MTV Gets Social With Teen Wolf Memorial Site

Back in the day, Scott Howard was an undersized point guard with a bad outside hook shot and a self-professed egg allergy. For reasons that are never fully explained in the 1985 film, Teen Wolf, the 5’ 3” Everyman (Michael J. Fox) is transformed into a basketball prodigy when his familial lycanthropy kicks in, presumably at the onset of puberty. (This makes no sense. Air Bud aside, dogs suck at basketball.) Flash forward 30 years [!], and Scott’s surname is now McCall, and instead of roundball, he devotes himself to the sport of kings and New England meatheads, lacrosse. MTV’s Teen Wolf is a lot darker as well—whereas at the end of the theatrical, Scott Howard realizes that his true love is his buddy Lisa “Boof” Marconi, the furry 21st Century incarnation has much worse luck with girls. In fact [SPOILER ALERT], Scott’s ex, Allison Argent, is not only descended from a long line of werewolf hunters, but she’s also, like, totally dead. Having taken a sword blade in the midsection, Allison (Crystal Reed) dies in the arms of her lax bro beau, which is where the story really takes off. Immediately after the credits rolled in Season 3’s second-to-last installment, MTV went live with the community site, TeenWolfMemorial.com. Visitors to the site are greeted with the trappings of Neo Goth grief, including a blank headstone, a spray of fresh-cut white roses and some dark, loamy topsoil. Click through to continue to the “memorial” and there’s the wonkily photoshopped Teen Wolf cast, moodily huddled around a grave marker that is already growing mossy around the edges. (Beacon Hills is hella damp, yo.) Carved into the stone above Allison’s name is a French phrase that translates to “We protect those who cannot protect themselves,” which essentially served as the Argents’ motto and raison d’être since the season began. Once that bit of decryption is done with, users are encouraged to scroll down to “unearth the past.” As one digs deeper through the virtual mulch, different layers of content are revealed. The fun starts with a clip of the death scene, which is followed by an invitation to pay your respects via the Twitter hashtags #GoodbyeAllison and #RIPAllison. Keep shoveling and you’ll find cast reactions and fan eulogies. Reed’s video contribution is particularly sweet. Her eyes are red and puffy, as if she’d been crying for some time, and the actress recounts a moving story about how her role in the show helped a young fan overcome a period of personal adversity. “I got into this to help people,” Reed said. “And sometimes you get wrapped up in, like, the shenanigans of being an actor in Hollywood, and, like, all this bullshit, really, and then you have someone tell you how much your job is really impacting their life and it…it really puts things in perspective and makes you realize why you do what you do.” While it’s been nearly 20 hours since the episode ended, the hashtags #RIPAllison and #TeenWolf are still trending in New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington. Meanwhile, #Allison is trending across the United States. The memorial site includes tags that allow visitors to share the link on Facebook and Twitter, and in the upper left corner of the landing screen, the MTV logo is tastefully rendered in white. Click on the “Mondays at 10/9 C” and be immediately transported to the official Teen Wolf site, which unlike the memorial, is ad-supported. (Fans not too caught up in the throes of grief over the passing of a fictional character are encouraged to either check out the redesigned 2014 Civic Coupe from Honda, grab an ice cold Pepsi or browse the racks of fun spring dresses and “swim sensations” at Macy’s. (No beach parties where you’re going, Allison!) Per Nielsen live-plus-same-day data, Allison’s death was witnessed by 2.01 million viewers, of which approximately 62 percent were members of the core females 12-34 demo. Teen Wolf wraps its third season next Monday at 10 p.m. EDT. MTV has ordered a fourth season of 12 episodes, which is expected to begin running in June 2014.

Convergent TV

MTV Gets Social With Teen Wolf Memorial Site

Grieving fans remember Allison Argent online

Anthony Crupi

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Anthony Crupi