Alex Weller’s Reviews > Gorillaz: Rise of the Ogre > Status Update

Just read "Hear No Evil". To Murdoc's annoyance, "Laika Come Home" is released and gets good reviews, even from the rest of the band. Meanwhile, the Gorillaz film ends up falling apart and the band quits in irritation. Murdoc then realizes that if Gorillaz want to do their own movie, they should write the script themselves. Here we go!

Just read "Hollywood and Bust". Gorillaz move to LA to get into the Hollywood business, but spend three months doing nothing but partying. The group finally hires a director for their movie, but he has no idea what the hell he's doing and the theme of the movie constantly changes based on the last movie the director saw. Yikes.

Just read "Mexico: The End of the Road". The band plays their final concert in Mexico City, but tensions are high with the band snapping at each other and causing delays. Fights and riots break out during the concert, ending with part of the stage coming down on top of some audience members, trapping them underneath an inflatable "Rock the House" gorilla. End of the fun for the band.

Just read "The North American Tour 2002". The band's American tour has its ups and downs: Murdoc gets arrested for carrying a gun; the Toronto tour flops; Noodle has flashbacks about her forgotten past; the tour bus becomes ungodly; Murdoc starts summoning demons; their manager quits after Murdoc scares him off; and the band starts to lose trust in each other. But overall, the American tour is a success.

Just started reading "Chapter 6 - The Rubber Mallet of the Gods" and read "Brit Awards 2002". As the band prepares for a US tour, they end up nominated in SIX CATEGORIES at the 2002 Brit Awards. They go above and beyond and perform an elaborate CGI stage show with massive screens, only to leave the ceremony empty-handed. Damn.

Just read "Gorillabitez". Due to the audience wanting more animations than just the videos, the Gorillaz make a series of short skits called Gorillabitez, which air on TV. Around this time, 2D's fame plunges him into anxiety, so he takes to Buddhism as a spiritual fulfilling. Tibet's crisis is later referenced in a Gorillabite titled "Free Tibet Campaign".

Just read "Rock the House". As Jamie faces a lawsuit from the creators of another virtual band for allegedly stealing their idea, Gorillaz create a video for their third single, "Rock the House", to match their feelings. Nobody ends up being happy about the single choice and the single doesn't chart as high as the previous ones, but the music video is very impressive!

Just read "Gorillaz and D12 feat. Terry Hall in '911'". While D12 (minus Eminem) is in London to promote their album, Gorillaz decide to collaborate with them. Their song takes a political turn after 9/11, however. Murdoc spends the time drunk and goofing off while the rest of the band work with D12, and Terry Hall of The Specials later provides guest vocals.

Just read "The British Dates" and finished Chapter 4! To help Murdoc let off steam, UK tour dates are booked for the band. While the audience loves them, some of the critics release more scathing reviews about the band being a gimmick because nobody could see the live musicians behind the screens. But the band doesn't let this bother them. Good for them!

Just read "Award. Take Me To A Ward.". Gorillaz is nominated for the Mercury Music Prize, but turns it down due to the bad luck of low-selling albums that winners release afterwards. They are then nominated for MTV2's Viewer's Choice Award and film an expensive acceptance speech for it but don't end up winning, leading to a massive tantrum from Murdoc. Yikes!