[Hated Trope] Crossovers that fundamentally don’t understand the source material

[u/Calvinball08]

When a crossover basically does the exact opposite of what the source material clearly lays out because the creators clearly just don’t care about the source material at all.

Emil - Dead by Daylight

The one that inspired this post. Emil as a character is the most hopeful, optimistic, and kind character in the entire NieR series, maybe in all of Yoko Taro’s games (maybe aside from Yonah). His goal is to help as many people as he possibly can and even when he goes through immense suffering he always comes out the other side ready to keep on helping people.

Then Dead by Daylight adds him as a killer skin, because “he looks creepy.” You know, the aspect of the character that’s his biggest struggle, that causes him to be scared of how people will judge him, and that makes him hate himself. That’s what we’ll base our entire concept on. Genius idea.

Iron Giant - Ready Player One

Technically you could argue that it’s not an example because it’s just a part of the game and Wade is the one misunderstanding the source material. To that I raise you that this is actually an in universe example of the trope, with the game including the Iron Giant as a crossover where you can use him as a weapon, thereby misunderstanding the source material.

Also it’s probably the filmmakers completely misunderstanding the source material/not caring as well.

[u/DucktorQuack]

Not really a “crossover” per se but the fact that a symbol of anti-capitalism and anti-consumerism is being used to advertise a car is genuinely baffling, who thought it would be a good idea??

[u/AbyssWankerArtorias → u/DucktorQuack]

They could have done this with a hybrid or EV and it would have worked. Truly poor marketing

[u/A-V-A-Weyland → u/AbyssWankerArtorias]

Apart from the Tribute hybrid in 2008 that created like 300 models for California, Mazda didn't have a hybrid or EV in 2012 (release of the Lorax movie). Wouldn't be until 10 years later before they'd release a full hybrid vehicle outside of Japan, let alone an EV.

[u/Auctoritate → u/A-V-A-Weyland]

full hybrid

What is a 'full hybrid' referring to here?

[u/A-V-A-Weyland → u/Auctoritate]

Being able to drive using electricity alone. Half hybrids won't get you to drive fully electric, it's a small boost that's almost solely helpful on the freeway. In city environments its worse and some hybird cars when calculating in production costs were equal or worse than standard petrol, some car manufacturers used the most optimistic theoretic conditions to get subsidies all while not really improving the car's fuel economy. There were some more controversies, but that's what I can rattle off from memory. A considerable number of car companies just straight up lied about their results. 

Plug-in Hybrids, which go even beyond full hybrids are what really turned the tide. But those are rather recent and will be outcompeted on all fronts by EVs carrying long range battery packs once they become more accessible, affordable and convenient in use. So, another 5 years at most.

[u/Flannelcommand → u/AbyssWankerArtorias]

Even then it would’ve been bad. 

[u/Mindless-Produce4091 → u/DucktorQuack]

This is literally satirized in the movie lol

[u/NotAFishEnt → u/Mindless-Produce4091]

[u/DoctorWaluigiTime → u/Mindless-Produce4091]

Which doesn't invalidate OP's correct criticism.

"But they point it out" doesn't mean anything.

[u/WorldTravel_1518 → u/DoctorWaluigiTime]

They weren't arguing, dumbass.

[u/Embarrassed-Phrase30 → u/DoctorWaluigiTime]

Yeah admitting what you’re doing is stupid doesn’t make it no longer stupid. Not sure why you’re getting downvoted for that.

[u/Marketableralsei → u/DucktorQuack]

They literally made a joke about using the lorax to advertise cars without his permission IN THE MOVIE lol

[u/HiPPiTY__HoPPiTY__ → u/DucktorQuack]

This one is honestly so baffling that I believe the people behind it knew dann well what they we're doing. I'd bet many people, me included, have never seen a second of this movie (except for the epic "thats a woman?"-joke) but know about this carcrash of an ad.

[u/Jake_Davies1969 → u/DucktorQuack]

Reminds me of how Studio Ghibli/Hayao Miyazaki artwork got churned up by AI and used to make slop

[u/SomeJayForToday → u/DucktorQuack]

If they did this with a Mazda CX-5 it would have been a literal crossover.

[u/Dottore_Curlew → u/DucktorQuack]

Lol

[u/NormieSpecialist → u/DucktorQuack]

Fucking Illumination.

[u/snoball_the_epicguy → u/DucktorQuack]

genuinely what were the illumination marketing team on when they approved this, I know they probably don't gaf but still

[u/blue4029 → u/DucktorQuack]

this ad was ironic on purpose and i refuse to see otherwise

theres literally a scene in the film where the onceler uses the lorax's picture to endorse his product.

this ad was made by the onceler himself!

[u/AscendedViking7 → u/DucktorQuack]

wtf

[u/Astecheee → u/DucktorQuack]

You're kind of missing the point of Bernaisian advertising.

They're not making a rational argument. They're trying to associate the feeling of 'I did a good thing for the environment' with that car model.

Almost all modern advertising breaks down the second you analyse it.

[u/SamiTheAnxiousBean → u/DucktorQuack]

the same people behind the Lorax movie

which itself heavily washed down the anti-capitalist message of the book