Scorpion: stings frog Frog: "And I took that personally"

“But now we shall both surely drown” said the frog “lol” said the scorpion, “lmao”

"incapable of practicing kindness but more than happy to take it from others" this line hits different

“Sorry, misclick” said the scorpion.

"Incapable of practicing kindness but more than happy to take it from others" is a sadly really well put line.

“The scorpion lit a cigarette” is on of the most incredible things I’ve ever heard

"I applied for a greek paradox but they only accept cute animals" This line made me actually laugh out loud

This story makes you think you're a good guy for taking the frog's side, but then pulls out your inner demon that rejoices at the visage of impaled scorpions squirming to death over the ashes.

You know what's funny? An earlier version of the fable was about a turtle and a scorpion and is actually quite similar to what you are saying. In that version not only stinging with would kill them both, but because of the shell, it doesn't even work. It makes even less rational sense. And when the outraged turtle asks him why he did that, the scorption said that it was in his nature, he can't control it. But this wasn't a cruel, fact of reality itself that the turtle needed to know, this deep and tragic revelation. It was a stupid excuse done by a weak animal. The furious turtle proceeds to drown the scorpion then. And the moral is that you should not let your vices decide your actions, and to rise above them. I think this version makes so much more sense to me, because the target isn't the turtle but the scorpion. It's about how you shouldn't be like the scorpion. Think bojack horseman, how people try to do awful things and then claim that they can't control it and how that can become your prision. But you don't have to be that way, you can choose to be something else. It also shows that some people are like this and that much like the turtle, you do need to have some protection, but it's never about the turtle being at fault or needing to realize this. Sure, I guess you can say that there is something to say about the frog in this fable. About how being too trusting is bad or whatever. But we all know that is not why this fable is popular. There are millions of fables of about being too trusting, literally red riding hood. This fable is popular because it comunicates the idea that some people are shit, but in a deeply, fundamental way, a way that is almost tragic and poetic. It's edgy AF. Think of the people who think of bojack like this, as this deeply poetic figure who will always ruin himself. To be clear I love bojack because it challenges this but some people miss the mark. TL,DR: Sucks to be a frog man, turtles always get it easier. Also bojack is great.

the ending was the best part, not because of the fable about how people make excuses about their beliefs and actions so it fits their own views and selfish needs, but because i fucking hate scorpions.

Exurbia has evolved from turtles to frogs, this is quite the character arc

The scorpion is that guy in your D&D game that ruins everything and then says "It's what my character would do."

This dude just somehow made me feel better after every single uttered word. There’s just something so perfect about the usage and how he describes in such a simple yet sensical way. It’s just so much of a mood that it just makes me say life is great, even after all this crap im going through.

The knowledge of scorpions surviving underwater for hours was always my favorite part of that fable.

Loved this little line “ how can frogs die better than facing fearful odds, for the ashes of their fathers and the temples of their gods.”

I thought "find every scorpion and roast it over a massive fire" *was* the moral of that particular fable.

I think the initial moral of the fable was to NOT be the frog, extending your kindness out to people who you know will probably exploit it, which is sort of valid, but I like this version's moral of JUST NOT BEING THE SCORPION better

“The world isn’t fundamentally unfair. The world isn’t anything, it’s just full of creatures that make it so” Gimme more of that sweet existentialism ya turtle boi

"And every Scorpion roasting over a massive fire"

I have never been more proud to have a tattoo of a frog on my arm, I might get a little scorpion on a stick roasting over a fire added to it.

They should just all watch 'how to be correct about everything all the time' together, I'm sure it will help.

The re-telling we needed.

we have our own version of the fable. and our version actually has the same moral as the one in the video ours is called "the scorpion and the turtle" and after the scorpion bites the turtle, the turtle dips under water briefly to wash off the poison, the scorpion gets washed up by the current about to die and says "turtle, why did you do that?" and the turtle goes "it's in my nature to wash poison off my wounds"

This man SAVED me during the 12+ hour drive to Texas not only interesting and educational but also a HUGE time killer. A time slaughterer, no a time obliterator

"and every scorpion in the forest roasted over a massive fir-" best ending for a video yet

I laughed out loud at the revelation the scorpion could've survived the whole "tried and true" long winded ordeal and it was all for nought, outstanding writing,my friend.

This is the first time I wished I had grandchildren... so I could tell them this amazing story...

Why do I keep coming back to this

Anyone else feel a spark of joy in their soul when Exurbia uploads

I had only heard the abridged version of this story before now. The full versions is much better, but probably confusing for kids. I can see why it was cut down.

Once the frogs said have you for dinner I knew exactly what the point was.

starting with a scorpion betraying a frog and ending with a mini existential crisis, classic exurbla

"Idiocy is passive; it takes a special kind of idiocy to to inflict their idiocy on someone else" Thanks exurb1a, I'm using this the next time someone doesn't agree with me, and hence winning the argument.

As someone who always hated the original fable, I approve of this version. Kindness is not a weakness, it is simply long term strength. Selfishness will give you what you want immediately, but will doom you in the future.

My family may be confused why I just shouted "YES" from my room a few times but that was the most gosh darn satisfying ending ever.

That was some brilliant writing with an amazing twist and great humor. Had me focused throughout the entirety of the video, keep it up man :))

"One day, a scorpion wanted to cross a river" Ah yes, what could possibly go wrong *4 minutes later* damn

The moral of this video is way more interesting than that of the original fable; obviously, a surface level reading would yield it saying to fight back against those who would do us harm and make the world a worse place, and that's not particularly profound, but it's still way more interesting and comical than the fable, especially with the abrupt ending and all. I also appreciate the social commentary about how people justify immoral actions by deferring to human nature (or in this case scorpion nature), and how it's a load of horseshit given that we as conscious creatures can choose to reject our own negative impulses. Great stuff all around!!

You create profound art, always makes me think and feel. Can't wait to see more.

I can’t believe the most beautiful video on this channel in the past year has the least views out of them all.

As a frog i can confirm this video is 100% accurate

That ending was unexpected but very satisfying, philosophically of course

A innocent frog sacrificed his soul on a dinner's price for friends

This video should be called "The deeply philosophical conversation between the drowning frog and the not drowning scorpion on top of the frog's back"

Moral of the story, don’t carry scorpions across a river.

You're helping me so much through this terrible time and I've been trying to articulate this argument for years, so thanks for that

this is SUCH an incredible metaphor/commentary oh my god

I keep coming back to this video and I keep not finding a reason not to call it the best thing on KZfaq

"HES BACK YEES" Cheers to everyone that hoped it'd be a 30 min upload. I feel your pain

I didn't know I got to live to the moment where I hear a person philosophize about a frog for 4 minutes straight.

Damn never have i heard such an awfully descriptive and accurate depiction of my mind (and arguably a lot of people ) and how it works and adapts to try and survive in this chaotic ass planet , felt like i was slapped across the face with this one and i felt REALLL uncomfortable at times lmao , truly tho thank you and please keep on making content and i wish u all the best because there's no one that i know of in the real world or in the internet that could do this consistently to me haha , you're the gift that keeps on giving man , im really glad that someone like you is here, thx again!

Your videos and the insights they contain are so great. I watch each and every one of them with delight.

Thank you Exurbia ,the “prince of milk” and “geometry for ocelots” were great books plus the cover art is a great conversation starter:)

Scorpion version: “But now we shall both surely drown” said the frog "Stupid frog. I can swim."

I wish more people like the scorpion would actually inadvertently cause their own Demise more often.

Amazing video as always and thank you for linking the music as well, keep it up

"the scorpion lit a cigarette as the sank", ah yes that's why I love all this here, cheers :D Now that I got to the end, ah yes the new paradigm

When the world needed him most, he returned.

Love the use of animating photos, really makes it that much better

Ah yes, finally, after days and months of checking if he uploaded.

Henceforth, "my intellectuals are German, my lingerie is French" is gonna be my go-to line anytime someone praises my intellect.

The frog made sure that the scorpion’s “last moments” were spent questioning its own entire identity

Love ya buddy. You make some really good bits of art that I've always enjoyed. It has gotten me through bootcamp, women, bourbon colored nights, and my own search for meaning in this world(the hardest struggle was the women and the bourbon was a fairly good cure). Thank you for making these and for being you. Have a good one.

Always loved exurb1a. Love what you do man

It's satisfying to finally see someone put a spin to this story that originally made no fucking sense, finally someone applied the minimal amount of thinking required to see how bullshit it is, you didn't even need to mention how the whole "it's in my nature" thing is bullshit in the sense that scorpions only sting when threatened.

Moral of the story: trick another species into thinking they've tricked yours so they let their guard down and you can kill them all.

This feels like a reinvention of your work, a continuation about what I liked best about your early videos in a charmingly non-obvious way. Hope you keep riding that wave, curious to see where it will float next.

Always a pleasure watching you're videos

It takes a special kind of idiot to inflict their idiocy on someone else, the Scorpion considered this, then said "fuck you" "Fuck you" said the frog This whole video was amazing but that did make me giggle

These are the best notifications I get. Thank you for all the time you put into creating 💜

It´s so good to hear your lovely voice again 😊

My man quoted Horatius at the Bride "and how can man die better, than facing fearful odds. For the ashes of his fathers and the Temple's of his Gods"

“But now we shall both surely drown”, said the frog. “Lol”, said the scorpion, “lmao”.

Between the ages of 3-6, any night my dad put me to bed, I'd ask him to tell me a story. Every time, it was the story of the scorpion and the frog. I'd forgotten it until now. Thank you Exurb1a. This version is MUCH better

very well put together, the whole video brought me to tears. Wonderful!!!

I’m sorry but is it just me who just found this channel and it’s the best thing ever? 🤣

Even when we've had to wait awhile. Even when the video length is short. The quality is yet again top notch. Thank you for this.

This is an eye opener lol I could never get my head around this fable.

I saw this when it first came out and needed to watch this again. Thank you

Honestly probably your best story yet, wish you the best brother.

no matter how shitty my day was, whenever this guy uploads it suddenly gets a lot better :)

"You can't blame a creature for reckless egotism if it's just what they do"

i came to watch your channel for like philosophical guidance because i’m going through a really hard time and this ending made my night:) thank you

Thank you for all the great content!

As someone who lives in Arizona, a state with frankly way too many scorpions, there's something oddly cathartic about seeing scorpions getting cooked alive.

The last four exurb1a uploads have been released when I've been upset and they've helped me every time. I don't know if this is a coincidence or just shows that I am constantly upset but either way, thank you Exurb1a.

You’re my favorite KZfaqr, your story telling is incredible. I love you turtle man

This video is 100% GOLD! Especially the end. And I know this is not meant to be the take away, but Frogs are absolutely cute enough to be an a Greek Paradox.

I loved the psychedelic visuals that accompanied this wonderful story.

I remember my dad telling me the story of the scorpion and the frog when i was young. I haven’t seen him for 5 years now, but this video reminded me of him. Cheers Exurb1a!

Absolutely tremendous script! Thank you for uploading!

I’ve watched this video many times and it never gets old, this is a masterpiece.

I genuinely don't understand sometimes if this man is doing a skit or an actual video we're supposed to put deep thought in

but then some scorpions survived because they identified themselves as altruists and said that they would reject and change their nature. The scorpions then ingratiated themselves within the frogs society. They showed their nature only insofar as it benefitted them but not so far as it cause the frogs to kill them. They eventually gained such power they realised they needed more people with power in order to manage their massive industry and some frogs became jealous of the extravagant lives of the scorpions. Those frogs learned the way of the few remaining scorpions in order to improve their lives and the lives of their family and were eventually hired to manage parts of the scorpions company. This industry was built of the exploitation of frogs in other part of the swamp that frogs in the consumerist society wasn't truly aware of. The frogs who gained enough power became aware of this but did nothing to stop it because that would result in the company going bankrupt and they would loose their wealth and lifestyle. Because the scorpions didn't have a complete breeding pool, they eventually died out. Frogs in higher parts of the company took over the companies leadership. Now they had the same problem of some people trying to improve everyone's lives while others simply benefitted of others kindness without ever showing the same in return, but they could no longer differentiate the two groups by species. After all, all frogs no matter how powerful or exploitative call themselves altruists.

this is one of the most beautiful things I have ever experienced, and I have seen all your videos and more

When the scorpion lit the cigarette, I felt that.

Exurb1a hitting his *_we cry together_* phase at 2:14

The smoothness of the lines in your visuals, how they curl up to make black eyes, and how they start to flow a little is exactly how it looks on shrooms 10/10

love your vids mate, keep 'em coming (pls theyre like therapy for me, but i can actually afford to watch your videos)

please turtle man, give us more wisdom its been a month i love these videos