B Movies Blog

Hello, Movie Mavens! Welcome back to the B Movies Blog. Today, we’re popping Mikaeli Hitting Metal into the ol’ VCR.

Okay, y’all, I have a real gem today. 

Let’s talk about Adrian Gray’s Mikaeli Hitting Metal. 

But first, I need to give a couple of shoutouts.

I want to thank Night Mind for covering this ARG and putting it on my radar 

Additionally, I want to thank Fred Jonesy for his analysis videos because they were instrumental in my research. 

Without further ado, let’s dive in. 

Video source: Adrian Gray Comedy

Back in December 2023, an Instagram account under the name youhitmetal17times_everyday appeared. 

It initially seemed to be one of those accounts where the owner posts the same clip or photo each day as a gag. 

This particular account posted a clip depicting a gentleman named Mikaeli hitting metal 17 times (hence the account’s name) on some sort of game show that was dubbed over. 

HOWEVER, over 30 days in, the clip changed, revealing that Mikaeli was stuck in some sort of time loop. 

And that’s where it all started. 

(And yes, I said FIRST) 

The clips also began glitching with the game show screen showing pieces of code, insinuating that Mikaeli was in some sort of simulation, as well as photos of an old factory fire caused by negligence on the owner’s part, and FBI video title cards mentioning the death of someone named Samantha Penford. 

Additionally, Mikaeli’s appearance also glitched, with a brief overlay of an older gentleman in an oxygen mask flashing over Mikaeli’s current form. 

Viewers began speculating that Mikaeli’s trademark phrase, “Fair enough,” reset the time loop and tried suggesting ways for him to get out, leading to the first musical number of the series, “Fair Enough.”

Video source: Adrian Gray – Topic 

From there, a truly horrific tale began to unfold. 

In the first glimpse of the outside world, a news report recounted how a fire at Veil Industries left their CEO in a coma and other employees injured. 

Mikaeli is revealed to be Michael Lee, the CEO of Veil Industries, some sort of ‘90s tech company, which was working on an early version of virtual/augmented reality called Mirage. 

We also learn that Michael Lee is kind of the worst, in that he neglected employee complaints and safety (hence the photo we see in a glitch), and is accused of gambling with company money and illegal experimentation. 

Soon after, it’s revealed that Sam (aka Samantha) Penford was holding Michael hostage in the game show simulation as a way to atone for his sins, but Michael’s wife, Jia, eventually makes her way into the simulation both physically and via text to help him break out. 

Once released, Michael traps Sam in the simulation as a hideous, ogre-like puppet, where we learn the game show host is a) named Sasha and b) is trapped himself. 

It seems poor Sasha agreed to be a test subject for Veil Industries to get out of debt after his mother fell ill and found himself trapped in the game show along with Michael. 

Sasha’s roommate*, Joe, begins worrying about him, as he hasn’t returned home from his trials, and Veil Industries alleges they released him weeks ago. 

*I have a theory that Joe and Sasha are “roommates,” but the only leg I have to stand on is the beginning of “Don’t Wanna Live In A Simulation.”  

We also discover that when connected to Mirage, people are not only connected to some sort of Eldridge horror, but that the surgery is extremely painful, meaning that Michael isn’t beating the shitty human being allegations. 

And this leads us into our second musical number, “Property is Theft.”

Video source: Adrian Gray – Topic 

However, our musical euphoria is short-lived as Sam is ripped from the game, once again leaving Sasha alone. 

Joe is then held hostage by security but finds the message that Sasha sneakily sent out in a game review. Sasha is also able to make contact with Joe through an analog TV and prove that, despite appearances, Sasha is who he claims to be. 

Sasha gains access to a blueprint of Veil Industries to help Joe escape his cell, and the two hatch a plan to free Joe so that he can free Sasha. 

Meanwhile, Michael sings the next song of the series, “Bad Boy Beat,” no longer hiding his disgusting actions but rather singing about and discussing them publicly.  

Video source: Adrian Gray – Topic 

As we cut back to Joe and Sasha, we learn that Veil Industries is planning to sacrifice Joe to the big, bad monster, aka Nereidion, they connect to for Mirage, unbeknownst to our dynamic duo. 

Joe tries to escape as Sasha details where his body can be found, but as Sasha tries to guide Joe through the facility, a guard catches Joe, leaving Sasha feeling helpless…

…which brings us to our final musical number, “Don’t Wanna Leave In A Simulation.” 

Video source: Adrian Gray – Topic 

Joe manages to escape being sacrificed to Nereidion, with the help of one of Michael’s disgruntled employees, and when we finally think we’ll get our happy ending, Joe finds Sasha…

…’s empty test chamber. 

That’s right, friends. 

We were fighting a losing battle the entire time, as it seems Sasha’s body was completely consumed by Nereidion earlier in the series. 

In the last scene of the ARG, a new character enters the simulation and identifies himself as Joe. 

I TOLD Y’ALL I HAD A GOOD ONE FOR YOU TODAY. 

Before we wrap up, I want to call attention to a couple of comments from Fred Jonesy’s videos. 

One commenter called attention to the fact that “AARU,” one of the lines of code we see in the glitches, is how the afterlife is referred to in Egyptian mythology. Additionally, we learn that one of the test subjects, whom we later learn is Sasha, has been “disconnected.” 

So, basically, Adrian Grey told us the entire time that Sasha couldn’t be saved—it was right in front of our faces throughout the entire series. 

Additionally, someone commented about how comedy horror ARGs are a space worth exploring, and I agree. 

I’ve said that 2025 is the Year of the Horror Comedy, and I think Mikaeli Hitting Metal proves how successful a comedy horror ARG can be. 

While this series shares connective tissues to the likes of Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog and Space Ghost Coast to Coast (and potentially season four or five of The X-Files), it’s something entirely different. 

The concept of repurposing stock footage is clever and shows how ingenuity can spawn something incredible.

The writing, including the lyrics to the musical numbers, is amazing, and the story twists a concept we’ve seen before into something entirely new. 

I honestly can’t recommend watching the full series enough. 

I know that there’s a myriad of content out there right now, but at a run time of only 26 minutes, I think it’s worth prioritizing. 

Fair enough, right?