That was actually one of the most clever jokes in the movie, imo.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

when i first read about unobtanium in a magazine, i read it as uno-btanium, as in one. it made more sense when i heard it

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Unobtanium was used in Sci-Fi way before Avatar.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

That doesn't mean they couldn't have come up with something better. Unobtanium just sounds silly.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

It's an already existing word. That's like saying that JK Rowling should have used something more creative than "Goblet" in the 4th book because it's a silly word that you don't like.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

It's only an "existing word" in fiction, not to mention that it's a bit different when a word is describing something that doesn't actually exist and that's really no excuse. What if "assrapeonium" was a recurring word in Sci-fi would it justify using that word?

by Anonymous 13 years ago

@870601 (Anonymous): A word is a real word no matter where it's used... Unobtanium is in the dictionary. Shakespeare invented these words: accommodation aerial amazement apostrophe assassination auspicious baseless bump castigate changeful clangor control (noun) countless courtship critic critical dexterously dishearten dislocate dwindle eventful exposure fitful frugal generous gloomy gnarled hurry impartial inauspicious indistinguishable invulnerable lapse laughable lonely majestic misplaced monumental multitudinous obscene palmy perusal pious premeditated radiance reliance road sanctimonious seamy sportive submerge suspicious   But I guess those don't count because they were made in fictitious plays, huh? 

by Anonymous 13 years ago

You just deleted your own comment and posted it again so people wouldn't be able to see the reply that I made, didn't you? Now that's just sad...

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I deleted it like a minute and a half after because it was too long to fit into the box. When I copied and pasted that list of Shakespeare words, I highlighted a bunch of links and stuff by accident and that pushed it over the character limit. Besides, your response didn't even deal with what I wrote; you just repeated the exact same thing as before. What's sad is that you couldn't think up a decent reply.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

You still haven't answered my question so your argument is invalid.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

What question? Do you mean that little assrapetonium bit was an actual question and not an attempt at a joke? Okay, here you go: If "Assrapetonium" was a literary device used in many classic sci-fi books and in the dictionary like Unobtanium is, then yes it would be justifyable to use it in a movie.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

You would have no problem with them using "Assrapetonium"? Well, then that's just you being weird, not my problem. And if you think "Assrapetonium" was a too extreme example then what about "kryptonite"? I think that word is in the dictionary as well and most people would agree with me that it would be silly of them to use that word.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Kryptonite is a better example because it means "weakness" in the same way that unobtainum means something that is hard to get or intangible. The difference is that kryptonite is more related to Superman, while most people don't associate Unobtanium with a specific work because it is a concept used all throughout sci-fi. So yes, I agree that it would be stupid for Avatar or another big movie to use Kryptonite, but only because it would be ripping off Superman.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Yeah, but my intention with the example was to show that you can't just completely disregard my opinion that it would be silly to use that word just because it's a real word, as you did before. If we're on the same page that I am well within my rights to find the use of the word "Unobtanium" utterly silly, then I guess this conversation is over.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

You can find it silly if you want to, but it is a real, legitimate word that has been used for decades in works of science fiction and it represents a legitimate literary concept. If you think that Unobtanium is "utterly silly", then you've set the bar quite high and I have some bad news for you about many, many, many other words.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Yeah it's actually just a big joke between Sci-Fi writers. They also use it in The Core I think, or some movie like that, and they put it around the craft so that it can withstand the pressure and heat of the earths core.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

the thing is, its actually a real element. it has to be made in a lab and on earth only lasts fractions of a second, but it has been confermd to exist. it wasnt a joke lol

by Anonymous 13 years ago

It's not real, but get off of Avatar's ass for the element thing...

by Anonymous 13 years ago

it is, but because its not natural, most periodic tables do not recognize it. only the really legitimate "hardcore" scientific ones have it

by Anonymous 13 years ago

No, they have similar names, but unobtainium does not actually exist.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I don't believe you because you don't use apostraphies and you failed to spell confirmed

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Out of all the shit bits of Avatar, that one word is hardly the downfall. The fact of 10 years and they did little more then tweak the story of Pocahontas is an issue thats more important....

by Anonymous 13 years ago