Bloody GIR is an easter egg that appears throughout Invader Zim.
The obscene drawing was inserted into single frames in a few episodes. Well-known and confirmed appearances are in "Bad, Bad Rubber Piggy" and "Mortos der Soulstealer", but it has been said to be scattered throughout the last fourteen episodes of the show.
Origins and Behind the Scenes[]
Bloody GIR was born when illustrator Chris Graham drew the character GIR covered in blood on a whim, the crew "[knowing] it would never properly get into the show". The drawing was "never, ever put up for approval, therefore Nickelodeon never said no".[1]
Graham, with the help of director Steve Ressel, snuck the drawing into a single frame (pictured; right) of the episode "Bad, Bad Rubber Piggy".[2] Post-production supervisor Jason Stiff has confirmed that the image does indeed appear in that episode, and Ressel also confirmed its existence in interviews.[2]
The frames were reportedly scattered throughout the "last fourteen [episodes]" of the series by Ressel and Graham.[2]
"The bloody GIR was the single frame drawing that Chris Graham drew and I was putting it into the show at random points hidden within things. It is very hard to make out... and I am not telling where or when those frames are (you have to be a master to see Bloody GIR, even with a frame-by-frame VCR). If anyone finds it... let me know.
He is in several places through the last 14 episodes. We tried to get him put into "Bad, Bad Rubber Piggy" when the last pig goes through the portal: that was the first one and I don't think it stayed..you have to check... if it is there it is faint."
āSteve Ressel[2]
According to Ressel, Nickelodeon never discovered a Bloody GIR before the episode aired.[2] He also hinted at another Bloody GIR location:
"Hint- look at a few of the opening sequences in the second season. Unless Nick switched them out, there should be at least one with a Bloody Gir."[2]
This Bloody GIR (pictured; left) was later found to be in the intro of "Mortos der Soulstealer".[2]
Despite rumors that this image was the reason behind the cancellation of the series, creator Jhonen Vasquez revealed at an InvaderCON panel that Nickelodeon did not find out about Bloody GIR until after the show ended. Vasquez also stated that when it was discovered, Nickelodeon wasn't particularly bothered by it.
Although the idea for Bloody GIR was confirmed by many not to have surfaced until the time of "Bad, Bad Rubber Piggy," some claim to find it in early episodes of the series, such as "Dark Harvest" and "Attack of the Saucer Morons". Some have also claimed that Bloody GIR was meant to debut in the episode "GIR Goes Crazy and Stuff", where GIR was supposed to be covered in blood while floating with the data canister draining humans. However, this is directly contradicted by numerous statements on the matter.
Certain images of Bloody GIR can only be seen in frame-by-frame viewing. Otherwise it will be a flash, or, in some cases, blend into the movement of the animation. He is never animated; Bloody GIR will always appear as a still image. However, the opacity and size of the Bloody GIR is varied.
Appearances[]
Confirmed[]
- "Bad, Bad Rubber Piggy": When the final pig goes through the Space-Time Object Replacement Device and the portal flashes white, a very faint image of Bloody GIR can be seen (If you have a laptop, tilt it and it can be seen more easily). It is right before Dib starts talking and is normal again; Bloody GIR can be seen in the very middle of the swirling dust. It can be viewed at 22:52 on the DVD.
- "Mortos der Soulstealer": During the theme song of Invader Zim, when the pipes appear, a faint picture of Bloody GIR is viewed. This one is easiest seen by the naked eye. It is when just before seeing Dib and when the mouth of a pipe comes extremely close to the screen. Viewers can see this on the 20th, 21st, 22nd, and 23rd second. It can possibly be seen only by a frame by frame viewing.
Likely[]
According to Steve Ressel, Bloody GIR appeared several times in the last fourteen episodes of the series. However, it is unknown if the locations listed below are entirely correct; some may be compression artifacts or coloring errors.
- "Mysterious Mysteries": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Abducted": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Hobo 13": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Future Dib": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Halloween Spectacular of Spooky Doom": In Dib's sequence, when the pipes break the glass of the Eyeball logo, a Bloody GIR can be seen in one of the glass pieces. This is also another opening sequence Bloody GIR, alongside with Mortos Der Soulstealer.
- "The Sad, Sad Tale of Chickenfoot": As the microwave explodes, in the bottom-right corner, Bloody GIR has been seen. Since the background is red, it may not be as easy to spot as the other ones.
- "GIR Goes Crazy and Stuff": When GIR throws the cow at the silo, look very closely in the sky. There should be a small pointy space on a cloud, and at the exact second the cow hits the silo, two dots appear in the space that could possibly be Bloody GIR. This one is hard to see because the scene is very fast. You would have to have good eyes to spot him because he isn't very big, or you'd have to watch the episode with the brightness up, since the Bloody GIR is dim.
- "Walk for Your Lives": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Lice": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Dib's Wonderful Life of Doom": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Megadoomer": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Tak: The Hideous New Girl":
- Watch as Tak's ship falls from space. As it crashes, Bloody GIR is faintly visible at the center of the screen for one frame. Look very carefully.
- As the meat ship lands, when the door is about to be completely open, near the back wheels of the ship, a Bloody GIR is seen.
- When Tak finds Dib and Gaz in her lair, somewhere in that scene, an eye of Bloody GIR is seen on Tak's shoe (pictured).
- "Backseat Drivers from Beyond the Stars":
- As the Almighty Tallest discover the Resisty's Ship, a Bloody GIR appears on Purple's head as he says, "That's a Vort ship!" You will notice the Netflix movie viewer version has a small blur on Purple's head after it disappears. Unfortunately, Nickelodeon removed it from the show, however you can watch it on YouTube or Netflix. It's very hard to see so you have to have good eyesight, for it is a small, fast red blur. It is unknown whether this one or the one from Plague of Babies is the hardest.
- Another is when Zim falls into the elevator after escaping from the robot 'Parents'. halfway down there is a red figure that looks like a Bloody GIR.
- "The Girl Who Cried Gnome": Before Zim's face is shown on TV, Dib is seen near a roof that is attached to a green house. A Bloody GIR can be seen near the roof.
- "The Frycook What Came from All That Space": During a flashback of when Zim first started working, a scene is shown when alien customers start spilling their soda on him. When this is going on, watch the window: A very familiar ship passes by. When it does, to the left of Zim's head, a Bloody GIR can be seen on the ship. Pause at exactly 6:35.
- "The Voting of the Doomed": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Vindicated!": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Dibship Rising": Location unknown; confirmed to have been in the episode.[2]
- "Zim Eats Waffles": When the robots attack Dib- Bloody GIR is seen on the lower wall.
- "Gaz, Taster of Pork": Right after hot dogs explode out of Gaz's belly button, under one of them in the upper right corner one of Bloody GIR's eyes can be seen.
- "The Most Horrible X-Mas Ever": When Dib is attacking the mutant Santa, Bloody GIR is seen in his mouth under his tongue. (21:22)
Unconfirmed[]
Bloody GIR has debuted in "Bad, Bad Rubber Piggy" as well as the final fourteen episodes of the series (which includes its most definite appearance in "Mortos der Soulstealer"). However, some fans of the series claim to have spotted the easter egg in episodes outside of these designations. None of these appearances have been confirmed by anyone other than fans, and some may very well be fake.
- "Dark Harvest": When the chase between Zim and Dib starts, you can faintly see the eyes of Bloody GIR on the tusks of the mammoth. On the Netflix version, you can see the outline of GIR's head and antenna in lighter color at about 4 1/2 inches of the mammoth's tusk.[3]
- "Walk of Doom": In the mirror near Zim's head when he and GIR walk into the taxi.[3]
- "Attack of the Saucer Morons":
- When Zim ejects himself from the Voot Cruiser, look towards the bottom of the screen for this Bloody GIR. It is extremely small, however.
- When the bee 'attacks' and the Voot runner is out of control, you will see Zim spinning and flipping inside. Go frame-by-frame and look as Zim is landing face-first. One eye (if not both) can be seen by his feet.[3]
- "Planet Jackers": As Zim is zooming in on Invader Skutch, the top right part of the biggest planet is a Bloody GIR. This GIR looks like its eyes are resting on the planet and two stars make the shiny color on the side of his head. This is not that hard to see because the planet is blue.[3]
- "Hamstergeddon": At the part where Zim and GIR are sitting at the couch, a Bloody GIR can be seen on the upper left corner of the couch. A fake Bloody GIR sighting video on YouTube of a quite-visible Bloody GIR was once posted. The small picture of Bloody GIR was in a very close, if not exact same spot, but a REAL Bloody GIR has been spotted in the same scene. Watch the REAL episode and look closely and you can see that there is one there. Disappears after Zim leans forward.
- "Plague of Babies": Watch the Voot crash sequence, you will notice several instances of Bloody GIR looking into the window at the left side of the screen. This one is arguably the hardest confirmed one to find, due to GIR's size and opacity in the scene. You can see him directly under the "R" when the name Rob Hummel appears onscreen.
- "Door to Door": When the Poop Dog is telling the students what the prizes are and the screen changes to the students sitting near Zim, a Bloody GIR is seen in the center of the screen, but it is very faint. If you want to see it, look very closely.
- "Game Slave 2": At the start of the episode when the flaming pigs fly past the moon, a Bloody GIR can be seen near the tail of the top middle one. Extremely hard to see.
- "Battle of the Planets":
- When Dib is talking to Membrane at his desk, near Membrane's feet you can see a tiny Bloody GIR poke his head out from behind the desk at the end of the scene. This is hard to spot because it's colored in green but you can see a faint outline of the eye and antenna, as the eye has a faint color of red. On the DVD it is visible at 7:26.
- Before GIR puts the eyes on his little sand face, Bloody GIR can be seen on the bottom right side of the face. However, it is quite faint and difficult to find, as the background is tan/red.
Tips on how to find Bloody GIR[]
Look for the eyes. Everything else might be unclear, but the eyes are still somewhat glowing red. However, once you find the eyes, check to make sure some other part of the body is visible. If you only see the eyes, the Bloody GIR you have just found may just be a smudge of red from a mistake in the coloring.
- The one from "Mortos der Soulstealer" is the easiest to find. The one in "Backseat Drivers from Beyond the Stars" is the hardest. Do the easiest first to build skill, and build up from there.
- In some cases, get close to your TV.
- If you are watching it on DVD or VHS, you can pause the system you are watching it on and go into frame-by-frame mode. (The mode can be started by pressing the 'pause' button and then repeatedly pressing the 'next' button. Also, bear in mind that starting this mode is varied by both the age of your system and the brand, so check the owner's manual for details.) This is one of the easiest ways to find a hidden image on any VHS tape or DVD disc. It is also a way to spot animation errors.
- Don't watch lower-quality versions of the episodes if you're looking for Bloody GIR. The compression artifacts will confuse you, and they can be mistaken for the outline of Bloody GIR. If you're looking for one, use the DVDs or digital releases.
Facts of Doom[]
- When "Mortos der Soulstealer" aired on Nicktoons again starting in March 2010, the frame in the theme song containing Bloody GIR in the tube was simply digitally replaced with the original frame. Nickelodeon made no attempt to remove any Bloody GIR easter eggs in other episodes, most likely because viewers wouldn't be able to notice them.
- The frame was oddly retained in the vanilla re-release DVD set in the same year.
- Because of his bloody appearance, heās strangely apart of the Creepypasta Fandom.
Gallery[]
Notes and references[]
Characters of Invader Zim |
---|
Main Characters |
Zim ā¢ GIR ā¢ Dib Membrane ā¢ Gaz Membrane |
Supporting Characters |
Almighty Tallest Purple ā¢ Almighty Tallest Red ā¢ Ms. Bitters ā¢ Professor Membrane |
Minor Characters |
Invader Skoodge ā¢ Keef ā¢ Minimoose ā¢ Tak ā¢ President Man ā¢ Roboparents ā¢ Lard Nar ā¢ Skool Principal |
Background Characters |
Adult Dib ā¢ Old Kid ā¢ Hobo ā¢ Alan ā¢ Meef ā¢ Skoolchildren |
Temporary Characters |
Mortos der Soulstealer ā¢ Sergeant Slab Rankle ā¢ Sergeant Hobo 678 ā¢ Shadow Hog ā¢ Chickenfoot ā¢ Sizz-Lorr ā¢ Gashloog ā¢ Willy ā¢ Iggins ā¢ Walton Chunky ā¢ Pigboy |
Canceled Characters |
Louie ā¢ Digestor ā¢ Almighty Tallest Spork ā¢ Almighty Tallest Miyuki ā¢ Bloody GIR ā¢ Cthulu ā¢ Cybernetic Kitten ā¢ Dinky ā¢ Little Timmy |