Lionsgate has finally released the first trailer for Eli Roth’s Borderlands movie nearly 10 years after the project was announced. While the preview is relatively light on plot details, it certainly emphasizes the “edgy” style of humor that has helped make the Borderlands game franchise so notable and sometimes divisive.
The Borderlands franchise has only grown since the original Borderlands game was launched way back in 2009, but the series has remained remarkably consistent during that time. Most of the Borderlands games feature a group of treasure hunters navigating cel-shaded wasteland environments, a ton of loot to collect, and an emphasis on comedy. Said comedy includes everything from pop culture parodies and social satire to those timeless fart jokes. Imagine a Mad Max-like episode of Rick and Morty, and you probably won’t be too far off.
While the new Borderlands trailer doesn’t feature all of the franchise’s hallmarks (it’s not animated, and studios haven’t found yet found a way to make us grind for loot by watching their movies), the series’ distinct humor is certainly accounted for. From Claptrap “pooping” lead and our heroes driving through a gully of urine, it’s clear that Eli Roth and co-writer Joe Crombie have embraced the Borderlands style of humor.
However, not everyone is fond of that aspect of the gaming franchise. While humor is inherently hit or miss for most, Borderlands’ humor has long been one of the series’ most notably divisive qualities.
