The Dimensions of Fourside

[@chromadeline578]

Actually the Crazed Sign isn't a speed limit sign, it's a route sign, and Route 40 is a real route that runs through Ohio

[@MonkeyNess]

I’m stupid, you underestimate this

[@chromadeline578]

@ it’s ok!! We’re all a little stupid

[@HOURHAK]

we all have a bit of stupid in our hearts

[@choz9072]

Ohio rizz

[@YakRory]

​​@@MonkeyNess have you seen hellkrai's yiik analysis series? I think you should watch it. yiik has a lot of theams most people miss

[@protoplasm-1]

I always took the “Stop staring at my hips” bit as a 4th wall joke. You HAVE to stand behind this girl to ride the elevator, Ness’ sprite never blinks, and the way the characters are positioned here, as you can see in the video, Ness’ eyes are basically exactly level with the girl’s bottom half. They basically jerryrigged a scenario where Ness was staring at a woman’s ass, and then made a joke out of it.

[@gay4sswhovian]

I think so too cause I can't really see Ness like that really...

[@MonkeyNess]

@@protoplasm-1 Not sure this is the case…? You can stand next to her…?

[@Loafoftime]

​@@MonkeyNess not very commonly

[@MonkeyNess]

@ >press right once in the elevator?

[@Loafoftime]

@@MonkeyNess touche

[@supercyclone8342]

23:22 Duck, duck, noose... I noticed the joke after multiple playthroughs & let's plays and I'm convince that's the only reason they're here lol

[@MonkeyNess]

ROFL one of the most compelling cases I’ve heard nonetheless

[@mistertagomago7974]

This whole time i thought it was a choking the chicken joke.

[@kip9484]

EarthBound

[@sunny__41]

so true

[@masahirosakurai2042]

I agree!!!

[@YakRory]

Mother 2

[@PebblesThePengiun]

This comment is too real

[@frouvoxes]

EarthBound

[@jusbequietshhh7724]

My food finna HIT with this vid

[@BlackLight0919]

Big yoshi pfp lol

[@IbrahimAmer-rq6mv]

I finished the bag of chocolate chips to this video

[@mell7249]

I believe the 3rd Strongest Mole gag is refers to each mole challenging each other, winning twice and losing twice, that would make them all seem like the "Third Strongest" from their perspective, considering there's five of them. Feels like less of a stretch than referring to the Biblical significance of the number three, though the Mother trilogy has many Biblical parallels I don't believe this is one of them.

[@MonkeyNess]

I’ve heard this, but this is just a fan “theory” (calling that is even a stretch,) this is all just personal interpretation anyway and to teach others to analyze media.

[@tigerofdoom]

I almost downvoted the video for how huge of a stretch that felt like to me. If the guardians had been fish or snakes or some variant of wise men or anything that is even remotely biblical, then maybe. But this just felt like we googled up common symbolism with the number 3 and slapped it in there. I think the joke isn't as complicated as all that. Claiming to be the strongest or the weakest is a trope, but rarely do characters claim to be the averagest, so that's funny. Since each mole is equally strong, they're all average moles, so it's not even inaccurate. Each of them using the same number plays into the confusion of the maze, making you second guess yourself, especially if you die and come back after a save. If you still wanted to argue numerology, I think the video would have to cover why there are 5 moles. Maybe if there were 7 moles claiming to be number 3, you'd have something for Christianity. Or if they were all claiming to be number 4, they could be interpreted as related to death in Japanese. But I think these things feel forced compared to the simpler explanation.

[@MonkeyNess]

@@tigerofdoom Don’t care if you downvote, this is all personal interpretation, not claiming any of it *is* the definitive answer.

[@tigerofdoom]

@@MonkeyNess sorry I didn't mean it in a harsh way, the video was good and I did like it. Just lost my immersion in the video on that specific part. Looking forward to Darkside

[@MonkeyNess]

@@tigerofdoom No worries, and I understand, many have expressed it more or less crossed a line that went beyond the truth of the project, and it will be acknowledged in the series eventually.

[@thegreasygrub5009]

3:20 Moments like this are why I like your videos. Some observations feel like ridiculous amounts of overthinking but at the same time make sense and never feel like too much of a stretch. I think the reason for this is that although you do dig really deep into the slightest of things, you still understand the overall intent and don't ignore context to fit your conclusions.

[@mini_hek]

despite its size being like three blocks it really makes you feel like you're lost in the streets

[@madmikefollower6939]

Bro I legit think the third strongest mole was a joke to make the characters seem more interesting

[@MonkeyNess]

@@madmikefollower6939 Not saying it isn’t a joke, just looking a bit deeper also :)

[@madmikefollower6939]

@@MonkeyNessactually you do make some good points considering these moles have 3 claws on each limb where normal moles have 4 which is an unlucky number in Japan

[@mini_hek]

already impressive how talking about one location in a thirty year old videogame makes for a 35-minute video, but missed opportunity to make the FOURside video FORTY minutes lol

[@Chopscrewyyy]

14:53 I NEVER THOUGHT THOSE GREY DOTS WERE JEFF'S PUPILS!! I just thought it was shading

[@madmikefollower6939]

I think they are just reflections as you don’t see them on the clay models or in smash

[@pelegst3528]

He just side-eyes ness for the entire game lol

[@frouvoxes]

This information ruined my life

[@swordf5345]

I was going to say the exact same thing, now I can never unsee it 😭

[@dansmith1661]

I didn't even notice them.

[@rover4699]

Absolutely love these style of videos you do! Please do more I would love to see one for summers.

[@MonkeyNess]

Thank you so much! Next episode shouldn't be too long from now!

[@AlphTVWCKA]

5:16 how about you alchoholic hallucen-get me another beer

[@CrisKeye]

I think the runaway five and the mole correlation is probably they keep digging themselves into a hole and getting stuck with wild amounts of debt that the player has to help dig them out of Or you could say they got stuck in a hole dug by evil and greed, both things gigas tends to prey on, and by getting rid of the moles which are under gigas's control you are getting rid if the evil that is keeping the runaway five there

[@r.l.steinfeld1448]

Insane to me your channel isnt bigger. I feel like you're the only page that does these amazing analyses withoit feeling smug or annoying. I could watch this for a day straight

[@Ness_from_Earthbound]

you don’t know how long i’ve been waiting for this

[@rhyano_]

More than 5 months?

[@Ness_from_Earthbound]

@ oh he knows

[@Shin.chichi]

13:10 If I'm not mistaken, when reading the original Japanese text this woman outright says that he made a "deal with the Devil". Her dialogue along with a few others in the game had to be scrubbed of outright religious references as to appease the US censors of the time. With that being said, I think it's quite interesting to speculate that this rumor around town may not be born from envy but instead legitimate observation of how something dark and mysterious allowed Monotoli's business to boom! Though the English localization for Earthbound was created with much love and care, I don't believe the intention was to create a line of dialogue that more clearly points towards Giygas' influence rather than a common taboo rumor often thrown at American celebrities, but with the changes to the text that's how it came across and I think that's super interesting!

[@aguchamp7766]

I'm new to your channel, and I'm amazed how insane your analysis of just one town in the game is. Barely knew any of this. Fourside is definitely one of my favorite locations in Earthbound, for such a simplistic version of a big city, it nails everything from the casual greed and that fish out of water feeling for a tourist.

[@OniBurei]

Gotta say always stoked to see you upload, EB fact videos got me cozy xoxoxo

[@DefinitivNichtSascha]

I think the moles all claiming to be third strongest implies that they all fought each other to see who is strongest. And since they're all equally strong (the have the same stats and all), they all won and lost an equal amount of fights, statistically, leading them to believe that they must be the middle of five in strength.

[@MonkeyNess]

Yes and

[@DefinitivNichtSascha]

@@MonkeyNess ...fair point.

[@tonylorenzo215]

New MonkeyNess EB content always makes the day better!

[@Maooooo422]

EARTHBOUND. EARTHBOUND EARTHBOUND.🗣️🗣️🗣️🔥🔥🔥

[@jeffandonutsreal]

earth earth earthbound

[@Ness_from_Earthbound]

earthbound

[@HollowKidneys]

Cool Mao Mao pfp

[@calebmon]

I AM EARTHBOUND

[@dojodog]

MOTHER TWOOOOO 🗣🗣🗣🔥🔥🔥

[@Mattkow1]

Thank you for this! Fourside was one of my favorites, probably because of the Mani Mani statue. Its just so interesting

[@greengrapeguy70]

Wow, great timing! I was literally just now watching one of your old videos lol

[@masahirosakurai2042]

20:09 never really thought about that before, but it makes a ton of sense when thinking about it. I mean, all we’ve seen of Porky and his dad has been either neglect or verbal / physical abuse so I think it’s a pretty likely

[@ezzenious9923]

bro I was NOT expecting a half hour video when I clicked this.

[@Proticity]

I always thought the Guardian Diggers fought each other, with each one beating 2 moles and losing to 2 moles, so each acknowledges themself as the 3rd best

[@MonkeyNess]

That’s a fan theory, yes.

[@bennyjames7806]

I love your vids so much!! Especially during these dark winter months 😃 and Fourside is my favourite level!

[@MrSesnu]

I have been loving this series so far! It's such a thorough and introspective analysis of my favorite game and I'm looking forward to more. What you do might not be significant to you but it makes my day to watch your new videos and I hope you're doing well.

[@TheBrysonChannel479]

The music alone makes Fourside one of the best locations in EarthBound

[@Mante_killa]

I love your channel and the dedication to Mother!

[@topazlight1586]

Pretty sure the “third strongest” thing is just a gag about them all being identical to each other and 3 is smack-dab in the middle of 1-2-3-4-5. They all tie for perfectly average amongst each other, basically.

[@MonkeyNess]

I’ve already responded to multiple comments regarding this, but to be concise: this is personal interpretation, and I’m not asserting that to be the answer, just one view. Things can be more than one thing. The average-ness of them is definitely a joke, but it can still be more.

[@dannymac1310]

Love your references to the Bible. Something always felt demonic about the department store kidnapping and everything involving Moonside. It frightened me as a kid, but now it’s my favorite part of the game.

[@MasIndie]

Whenever I walk in a big city, The Fourside theme plays in my head. Is that normal?

[@Code-Bound]

Of course.

[@CR1MSONACE]

No

[@MasIndie]

@@CR1MSONACE good point

[@ern1813]

Cities can look Like that on my snes? Wowee i wonder what skyscrapers will look like in 6 years, 3 months and 11 days.

[@shoveltime4]

About the hips lady, I’ve always thought that Ness wasn’t staring at her, I’ve always thought that, like some others in the building, she is vain and nearly assumes Ness is looking at her. My own interpretation though

[@khalylehagood3222]

The knowledge in this video is soothing my brain.

[@Dangerzone334ArchiveOfficial]

Thank goodness I've watched the other parts awhile ago!

[@road_chad3669]

wake up babe, new MonkeyNess upload

[@KahilaTheArtSlime]

Maybe its just me being me, but I always took the Everdredd scene as him coming closer to the ladies and tipping his hat, despite his zombie like state, and them stepping back is shock and / or fear

[@MasIndie]

Fun Fact: The EarthBound Manual contains a irl picture of New York City. (I haven’t gotten to a part in the video where that is mentioned so if it’s already mentioned, let me know)

[@firecrackerd]

PEAK W UPLOADDDDDD

[@RubUOutC]

Going back to the theme of the rich, Monotoli also seems somewhat based on a pre-politics Donald Trump, who was popular on TV at the time as the archetypical rich property developer who had his own tower in the city.

[@HL-zr3wu]

Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here Its here

[@thefrubblewarrior4678]

29:46 I think the problem I have with this section is that it’s just an endurance test with nothing to get around it other than cheesing the shit out of it by despawning enemies whenever possible. Parts like these make me wish status effects could be more useful and not unreliable garbage that doesn’t work.

[@ILoveDusterNow]

NEW MONKEYNESS VID

[@AJ_hwd954]

The worst thing about this video is knowing there won’t be a continuation for another 6 months at best 😢

[@neuropathos296]

Everdred goes off somewhere to die. Not long after he goes, one of the hotel newspapers reports the following: Lonely demise in the city. Long-haired man with beard, sunglasses and aloha shirt found in street. Afterwards, the last time you see him is as a fleeting vision in Magicant.

[@MonkeyNess]

This will be discussed in a later video!

[@berkeleycreager3601]

I think the No. 3 thing is just about how theyre all just chill modest guys and dont think theyre the best or worst at what they do

[@josephboehmer1245]

Well I was today years old when I realized what tower the Monotoli building was an homage to.

[@zSphericle]

best birthday gift

[@espelhodasconstelacoes]

Happy birthday! God bless ya and Jesus loves ya!

[@Barles03]

@@espelhodasconstelacoes so do the moles

[@IbrahimAmer-rq6mv]

What I feel about number three is that none of the moles know how strong they are so they go for the easiest number to point out which is third strongest.

[@theman5921]

The joke with the number 3 moles is that there's five of them and they are all equal in strength. So if one of the moles were to fight the other four, there's a fifty percent chance they'd win or lose, making them win an average of 2 and lose 2 as well, placing them 3rd. The joke is that each mole came to this conclusion individually and didn't realize they were all equal

[@MonkeyNess]

I've heard this several times, but there's no confirmation this is the case. It's just as much a guess as my own personal interpretation.

[@theman5921]

@MonkeyNess fair enough. I personally think a math joke is more probable than a Bible reference

[@MonkeyNess]

@@theman5921 It’s all personal interpretation, and you’re probably right. I just want it clear that isn’t an official answer or anything.

[@theman5921]

@MonkeyNess I figured as much. Japanese people aren't normally into Christianity the same way as euro-americans are. So it's genuinely hard to tell

[@deep_fried_cringe7962]

Babe, wake up. A new video of MonkeyNess overthinking just dropped

[@matuchuru]

3:06 i always tought that sign meant ohio route 40, because irl route 40 passes trough ohio

[@TheOooMat]

Theres a tradition for haiku or other poems to be made before death in nihon. They usually symbolize the understanding a monk or practitioner has come to know across their life before facing the (hopefully) final curtain.

[@jamesonwhite167]

We’re so back.

[@JustenHarper]

Love a good breakdown of Marxist themes in Earthbound

[@sahilhossian8212]

Lore of The Dimensions of Fourside momentum 100

[@_HamSandwich1]

already hyped for moonside 🗣️🗣️

[@dracozeon_]

So glad this series is back. Cant wait for the rest of it

[@HOURHAK]

PART 7 LFGGG

[@vampire_catgirl]

Woooo the next video

[@Enmaphy]

11:40 I've played EB a bunch of times but I never found this sidequest lol

[@JezElectro13]

Honestly, I can relate to Ness. I try to be a good person but I can't deny I have a bit of a perverted side. I mean, I can deny it, but that would be blatantly lying.

[@_HamSandwich1]

finally 🙏🙏

[@mopbrothers]

New York City. Who knew Itoi loved the Big Apple 🍎 so much?

[@BlueNova76]

My stupid ah thought the title said the "Dimensions of Fortnite"💀💀💀

[@zSphericle]

ME TOO LMAO

[@BlueNova76]

@zSphericle LOL

[@areyasquiddinme]

ness for fortnite 2024

[@BlueNova76]

@areyasquiddinme Real imagine getting boxed by ness 💀💀💀

[@guyrocketram9698]

in mario 64 ds there was a similar bit to the moles where multiple white rabbits all claimed to be the second or third fastest out of their siblings (im not sure which placement they claimed to have had) and because of that bits similarities to the moles' in earthbound i kinda assumed they were both referencing the same thing and maybe it was a joke about japanese culture? both moles and rabbits are burrowing animals considered vermin so maybe there is some kinda connection there.

[@berkeleycreager3601]

14:21 Leo talking to a LEO

[@juanjala6087]

Looking forward to the moon side video

[@MonkeyNess]

Thank you for the support!

[@Morgil27]

I always thought the sign said HI 40 (as in highway)

[@YakRory]

Have you seen hellkrai's yiik analysis series? I think you would like it. Yiik has a lot of theams most people miss

[@allmightygraemed]

Not really on topic but as I send this comment I saw on the switch if you have one that is that there is a profile icon that matches your monkey one from Earthbound at the moment through the switch... online... YUCK icon thingy

[@MonkeyNess]

@@allmightygraemed Have and made one since February!!

[@allmightygraemed]

@MonkeyNess ok, sick. Just saw the icon and thought of your channel

[@Doppitoraz]

the noose from mother 1 aha

[@TabbyLabsDev]

THOSE ARE HIS PUPILS?!?!

[@rianthreeden]

Hey wait this video called the dimensions of fourside! Yet moonside is no where to be found! That's only one dimension! The next video should totally be called the dimensions of moonrise but in reverse because it's quirky! Or come up with something better then me, love your content money Ness, have a nice holiday season.

[@rhyano_]

I don't think 5 moles all being proud of simply being average has anything to do with the bible.

[@MonkeyNess]

@@rhyano_ Not saying it absolutely does, it’s just one interpretation.

[@colony30sshittyproudbanner]

I cannot navigate Fourside at all this place was hell

[@BOLONEIS]

NEW MONKEY NESS EARTHBOUND ANALYSIS VIDEO 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@rainbowmacaroon9189]

I guess you could say that the game has a...4D personality...

[@DonaldMitchell-l5g]

Pokey' father's name is pronounced al-u-wish-iss

[@Matias-fh2hf]

THOSE ARE JEFFS PUPILS?

[@NitwitsWorld]

So basically Ness fought Ohio 😂

[@Socks_in_Chocolate]

After 3 mouths

[@dogekakesdaking]

I think the no. 3 thing is a joke buddy

[@MonkeyNess]

Nah dude it’s more

[@N-R40k]

Where are the Four Sides huh?

[@rhyano_]

What the HELL took so long (another banger, keep up the great work)

[@VictorVaca-kz6fc]

No one has finished watching this video yet :3

[@Chopscrewyyy]

You are correct

[@mucusmovies8429]

I’ve been watching at 50x speed, checkmate!!

[@Lucasmain562]

He isn’t wrong. (For people who are seeing this, the video was uploaded on Nov 30 at around 11:06am and the main comment being uploaded at around 11:09am.

[@Existant_one]

I just started :0

[@ShiningStarRiver]

Someone definitely for sure has now finished this video now

[@funnyshortsXL]

6:29 they live

[@justinlloyd2446]

I'm king of the mods!

[@SantiagoMatías-b5y]

26:02 😳😳😳

[@BryanMorris-yc8iq]

It's so weird that you don't refer to the party by their actual names

[@MonkeyNess]

Seeing as the player can name them anything they want, and if someone is just tuning into the series, me referring to them by the names I chose might be confusing.

[@BryanMorris-yc8iq]

@MonkeyNess Yeah but oh my God it feels so out of body for some reason

[@senseicorey9979]

Pretty great ratio of views to likes right now.

[@Teeeeee_J]

25:56 Bruh

[@NeededCell978]

THE CRAZED SIGN SAY "HI" ON IT SO THAT MEANS ITS 'HIGHWAY 40" NOT 'SPEEDLIMIT 40"! FIX THIS MOKEYNESS!!

[@NeededCell978]

and definitely not Ohio, missed that part XD

[@MonkeyNess]

Already responded to another comment about this 👍

[@NeededCell978]

@@MonkeyNess thanks man! i saw that just after i commented XD, but thanks for responding!

[@Socks_in_Chocolate]

25:58

[@VladGuerrero]

I’ve been loving this series but I’ve gotta say I think is the weakest one so far. Between the overanalysis sucking some fun out of the goofiness of the game, and the clear filler material (did we really need the full crocodile passage from Marco Polo’s book?), a lot of this just felt tedious. I’m hoping Moonside is a bounce back in quality!

[@MonkeyNess]

Sorry to hear that, always giving it 100%. Though I don't feel the MP passage is "filler," it only lasts maybe 30 seconds.

[@ortherner]

Fourside honestly felt way smaller than it should've been. Like it's this supposedly huge city but it feels like it's the size of a small town. I know it couldn't be much bigger because of the limits of the SNES though.

[@davidleon7918]

Honestly, it sound weird but I kinda like when places where its considered to be incredibly gigantic(according to how its describe by the people, media and advertisements), in reality it's just small but interesting place.

[@Anthaneus]

25:57 This is the worst joke you have ever made