeroicSociopath sociopath]] who is only saved from being a CompleteMonster by the RuleOfFunny and a [[ButtMonkey tendency to get hurt]]; [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Thief]], a fugitive prince of elf clan [[PunctuationShaker Khee'bler]] armed with extreme greed and an expertise in [[MiserAdvisor manipulative contracts]]; and Red Mage Statscowski, a [[TheStrategist strategist]] who considers life to be a [[TabletopGames tabletop game]], is [[{{Munchkin}} obsessed with his stats]], and also likes to [[CrossDresser cross dress]].

-->-- '''Black Mage''', [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2009/05/21/episode-1130-so-close-yet-so-far/ summing up the other half of the comic.]]

''[[http://www.nuklearpower.com/8-bit-theater/ 8-Bit Theater]]'' is a SpriteComic by BrianClevinger that ran from [[WebcomicsLongRunners 2001 through 2010.]] Its plot, an AffectionateParody of the original ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyI Final Fantasy]]'', follows the four Light Warriors (who really aren't the best for the job): [[AwesomeMcCoolName Fighter McWarrior]], an [[RalphWiggum astoundingly stupid]] sword-obsessed warrior with [[DumbassHasAPoint rare good ideas]]; Black Mage [[MeaningfulName Evilwizardington]], an AxCrazy [[HeroicSociopath sociopath]] who is only saved from being a CompleteMonster by the RuleOfFunny and a [[ButtMonkey tendency to get hurt]]; [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Thief]], a fugitive prince of elf clan [[PunctuationShaker Khee'bler]] armed with extreme greed and an expertise in [[MiserAdvisor manipulative contracts]]; and Red Mage Statscowski, a [[TheStrategist strategist]] who considers life to be a [[TabletopGames tabletop game]], is [[{{Munchkin}} obsessed with his stats]], and also likes to [[CrossDresser cross dress]].

* {{Crunchtastic}}: Black Mage [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2005/06/23/episode-567-paralinguistics/ once]] concluded that his hatred of Fighter is so great that there is no word strong enough to express it. So - with Red Mage's help - he made up a new one: ''omniloathe''. Obviously Fighter [[CompletelyMissingThePoint missed the point]] and was overjoyed that he and Black Mage had "got best buddy codewords now".

* EveryoneGetInHere

* OrIsIt

** Red Mage believes that he lives in an RPGMechanicsVerse, so naturally he is very genre savvy about RPG tropes. His attempts at using his knowledge of tropes in practice are occasionally successful; however, [[WrongGenreSavvy usually they aren't]].
* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: Black Mage, [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2003/06/28/episode-301-oops/ interestingly enough]].
** [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2006/04/25/episode-687-graphic-detail/ here is another good example]].

* AscendedMeme: When a [[http://nuklearforums.com/showthread.php?p=941207#post941207 particular bit]] of InsaneTrollLogic took off like a rocket in the ''EightBitTheatre'' forums, the author decided to honor it in-comic with [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2009/07/14/episode-1152-not-the-best-comeback/ the only character suited for the job.]]

* FakeUltimateHero: ZigZagged [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2010/03/20/episode-1224-a-legend-is-born/ with.]] [[spoiler: Black Mage, Thief[[strike:, Fighter]] and Red Mage were pretending to take the credit for destroying Chaos, [[DefiedTrope so in order to prevent that]] White Mage [[InvokedTrope set up the Dark Warriors]] as "The very real Liight Warriors"]]

* IgnoredEpiphany: Black Mage has had a few, [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2003/05/31/episode-289-a-change-of-heart/ this]] being the most notable. Later, he becomes DangerouslyGenreSavvy enough to fake having an Epiphany).

* InformedAttractiveness: White Mage (thanks to it being a sprite comic, of course) although there was [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2001/05/03/episode-024-shes-a-white-magic-woman/one attempt to show it when she was first introduced.]]

* MegaManning: Black Mage becomes a blue mage, gaining the ability to use the powers of those that attack him. Unfortunately, the only spells he actually learned this way were: 1) a spell to make himself puke his guts out; 2) a spell to let [[JerkAss Sarda]] rewrite reality; and 3) a "spell" that allows him to kick people in the nuts.

* MixAndMatchCritters: [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2004/04/10/episode-406-and-badger-snakes/ I'm sorry, no I won't take it. If we accept orc zombies, then we open the gate to all kinds of crap. What's next? Centaur dragons? How about demon fairies? Maybe buffalo elves? Heck, why not whale vultures?]]

* SpannerInTheWorks: Many examples, but the biggest one is ([[spoiler:Sarda, to himself. Sometime in the present, he teleports White Mage into a "pocket dimension" because she was annoying him. It turns out this "pocket dimesion" is actually the beginning of the universe... and a younger version of himself arrives there a few seconds too late to mold the universe to his will.]]

* BlackAndBlackMorality: In a world where the "heroes" are worse than the villains; the people in charge of things are insane, megalomaniacal, or both; the "heroes" are sadistic bloodthirsty killers; attempts to bring any sort of peace or happiness seem to fail by default; and [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment the "heroes" are singlehandledly responsible for most of the world's suffering]], the only thing preventing DarknessInducedAudienceApathy is seeing just how over the top the BlackComedy gets.
** BlackAndGrayMorality: Then again, Fighter is just too dumb to notice his comrades are roping him into doing evil things, and White Mage is a good person... in a world where GoodIsImpotent [[spoiler:(the AntiClimax ending aside, anyway)]]. And the BigBad is (somehow) even more of an OmnicidalManiac than Black Mage.

* HangingSeparately

* VomitIndiscretionShot: Black Mage is the king of this...usually projectile vomiting style. Thief's comment that he saw "[[IfYouKnowWhatIMean darker wood in elf porn]]" made this happen spontaneously. His discovery of the [[InterspeciesRomance true nature of Bahamut and Matoya's relationship]] and just what the [[MacGuffin Rat Tail]] was used for made him eject things he hadn't eaten yet.

** For that matter, Black Mage on those occasions he's not consumed with omnicidal rage. He's been known to discuss [[WhoWouldWin super hero deathmatches]] with Red Mage.

** PowerTrio
*** TheKirk: Buckley
*** TheSpock: Clevinger
*** TheMcCoy: Mookie

''[[http://www.nuklearpower.com/8-bit-theater/ 8-Bit Theater]]'' is a SpriteComic by BrianClevinger that ran from [[WebcomicsLongRunners 2001 through 2010.]] Its plot, an AffectionateParody of the original ''[[FinalFantasyI Final Fantasy]]'', follows the four Light Warriors (who really aren't the best for the job): [[AwesomeMcCoolName Fighter McWarrior]], an [[RalphWiggum astoundingly stupid]] sword-obsessed warrior with [[DumbassHasAPoint rare good ideas]]; Black Mage [[MeaningfulName Evilwizardington]], an AxCrazy [[HeroicSociopath sociopath]] who is only saved from being a CompleteMonster by the RuleOfFunny and a [[ButtMonkey tendency to get hurt]]; [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Thief]], a fugitive prince of elf clan [[PunctuationShaker Khee'bler]] armed with extreme greed and an expertise in [[MiserAdvisor manipulative contracts]]; and Red Mage Statscowski, a [[TheStrategist strategist]] who considers life to be a [[TabletopGames tabletop game]], is [[{{Munchkin}} obsessed with his stats]], and also likes to [[CrossDresser cross dress]].

* ContinuityNod: All over the place in the WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue. [[RunningGag Elite Guard Hank is still chasing the messenger.]] The Dark Warriors' Restaurant contains the heads of the werewolves encountered by the Light Warriors early on in the comics run, as well as one of Garland's motivational posters, Dr. Malpractice, the fake prince, Princess Sara, Left Hand Man Gary and the Sulk. The menus in the restaurant have options like [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2008/06/10/episode-1003-not-up-to-code/ Twelve Dragon Nachos,]] [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2006/03/09/episode-670-gettin-tchaikovsky-wit-it/ Goblin Punch,]] [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2005/12/13/episode-634-you-were-right/ Rat Tail Soup,]] Orbs of Water and foods named after the Four Fiends. Some law ninja are visible outside of Thief's palace. Akbar is still in business in whatever town we see Fighter and Black Mage in. He also appears to be selling [[FinalFantasyVII Cloud's Buster Sword]] -and- [[FinalFantasyVIII Squall's gunblade]]. Also in the town are [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2007/04/03/episode-828-backfired/ the legitimate businessman and his lackey,]] and a cultist. Fighter is equipped with his regular swords and some swordchucks [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2003/05/24/episode-286-the-gangs-all-here/ named Stabby and Slashy]]. Finally, the entire series ends with [[spoiler:a reference to the Armor of Invincibility.]]

* FandomNod: Arguably, a certain Nintendo Power issue mentioned in the entries for BrickJoke and CallBack. That strategy guide suggested trying to beat FinalFantasyI with four unpromoted White Mages, as one of the first {{Self Imposed Challenge}}s in modern video gaming (and one that's still famous among old-school FinalFantasy fans).

* GrandfatherClause: Like ''{{Bob and George}}'', only in regards to ''FinalFantasyI''

--> '''Fighter:''' Here's one! They're recruiting for something called [[FinalFantasyVII SOLDIER]].

--> '''Fighter:''' [[FinalFantasyVIII The dukedom of Dollet is hiring mercenaries to repel Galbadian aggression]].

--> '''Fighter:''' We could join the search for a [[FinalFantasyIX missing Alexandrian princess]].

--> '''Fighter:''' Ah, they've already got a black mage. Oh, [[FinalFantasyX escorting a religious pilgrimage?]]

--> '''Fighter:''' We could [[FinalFantasyXI find a few other adventurers and join the fight against the Shadowlord.]]

--> '''Fighter:''' Eh. [[FinalFantasyXII Everything]] [[FinalFantasyXIII after]] [[FinalFantasyXIV that]] [[FinalFantasyXV sounds]] like a waste of time.

*** An earlier strip had Red Mage suggesting to distract Fighter by telling him to [[FinalFantasyX finish a race in]] [[ThatOneSideQuest 0:00 seconds]], only for the latter to state that he's not THAT stupid.
** One to FinalFantasyX [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2007/04/26/episode-838-no-air-down-there/ here]]; the [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2007/04/28/episode-839-wide-world-of-sports/ reality of certain Final Fantasy sporting events]].

* WebcomicOfTheGame: Follows the plot of ''FinalFantasyI''... kinda. The comic's contents often venture far outside the realm of the game, making this more of a "very loosely-inspired by" series rather than a faithful adaption.

* SurroundedByIdiots: Black Mage's temper and remaining sanity are continuously frayed by the rampant illogical insanity, stupidity and lack of all reason that tends to crop up in Red Mage's and Figther's vicinity (which isn't exactly conducive to the good health of the group]]). Thief also makes the same claim, but he gets far too much enjoyment out of screwing everyone out of everything they currently or ''will'' own, to be more than [[SomebodyElsesProblem occasionally annoyed by the irrationality.]]

* SurroundedByIdiots: Black Mage's temper and remaining sanity are continuously frayed by the rampant illogical insanity, stupidity and lack of all reason that tends to crop up in Red Mage's and Figther's vicinity (which [[AxCrazy isn't conducive to the good health of the group]]). Thief also makes the same claim, but he gets far too much enjoyment out of screwing everyone out of everything they currently or ''will'' own, to be more than [[SomebodyElsesProblem occasionally annoyed by the irrationality.]]

** [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2010/02/20/episode-1221-longest-set-up-in-webcomic-history/ "Because you weren't here when White Mage, Priest, Shama, and Healer KILLED Chaos."]]

* BrownNote: Listening to any of the Light Warriors speak for any length of time can be hazardous to your health. Fighter regularly makes listeners too stupid to think (including the omnipotent Sarda), but Red Mage is almost as bad, talking with Thief for any amount of time will likely end with you having no money, and Black Mage once came out with an insult so awesome it killed a man.

** For that matter, Black Mage on those occasions he's not consumed with omnicidal rage. He's been known to discuss [[Talk/WhoWouldWin super hero deathmatches]] with Red Mage.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Of LexLuthor, [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2009/03/17/episode-1106-from-a-certain-point-of-view/ strangely enough]].