Multiboxing in fiction (books, movies, fairytales?)

[Cornelius]

Hello there from Eastern Europe multiboxers!

Let's discuss multiboxing or something that looks like multiboxing in literature, movies and other fiction.

Can you remember some book or movie, or maybe even fairytales where some character multiplies self to gain power via magic or time travels or something like that?

I am pretty sure there are plenty of multiboxers in fiction, but right now all I can think of are:

* Agent Smith from Matrix: Reloaded and Revolutions (see famous battle here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zGw7gnUtHY)
* Naruto from anime, who used "Shadow clone technique" - something like mage mirror spell to multiply self temporarily.

Any additions?

[Tynk]

Well, I am not from eastern Europe, but here is what I can think of.

Multiplicity - The whole movie is based on a man making clones of himself.
Fred Flintstones - Season 6 - Seeing Doubles - Gazoo their space alien friend creates doubles of Barney and Fred to take their wives to dines while they bowl.

Here is an obvious one...
Star Wars: The Clone Wars - duh :)

[Cornelius]

Very nice, thank you, gotta check out that movie!

[Bigfish]

I know there are a couple in Comic Books, Multiple Man and some Triplicate Girl or something. There was an issue where the girl copied herself on an empty planet and rebuilt society with just her clones.

Personally, I never see the idea used to its full effect. Namely, with several real clones of yourself you could multiply your labor and managable time by a factor of how many clones you can produce.

[Cornelius]

* "City of Lost Children" - I can swear I saw something like cloned scientists in movie trailer. Haven't seen movie tho.

There were also some science fiction stories about scientists who cloned themselves. "Futurama" cartoon series, Stanislav Lem's "Cyberiad" do ring a bell.

[Maxion]

There was an episode of "Red Dwarf" where someone populated a whole planet with their own clones.

Good show by the way.

[Zaelar]

There are a lot of characters that make copies of their self similar to Naruto which was already mentioned. I'll contribute Gemini Man from Mega Man 3 and Steve Urkle from Family Matters. There are also some that break into pieces and do things separately.

Unless it's a single computer directly controlling many, artificial intelligence should be excluded. Clones as well, as they are pretty much the same thing, just flesh. It would be no different then someone who sets up (bad program) on several computers then says they 500 box wow. This would disqualify both Urkle and Naruto, and I'm not sure about Gemini Man or Smith.

The puppet controllers from Naruto would qualify as boxers.

The borg isn't a boxer, it's a pug. A really, really big one.

[Talamarr]

I've seen several porn flicks with plenty of multi-boxing; too many to name though.

[Hachoo]

Multiplicity - The whole movie is based on a man making clones of himself.
My guild is named after this movie ;)

[Dorffo]

City of Lost Children is totally worth seeing if your into quirky science fiction / fantasy!

The borg isn't a boxer, it's a pug. A really, really big one. :thumbsup:

[Spin]

The borg isn't a boxer, it's a pug. A really, really big one.

I disagree, since each borg acts on the whim of the central leader. They can't act on free will.
I agree. A large PUG is nothing more than entropy momentarily coalescing before an explosive dispersal. The borg are all controled by a central being, so the random silliness is at a minimum.

[Hor]

I'm shocked no one has mentioned Ender's Game yet. In this great book by Orson Scott Card, a young boy named Ender is recruitted to save humanity from a race of hive like alien beings. Military strategists have figured out that if they can destroy the hive mind the "drones" stop functioning entirely. The trouble is, actually getting to the hive mind itself. In order to combat the aliens, Ender is trained to fight and command the entire human army by first controlling a single fighter, then a small squadron of ships, until he is eventually controlling the entire armada. I don't want to ruin the book in case you've never read it, but if you haven't ... I DEFINITELY recomend it.

And yes, City of Lost Children to a degree, but that film isn't really about "controlling" thru clones as it were, more using the dreams of children as an alternative fuel source. And yes, it's a very good film. Similarly you could argue the aliens in Dark City perform a similar role but they're less about controlling the people in their expirament and more about putting people into what they consider interesting situations and seeing what happens.

[Cornelius]

* Tecnically speaking Wacraft universe also worth mentioning because Lich King is controlling his undead minions from distance.
* Talking of Ender's Game, there is also "Fire upon Deep" novel by Vernor Vinge. Godlike sentinent being turns whole civilizations into it's "palms".

[Zaelar]

The zerg (starcraft, not the guild). Cerebrates boxing their armies.

My limited understanding of star trek is that there is no central mind for the borg. If there is a central AI, then yes that would be some pretty hefty boxing...and a really big server farm.

For proper boxing-comparison there should be 100% control, not like a pet which would be more like go kill that guy over there(and do it however you want).