#I relistened to the first audio and realized why they got my attention and now it's gonna be ya'lls problem

[mr-laveau]

Sam & Darlin' (Darren Lancer) || Redacted Redesigns & Voice Things

Yes, I'm back to my bullshit-that bullshit being redesigning redacted designs and voicing my redacted listeners, this time Sam & Darling edition 🎙Sam: Erik (Redacted Audio) 🎙Darren Lancer: Me (Mr. Laveau)

[kagesdumpsterfire]

I'm going to preface this by saying, THIS IS NOT HATE AGAINST JARED PADALECKI! PLEASE DO NOT READ THIS AS HATE AGAINST JARED PADALECKI!

Now, after listening to the podcast, I actually enjoyed learning bits of information I had not heard about the first couple of episodes I hadn't hear a million times over. Of couse there were a few stories that had been repeated several times over the years, but there was some new information.

With the Jessica M nonsense, I was afraid it was going to be scripted commentary, but honestly, it seems more like an interview/shoot the shit and ask questions format and I was pleasantly suprised. Its actually nice to get a break down of each episode from an actor's perspective, instead of season by season or whatever preapproved questions get asked at cons. Like a panel without all the bells and whistles. I will most likely be tuning in again (especially for my favorite episodes).

HOWEVER, I think, for sanity's sake I'm going to have to skip episodes where Jared is a guest. I will probably make excptions if he's there to talk about favorites (ie Mystery Spot or Changing Channels) but for the most part I can't do it. It's nothing against him as a person, but I think only having an audio format helped me realize why I have always had issues watching J2 or J2M or even Mishaleki panels, even before I got involved with fandom drama. My ADHD brain cannot handle a Jared Padalecki interview. It's not necessarily his fault, he's an excitable guy I guess, but he talks over everyone. He interrupts a lot. His constant interruptions and speaking over people who are already speaking make it nearly impossible for me to pay attention to the subject at hand. I want to be able to focus, but it is audio sensory overload whenever he is talking about something with someone else. I had to take several breaks listening to the first couple of episodes to regroup and organize. I had to rewind several times to try and understand what was being said by other people when Jared interrupted. I can't enjoy a podcast if I have to keep going back and relistening every couple of minutes.

Now, with that being said, I think until Bridgewater comes back I might possibly do recaps of SPN: Then and Now (barring few eps) I like the concept of talk about the episodes individually and to be perfectly honest, I miss my show. If we can get past the Jessica nonsense (and hopefully that can be rectified in the near future) I'd encourage people to give it a chance. I know a lot of us miss spn interviews and content, and here this podcast is, handing us that on a silver platter. Just my thoughts.

[magicofthepen]

Gallifrey Relisten: Weapon of Choice

Surprise surprise, I absolutely had to relisten to Weapon of Choice and Square One after listening to @podofrassilon. And I realized that a year-and-change ago when I first listened to Gallifrey, I didn’t post many thoughts and reactions to the early episodes (and I’m pretty sure the first time I did an episode-by-episode reaction was for Time War 2). So since I have not done enough rambling on the Internet about specific Gallifrey episodes I’m gonna do some relisten thoughts! (Also this whole thing feels super timely given that this week Weapon of Choice can be downloaded for free and series 1-4 are on sale! *end shameless plug*) 

(Includes mentions of/references to Neverland, Zagreus, Spirit, Renaissance, Desperate Measures, and general references to Narvin, Romana, and Leela’s character arcs/characterization throughout the series.) 

Oh, Weapon of Choice. I do love this one very much, especially as a first episode — it is doing so much character/world/plot establishment work and doing it so well! (And there are always many aww look at where they started emotions on every relisten.)

I know “above apoplexy but below incandescence” has been talked about a hundred times, but I’m gonna add my personal experience anyways: the first time I listened to Gallifrey, I....wasn’t very into the opening scene with all the Temporal Powers representatives. My reaction was pretty much: I can tell there’s a plot being set up but I’m not interested in these characters? I was kinda bored, I wasn’t paying that much attention.

“Above apoplexy but below incandescence” was when I started paying attention. 

Narvin does some really interesting alternating between sounding polite-but-insincere and sounding genuinely angry/frustrated in this opening scene. And his moments of anger are always when Romana’s criticizing the CIA specifically. He is very defensive of His Agency, it very much seems like he knows he and Romana don’t agree on many things, but he wants her to at least respect the CIA.

Narvin trying to be all “we don’t need to talk about Project Alpha, it’s not that relevant” in front of Romana — possibly he doesn’t want her to distrust him/the CIA anymore than she already does post-Neverland? (No, I’m not hiding things, I’m just not going to mention them, thank you Brax....)

There are two similar-but-different layers to Leela wanting to join the outsiders — she’s trying to find a community (people she can live with who will like and respect her) but also a purpose, and the second bit has me wondering — what did Leela do on Gallifrey during her marriage with Andred? The rest of her life experiences (getting banished from her tribe, running away to travel with the Doctor, *gestures vaguely at all of Gallifrey*) are super intense and chaotic and also a lot about trying to do what she thinks is right — what did she get up to during those decades? Did she have a job of some kind (and people tolerated her because she was married to a guard and then kicked her out)? This is the Romana-and-E-space time gap all over again, I want the stories!

Romana may be bad at using her words re: friendship, but she is so much the one reaching out to Leela again and again in these early episodes ahhh. Please come help with this mission, please be my bodyguard, etc. etc. (leading ultimately to the most iconic episode of please stay that is Spirit). She definitely struggles with friendship in plenty of ways, but the fact that Leela is so lonely and adrift and Romana is the one to genuinely offer that community and purpose to her, offer Leela a home....it’s very good.

“Go to Madam President Romana.” It is always very jarring to hear Leela use Romana’s title, and I think usually it’s when she’s angry with Romana? So this feels different, it’s just a “I don’t know her that well yet” moment.

“We’re not monsters, Leela.” Wow the difference between their first interactions in Zagreus and now is incredible — specifically how Romana goes from “aloof, don’t care at all about you or your opinions” to “I care a lot what you think of me” (and how you can hear the rapid evolution of Romana’s Leela-related feelings through Zagreus...also very good. I realize this is not a Zagreus post, but hey.)

“Don’t you ever knock?” Listen. Listen. Every time my heart is <3333 at the parallel between Romana’s absolute venom at Narvin here and her warm affection when she chastises Narvin for not knocking in Desperate Measures....it’s such a small thing but every time I’m like, they’re gonna go so far!!

“On first name terms with the Time Lord president” The Name Thing, yes. Leela as the only one who almost always just calls her Romana, the only one who doesn’t interact with Romana as The President first.

“Of course, we shall observe a proper period of mourning first. You think I have no respect?” Hhhhhh the moment when Narvin’s like “Oh Romana’s going to probably get herself killed? What a shame.” is. A whole experience on every relisten. My dude, you have no idea what’s coming.

“You offer up yourself to die?” “You’re the suicide bomber Nepenthe. Why act so surprised? We are all of us willing to die to defend our beliefs.” / “If you know why I have taken this course, Time Lord, you will know why I must refuse.” “I do. That’s the trouble with being a martyr. We don’t back down, do we?” Another key “establishing character” moment. This whole scene is setting up Romana as someone who has a reckless disregard for her own life at best and is looking for something to die for at worst — and this, of course, is something that will come up again, and again, and again; she has better days and worse ones, but this never goes away.

Narvin is calling an investigation into the Gryben incident, while the crisis is still happening. Sir.

“Wisdom. Beauty. Wit. Will I ever find another like you?” “No.” Romana, I love you.

“Leela, we’re going home.” “Home? To Gallifrey?” “Where else?” Leela is so strongly in the camp of “home is not a place” and she genuinely is without a home right now, but Romana’s offer here - this is when Leela starts the (very messy) road to finding one again. (Also thinking way ahead to “Gallifrey is not my home” as Leela’s choosing to run off with Romana, ahem.) 

Final thought — a reflection on my first listen of Weapon of Choice. I had done the whole “watch Romana and Leela Classic Who episodes, listen to Apocalypse Element/Neverland/Zagreus (and all of the Eight + Charley arc up to that point)” thing to prep for Gallifrey, but I actually almost stopped there. The endgame of all that watching/listening was supposed to be “listening to Gallifrey” but the other audios (especially for Romana) were so dark and bleak and “we’re going to hurt this character repeatedly” that I became super wary of Gallifrey! (Especially after I accidentally got really attached to TV!Romana.) But I still did the thing anyways, obviously, and Weapon of Choice was such a relief — oh yes, there can be funny moments! Oh yes, the characters can be clever and save the day! Obviously things get Worse starting next series, but really I did need the first series as kind of a palate cleanser to convince me that yes, I did like these audios, yes, they have a different Vibe than the others I’d listened to, and yes, I did want to keep going.

Next Episode Reaction: Square One