Alien Ant Farm

Summary

Alien Ant Farm is a real-world musical group whose cover of Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal" becomes a topic of discussion in Session 8 of the campaign. The band appears in the fiction when the party acquires a mini disc containing their music, prompting an extended out-of-character conversation among the players about the band, their music video, and MTV culture. Sucks Benedict specifically references the song as poor date music based on personal experience.

Details

The band's cover of "Smooth Criminal" is described as a "new metal cover" of the original Michael Jackson song. The music video features the band in a boxing ring and a kid in a mask performing dancing on a sidewalk. Players at the table note that the kid's dancing in the video is particularly impressive.

Beyond the in-game mention, the players discuss several real-world facts about Alien Ant Farm during Session 8. The band released their first album in 1999 and titled it "Greatest Hits," which the players find noteworthy. One player discovers that Alien Ant Farm was trending on Twitter the previous year. The discussion expands to include commentary about MTV music videos and NPV Music channels showing punk rock and metal videos at 3am, as well as the band members' current appearance.

Sucks Benedict offers specific testimony about the music's romantic unsuitability:

"The mini disc we got was Alien Ant Farm, so it's not really the best date music in my experience. And believe me, I have tried to use it. I went on a date with this girl named Annie and I played that one song. It was not okay. She was not okay. She did not like it."

The digression about Alien Ant Farm represents one of Session 8's most significant out-of-character detours, with multiple players—including Cat, Abdul, Dayna, Brad, and Shawn—participating in the extended conversation about music videos, MTV, and the band's history.

History

Session 8

The party acquires a mini disc containing Alien Ant Farm's music. Sucks Benedict identifies the content and immediately characterizes it as unsuitable date music, sharing the story of attempting to use it on a date with a girl named Annie with unsuccessful results.

The party watches the music video for "Smooth Criminal," observing the boxing ring setting and the dancing kid. This sparks the broader out-of-character discussion about the band's career, their "Greatest Hits" album title choice, and their presence in internet culture. Players look up information about the band during the session, discovering details about their 1999 debut and recent Twitter trending.