Author Topic: References in Lemmings level names  (Read 3396 times)

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Offline Ron_Stard

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References in Lemmings level names
« on: February 21, 2021, 06:37:37 PM »
Some time ago, there was a thread located within answers.com, which contained a list of almost all cultural references, jokes, puns and double entendres used in the level names of the Lemmings Saga. Unfortunately, that thread is no longer active.

So I thought it would be amusing to make that list here, improve it, and give any possible explanation for the title, if any, based on the scenario or skillset of the level. Also, given that not all lemmings fans are from UK or USA (the countries most familiar with the puns, phrases and idioms used), it would be nice to give a explanation or translation of those kind of jargon and phrasal verbs.

Thanks to Proxima for the corrections and additions :thumbsup:

Let's go!


Lemmings (Original) - Amiga and MS-DOS
Spoiler (click to show/hide)


Lemmings - Nintendo Entertainment System

NES Lemmings is characterised by its strip-down level scenarios, strip-down Engrish level names -even without commas or other punctuation marks-, acid instead of water on crystal levels, and 45º bridges.
Disclaimer: I have ommited the explanation for some levels which have almost the same name as their counterparts in Lemmings Amiga/MS-DOS (for example, Tricky 02 - A Bag of Lemming Drops - see Tricky 13 from the original port)

FUN

14. Danger The Bridge is Out - A reference to the same warning traffic signal.
22. Two for Lemmington Spa - A pun on Leamington Spa, an English town located in Warwickshire. As the name suggest, this is a resort town, famous by its spa. It seems there are a lot of spa towns in UK.
25. Lemming And Lime - A pun on Lemon and Lime, a popular soft drink. Also known as lemon-lime

TRICKY

05. Lemming I Scream - A double pun, both on Lemon and on Ice Cream.
08. Roast Lemming and Potatoes - A pun on Lemon Roasted potatoes. Hmmm... Well, maybe not a pun after all, since the scenario is the one from Amiga's Tricky 10 :devil:
10. Pesky Lemmings - Pesky means annoying, unpleasant. Come on Player, keep your hair on Mr. Lemming! :thumbsup:
11. Lemming Flavour Please - A pun on Lemon Flavour. Already tired of puns relating lemons? We have only just begun!
12. A Pint of Lemming Barman - A nice joke, since a pint is both a unit of volume and of dry capacity. By the way, you would need a lot of lemons for filling up a WHOLE PINT of juice!!!!!!
13. Is Your Lemmingaid Working - Argh, enough citric jokes! See Tricky 17 from Amiga/DOS Lemmings!
15. Postcard From Lemmingrad - At last a non-lemon pun! This reminds me of a famous soviet joke regarding the constant name changes of the former Saint Petersburg along the years :laugh: . For further info, see Tricky 19 from Amiga/DOS Lemmings.
19. Take The Long Way Down - A long way down means a significative distance along, and also far below. This level is the famous Cascade from Amiga/DOS Lemmings, so the title is a double entendre.
21. Climb Every Mountain - A reference to the song of -almost- the same name from the musical and later movie "The Sound Of Music".
22. Please Let Me In - A successful hit for singer J.J. Barnes, back in 1965.
23. Iced Lemming - Yet another pun on lemons, this time referring Lemon Iced Tea.
25. Lemming Good Fun - Fifteen levels after ranting about lemmings, now the Player find them enyojable to be with! :thumbsup: Notice the missing "is" between "Lemming" and "Good".

TAXING

01. Roman In The Ruins - A play on words. I played this level several times, and never saw a Roman there :P
03. Up The Wooden Hill - A reference to the poetic expression "Up The Wooden Hill To Bedfordshire", said by parents to their children when it's time to go bed (which is supposed to be upstais, thus the "wooden hill"). This expression was coined after the song of the same name, written by Nixon Grey and Reginald Connelly, and made famous by Vera Lynn. Fun fact: Bedfordshire actually exists! It's an English county, and is usually abbreviated as Beds: couldn't be any other way! :laugh
06. A Spot Of Bother - A small inconvenience or difficulty. It's also the name of a British comedy from 1938. This is one of the few NES-only levels of the saga, and also one of the best.
07. Fly Lemming Airlines - A pun on Fly American Airlines. Well, in fact, maybe any airlines company.
08. A Slice Of Lemming Pie - Guess which fruit is referenced here AGAIN...? Bingo.
09. Strange Land - Although highly improbable, the most famous use of the term "Strange Land" comes from the Robert A. Heinlein's 1961 book "Stranger In A Strange Land", so that could be the reference here. The scenario for this level is the one from the "Upsidedown World", so it may be just a short poetical synonym for that long title.
11. Abombinable Lemmings - A pun on abominable. A reference to the famous Yeti -also known as Abominable Snowman-, a creature of the Himalayan folklore. In this level, you have to syncronize Lemming explosions.
15. Pee Wee Creatures - I've just realised that the original Poor Wee Creatures it's probably a pun on Pee-Wee/Peewee, and not the other way round. Pee-Wee is a despective term for referring to very short persons. Also, it's the name for young children's level in sports.
16. Caution Lemmings On Road - A pun on traffic signals like "Caution - Mud On Road"
17. Just Drop In - To drop in is a phrasal verb. It means to pay a casual visit. Also, this level is one of the NES versions of "We All Fall Down", so it has a double entendre, since "to drop" is similar to "to fall".
20. Come To Lemming Country - A pun on the infamous "Come To Marlboro Country" slogan from the 1960s.
21. Cloud Base One - I can't get any reference regarding this. Maybe Air Force One? Any ideas?
22. Seen It All Before - To have seen it all before means "to have experienced a lot of things"
23. Help My Lemmings On Fire - I haven't got a clue about this pun. Any ideas?
24. Lemming Squash - Yet ANOTHER lemon joke... Lemon Squash is a thick lemon drink. based on concentrated syrup.
25. A Lemming Just Ate My Dinner - A play on "My dog just ate my dinner", most commonly seen as "My dog just ate my homework", an hilarious and popular joke excuse for not delivering the school work commanded by the teacher.

 
(TO BE CONTINUED...)
« Last Edit: March 01, 2021, 07:54:42 PM by Ron_Stard »

Offline Proxima

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #1 on: February 21, 2021, 07:11:09 PM »
Very nice list! I'm not entirely sure how necessary it is to include the merely descriptive titles like "Cascade" and say "Yes, it's descriptive", but the list is a fun read, so do it however you like 8-)

You caught at least one reference I didn't know about, but I do have a couple to add:

Fun 25 "Lemmings lemmings everywhere" -- a play on a famous quotation from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, "Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink."

Fun 29 "Worra lorra lemmings" -- lot, not load.

Tricky 13 "Lemming Drops" -- a pun on Lemon drops.

Tricky 21 "All the 6's" -- traditional bingo call for the number 66.

Offline Ron_Stard

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #2 on: February 21, 2021, 07:31:13 PM »
Very nice list! I'm not entirely sure how necessary it is to include the merely descriptive titles like "Cascade" and say "Yes, it's descriptive", but the list is a fun read, so do it however you like 8-)

You caught at least one reference I didn't know about, but I do have a couple to add:

Fun 25 "Lemmings lemmings everywhere" -- a play on a famous quotation from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, "Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink."

Fun 29 "Worra lorra lemmings" -- lot, not load.

Tricky 13 "Lemming Drops" -- a pun on Lemon drops.

Tricky 21 "All the 6's" -- traditional bingo call for the number 66.
Thank you for the corrections and contributions! I'll add them in the next update. Since I am nor american not british, there are a lot of cultural references which I am not aware of. Please, feel free to add every one you know, in order to put here all of them! :thumbsup:

About Cascade, I think there are levels so extravagant and/or memorable that it's impossible not to say nothing about them :D

Offline NieSch

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #3 on: February 22, 2021, 07:31:48 AM »
Thanks for this list! Lots of references I didn't get all those years. :)
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Offline Ron_Stard

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #4 on: February 22, 2021, 07:09:31 PM »
You're welcome! I have added a new chapter, covering the Taxing Levels of the Original game :thumbsup:

Offline namida

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #5 on: February 22, 2021, 10:09:42 PM »
Quote
Never noticed until now that Tricky 30 and Taxing 1 are the evil consecutive twins of Fun 14 and Fun 15.

There's a few other sets with this pattern too - Tricky 16/17 are repeats of Fun 5/6; Taxing 7/8 are repeats of Tricky 4/5; Taxing 10/11 are repeats of Tricky 6/7; and Mayhem 3/4 are repeats of Fun 24/25.

There's no case where there's three or more such levels without interruption, though there are cases where several levels where the original versions are consecutive, there are no other repeat levels inbetween their repeats (but may be entirely original levels). The longest string of this is Tricky 30 to Taxing 6, which repeats four earlier-consecutive levels (Fun 14 to 17) with original levels inbetween at various points.
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Offline Crane

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #6 on: February 23, 2021, 12:10:15 AM »
Though we're a long way out, Crazy 15 is titled "Worra load of old blocks".  All I'll say is that on TV Tropes, it's listed under "Getting Crap Past The Radar"!

Offline Ron_Stard

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #7 on: February 23, 2021, 10:19:42 PM »
Quote
Never noticed until now that Tricky 30 and Taxing 1 are the evil consecutive twins of Fun 14 and Fun 15.

There's a few other sets with this pattern too - Tricky 16/17 are repeats of Fun 5/6; Taxing 7/8 are repeats of Tricky 4/5; Taxing 10/11 are repeats of Tricky 6/7; and Mayhem 3/4 are repeats of Fun 24/25.

There's no case where there's three or more such levels without interruption, though there are cases where several levels where the original versions are consecutive, there are no other repeat levels inbetween their repeats (but may be entirely original levels). The longest string of this is Tricky 30 to Taxing 6, which repeats four earlier-consecutive levels (Fun 14 to 17) with original levels inbetween at various points.

Never noticed that before, it's curious!

Though we're a long way out, Crazy 15 is titled "Worra load of old blocks".  All I'll say is that on TV Tropes, it's listed under "Getting Crap Past The Radar"!

I'm afraid I don't know to what TV show are you referring to. "Worra load of old blocks" seems to be a pun on "Worra load of old blokes", but that's all I can guess. I must investigate about it! :thumbsup:

A new chapter on the first post, this time covering the Mayhem level names!
« Last Edit: February 23, 2021, 10:35:11 PM by Ron_Stard »

Offline Ron_Stard

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #8 on: February 25, 2021, 07:17:51 PM »
Added references in NES Lemmings - Fun and Tricky level names ;)

Offline Aaron44126

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #9 on: March 01, 2021, 06:47:00 PM »
I chuckled at Holiday Lemmings 1993, difficulty "Blizzard", levels 9-16, which all have names referencing Star Trek (mostly based on the names of the original films).

Offline Ron_Stard

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Re: References in Lemmings level names
« Reply #10 on: March 01, 2021, 07:53:12 PM »
I chuckled at Holiday Lemmings 1993, difficulty "Blizzard", levels 9-16, which all have names referencing Star Trek (mostly based on the names of the original films).

Yeah, a strange homage! I noticed it back in the day :thumbsup:

I have added the references in NES Taxing Levels (at least the ones I was able to identify). Any help and/or correction is welcomed!