Darnell Plays With Fire
Darnell teaches kids about his favorite thing in the world, fire! - Newgrounds Description
Darnell Plays With Fire (also known as Darnell's Pyro 101) is an interactive Flash movie created by Tom Fulp and released on February 25, 1999. Featured on Newgrounds before the creation of the Flash Portal, it is the first official entry of the Pico franchise, acting as a proper introduction to the series. The movie stars Darnell, who demonstrates his pyromania to the audience by laying waste to a populated area. Before he could continue his chaotic spree, he's promptly interrupted by something that he didn't expect.
Story
The movie starts with Darnell teaching the viewer about one of his favorite things: fire. He shows a "demonstration" across the river of skyscrapers that are on fire or exploding and making a statement about how "nothing is more stunning than the luminous glow of a burning city". He provides a factoid about how the city of Des Moines has nine fire departments and 288 full-time firefighters, before revealing he rigged explosives across each fire department to keep them busy.
An airplane then crashes across the cityscape, which catches Darnell's attention. He heads to the crash site and witnesses the passengers burning alive, now eager to see the plane explode. It does so, and Darnell is amazed by the glorious event, which brings a tear to his eye. However, this moment is short-lived as the leftover wreckage from the plane lands on Darnell. The debris then catches fire, causing him to slowly burn and die. As Darnell states his last wishes and regrets, the screen fades to white, and he appears to have ascended to the afterlife. He is suddenly met by God, who is armed with a flamethrower, which He uses to incinerate Darnell.
The movie ends with a final message from Tom Fulp, teaching a moral lesson that God is a "vengeful muthafucka" and that it's important "not to mess with [His] shit", since he always gets the last laugh. He tells the audience that when they go to bed, they should ask God to forgive them for all the stupid shit they do, and if He still seems mad (you will know because He will make your life hell), promptly kill themselves and meet with Him face-to-face, all the while pleading for forgiveness.
Characters
- Darnell (debut)
- God (debut) (mentioned)
- Darnell's parents (debut) (mentioned)
Transcript
- Main article: Darnell Plays With Fire/Transcript
Reception
Being one of the earliest Flash movies to be released on Newgrounds, there is no way to discern how popular Darnell Plays With Fire was at the time. After the creation of the automated Flash Portal system, it would be re-released on April 29th, 2006, in anticipation of Pico Day. The movie would receive over 650,000 views, and it currently maintains an average review score of 4.60/5.00. However, unlike Pico's School and Nene Interactive Suicide, it would earn no awards.
Additionally, Darnell Plays With Fire is featured in the Pico collection.
Gallery
Title card.
Darnell introduces himself to the audience.
He provides a "demonstration" behind him.
His most famous quote.
Darnell spits some facts.
Buildings begin detonating in the surrounding cityscape.
Darnell reveals how he creates explosives.
Suddenly, a plane crashes!
Darnell's interest has peaked.
He then approaches the downed plane.
He now anticipates the incoming explosion.
The plane blows up.
Darnell is pleased by the outcome.
He starts shedding a tear before...
...he gets crushed by said plane.
He cries out for help.
The wreckage catches fire.
Darnell begins to burn alive.
He starts to panic.
Ultimately, he realizes his fate.
He makes his last wishes to his family.
Darnell finally regrets his life decisions before fading out.
Suddenly, Darnell wakes up in a new area.
He believes it is Heaven, which is apparently on fire.
He then meets God himself...
...who is currently wielding a flamethrower.
Darnell then receives his comeuppance.
The author's message.
Old icon of Darnell Plays With Fire in the Newgrounds Pico collection.
Old thumbnail of Darnell Plays With Fire.
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Video
Trivia
- As the first installment within the official Pico franchise, Darnell Plays With Fire is the only entry so far to be an animated Flash movie.
- Because of the lack of actual blood or gore, this Flash was given a T rating upon its submission to Newgrounds.
- The music that plays in the background is a looped sample of the 1998 promotional single "Build It Up – Tear It Down" by English musician and DJ Fatboy Slim.
- Judging by the dialogue, it seems to establish that Darnell lived somewhere in Des Moines, Iowa. Subsequent installments in the Pico series would later retcon this detail, instead revealing that he and his friends, Pico and Nene, all lived in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
- Darnell's pyromania was inspired by and based around Tom Fulp's childhood interest in playing with fire, as well as his desire to utilize animated fire and explosion GIFs in a Flash animation.
- This would mark the first time in the Pico series where God is mentioned in appearance.
- The airplane that ends up crashing and exploding would later be redrawn by Tom Fulp and used in the 2000 version of the Pico's World hub.
- Despite apparently dying in the ending, Darnell continued to make appearances in later installments. It's theoretically possible that Darnell Plays With Fire is merely a presentation Darnell made for his classroom due to the use of real images as the background. This could also explain why he's absent from school during the events of Pico's School, as he must have been suspended for the violent content in his presentation.
