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NASA Parodies Reach New Level of Awkwardness

MMBK writes "NASA TV recently produced six movie-trailer parodies about current projects for a 'themed exhibit at an international conference.' But for the most part, the attempt remains pretty corny, far, far away from the imaginative, inspiring work of space artists like Bruce McCall."

5 of 28 comments (clear)

  1. Sure, Give NASA a Shoestring Budget and Then Laugh by eldavojohn · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I didn't think the videos were that terrible but maybe it's because I've had to sit through corporate sexual harassment videos that made my sides split.

    Anyway, what do you expect? Our elected officials cut NASA's budget and then you expect them to come out with award winning promotional materials? I'm glad marketing and publicity are the first things to get cut and not, you know, the actual James Webb Space Telescope.

    Personally, if I was NASA, I would have just commissioned Apple Daily to make the videos for me. I actually started preferring their news style to Fox News and CNN despite my inability to understand Chinese. I don't know if Adult Swim commissions them or if they're just rebranding Next Media's productions but they sure are hilarious. I'm probably not your average consumer but seeing the first of those videos on Adult Swim just made me want to see more. NASA should have just invited their reporters out with no translators and let them make the promotional videos as a poignant stunt to remind the public how little taxpayer funding they're getting these days. Here's to hoping private industry picks up the slack otherwise we're never getting off this rock.

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    My work here is dung.
  2. Re:It's not hilarious but by Coren22 · · Score: 2, Informative

    Yes, that robot is currently on the ISS. http://www.newkerala.com/news/fullnews-89851.html
    I didn't see any articles that talk about after it was brought up though.

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    APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
  3. Re:Sure, Give NASA a Shoestring Budget and Then La by openfrog · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Eldavojohn, I agree with you: the videos are not that terrible.

    I would add that the first one is about the first humanoid robot in space, to be launched soon. If this proves popular, this may help to direct funds to more scientifically oriented missions, instead of this obsession with sending people in space.

    This is a touchy topic of course; that might explain the rather slanted tone of the story. Oh, and I checked McCall's work. A bit too corny for me, except the poster he did for 2001 Space Odyssee.

  4. intentional by j00r0m4nc3r · · Score: 2, Informative

    Why is nobody considering the possibility that the videos are intentionally campy? I thought they were a little fun for exactly that reason...

  5. Re:Sure, Give NASA a Shoestring Budget and Then La by magarity · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Our elected officials cut NASA's budget..

    No they didn't. Yet so many people think they did. It's odd.

    You're not very good at government budget speak. When a given agency's budget is increased by:
     
    1. less that it was in a prior year
    3. less than promised for this year from several years ago
    4. less than what its administrators want
    5. less than some other agency's increase
     
    The budget was slashed! Oh noes!