FBI Warning of Doom
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"FBI Warning of Doom" is an episode of the television series Invader Zim. Originally produced as episode 11B, "FBI Warning of Doom" aired as episode 14B on March 29, 2002.
[edit] Plot
GIR has now watched Intestines of War, the movie he rented from the video store, one hundred times. Zim discovers on the tape a standard FBI warning and believes, after his computer makes up the history of the FBI because it knows nothing about them, that it is a warning against aliens. Scared by the warning and when the video store calls telling him to bring back the video or pay late fees, Zim hurries to the mall after it is closed to bring the video back.
At the closed mall, the maniacal security guard Sergeant Slab Rankle notices Zim and orders him to surrender from an intercom. Zim refuses, so Rankle presses a button, and launches a series high tech security defenses, eventually capturing Zim. After berating him for trying to buck mall security, he sends Zim down to an underground prison of sorts, where he meets other prisoners. One of the prisoners explains that they are down here for various petty reasons, and that Rankle removes one of them every couple of days, possibly to become a zombie.
Zim creates a vertical line of people, rallying them to crawl up the heating vents to freedom. However, Zim just escapes without them.
Back in the mall, Rankle assaults Zim with lasers and various weapons, but Zim dodges them all. Finally, he sends out zombies, proving the prisoners' theory. At first, they crowd around, but then collapse in a heap of limbs.
Amazed by the Irken, Rankle finally steps out of his lair, imploring Zim to work with him. However, Zim is tired and a little creeped out by the guard, so he decides to just put the video in the slot...and go home. Refreshed anyway, Rankle happily goes back to his room, stepping over the pile of zombies.
[edit] Trivia
- For some reason, the Scary Monkey is among the prisoners in the back.
- The zombies who are in the mall parody Dawn of the Dead, which features the same scenario.
- Many movies feature a new prisoner in a penitentiary (a rookie) and an old-time veteran who knows everything and explains the situation to the audience. (See also Girl, Interrupted, Cool Hand Luke, The Shawshank Redemption)
- Originally, the credits at the end of Intestines of War were originally supposed to be sexaul explicit names (eg. Jenny Talls). But because the show was deemed a "kids show", there were replaced with more "suitable" names. The explicit version can still be seen in the DVD animatics, however.
- The agents seen on the computer screen look similar to Agent Smith.
- This episode was renamed FBI Warning
[edit] Themes
The episode is a satire of video store late fees and also mall security, who are often obsessed with their jobs. In addition, it is satire of warning the FBI displays at the beginning of rented films.
