The Rigors of Mortuus is a series of comedic short mini-episodes that premiered on SpoofWarsFilms.com in 2012. The series centers on the dangerous daily life of Expendable Jebi Knight Rig'ur Mortuus, primarily in his home on Croissant. It is loosely connected to the over all narrative of the Spoof Wars series, and is set after Spoof Wars Episode XII: The Dubious Maneuver.
Cast
- Eric Kaldenbach as Rig'ur Mortuus
- Tyler Stacey as Postal Service Officer
- Wes Stacey as Sprint Render
- Ryan Murphy as Stand-in Rig'ur Mortuus
- Jonathan Consiglio as Shawn Duet
- Eric Kaldenbach as Disco Fett
- Sean Stewart as the voice of Disco Fett
- Chris Patton as Police Lt. Gordoff
- Eric Kaldenbach as Ebenezer Mortuus
- Chris Patton as the ghost of Olmec Qel-Drona
Production
The idea for the series started as an interactive video adventure, where the viewer made the decisions for the main character. Since many choices would lead to death, Rig'ur Mortuus' constant deaths and returns seemed appropriate. The character had already been filmed for The Plot Strikes Back, and the series was seen as an opportunity to introduce the character before that film. With a desire to return to a simple project that was short and could be made and completed within a week or two, it was decided to start with mini-episodes as a test-run before exploring a longer interactive adventure. The specific ideas for episodes were hammered out in an hour, and the first batch of episodes were filmed in just a few hours two days later. A couple episodes were come up with on the spot to balance out what was being filmed. The character of the package delivery man was thrown in out of necessity for the first episode, but quickly became a recurring character. The name of the series is a play on both the character's name and on his misadventures.
The episodes were directed by Matt Gilbert, with a production crew of Sean Stewart, Tyler Stacey and Chris Patton. The first batch of episodes were filmed January 11, 2012. The second batch of episodes was filmed on March 3, 2012, with Wes Stacey as part of the production team, and appearing in 2 episodes as Sprint Render. Additional filming for those episodes took place on January 6 and March 2, 2013 with Chris Patton. Ryan Murphy, Tyler Stacey, Sean Stewart and Matt Gilbert (voice only) also made cameo appearances as themselves. The third batch of episodes, comprising most of Season 3 and featuring Jonathan Consiglio as Shawn Duet, was filmed December 29, 2013 and October 25, 2014.
Currently, at least one final season of 10 episodes is planned, with the option for more or a longer "TV movie" if time permits. There are also a small handful of episodes that may be released as further "Lost Episodes".
Episodes
Season 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Episode | Image | Title | Original Premiere Date |
| 1 | 
|
"The Package" | January 28, 2012 |
| Rig'ur receives a package at his home. First appearance of Rig'ur Mortuus and the Postal Officer. | |||
| 2 | 
|
"Feature Presentation" | February 3, 2012 |
| Rig'ur Mortuus enjoys some stimulating entertainment. | |||
| 3 | 
|
"Philosophy" | February 10, 2012 |
| What deep, introspective thoughts dwell in the mind of Mortuus? | |||
| 4 | 
|
"Back to Bass-ics" | February 17, 2012 |
| Our hero dusts off an old musical instrument. | |||
| 5 | 
|
"Revelation" | February 24, 2012 |
| Expendable Jebi Knight Rig'ur Mortuus has an epiphany. Rig'ur realizes "Boggle!?" | |||
| 6 | 
|
"Culinary Artistry" | March 2, 2012 |
| Rig'ur tests out his cooking skills. | |||
| 7 | 
|
"Gripping Suspense" | March 9, 2012 |
| Rig'ur becomes ensnared in a sinister sequence of events. | |||
| 8 | 
|
"Artifice, Lvl. 12" | March 2, 2012 |
| Rig'ur begins to craft a crystal for his laserfoil. First appearance of the Jabbyrian Wokky Monster. | |||
| 9 | 
|
"Refreshing" | April 1, 2012 |
| Rig'ur....freshens up.... | |||
| 10 | 
|
"Crucial Mission" | May 25, 2012 |
| An unexpected visitor! Guest character: Sprint Render. | |||
Season 2 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Episode | Image | Title | Original Premiere Date |
| 11 | 
|
"Crucial Mission, Part 2" | June 1, 2012 |
| Everything has lead to this moment... Guest character: Sprint Render. | |||
| 12 | 
|
"Weapon of a Jebi" | June 8, 2012 |
| Rig'ur constructs his laserfoil. | |||
| 13 | 
|
"Magical Experience" | August 21, 2012 |
| Rig'ur Mortuus finds himself in a magical land. | |||
| 14 | 
|
"Grocery Run" | January 1, 2013 |
| Even a Jebi Knight needs milk and eggs. | |||
| 15 | 
|
"Otological Safety" | April 1, 2013 |
| "We all know we shouldn't use cotton swabs to clean or dry our ears." | |||
| 16 | 
|
"Feat of Coordination" | July 4, 2013 |
| Rig'ur Mortuus practices his juggling act. | |||
| 17 | 
|
"Feat of Endurance" | July 4, 2013 |
| Who could possibly take over the role of Rig'ur Mortuus? Ryan Murphy as Rig'ur Mortuus. | |||
| 18 | 
|
"Words of Wisdom" | December 21, 2013 |
| A returning Rig'ur Mortuus shares some sound advice. | |||
| 19 | 
|
"A Winner is You" | December 21, 2013 |
| Rig'ur Mortuus finally beats that game from his childhood! | |||
| 20 | 
|
"Special Delivery" | December 31, 2013 |
| "Who's that at the door?" | |||
| Lost 1 | 
|
"Under Attack" | October 21, 2014 |
| Hoist your colors!! - Included with The Rigors of Mortuus Volume 1 Blu Ray | |||
Season 3 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Episode | Image | Title | Original Premiere Date |
| 21 | 
|
"An Unexpected Visit" | March 14, 2014 |
| From the smallest beginnings come the greatest legends. First appearance of Shawn Duet as a regular. | |||
| 22 | 
|
"The Desolation of Shawn" | April 6, 2014 |
| Beyond pizza... beyond desolation... lies the greatest danger of all. | |||
| 23 | 
|
"Dead and Back Again" | May 4, 2014 |
| Because we can't really parody 'The Battle of the Five Armies'. First appearance of Lieutenant Gordoff. | |||
| 24 | 
|
"Trick Shot" | August 2, 2014 |
| Duet and Rig'ur bond over a game of pool. Guy-Gone Weird, Sprint Render, the Rusty Eagle and the Expendable Jebi are mentioned. | |||
| 25 | 
|
"A Late Night" | October 31, 2014 |
| "Hold on to your butts..." | |||
| 26 | 
|
"A Very Merry Mortuus" | December 24, 2014 |
| "Humbug! Poppycock! Balderdash! Bah!" First appearance of Olmec Qel-Drona, Brom Tokaw, and Ebenezer Mortuus. Futhorc Haacko is seen Wanted. | |||
| 27 | 
|
"Home Invasion" | January 11, 2015 |
| Enter the hip hunter of bogue bounties... First appearance of Disco Fett. | |||
| 28 | 
|
"Home Invasion, Part 2" | January 15, 2015 |
| "I like Captain Duet where he is..." | |||
| 29 | 
|
"Play it Again, Duet" | January 16, 2015 |
| Feel the rhythm! | |||
| 30 | 
|
"Wrong Answer" | February 14, 2015 |
| "He's been out in space way too long." | |||
Season 4 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Episode | Image | Title | Original Premiere Date |
| TBD | "Keep Looking Up" | TBD | |
| TBD | "The Return" | TBD | |
Home Video Releases
Cover art for The Rigors of Mortuus Vol. 1 Blu Ray.
The Rigors of Mortuus Volume 1
A single-disc blu ray release comprising the first two seasons and bonus features. This is also the first Spoof Wars blu ray.
Collects:
- All 20 episodes from Seasons 1 and 2
- Lost Episode: "Under Attack"
- The Making of The Rigors of Mortuus
- Bloopers & Nonsense
- Still Gallery
- Trailers
- Star Wars: Celebration VI reel
Trivia
- In episode 7, the book Rig'ur is reading is actually the hardback edition of Star Wars The Old Republic: Deceived, without the dust cover. Eric actually read a few paragraphs for real reactions.
- Episode 11 re-uses Rig'ur falling down the stairs from Episode 1. As such there are minor inconsistencies in his appearance.
- Episode 11 also recaps various episodes before, except for one clip from a cancelled episode where he is "shooting cannonballs" at a neighboring ship or house. It is followed by a brief shot from Independence Day.
- In episode 12, you can see an in-progress helmet for Dictatorship Troopers.
- Episode 15 is a parody of a commercial for a product called the "Wax Vac".
- Episode 15 features different end music and a gag credit about Doug McDermott. This was in reference to the NCAA March Madness going on then.
- Episode 18 is a direct reference to a scene from the Simpsons episode "Trash of the Titans".
- The symbol on the podium in episode 18 is the same as on Rig'ur Mortuus and Guy-Gone's belts - the emblem of the Galactic Democracy.
- Episode 19 is a reference to the Sonic the Hedgehog games, and features remixed music from Hydrocity Act 2.
- Episode 20 reuses footage of Rig'ur answering the door, the Postal Officer and falling down the stairs from Episode 1.
- The first 3 episodes featuring Shawn Duet have titles parodying the titles of the three movies in The Hobbit film series.
- Episode 24's opening parodies Family Matters, including a reference to Jaleel White (who played Steve Urkel, as well as voiced Sonic the Hedgehog on TV). The episode also parodies The Lawrence Welk Show's ending, including bubbles over the end credits. The episode begins to connect the series to the larger Spoof Wars series, and makes reference to Rig'ur being an expendable Jebi, like Guy-Gone (whom Duet encountered in The Dubious Maneuver), and that his belt is what gives him away. There is also a mention of Sprint Render's previous visit at the end of Season 1. This episode is also significant as it's the first time anyone has pointed out that Rig'ur Mortuus dies and then reappears without explanation. Also Duet somehow went to jail for 10 years for something he did 10 minutes before....or maybe the 10 years in jail was an unrelated comment?
- Episode 25, the Halloween episode, is a conglomeration of several canceled or unfinished shorter gags under the premise of a recursive nightmare. Originally, a random hand (Sean) would have hit the pool ball into Rig'ur, but connecting it to the previous episode seemed opportune. The episode borrows clips from the 1985 Alice in Wonderland TV miniseries and Batman Forever, and references Are You Afraid of the Dark? in the end credits.
External Links
- The Rigors of Mortuus on SpoofWarsFilms.com
- Watch The Rigors of Mortuus episodes on YouTube