The Perfect Murder
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A tribute to Pico and the gang, by Luis! - Newgrounds Description
The Perfect Murder is an Adobe Flash animation created by Luis Castanon, and submitted to Newgrounds on March 25, 2004. Originally created for the Newgrounds Jam 2[1], the plot follows the main trio of Pico, Darnell, and Nene apparently fighting to the death over a jar of "NG Jam". Acting as sort of a tribute to the Pico series, this short Flash movie incorporates all the violent tendencies of Tom Fulp's characters into "one solid minute of unadulterated action".
Plot
The movie starts with Nene looking over a counter, eyeing the untouched container of "NG Jam", a kitchen knife in hand. However, she spots a laser light which takes aim at her head, and she ducks for cover. The camera pans to reveal Pico wielding a M4A1 Carbine with laser sighting, determined to kill her. She runs across the hallway for more cover, dodging the approaching bullets. After the rifle's ammo is depleted, Pico discards his weapon. With the coast now clear, Nene leaves her hiding place and pulls out another knife to retaliate.
Now defenseless, Pico hastily grabs a leftover Bible and uses it as an improvised shield against Nene's unrelenting offense, until one of her knives ends up stuck in the drywall. As she is busy trying to pull it out, Pico finally catches his breath and spots an open drawer which holds a spare revolver, bullets included. He confidently takes the revolver and leaps into action, firing off a shot at Nene that instantly kills her with a headshot.
As he examines her limp body, Pico is caught off-guard by Darnell firing at him with dual MAC-10s. Having barely dodged the ambush, this only leaves his left arm grazed by one of the bullets. With both their backs against opposite sides of the wall, Darnell notices a pair of alcohol-filled bottles near his feet, which he quickly grabs and turns into Molotov cocktails. He tosses them from the other side of the wall towards Pico, causing him to flee and leaving the ensuing fire to immolate Nene's corpse.
Gazing at the carnage he had caused in pure bliss, Darnell is then blindsided by a still living Pico, who shoots and kills him with a spare pistol, leaving him as the sole survivor and finally putting the short film to an end.
Characters
Reception
Upon its release to Newgrounds, The Perfect Murder received positive reception from users and critics alike. It earned great critical acclaim for its amazing display of animation. Since then, this Flash movie has gained up to 1.3 million views and currently holds an average rating score of 4.69/5.00. It would also win both the Daily Feature and the Weekly 2nd Place Awards across the span of one week.
Additionally, it is featured in the Pico collection.
Gallery
Title card.
Nene and a jar of NG Jam.
Pico aiming his rifle.
Nene hides from the ensuing gunfire.
Pico runs out of ammo.
Nene wielding dual knives.
Pico finds a revolver.
Pico and Darnell on opposite sides.
Pico takes his shot.
Video
Trivia
- The Perfect Murder would be the first of Luis Castanon's many contributions to the Pico series, which include Pico vs. Convict, Portal of the Damned, Escape from Camp Hostility, Pico Blast, and other submissions that were made specifically for Pico Day.
- Luis would also re-use the main track "czer323 - Techno Fun5 Fixed" for Escape from Camp Hostility.
- Originally, The Perfect Murder was created for the second Newgrounds Jam alongside Pico VS Zombies DoD and Pico's Unloaded. The collab was ultimately cancelled, and it was submitted as a standalone movie. This is referenced in the Flash itself with a jar of grape jelly labeled "NG Jam".[1]
- Nene's choice of weapon being a pair of kitchen knives is the earliest instance of her association with sharp melee weapons; she had shown no experience in combat prior to this, but many fanmade Flash animations created afterward depict her having said proficiency.
- According to Luis, the more antagonistic nature between Pico, Nene, and Darnell came from him being inspired by the fictional "Itchy and Scratchy" show from The Simpsons.