History WebAnimation / MetaRunner

The series takes place in Silica City, a society centered around video games, where Meta Runners--gamers who've replaced their arms with machines to boost their performance--dominate the competitive scene. At the center of the story is Tari, an amnesiac girl who wakes up in an abandoned lab with a Meta Runner arm attached, and soon discovers she has the odd ability to enter the games she plays, allowing her to master them in ways unparalleled by other gamers.

However, Derek Lucks, the head of local megacorporation TAS Corp, has his own plans for Tari and her abilities, especially after he sees her pull a game character, the platformer protagonist Theo, into the real world. On the run from Lucks and his top Meta Runner, Belle Fontiere, Tari and Theo soon find themselves tangled up in the affairs of [=MD-5=], a trio out to expose TAS Corp's corrupt practices. With nowhere else to go, Tari joins [=MD-5=] in their mission to take down Lucks--and possibly discover who, or what, she really is...

** [[spoiler: In Episode 6 of the Final Season, Sheridan briefly displays several achievements that have call-backs, a fourth-wall break, and [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers disturbing implications as to what happens to players when they die in the server]].]]

--->'''[[spoiler:Sheridan]]:''' None of you stupid, brainless, weak-minded idiots are going to destroy my work EVER AGAIN!

The series takes place in Silica City, a society centered around video games where Meta Runners--individuals who've replaced their arms with machines to boost their gaming performance--dominate the competitive scene. At the center of the story is Tari, an amnesiac girl who wakes up in an abandoned lab with a Meta Runner arm attached, and soon discovers she has the odd ability to enter the games she plays, allowing her to master them in ways unparalleled by other gamers.

Notably, Tari made an EarlyBirdCameo in ''[=SMG4=]'' to drum up interest in the then-unannounced show, albeit as a more cartoonish version of herself who is [[CharacterExaggeration bad at everything except video games]], starting with the episode [[Recap/SMG4MarioTheUltimateGamer "Mario The Ultimate Gamer"]], and eventually playing a major role in the climax of [[WebAnimation/SMG4TheWaluigiArc The Waluigi Arc]].

* TheCameo: WebAnimation/KizunaAi appears in [=S2=] eps 4 and 5 as Tari's guide to Pocket Gatsuki.

''Meta Runner'' is a CG animated web series created by Kevin and Luke Lerdwichagul, the minds behind ''[[WebAnimation/Supermarioglitchy4sSuperMario64Bloopers [=SMG4=]]]'' and the first fully-animated series made by their studio, Creator/GlitchProductions.

''Meta Runner'' was then first teased at the end of ''[[Recap/SMG4WarOfTheFatItalians2018 War of the Fat Italians 2018]]'' and officially unveiled on December 5, 2018. The ten-episode first season premiered on the [=SMG4=] channel on July 25, 2019, and concluded on October 10. A CompilationMovie of Season 1, subtitled ''New Game+'', released on the standalone Glitch Productions channel on August 28, 2020 as part of the run-up to the second season. Season 2 premiered on the Glitch channel on October 16, 2020 and concluded on December 18. A third and final season, consisting of eight episodes, premiered on July 22, 2022, with the series concluding on September 9.

''Meta Runner'' is a CG animated web series created by Kevin and Luke Lerdwichagul, the minds behind and the first fully-animated series made by their studio, Creator/GlitchProductions.

''Meta Runner'' is a CG animated web series created by Kevin and Luke Lerdwichagul (the latter better known as [[Creator/Supermarioglitchy4 SMG4]]) and the first fully-animated series made by their studio, Creator/GlitchProductions.

Tari is notable for making an EarlyBirdCameo in the creators' flagship ''[[WebAnimation/Supermarioglitchy4sSuperMario64Bloopers [=SMG4=]]]'' series to drum up interest in the then-unannounced show, albeit as a more cartoonish version of herself who is [[CharacterExaggeration bad at everything except video games]]. Belle was similarly ported over to the series in 2020.

First teased at the end of ''[[Recap/SMG4WarOfTheFatItalians2018 War of the Fat Italians 2018]]'' and officially unveiled on December 5, 2018, the ten-episode first season premiered on the [=SMG4=] channel on July 25, 2019, and concluded on October 10. A CompilationMovie of Season 1, subtitled ''New Game+'', released on the standalone Glitch Productions channel on August 28, 2020 as part of the run-up to the second season. Season 2 premiered on the Glitch channel on October 16, 2020 and concluded on December 18. A third and final season, consisting of eight episodes, premiered on July 22, 2022, with the series concluding on September 9.

First teased at the end of ''[[Recap/Supermarioglitchy4sSuperMario64BloopersWarOfTheFatItalians2018 War of the Fat Italians 2018]]'' and officially unveiled on December 5, 2018, the ten-episode first season premiered on the [=SMG4=] channel on July 25, 2019, and concluded on October 10. A CompilationMovie of Season 1, subtitled ''New Game+'', released on the standalone Glitch Productions channel on August 28, 2020 as part of the run-up to the second season. Season 2 premiered on the Glitch channel on October 16, 2020 and concluded on December 18. A third and final season, consisting of eight episodes, premiered on July 22, 2022, with the series concluding on September 9.

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:Sheridan gets his brutal, fatal comeuppance, Evelyn is sent to jail, and Lucinia is finally brought back to life. However, to do so, [[HeroicSacrifice Tari had to transplant back the parts of Lucinia's mind that allowed her to live in the first place]], and now along with Theo lives entirely as a digital entity within Cyberspace, with the likelihood of the two ever seeing their friends again very low.]]

* ArtEvolution: Season 2's art style advances from the style of Season 1, with more realistic characters models and features, in particular Tari now sporting some faint freckles on her face. {{Subverted}} with Season 3, where ''Skybreakers'' features another new artstyle, but that only applies to said game while the rest of the season keeps the Season 2 designs.

A pilot for a proposed SpinOff centered around Theo, titled ''WebAnimation/UltraJumpMania'', premiered on September 4, 2020. Shortly after the series finale's premiere, a comic book {{Prequel}} series titled ''Meta Runner: Source'' was announced, with its first issue--covering Tari's origins--set to ship in November 2022.

[[caption-width-right:350:''♫ I'm always running... ''[[note]]Counterclockwise from center, the main cast of Season 2: [[AmnesiacHero Tari]], [[HateSink Evelyn]], [[BadBoss Lucks]], [[RefugeeFromTVLand Theo]], [[TheDragon Belle]], [[RebelLeader Masa]], [[GadgeteerGenius Sofia]], and [[{{Otaku}} Lamar]]. At the top, [[spoiler:[[PlotTriggeringDeath Lucinia]]'s conciousness can be seen]]. Not pictured: [[MadScientist Dr. Sheridan]].[[/note]]]]

** Two of them to [[Machinima/SuperMarioGlitchy4sSuperMario64Bloopers SMG4]] in episode 4 (fittingly enough):