Exploding sheep
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<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:revengeofthemutantcamels.png|thumb|An exploding sheep in the video game ''[[Revenge of the Mutant Camels]]''.]] -->
{{Cleanup|date=October 2007}}
Speculated to have originated in [[popular culture]] media, the '''exploding [[sheep]]''' is a feature found in numerous [[United States|American]] and [[United Kingdom|British]] [[video game]]s.
==History==
The earliest well-known reference to exploding sheep in [[popular culture]] was made by [[Johnny Carson]], in the role of [[parapsychology|psychic]] [[Carnac the Magnificent]] on ''[[The Tonight Show]]'', in which Carnac predicted "Sis boom bah" and opened a sealed envelope to read "the sound of a sheep exploding." ([http://www.johnnycarson.com/carson/pop/video/carnac_sis_boom_bah.jsp a video of the skit]).
Another early reference was in ''[[Godmonster of Indian Flats]]'', a 1973 [[science fiction]] movie made by [[Fredric Hobbs]]. It featured a mutated sheep as the titular monster, which grew larger throughout the movie, until it exploded in the climactic scene.
A more recent source for the exploding-sheep [[meme]] is the 1987 [[cult film]] ''[[Bad Taste]]'' directed by [[Peter Jackson]].<ref>{{cite news
| url = http://media.www.dailytarheel.com/media/storage/paper885/news/2003/10/30/Arts/BMovies.Give.AList.Enjoyment-1356010.shtml
| title = B-movies give A-list enjoyment
| author = Nick Parker and Philip Mcfee
| publisher = [[The Daily Tar Heel]]
| date = [[2003-10-30]]
| accessdate = 2007-05-06
| quote = ...low-budget comedy splatterfest... Watch out for exploding sheep, leaking brains and more as the aliens down under go berzerk.
}}</ref> <ref>"In the Seventh Year, 'Lord of the Rings' Rests;" [Interview]"
New York Times (Late Edition (East Coast)). New York, N.Y.: Dec 14, 2003. ; p. 2.15 </ref><ref>"Peter Jackson's 'Bad Taste.'"
Stephen Rebello. Variety. New York: Dec 2003/Jan 2004. Vol. 393, Iss. 4; p. 92 </ref>The movie features a scene in which a sheep explodes after being hit with an errant [[rocket propelled grenade|RPG]]. The sheep that is seen exploding in the movie was actually blown up with dynamite by the film crew. Jackson's work is well-known in science fiction and [[fantasy]] [[fandom]], a [[subculture]] which intersects heavily with [[gamer|gaming]] [[fan (aficionado)|fans]].
In 1998, the second volume of [[Jon Hasting]]'s [[comic book]] ''Smith Brown Jones: Alien Accountant'' posited that sheep that explode are actually [[vampire|vampiric]] sheep that do not understand their transformation and therefore do not know that they should avoid sunlight.
The plot of the 1999 science fiction novel ''Before and After'' by [[Matthew Thomas (author)|Matthew Thomas]] features exploding sheep in such significance that the book's cover features a sheep and the tagline "A novel featuring exploding sheep, [[Nostradamus]], and the end of the world".
In the years following the 1999 [[Kosovo War]], in empty fields near [[Belgrade]] and [[Batajnica]], [[unexploded ordnance|unexploded]] [[NATO]] bombs have been triggered by flocks of [[sheep]].{{Fact|date=May 2007}}
==Examples in video games==
[[Video game]]s featuring exploding sheep do so either as a primary element of gameplay, or as a diversion or [[Easter egg (virtual)|Easter egg]]. The former case occurs most commonly in games which already have a large comedic element, while the latter tends to occur in games featuring a serious tone.
* ''[[Armed and Dangerous (computer game)|Armed and Dangerous]]'' ([[Planet Moon Studios]])<ref>{{cite news
| url = http://www.calgarysun.com/cgi-bin/publish.cgi?p=81746&x=articles&s=hype
| title = Comic relief
| author = Scott Tilley
| publisher = [[Calgary Sun]]
| date = [[2004-02-08]]
| accessdate = 2007-05-06
| quote = There are polite robots, exploding sheep...
}}</ref> — during one mission, a drunken explosives expert trying to defuse a bomb attached to a kidnapped prize sheep accidentally sets it off.
* ''[[Cannon Fodder]]'' ([[Sensible Software]]) — on later missions, sheep are booby-trapped with explosives.
* ''[[No One Lives Forever]]'' ([[Sierra Entertainment]]) — the [[GDR]] research lab level holds (exploding) sheep and goat pens
* ''[[Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando]]'' ([[Insomniac Games]]) — one weapon turns enemies into sheep; its upgrade turns enemies into exploding sheep
* ''[[Revenge of the Mutant Camels]]'' ([[Jeff Minter]]) — one stage (called ''"Through Pastures Blue..."'') features sheep that spontaneously and gratuitously explode into lethal chunks of wool.
* ''[[Gem Fighter Online]]'' — a cash-bought exocore transformation (dubbed "Sheep's Cry" in the US release) features an explosion technique. The explosion is a translucent red version of the sheep's outer image expanded out around the character. While it causes damage and knockback to enemies, the sheep itself is unaffected by it.
* ''[[Sheep (game)|Sheep]]'' — many of the hazards will cause the sheep to explode.
* ''[[SimGolf]]'' — turn the balls into exploding sheep by pressing CTRL and S and letting go, then typing BOMBSHEEP
* ''[[Spyro the Dragon]]'' ([[Insomniac Games]]) — sheep are dragon fodder in Artisans world; at the end of the game, dragons use a sheep as a basketball; the [[closing credits]] assure us that "no sheep were harmed in making this game".
* ''[[Worms (game)|Worms]]'' series ([[Team17]])<ref>Description of the [[XBOX 360]] version of ''[[Worms (series)|Worms]]'' by {{cite web
| url = http://news.digitaltrends.com/talkback185.html
| title = Digital Game Delivery Takes Off
| author = Scott Steinberg
| publisher = [[Digital Trends]]
| date = [[2007-04-26]]
| accessdate = 2007-05-06
| quote = take turns blowing the backsides off opponents using bazookas, grenades and exploding sheep.
}}</ref><ref>{{cite news
| url = http://www.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/news/2007/04/gamereviews_0420
| title = Worms and Ninja Turtles Kick Xbox Live Into Overdrive
| author = Chris Kohler and Lore Sjöberg
| publisher = [[Wired News]]
| date = [[2007-04-20]]
| accessdate = 2007-05-06
| quote = ...send their enemies flying with a well-placed stick of dynamite or exploding sheep
}}</ref><ref>{{cite news
| url = http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/marcsaltzman/2004-03-23-saltzman_x.htm
| title = Armchair athletes compete in 'Athens 2004'; 'Worms' inch toward 3-D
| author = Marc Saltzman
| publisher = [[USA Today]]
| date = [[2004-03-24]]
| accessdate = 2007-05-06
| quote = Worms 3D features... cool weapons such as banana bombs and exploding sheep
}}</ref><ref>{{cite news
| url = http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20060417/news_mz1b17worms.html
| title = Worms wage war, and it's a blast
| author = Jeb Haught
| publisher = [[The San Diego Union-Tribune]]
| date = [[2006-04-17]]
| accessdate = 2007-05-06
| quote = More than 20 weapons are available to decimate the enemy, from shotguns to cluster bombs to exploding sheep. Using these weapons effectively is the key to victory...
}}</ref> — the exploding sheep is a special weapon found in powerup crates, albeit rarely. Later sequels of the game made it a standard weapon, and introduced different variations on this weapon, such as the Super Sheep, which can be flown to their target.
* ''[[Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness]]'' and ''[[Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos]]'' ([[Blizzard Entertainment]]) — click on the scenery sheep (or other neutral animals) enough times and they will explode. One of the levels in the WC3 single-player campaign also contains a subgame involving exploding sheep and the movie ''[[Babe (film)|Babe]]''.
* ''[[World of Warcraft]]'' — In the Undercity's Apothecarium, there is an underground section where with an area where people are held in cages, meant to be used as experiments of undeath. There is an Undead [[Non-player character|NPC]] who tests a "viscous fluid" upon one particular human male, which turns him into a rabbit, then a squirrel, and finally a sheep. Then, the NPC pokes the sheep repeatedly, and the sheep explodes. Additionally, characters that practice the [http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/professions/engineering.html Engineering] profession can create [http://www.thottbot.com/?i=7327 Explosive Sheep] once they achieve a skill of 150.
[[Image:ExplodingSheep.png|thumb|141px|Exploding Sheep font]]
There is also a [[freeware]] [[screensaver]], ''[http://www.russhorton.com/sheep.html Sheep vs Gravity 1.08]'', which features exploding sheep, and a [[typeface|font]] named ''Exploding Sheep'' (pictured at right).
There was a [[London]] based [[rock and roll|rock]] band named [http://www.minicat.force9.co.uk/es/ Exploding Sheep] which formed in 1997 and broke up in 2001.
There is a US Company named Exploding Sheep Productions which produces engineering models.; and an amateur British Technical Crew called Exploding Sheep Productions who work on not-for-profit sci-fi events.
==References==
{{reflist|2}}
== External links ==
* [http://tbhl.theonering.net/films/bad_taste.html ''Bad Taste'' at the Peter Jackson Fan Club]
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[[Category:Exploding animals|Sheep]]
[[Category:Video game memes]]
[[Category:Sheep]]
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