B Movies Blog

Hello, Movie Mavens! Welcome back to the B Movies Blog. Today, we’re popping Alex Bale’s The Muse ARG into the ol’ VCR. 

ARGs. We know them. We love them. And I have yet another horror ARG to submit for  approval to the Midnight Society. 

I started watching Baz’s channel a few weeks ago, and I’ve been slowly working my way through the backlog. Lo and behold, I found a playlist* Baz created covering The Muse ARG, and to no one’s surprise, I’m obsessed. Created by Alex Bale, who you might know from the Pizza Time Pizza (which could be a piece in and of itself), The Muse ARG spans across websites and YouTube channels alike. 

*I recommend watching the videos in Baz’s playlist in this order: 3, 2, 1, 4, 5, 6, 7 

Now, I love this ARG for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, we know I’m a sucker for meta commentary, especially meta commentary about the creative process. Secondly, I love this new wave of horror we’ve seen from the likes of Liminal Land, and analog horror series like Gemini Home Entertainment, and this ARG is brilliant. 

The ARG started in clips throughout Alex Bale’s YouTube series about Spongebob conspiracy theories. Nestled in the beginning and end of each video were pieces of a larger story. As it turns out, Alex has some sort of Lovecraftan monstrosity living in his basement feeding him scripts for each video. That, in and of itself, makes for a great horror series. But friends, it doesn’t stop here. 

Some of these clips include another “YouTuber” known as The Cynical Critic, who harshly critiques popular and/or beloved films, including one of Alex Bale’s own shorts. But wait, there’s MORE. 

In addition to his own YouTube channel and the fabricated Cynical Critic channel, there’s yet another channel in the mix, this place is not happy. So, what’s our throughline? 

Well friends, everything ties back to Happy Meat Farms. On the outside, Happy Meat Farms appears to be an organic and humane facility for animals to be raised for human consumption… until you realize how sinister this organization really is. 

We’re talking aliens. We’re talking grotesque human and animal experimentation. We’re talking body snatchers. The whole nine yards. 

And don’t even get me started on MOTHER. 

The finale of The Muse ARG, DON’T FEED THE MUSE III, has started filming and is set to release later this year, so you have time to go through all of the channels and websites yourself. Or, if you’re like me, you have time to go through all of Baz’s videos on The Muse ARG to prepare for the end. Also, Alex Bale shared a Google doc with Baz that he linked in the description box of one of his videos with all of the passwords and information you need to follow the ARG. 

If you’re into creative horror series and ARGs, The Muse ARG is for you. Alex Bale deserves endless praise for his work, and you should spend a Sunday afternoon diving into this world like I did. I promise you won’t regret it, and MOTHER will be pleased.