Sunday 18 January 2009

All Talk 34 - A Fatally Wiinjured Life Redux

Toy Piano music plays in the background. It's Wii Fitness: HUTCHBACK'S new obsession. DR NOSTRUM is gingerly standing on the Wii Fitness Board.

WII

Ok, before we get started, let's do a quick body test.

DR NOSTRUM

Ok. Yes, I've got a body. (to HUTCHBACK) Do they do them for disabled people?

HUTCHBACK

Yeah, they take away the weight of the wheelchair.

DR. NOSTRUM

Enter my height.

HUTCHBACK

How high are you? 11?

DR. NOSTRUM

'Bout 10½

HUTCHBACK

Well, lets call you 11, just to make you feel better about you being alive.

DR. NOSTRUM

The year you were born?

HUTCHBACK

Sixty, Seventy?

DR. NOSTRUM

What relevance has that got? 69. Does that mean I've got a better body mass index if I was born in 1970?

HUTCHBACK

Mm. People were fatter back then. Right, you can step on it, no, no, don't pick up that coke can, that'll ruin the calculation. Right, start again.

DR. NOSTRUM

Me weighing myself?

HUTCHBACK

Yeah

DR. NOSTRUM

...that's entertainment, that is. (pause) Presumably anyone who's really, who's really interested in this would have to take all their clothes off?

HUTCHBACK

No, no, no. Cause you can

WII

How heavy is your clothing?

HUTCHBACK

... you see?

DR. NOSTRUM

What, do I have to take all my clothes off and it weighs that?

HUTCHBACK

No, no. Ok. Bend over, loosen your trousers and stay relaxed. (pause) Stop moving! It's scanning you.

WII

Done.

HUTCHBACK

O.k. here we go. Very good! 50.9% to the left. Do you dress to the left sir?

WII

Repeated use of your left hand can weaken your balance.

HUTCHBACK

Right. (pause – the Wii scans the DR some more) 11 stone 8! Very impressive! You're ideal. If only you were ideal in every other way. Ah..

WII

You are least likely to get sick.

HUTCHBACK

But more likely (pause) to be sick. Ok. "Basic balance test"

DR. NOSTRUM

Is this me practicing?

HUTCHBACK

Yes. No, you're doing it.

DR. NOSTRUM

Oh, right.

HUTCHBACK

Ok. Right, now lean to the left.

DR. NOSTRUM

What?

HUTCHBACK

Lean to the left.

DR. NOSTRUM

What? (The DR. slavishly attempts to balance, but is consumed by an uncomfortable sense of having a deep joke played on him and the rest of the human race)

HUTCHBACK

Blew it!

DR. NOSTRUM

Oh dear.

HUTCHBACK

You blew it!

DR. NOSTRUM

Dear me. What a tragedy that is.

HUTCHBACK

It is.

DR. NOSTRUM

I think it's more a perceptual tragedy than, er...

HUTCHBACK

Than a genuine tragedy.

DR. NOSTRUM

Yes.

HUTCHBACK

Yeah

DR. NOSTRUM

So, okay, does that mean, what...

HUTCHBACK

That means...

DR. NOSTRUM

...I've failed? I can't balance?

HUTCHBACK

...you're a cunt, it means you're a cunt.

DR. NOSTRUM

Oh, right.

WII

You don't have a goal.

DR. NOSTRUM

That's true, I know that.

HUTCHBACK

You're aimless. (he selects something new for the DR)

WII (now a woman)

Hi there!

HUTCHBACK

Hi there! The friendly female trainer; there's an upgrade where you get a really horrible angry female trainer.

WII

Let's work on improving your Body's balance.

DR. NOSTRUM

Thank you.

WII

To view me from the back, press up on the control panel.

DR. NOSTRUM

(to HUTCHBACK) She looks like she's talking Japanese doesn't she? (to WII) To what?

WII

To view me from the front, press down on the control pad.

DR. NOSTRUM

Eh?

HUTCHBACK

Just ignore it.

WII

Watching me from the front will make my movement easy to follow.

DR. NOSTRUM

So why would I watch you from the back.

HUTCHBACK

Cos she's got a nice arse.

DR. NOSTRUM

For fuck's sake, isn't there anything that doesn't involve balancing?

WII

Please feel free to support yourself on other people or objects if you don't feel stable.

DR. NOSTRUM

That's a good line actually. That's a very good lesson for life.

HUTCHBACK

Mm. On Other people, objects or substances.

WII

...Raise your left leg so you are standing on one leg. Bring your left leg back and your left arm up...

HUTCHBACK

No, you have to lift the knee up. You're doing a sort of Bruce Forsyth come Superman.

WII

Keep your body steady and swing your arm and leg. (HUTCHBACK starts laughing as the DR wobbles precariously) Your leg's shaking slightly.

DR. NOSTRUM

Yes, that's true. My leg's shaking slightly that's cos I'm 46...

HUTCHBACK

...Darlin'. (pause) She's got very, kind of tight, but inoffensive breasts.

WII

Great Job! Keep it up.

HUTCHBACK

I'd keep it up her.

WII

Now...

HUTCHBACK

Don't be a lazy cunt.

WII

Well done!

DR. NOSTRUM

Christ! I went from Casualty to Body Builder in 30 seconds. Now that's progress! What's beyond Body Builder?

HUTCHBACK

Um, Superhero?

DR. NOSTRUM

Superhero?

HUTCHBACK

I've, I've got a hundred on the press-ups.

DR. NOSTRUM

Oh, press-ups? (the DR chooses to have a go) Does it measure your balance on your press ups?

HUTCHBACK

Uh, don't know. Can't really see the screen.

DR. NOSTRUM

Ok. (begins doing Wii press-ups as opposed to regular press-ups – shortly after, the Wii plays a little fanfare as the DR gets 100)

HUTCHBACK

Oh you Bastard! You've pushed me down to second place!

DR. NOSTRUM

Ah. Well, erase me. Just erase me from the whole thing.

HUTCHBACK

Nah, it's alright. I'll just change my name to AAAHUTCHBACK.

DR. NOSTRUM

M would quite like.. (realises the prospect of her being told she's older than she wants to be) Well, I don't know if she would like it - similar annoyances. (Burps hugely) Ooh. Pardon me. God Bless!

HUTCHBACK

It's been teaching me how to do yoga. A machine is teaching me how to do yoga. (As I write HUTCHBACK is laid up, having put his back out doing the excellent yoga under the all seeing eye of the YogamaharishWii)

DR. NOSTRUM

Ok, well, look, this is all very interesting, but...

HUTCHBACK

Yeah.

DR. NOSTRUM

...it's not really a life, is it?

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