Mos Espa, Home Of The Greatest Hunter The Galaxy Has Ever Known

I'm not much of a gamer, and the only titles I have are Star Wars titles: X-Wing Alliance, Galactic Battlegrounds, and The Phantom Menace. It's the latter I want to talk about.

You see, I never play computer games to get a great high score, or to be able to do cool moves, or to defeat the end-of-level-baddie. It's always the silly little things that make me want to play them again and again.

TPM has this huge loser of a character, and his name is Mat Rags. He's the highlight of the game. Whenever I play it, I always look forward to the moment he appears.

[image=http://masterquigon.homestead.com/files/MasterQuiGon/ThePhantomMenace/MosEspa/Small/MosEspa22.jpg]

I can spend hours laughing at that image. There's Qui-Gon on the left, who obviously doesn't bother to look at the guy, or can't do it without laughing, and there's our Mat, staring like a madman. He wears a hat that's so ridiculous, so out of sync with anything that's fashionable in the Galaxy, that it seems to serve just one goal: heighten the comical impact of his already goofy appearance. He's beyond concealing his ugliness -- he's accentuating it. He's ugly, and the Galaxy will see it.
The way he's standing there, ultra-serious, with that pointy smurf's hat, reminds me of the time me and my brother were dressed up for carnival as Popeye and Zorro respectively, way back in '83. My brother got mad at me for some reason or other, and screamed "Act normal!" while wearing the mask and the hat and the little fake moustache. I believe I've never laughed so hard ever since. Naturally, for him that was the cue to beat me up, but it was worth it. The whole scene lasted for about five minutes, yet I'll never forget it.

Anyway, back to Mat Rags. 'Cause Mat mustn't think he's going to get out of this unharmed, of course.

Whenever you bump into him on the streets of Mos Espa -- where he's walking up and down, waiting to get bumped into --, he says "Excuse me" in a very poofy kind of way. It's the "excuse me" of a dancer in a musical, a male diva, indignant and frosty because someone laughed away his complaint that the theatre could use more pink.

When you get near him and walk in his way, he goes berserk. He starts to shake, turn, and wiggle, desperate to continue that awkward up-and-down walk. As if the fate of the Universe depends on him resuming his walk as quickly as possible. Of course, it's great fun to keep blocking him and ruin his whole schedule, with him continually going "Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me", though he always manages to find his way again, unfortunately.

The great thing is: sometimes he'll talk to you. He'll tell you his name his Mat Rags, and that he came all the way from Corellia to hunt Krayt Dragons. Of course, a natural reaction would be asking: "Corellia? Krayt Dragons? What in the name of Zeus are you babbling on about, fool?" But, as it is, you're supposed to suck up to him to obtain a dragon's tooth, that later in the game has to be traded for a gun. (One of the more exciting scenes in the game). It's actually more fun to insult him, because the guy's the most arrogant bastard you'll ever meet: at one point he describes himself as the "greatest hunter the Galaxy has ever known." We said these things when we were playing as kids; "I'm the greatest warrior that has ever lived", "I've got the strongest laser ever", "my dad has the biggest porn collection in the Universe" -- but Mat actually seems to believe it will impress anyone.

Also, he nearly always gets shot. Try creating a bit of a ruckus on the street, I swear that there's always one laser that's deflected from its course and hits Mat. As if some higher power decides that whatever happens, whoever gets killed, the hat has got to go. The hat has got to be removed out of sight before it threatens to set a trend.

His death cry is not to be missed. It's possibly the main reason to buy this game. It's not a "Ungh!" or "Ah!", it's more like the sound one makes when opening the closet and finding a nude troll in it. "Wuhaaaaaa!" S

 

Check TheForce.net, foos

EDIT- Here's the link in case you are too lazy: cgi.theforce.net/theforce/tfn.cgi?storyID=15469.

 

Debo, me old fruity, you continue to slay me!

 

HAHAH! Yes, I too look foward to Mat Rags. Also I love giving him a piece of my mind and telling him "If you're as good as your ego.." or whatever you can say. It's hilarious!

 

Am I that bad. I'm so sorry for the trouble I've caused. That was in my younger days. I'm not that arrogant young hunter any more.

 

Damn that was hilarious, Debo!! If only you could upload the "Wuhaa" sound

 

Plagerism ho!

 

LOL

Another Mat Rags quote:

"Get out of my way!"

 

That was classic

 

We SHOULD be able to get the "Wuhaa" sound extracted. Just use Scumm Revisted.

 

I did search for Mat Rags sounds, but couldn't find anything. I even searched Google, using words as broad as "Phantom Menace", "audio", "game". But nothing.

Neither could I find anymore pics of Mat Rags.

A bloody shame!

 

Does anyone have a picture of the acutal extra who looked like Mat in TPM? I know I've seen photos. There was some real person wearing that hat...

 

[image=http://www.kenjinnbinks.com/angry_bg.jpg]

From left to right: Sebulba, Jar Jar, Anakin, and Mat Rags, the greatest hunter the Galaxy has ever known.

Obligatory Mat Rags quote: "To become rich, of course!"

 

See kids, it is possible to be funny without being nasty or rude.

Thank you Debo for lifting the forum a notch!

 

Dammit Debo, I worked hard to lower the tone of this forum!

 

That's probably not Mat Rags in that picture. in the Visual Dictionary book, that person is a "Podrace Mechanic". There are a few people who look like him in the TPM game as well.

Debo, I'll try to get those sounds out for you tonight.

 

Mat Rags: I am Mat Rags, and I came all the way from Corellia to hunt Krayt Dragons.

Qui-Gon Jinn: That's why you're wearing podrace mechanic clothes.

Mat Rags: ...Yeah, so? These two things can't go together or something?

 

[image=http://www.kenjinnbinks.com/angry_bg.jpg]

OMG!! He was in the movie!?? [face_shocked]

 

Blast it! I don't have my TPM CD! Someone else will have to download Scumm Revisted and then work his or way through the files to find the sound clips.

Sorry

 

Excuse me! - Mat Rags, after Qui-Gon runs into him.












So when is the Mat Rags forum icon going to be available?

 

I need to hear the "Wuhaaa" sound, dammit!

 

i think Mat rags is such a cool character he deserves a game of his own. Who agrees with me.

Take note lucasarts!

 

Well, he's the greatest hunter the Galaxy has ever known -- plenty of material there, methinks.

 

Maybe you can unlock & play as Rags in the upcoming Bounty Hunter game!?