Archive for April 2016

AIMS versus the Rogue Team…

April 20, 2016

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The S4/Ep13 installment of Mountain Monsters had little of monsters in it, but rather more of a backwoods feud atmosphere as the clash between the AIMS and the “Rogue Team” further spun out.  Having returned to the “Little Red Shed” of the Cherokee Devil encounter in Ashe County, North Carolina our protagonists (?) discovered that six envelopes had been placed within there that bore the real names of each of the AIMS team members.  More disturbingly, within each of the envelopes was found pictures of the individual named, together with confidential information on details of their private lives, such as their real life addresses, credit histories, military records, etc. Each folder also contained a cryptic card with a letter and number on it.

As this was a bit on the creepy side, the AIMS team members returned to West Virginia to see convalescing team leader Trapper, and it was determined that the letters on the cards spelled “shot by,” a reference to the supposed shooting of the Stonish Giant by the Rogue Team in a previous episode.  Other picture clues within the envelopes were thought to reference an older Wildman episode, so the team then headed to eastern Kentucky where that encounter had taken place.  At the “Tool Shed” location where that encounter had taken place, the team found more cards pinned to a dart board.  Car lights were then discerned surrounding the shed, and storming out of the shed with weapons drawn the team found that the vehicles were empty, but belonged to themselves and had been stolen and driven to that location by the “Rogue Team!”  Thinking that a distraction, the AIMS  team hurried to where Buck’s truck had been parked.  The photo trap camera battery in the truck bed constructed by team member Willy and housed in a box that resembled an old crate had captured partial photo images, presumably of the rascally Rogues.  A phone left in the truck then rang, and when answered played an audio loop with a recorded conversation captured of AIMS team members from the supposed shooting of the Stonish Giant Bigfoot by the Rogue Team, who were thought to have absconded with the creature’s body at that time.

Returning again to their West Virginia base and Trapper, the team discerned that the newest cards picked up in Kentucky spelled CQUAD, which was thought to be the name of the Rogue Team.  It was admitted that this group was pretty slick and had high tech skills which they were using to shadow and mock the AIMS team in kind of a cat-and-mouse game.  The intent and purpose of this was essentially to exploit the tracking skills of the AIMS team by following them stealthily at a distance and then essentially claiming their prize.  When the letters collected thus far were arranged yet a different way, they spelled “Squatch body.”  Using the numbers in order on each of the cards that spelled such, it was deduced that they represented a phone number.  Calling that number on the cell phone left in Buck’s truck resulted in a guttural, electronically-altered voice answering,  “Hello Trapper, we’ve been waiting for you.  Are you ready to make a deal?”

The plot thickens, and I’m sure we’ll be hearing more developments in upcoming episodes… 

Return of the Rogue Team: The Ohio Grassman

April 13, 2016

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In the S4/Ep12 installment of Mountain Monsters, the AIMS team returned to Perry County, Ohio to again pursue the Ohio Grassman, a thousand-pound, ten-foot-tall Bigfoot with long shaggy reddish-brown hair also known for speed and agility.  In their previous encounter, Buck had been knocked out and the Grassman  had broken out of the constructed trap…pretty typical stuff for the series, all in all.

As the team motored to their Ohio destination, they perceived themselves to be followed by another vehicle, which caused acting leader Buck to put the pedal to the metal and eventually elude the infamous “Rogue” team thought to be pursuing them.  Having succeeded in this, they later met with “Radish,” who was appropriately enough a farmer. He reported having seen his cows spooked and spying Bigfoot by the chicken coop.  The plot thickened when “Radish” referred to having spoken with Buck in the recent past, something that he denied.  Apparently the Rogue team had impersonated Buck in a phone conversation.

On their first night’s hunt, the team found an arch of twisted branches that was considered to be a Bigfoot sign. They also found lower broken limbs, considering them a sign of human passage.  Not wanting to encounter whoever else was stomping around in the woods at night with guns, the guys headed back to the truck that they had come in on only to find the surrounding area set on fire.  Attached to the hitch on the truck was a cryptic note saying, “We know you know.” Trap-maker Willy was asked to rig security cameras for the truck while the remaining team members hit the road again to seek the wisdom and guidance of recuperating team leader Trapper.

Now Trapper appears to live in a really nice house that would be the envy of most; reality TV must pay pretty well, plus these guys don’t spend a dime on dentistry, barbers, or clothing. Trap’s house was complete with a “safe room” that would be the envy of any conspiracy theorist, complete with files on everything that they chase and pictures pasted on the walls. Trapper reported having found a bug planted on his truck that revealed his location, and suggested that one had been implanted on Buck’s vehicle as well; the devices would allow the Rogue team to track and follow them wherever they went. Additionally, Trapper presented a pasted-together note that he had received which posed the question, “Are you ready to chase the devil again?” This was thought to be a reference to the Cherokee Devil encountered in a previous episode, and if as in confirmation, a photo of the red shed central to that episode was also enclosed with the note.

With Trapper’ s encouragement, the team minus Trapper then went to the site of their previous investigation in Ashe County, North Carolina where they found bent-over trees, perceived to be a Bigfoot sign. A tree came crashing down behind the team, and lights were seen through the woods. Buck thought that he had seen the Cherokee girl central to that prior episode, and the segment ended as Buck was about to enter the red shed again. The Grassman chase was left hanging in the wind in favor of the Rogue Team storyline…

The Slack.com Animal “Team” Does Wonderful Things…

April 11, 2016


They’re quite diverse, yet they work as an office team…the CGI animals presented in a commercial for the messenger app “Slack,” that is.  Headed by a lion boss called “Geoff” who observes a prawn employee (Alan) struggling with an umbrella, the idea of a flying umbrella is born, developed, and implemented by the surreal office team which includes a beaver, goat, rabbit, owl, and sloth.  They all act in accordance with their respective species, with the sloth, for example, moving in slow motion.  The commercial spot is surreal yet captivating, and it works as does the product.

Remarkably, a “bloopers reel” is also available for the commercial, showing such deleted scenes as the prawn falling from his chair, the goat beating her keyboard to pieces with their hooves, and the prawn doing a beatbox routine following his presentation.   This is strange but wonderful stuff…

Bigfoot of Wood County: The Phantom of the Forest

April 5, 2016

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Not to be confused with the Phantom of the Opera, the Phantom of the Forest as presented in S4/Ep11 of Mountain Monsters is yet another Bigfoot clone standing about 6-1/2′ tall and weighing in at about 500 lbs. with brownish gray fur.  First seen by the Shawnee Indians in the 1700’s, the Phantom is reported having a special attachment to deer, and by some accounts has been seen riding them despite the obvious weight overload that would be involved.

Traveling to Wood County in West Virginia, the AIMS team first met with “Dan,” a farmer, who described an encounter where he heard gunshots following which he saw a number of dead deer, the apparent victims of poachers who were in a truck.  The eyewitness then saw a Bigfoot at the tree line who charged the poacher’s truck, lifting it up on two wheels and causing them to beat a hasty retreat.  During their first night’s investigation, the team saw a bent-over tree, then heard a crash with a tree being thrown down near them.  They felt themselves being observed, and shortly thereafter heard gunshots apparently aimed in their direction, presumably by the poachers.

The next day, the team returned to the general area, finding what they called a homemade silencer commonly used by poachers to mute gunshots.  They also found a handwritten note tacked to a tree stating, “Something’s stalking me,” and signed “Ernie.”  Meanwhile, “Wild Bill” in a used police cruiser that he had picked up met with “Willy,” and together the two constructed a “Pyramid trap” to cage the Bigfoot.  Also that day, “Buck” and “Jeff” met with the poachers by their invitation, keeping an armed “Huckleberry” in the background as backup.  The poachers claimed sighting the Bigfoot, said that he had torn up their buddy pretty badly, and announced their intentions of killing him.  “Buck” took the poachers to task for being poachers, which resulted in a Mexican standoff of sorts with guns, and colorful language being exchanged before the poachers departed in their vehicle, issuing threats. 

 On their final night’s hunt, the team following their usual procedure split to flush the beast towards their trap, but Buck, Jeff, and Huckleberry came under fire from the poachers.  In a cornfield, Buck was grabbed from behind presumably by the Bigfoot, and fell, losing his radio.  When the team reunited by the trap, they found it in the process of being knocked over by a heavy equipment operator, who claimed that he had been paid $1,000 to demolish it that night by people he didn’t know were poachers.  Allowed to leave, the heavy equipment operator a short time later radioed the team on Buck’s dropped radio, mocking them and relating how much he had enjoyed knocking over their trap…

Having been outwitted both by the Phantom of the Woods and the poachers, the team was again fruitless in their quest, but seemed to take comfort in thinking that eventually the Phantom would catch up with the poachers, and clean their clocks.  The episode was really more about the conflict with the poachers than the Bigfoot…