'Thingu (2012)' (also known as 'Pingu's The Thing (2012)') is a parody of the popular kid's television show, 'Pingu (1980 - 2006)', and John Carpenter's classic horror film, 'The Thing (1982)'. It was forcibly removed from YouTube shortly after its release due to some legal issues, so was recreated as 'Claycat's The Thing (2012)'. This version features cats instead of penguins and is part of Lee Hardcastle's 'Claycat' series that that sees his clay feline characters recreate various horror movies and other gruesome media in succinct fashion. It's worth noting that, perhaps due to extra experience, it could be argued that this short is better than the original, though it obviously lacks the subversive charm of seeing a kid's cartoon twisted to tell an altogether much more horrific story. In 2020, Hardcastle uploaded a video entitled 'Pingu's The Thing (2020)', which is described as having been remastered - using the the original JPEG sequence and a wholly recreated soundscape - and contains several disclaimers that the characters within it are not the same characters from 'Pingu (1980 - 2006)' (because, I guess, parody is dead). It has certainly had an interesting life. I'm glad that it can be appreciated in all its glory once again, as the original was a clear case of parody and thus fell under fair use. It's an inventive and entertaining little short that uses the contrast between its cute claymation and gruesome imagery incredibly well. It also does a great job of recapping Carpenter's classic in just a couple of minutes. It's a really fun watch in all its forms (whether it stars cats or penguins). It's a solid slice of subversive animation. 7/10.
