Arcade Memories

Question: What two heroes had to overcome monsters like Gotcha Wrench and Foreman Spike in Nintendo's videogame Wrecking Crew?

Video games today just aren't what they used to be. So much time is spent trying to make better graphics and realistic blood that the escapism is almost lost. We had an Atari when I was growing up and it was used to get away from real life. Pitfall had me swinging on ropes to avoid falling in alligator pits with green triangles trying to eat me up. I had to help that poor pixelated frog get across the busy road without being hit by a big box on wheels in Frogger. A yellow dot with a mouth gobbled up smaller white dots and was chased around by ghosts that looked like a kid on Halloween who had cut some holes in a sheet in the game of Pac Man. And of course the female version--Ms. Pac Man--had that bow in her hair and some lipstick.

When Nintendo came out, the graphics were amazing! Mario and Luigi actually looked more like humans with rounded features. They first defeated Donkey Kong to save the princess and then moved on to their own adventures in the game Mario Brothers. Before they were Super, they were just some plumbers beating up on turtles and crabs and jumping barrels and fireballs. As time went on and games became more complex, everything became almost too real. I didn't play video games because I wanted them to be realistic. I played video games so I could be a plumber who battles with big monkeys, or yellow circles trying to get to the cherries before they disappeared. Here's to the blurry graphics and crazy stories of the video games of my youth.

Answer: Mario and Luigi

"Whatcha gonna do, Brother?"

Question: Who had gone 14 years without losing a WWF match by pinfall or submission before being pinned by Hulk Hogan in 1987?

This was an easy question for me to answer. I have fond memories of watching Saturday morning WWF matches on TV after cartoons were over. Rowdy Roddy Piper, Macho Man Randy Savage, Jake the Snake Roberts, Andre the Giant, and of course the immortal Hulk Hogan, among others, would wrestle these no-name guys and beat the stuffing out of them every week. Wrestling isn't like that anymore. You rarely see a guy who doesn't have a big ring entrance fighting like back in the 80s. The only time the superstars would wrestle each other would be on Pay-Per-View events. Now everyone who wrestles is a "superstar" with a ring entrance and they all wrestle each other. Guys will get win the belt one day and then lose it the next. There used to be a lot less turn over with champions because the big names only wrestled each other once every few months.

Soap opera-esque storylines were also few and far between back in the 80s WWF. The only time you would see a feud was in the ring or during an interview. Now everyone has a story and most are completely ridiculous. And, yes, I still watch the WWF (now the WWE). What can I say? Bulked up men and women in spandex beating on each other are entertaining.

Answer: Andre the Giant

DA BEARS!

Question: What team did the Chicago Bears clobber to finally win their first Super Bowl?

DA BEARS! Growing up in Illinois, I've been a Bears fan since birth. My teddy bear from when I was a kid actually turned inside out into a Bears' football. His name, of course, is Payton named after Walter "Sweetness" Payton. In honor of Chicago's appearance in the Superbowl later this afternoon, enjoy this video of the Superbowl XX Champion Chicago Bears Performing the "Superbowl Shuffle". A link to the lyrics can be found under the video (and the answer to the question will be at the end of the post). In the immortal words of SuperFan Bob Swerski, "DA BEARS (even wit'out Ditka): 127, Colts: 0"




http://www.webwaymonsters.com/85bears/shuffle.html


Answer: The New England Patriots--The Bears won 46-10

"If you have a problem and no one else can help..."

Question: Which Rocky III character noted: "I don't hate Balboa, I pity the fool"?

There was no doubt that this question was referring to the character played by Mr. T (I will put the answer to the question at the end of this post), which got me thinking about how much I used to like watching "The A-Team". Even 20 years later, I can hear the theme music in my head to that great action show from the 80s. Can you believe the A-Team was only on TV for four and a half seasons (1983-1986)? That seems like such a short amount of time, but it became a show my entire family came together to watch.

My brothers and I would drop everything and run to the living room like it was some sort of Pavlovian response when we heard the voice over that began every episode:

"Ten years ago, a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn't commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire... The A-Team."

The show had political overtones that were lost on my 7 year old self, but my older brothers and parents would discuss the Vietnam war when it was mentioned on the show. When I watch reruns now, I can pick out those parts and I understand the show much better. It didn't matter to me, though, because there was plenty of action and humor I did understand. For instance, there was always a pile of cardboard boxes lying around to throw the bad guy into, because the machine guns the team used never hit their marks.

My favorite, of course, was B.A. Baracus played by Mr. T. He wasn't the best actor on the show, but he was the most unique. I also liked the women on the A-Team, but they seemed to cycle in and out a lot, so it was almost a waste of time to become invested in their characters.

I still try to catch an episode every now and then when I'm flipping through channels (reruns can be seen on TVLand, among other cable channels). I will always have a place in my heart for those misunderstood soldiers of fortune. I pity the fool who never saw "The A-Team."


Answer: Clubber Lang