unforum

[UDbmas]

[rose]

A good video showing everything would be heavenly - dare I say a" miracle"? Cue anime sequence.

I was wondering: is there a reason not to post the video on YouTube? Maybe we need a YouTube unfiction channel? I think there are members here who have Youtube channels, so maybe one of them would host it if needed.

I know I should know this stuff, but I just haven't had to answer this question before.

[Florida Intrest]

Re: Solution?

[kirbito]

Just stopping buy again

[fellowtraveler]

Here is my analysis of the clues in the second episode along with my updated map for those who want to follow along.

1. The first obvious clue-type statements in this episode seem to be when the Captain says: "Crothers, fire a cannonball o'er her bridge, south by southwest. And Tom, for the sake of clue type order here's where you be insertin' your words from the last video."

According to wikipedia there is no such marine compass designation as south by southwest. This could mean a couple of things. First, it could just be an error or oversight on the part of the puppetmasters, in which case the problem is figuring out whether they meant to refer to the directions of south by west, south-southwest, or southwest by south. Second, it could have been a purposeful error, in order to further obfuscate the clue or just to add some character to the episode. The fact that Crothers subsequently fails to understand the direction, asking "Did he say west or southwest? All I hear be screamin'" is suggestive of this. Third, it could be a reference to the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival held in Austin, Texas every Spring. This seems like the least likely of the explanations due to the lack of connections between SXSW and Central Park.

Looking at the compass rose, you can see that if the Captain simply meant to say southwest by south and misspoke, the proper direction to follow after the Chess & Checkers House would be between 208.13° and 219.37° on the compass rose (with 213.75° being the midpoint direction). If Crothers was right, and the Captain had really intended to say south by west, then the direction would be between 185.63° and 196.87° on the compass rose (with 191.25° being the midpoint direction). Alternatively, if the Captain had simply meant to indicate south-southwest, then the proper direction would be between 196.88° and 208.12°on the compass rose (with 202.50° being the midpoint direction.)

Using this compass graphic as a reference, I plotted a line straight from the Chess & Checkers House using all three options. Only south-southwest created a line that passed "o'er her bridge", in this case over the Driprock Arch. I added the compass to the map centered over the Chess & Checkers House, in this map for ease of reference for anyone who wants to try plotting different directions. The fact that the Captain orders Crothers to fire a cannonball "o'er her bridge" suggests to me that the path is supposed to go over the Driprock Arch, rather than underneath it.

2. The next clue is clearly Tom's numbers, which I think we are all in agreement is likely a reference to the lampposts in Central Park. Presumably we are intended to walk a path to each lamppost in the order they were named, i.e. from 6323, to 6251, to 6229.

3. After the lampposts the next clue is the Captain's order to Crothers to "fire south" and "[a]im below their bridge." The only "bridges" south of the lampposts are Pinebank Arch and Greyshot Arch. I had originally focused on Greyshot Arch because the name sounded like cannon fire to me due to the inclusion of the words "grey" and "shot." However, looking at the map reveals that Pinebank Arch is the more likely candidate of the two, since (a) it is directly south of the last lamppost marker, and (b) according to the official Central Park website, "[t]he misnamed Pine Bank Arch is more accurately a bridge...." Presumably, by contrast Greyshot Arch is not a bridge at all? The reference to aiming below a bridge, indicates to me that one should walk below the bridge.

4. The next clue relates to the Lieutenant on the foredeck giving the sign of victory, who turns out to be a kid with four guys behind him, along with smoldering cannons of destruction. This seems to me to also be a reference to the Maine Monument, since as this page explains, the figures adorning the monument are: Victory, Peace, Courage, Fortitude and Justice. The pictures of the Maine Monument found on this page also show that a figure of a young man is standing on the foredeck of a vessel flanked by one male figure and two female figures in the background.

I have not been able to get definite answers on this point, but I believe that the goddess Columbia (symbol of America) is depicted in bronze at the top of the monument flanked by the tririga. According to this page, the bronze used for these figures was recovered from the guns of the U.S.S. Maine itself, which would make them the "smoldering cannons of destruction." As for the identities of the remaining figures at the base of the monument, there seems to be some uncertainty and conflicting descriptions abound. However, this page explains:

[snwboarder512]

A Good Question

[UDbmas]

[aMerryPrankster]

Re: red sleeves

[Spoonsy]

[UDbmas]

[rose]

A couple of things - I think south by southwest is sortof the direction the path takes - it isn't straight south or southwest...that is what I thought of with that clue.

As for large video files: it seems that we can embed youtube on the forums here, so that would work.

[monkeypanky]

Subway Info

[mlssry]

Re: Subway Info

[aMerryPrankster]

Re: Subway Info

[UDbmas]