Blastin' Until The Cows Come Home - Earthworm Jim crawls back out of the dirt! (EWJ'S SECOND 160-page comic now on Kickstarter!)

[PsychoJosh]

Okay... so... before all this happened, Doug was posting EWJ drawings to his instagram. We didn't think much of it, we thought he was just making them for fun. Then the comic book and new game got announced and it turns out some of the drawings were indeed for the comic book.

So today I went back to one particular drawing on his instagram and saw this.

....is there something else he's not telling us?

 

[SuperDoom1]

Okay... so... before all this happened, Doug was posting EWJ drawings to his instagram. We didn't think much of it, we thought he was just making them for fun. Then the comic book and new game got announced and it turns out some of the drawings were indeed for the comic book.

So today I went back to one particular drawing on his instagram and saw this.

....is there something else he's not telling us?

OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD

 

[PsychoJosh]

https://store.iam8bit.com/products/earthworm-jim-1-2-25th-anniversary-edition

Wow! Seems we're suddenly being hit with an avalanche of new Earthworm Jim stuff.

 

[shinhed-echi]

https://store.iam8bit.com/products/earthworm-jim-1-2-25th-anniversary-edition

View attachment 220920

Wow! Seems we're suddenly being hit with an avalanche of new Earthworm Jim stuff.

Would you say the licensing nightmare is over?

 

[PsychoJosh]

It seems Interplay is under new management who cares more about their IP. We'll see how things turn out but they're definitely making all the right moves. Figures they'd capitalize on EWJ novelty items now that the announcement is hot. It's an exciting time for a die-hard EWJ fan, I can say that much!

 

[Megadoomer]

https://store.iam8bit.com/products/earthworm-jim-1-2-25th-anniversary-edition

View attachment 220920

Wow! Seems we're suddenly being hit with an avalanche of new Earthworm Jim stuff.

Here's hoping it's not like the Street Fighter II reproduction carts, where it might cause the SNES to catch fire if you try playing the game. There's no warning this time around, thankfully.

 

[SuperSonicFlyer]

You can count me in as a supporter, for I think Earthworm Jim will make a great addition to Smash Bros. Ultimate. Sign me up!

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

AAAaaaAAAA

THIS IS SO COOL

Oh my god I'm so happy Jimmy's back Jimmy's back JIMMY'S BACK

Noice, I would have loved to read a comic that was just like the first game manual's story. It being in Doug's modern style is icing on the cake.

I don't think they'll be using any music from the TV show, but there's already a ton of good tunes from all three games in the series to choose from, so I'd think his song list would be really fleshed out and probably one of the longer tracklists in the game.

Plus some of it is public domain. Imagine hearing Funiculi Funicula, and the Moonlight Sonata, 1st and 3rd movements!

https://store.iam8bit.com/products/earthworm-jim-1-2-25th-anniversary-edition

View attachment 220920

Wow! Seems we're suddenly being hit with an avalanche of new Earthworm Jim stuff.

Although I do have a spare cart for the second game, I sure wouldn't mind having one of these. Cow print would be great for me.

And hey, this got advertised on Nintendo Life, too!

Okay... so... before all this happened, Doug was posting EWJ drawings to his instagram. We didn't think much of it, we thought he was just making them for fun. Then the comic book and new game got announced and it turns out some of the drawings were indeed for the comic book.

So today I went back to one particular drawing on his instagram and saw this.

....is there something else he's not telling us?

Now, I know I shouldn't be jumping to conclusions, but.

Spoiler

I can't believe my silly wish of Jim being in this game might come true.

 

[Cabbagehead]

I'd be down to see EWJ in Smash. Never got to play the games, but I'm psyched to read the comic! And, let's be honest, just about any actual Nintendo character I could want is either a Spirit or an AT, so it's slim-pickings from here.

He isn't the most...Nintendo-oriented character, but then again, neither's Snake, and yet here he is. At least Jim is wacky enough to meld better with the Nintendo cast.

 

[PsychoJosh]

How isn't he Nintendo-oriented? He's known for being multiplatform.

Sure EWJ1 was made for the Genesis, but EWJ2 was better on the SNES.

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

How isn't he Nintendo-oriented? He's known for being multiplatform.

Sure EWJ1 was made for the Genesis, but EWJ2 was better on the SNES.

Although it was best on the Sega Saturn. Not that much people remember that version.

Also, he had a brief feud with .

Also also, his last original game was Nintendo-exclusive, but we don't like to talk about that one...

 

[shinhed-echi]

EWJ is more associated with SEGA for some reason. And that’s cool, I’m a die hard SEGA fan.

But EWJ has had at least noticeable presence on Nintendo. 4 times if we count Clay Fighter 63 1/3, if I’m not mistaken.
That’s as much presence as Snake has on Nintendo, outside smash, of course.

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

And Sega is big buddies with the big N enough nowadays to let 3 of their characters in here.

So I have a hard time seeing the point, really.

 

[PsychoJosh]

EWJ is more associated with SEGA for some reason. And that’s cool, I’m a die hard SEGA fan.

But EWJ has had at least noticeable presence on Nintendo. 4 times if we count Clay Fighter 63 1/3, if I’m not mistaken.
That’s as much presence as Snake has on Nintendo, outside smash, of course.

Five if we count Menace 2 the Galaxy on GBC.

Although it was best on the Sega Saturn.

EWJ2? No way. The soundtrack was nicer, but they completely ruined the art style cohesion the SNES game had with hideously ugly "look we can do 3D renders too" style backgrounds. Also ISO 9000 had the bagpipe music instead of Lorenzen's Soil which just felt wrong.

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

Five if we count Menace 2 the Galaxy on GBC.



EWJ2? No way. The soundtrack was nicer, but they completely ruined the art style cohesion the SNES game had with hideously ugly "look we can do 3D renders too" style backgrounds. Also ISO 9000 had the bagpipe music instead of Lorenzen's Soil which just felt wrong.

It's a shame that EWJ2 never had an HD version that the first one got (which had some pretty stupider decisions anyway, like omitting to include the Big Bruty level, to the point that even Doug rejected it). At least then there would have been a compromise. Although I will concede that volcanoes do not work as a look for Puppy Love.

Speaking of backgrounds, I always did prefer the red one for Anything But Tangerines. I can't understand why the various versions were pretty inconsistent about that.

 

[SuperSonicFlyer]

Here is what I think Jim's Final Smash should be if he ever got into Smash.

Cow Rain: Jim says, "Eat Cow!", and a bunch of cows rain from the sky, damaging everyone but Earthworm Jim himself. Some of the cows even explode, making them deadlier. These cows can be dodged.

What do you all think?

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

Here is what I think Jim's Final Smash should be if he ever got into Smash.

Cow Rain: Jim says, "Eat Cow!", and a bunch of cows rain from the sky, damaging everyone but Earthworm Jim himself. Some of the cows even explode, making them deadlier. These cows can be dodged.

What do you all think?

Personally, I prefer the Barn Blaster from EWJ2; quick, concise and to the point. It would work like one of the Star Fox Smart Bombs, but with a mushroom cloud instead (replacing the white screen flash in the original game).

 

[SuperSonicFlyer]

Personally, I prefer the Barn Blaster from EWJ2; quick, concise and to the point. It would work like one of the Star Fox Smart Bombs, but with a mushroom cloud instead (replacing the white screen flash in the original game).

Do you know a video with the Barn Blaster in action? There's no reason we can't have both. Have the explosion from the mushroom cloud have cows falling and raining on the Smashers and causing damage. I mean, it is called the BARN Blaster, right?

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

Do you know a video with the Barn Blaster in action? There's no reason we can't have both. Have the explosion from the mushroom cloud have cows falling and raining on the Smashers and causing damage. I mean, it is called the BARN Blaster, right?

Oh sure, here you go.

 

[SuperSonicFlyer]

Oh sure, here you go.

That would work, but it would work better if cows were involved as I described before.

 

[PsychoJosh]

That would work, but it would work better if cows were involved as I described before.

Did you read the moveset I made in the OP? His down+B is a cow drop, which summons a cow at his location. He can do a variety of things with the cow like spiking opponents with it or smacking it on the rump to send it stampeding into a crowd of enemies, which can be used to great effect if you get the rare exploding cow (1 out of every 10 cows dropped is an explosive cow).

The barn blaster would be best for his Final Smash, which could be improved by adding some animation flair to it (the gun blows steam out of its chimney as it charges up before firing the gigantic ball of plasma). It's such a goofy and over-the-top weapon design that suits him perfectly.

 

[SuperSonicFlyer]

Did you read the moveset I made in the OP? His down+B is a cow drop, which summons a cow at his location. He can do a variety of things with the cow like spiking opponents with it or smacking it on the rump to send it stampeding into a crowd of enemies, which can be used to great effect if you get the rare exploding cow (1 out of every 10 cows dropped is an explosive cow).

The barn blaster would be best for his Final Smash, which could be improved by adding some animation flair to it (the gun blows steam out of its chimney as it charges up before firing the gigantic ball of plasma). It's such a goofy and over-the-top weapon design that it fits perfectly as his FS.

First off, I was kinda kidding on what I said that you quoted.

Secondly, well, that is interesting. I will go check it out.

 

[PsychoJosh]

Actually I updated it a little bit with screenshots from EWJ2 to visually demonstrate what his attacks would look like.

 

[SuperSonicFlyer]

Here is one thing I never understood: What is with Earthworm Jim and cows, anyway?

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

Here is one thing I never understood: What is with Earthworm Jim and cows, anyway?

Doug, the creator of the games, lived near a farm, iirc.

 

[SuperSonicFlyer]

Doug, the creator of the games, lived near a farm, iirc.

That also must explain Jim being an Earthworm. You know, "Through the soil he did crawl*, or in this case, farm soil. I wonder if anything fell from the sky when Doug came to that farm?

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

That also must explain Jim being an Earthworm. You know, "Through the soil he did crawl*, or in this case, farm soil. I wonder if anything fell from the sky when Doug came to that farm?

Probably not, but it's fun to think about.

 

[candysell]

Put me up for the Earthworm Jim support. I would like to see him in Smash

 

[SuperDoom1]

https://store.iam8bit.com/products/earthworm-jim-1-2-25th-anniversary-edition

View attachment 220920

Wow! Seems we're suddenly being hit with an avalanche of new Earthworm Jim stuff.

Genesis version of 1 is objectively better. You got an extra level with it.

 

[PsychoJosh]

Here is one thing I never understood: What is with Earthworm Jim and cows, anyway?

Cows are just funny.

In the first game one of the first things you do is launch a cow into space. Then you play through the game as normal and forget about the cow.

Spoiler

Then at the end of the game the cow comes back and lands on the princess you spent the whole game trying to save.

As I recall, this joke was directly inspired by a similar joke in Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Genesis version of 1 is objectively better. You got an extra level with it.

I agree the Genesis version of EWJ1 is better. The music and graphics have better quality (despite the Genesis soundchip being inferior) and as you said there's extra content. But EWJ2 is still better on SNES.

 

[CboyC95]

Here's Jim's Punch Out title:
The Groovy Worm

And Classic Route name would be:
Saving Princess Whatshername

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

Cows are just funny.

In the first game one of the first things you do is launch a cow into space. Then you play through the game as normal and forget about the cow.

Spoiler

Then at the end of the game the cow comes back and lands on the princess you spent the whole game trying to save.

As I recall, this joke was directly inspired by a similar joke in Monty Python and the Holy Grail.



I agree the Genesis version of EWJ1 is better. The music and graphics have better quality (despite the Genesis soundchip being inferior) and as you said there's extra content. But EWJ2 is still better on SNES.

That seems accurate.

Also, EWJ's cow gag was so beloved that it formed the basis of the absurd humor for the fanfic series Battle of the Video Game Heroes. Goes to show how much of an impact the series left on the minds of gamers back in the day.

And of course, the cartoon has this happen at the end of every episode.

Also also, Sega CD version of EWJ1 is even better since it adds another extra level and Redbook audio on top of that.

 

[PsychoJosh]

News just keeps on pouring through!

Earthworm Jim is coming to this handheld thing called the Evercade:

http://www.nintendolife.com/news/20...JlQ1_WenbUm8786VKxKZjFPZQERK9cC-vhErMPIYClUeQ


And the Earthworm Jim comic got updated with the classic logo.

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

News just keeps on pouring through!

Earthworm Jim is coming to this handheld thing called the Evercade:

http://www.nintendolife.com/news/20...JlQ1_WenbUm8786VKxKZjFPZQERK9cC-vhErMPIYClUeQ


And the Earthworm Jim comic got updated with the classic logo.

View attachment 223589

And the Evercade even gets other Interplay games like Clay Fighter and Boogerman. That's an interesting turn of events.

 

[Oddball]

And the Evercade even gets other Interplay games like Clay Fighter and Boogerman.

I wouldn't mind some of them showing up for Smash either, even if it's just as assists.

 

[PsychoJosh]

I wouldn't mind some of them showing up for Smash either, even if it's just as assists.

I kind of appreciate the extreme kitsch factor to those games, but they're not exactly known for quality.

 

[PsychoJosh]

The Earthworm Jim comic indiegogo broke a quarter million.

The franchise LIVES!

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

The Earthworm Jim comic indiegogo broke a quarter million.

The franchise LIVES!

All that's left now is for the cool swag to arrive.

 

[PsychoJosh]

Seems Jim really is coming back in a big way. Doug said on his stream today that there is interest from Netflix in making a brand new EWJ animated series (they're just waiting to see how the book does). Also, the indiegogo passed 350k and is easily going to meet the half million mark before it's all said and done. That "monkey's paw" wish may have not been so cursed after all!

With a comeback this successful it may only be a matter of time until Jim gets immortalized in Smash - that is, if the demand exists...

 

[KirbyWorshipper2465]

Seems Jim really is coming back in a big way. Doug said on his stream today that there is interest from Netflix in making a brand new EWJ animated series (they're just waiting to see how the book does). Also, the indiegogo passed 350k and is easily going to meet the half million mark before it's all said and done. That "monkey's paw" wish may have not been so cursed after all!

With a comeback this successful it may only be a matter of time until Jim gets immortalized in Smash - that is, if the demand exists...

Well, with BK being in now, you can bet it'll encourage people to go back up other seemingly dead properties. That much we can expect, at least. Kinda doubt someone at Nintendo would think of suggesting the worm to Sakurai this soon.

In the meantime, a cartoon reboot on Netflix sounds nice so far, I wonder if Dan Castellaneta would reprise the title role~