Video Challenge

I don’t know how many people out there have odd traditions and challenges with your mates (room or otherwise), but my brother and I have this tendency to quote movies and TV shows.  Sometimes, though, we remember the quotes a little differently, and this almost invariably leads to a video challenge.

The rules of a video challenge are fairly simple.  When there is a discrepancy in the way two or more parties remember a particular quote, one of them may declare a challenge.  All other parties involved may choose to accept or decline.  If the other party(ies) opt to decline the challenge, they must offer some excuse, such as, “I was only paraphrasing”, or, “I don’t actually remember what she said, but you knew what I meant”.

 If any or all parties accept the challenge, we move to the next step:  finding the clip.  This could take days depending on access to a usable source of the video clip.  Sometimes we have the DVD available, while other times, we have to go to our parents’ place and find an old VHS, and then fast forward (you kids won’t understand this part) to the correct scene, and then wait for the line in question.  Fortunately, thanks to the advent of the internet search engine and websites like Youtube and Movieclips, we are generally able to find a particular clip fairly quickly.

Regardless of the method involved, all involved parties must listen intently to hear the exact phrasing of the line.  This is a time of utmost tension, wherein you can hear the sound of your own heartbeat; not even a fly dares move.  And then the line is uttered, and those who are correct must then engage in some kind of “in-your-face” victory dance.  The victory dance may include anything ranging from simple pointing combined with yells of, “YEAH! In your face!!” to crass hip thrusts coupled with, “Uh-huh… you like that?!”

Many people now wonder one thing:  What’s the forfeit?  There is none.  The only thing the victor gains is bragging rights for being a smarty-pants movie buff.  The loser may simply reflect on how much better off they are not being “that guy”.

My brother has been issuing video challenges to me for the last four or five years (I forget when it started), and I have yet to lose one.  This is largely owed to the fact that my memory tends to be somewhat photographic in terms of things I enjoy, and also because I don’t usually accept a video challenge if I’m not completely sure of my version.  Lately, he’s become rather overzealous in his attempts to win a challenge, and just keeps digging his losing streak deeper, while I keep proving how much of a nerd I really am.