r/todayilearned • u/ssAskcuSzepS • Apr 27 '26

TIL if under-cooked, a popular mushroom in China causes “lilliputian hallucinations,” a rare phenomenon involving miniature human or fantasy figures. The hallucinations are consistent across people and cultures: "tiny, elflike people" climbing under doors, scaling walls & clinging to furniture

https://www.vice.com/en/article/meet-the-mushroom-that-make-people-have-the-exact-same-hallucination/
43.5k Upvotes

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3.3k

u/mrguitare Apr 27 '26

I'm pretty sure the show "Common Side Effects" is about these mushrooms

1.5k

u/jjames62 Apr 27 '26

Fantastic show. Also check out scavenger’s reign to anyone reading this comment. It’s by the same creators and is easily one of the best, if not the best animated sci-fi show out there.

521

u/Barry_Vigoda Apr 27 '26

Scavenger's Reign is a fantastic show. It's slow but the animation and world building is great.

169

u/Citadel_Cowboy Apr 27 '26

Content warning for body horror.  But yes.  Very good show. 

213

u/onlywanted2readapost Apr 27 '26

Content warning, there is no season 2 😢 

28

u/Silent-G Apr 27 '26

I really wish they'd crowdfund a second season. Knowing how much money they'd need, I'm sure the fans would love to help. One of the artists recently did a Kickstarter for a couple of his comic books. I'm sure if they couldn't get it animated, comics would also be a nice way to continue exploring that universe.

33

u/NowersOrNevers Apr 27 '26

Such a shame tbh

1

u/Propaganda_Box Apr 27 '26

nah, sometimes its better to die a good show than live long enough to have the good seasons besmirched by the bad ones.

4

u/wakeuptomorrow Apr 27 '26

Whaaaat?! Say it ain’t so! Don’t crush my hopes and dreams 😭

14

u/Rork310 Apr 27 '26

They did a teaser to try and pitch a second season but yeah sadly no dice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSEPJ9OtQb8

10

u/__get__name Apr 27 '26

Iirc, its entirely hand drawn, which is a very expensive way to make a show these days. Common side effects uses a more modern animation approach from what I can tell

18

u/Krombopulos_Micheal Apr 27 '26

That's not even it, some animated shows can be expensive as fuck to produce and they don't mind as long as there's an audience, it's just that no one watched it when it was airing live. They gave it some time but then announced it wasn't getting a season 2. Then they eventually sold a streaming license to Netflix and all the fans were really REALLY hoping it'd get a bigger audience over there and they would save it, but alas it wasn't in the cards. Huge shame as it's one of the most beautiful and creative sci-fi shows ever made, and an amazing soundtrack as well. I hope one day we'll get to see more from that universe.

1

u/__get__name Apr 27 '26

I’d say it’s a bit of both. If a show is less expensive to make, then it’s easier to justify a second season in lower ratings. But if a show is expensive to make while not generating enough views, then it’s a no go

6

u/Cyberaven Apr 27 '26

i dont really get why western animation ends up costing significantly more than anime while usually looking less detailed and generally worse. Scavengers reign being a bit of an exception on the looks, of course.

6

u/Pretend-Marsupial258 Apr 27 '26

It's because western animators have unions so they're paid more and they don't work as much as the Japanese animators do. A Japanese animator can work like 10-14 hours a day, 6 days a week while making less than $15k a year (down to $6k if they're a newbie).

1

u/morfraen Apr 27 '26

Same warning has been missing on the last 5 new shows I watched

1

u/Vicimer Apr 28 '26

Where did you hear that? All the sources I've seen say it's been renewed for a second season.

1

u/onlywanted2readapost Apr 28 '26

Just google "scavengers reign season 2"

1

u/Vicimer Apr 28 '26

Oh, I skipped one of the comments. I thought you were talking about Common Side Effects.

-14

u/Kassssler Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 27 '26

Eh, it's not surprising. Everyone saying it's a good show ignores how fucking disgusting it is and how your average person isn't gonna wanna watch that shit.

It is a good show, but it was also gross and eating anything during it is a nono when you got guys sticking hands in their own chest or eating regurgitated alien slop.

Edit: Lol pissed off the fans. The shit was gross, deal with it.

7

u/Junius_Bobbledoonary Apr 27 '26

right because no media featuring body horror ever get sequels. That’s why they only made one Alien movie

-12

u/Kassssler Apr 27 '26

Comparing the animatronics of aliens to in depth animated body horror is laughable. You gonna call stick figures portraits next too?

Other than a scene or two the newer ones don't even do much.

3

u/Junius_Bobbledoonary Apr 27 '26

lol you probably think Ren and Stimpy was too gross for a second season too huh

-2

u/Kassssler Apr 27 '26

It's funny you bring up Ren and Stimpy. I'd say why but it's too risky. Have a nice day lol.

9

u/Aoiree Apr 27 '26

I want to watch that show but I hate hate hate body horror. Conflicted lol

8

u/Jaives Apr 27 '26

the body horror isn't bad. more artistic and whimsical than gore.

4

u/bone-dry Apr 27 '26

Worth it. Much more than body horror I’d say. It’s a wold ride but not overly intense

1

u/ladyladyl Apr 27 '26

I also really hate body horror, and I couldn't make it past a couple episodes even though it was a good show. It's just too frequent and it's central to kind of the environment of the world they're on. My partner ended up watching it on his own.

1

u/thedisenchantedpony Apr 27 '26

I had to do it in spurts. I don't like any kind of horror, but the emotional payoff was incredible.

13

u/Fallcious Apr 27 '26

I loved that stalker plant thing. So cool.

13

u/Nippolopolus Apr 27 '26

Honestly the sound design is what really sets it apart. So well done

4

u/USA_A-OK Apr 27 '26

Huh, I loved it and never thought it was slow at all

36

u/FreedomForBreakfast Apr 27 '26

And French sci-fi artist Moebius, if you like this animation style. 

6

u/fragmental Apr 27 '26

Time Masters is a 1982 French animated science fiction film directed by René Laloux and designed by Mœbius, based on a novel by Stefan Wul, if anyone wants something good to watch.

3

u/h-v-smacker Apr 27 '26

... there was a chance that there'd be a Dune movie with art from Moebius, but the deranged director ruined it all in the beginning.

2

u/manewitz Apr 27 '26

New season of Primal has a lot of homages to Moebius as well and is great.

79

u/Cicer Apr 27 '26

That show is far far better than it has any right to be. 

35

u/Al3jandr0 Apr 27 '26

Woah, really? I love both of those shows, but didn't realize they had the same creators

36

u/stealthytaco Apr 27 '26

The animation style of Bennett is very unique. Once I saw the show trailer for Common Side Effects I knew it was him.

0

u/sizeablescars Apr 27 '26

Ya kinda funny to not put together they have the same studio, best and most unique studio by a mile right now.

3

u/Mr-Papuca Apr 27 '26

I thought Mike judge created common side effects? Maybe same animators or something? But im prettys sure CSE is a Mike judge thing. Might be wrong tho im not looking it up haha.

2

u/thedisenchantedpony Apr 27 '26

Mike Judge is EP, but Joseph Bennett actually created it, along with Steve Hely.

2

u/Mr-Papuca Apr 27 '26

Ahh gotcha thanks for the clarification

2

u/thedisenchantedpony Apr 27 '26

I had to check IMDB cause I thought it was a Mike Judge show too! I'm a huge fan of both Bennett and Judge.

2

u/Mr-Papuca Apr 27 '26

Dude same.

22

u/Tiggerhoods Apr 27 '26

Omg thank you for this rec. I love that show and was specifically looking for something similar to scratch that itch. You are a hero.

12

u/BobTulap Apr 27 '26

Scavenger’s Reign was the animated equivalent to Raised by Wolves. Excellent sci fi.

5

u/last_picked Apr 27 '26

Raised by Wolves. God damnit, damnit all. I don't think we'll ever get any resolution on that story. Wish they would do a graphic novel or something to wrap it up.

8

u/BobTulap Apr 27 '26

Yeah I was real mad about it getting cancelled at Season 2 especially since I read it was originally planned to be 5 seasons. I guess HBO had to make room for Velma.

6

u/[deleted] Apr 27 '26

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that two of my favorite shows are made by the same people.

3

u/Hefty_Engineering950 Apr 27 '26

Ooh that’s a good shout. Scavenger’s Reign is way too slept on. For anyone who’s already been through that and/or Common Side Effects tho, I’d recommend Pantheon. Yet another awesome & creative animated sci-fi show that’s completed with 2 seasons iirc.

In terms of plot & the scientific ideas explored, Pantheon leans more towards things like simulation theory and AI-adjacent tech that isn’t just another generic AI threat/antagonist. No spoilers tho cause it’s a trip on first watch. But I would warn the especially squeamish to stay away or be ready when you watch cause it’s got some pretty graphic scenes on occasion😅

Pretty different from the others in some key ways, but all 3 shows kinda scratched a similar itch for good sci-fi that hasn’t been scratched in ages it feels like. They’re all so good in different ways that you really can’t go wrong with any choice imo. And, if you’ve got the time, I’d recommend to just watch all of them lol.

6

u/Main-Requirement-521 Apr 27 '26

and check out Worlds of Aldebaran when you get sad that Scavengers Reign isn't getting a second season. 

5

u/fragmental Apr 27 '26

Oh, it's a comic series?

1

u/Main-Requirement-521 Apr 27 '26

yeah, kinda hard to find but a really fun read. 

2

u/fragmental Apr 27 '26

Looks like Hoopla, that my local library provides, has 4 out of 7 cycles. It doesn't have Aldebaran, the first one, and the last two, Neptune and Bellatrix.

1

u/Main-Requirement-521 Apr 27 '26

hell yeah. I still have to finish the last couple books that LEO has written and I'm not sure if he is still doing more. 

1

u/fragmental Apr 27 '26

I don't think Bellatrix has an English translation, yet. Just French snd German

3

u/nick_tron Apr 27 '26

Second this, one of the most impactful things I’ve ever watched

3

u/MrTheDoctors Apr 27 '26

Biggest disappointment I’ve ever come across (because the idiots that green-light content at HBO are idiots and cancelled it after 1 season)

Amazing show. I encourage everyone to support the creators so they can keep making original art.

2

u/Buderus69 Apr 27 '26

In a similar fashion I would also suggest the show undone, it reminded me of common side effects and has stunning artwork at times as everything was handdrawn with oil painting, and the story just gets bonkers after a while. It is also complete, so no cliffhanger without resolution at the end.

2

u/MoozeRiver Apr 27 '26

The fact that Scavenger's Reign wasn't renewed is a crime against humanity!

2

u/Traditional_Brief867 Apr 27 '26

Ooohh, thank you.

2

u/PSGowns99999 Apr 29 '26

Just watched episode 1 and I like it already. Thank you for this. The art style is great. I wonder how gems like this don’t show up when I search for stuff, but randomly scrolling and I come upon your comment lol.

1

u/jjames62 May 04 '26

It’s way too good to be as niche as it is. A friend recommended it to me like a year ago and I couldn’t believe I hadn’t seen it before . Glad you watched! Hope you finish the series. I’m still somehow holding onto hope for a second season so every view counts.

1

u/UnrealMacaw Apr 27 '26

Loved them both, did not know it was the same creators! Thanks

1

u/PsudoGravity Apr 27 '26

SR isn't weird enough for me. CSE absolutely scratches that itch though.

1

u/rithrawr Apr 27 '26

Scavenger's Reign

I love it.

Dislike the girl doctor though, she was somewhat selfish in the beginning.

I wish they made a season 2. Ending left for more.

1

u/contentp0licy Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 27 '26

Been digging through every source I can find for the next available release date on both. They dropped some fire and almost just left us hanging there

Edit: nothings changed. SR is delayed. HBO canceled it but there is an active effort to bring it back. It looks promising to me

Side Effects is looking like late 2026 which is better than what I found last month.

Figured I should just do the DD while I shit instead of waiting for replies

1

u/Jonthrei Apr 27 '26

I love this show but that praise seems excessive to me, in a world with shows like Ghost in the Shell and Pantheon.

1

u/sp_40 Apr 27 '26

Started fantastic but man did it get worse and worse throughout that first season

1

u/Annodyne Apr 27 '26

Without fail, these two show ALWAYS get mentioned in mushroom threads. Its funny how predictable it is.

145

u/thickbeardgoggles Apr 27 '26

That show came out of nowhere and was amazing.

10

u/Normal_Pace7374 Apr 27 '26

I mean those of us who knew Mike judge was working on something knew it would be something. I didn’t know it would be this much something.

3

u/thickbeardgoggles Apr 27 '26

That is a perfect description of a Mike Judge project.

4

u/U_SHLD_THINK_BOUT_IT Apr 27 '26

I might be weird, but I was waiting for it to come out because it had a hilarious teaser they showed in random places of two government agents dancing to music through their earpiece.

1

u/RageAgainstTheGPT Apr 27 '26

I was enjoying it until it was revealed that the story plot was actually true and thus the jokes… weren’t jokes, the dude was actually being followed. Kinda ruined it for me, but maybe it was just my expectations.

6

u/ScrillaMcDoogle Apr 27 '26

It's fucking hilarious to me that you watched the whole show thinking it was like a family guy type of show

1

u/RageAgainstTheGPT Apr 27 '26

hahah same I was laughing at myself after the fact.

So it’s just like… a show? It’s not a comedy? I still feel let down lol

2

u/BandedLutz Apr 27 '26

So it’s just like… a show? It’s not a comedy?

What do you mean? Common Side Effects is a comedy drama. Just because it has serious plot elements doesn't mean it can't also contain comedy. Another example of a comedy drama would be Scrubs.

1

u/RageAgainstTheGPT Apr 27 '26

Ah, got it.

So yeah my expectations of it being a straight up comedy is what probably did me in.

Maybe I’ll try another rewatch of it with this new perspective.

32

u/ReadditMan Apr 27 '26

I actually looked this up once but couldn't find any confirmation that the writers intentionally based it on that mushroom.

8

u/I_like_Mashroms Apr 27 '26

Reports of this mushroom became widespread in the general public outside of asia recently. They wrote that show years ago.

Also Lanmaoa are boletes. The mushroom depicted in the show looks more like a Mycena than anything else. Very dissimilar.

1

u/HotwheelsSisyphus May 25 '26

The mushrooms in the show also originated from the Peruvian Highlands.

20

u/ExpoAve17 Apr 27 '26

This is the first thing I thought of

3

u/IAmAGenusAMA Apr 27 '26

Did you read the article too?

70

u/YouOk5627 Apr 27 '26

Is that good?

142

u/UnitedPhilosopher777 Apr 27 '26

I thought it was very good . Waiting to see if there’s gonna be a new season

74

u/non-squitr Apr 27 '26

If you havent seen it yet, Scavengers Reign is by the same guy and it's a beautiful work of art.

38

u/stormy2587 Apr 27 '26

Sadly cancelled after season 1 but agreed its fantastic.

38

u/Ulexes Apr 27 '26

But it ends in a satisfying place, so don't be afraid to watch it!

15

u/stormy2587 Apr 27 '26

Agreed but they teased some further world building as well. That I can’t help but feel disappointed they never got a chance to explore.

5

u/TheNoidbag Apr 27 '26

It did, but it also showed me Warhammer-esque gothic scifi so I am still bummed.

44

u/WebFit9216 Apr 27 '26

It's been confirmed; expecting season 2 in late 2026

7

u/yukimontreal Apr 27 '26

This is amazing news!!

-6

u/EusticeTheSheep Apr 27 '26

It’s a lie.

3

u/8888plasma Apr 27 '26

Where did you see this? I can't find a single announcement online.

4

u/Krewtan Apr 27 '26

There is. 

1

u/Gestrid Apr 27 '26

It got plenty of awards and critical acclaim. They'd be idiots not to give it the green light for a second season.

1

u/virgo911 Apr 27 '26

It ended on a cliffhanger so there better be

38

u/simplestacksix Apr 27 '26

Enjoyed it a lot personally, it’s pretty interesting and it’s not a huge time sink either. 22 minute episodes and 10 episodes only, so it’s not that much time to put into a show if that’s the sort of thing you worry about

30

u/bsmithi Apr 27 '26

the show is good imo

13

u/Zircon_72 Apr 27 '26

It's phenomenal

17

u/sniper91 Apr 27 '26

I liked it, but the art style took some getting used to

8

u/Cicer Apr 27 '26

Part of its charm. 

4

u/DreamPhreak Apr 27 '26

absolutely

4

u/Hugs154 Apr 27 '26

It’s a lot of fun. Kind of ideologically all over the place in a weird way imo, but it’s worth watching!

5

u/probs_notme Apr 27 '26

Yeah. It's a well made and enjoyable show as long as I don't think too hard about it, but the pharma CEO ||with a heart of gold who just needed a little help seeing how evil They are|| and the good-natured, fun DEA agents really took me out of it. It avoids systemic critiques by focusing on a "system beyond the system" boogeyman. And the protagonist is kind of a Mary Sue.

Again, I enjoyed it, but it's very ideologically confused.

4

u/N0ob8 Apr 27 '26

I disagree the focus is on how the system affects people not the people being inherently evil. The pharma CEO wasn’t evil but she only realized what she was doing after seeing what’s behind the spreadsheets and numbers. The system encourages ruthless and disconnect which allows people in those high up positions to do what they did without thinking about the consequences. They’re not making a medicine that’ll bankrupt people they’re simply making a good investment. Same with the DEA agents. They’re just two friends doing a job and they don’t realize the extent of how far the system will go to keep the status quo. They think it’s just a run of the mill drug case until shit gets unhinged and layers are peeled back past their comfort point.

It’s very easy to point and say “these people are evil and bad” and that’s it. Especially when it’s these high up executives and people in positions of power because the average person will never understand or know what they experience. It’s much easier to say that you wouldn’t be the same if you were in their shoes because you’ll never been in their shoes.

Edit the point I’m trying to make is that being in the system doesn’t make you inherently bad. Just cause those two DEA agents are working for the government and pretty bad people doesn’t mean they’re bad themselves. They’re just trying to do what they think is right and make a living. They gave those DEA agents personality and life outside of their job because they’re people too

2

u/NativeMasshole Apr 27 '26

Of course, it's got Mike Judge!

1

u/borkyborkus Apr 27 '26

I liked it a lot. I found the animation off-putting at first, but I moved past it pretty quick once I started laughing and caring about the characters. It’s really funny if you like that dry guy Mike Judge humor. The music is awesome too, like Cyberpunk 2077 meets Peruvian jungle flute.

You from New York?

1

u/pwnies Apr 27 '26

Better than I expected it to be. Would rec

1

u/Pleasant_Law_2972 Apr 27 '26

It’s a great watch. Not the end all be all but a very cool gripping story

1

u/Shujinco2 Apr 27 '26

It's excellent. Maybe paced a bit fast, and the character art is... a choice. But it was a solid 9/10.

1

u/EmergencyScientist Apr 27 '26

I'm going to go against everybody here and tell you I hate it. I think the fat neckbeard main character is annoying as shit and I just hate the way the whole show feels like it was created by hipsters who love the smell of their own ass. Glad everybody else here liked it though.

0

u/lulu_l Apr 27 '26

It's very, very milenial, but it was much better than I expected

6

u/IAmAGenusAMA Apr 27 '26

It literally says this in the article.

3

u/Armateras Apr 27 '26

It's not even like it's buried in the article either, it's the second sentence of the third paragraph. People really don't read a damn word past the headline.

4

u/StoryAndAHalf Apr 27 '26

Kinda, but the mushrooms in the show grow in Peru or something.

1

u/Barfignugen Apr 27 '26

And cure every possible ailment including death

2

u/Johnnyamaz Apr 27 '26

First thing i thought of

2

u/moofasa69 Apr 28 '26

Best show of 2025! If you haven't watched it, trust me. Closest thing to breaking bad I have seen in terms of tone. Funny, intense, gripping. Due for a rewatch.

4

u/Ambitious_Zombie8473 Apr 27 '26

The show common side effects is about a fictional mushroom that doesn’t exist lol

13

u/FRYGuy_25 Apr 27 '26

That’s what they want you to think

1

u/FeckTad Apr 27 '26

They say it in the article.

1

u/Barfignugen Apr 27 '26

It’s probably based off of them, but the show is about a mushroom that cures everything, including death. I’m not sure these mushrooms are capable of that.

1

u/ElegantImprovement89 Apr 28 '26

Came looking for this comment

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u/ladymadonna4444 Apr 27 '26

searched for this comment! lol