Horror in Code Lyoko

[ArgentDandelion]

When I was little, I liked certain kinds of supernatural horror. (as evident by my enjoyment of Courage the Cowardly Dog) However, there was one episode of Code Lyoko----Plagued---that was too scary for me. The image of a Spectre pinning a helpless, squealing rat, streaming into its throat, making it evil through possession, and then inducing it to viciously attack and infect all its fellow rats in a zombie outbreak-like scene traumatized me, to the point I banished all thought of Code Lyoko from my mind for seven years. (long story.)

Season 1 had other horrifying or horror-genre-like episodes, among them Laughing Gas and Ghost Channel. Episodes where the characters nearly die (which may be correlated to the horror of an episode) were less common in later seasons, since they were not inclined to Return to the Past as often. However, later Seasons did have some horror moments; Season 2's Attack of the Zombies is an example.

Do you like horror in Code Lyoko? Which horrific scene is the best? Do you prefer that Code Lyoko not be horrific? Which episodes classify as "horror" episodes?

[TechnoSam]

Personally, I do like the "horror." In fact, Ghost Channel is one of my favorite episodes! I've taken more from that episode for my ideas about XANA than pretty much any other.

I don't really know what classifies as horror, but there are two episodes in particular I'd like to point to here.
1) The Key. Every time I see Anthea fade away and here that guitar chord, I get a chill down my spine, and I start to tear up.
In this same episode, when the camera is zooming out of Sector 5 and into the Surface Sectors, I get another chill when I see a core of darkness at the center of Lyoko.

2) One of Aelita's flashbacks... Not sure which one...
So you see Anthea taken away, and then little Aelita crying in the snow. My heart is about to break with pity... Suddenly I hear a sharp growl and am looking into the face of "the" wolf! It watched the whole thing with some sort of wicked satisfaction. It's my theory that XANA is represented by Wolves in Code Lyoko, and that particular one may have even been possessed, dispute the fact the XANA symbol was not in its eyes.
But I love those chills that I get from those scenes. No other TV show, book, or movie can match that for me.

[SeeMeInTheShadows]

I generally like a dash of horror here and there, of course, I'm saying this from a sperspective of a sixteen year old, so I don't know what I would have said when I was younger.

I think that horror is a strong emotion that can really create a memorable episode if done right, but I don't like the idea of it getting too overdone. Ghosts and other supernatural things can really be spooky in a good way. Though, again, I'm not really the age of the target audience.

[Stella Luce 333]

Persnlly, I thnk of stuff like that as more of a sci fi or fantsy elmnt than horer...but yes, I thnk that's a big part of why I like the show...

[Soul Jelly]

I love the horror elements. Ghost Channel is also one of my favourite episodes for the sheer epic creepiness of XANA-fied Jérémie, but also for the awesome build-up.

Everything with the flashbacks and wolves also had a cool creepy element to it.

Ironically, 'Attack of the Zombies' wasn't all that scary.

[Atlas]

I think horrific scenes would actually be something that would be better in Lyoko then the conventional Earth scenes.

I mean, you can come up with some pretty terrifying things with a computer.

[y2kdz]

like a kankerlot being shrouded in darkness screeming in pain as it is being turned into a zombie in the one with copy earth

[cya6]

I always enjoyed the situations where the Lyoko Warriors were close to being killed and, you know, acted it. Something about the realisticness of their behavior freaked me out.

Also, I love scary things. So the episodes which comunicate that best are the best for me.

[Atlas]

I agree. Needs more scares and horrific lab experiments or whatnot.

[aelitaxwilliam]

Now that you guys are pointing all these scenes out, I guess I can see why my parents were a bit wary of letting me watch this at eight years old. That, and I was a pretty sheltered child.

The horror in CL is just great though! Not too freaky (the Saw series, anyone?), but still creepy and believable. And agreed, Dandelion. Especially the way you describe it — those scenes with the rats and them climbing all over each other and infecting each other. Gross.

I think horrific scenes would actually be something that would be better in Lyoko then the conventional Earth scenes.

I mean, you can come up with some pretty terrifying things with a computer.

For me, it's the opposite. Like, for the most part, I can assume that we do not have a Lyoko in our world and an evil supercomputer waiting to escape its confines and destroy the world. But some of the things on Earth in CL are pretty realistic. Like the rats, maybe they wouldn't have a computer virus getting them infected, but they could easily get a virus and transfer it across their population.

It's also reassuring that you can normally get devirtualised and you'll be all right. Or you can run into a tower. Or you could have Jeremie virtualise a vehicle for you. Earth scenes can hit harder (for me) in terms of being like "this could happen to you" than in Lyoko (barring those guardian bubbles, I think).

[SkystoneNumairian]

I was pretty surprised, especially in Ghost Channel, how it was very clearly stated that Xana intended to kill them, considering its target audience was (I'm assuming) quite young. It did add a sense of realistic danger to the antagonist, though.

And I agree with Kelly, those scenes on Earth frightened me quite a bit more than scenes on Lyoko. Unless, of course, William was there.

Scary guy.

[aelitaxwilliam]

Yeah. William was a scary, scary guy. Especially in that episode where he was momentarily good for all of five seconds and then went straight back to killing Yumi.

The target audience is definitely pretty young. But I guess the way it manages to put in those more horror-filled episodes is why it transcends so nicely across the ages. That's why you see all these something-teen-year-olds and those on the older side of CL's target audience running around proclaiming their love for Code Lyoko. :D

[Snickie]

I never judged the show on horror so much as I did on how creative it was. For example, I didn't see "Ghost Channel" for the horror of a 1984-esque world and XANA-Jérémie, but rather for the creativity of XANA's attack and how well it played up into the climax when XANA-Jérémie goes all crazy on them screaming, "NOT LOGICAL! NOT LOGICAL! NOT LOGICAL!" That was an amazing scene, and I was like, "GO REAL-JÉRÉMIE GO!"

The scene with the rats never bothered me much for some reason, even when I was eight/nine years old. I don't really know why. "Attack of the Zombies" wasn't all that scary to me either.

Maybe I have an inaccurate definition of "horror", but during the first time I watched the second season on TV (4th or 5th grade I guess; I forgot what year it was), I found myself more horrified starting around halfway through the season whenever the scyphozoa showed up. Maybe I had a premonition that XANA was definitely going to succeed which made me fearful each episode that whenever the scyphozoa showed up, THAT was it. I often found myself changing the channel long enough for the scyphozoa scene to pass or move on, and then I was always relieved when they were able to free her. Except, of course, in "The Key", which was a very tense episode to me at the time because they were so close to achieving what they wanted, and so vulnerable. As soon as the room started falling apart, I knew that was it.

I can't tell you how I would have reacted to the 3rd and 4th seasons when they came out, since I didn't see any of them except Echoes at all before last year. I would have been in 7th or 8th grade then. I wish I could tell you, but...really....

Gotta say, though, "The Pretender" made for a good horror story, you know, with the crows.

[SkystoneNumairian]

To be honest, the only episode I remember watching as a kid in its entirety was Zero Gravity Zone, and that scared me to death. That scene where Ulrich's parents fly off into the sky was something that stuck with me for years.

It seems we all have our episodes that scared us, but the ones you'd expect to be scary kinda fell flat. Especially Attack of Zombies.

[Coto524]

Sometimes the 'just in time' moments scared me in hindsight. I mean, take Satellite. At the end of the episode the laser stops inches from Yumi's face. Lasers are made of light and so travel really fast. If Aelita had been the tiniest fraction of a second later - poof. Dead character.

[cya6]

I was definately most terrifed by the reactions.

Really, the only show I was into before CL was Teen Titans. In that show, people slam through buildings, get blown up, start on fire. You know, no one's really in danger.

But in CL, people would be chased by mutant bees that could actually kill them, and they knew it. They'd act terrified, and that would register much more strongly in my mind. Also physical things: Ulrich's slammed against a tree and gets knocked out.

The scariest thing about CL was how real it was.

[_Odd_]

I was definately most terrifed by the reactions.

Really, the only show I was into before CL was Teen Titans. In that show, people slam through buildings, get blown up, start on fire. You know, no one's really in danger.

But in CL, people would be chased by mutant bees that could actually kill them, and they knew it. They'd act terrified, and that would register much more strongly in my mind. Also physical things: Ulrich's slammed against a tree and gets knocked out.

The scariest thing about CL was how real it was.

I completely agree. Especially with the laughing gas too.

I think the horror aspect is one of the things that made Code Lyoko unique.

[Snickie]

It was hard to take the giant teddy bear seriously, though, I must say. XD

[chiwill]

I can't remember the name of the episode but the one where Aelita die and Franz brought he back to life was scare at the part of the Aelita dying and in the one where Jer messed up and Aelita basically killed herself to save humankind.

[Dr. J]

I believe that one must also consider the subtle horror here. Think of Xana from the viewpoint of the main cast, and especially Aelita. I often like to write little bits that show the cast going crazy, especially for Jeremie and Aelita. The rest of the cast doesn't really know, and for the most part, blithely skips along. Jeremie and Aelita know what they are dealing with, and that in itself is very scary.

[Snickie]

@Chiwills: "The Key" and "Just In Time" (though she did attempt that in "The Key" but Jeremie saved her by turning the supercomputer back on), respectively

[LongHairedAelita]

Ghost Channel made me freaking piss my pants!

XANA Jeremie was creepy as shizz! For real!

[eseiprahs]

I've always sort of thought that the robot with the sharp teeth that chased Ulrich and Yumi was pretty creepy. I forget what episode it was from...

[Dr. J]

Oh, you mean high lord R.U.S.S.I.A.N. Nah. He was bicycle once. And free, and computer, and potato fryer.

[Stella Luce 333]

I've always sort of thought that the robot with the sharp teeth that chased Ulrich and Yumi was pretty creepy. I forget what episode it was from...

End of Take?

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