#FollowFriday: Sarcastic Rover (@SarcasticRover)

Every #FollowFriday, we make a case for one Twitter account we really think you should be following. This week, we think the Sarcastic Rover—the Scare-tasticRover as he’s calling himself for Halloween—will bring a lot of joy and sciencey type things into your life. His running commentary on the Mars expedition will forever live on in our hearts as the real personality of the Mars Curiosity Rover.

Who he is:

The Sarcastic Rover is a parody Twitter account of NASA’s actual @MarsCuriosity account that expands the audience of the scientific findings from the real Rover account and adds some humor along the way. It was created by Jason Filiatrault, who is a screenwriter and self described amateur Yahtzee player.

The man behind the Rover says of himself:

An award-winning writer and social-media hack, Jason Filiatrault has worked for television comedy, feature films, movies of the week, sketches, short films, and web series… he basically just writes things and then, very rarely, someone films them.

You should also check out his website detailing the journey of the Sarcastic Rover and his personal Twitter page, which brings you even more sarcasm.

Why you should follow:

We’re big fans of anyone who tries to make science more fun, as that’s one of the things we try to do around here, and the Sarcastic Rover is a total pro. He also brings an adorable and endearing personality to a robot that would otherwise only be a vessel for science experiments, which just plain makes reality a bit more fun.

The Sarcastic Rover also encouraged followers to “do a science” while NASA was off-duty due to the government shutdown. He then started the #shutdownscienceclub to get people to do science while NASA couldn’t. Anyone that steps in and promotes science while NASA is out of commission is great in our book. Plus, “do a science” is now one of our favorite phrases, because we really love science and silly things—especially together.

Great Tweets:

Here’s today’s gem, wherein the Rover realizes he’s being watched:

He’s even got Halloween costume ideas for you:

At least he’s honest about robots’ intentions for humanity:

He taunts us about alien life and graphic design:

(via @SarcasticRover on Twitter)

Meanwhile in related links

• Last week we recommended @CaraSantaMaria, because she’s great
• You can also get some parody, insightful critique, and lots of capslock from @FilmCritHULK
• We also think you should follow @a_single_bear. Yep. A bear

Have a tip we should know? tips@themarysue.com

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Dan Van Winkle

Dan Van Winkle (he) is an editor and manager who has been working in digital media since 2013, first at now-defunct Geekosystem (RIP), and then at The Mary Sue starting in 2014, specializing in gaming, science, and technology. Outside of his professional experience, he has been active in video game modding and development as a hobby for many years. He lives in North Carolina with Lisa Brown (his wife) and Liz Lemon (their dog), both of whom are the best, and you will regret challenging him at Smash Bros.

twitter Link to www.projectmgame.com