When worlds collide

Just wanted to pass along this great video from Slate (a favorite time-wasting site).

Yes, yes, it makes me want to do drugs more. But I'm more fascinated by the concept of the crossover: all the various characters owned by disparate companies teaming up for the same project, appearing together in a shared universe. I've always been of two minds about these projects. I mean, it was a thrill to witness Superman and Spider-Man clashing…
…but what are the implications? All of the DC and Marvel characters inhabit a single world? What does that mean for long-term continuity? Do the Teen Titans confront Galactus when he threatens Earth? Does the Punisher try to murder the Penguin? Is the Doom Patrol jealous of the X-Men's resources and cachet? Yes, it's just a story, but for a true comic geek, it raises too many necessary questions to answer in a single one-off publicity event.

Other times, the crossover is a neat fit, and adds a welcome richness to a series's back story. Like how it was established The Golden Girls and Empty Nest occurred in the same fictitious Miami…

(Sorry for the poor quality; a car burglar stole my Empty Nest DVD box set.) Despite the discomfiting humor here, there don't seem to be too many major reverberations to this. Blanche, Dorothy and Rose are ensconced quietly down the street. The middle-aged Floridian crises are small enough that nothing would necessarily draw the attention of unseen characters (except when it does, as in the well-handled "Hurricane Saturday" crossover event, which is woefully underdocumented on the Internet). Nice and easy.

Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue avoids any pitfalls (or benefits), of course, since the characters coexist only in the young man's pot-addled dream mind. In fact, as Slate's commentator points out, that's a fairly realistic scenario, someone blitzed on weed and dreaming about Bugs Bunny, the Muppet Babies, and the animated version of Alf all at the same time. This is genius.

I don 't even like pastry

As I mentioned via a Lightning Round question, much of last night's very successful quiz I wrote while mainlining caffeine and wrestling with the Wi-Fi signal at the Hungarian Pastry Shop. Many hours there reading about famous pirates and reviewing disturbing Wonder Showzen clips. All for you, my friends.

Also for you, I owe you an explanation of why exactly Empty Nest was not a spin-off of The Golden Girls. (The questions was, "Bea Arthur starred in two sitcoms, each spawning one spin-off. Name either spin-off." Here's one answer, and here's the other.) Simply put, none of the Empty Nest characters had appeared on Golden Girls first, though some of the GGs later showed up on Empty Nest (especially Sophia, who became a semiregular), and it was established that Dr. Weston lived across the street from Dorothy, Blanche et al. So perhaps it was a retroactive spin-off, and thus we can regard…oh, somebody just kill me now.

I still don't know what the team name "Had Sex with a Muppet, Now My Kid's Legless" is supposed to mean, exactly, but I like that team's moxie. Reminds me of this.

Two mea culpas:
I asked this: "1987 was the first year what kind of person was elected to the U.S. Senate?" I claimed the answer was this. That is so wrong in so, so many ways.

Also, we apparently could not determine the actual title of this song:

Apparently, it is properly: "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)." Again, a shame on my house.

But do you know who was right? Gerard Depardouche. The G-Dep claimed victory for the thrice-consecutive time, shutting out its fellow nerd triumvirate into a tie for second. The challenge continues!

1. Gerard Depardouche
2. Fantastic Fournicators/Strippers Killed Stephen Hawking (as they're now known, permaturely) (tie)
4. Cash Cab for Cutie
5. Sugah Titz

May 11, we're back, then it's a four-week break till June 8. Steel yourselves.