The Phantom Pain's Thematic Use of The Man Who Sold The World

[@99bajakid]

I actually prefer Midge Ure's version - to me the most unique cover of the song.

[@esssss8415]

That’s the one used in game too.

[@fire.walk.with.me.430]

no one mentions that how everyone says it's bowie when its actually someone who sounds like him........

[@gjmarkjesse1324]

I agree fully. I love the fact it builds and escalates slowly.

[@Koichi-Kun]

@@fire.walk.with.me.430that’s the point, it sounds like him but it’s different, just like venom and big boss

[@thisgoddamusernamestoodamnlong]

@@fire.walk.with.me.430 you gotta admit, it REALLY sounds like him

[@danortega6307]

Metal gear solid is just a fanfiction about David Bowie and all his character

[@adwait613]

Oreno navwa Kira Yoshikage.

[@Wiseman108]

Bowie was Kojima's Senpai that didn't notice him.

[@reiayanamiisbestgirl2441]

And a giant kin war too

[@TheStrayHALOMAN]

It's about the righting quality of fanfiction too. Lots of cool ideas though.

[@LunarAngel01]

its also a fun nod to the snakes in general. David - The original - original big boss/naked snake Midge - Phantom boss/Venom snake Nirvana - The more popular - Solid snake

[@devilmaycrysarockingdontcome]

How?

[@goodhandle207]

​@devilmaycrysarockingdontcome its more a cool coincidence but you get it

[@ltcarlsen2152]

NO! that is not Solid Snake!

[@nialltealeaf275]

​@@devilmaycrysarockingdontcome Bowie's Original, like the Original Big Boss making Venom. Midge's cover, obscure reinterpretation like Venom Snake. Nirvana's cover was the most popular rendition during the nineties, the decade the first two Metal Gear games takes place in (therefore, Solid Snake).

[@TheGreatestTerrariaPlayerEver]

@@ltcarlsen2152YES That Is Solid snake!

[@Woofwoof369]

HIDEO KOJIMA by hideo kojima (feat. Hideo kojima) inspired by hideo kojima, dedicated to hideo kojima. Special thanks to hideo kojima

[@tylerlackey1175]

Motion capture by hideo kojima

[@thewarmestgarbage6007]

And introducing Hideo Kojima

[@beezlebox9535]

Produced by Hideo Kojima Catering by Hideo Kojima

[@jjthestudent]

Starring Hideo Kojima, with Hideo Kojima and Hideo Kojima. Guest Appearance, Hideo Kojima, directed by Hideo Kojima, from the movie Hideo Kojima with Hideo Kojima starring as Hideo Kojima.

[@99bajakid]

[Hideo Kojima liked this post]

[@broodypie2216]

The version used in MGSV was a cover by Midge Ure, "Midge" being a phonetic reversal of the artists real name Jim, and the version of the song being the most obscure between the more popular versions by Bowie and Nirvana. Venom being shown several times in the mirror with the cassette as elements of the scenery change like an unstable memory, casting the most subtle of hints to his origin, his identity replaced by the phantom he sees in the mirror, while he himself being more obscure than the Snake he replaced and his formerly introduced clones considering how V retcons some of the story with the former games being placed before and after him without mention of Venom and the diamond dogs, just like how Midge Ure's version fell into obscurity between Bowie and Nirvana.

[@Step43099]

That’s actually kinda cool

[@Acuraintegraman1]

there is no retcon, you simply didnt know all the information in metal gear 1 about that big boss. You cant retcon something that isnt contradicted.

[@Chillerveli]

This was actually the correct answer in 1 paragraph everyone else waste time

[@Fkgcharizard]

It's hard to find the album with the midge cover even.

[@jamestorrie6550]

Ngl I think he just preferred the midge version

[@MrNope221]

>has wormhole fultons >still extracts the target via helicopter smh

[@MetiNotTheBadGuy]

I was just playing for fun, I like helicopter extracts

[@MrNope221]

Ah cool cool cool

[@lars6261]

How much recources and money do you think a wormhole would cost over a chopper? (The real thing, not some priced lowered cost like in game, because that would just be a rediculous cost per fulton)

[@mbk9901]

It feels more badass to use the helicopter, especially when you call it into an outpost - Quietly infiltrating an outpost, getting found out, rushing the prisoner into the UH-66 Blackhawk as it lands and escaping the Soviets/PFs.

[@justiceforjoggers2897]

@@mbk9901 Was playing for the first time last night. Unfortunately, I didn't infiltrate quietly, and before extracting the prisoner I threw the corpses into a ritual mound and strapped a fulton to the poor bastard in honor to the Blood God

[@kingkeefage]

Also, Kojima actually wanted to use the song "Diamond Dogs", but his team pushed for "The Man Who Sold The World" instead, because they felt it fit better with the themes rather than just being a song that mentions the name of your PMC.

[@sliceofzura]

Could I have a source?

[@walo351]

​@@sliceofzura that's clearly kojima's KZbin account

[@SirDankleberry]

I think they were right on that change.

[@kingkeefage]

@@SirDankleberry I still would have loved for it to play during end credits or unlock as a cassette.

[@Dudebrotheguy]

I always thought that "man who sold the world" stood for someone making a ton of money at the cost of the world as in the military industrial complex, the oil cartel, big pharma etc It goes very well with the theme of the boss fighting against people making the world a terrible place for the sake of power Never considered the singer up until this point

[@shiquataphus2269]

Janer Sulce this man said “big pharma” lmao

[@Dudebrotheguy]

@@shiquataphus2269 Yes I did What about it?

[@dkcsi9256]

Janer Sulce Big pharma is a conspiracy theory.

[@Dudebrotheguy]

@Ian Knight Hence he is the titular man who sold the world, also works in the flip where punished/venom snake genuinely fights for a better world

[@Dudebrotheguy]

@@LordOwenTheThird I am ashamed of my self

[@Genoprototype]

This really makes me hope Black Star is referenced in Death Stranding.

[@treefingers6572]

It seems really fitting come to think of it

[@lostuser1094]

Genoprototype WHERE THE FUCK DID MONDAY GO

[@MortanAMrk]

Midge Ures version also provides a more dark instrumental compared to how the bowie song sounds, it implies it has a more sinister meaning

[@AngraMainiiu]

Actually the guns use fake names because of copyright laws and not license costs. The reason being that it is illegal to portray firearms from different makers swapping parts.

[@garrett3004]

I think it also adds to the narrative theme. Previous MGS games had always used real-life guns. The guns in V are familiar shapes, but are fundamentally foreign. Ditto Venom.

[@Acuraintegraman1]

then why is ghost recon able to do it....

[@yourewallsareveryconvenien8292]

@@Acuraintegraman1 They pay for it or some of them were not copyrighted

[@jimmyjohnjohnson9803]

@@Acuraintegraman1 ubisoft probably has rights to a bunch of those things, maybe Japanese law doesn't let kojima do that

[@harrylane4]

@@Acuraintegraman1because this comment is nonsense They couldn’t use the guns because they didn’t buy the rights to use the guns.

[@jak6590]

I think your point about Venom wanting to "give the children a normal life" kind of falls flat when you consider that Venom originally wanted to make the children soldiers.

[@thebackup2121]

In a sense, because at the end of the day he motioned for that, but remember that unlike those who are talked into atrocities as in real life, Venom has explicitly been conditioned through hypnosis to retain Big Boss' memories (such as recruiting Chico with little thought) and so his actions may well be informed by those at first; But this conditioning, also represented by Ocelot on his shoulder, is countered by Kaz, Quiet, Code Talker, and others, and their worldviews and compassion towards V. For a guy who is already known the world over for being charismatic, bold and a natural leader, "Big Boss" sure is talked down to in this game (not to mention impressionable 😉) 😅

[@vergil_6707]

to be fair, he's literally conditioned to be big boss

[@garretwoeller7669]

How much you wanna bet if kojima was able to truly finish the game that this game would be longer by almost and extra 10 hours of campaign or hell even get more dev support

[@Razgar_Voxel]

I think MGS V Phantom Pain had the potential to be the best MG game of all time.. but that said we will never know at this point!

[@herbbirb3766]

Fukushima was gone, gameplay wise it would be a masterpiece. But it's story would not.

[@seraslain962]

I speak for all of us when I say... Fuck Konami. They're the reason why Phantom Pain isn't as great as Kojima intended. Though, that doesn't mean it isn't a great game. The first Chapter feels dense and beautiful, but Chapter 2 is full of holes (such as repeated Missions) and Chapter 3 is just gone.

[@duroorud527]

@@seraslain962 episode three is the severed limb and episode two was the pain one was the whole

[@MANJYOMETHUNDER111]

Kojima DID finish the game. He got himself fired ON PURPOSE so people would think it's unfinished.

[@Darthpsychonis]

Venom Snake wasn't created by Big Boss. He was created by Zero in order to protect Big Boss from Skullface. Ocelot just expanded on that plan more that Zero had the intend. Big Boss had already created Foxhound back in 1970. The reason Big Boss went underground was to create the "true" Outer Heaven while Venom kept the world distracted with Diamond Dogs.

[@lars6261]

Do you remember the start of the game? Venom passes Big Boss ON SOME STAIRS. Sure this could also be a funny coincidence, but it is a funny coincidence if it is

[@LostSoulSilver]

It's also the first mission, so I don't think it was a coincidence

[@fishermechs]

me at the beginning of mgsv : hey nice song me during at the last mission : OH NO KOJIMA YOU DIDN'T

[@co7769]

Well it wasn’t Kojima, apparently Kojima wanted to the song Diamond Dogs but his devs convinced him to use The Man Who Sold the World because it fit better.

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

The song about a man who would control the world, creating a doppelganger to build the legend around himself, and his doppelganger gives up his own identity to be the shadow of the man who made him. Only the doppelganger ends up being betrayed and destroyed by the original.

[@99bajakid]

I too watched the video - congrats. Clap Clap Clap

[@NiCoNiCoNiCola]

Except he was killed by Solid, not John

[@lemon3138]

Venom snake isn't the one who gives the child soldiers a normal life it's technically kazuhira Miller but it doesn't really change things that much

[@MALICEM12]

I was thinking that too, but he did go along with it, he didn't tell him no, which he easily could have. After he is Big Boss (sorta).

[@yourdeath7820]

Venom could have disagreed (after all he is big boss). But he didn't.

[@ytnukesme1600]

It kinda sounds like it would've worked if not for that bastard Eli.

[@victorhugo-qs3bs]

Well Venom rescued them like two times and even tried to find one of them in the devil's house

[@howefan4650]

the man who stole za warudo

[@theonlychickensama8353]

何でお前らソードアートオンラインをすきなの kono dio da!

[@sengiko]

Toki ga ugokidesu

[@squatchtracker456]

That’s it, I’m telling obi wan

[@Joeceanography]

Durararararararararararara

[@YaBoyRascal]

Pucci be like

[@rohanwearsgucci3720]

Boss tells Chico smoking is bad though, he's automatically a good guy! Who cares if he enlisted a 12 year old into his mercenary army. Don't act like you haven't done it too Meti!

[@ElliotKeaton]

He also made Amanda promise him that once their revolution (the reason Chico voluntarily chose to be a child soldier) was over she would make sure he got decent education and had a better life.

[@wholesome_masochist4113]

@@ElliotKeaton Don't think she ever really delivered on that though.

[@ElliotKeaton]

​@@wholesome_masochist4113 Well, yeah, but their revolution ended _after_ Ground Zeroes. So she might have if Skull Face wasn't such a prick.

[@natethegreat7967]

@@wholesome_masochist4113 I think Chico was on his way to be with Amanda, but XOF intercepted and kidnapped him.

[@Klausinator451]

@@natethegreat7967 yup, that's on one of the debrief tapes in ground zeroes. Chico hopped off his plane/boat whatever when it was fueling near that base in Cuba, then he walked for 3 days straight to sneak in and rescue Paz. Didn't....quite work. Lol.

[@cbpaladin9429]

The diamond dogs are Halloween Jack’s gang, not Ziggy Stardust’s. There are some other minor mistakes but overall it’s a great informative video

[@Ziggy_Rotten]

Good call.

[@zackschilling4376]

Halloween Jack wears an eye patch, just like Big Boss - at least in the photos I seen of him

[@DweezyBreezey]

Since The Man Who Sold the World album was already released in 1970, wouldn't the CD release also be it's return to the US in a new form like Big Boss? Also, small nitpick, but Diamond Dogs wasn't Ziggy's retirement album, Aladdin Sane was. DD was the album where he started to transition from his glam rock style to his soul and funk style.

[@jabocdawookie123]

I'm glad Kojima chose that version of the song. The opening wouldn't be the same with the David Bowie version. The dream like feeling of the intro alone really adds to the opening scene.

[@gadgez_]

The initial trailer used "Not Your Kind Of People" by Garbage, telling everyone the game's twist before it even came out.

[@420Ruger]

I remember, good point

[@IIDEADBIRDII]

Nah. It definetly isnt a hint to the end of the game.

[@repubblesmcglonky8990]

Considering the link between MGSV and 1984, the significance of "The Man Who Sold the World" could be linked to the Poem the Shopkeeper/Thought Policeman says "Under the Spread of the Chestnut Tree, I Sold You and You Sold Me" which is about Betrayal, particularly between Winston and Julia in the Novel, and Everything that Happens in MGSV

[@mrfreddorenton]

Diamond Dogs was about Halloween Jack, Ziggy literally died at the end of his own album

[@Necroxion]

Fun fact: 1984 happens to be the title of an influential dystopian novel by George Orwell centered around controlling information

[@alfzepo9976]

*METAL GEAR*

[@BrunoWolfMetal]

METAL GEAR?

[@kylereese2888]

METAL GEAR!

[@taffysaur]

Metal... GEAR..?!

[@maux1945]

METAL GEAR!

[@redlord1660]

METAL GEAR?!

[@MALICEM12]

It's always interesting to see the pop culture references and inspiration Kojima put in Metal Gear. David Bowie, numerous 80's and 90's Hollywood action films, especially Escape from New York, James Bond, etc.

[@TekWest999]

Each version of “The Man Who Sold The World” gives you a different story. One is a wondrous adventure of self. Bowie sang it to tell of his journey of self realization and the forming of who he was. Midge is sung in a way that creates this eerie feeling that you’ve made a terrible mistake you can’t come back from. And Kurt sung it like a swan song. He was planning on selling his world when we he would tragically take his own life.

[@leoespinoza205]

1994 is when Kurt Kobains cover of David Bowie's man who sold the world. And people say that that version is better than the orignal. Such as Solid Snake is better than Big Boss even tho their basically the same. Also 1994 is when Operation Intrude happens, aka Metal Gear 1.

[@MALICEM12]

That is an interesting point. Kinda like how Solid Snake goes by Iroquois Pliskin in MGS2 which is a reference to Snake Plissken from Escape from New York. The character Snake and Big Boss where inspired from.

[@Traestorz]

Operation Intrude was in 1995, homie.

[@mjc0961]

This would have been a really interesting coincidence had you gotten the year correct. Operation Intrude was 1995, so this whole thing falls apart.

[@mrebear9758]

The cover was also recorded in 1993. The album followed in 94.

[@beanburrito7569]

It would be hilarious if kojima just liked the song so he put it in his game lmao.

[@IsaacClodfelter]

Such a striking use of an already meaningful song. Metal gear really seems like a once in a life time game series.

[@jayst]

100% agree. In my opinion, MGS has the best story of any game ever. There’s something really magical about how dark and serious things got in MGSV. The previous games had a lot of jokes and lighthearted conversations in between all the action, and then in 5 the story can no longer cover the atrocities with humor. Man it hurts my heart the story was cut short. Curse you Konami

[@JMJackMcNally]

a sony walkman *What a magnificent JoJoke!*

[@jarednunes3263]

JM Jack McNally Are we talking about Johnny?

[@nickplays6420]

I always thought the song was a sort double entendre for the devil being the man who sold the world.

[@LostSoulSilver]

He's already a demon

[@pajamapantsjack5874]

This really changed my view on Venom Snake. And the song

[@britishgaming6]

>this video contains spoilers one second later >*reveals the twist in the last mission*

[@lorenzorobertos12]

It took 5 years , 5 long years to get the Venom Snake video yet the wait was worth it

[@johnwhittington2998]

Solid snake is a good game Also The Ocean is Wet

[@jeff3221]

The ocean is a body of water, water isn't wet. Water when applied to say a shirt makes the short wet. Water isn't wet, it's a liquid, it makes things wet

[@spiderman9972]

@@jeff3221 ................... wet..... is wet.... HOW ABOUT THAT

[@baba-gp8ls]

How can something cause something to be something without being something....something's not right

[@spiderman9972]

@@baba-gp8ls ......... what if that something...... is nothing

[@CoralCopperHead]

@@baba-gp8ls Sunlight causes plants to be alive, and by extension, causes all life to exist. Is sunlight itself alive?

[@thesolidestsnake]

So I knew the twist of the game going into it, I heard it was terrible. But when I played it I made sure to always listen to that song whenever I was entering and exiting missions as my Helicopter theme and it really worked wonders. The song became less and less interesting like a worn out cassette. But it was always there, under my skin, under Venom's skin. It would play after triumph and after defeat. It was forever in his ears as it was in mine. Knowing that a character is listing to the same thing you are connects you to them. The twist worked for me because of that. Even tho I knew it, I was able to put myself in Venom's shoes

[@TTV_TOMTISM]

while this song is him going up a stairs reminds me of his character in the twin peaks movie, he’s ripped out of his reality from a staircase in a hotel to a FBI office years later.

[@sagarzazumikel]

Also, one of the reasons he used Midge Ure's cover was because Ure was part of Magnavox, a band Kojima liked so much in the 80s, he called one of the bosses of the original MSX Metal Gear 2 Solid Snake as "Magnavox", but the MGS 3 Subsistence releases changed their name to "The Four Horsemen". Kinda plays with the whole former self down the stairs analogy of the song. Plus, that cover is catchy, as, Hell. Oh, no... Not me...

[@ColonelCorson]

How could the vocal cord parasites be a threat in Quiet if they would starve to death after hatching since she doesn’t have lungs?

[@MetiNotTheBadGuy]

Nanomachines

[@garretwoeller7669]

Plot holes

[@joannawood7352]

she still has lungs, in fact they're perfectly barbequed to perfection, so it'd actually be way worse

[@RequiemShin]

They were burnt not destroyed I believe

[@hithere5553]

Here’s another question WHY THE FUCK COULDN’T SHE JUST SPEAK FUCKING NAVAJO ITS SO FUCKING STUPID.

[@72vaan]

Also, apart from all that character things from the song, i see it as venom/boss seeling the world as a pioneer of PMC's, who will later dominate the world in proxy wars, he is the man who sold the world to PMC's

[@RamChop451]

If I remember correctly, it's been a while since I've played peace walker. I think he only enlisted Chico becuase of his sister's involvement. Again I could be completely misremembering. Still doesn't excuse what happened to Chico. Man reminds me of the cut Chico plot in phantom pain

[@leandorr3299]

The stand who sold the world

[@legendofsonic3979]

leandorr plays The Vampire Who Attained The World

[@humzdacrazyd1624]

The youtuber who sold the channel

[@controllerthumbs2529]

Kept you waiting huh

[@methodology8]

@@controllerthumbs2529 your pretty good

[@Neph1944]

Za wardo!

[@bwifpunish]

The Midge Ure version sounds way cooler. Thats why.

[@TradRaider]

FINALLY

[@r1l426]

No it doesn't. Even the nirvana version isn't as good as the original

[@jasoncp3257]

One of my interpretations of the song is that it's a reflection on how your past still can effect or 'control' you and your actions, lying to yourself about whom you are, such as how venom is exposed to how he has been lied to by his own memories saying he is big boss when he is not and as shown by the child soldier treatment, that Venom's past is still affecting him despite how it is a cut off part of him. Another thoguht is the fact it is a midge song to me represents how he is a copy, reflecting on how he is someone else rather than, if the original which I think would be for Big Boss as he is talking inwards to Venom, and the midge being Venom talking to Big Boss, having the same conversation where they reflect on how the other is now apart of their identity as a shared big boss having the other control them in a way through reputation like how venom cam become blood soaked from mass killing through the story, which is also where the different music comes in representing the different situation they fins themselves talking, as Big Boss will be isolated having he guitar, and immediate kick Into the song, being a raw look at what he has created, where Venom fades into a mystical smooth transition sort of like a crisis in ones mind like a mental breakdown/reflection where within a mere 30 seconds you can get into a rabbit hole of thought, as in that he is going into realising what Big Boss and Himself have become and how they are inter locked as separate individual body but becoming the same symbol and person. 2 AM thoughts

[@thisisthegreatestcommentof8960]

I D O L I K E M Y W A L K M A N

[@pliskinishmael7190]

Amanda pointed out that if ever Chico cant handle the shame of selling out his own comrades that Snake would end his life. He took him in as a second chance at life to atone for what he did. theres more plot to it than just "recruiting child soldiers". If he hadn't done it, Chico might've either ended himself or get captured again and rat out his comrades further. To him, it did more good than wrong. Also, Venom did say about training those African Children to be soldiers for Diamond Dogs but Kazuhira told him he'd give them a second chance at a better life instead of being soldiers. There wasn't much difference between them in regrads to taking in Children into Outer Heaven. The only difference was Kaz's decision.

[@zayaannashrid1374]

> Real Metal Gear Experience > Shimoneta DO I DETECT A MESSAGE?

[@daneman8619]

Waiting 2 years for that venom snake vid

[@chadsknnr]

6:20 What in Eija is chibi-Jotaro doing in Metal Gear?

[@doggodiggin]

Alright meti, the video is great but a small complaint, the ak74 is a real gun.

[@andresarancio6696]

I get that Meti really really loves musical references having actual meaning in the plot of a piece of media.

[@wingnut4942]

This song is so good I listen to it constantly

[@PhantomSnake84]

1:14 Please do a more in-depth video on Venom Snake. You think he's a great character for all the same reasons I do and I'd love to hear more.

[@warrhacraft4729]

Thanks for the explanations ! As a french player i never thought about that deep reference for David Bowie (I played only MGSV)

[@selder_7]

The Midge Ure version is such a perfect theme for the game, I had it play from my helicopter and never got sick of it

[@thequestion2859]

Now we need a sequel 6 years after this video has come out about the thematic use of Duran Duran's "Invisible" in The Phantom Pain

[@ShaneShellmore]

This is spot fucking on! Thank you for putting into words what my brain can't

[@sawysauce1256]

Moar... Metal... GEAR

[@jamaldavis831]

your Rival. What series is your pic from.

[@boredsailor4011]

mgrv's twist was really easy to figure out, one of my friends played it right when the game was released, but then in 10 minutes he said: is ishmael real big boss? thats why he's doing the fighting? why did i made an avatar?

[@felipebastos7661]

Kojima is Araki in Video Games ( but he remembers things)

[@lasersharksushi1975]

11:00 slight critique. The AK74 is a real gun. There are 3 basic AK types in 1984 when the game takes place. AK47 (milled receiver in 7.62x39), AKM (stamped receiver in 7.62x39), and AK74 (stamped receiver in 5.45x39). The AKM was the standard Russian service rifle at the time.

[@thecrusader446]

It’s crazy how it isn’t until that song plays at the end that it hits you how much that song describes the events of that game

[@TobeWilsonNetwork]

*Larry…Cancel my appointments*

[@BigBoss0331]

And for this, you’ve gained a subscriber

[@canaldecasta]

How didnt i get this earlier. I was played like a damn fiddle!

[@justas423]

Wait...Guy changes identity...Holy fuck Araki you clever bastard.

[@eciatto3675]

This reminds me of Orwell's book 1984, which imo is ironically fitting to these concepts...

[@pav2k351]

This is such a great insight into kojima's design perspective! Great video! Absolutely loved it, keep it up!

[@Akkadianvolcano]

I feel like I might now check out Metal Gear 5 because this video. Thanks for the interesting analysis!

[@dogestranding5047]

Great video. Even now after all these years, you can still make an interesting analysis.

[@MrFreeman626]

The part regarding the CD copy being the first time the album was released in the US is untrue, or at least you didn't explain it properly I think: TMHSTW was actually first released in the US in vinyl format with the "cartoon" cover you showed early in the video, THEN it was published in the UK with the infamous "dress" cover which is very rare because it was pulled from shelves, and was replaced a few years later with the "kick" cover once Bowie signed with RCA, the "kick" copies are the most common ones because they were released worldwide. 1984 marked the first release of the album on CD in Europe and America, as part of the RCA CD Bowie catalogue with the kick cover for both countries, and this CD copy is very rare and collectible much like the original dress cover UK vinyl pressing. Also, Diamond Dogs was not the retirement album of Ziggy: Ziggy had already been retired by the time Aladdin Sane was released and the characters he used in both the Aladdin Sane tour and the DD ones were different. If anything, DD was his retirement album from Glam Rock as he would later approach different genres of music. It's also rather odd to think that Bowie was thinking of Ziggy when writing The Man Who Sold the World because the character didn't really exist on stage or even on paper: the character was created in 1971 and the album and single were released the year prior. Also I don't think the cover was used for any philosophical reason, but simply because it fits the mood of the main scene it's set to way, way better. The Bowie version is melancholic but has a rather upbeat tempo with latin rhythms, it really wouldn't have fit.

[@Researcher_Jim]

Where’s that venom snake video

[@momopenguins7335]

good job man this is good content

[@scottbruckner4653]

This is some Araki shit.

[@PSIChris]

Now do one on Duran Duran.

[@dogestranding5047]

I interpreted staring out at all the millions as Venom on the world stage while Big Boss hides in the shadows. Or maybe both of them on the world stage, confronting the millions.

[@WallNutBreaker524]

"The man who sold the world." That's actually pretty badass.

[@Sophie_the_Sapphic]

1:31 you'll "cover" it later, hummm

[@diamonddog2040]

This vide0 is brilliant, love your analyst

[@Bi0mega]

Dude, it's a *cover version* - right from the off, Kojima's telling you that what you're playing isn't the original, authentic thing. How could you miss that obvious point?

[@ADMONIUS]

This man has ears but can’t even use them. All you had to do was watch and listen to the video.

[@Ziggy_Rotten]

@Johnny Revenue holy shit we have different tastes lol. But fair enough to you. I'll stick with bowie.

[@zashgekido5616]

@Johnny Revenue The uh.. the quality wasn't the point. *at all*

[@VlntSczo]

1:25 hes say its the msige version of the song lol di you just get butthurt and turn it off because “hEs A pLeB tHaT dOeSnT kNoW mUsIc

[@ArlanKels]

Cover version or not it's a great song that made me so happy to hear

[@cascade4661]

Why do you wake up the soldiers after putting to sleep with your trang gun?

[@TruthTalk1221]

Literally the perfect song for this game

[@thedumbdog1964]

I hadn’t even thought of the fact that it’s the cover version of the song being important. It fits perfectly

[@ketrub]

kojima just confirmed in a tweet that he used the cover on purpose

[@r3gret2079]

Side note: The Labyrinth is one of the greatest films ever friggin made. Man, I need to rewatch it. Shit has some straight JAMS! 🎵"Dance magic dance" 🎶🕺

[@GabisonStudios]

Venom is more polished then Big Boss due to being made by the biggest fanboy of Big Boss ever. He is an idealized version of the man seen through the lens of Ocelot. Add to the fact that there's a real distinct case to be made that every action of Kaz and Ocelot reinforce Venom's conditioning during the events of MGSV (Isn't the phantom cigar full of psychotropes? Heh) add the effects of the coma and you can see how pliable Venom is to suggestions (Kaz refusing to train the child soldiers makes Big Boss revert 180 on his proposal, in the quarantine mission it is only after Kaz and the rest order the death of the infected that Venom begins to shoot his men, etc etc)

[@amazingfan15]

would you believed that i just finished your video on the Boss' will before seeing this one?

[@shalucard107]

The reason why he used the man who sold the world is because big biss left everything in the hands of his double from the start the man helping you basically treats you like his friend ("he said i was his friend") but for 9 years he thought the man who was his double was never going to wake up ("i thought you died alone") the entire thing is just a man talking to himself while pointing at different directions.

[@Hunter11725]

Venom Snake: That damn music follows me everywhere.

[@moeloehoe]

Wasn't bowie inspired by the poem "antigonish" for this song?

[@SmokeyOwOs]

Nani? A serious Meti video?

[@Logan-tz1ry]

Phantom? The World? nice

[@danielhogan6255]

For reference the plastic cover on the tape recorder is supposed to be CLOSED when press play on a cassette tape.

[@lunanyx8592]

I feel like the sound of Midge Ure's cover also sells the theme of the game in a way I can't quite explain.

[@theomuzard1631]

Nice to see some new MGS videos. I know they don't make as many views as your other videos but please keep on doing them I love the franchise!

[@bigangenbygang]

I hate to, but I always have to say it when it comes up: Big Boss never enlisted child soldiers. In Metal Gear 2, the children are war orphans who've been taken in with the same purpose as Venom's adoption of child soldiers in 5. In Peace Walker, he's clearly just trying to make Chico feel better about his situation long enough to get him up and out of there. It is canon that Chico was never used as a soldier, and in fact had to escape Mother Base to head off on his doomed quest to save Paz. Why would he have to escape if he was a soldier? He could've just slipped off during a deployment! He didn't because he never went on one, because he was being kept there to keep him safe. It just irks me to see this myth repeated verbatim. Big Boss made a lot of mistakes, but he wasn't evil. Not at all. Venom comes off as better because he isn't playing the same game as Big Boss is later in the story. Venom is being himself. Big Boss, by the time of MG1 and 2, is actively trying to appear as a villain to draw the world's attention and with the explicit goal of limiting all warfare to the territory of Outer Heaven.