ReBoot - The Original Matrix

[// Pregenerate link to episode ahead of time: - clicktotweet.com- sharelinkgenerator.com]: # "I come from the Nickscast. Through conventions, people, and cities, to this place - Fanthropological. My format, Co-host: To state and investigate. To learn about my new found friends, their hopes and dreams, and to defend them from their enemies. ... They say _the chat_ lives outside the podcast and inputs text for pleasure. No one knows for sure, but I intend to find out!" Uh... yeah. We're talking about fans of ReBoot (the animated series). Next week? Retrogaming! ## Episode outline ### Fandom Facts **History and Origins:** > ReBoot is a Canadian CGI-animated action-adventure television series that originally aired from 1994 to 2001. It was produced by Vancouver-based production company Mainframe Entertainment, Alliance Communications and BLT Productions. The series follows the adventures of a Guardian named Bob and his companions Enzo and Dot Matrix as they work to keep the computer system of Mainframe safe from the viruses known as Megabyte and Hexadecimal. It was the world's first ever half-hour, completely computer-animated TV series. ... > > A reimagined, live-action/CG-animated series, ReBoot: The Guardian Code, was announced in 2015 and is slated to premiere on Netflix worldwide (excluding Canada) on March 30, 2018. YTV will later broadcast the series sometime in June 2018. > > — [Wikipedia - ReBoot](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReBoot) **Search Data:** Considering that the show aired until 2001, _Google Trends'_ usual 2004 limit on data almost works in this case! Interest in the show has been mostly flat, or [arguably on a very slow decline](https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=all&q=%2Fm%2F01k3bp). There have been some notable spikes in interested around July 2007 (likely due to the announcement of a potential trilogy of films), May 2008 (Countdown to the launch of a webcomic, _Code of Honor_), December 2010 (Possibly due to the rights being acquired for a full DVD release) and February 2018 (The announcement of _ReBoot: The Guardian Code_ with a release date). The top ten countries, by search volume: Canada, Philippines, South Africa, Kenya, United States, Pakistan, New Zealand, Croatia, Puerto Rico, and Singapore. [// 100 Can, 47 Phil, 37 US ]: # **Size of Fandom:** Some of the notes on ReBoot in fanlore mention it as a [microfandom](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Microfandom): a source with some interest beyond a single fan, but perhaps not with a specific community or fansite, or without a lot of fanworks. That being said, we can still give a rough estimate of the size of the fandom based on a few different data sources: - There are [over 4000 ratings on IMDB](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108903/) - The [ReBoot subreddit has over 1600 subscribers](https://www.reddit.com/r/ReBoot/) With so few data points, and the new series not being released yet, it's hard to estimate the size of the fandom. A rough estimate would be in the low _tens-of-thousands_. **Fanac Fast Facts:** - Archive Of Our Own has [almost 90 fanworks related to ReBoot](https://archiveofourown.org/tags/ReBoot%20(TV)/works) - Did you know that Gillian Anderson was in an episode of ReBoot? - The show only had 4 seasons, totaling 48 episodes, and the delay of seasons three and four was partly caused by Mainframe entertainment's work on other TV shows - Over 30 different established computer games are featured throughout the series ### [Last Episode's](http://fanthropological.com/e/scp-foundation-its-all-winks-and-nudges-or-is-it/) Famous Last Words **G** How much non-nostalgic interest is there in the series? [// Seems limited ]: # **T** Is there a reboot fan convention? [// could not find a dedicated convention ]: # **Z** Is there another country where Reboot was and is popular? [// Not really, possibly US or UK ]: # ### The Verdict **Z is in.** Missed some episodes, has some fond memories... **G is in.** Would like to see what he missed. Too old for other new show. **T is in.** Enjoyed it fondly. ### This week's spotlight **[ReBoot Marathon](https://www.twitch.tv/shtfther)** At this point, it may no longer be available but when the episode was recorded, Shout Factory was running a marathon of classic ReBoot before the new series was to be released! [// Plugs go here ]: # ### Famous Last Words This week's famous last words around *next week's* fandom, Retrogaming! **G** Classic rock still means music from 20 years ago... is retro gaming the same? Does retrogaming expand as time goes on? **T** What more is there to retrogaming fandom than collecting? **Z** Why people bother making their own NES or SNES carts (as in, new games)? Why do they go that extra mile? ## Where can you find us online? We are everywhere! Most notably though, we like to hang out in a few places on social media: - If you want to be part of our podcast (or just want to check us out), we record our podcast LIVE on [twitch.tv](http://twitch.tv/thenickscast) every Monday at 20:00 Eastern Time! - For all the latest updates, check us out on [Facebook](https://facebook.com/thenickscast) or [Twitter](https://twitter.com/thenickscast) - To see the latest hijinx from our conventions or even our daily lives and adventures, check us out on [Instagram](https://instagram.com/thenickscast) - For our latest convention updates, *Let's Plays*, and other in-real-life video, [check out our YouTube channel](http://youtube.com/thenickscast) - We're also on [iTunes](https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/fanthropological/id1163621210), and [Google Play](https://play.google.com/music/m/Icmngxz7yhaoivdvivvf6q6c2pu?t=Fanthropological), and would love it if you could leave a review and rating! - if you want to reach us, and for some reason none of those work for you, try [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]) - You can check out [our website](http://thenickscast.com); that will mostly bring you back to this stuff. - Everything is `thenickscast`, so if you can't find us, go on your social network and search for that! ## What is "Fanthropological"? How did you read this far without asking this question?! Fanthropological is an anthropological (ish) podcast where we bring the fan's-eye view to you! Each week, we take a look at a different fandom, dig up interesting background, trivia, and history, and try to get to why it is that people are a fan. We also try to highlight good causes related to that fandom, and find interesting things that fans have created to share those to the world. Each episode is about an hour. Ish. ## Who is "The Nickscast"? *We* are the Nickscast! Three products of late-80s / early-90s pop culture who love exploring fandom and everything geek ... who also happen to have been best buddies since high school, and all happen to be named Nick. Yes, we are super creative (dare we say, the _most_ creative). *Ahem* We are Nick Green, Nick Terwoord, and Nick Zacharewicz: We started the Nickscast as a labour of love, and as a place to entertain and to discuss our love of fans and fandom, and all that is shiny and interesting in that realm. It's what lead us to start our first podcast, our satellite podcasts, Fanthropological, and so much more. We want to help others learn more about different fandoms, and to create empathy with other fans: We dream of a world where other fans aren't "those Weird-o's", but just folks with different tastes. A world where fandom is full of discourse and analysis, and there are plenty of tools and resources to help. Fans building communities to do good in the world. *Because everyone's a fan.* ## Credits ### Sources - [ReBoot Wiki - Data Nully](http://reboot.wikia.com/wiki/Data_Nully) - [Google Trends - ReBoot](https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=all&q=%2Fm%2F01k3bp) - [Wikipedia - ReBoot](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReBoot) - [Fanlore - ReBoot](https://fanlore.org/wiki/ReBoot) - [Fanlore - Microfandom](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Microfandom) - [ReBoot Revival - Michael Hefferon on ReBoot: The Guardian Code - “We tried to imagine that ReBoot had never been made”](https://www.rebootrevival.com/?p=2513) - [Screenrant - ReBoot: 15 Things You Never Knew About The CGI Cartoon](https://screenrant.com/reboot-tv-show-trivia/) - [Vice - Everything I Learned From ‘ReBoot,’ the 90s Kids Show That Predicted the Future](https://www.vice.com/en_ca/article/7bdnwg/everything-i-learned-from-reboot-the-90s-kids-show-that-predicted-the-future) - [Fanlore - Microfandom](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Microfandom) - [Fanlore - ReBoot](https://fanlore.org/wiki/ReBoot) - [Fanlore - Timesprite](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Timesprite) - [Fanlore - Turing System](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Turing_System) - [Gamespot - ReBoot Review](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/reboot-review/1900- 2546045/) - [Hex Nuts Unanimous - Main Page](http://www.c4vct.com/kym/slachash/hexnuts/index.htm) - [Mainframe Chaos - Need to Write a Letter?](http://mainframe_chaos.tripod.com/) - [Quora - ReBoot (TV Series)](https://www.quora.com/topic/ReBoot-TV- series) - [r/ReBoot - The More I Think About It, The Worse It Is](https://www.reddit.com/r/ReBoot/comments/80vm3k/the_more_i_think_about_it_the_worse_it_is/) - [r/ReBoot - Why The New Trailer Both Excites and Annoys Me To No End!](https://www.reddit.com/r/ReBoot/comments/7zrb7e/why_the_new_trailer_both_excites_and_annoys_me_to/) - [ReBoot - Home](http://www.cyberpursuits.com/heckifiknow/reboot/) - [ReBoot Revival - EXCLUSIVE - First look at Bob, Dot, and Enzo in ReBoot: The Guardian Code](https://www.rebootrevival.com/?p=2774) - [ReBoot Revival - Rainmaker begins systematic eradication of online sales for fan-made merchandise](https://www.rebootrevival.com/?p=2706) - [Slack & Hash’s Domain - Main Page](http://www.c4vct.com/kym/slachash/index.htm) - [The Mainframe Peanut Gallery - Home](http://www.webring.org/l/rd?ring=rebootwebmasters;id=4;url=http%3A%2F%2Fpagedowngal%2Etripod%2Ecom%2F) - [TV Tropes - ReBoot Fanfic Recs](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/FanficRecs/ReBoot) - [Unofficial ReBoot Home Page - Home](http://www.inwap.com/mf/reboot/) - [YouTube - *LEAKED* ReBoot: The Guardian Code Intro Sequence!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uL8cVMPXg9Y) - [YouTube - ReBoot: The Guardian Code - Vera](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikri1SGOp1U) - [YouTube - ReBoot: The Guardian Code - The Guardians](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90WbLQYF9lI) - [Facebook - MégabogueS / ReBoot](https://www.facebook.com/M%C3%A9gabogueS-ReBoot-51262540868/) ### Music / Sound - ["Uneasy Truce"](http://teknoaxe.com/Link_Code_2.php?q=653) by TeknoAXE is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) - All other music and sound for this week's episode were provided by Nick Green!