#The Umbilical Brothers

[landofii]

👀👀

[fuckyeahtheumbilicalbrothers]

David Collins and Shane Dundas at the UK premiere of ‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’

[blackcatfilmprod]

Things Hollywood OR Bust Location Tour - Vlog doing this month.

- Seen on the Screen Exhibit at Brisbane Motor Museum

- Touring Film Locations for Boy Swallows Universe

- The Umbilical Brothers at Home of the Arts

[purplespacekitty]

so, like. idk if anyone else ever watched this show when they were younger, but way before Bluey there used to be this Australian kids show called The Upside Down Show and it was all live-action and it followed these two guys named Shane and David as they explored the world. i guess they were in their late twenties or early thirties?

anyway, each episode had brothers Shane and David encounter this new thing or something they didn't think that much about: bicycling, haircuts, ice cream, kites, birthdays, etc. and they'd go on these little journeys to learn about these things and what was cool about this show was that Shane and David were very open to learning and everything they learned, they learned from kids. the kids would teach them how puppets worked, how movie theaters work, how to take care of pets, etc. at the end of each episode, we see Shane and David try out the things they've learned about and the narrator announces something like "Shane and David go to the airport for the very first time!" in a very ringmaster-y tone of voice. ultimately, it positions kids as teachers and adults as learners, showing that adults have as much (if not more) to learn from kids as kids have to learn from adults. the world of The Upside Down Show also included some other recurring characters, like Puppet (a puppet, the brothers' roommate and friend), Fido the Fly (Shane's invisible pet fly who lives in a tiny house with a tiny door in the wall with tiny front steps), Mrs. Foil (Shane and David's friendly and outgoing tuba-playing neighbor who has a male calico cat named Elizabeth and whose spouse we never see, so i choose to believe her partner is either super shy [we love an opposites-attract kind of relationship] or she's divorced and living her best single life), Action Fingers (the action duo Knuckles and Pointy who are literally just played by Shane and David's middle and index fingers), the Narrator and the Schmuzzies (little fuzzy puff balls kind of like tribbles except they have eyes who say every word with the sound "schm-" before it).

also, the laws of physics and reality are different in this show: Shane and David own an invisible Remote that they give to their viewers at the start of each episode, which affects things in-universe with the Pause button, the Instant Replay button, the Stumble button and lots of other buttons. Shane and David, played by the Umbilical Brothers, produce a bunch of sound effects with just their mouths throughout the show and mime a lot of things like the Remote, Fido the Fly, the Snooglenook and other characters and gadgets. it's a very wholesome, wonky sketch comedy time and i highly recommend it.

all this to say, the most important part of my post: the greatest love story of all time.

the very first episode features Shane and David going to a movie theater and also, to the laundry room? in the laundry room, which they first mistake as a movie theater, they meet a blue sock named Lefty nestled in a pile of Mrs. Foil's as-yet-unfolded laundry. Lefty explains to them tearfully that they're in the laundry room, not a movie theater. when Shane and David ask why he's crying, Lefty recounts his tale of sorrow to them over the backdrop of sad violin music: the laundry room is where he lost his "socky partner", Barbara. saddened by his story and determined to help the sobbing sock out, Shane and David call upon their pals the Action Fingers. after a little kerfuffle with Mrs. Foil's laundry, which they fold neatly back into a stack for her, Knuckles and Pointy hear a voice calling for help: Barbara! she's caught in a narrow storage drawer below one of the dryers! Knuckles and Pointy rush to her side and manage to pull her out in a dazzling display of heroism.

"Barbara!"

"Lefty!"

Barbara and Lefty are reunited and they embrace, so ecstatic that they cling to each other for longer than intended through static charge. the pair united, the tender scene is cut as Mrs. Foil plucks them out of the laundry pile and Shane and David move on, leaving the laundry room behind them.

what i love about this story is that while it's short and sweet, it's also packed with all the angst and dramatic tension a good love story with a happy ending should have. Barbara and Lefty's tale is one of woe but also one of joy and yet...in the end, they are still socks. together, they become simply a pair, united, to be folded alongside each other as they should be. we can rest knowing they have found each other once again.

and sure, it's just a silly little snippet of a silly little kids' show, but it's cute and imaginative and it brings you into the world of your sock drawer and laundry room very effectively. it implies that socks have personality and thoughts and feelings and reminds you to treat them with care, to remember that socks almost always come in pairs.

the legend of Barbara and Lefty lives in the deepest nooks and crannies of my brain, burrowed there as a warm reminder of my childhood and a show that gave even the smallest of objects life.

[futurequibblerjournalist]

When Walburga was pregnant with Sirius he got stuck in her ribs.

When Walburga was pregnant with Regulus he almost strangled himself with the umbilical cord.

Walburga would remember both quite often after her boys made it into the world.

[aquitainequeen]

Please, science fiction, stop giving me the trope of clones not having belly buttons. If they're mammalian, and unless you're 3D printing them or some such, they're gonna need an umbilical cord.

[quietonmythumb]

me and my middle age male comedic duos

[sewerfight]

Fargo S4 E2 The Land Of Killing and Taking

[idontliketomatoesleavemealone]

god I hate the way umbilical cords look

[cattatoir]

Oh!! This is a terrible plotline. Are you serious with this whole dead unborn baby ghost like absolutely Not this Offends me

[unpredictablestuff]

whoah

[fuckyeahtheumbilicalbrothers]

The Umbilical Brothers on TikTok

[blackcatfilmprod]

Today me and dad attended the LIVE Performance of The Umbilical Brothers at the Home of the Arts. Two comedy pros that just won BEST COMEDY at the ALELAIDE FRINGE FESTIVAL. They both amazing performers and made the audience busted a gut from laughing so much, a sign that meant they did an amazing job. Well Done guys!

[adreamthatsworthkeeping]

Don't push yourself.

Maybe you don't open that way.

Try pulling yourself.

[teaboot]

I keep sending my roommate your Ollie posts because her kitten gets up to basically the same chaos as yours! For example, he's figured out how to open the bathroom door now, so he will just... get in the shower with you. Bonus fact is he learned how to use a litter box before he was big enough to get his umbilical hernia repaired, so as far as he's concerned, cats have to poop standing on their back legs (using box edge as support) and the other way is wrong! Meanwhile, my other roommate adopted his sister and she has a fear of water anywhere but her water bowl and also anxiety. She is obsessed with buckets though and finally got her brother in one last week.

Melanite (cone) and Eclipse

I LOVE THEM????????