Shirt.Woot

Haha. Two honors!

How many weeks in a row has the second place derby winner been the only one to stay on the charts?

Bye bye, Writer's block. Sniff. At least I'm not last. Woohoo.

i love it when shirts are reckoned before I even get it.


that's neat.

kinzoku wrote:Haha. Two honors!

How many weeks in a row has the second place derby winner been the only one to stay on the charts?

EDIT: My first guess was Nevermore but I forgot about Cake. Cake won second place in its derby so the answer is 89.

EDIT EDIT: (That's right, a second EDIT.) I'm thinking I misunderstood your question. As for the number of debut weeks that the #2 stayed I'm not for sure.

I just don't understand how the Cake and the Unicorn are still up there.

jroth420 wrote:I just don't understand how the Cake and the Unicorn are still up there.

I'm not a fan of Unicorn but Cake is a popular video game reference, so its long life makes sense to me. However, it keeps floating near the bottom.

nrarmen wrote:I'm not a fan of Unicorn but Cake is a popular video game reference, so its long life makes sense to me. However, it keeps floating near the bottom.

Cake is not just a popular videogame reference, which is likely why it has longevity far in excess to any other popular videogame shirt.

AdderXYU wrote:Cake is not just a popular videogame reference, which is likely why it has longevity far in excess to any other popular videogame shirt.

What else do you see in Cake?

nrarmen wrote:What else do you see in Cake?

Er. Really?

If you'd never played portal, you can't find a joke anywhere in cake? Honestly?

Man, that's sad.

AdderXYU wrote:Er. Really?

If you'd never played portal, you can't find a joke anywhere in cake? Honestly?

Man, that's sad.

I can see another joke in cake, but it's not particularly funny. Without the reference, it's a boring joke. With the reference, it's a pretty brilliant design. That's only with the reference.

But that's just me. What else do you see?

eHalcyon wrote:I can see another joke in cake, but it's not particularly funny. Without the reference, it's a boring joke. With the reference, it's a pretty brilliant design. That's only with the reference.

But that's just me. What else do you see?

I don't think you're looking at it correctly.

Maybe the idea of a talking cake is simply more amusing to me than to you, but I voted and bought it because it was a stark, clean design on a bright and rare color with a universal punchline. I like it for the absurdity. I had never at the time, and still have never, played portal. The fact is that in 100 years, someone will look at the design and still be able to get a laugh out of it. And that it why it has survived. Because people who will never get the Portal joke still think that cake lying about its nutritional content is kinda charming.

Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of designs I'd rather have seen around for nearly 90 weeks, but with the sheer lack of decent work in the top 20 at any given time, Cake (and to a lesser extent Unicorn) are breaths of fresh air. And while I doubt I'll be so lucky, I don't really wish either of them to die until long after the far inferior Nevermore. I'd much rather see MJ and Robbie hold the titles. Because if woot ever took an informal poll of 100 art teachers, artists, and prominent members of the tee design world, asking them to re-order their top 20, I'd wager both Fat Unicorn and Cake would be in the top 10.

AdderXYU wrote:I don't think you're looking at it correctly.

Maybe the idea of a talking cake is simply more amusing to me than to you, but I voted and bought it because it was a stark, clean design on a bright and rare color with a universal punchline. I like it for the absurdity. I had never at the time, and still have never, played portal. The fact is that in 100 years, someone will look at the design and still be able to get a laugh out of it. And that it why it has survived. Because people who will never get the Portal joke still think that cake lying about its nutritional content is kinda charming.

Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of designs I'd rather have seen around for nearly 90 weeks, but with the sheer lack of decent work in the top 20 at any given time, Cake (and to a lesser extent Unicorn) are breaths of fresh air. And while I doubt I'll be so lucky, I don't really wish either of them to die until long after the far inferior Nevermore. I'd much rather see MJ and Robbie hold the titles. Because if woot ever took an informal poll of 100 art teachers, artists, and prominent members of the tee design world, asking them to re-order their top 20, I'd wager both Fat Unicorn and Cake would be in the top 10.

That second thing then - talking cake just doesn't amuse me that much. But I do agree that it is a good clean design on an underused colour.

eHalcyon wrote:That second thing then - talking cake just doesn't amuse me that much. But I do agree that it is a good clean design on an underused colour.

More important than that, for me, is that whole "being better than most of the rest of the charts" thing. I really can't abide by the idea of cake or fat unicorn disappearing while Nevermore, Some Motivation Required, The Epic Begins, Impostor, Grim Optimism, Music Pirate, Quick Brown Fox or Music is Life (among others) are still on the charts. To me there is no comparison as regards general levels of quality, even if both remain on the middling scale, since the real genius pieces rarely ever even make the top 20.

AdderXYU wrote:More important than that, for me, is that whole "being better than most of the rest of the charts" thing. I really can't abide by the idea of cake or fat unicorn disappearing while Nevermore, Some Motivation Required, The Epic Begins, Impostor, Grim Optimism, Music Pirate, Quick Brown Fox or Music is Life (among others) are still on the charts. To me there is no comparison as regards general levels of quality, even if both remain on the middling scale, since the real genius pieces rarely ever even make the top 20.

Adder, I agree with you. As an amusing shirt, I think it's awesome. It cracks me up to think about the lying, deceiving cake. In fact, I would have bought it by now if it were NOT a Portal reference. Like you, I've never played it. I didn't want to feel like a poser or something by wearing it, so I haven't bought it.

Has anyone asked you about it when you wore it? How'd the conversation go?

jel2301 wrote:Adder, I agree with you. As an amusing shirt, I think it's awesome. It cracks me up to think about the lying, deceiving cake. In fact, I would have bought it by now if it were NOT a Portal reference. Like you, I've never played it. I didn't want to feel like a poser or something by wearing it, so I haven't bought it.

Has anyone asked you about it when you wore it? How'd the conversation go?

Honestly, I wear it rarely because of the portal thing, but thusfar I have had no encounters. I did have a very awkward conversation while wearing Hello Squidbucket though. It was with someone at a donut shop. I wanted a donut. He wanted to make painfully awkward jokes about squid.

AdderXYU wrote:Honestly, I wear it rarely because of the portal thing, but thusfar I have had no encounters. I did have a very awkward conversation while wearing Hello Squidbucket though. It was with someone at a donut shop. I wanted a donut. He wanted to make painfully awkward jokes about squid.

I'm trying to come up with some painfully awkward squid-and-donut jokes but I'm drawing a blank...

eHalcyon wrote:I'm trying to come up with some painfully awkward squid-and-donut jokes but I'm drawing a blank...

Given the shape of a squid and the shape of a donut, I was surprised it was not the obvious jokes.

I seem to recall it being more about grinding squid up as either food or fishing chum or something of that nature. It was an incredibly stretch to call it humor or small talk, but he rather liked the shirt, which is why he kept trying to talk about it. I really just wanted breakfast!

AdderXYU wrote:Given the shape of a squid and the shape of a donut, I was surprised it was not the obvious jokes.

I seem to recall it being more about grinding squid up as either food or fishing chum or something of that nature. It was an incredibly stretch to call it humor or small talk, but he rather liked the shirt, which is why he kept trying to talk about it. I really just wanted breakfast!

Did you still want it even after talking about ground-up squid?

jel2301 wrote:Did you still want it even after talking about ground-up squid?

To be fully honest, I probably shouldn't have. I can't recall my stomach's reaction now, though, because it was a year ago

This all said, what say we get some more Demanda Tension work up as a daily, eh woot?

goldenthorn wrote:I actually got amazing donuts that were going to be my breakfast. I am also going for dinner tomorrow to a fish resto and I was probably going to have a favorite, grilled calamari. And NOW I have just lost my taste for either squid or donuts.

Gods. I mean, just... Adder, no. NO.

I need to scrub my brain.

*takes a Silkwood shower*

You got me. I've been watching you, and have been coveting your dining options tomorrow

eHalcyon wrote:I can see another joke in cake, but it's not particularly funny. Without the reference, it's a boring joke. With the reference, it's a pretty brilliant design. That's only with the reference.

Exactly.

nrarmen wrote:Exactly.

I don't see how the reference is particularly clever or funny or whatever it is that people think is just great (and I've played Portal). Maybe someone could explain it to me. Would "Super Mario Mothers" be equally brilliant? "The Leggings of Zelda?"

I'm all about a seedy piece of cake lying about its nutritional content though, that cracks me up. I'm planning on buying cake if it sticks around long enough for people to forget about the game. Ees good!

BootsBoots wrote:I don't see how the reference is particularly clever or funny or whatever it is that people think is just great (and I've played Portal). Maybe someone could explain it to me. Would "Super Mario Mothers" be equally brilliant? "The Leggings of Zelda?"

I'm all about a seedy piece of cake lying about its nutritional content though, that cracks me up. I'm planning on buying cake if it sticks around long enough for people to forget about the game. Ees good!

"The Cake is a lie" became this internet quote, and in a lot of respects, I think the quote became bigger than the game itself. I admit I never really got into Portal like other people did. I got the Orange Box just to play Half Life 2 with better graphics :P

I admit that still play the entire way through Portal or any one of the homebrew add-ons for it on a regular basis :D

Sometimes I try to see how many levels I can complete in an hour, then try to break that record.

Kind of like licking envelopes.

*snort*

I make myself laugh sometimes.

BootsBoots wrote:I don't see how the reference is particularly clever or funny or whatever it is that people think is just great (and I've played Portal). Maybe someone could explain it to me. Would "Super Mario Mothers" be equally brilliant? "The Leggings of Zelda?"

I'm all about a seedy piece of cake lying about its nutritional content though, that cracks me up. I'm planning on buying cake if it sticks around long enough for people to forget about the game. Ees good!

I had never heard of Portal when this shirt came out. In fact, I feel pretty stupid, but I only learned of the video game reference in the shirt a few months ago. I used to sit and wonder why, of all the shirts, the one with the talking cake was the one that had lasted so long. I thought it was funny, and I'll probably pick one up for "posterity" when it does finally drop off the list, but I didn't get why it had lasted so long. Then somewhere in the forums on a totally unrelated shirt, someone said "the cake is a lie" and I googled that phrase because it seemed to be a joke that went over my head. That is the only reason why I learned about Portal. I had this big moment of "ohhhh--THAT'S why it's still on the list!" But I like how it works completely outside of the video game reference... I thought it was a fun shirt over a year before I'd ever heard of Portal. That's what makes it stand out over the countless other video game reference shirts that have come and gone since then. But I do still prefer Fat Unicorn--something about the look on that poor chubby unicorn's face is priceless.

[quote postid="3357152" user="AdderXYU"]I don't think you're looking at it correctly.

Maybe the idea of a talking cake is simply more amusing to me than to you, but I voted and bought it because it was a stark, clean design on a bright and rare color with a universal punchline. I like it for the absurdity. I had never at the time, and still have never, played portal. The fact is that in 100 years, someone will look at the design and still be able to get a laugh out of it. And that it why it has survived. Because people who will never get the Portal joke still think that cake lying about its nutritional content is kinda charming.


I too bought Cake not realizing it was a video game reference. To me it was just a funny shirt on a bright color that I happened to like. I thought I got the joke....the cake is not really nutritious as it claims to be.

Once I found out it was a video game reference (I obviously do not play portal) the shirt really lost something for me too. I do wear it on occasion and love it for the joke that I saw in it initially, but I'm always afraid someone is going to ask me about it and I'm going to look like a fool.

BootsBoots wrote:I don't see how the reference is particularly clever or funny or whatever it is that people think is just great (and I've played Portal). Maybe someone could explain it to me. Would "Super Mario Mothers" be equally brilliant? "The Leggings of Zelda?"

I'm all about a seedy piece of cake lying about its nutritional content though, that cracks me up. I'm planning on buying cake if it sticks around long enough for people to forget about the game. Ees good!

I think companion cube doesn't get enough love. The stupid cake is hogging all the fame.

I love companion cube. As far as Unicorn still being up there (Im new to woot so still trying to figure it all out) I bought one. My girlfriend loves rainbows. And unicorns. So, perfect fit. And its cute for a girls shirt.

Drakxxx wrote:"The Cake is a lie" became this internet quote, and in a lot of respects, I think the quote became bigger than the game itself. I admit I never really got into Portal like other people did. I got the Orange Box just to play Half Life 2 with better graphics :P

Hmm... So, something like "Pwner of a Lonely Heart" would be equally as brilliant. I see.

BootsBoots wrote:Hmm... So, something like "Pwner of a Lonely Heart" would be equally as brilliant. I see.

I don't know what you look like in real life, BootsBoots, or even if that's you in your signature advertising your blog (I think it is though, right?), but in that particular picture you look like Katie Holmes a tad.

binkdrop wrote:I don't know what you look like in real life, BootsBoots, or even if that's you in your signature advertising your blog (I think it is though, right?), but in that particular picture you look like Katie Holmes a tad.

I've always thought that too but never said anything. There....I said it.

So you guys are all telling me that cake really isn't good for me????




damn.

Jestik wrote:So you guys are all telling me that cake really isn't good for me????




damn.

It can be good for you.
For example, if you have type 1 diabetes, and have a really low blood glucose, a cake might be just the perfect thing for you!

Alternatively, if you just remembered that your husband's birthday is today, and he's coming in the front door (to put us all back into the 1950s), well, then , a cake might be perfect.

I could go on, but I'll leave you with one final possibility. You just ate some calamari and donuts, and have an uncomfortable taste in your mouth, reminiscent of hot grease, yeast, and chewy, kind-of-spoiled-fishiness. A piece of cake might just perfectly restore you to balance!

BootsBoots wrote:I don't see how the reference is particularly clever or funny or whatever it is that people think is just great (and I've played Portal). Maybe someone could explain it to me. Would "Super Mario Mothers" be equally brilliant? "The Leggings of Zelda?"

I'm all about a seedy piece of cake lying about its nutritional content though, that cracks me up. I'm planning on buying cake if it sticks around long enough for people to forget about the game. Ees good!

Did you play through the whole game? If you didn't then I would think the reference part of it would be weaker. I haven't played Portal either, but I did watch my roommate play through all of it. My interpretation of the power of the reference is the fact that Portal was a breath of fresh air to the gaming community, a community over-saturated with spin offs of the same old genres. Portal is new, exciting, and fun(ny) to play, as opposed to Mario and Zelda, which are just classics.

After reading the rest of the posts about Cake I understand better how if you never knew the reference then the joke is funny. I knew the reference first, but if I was confronted with something similar I probably would have thought the joke was hilarious because of its strange circumstance. (I mean, who really thinks about a cake saying a lie?)

P.S. I was entertained by the thought of Super Mario Mothers but I definitely would not buy a shirt of it. I love video games, but I stay away from video game clothing.

nrarmen wrote:Did you play through the whole game? If you didn't then I would think the reference part of it would be weaker. I haven't played Portal either, but I did watch my roommate play through all of it. My interpretation of the power of the reference is the fact that Portal was a breath of fresh air to the gaming community, a community over-saturated with spin offs of the same old genres. Portal is new, exciting, and fun(ny) to play, as opposed to Mario and Zelda, which are just classics.

After reading the rest of the posts about Cake I understand better how if you never knew the reference then the joke is funny. I knew the reference first, but if I was confronted with something similar I probably would have thought the joke was hilarious because of its strange circumstance. (I mean, who really thinks about a cake saying a lie?)

P.S. I was entertained by the thought of Super Mario Mothers but I definitely would not buy a shirt of it. I love video games, but I stay away from video game clothing.

I played through all of Portal and loved it. I got the reference right away when I saw "Cake." I just didn't like it.

I don't think I look like Katie Holmes. I would like a crazy Tom Cruise running around my house though.

unicorn is awesome. it printed wonderfully and i've noticed people staring at my chest when i wear it...though i am a chick and the were guys...hey!!!

AdderXYU wrote:Cake is not just a popular videogame reference, which is likely why it has longevity far in excess to any other popular videogame shirt.

The problem is that the shirt is NOT a video-game reference.

The quote from the game is "The cake is a lie." When I first saw this shirt I thought "they tried for a Portal reference, but it doesn't work because the quote is wrong. And it is therefore not funny."

I still think that, and have no idea how it is still on the chart. Fat Unicorn, on the other hand, is genuinely funny.