EggZone Magazine
Before proceding with the review, it's important that the reader be made aware that EggZone Magazine is, quite often, very stupid. There's no way around it: quite a lot of its content falls off the useful information/amusing information chart, and plunges into the land of wasted characters.
Having tossed out that cautionary aside, EggZone Magazine can now be described as easily one of the web's most persistently silly (and occaisionally enjoyable) collections of content. At its best, it's an unstoppable machine, pumping out absurdity with phenomenal inconsistency. What's most admirable about EggZone (a collection of comics, letters, prank calls, movie reviews, and more) is that despite its bloodyminded dedication to not making sense, it also manages to toe the line of coherence, such that its material, while digestable and reminiscent of actual content, is just warped enough to make the reader pause.
A review of the Jennifer Love Hewitt CD, for example, confounds the reader. How much of this is tongue-in-cheek? All? None? Some? It dances the line.
A letter from the "Ask Jay" column also neatly illustrates the site's philosophy:
"Dear Jay,
I think I like metal. When I rub my teeth on cold metal, I get shivers. I might be addicted to metal, and I was wondering if that is dangerous?
— Metalman
Dear Metalman,
First of all, no, it isn't exactly dangerous (unless you are licking metal off the street), but it is a minor disease. Many people, including myself, have barony metal disease. If you want to get rid of your desire to rub cold metal on your body and teeth, you should see a doctor. But man, don't those shivers feel so good? I love telephone poles the best, above the phone area. Thanks for your letter. You actually just made me feel better about myself! Did you ever try using a gold bell?"
There you have it. Persistent, agressive lack of purpose pulsates through the site, making it a joy to navigate: it's pretty clear that the creators take little seriously aside from the passionate pursuit of their art. What that art is, exactly, is never really made clear, but it's quite apparent that Jayson and Dave are passionate about it.
Are many sites out there done "for the love"? No. Few sites are founded without a desperate dream of obtaining money, fame, respect or job offers. But if the EggZone founders have any such base aspirations, it doesn't come through to their content.
The EggZone recipe page sums it up best, perhaps, with the ingredients for their "Lamb and Rake".
- Ass meat from
baby lamb.
- Bread Crumbs
- Dried Leaves
- 16 oz 7-11
coffee
- Pizzeria Combos
- Heavy Duty
Rake
- Power Saw
mmm.
— James Norton (jrnorton@flakmag.com)
