Moonlighters is an animated fire safety short by Fire Kills. It is very similar to Frances the Firefly, but has an outer space setting, and warns about the dangers of cigarette lighters instead of matches.
The story is about two Moon creatures, Biblock and Hoblock, who discover an abandoned lighter on the moon. When they ask their computer to analyze it, they are warned how dangerous lighters are. Unfortunately, Hoblock's curiosity leads to disaster...
It can be seen here
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Moonlighters contains examples of the following tropes:
- The Atoner: Hoblock works to repair the computer, which we're told will take a very long time, and each day gives his little sister a dire warning about the danger of playing with lighters.
- Can't Get Away with Nuthin': Hoblock plays with the lighter despite the computer's warning, causing a fire that destroys the city.
- The Engineer: Hoblock takes on the task of fixing the computer that was destroyed in the fire.
- Higher-Tech Species: The Moon creatures have become technologically advanced enough to live without fire.
- Idiot Ball: Hoblock decides to go back for the lighter and play with it, despite the computer's clear warning about how dangerous they are.
- Lost Technology: The destruction of the Moon city and the computer forces the aliens to revert to their primitive life underground.
- Lunarians: The protagonists are all aliens that live on the moon.
- Mood Whiplash: The computer sounds rather goofy when trying to analyze the object, but becomes very serious when it realizes it's a lighter, and gives a stern warning about how dangerous they are.
- My Greatest Failure: How Hoblock sees his actions by the end of the story, as he warns his sister every day not to make the same mistake he did.
- Recycled In Space: It's basically Frances The Firefly on the Moon with aliens.
- Riddle for the Ages: How did the lighter get on the moon in the first place?
- Satiating Sandwich: Hoblock seems to like sandwiches, as his sister brings him some every day.
- Slasher Smile: Hoblock has one when he sneaks out to get the lighter. This implies he knew he was doing wrong, but his curiosity about the lighter was too powerful.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: Hoblock's sister forgives him for starting the fire, and visits him every day while he works on the computer.
- A Tragedy of Impulsiveness: Hoblock's desire to see if lighters really are dangerous causes a massive fire that burns down the Moon city.
- Uncertain Doom: The computer identifies the lighter as something humans made "a long time ago". The aliens' apparent lack of familiarity with humans suggests that they may be extinct by the time the story takes place.
- Viewers Are Goldfish: The film repeatedly flashes the words, "This is a public information film" throughout the runtime.
