When Viral Strikes! (Too Soon)

A while back, I wrote about how the start of a film, meant the end of a perfectly good viral. One can look at it as a tough day. It’s like making a good friend, and then that friend just up and leaves you. Never to be heard from again. But what happens when you meet someone new, and they are so great, but then……… poof! It’s like they impressed you at the start just to become friends. And then what……

Nothing.


This is the case with some virals that we have discussed in the past. There are a couple of ways that we’ve seen a viral try to “be our friend” in the sense that they seem to either have potential, or just wow the hell out of you at the start. These cool kids of the viral world seem to go nowhere though. Almost like the cool kids of high school.


Let’s go back to Surrogates. It’s a science fiction movie. How hard can the viral be.

(Bruce Willis says “It’s not tough. I am”)


At first, we had chooseyoursurrogate.com. This site had a ton of potential being that it was the premise of the film. You can have a robotic you? And you can have your face planted on a sky diver and send the video to your friends? And to top it all off, I can win the big game? What’s not to like! Sign me up!!!

Then, VSI Labs created a Twitter account, that was either found too early, or, set up wrong to begin with. All it did was tweet about stuff I just read five minutes before it on Google news. Yes, Honda makes robots. We know. And I want one. And to make it worse, it’s as if they gave up, they combined all sites into one plain movie site. Three cheers for giving it all you got!

Editors Note: Please check out Iain’s “What If” (here and here) for an awesome revamp of said viral.


So that’s an example of a friend who seems like they know what they are doing at first, but come to find out, they don’t even go to your school. Now, let’s take a look at the “New Guy”. This person enters, and all eyes gaze upon them. Could it be? Someone so perfect standing before me?


This is where Tron Legacy comes in. As reported by both Slashfilm and Firstshowing, this viral started off huge. Most things at Comic-Con involve a banner, or a makeshift protest on the streets of San Diego. Not this one. First, they have the mailers. Tokens and flash drives, and bears. Oh my. Well, no bears, but to start off a viral campaign that strong, was too good to be true. How are you going to top that!

Oh, what’s that, a real scavenger hunt in San Diego? Seriously? And then you are going to follow it up with a replica of Flynn’s Arcade? Come on. That’s far enough. What do you mean you’re going even further? Ok, a real light cycle? Damn you and your cool hair and letter jacket. What’s next, you’re going to move in on my girl?

This just in: Tron Legacy’s viral just took my girl to the movies.


So how in the hell can you top what you did in the matter of weeks. The movie isn’t even set for release until the end of 2010. One can look at it as they have all the time in the world to wow us even more, or, the cynical viral follower can easily forget about the movie until a new trailer is released in god only knows how far from now.


And, for those of you keeping score, yes, these cool kids are both the children of the Disney family down the street. Look at ’em. They got it all.


Viral Flop Side Notes:

Iron Man 2 – Anyone hear back about an interview with Stark Industries? Not even in the mail room?

The Crazies – The Friendliest Place on the Earth. And the slowest to update.


So how do you feel about the spark of energy and the sudden lack of fuel. Let us know here, or sign up at the forum.