Highlights of "The Devil's Playhouse" - EXTREME SPOILERS!

edited September 2010 in Sam & Max
First of all, don't bother with spoiler tags. This thread is for people who've beaten the entire season, since only they are qualified to judge the best moments.

So...in your opinions, what were the best moments from season three?

My list goes as follows.

1. The Final Battle in "The Tomb of Sammun-Mak"
The music is what makes the moment. It is seriously epic.

2. Everything Involving Noir Sam
Noir Sam kicks ass; I would love to see more of that side of his personality. I like how in the episodes after this, they include references to his Noir side by inserting random options to accuse people of lying.

3. Kicking Skunkape's Ass in "They Stole Max's Brain"
Crowning Moment of Awesome for the entire episode.

4. Finally Killing That Brat, Sammun-Mak
Second runner up to Crowning Moment of Awesome. I hated that kid. He's adorable, but whiny as hell.

5. The Final Battle in "Beyond the Alley of the Dolls"
Ridiculously intense and epic. I couldn't believe it after I'd beaten it, it was brilliant. Max was amazing during his duel with Charlie Ho-Tep.

6. The Entire "Save Sybil" Sequence in "The City That Dares Not Sleep"
This was sweet, in the most heartwarming-est sense of the term. I liked realizing that Max really is capable of selflessness, and the expressions of shock on Sam and Papierwaite's face when she goes into labour were made of pure win.

7. Max's Death
Absolutely touching, which shocked me. I'm not a stranger to tearjerkers. I've watched dramas and read tragic novels, and I've never been as broken up about a character death as the finale for this episode. I don't think I've ever cared as much before. I think if anyone else watched that scene, it wouldn't affect them; but for us players, we've grown to really love the characters, and it broke our hearts to see them hurting.

8. The Credits for "The City That Dares Not Sleep"
The credits were very simple, and incredibly powerful for that simplicity; just Sam walking alone through the city as that beautiful piano piece plays in the background, gradually apporaching the harbour as he hugs himself. My heart went out to him; I really loved him then, and wanted to hug him. For a brief, horrifing second, I was terrified that he was going to do something desperate, like throw himself off the railing.

9. The Deux Ex Machina at the End
And then, the time machine appears out of nowhere to make everything okay again somehow, and the final scene is filled with so much joy that it almost made my heart burst. Also, a random side note: if you chose the "crime-fighting route," the finale scene is absolutely breathtaking in the aesthetic sense. Really beautiful.

I think I got everything for me. Anyone else have anything to add?

Comments

  • edited September 2010
    304, being the best finale that's not actually a finale, well, it was, just, UGH, hard to explain, since 304 ended The Devil's Toybox arc, the whole last battle, etc, felt a lot more epic than 305 did.
  • edited September 2010
    The fact that every Flaming Max Head we've ever seen even before Telltale Games exist is a prophecy concerning 305.
  • edited September 2010
    "In first panel, husband mole say to wife: 'You very angry with me, no?' You can see...is true because wife mole have scorpions crawling from the eyes. In second panel, husband say 'Is because you caught me...how you say...er...'making the monkey dance' with beautiful temple mole maiden, who have the sensuous quivering nostrils?' And in third panel, husband mole is falling over backwards from great astonishment when wife saying to him: 'No! Is because YOU cut the cucumber LENGTHWISE!' Ahahaaaaaaa."

    :D
  • edited September 2010
    Here's mine:

    1. Living out Max's future vision

    I thought the twist to the opening future vision where Skunkape has predicted the moves was both unexpected and entertaining...

    2. The Devil's Toybox

    I thought the skilfull foreshadowing in the toybox chamber in 301 with the flaming Max head, the mysterious toybox and the prophecies on the wall all came together later in the series...

    3. Max's Brain gets stolen

    I thought Sam's return from the break at the end of 302 and the sudden revelation that Max's brain had been stolen was really surprising and left me with a lot of questions...

    4. The battle in the planetarium

    This for me was the most surprising moment (even above the clone master) as I never expected to see Skunkape and Papierwaite return so soon even when the ape admits to seeing Skunkape. And the fact that they were fighting was even more awesome.

    5. Mr. S is revealed

    Even though I saw this coming, I thought that this scene was executed incredibly well and that the sudden twist of them both being taken under control added to it as well.

    6. The Clone Master

    While not as surprising as the battle in the previous episode (mainly because Charlie was in the line up), I still thought this was a great and creepy moment that led up to the grand finale.

    7. The Narrator

    The moment that the Narrator started his speech about guessing who the traitor was, I never suspected for a moment that Sam would come in like that and the way he suddenly appeared was really well done. After that, I loved the narrator as a character instantly.

    8. Stinky's schemes

    I loved the way that Stinky's plans were gradually unravelled through the words of Flint and Stinky in the cloning chamber and that her past finally came to light.

    9. Save Sybil!

    Another great moment involving my favourite new character Papierwaite and also the Narrator who was brilliant in the last episode. While some people didn't like the narrator turning good, I did like it but just thought it was a shame we didn't see more of him as a character...

    10. Max's Sacrifice

    While I'm afraid the final ending wasn't a highlight to me, the way giant Max warped onto the ship went back to the very beginning of the season for me. Stinky and Skunkape were in the same set-up but this time it was real and we FINALLY saw them both get what they deserved...
  • edited September 2010
    The revelation of where Max keeps all his stuff.
  • edited September 2010
    1. The Disorient Express -- simply a breath-taking piece of art: very classy.

    2. Noir Sam, with his attitude, five O'clock shadow, and armpit sweat-stain.

    3. The rabbit-hugging clone in 304 -- for some reason he tugs my heart. I expect him to re-appear at the end of 305 just before the end-credits, as a desolate Sam glances at him with his cherished toy bunny. That will be a heart-breaker.

    4. Max's self-sacrifice and the explosion of Skunkape's ship: sad and funny at the same time.

    5. "Enjoying the ride Sam? HA! HA! HA!"

    6. Max's brain ordering Skunkape and Papierwaite around in the Planetarium. Max has never been funnier.
  • edited September 2010
    I loved the rabbit-hugging clone, too. I think everyone did, actually...it was adorable. His face just lit up when he saw it! :p

    He probably subconsciously associated rabbits with friendship. I mean, he is a clone of Sam. And I loved how when they cut back to Sam and Max, Sam was holding him in a bear hug.

    Poor guy, got stepped on later. Oh well. It was kinda sad, though; in 305, there's a scene where you can see the plush lying abandoned on the sidewalk while in the distance, Monster Max is still rampaging.
  • edited September 2010
    Where Max Goes Between Teleportations
    This whole scene was probably the coolest and creepiest part of The Penal Zone all at once. The scenery, the skeletal Max, and of course Sam's reaction are hilarious, disturbing, and exactly what I'd expect out of Max's crazy little mind.

    Papierwaite's Plan is Revealed
    While I knew that Papierwaite would betray Sameth and Maximus in The Tomb of Sammun-Mak (it was kinda obvious), I never guessed that it would happen like this. I particularly liked that slow, fiery zoom in on Papierwaite as he announces, in his best creepy voice, THE SUMMONING OF YOG-SOGGOTH!

    Papierwaite vs. Skun-ka'pe
    This fight at the Museum of Mostly Natural History's planetarium is epically done, with lasers, sorcery, and of course the the realization that they both hate Sam. Their sudden team up, combined with their simultaneous "I hate that guy!" made this scene both hilarious and epic.

    The Clone Master Revealeth
    This scene was great because it really hit you when you least expect it. At that point in the game, I had gotten ridiculously sick of having to use Psychic Ventriloquism every time I went to the docks. I audibly sighed when I was once again informed that I had to do it. So imagine my surprise when Charlie turned his head around. Now that is how you catch the audience off-guard, Telltale! And of course, this scene led to my next favorite moment...

    The Statue of Liberty and Beyond!
    I don't think that there's a single person that didn't love this part. Everything about it, from the setting on the Statue of Liberty, to the real feeling of helplessness as a powerless, inventoryless Max, was amazingly handled. Then we move on to part two, which ups the awesomeness by putting Max in a full-on battle of the psychics. This is definitely my favorite moment in the season- no, in the history of Sam & Max. All I can say is "Bravo!", Telltale.

    Lincoln's Famous Maimtron Address
    This was the moment that I really got excited while playing The City That Dares Not Sleep. After seven hours of waiting with no avail, my extreme desire to play the episode was starting to dwindle. Then I walked outside BoscoTech, and Lincoln ramped up my excitement with the best speech ever. Anytime Abraham Lincoln starts a speech with "Now I'm not one for speeches...", you know you're on to something great.

    Flint Paper vs. Stinky and Skun-ka'pe
    I really loved the whole Stinky sidestory throughout The Devil's Playhouse, but I decided to narrow it down to the moment that stood out most to me. I really loved everything about this scene. The music, the chaos going on around Sam, and especially Flint's explanation of Stinky's whole plan. While the rest of the episode was focused on the serious matter of saving Max, this was just pure Sam & Max craziness. I especially loved the revelation that Stinky is a mermaid, simply because it's such a major thing that really had no relevance to the story. Flint's just like "Blah blah blah blah blah blah, oh yeah, and she's a mermaid!"

    World Without Max
    I have my complaints about the seriousness of this in this comedy series, but you can't argue that it was memorable in every way. That long walk while the the credits rolled nearly brought me to tears, and that's something no game has done to me before. And then, out of nowhere, Max shows up and everything is happy again. At first, I was upset that Sam was so accepting of this new Max, but I think Max II's own loss made it sort of okay in my mind. They both lost each other once, and the fact that they're both there to comfort the other a touching final gesture from the Freeland Police in this season.
  • edited September 2010
    lombre wrote: »
    Where Max Goes Between Teleportations
    This whole scene was probably the coolest and creepiest part of The Penal Zone all at once. The scenery, the skeletal Max, and of course Sam's reaction are hilarious, disturbing, and exactly what I'd expect out of Max's crazy little mind.

    I loved that scene, and if you have the graphics on high you get to see flames.
    lombre wrote: »
    Papierwaite's Plan is Revealed
    While I knew that Papierwaite would betray Sameth and Maximus in The Tomb of Sammun-Mak (it was kinda obvious), I never guessed that it would happen like this. I particularly liked that slow, fiery zoom in on Papierwaite as he announces, in his best creepy voice, THE SUMMONING OF YOG-SOGGOTH!

    I went to youtube for this one cause i kept getting stuck. I followed a walkthrough but it told me to do stupid things, like going to the train first, using the can of nuts then getting killed, which was pretty pointless. The whole walkthrough was pretty pointless as well.
    lombre wrote: »
    Lincoln's Famous Maimtron Address
    This was the moment that I really got excited while playing The City That Dares Not Sleep. After seven hours of waiting with no avail, my extreme desire to play the episode was starting to dwindle. Then I walked outside BoscoTech, and Lincoln ramped up my excitement with the best speech ever. Anytime Abraham Lincoln starts a speech with "Now I'm not one for speeches...", you know you're on to something great.

    I loved that part, but how can lincoln not be one for speeches, he was president. It just makes it funnier tho.
    lombre wrote: »
    Flint Paper vs. Stinky and Skun-ka'pe
    I really loved the whole Stinky sidestory throughout The Devil's Playhouse, but I decided to narrow it down to the moment that stood out most to me. I really loved everything about this scene. The music, the chaos going on around Sam, and especially Flint's explanation of Stinky's whole plan. While the rest of the episode was focused on the serious matter of saving Max, this was just pure Sam & Max craziness. I especially loved the revelation that Stinky is a mermaid, simply because it's such a major thing that really had no relevance to the story. Flint's just like "Blah blah blah blah blah blah, oh yeah, and she's a mermaid!"

    This made no sense to me because in 205 you turn her into a cake then use a jurgen's monster's rib bone on her to turn her back. That couldn't have been an illusion.
    lombre wrote: »
    World Without Max
    I have my complaints about the seriousness of this in this comedy series, but you can't argue that it was memorable in every way. That long walk while the the credits rolled nearly brought me to tears, and that's something no game has done to me before. And then, out of nowhere, Max shows up and everything is happy again. At first, I was upset that Sam was so accepting of this new Max, but I think Max II's own loss made it sort of okay in my mind. They both lost each other once, and the fact that they're both there to comfort the other a touching final gesture from the Freeland Police in this season.

    I liked the ending, I liked how Max teleported away to save Sam and the city, he never really sacrificed himself cause he was going to die anyway, either by the maimtron or by blowing up, the narrator never had enough time to remove the tumour, notice he said it would take 5 minutes, then momma bosco said the maimtron's would attack in 4 minutes, if the maimtron never attacked then maybe max could have been saved by the narrator, who knows.
    "In first panel, husband mole say to wife: 'You very angry with me, no?' You can see...is true because wife mole have scorpions crawling from the eyes. In second panel, husband say 'Is because you caught me...how you say...er...'making the monkey dance' with beautiful temple mole maiden, who have the sensuous quivering nostrils?' And in third panel, husband mole is falling over backwards from great astonishment when wife saying to him: 'No! Is because YOU cut the cucumber LENGTHWISE!' Ahahaaaaaaa.":D

    I never understood that joke, plus as soon as i found out you don't need her to tell you it i never asked her about the newspaper.
    lombre wrote: »
    The Clone Master Revealeth
    This scene was great because it really hit you when you least expect it. At that point in the game, I had gotten ridiculously sick of having to use Psychic Ventriloquism every time I went to the docks. I audibly sighed when I was once again informed that I had to do it. So imagine my surprise when Charlie turned his head around. Now that is how you catch the audience off-guard, Telltale! And of course, this scene led to my next favorite moment...

    It never caught me off quard because it was different than all the other times you use charlie, i mean you never even get to use him with anything, it goes straight to a cutscene. If you were allowed to click on the sam clones after clicking on him then i would have been surprised he was alive.
  • edited September 2010
    Personally I think Girl Stinky is really a Cake and just invented the illusion that she was a mermaid to hide the truth from herself, as for Flint Paper well he crazy enough to believe anything from what I seen.
  • edited September 2010
    Keevi wrote: »
    Personally I think Girl Stinky is really a Cake and just invented the illusion that she was a mermaid to hide the truth from herself, as for Flint Paper well he crazy enough to believe anything from what I seen.

    That makes more sense, maybe she doesn't even know shes lying, cause you can tell when she lies, its pretty obvious really.
  • edited September 2010
    I never understood that joke, plus as soon as i found out you don't need her to tell you it i never asked her about the newspaper.

    The joke is that there is absolutely nothing funny about the comic strip, but she seems to think that it's the most hilarious thing ever. So it's funny in a "my god, you're pathetic" way. It's so unfunny, it's funny.
  • edited September 2010
    Player_2 wrote: »
    The joke is that there is absolutely nothing funny about the comic strip, but she seems to think that it's the most hilarious thing ever. So it's funny in a "my god, you're pathetic" way. It's so unfunny, it's funny.

    Actually, the joke is that her description of the comic is funnier than the actual comic itself. I mean, scorpions coming from the eyes of an angry mole woman, and mole priestesses having sensuous quivering nostrils? That's comic gold!
  • edited September 2010
    Girl Stinky's Nicknames
    She thinks of terrible wrong names for Sam & Max even when she's only thinking about them them? I thought Blah-Blah and Buzz-Buzz was hilarious.

    The Narrator Turns Good
    I thought the scene where The Narrator bursts out of the door was one of the best scenes in all of these games. It was just really well executed and funny.

    Adventuring Ending

    I know a lot of people preferred the crime-fighting ending, but I felt that Sam forgetting his hat and coming back for it felt like a perfect final joke.

    The Banang Dispenser

    No explanation needed.

    Jurgen and Slushie
    The way Jurgen's backstory was shown was really neat.
Sign in to comment in this discussion.