#huntright | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hntersofficial-blog · 5 years

Text

Stop Lying About High-Fence Hunting

Outdoor media has ruined hunting. I've lost count of how many hunters I've heard say that. They rail against the way hunting has become too commercialized, thanks to all the TV shows, websites, podcasts…and magazines too.

These outlets have fooled many hunters into thinking an average day in the stand should include at least one encounter with a 150-incher. They've even contributed to land-leasing rates skyrocketing alongside the big-buck craze. A lot of people think those big bucks on TV and magazine covers aren't even wild. They're livestock in a pen. Sound like a familiar gripe?

If you’ve ever suspected that not all is as it appears to be in hunting media, you’re correct. At least on occasion. The problem is not that the viewers believe there are fakes—it’s that sometimes the hunting business knows there are fakes but turns a blind eye. Our industry is eager to rally around certain causes—conservation, Second Amendment rights—but it’s not always as eager to review its own impact.

But some things need to be reviewed, and here’s an example. My friend Kerry Wix has been a freelance cameraman for 16 years. He’s filmed everything from catfish noodling to grizzly hunting for the Outdoor, Sportsman, and Pursuit channels. “If you watch much outdoor TV,” he says, “you’ve seen something I’ve filmed.” Overall, he loves it. And he insists that most of the shows out there are the real deal.

“The big-name shows, for the most part, are 100 percent legit,” he says. “The people hosting them are good hunters. They set their own stands and do their own thing, the right way. And they put up with a lot of haters accusing them of hunting behind fences along the way.”

But last fall, Wix took a gig filming a Wisconsin deer hunt for a show that he asked us not to name. It appears on the Sportsman Channel, and he’d not filmed for the show previously. “They mentioned that we’d be on a ‘preserve,’ ” Wix says. “I had my suspicions that it was fenced, but I didn’t know for sure until we drove through this huge gate on the way to the lodge.” High fences aren’t Wix’s thing, but the fence itself wasn’t the real issue. “My problem is they did everything possible to play it off as a wild hunt.”

Not long into the hunt, one of the hosts let a giant, double-drop-tine non-typical—a world-record-class deer in the wild—walk by in hopes of getting something more “believable” on video. They asked Wix to avoid filming the fence in the background. He refrained from filming the elk that bedded near the stand too. “I was looking at a 400-inch bull, right there in Wisconsin,” he says with a laugh. But no one was laughing when one host wounded a buck with a crossbow.

With the help of the preserve owner, the hunter followed up on the buck the next morning. The deer was still alive, and the hunter finished it with a rifle. “I was in the stand filming [the other host], and heard the shot,” Wix says. He was then asked to film a “recovery” staged in another area. “They moved the buck, and kicked snow over the blood where they’d dragged it.” The host gave an interview and acknowledged shooting the buck again—but while holding his sponsor’s crossbow, never mentioning the rifle.

0 notes

guywithtime2kill · 7 years

Photo

Breakdown/Analysis of 'The Wild Hunt' Hey everyone! Hope you all enjoyed last night's set, because I sure did. We got four really good episodes that have a lot to unpack from each - I did this sort of thing with the last bomb, and people seemed to like those well-enough, so I supposed I will just do it for every episode until the series is over.'The Wild Hunt' is probably going to be a lot of people's favorite episode in this set, and if not that, then 'Bonnibel Bubblegum' for sure. And it's not hard to see why: we've got development for Finn, a solid story, Huntress Wizard, the works!So let's dive in to The Wild HuntRight off the bat, you gotta love the Banana Guards. I really never noticed how their staffs have rings at the end. Their barracks were cute too, and it's funny how they sleep in literal "banana hammocks".Finn's banana suit is a subtle callback to The Thin Yellow Line, where we coincidentally first see Gumbald onscreen.So, Finn's deal here is he can't bring himself to kill anything because he's just reminded of Fern. Although Fern was trying to kill him, Finn feels incredible guilt not only because the guy was literally him, but because Finn knew his story - deep down, he understands why he did what he did. He was even willing to let Fern kill him as opposed to the other way around back in Three Buckets. I will go more in-depth with this when a specific line comes up.In the flashback to that morning, we're first shown a sign that says, "33rd Annual Royal Banana Guard Post-Season Apology Game." I wonder what that means. I have two theories: either this is what PB says it is, and it's a morale boost because the Banana Guards suck so much, or it's Bubblegum's way of apology for once again dinking it up and putting everyone in danger, and this is a sort of relaxing ritual for them. Either one works.Of course, I love this flashback with PB, her and Finn being real with each other. She's characterized well here, and you can tell her deal by how she's expressed in the animation. She thinks things are all well and good until Finn tells her he agreed to do this as a distraction, where she then looks concerned.From this line, "How are you holding up after all the Fern stuff?" we can ascertain that they've talked about this before. I'm glad we skipped over a month where the grieving process was still in its early stages right after it happened. I like to think Finn's friends have changed their game plan when it comes to consoling Finn after emotionally heavy stuff. Before, like when Finn Sword was killed, they do everything they can to distract him from thinking about it. Now it seems they support and talk to him. And with later dialogue implying Finn tried going on dungeon crawls and engaging in monster fights with Jake, it's clear he doesn't suffer from falling into a lethargic dump like he was after losing his arm, or the beginning of Music Hole when he has nothing to distract him.I know I went off a rather irrelevant tangent there, but it's another clue as to how this show handles its character development with subtlety, and invites viewers to stew over what is happening.Finn tells Bonnie that he feels "awful about the way he went." This isn't referring to how he actually died, but how it all went down and why. Judging from the end of the episode, I don't think Finn is totally over why Fern turned against him and how it all went down, but he's able to fight again without being haunted by his other self.Bonnie shrieking and whooping as she slips on the banana peel was great - it's always a treat to hear her freaking out, it's so different from her typical calm.Speaking of that moment, that demonstrated perfectly why I really like the humor in this show: it's never in dissonance with the characters or the world, it doesn't clash. The joke was natural and did not come at the expense of the moment.Speaking of Bubblegum's voice acting, props to Hynden Walch as always. She probably is the best voice actor on the show, and that's really saying something. Her horror was palpable as she realized what happened.Love the extra detail too, of the stress lines beneath her eyes and the crease of her brows. You can tell this is genuinely upsetting for Bonnibel, but she keeps it together - "You don't leave your heart exposed," and all that.Love it when she gets pissed too - like how she tells Finn to show the culprit no mercy if he touches her guards.Finn's reaction to this tells us that he hasn't told her about his problem either - how he can't bring himself to kill any monsters. This was mad dangerous and reckless of Finn, but I can feel for him - he didn't want to upset Bubblegum, even though I'm sure she would understand if he explained it to her. Maybe if he did, she would have put Rattleballs on the job.Finn saying, "I dinked it!" calls back to how Fern was always upset with himself whenever he dinked it. But as Finn told him in Whispers, he just has to learn from his dinks."Cool, I'm gonna make peace with my aging body." Hey, at least Jake is accepting and acknowledging that he's getting old now. He just can't take a beating like he used to."I don't care why you're doing this, or if you have a... a tragic past... I don't care! I'm hard like that..."This was the line I mentioned above. This is the heart of Finn's problem with Fern, and how he's seeing the world now. Whenever he's about to kill a monster, he just remembers the last guy he killed was him, and that it was all because he wanted to be who he was meant to be. It's sad, and it's coloring Finn's perception of the world.I've always liked this about Finn's character: how he acts like a tough guy, but at heart Finn's just a sweet boy. He has a huge amount of empathy, which is why he's always deeply affected by the big moments of his life.Huntress Wizard is a really fun character this time around. She always was, but here especially she doesn't need to conceal herself from Finn because they know each other well. Her explanation for why she called the monster "the Grumbo" was hilarious."So, how ya been?" "Finn, I saw you falter back there." This, to me, shows how different of people Huntress Wizard and Finn are. Finn's always been about the emotional and social connection he shares with people, but Huntress Wizard, as explained by her former master, is all about the goal ahead of her. But at the same time, it shows that she's concerned for why Finn, this boy she views as an "exceptional beast" couldn't land the killing blow. I will discuss the relationship more at the end, but I liked this moment of interaction between them in particular. It did what AT does best, and characterized these two people well within a matter of two lines of dialogue.Interesting how Huntress Wizard claims "It's a... two hunters' job." On the one hand, I don't suppose she could eliminate the Grumbo on her own - that requires a heavy piercing weapon like a sword, in order to puncture its skin/peel. On the other, I think Huntress had a dual reason: to share a hunt with a boy she likes and admires, and because she wants to help him overcome his mental block.Huntress's explanation for why Finn had to kill Fern was mad interesting - it had to be done so he could become a "tighter version" of himself. I'm of the firm belief that all of this business with the Grass Sword was yet another aspect ordained by fate itself (given how intertwined it and Finn Sword is in a lot of key moments in the series). Killing Fern must be part of that, because of what Finn realizes about people and their motivations in this episode (which I've mentioned already).What exactly is this Grumbo's lair made out of? And how was it made? I assume Gumbald made it, or perhaps the Grumbo made it and it's all dried hot fudge. Looks a little grey though."DUCK, I GUESS!" "Bicycle KICK!" HW is great. The ducking line is another great moment of characterization - HW is a huntress, she's done fights like this before no problem. But she knows Finn's limitations and was able to tell how the Grumbo was about to attack - she could, and was able to, dodge it just fine, but she was trying to warn Finn so he could avoid it."Now, Finn! Coup de grace!" For those of you who don't know, she was phonetically wording out the phrase "coo day grah", which it basically a fancy way of calling a finisher. Or the culmination of a worsening situation, which, in a way, applies to this episode.Interesting word choice from Finn, "Time to final blow it!""Finn, don't you love me?" Wow, poor Finn. Deep in his mind, he feels like he shouldn't have even tried fighting Fern - as if he was denying him of his happiness by doing so. His issues run deep here.Every time Fern's face shows up, he says a line that applies to a different hangup Finn has about what happened. The first time was because Fern was him, the second was because he killed him. That moment is the third reason.I know we see a small group of Banana Guards have survived, but in the bird's eye view of the Grumbo's lair, there are a lot of banana peels littered about. I counted fifteen - and that's not mentioning the ones at the fortress. It definitely did kill quite a few of them."Finn, help me." That was Finn's mind tricking him into taking action, by having Fern be the one asking for it. It wasn't actually because Huntress Wizard was in danger and that made Finn spring into action, even though that was her goal. Finn still didn't overcome his hangup here, but it was the first step toward doing so.That first step being, how Finn would be able to overcome his guilt when people's lives are on the line. Because he's a hero, and no matter what that will always be his prerogative.I noticed the placement of Fern's face was always on or near the Grumbo's and Huntress Wizard's, and likely every other monster he's tried fighting. I think that's a subtle clue as to how Finn can't bear to look a creature in the eye when he's taking its life anymore.The Rattleballs rapier is gone! I wonder what Finn's next sword will be."Yeah right, we both know you're totally in love with me." Except, no, Finn is right - that isn't what did it. And, this show is quite realistic when it comes to relationships: Finn can't be in love with Huntress Wizard, because he barely knows her. Therefore, this line had a few meanings behind it, as did the kiss that followed:Huntress Wizard was simply teasing Finn. I can't imagine someone as cool and collected as her being serious when she says that.She was subconsciously trying to reaffirm that she still matters to Finn, which I think is the more likely of these two points. We've seen Huntress Wizard come out to hear his flute playing in Wheels. I think Huntress frequently watches Finn from afar, but she never let's herself get too close. I mean, this is the only other time they've hung out since Flute Spell. It's obvious that Huntress Wizard admires Finn for his strength and what he was willing to do for her, and I wouldn't doubt that no one's ever treated her the same before or since. She's a loner, so to have someone like that suddenly throw their time upon her is big. But at the same time, she doesn't want to have to rely on someone else, because as she said in Flute Spell, she feels her own value is diminished - she feels her strength and value stems from her own strength and ability to live alone. But, hey, the heart wants what it wants.Question is, if that's what Finn's heart wants. As I said, Finn barely knows her. And because Huntress is the only other girl to express any sort of interest in him outside of Phoebe and Bonnibel. So, I don't blame him for thinking Huntress's comment made him think it was okay to go in for a kiss.I'm... still on the fence as to whether or not Huntress moved her head so that it was a kiss on the cheek. I don't know! I'm really wondering why they had her move her head at all if she was already facing Finn. So, if she didn't, and it was on the lips, I can see that as a parallel to her appreciative kiss in Flute Spell. If she did turn away, I see that as Huntress denying herself from fueling her desire to have Finn.Now, my thoughts on the ship. In-canon, I don't see this episode changing their dynamic at all. I don't think it was anything significant. Part of the reason I see it that way is because of my own hopes for the series: I don't want them to get together. I get that people want Finn to be happy with someone, but I can't help but see this for exactly what people originally criticized Flame Princess for: a romantic plot device for Finn. That means, the only reason they would get together, is so Finn could end the series with a girlfriend, and that is incredibly lazy. I'd honestly hate that. But that doesn't even come close to how much I hate even saying this - it really makes me seem like I'm trashing on everybody's shipping fun, when that isn't my intention; it's just how I feel and how I interpret this show, and until it ends we won't know what it plans to do.Finn seeing Fern's face was a great moment, but it's hard to tell if it was just a joke or it meant something. For the first time this episode, we see it smiling. Was it a subtle clue in the show that Finn will only ever be with himself, literally? (Not that he's going to go out with Fern, but that was the visual metaphor I derive from that).I knew Gumbald was behind that ziggurat from Three Buckets. That confirms how Fern found Gumbald on his own, who then used him to replace Finn and get at Bonnibel.I love how Gumbald originally called the beat "Bananameister", but then crossed that out and wrote Grumbo because that's what they called it.Okay, so he's twisting Fern into a big monster. From this, I have my own theory as to his goal with that. From the creature's design, he isn't meant to replace Finn now. He looks like a weapon. So, once he is unleashed, I think Finn is going to lock up realizing it's Fern, and he will spring into action when Jake or PB is in danger. Maybe Finn will be critically injured. And Gumbald watched that whole fight, he knows about Finn's guilt - he may be mad of course, but he isn't stupid.I don't know why he kidnapped Banana Guards - either to make his own army out of their candy flesh, or to just kill them indiscriminately to get at Bonnie.Whatever his plans, none of this spells good fortune for our main characters. The title relates to this subtly, and brilliantly. "The Wild Hunt", you're likely familiar with from the Witcher series of games - the main antagonists. They are based upon the folk tale of the same name, which this episode's name derives from.The Wild Hunt has a legend surrounding it, both in-game and in the folk tale. For when you see the legion of wraiths, astride their dead horses as they trample across the night sky, it spells coming doom and misfortune for the entire world. Judging from Gumbald's plan, and the entity of the Lich stewing his own plans in the background, things are going to go downhill real fast in Ooo.This was a fantastic episode all around. Great characterization all around, a good story, subtle, and humorous throughout. I hope you enjoyed my breakdown!

#adventuretime #adventure time #finn #jake #ice king #Marceline #Candy Kingdom #cartoon #princess

0 notes