Villager News

Villager News
Villager News.png: Infobox image for Villager News the video in Minecraft
Type

Video series

Starring

Dan Lloyd

Production companies

Element Animation

Available on

YouTube 

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Villager News is an online comedy web series produced and published by Element Animation, an indie animation company best known for their numerous Minecraft parodies including Villager News. The series started on April 26, 2013, when the first installment was uploaded to Element's official YouTube channel. The first video alone has amassed over 33 million views since its initial upload,[1] and the full series has over 200 million views in total.

The series has been included in officially-licensed Minecraft media multiple times, mainly for live streams and promotional purposes.

Synopsis

The series typically follows a cast of villagers who operate a live news station known as "Villager News". Every episode begins with Villager No. 4 (Villager No. 5 following his death in the episode "VILLAGER NEWS: WAR!") announcing breaking news before Villager No. 9 presents the live-recorded footage[note 1] that sets up the main plot of the episode.

Voiced by Dan Lloyd, the villagers are portrayed as air-headed and naïve, often falling for enemy attacks and resorting to barbaric resolutions such as the "Pit of Death", a running gag in which a villager is tossed into a 2-block-tall hole and is unable to escape, or making vehicles out of themselves.

Some episodes revolve around other kinds of plots, such as "VILLAGER NEWS: THE GIANT PROBLEM", in which several mobs massively increase in size because of a lake contaminated with a growth potion made by a witch.

Collaborations with Mojang

During 2014, an extensive April Fools joke was done in collaboration with Villager News[2] for Java Edition. All player skins were replaced with unique ones of random villagers, including the then-unused green villager, while the villager mob's sound effects were replaced with Element Animation's "T.E.A.V.S.R.P" (The Element Animation Villager Sounds Resource Pack). Mojang Studios also added in-game villager music, including a parody of the Game of Thrones theme, a reference to it being previously spoofed in the trailer for the resource pack.[3] The next day, on April 2, the changes were reverted, bookended with a Villager News episode "apologizing" for the incident.

Due to the series' widespread popularity, Mojang Studios has commissioned Villager News animations for promotional purposes on several occasions. The first is the video VILLAGER (and Pillager?) NEWS, which was produced to promote the release of the Village & Pillage update and was played as part of MINECON Live 2019. The video revolved around an outcry over a villager not wanting to download the new update, despite him clearly saying that he does want to. This is followed by an advertisement-style montage of the update's new additions, including a small tease for raids.

Element and Mojang's next collaboration would be "Monster in the Woods", an episode involving a group of villagers lead by Villager No. 5 going into a pale garden to search for a sighted "monster". The video is played in two separate segments as part of Minecraft Live 2024 to promote the addition of the creaking.[4] Following the release of the video, several more short videos would be released to promote the introduction of the pale garden.

Videos

Trivia

  • Although not officially related to the series, Element Animation would also create a video opening for MINECON 2015, using the same art style and tone as a Villager News episode.[5]
  • The episodes produced in collaboration with Mojang use a slightly different art style from the regular series. Most noticeably, in regular Villager News videos the characters express with curved, elastic features, such as bending monobrows, whereas the crossovers are perfectly square to be in line with typical animations.
  • In a promotion for Minecraft Dungeons 4xLP, Minecraft writer Per Landin made an offhand remark praising an episode of Villager News, unrelated to the release or Mojang Studios.[6][7]
  • The staff of the show like to incorporate elements from updates for the game as they release, such as villagers taking on professions from Village & Pillage.[8]

Gallery

WE'RE SORRY!

  • A villager apologizing.
    A villager apologizing.
  • Another villager unapologetic.
    Another villager unapologetic.
  • The two villagers disagree.
    The two villagers disagree.
  • A third villager walking on grass blocks.
    A third villager walking on grass blocks.

VILLAGER (and Pillager?) NEWS

  • Villager No. 5 at the start of VILLAGER (and Pillager?) NEWS.
    Villager No. 5 at the start of VILLAGER (and Pillager?) NEWS.
  • Villager No. 9.
    Villager No. 9.
  • Several interviewers confront the citizen.
    Several interviewers confront the citizen.
  • A librarian in front of Villager No. 9.
    A librarian in front of Villager No. 9.
  • No. 5 with another villager.
    No. 5 with another villager.

Monster in the Woods

  • Villager No. 5 at the start of Minecraft Live 2024.
    Villager No. 5 at the start of Minecraft Live 2024.
  • Villager No. 5 elaborating.
    Villager No. 5 elaborating.
  • A villager holding up an image of Steve as a suggestion for what the monster may be.
    A villager holding up an image of Steve as a suggestion for what the monster may be.
  • A meme made by Element Animation, using the previous screenshot.
    A meme made by Element Animation, using the previous screenshot.
  • Villager No. 5 reacting to the death of the cameraman.
    Villager No. 5 reacting to the death of the cameraman.
  • Villager No. 5 scornfully looking at the signal being cut.
    Villager No. 5 scornfully looking at the signal being cut.
  • Villager No. 5 in denial.
    Villager No. 5 in denial.
  • Eight villagers lost in a dark Pale Garden at night.
    Eight villagers lost in a dark Pale Garden at night.
  • The last villagers remaining.
    The last villagers remaining.
  • No. 15, angry.
    No. 15, angry.
  • A creaking heart is placed.
    A creaking heart is placed.
  • The creaking appearing behind Villager No. 9.
    The creaking appearing behind Villager No. 9.

Storyboards

  • Storyboard of Villager No. 5 in WAR![13]
    Storyboard of Villager No. 5 in WAR![13]
  • Storyboard of several villagers confronting a giant creeper.
    Storyboard of several villagers confronting a giant creeper.
  • Storyboard of a creeper growing, from THE GIANT PROBLEM.[11]
    Storyboard of a creeper growing, from THE GIANT PROBLEM.[11]

Notes

  1. ↑ The footage is not actually recorded live, only being so in-universe.

References

  1. ↑ a b Villager News (Minecraft Animation). YouTube. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Minecraft is Experiencing Some Problems" (archived) by Jens Bergensten – Mojang.com, April 1, 2014.
  3. ↑ "The Element Animation Villager Sounds Resource Pack (T.E.A.V.S.R.P.)" – Element Animation on YouTube, February 8, 2014
  4. ↑ Minecraft Live 2024. YouTube. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
  5. ↑ "MINECON 2015 Opening Ceremony Animation - YouTube Edit" – Element Animation on YouTube, July 5, 2015
  6. ↑ "Minecraft on vinyl" by Per Landin – Minecraft.net, December 28, 2022.
  7. ↑ "What's In My Big SACK!? - A Villager Christmas Carol" – Element Animation on YouTube, December 18, 2022
  8. ↑ "Shows" – Element Animation. "Whenever Minecraft drops new updates, we try to work them into the series. Like, after the Village & Pillage update, we gave all the villagers jobs and added villagers from different biomes."
  9. ↑ a b c "It takes a Village" by Per Landin – Minecraft.net, August 4, 2021.
  10. ↑ "This Is Fine" by LNH – Know Your Meme.
  11. ↑ a b c d "VILLAGER NEWS: THE GIANT PROBLEM" – Element Animation on YouTube, November 30, 2018
  12. ↑ "Vibrant, action-packed and only ever so slightly chaotic, @Element's Villager News series is a long-time darling of the Minecraft community.

    We sat down with the creators of these beloved fever-dreams-come-to-life:"     – @Minecraft (Minecraft) on X (formerly Twitter), August 4, 2021
  13. ↑ "VILLAGER NEWS: WAR! (Animation)" – Element Animation on YouTube, September 27, 2019

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