Aphelion

The "was/were it/they" thing was a reflection of the still-unresolved question of whether the Wisp (or Wisps) should be viewed as multiple individuals or a single group intelligence with (maybe*) multiple "bodies" (insofar as semi-coherent gas clouds could be counted as bodies). (*If there were multiple "bodies", it was impossible to tell them apart.)

As for why "Rocky and Bullwinkle" -- hey, it's well-known as a classic of subversively adult-humor animation. And conventional historical and live-action fiction video had proven to be of no interest to the Wisp(s) ... Now "South Park", or "Ren and Stimpy", or "Beavis and Butthead" -- those shows would have been guaranteed to capture the Wispian imagination.

RM

... Hey Rocky, watch me pull a double negative out of my -- er -- hat. (I guess automated grammar checkers are even more useless than usual when parsing a sentence with "was/were it/they" in the middle... and weary editorial eyeballs aren't much better.)

This time for sure!

RM

He should have tried soap operas. Wouldn't that be funny? To hook an alien on soaps!

It was nice to see an alien just as preoccupied with being entertained as humans are, and one which loathes reruns as much as we do. How can one not draw a parallel between this alien and a couch potato when nothing is on worth watching? You fade in and out on shows, lose interest, flip channels. Wisps are a similar breed.

Nice story.

Nate