The Mantis-Eye Experiment

The Mantis-Eye Experiment FAQ

I don't actually get too many questions that are frequently asked, and I'm hoping it's been due to this FAQ. But really I just guessed what people might ask, so I might be way off but hopefully this will answer any quick questions you may have about the show and the site. Hopefully.

Q: What is The Mantis-Eye Experiment anyway? Did you steal it from the show, because I don't remember that.

A: No I didn't, actually. I made it up because I wanted a weird sort of Venture Brothers sounding name for the page without actually using anything from the show. I don't know if I got it right or not, but I like the name. Remember, it's Mantis-Eye with a dash. Like Spider-Man.

Q: Are you Jackson Publick/Doc Hammer/Anyone who actually works on the show?

A: No I am not. In fact this site has no affiliation at all with Astrobase, World Leaders, Titmouse, Adult Swim or Cartoon Network, Time Warner, AOL, Turner, or anything related to any of this stuff really. I'm just a guy who likes The Venture Bros. and made a website.

Q: So where can I find an official Venture Bros. site?

A: Well, there isn't one. Adult Swim has a website that may or may not have Venture Bros. things to peruse (depending on what month it is) but otherwise you're pretty much stuck with fan-run sites like this one.

Q: Where do you get all the stuff on the site?

A: All over the place. Various Venture Bros.-related news is pulled from lots of places, but mostly I have some Google Alerts set up and a few choice RSS feeds (such as Jackson Publick's blog). For the episode notes and such Google continues to be a triumph of internet search technology, and Wikipedia is an invaluable tool as well. Pretty much the same tools a high school student has when doing a book report. Also since I never catch everything submissions from fans are also welcome and encouraged (and will be posted with proper credit of course).

Q: Haa! You got something wrong about one of the episodes! You suck.

A: Yes. Yes I do. Thanks. If you notice an error or omission, or have a neat fact to add, then feel free to use the site's contact form or e-mail me and tell me all about it. I'll give you credit (using whatever name you give me or whatever I can figure out), but I won't post your e-mail address (unless you really want me to).

Q: What are these production numbers listed on each episode page?

A: Episodes of TV shows have production numbers, that is to say, each episode has a number in order to identify it quickly without needing to remember the title. In the case of Venture Bros. the numbers are always based on the production order, meaning the order in which the episodes were made and completed. So the first episode you make is 1 or 101 or whatever, and the next one is 102 or 2 and so on.

In animation a lot of times episodes are produced out of order for a variety of reasons, but aired in their intended order. For example "Powerless in the Face of Death" was the 20th episode produced, but aired 14th overall.

You don't really need to worry about production numbers. I mostly just have them listed for the sake of completeness.

Q: Hey, what's that 'Latest Discussion Thread' link up there?

A: Back during season two I decided to see how people would take to 'discussion' threads which were put up Friday night at 6pm EST when the episode used to appear on Adult Swim's web site (it would later air on TV the following Sunday night). I partially expected them to fail horribly but they ended up becoming quite popular so they're a mainstay for whenever there's a new episode. I'll also put them up when there's a big release (like a DVD), convention or even general big news thing. That link will simply take you to the most recently created one without you needing to search for it.

Q: What are the comments all about?

A: They're pretty much what you'd expect. It's just a way you can comment on a news article, including (but not limited to) corrections, additions, further discussion or just general talk with other fans. It's a pretty limited format as you can only post text and links. You don't need an account to post or anything, but having one will make you more awesome. Also note that if you post anonymously I do store some extra information so I do know if you're a dirty liar or not. You should check out the comment guidelines for a small set of posting rules.

Q: Hey, my comment is gone!

A: Probably got nuked. From time to time I'll nuke comments, which means they cease to show up anywhere (though they remain in the database and I can 'un-nuke' them if I want). Most of the time I'll just nuke double-posts, but discussion of anything illegal (for example how to pirate the show) or inflammatory (if you act like a total jerk) will also earn you a nuke. If you're being particularly abrasive I might also ban your IP, which means you won't be able to post any more. However I haven't had to do this ever and hopefully I never will.

It's also worth noting that people stating opinions that you disagree with, as long as they do so in a civil way, are not doing anything wrong.

Q: What's the deal with user accounts?

A: They work the same as they would on any site. Sign up for an account and you can be a part of the Mantis-Eye community. Anybody can post comments, but with an account you can upvote/downvote the comments of others, earn achievements and probably some other stuff in the future. There's nothing to lose really, so if you're a regular contributor you should totally sign up for an account. It'll be awesome!

Q: So wait, are you going to steal my private info or sell my email address or something? You jerk!

A: Never! I hate spam as much as you do (probably more!) and I value privacy a huge amount! The only requirements for signing up for an account are a username, password and valid email address, and I will never ever sell or otherwise release your email to any third party. In fact your email is only used so you can verify your account and reset your password (and maybe send you a newsletter or something like that, if I ever get around to making one). You should review the terms of use and privacy policy if you're concerned about this stuff because it's all outlined there.

Q: What about those ads?

A: Those all link to Amazon or Entertainment Earth or some other web site and use various affiliate accounts. I don't generally make much (or any) money from them, but I do often use the revenue they generate (usually Amazon gift cards) to purchase things that are given away on the site. Hopefully those are the only ads the site will ever have.

Q: Do you have any episodes for download or can you send them to me somehow or tell me where to get them, please, please, please?

A: No, and if you e-mail me this I'll just ignore you. Just buy the show on DVD or purchase it from iTunes or something like that and watch it when it's on TV. You can also watch tons of clips and some free episodes on Adult Swim's site.

Q: Your site is broken in my (probably old) browser!

A: Yeah, that's probably true. I suggest installing Firefox, Chrome or simply upgrading to the latest version of Internet Explorer. You'll thank me for it.

Q: Your stupid FAQ didn't answer my question.

A: Sorry. If you still have a question e-mail me with it. I'm sort of busy sometimes, so I won't always respond, but I do read it all, and if your question is good then I might just answer it! Sometimes I even post mailbags on the front page where I post a bunch of e-mails I've gotten with potential answers.