Episode 28: Kira and the Cliffhanger

Kira sighed as Brenna flipped through the TV channels. I wish there was more on right now... she thought as she glumly watched scenes of people fishing, people fleeing from a giant Caterpie-like monster, a lady cooking, and the weather forecast. She thought she saw Ash swearing in a new League Champion in the sea of images, but decided against watching that--she likely wouldn't understand the pageantry involved.

She was about to doze off when a cry of "Oh no!" snapped her to attention. She watched in horror as a girl tried to hang onto a cliff before the camera cut over to a boy on a Pidgeot frantically flying towards the cliff. Minutes before the boy could save the girl, the scene froze and turned black-and white.

That's it? Kira asked, shocked. The girl was in danger, and the boy needed to save her--but was the boy going to make it?

The TV announcer cut on over the black and white screen: "Will our hero save Laurana? Don't miss tomorrow's exciting episode!" With that, the words 'To Be Continued..." appeared over the boy, casting a pall over Kira's hopes as the closing credits started to roll.

I want to know what happens next! Kira sighed as Brenna resumed flipping through the channels in search of a new cartoon to watch.

You heard the TV guy--tomorrow you'll learn if the boy saved the girl or not. Brenna assured Kira as she settled in to watch "Yes! Pokemon 5"

But I want to know now! Kira protested.

What's all da complainin' about? Leon asked as he peeked in the room.

Kira and I were watching 'Crystal Quest', and today's cliffhanger involved Laurana, well, hanging from a cliff. Brenna explained. And Kira's worried about Laruana falling.

Ah, 'Crystal Quest'--dat fantasy show with all da cliffhangers dat was on just about every TV I could see from da alleys... Leon sighed dreamily. "I made a point to find a TV just before night fell so I could loin how da previous day's cliffhanger came out.

Kira was confused. What's a cliffhanger?

Basically, a cliffhanger is a point a movie will stop at to get you to come back and see the rest of it--or the next part. Brenna explained.

And if the goil was hanging off a cliff again, she's likely going to get rescued. Leon assured Kira. Trust me--dey do dat kind of cliffhanger a lot on 'Crystal Quest' Kira heaved a huge sigh of relief upon hearing that the girl was going to be all right. Her question now was how the girl was going to be rescued. She figured that the boy would arrive on his Pidgeot in the nick of time--but what if she wound up being rescued a different way?

Brenna abandoned the TV and brought a book over to Kira. In fact, whole movies are made this way--they're called 'serials' she explained, showing Kira the pictures of various serial cliffhanger screens. In olden times, they were usually science fiction, Westerns, superhero stories, and the occasional jungle or mystery. Today, they come in all kinds--even adapted from video games!"

Wow! Kira was impressed.

The catch is, with those, you have have to worry about 12 or 13 cliffhangers. Brenna explained. Some of them even have as many as 15!

Fortunately for you, you can find them in theaters today, and classic examples online. Lita explained. Kira just decided to climb on top of Kimi's desk, where the computer displayed a classic movie site. After typing "serial" in the search box, she looked over the list of results. Look at all these...I'd need years to watch them all if I watched them like you're supposed to...

The next day...

Come on! Brenna coaxed Kira to keep up as everyone hurried to the living room. Today we find out if Laurana is saved!

I'll go get da popcorn! Leon volunteered as the other Pokemon settled before the TV, where the cliffhanger scene from the day before was slowly beginning to colorize. Leon returned as the scene began moving again, allowing the boy to grab the girl and hoist her onto his Pidgeot seconds before the cliff face crumbled away.

See? Laurana's just fine. Brenna assured Kira.

What'd I tell ya? Leon agreed. If ya see a cliffhanger like dat, you already know how it comes out. Kira nodded to show she understood, then turned her attention back to the screen, just as a plant monster swiped away the girl!

Everyone held their breaths as the boy drew his sword before the screen turned black and white again.

That's not fair! Kira complained over the announcer. I wanted to see the fight!

Cliffhanger. Leon reminded her.

Lita sighed. Here we go again...

To Be Continued...