Union Dues on clonepod (reposted from Podcastle forum)

[stePH]

(Reposting this from the Podcastle area of the board because it is not the place to have this conversation...)

Hello,

My name is Patty Kim and I help run clonepod.org (which is modeled after escapepod's site- but we do illustrations and are pg13 and have my two children and a friend do the intros/outro and my dauther is reading an upcoming Union Dues story for us.

Please reconsider having an older reader for the Union Dues story (for any story, actually).  I like the stories on your podcast but can barely tolerate the hosts with their chirpy kid voices and reading-an-unrehearsed-script delivery.  Currently they're still tolerable because it's all about the stories for me, but I would strongly dislike one of them reading the main content, particularly a story I'm anticipating as much as another installement of Union Dues.

[jrderego]

(Reposting this from the Podcastle area of the board because it is not the place to have this conversation...)

Hello,

My name is Patty Kim and I help run clonepod.org (which is modeled after escapepod's site- but we do illustrations and are pg13 and have my two children and a friend do the intros/outro and my dauther is reading an upcoming Union Dues story for us.

Please reconsider having an older reader for the Union Dues story (for any story, actually).  I like the stories on your podcast but can barely tolerate the hosts with their chirpy kid voices and reading-an-unrehearsed-script delivery.  Currently they're still tolerable because it's all about the stories for me, but I would strongly dislike one of them reading the main content, particularly a story I'm anticipating as much as another installement of Union Dues.

Ahh, but you may be surprised. The series of stories that Clonepod is airing, the Team Shikaragaki stories, are all 1st person POV from characters aged 13-16. I approached Clonepod with these stories specifically because of Abby, Forrest, and Zack's voices. When I heard them I heard Kitty, Tam, TK, and Johnny.

Give the first one a shot, Abby is reading as Kitty Momoiro, a 13 year old super-agile girl.

I can't wait to hear it.

[Russell Nash]

Gotta say I'm siding with StePh on this one.  For the story to be listenable, the kids are going to have to step up their quality quite a bit.

[stePH]

Well, if the author is enthusiastic then I'll give it a chance.  But I'm not optimistic, as I already mentioned in another thread that I find the girl the most annoying of the three.

[EDIT]
PS, she sounds like a pre-teen to me.

[Russell Nash]

I listened to it today.  The girl really did step up her game.  She was better than I've ever heard her.  There were several editing problems though and her pronounciation was off on several words and a city.

[jrderego]

I listened to it today.  The girl really did step up her game.  She was better than I've ever heard her.  There were several editing problems though and her pronounciation was off on several words and a city.

I was thrilled with the read. I did notice the mispronunciations but that wasn't a dealbreaker. Abby really stepped up the plate and swung hard on this one and I am very happy with her presentation. Again, I'm biased, and sought her out because of her voice, but this was a very very good read.

[stePH]

I listened to it today.  The girl really did step up her game.  She was better than I've ever heard her.  There were several editing problems though and her pronounciation was off on several words and a city.

Well, I'll be listening tonight.  She'll probably exceed my expectations, as the bar is currently set so low that you could step over it.

[deflective]

i found the podcast through another thread so i walked into it with no expectations.

my thought process went from 'well, this isn't going to work' through 'ok, i see what they're going for' finally into 'there's some genuine synergy here.' some of the mispronunciations actually added to story (eg, 'stuffs' instead of 'stuff'), Abby naturalized the story to a younger vocabulary.

kudos for giving this a try. i look forward to the next installment.

[jrderego]

I listened to it today.  The girl really did step up her game.  She was better than I've ever heard her.  There were several editing problems though and her pronounciation was off on several words and a city.

i found the podcast through another thread so i walked into it with no expectations.

my thought process went from 'well, this isn't going to work' through 'ok, i see what they're going for' finally into 'there's some genuine synergy here.' some of the mispronunciations actually added to story (eg, 'stuffs' instead of 'stuff'), Abby naturalized the story to a younger vocabulary.

kudos for giving this a try. i look forward to the next installment.

Recording aside, what did you think of the story itself?

[stePH]

I listened to it today.  The girl really did step up her game.  She was better than I've ever heard her.  There were several editing problems though and her pronounciation was off on several words and a city.

I didn't hear her "game" stepped up at all.  As low as my expectations were, she failed to meet them.

I was thrilled with the read. I did notice the mispronunciations but that wasn't a dealbreaker. Abby really stepped up the plate and swung hard on this one ...

... but ultimately struck out, IMO.  The mispronunciations (including adding an extra syllable to "Shikaragaki") were the least of the problems; I could have accepted her reading if they were all that was wrong with it.  However, she also faltered through all but the shortest sentences, sometimes pausing a few seconds to where I thought the sentence had ended only to find that it did in fact continue.  Overall she sounded like she was seeing the story for the first time as it was being recorded.  There were also the mistakes-and-backtracking (which to be fair are the fault of the editor.  I've tried my hand at recording an audiobook and was frequently stopping to re-record passages that I'd fluffed.  Still, they pulled me out of the story as much as the bad reading did.)

Still, Mr. DeRego, you should be proud ... it's a testament to your story that I stuck it through to the end despite the painfully bad narration.  I hope that it's several years before I have to hear another Abby Kim reading, if ever.  I may end up unsubscribing to Clonepod if I hear her anywhere but the intro or outro again.

[edited to correct DeRego's name]

[deflective]

Recording aside, what did you think of the story itself?

it's an interesting addition to the union dues series. the strong presence of mind control in the last couple of stories is a can of worms that could be tough to handle. especially with super-tacticals coming up with ways to anticipate and counter the possibility of compromised memories.

a personal pet peeve is that, in short speculative fiction, conflict for female characters is almost always created by victimization from a male character. this isn't a general problem for union dues though so it's not a big deal. you can also get away with stereotypes a lot easier when writing for a younger audience.

as usual, union dues is vaguely depressing and distasteful but compelling. i'm always left wanting to hear the next one.

[jrderego]

Recording aside, what did you think of the story itself?

it's an interesting addition to the union dues series. the strong presence of mind control in the last couple of stories is a can of worms that could be tough to handle. especially with super-tacticals coming up with ways to anticipate and counter the possibility of compromised memories.

a personal pet peeve is that, in short speculative fiction, conflict for female characters is almost always created by victimization from a male character. this isn't a general problem for union dues though so it's not a big deal. you can also get away with stereotypes a lot easier when writing for a younger audience.

as usual, union dues is vaguely depressing and distasteful but compelling. i'm always left wanting to hear the next one.

The next one is 180 degrees different from Kitty Momoiro, in that it's a story about self acceptance and maturity. This tale is anything but depressing and/or dark. However, since the five characters introduced in Kitty Momoiro, each have their own story in this little series, there will be elements of each story appearing in each subsequent story so the character continuity will be a little stronger, and I hope, will drive interest in the subsequent tales.

The next story is called "The Saga of Tam Suji".

[DKT]

This was the first time I'd listened to clonepod, and I enjoyed it.  I thought Abby did a pretty good job reading it.  She could've done more with inflection -- adding some emotion to several points where instead t felt a little like a cold-reading, and there were a couple spots where the sound-editing could've helped her out, but I also understand why Jeff was so excited to have her read it.  Still, she's, what 13?  She did a pretty good job and should be proud. 

Also, I really dig what clonepod's trying to do in general.  Stories aimed at kids (that hopefully adults will dig, too), read by kids.  That's a really cool idea, and I hope they're successful with it.  And I hope it gets kids excited about stories, and gets their creative juices flowing.  I'm looking forward to hearing more stuff there.

[stePH]

Also, I really dig what clonepod's trying to do in general.  Stories aimed at kids (that hopefully adults will dig, too), read by kids.  That's a really cool idea, and I hope they're successful with it. 

This was the eighth or ninth story on Clonepod that I've listened to, but only the first to have been read by a child; the rest of the readers sounded like adults to me.  If the stories had all been read by kids, I probably wouldn't still be subscribed.

[jrderego]

This was the first time I'd listened to clonepod, and I enjoyed it.  I thought Abby did a pretty good job reading it.  She could've done more with inflection -- adding some emotion to several points where instead t felt a little like a cold-reading, and there were a couple spots where the sound-editing could've helped her out, but I also understand why Jeff was so excited to have her read it.  Still, she's, what 13?  She did a pretty good job and should be proud. 

Also, I really dig what clonepod's trying to do in general.  Stories aimed at kids (that hopefully adults will dig, too), read by kids.  That's a really cool idea, and I hope they're successful with it.  And I hope it gets kids excited about stories, and gets their creative juices flowing.  I'm looking forward to hearing more stuff there.

She's 11 and had just the right voice. When I heard her in a Clonepod intro I heard Kitty. Considering the content, she did a very good job, and there are several places in the story where she was very obviously into the character, her interactions with Sandy, and with Miss Jennifer outside her childhood home, and with her step father, were all very well done.

[goatkeeper]

I really enjoyed the story and the narration was really engaging and added so much to it.  Far from flawless but that only gets in the way if you focus on it.  I think clonepod has something special with this kids idea- it will most assuredly turn some listeners off but others, like myself, will really dig it.  It's also great hearing kids getting involved in podcasting/spec fic. These kids will only get better with the experience they gain listening to stories and reading themselves.  Hell, Abby's no worse than I was episode one of Drabblecast.

About the story:  Kitty is a neat character and I'd love to see her charatcer down the road as she ages in future stories.  JDR, the coolest thing ever is when Union Dues characters from one story make cameos or tie in different stories and the reader/listener gets to go "Ooo, I remember that story!"
Lookin forward to the next one.

[jrderego]

I really enjoyed the story and the narration was really engaging and added so much to it.  Far from flawless but that only gets in the way if you focus on it.  I think clonepod has something special with this kids idea- it will most assuredly turn some listeners off but others, like myself, will really dig it.  It's also great hearing kids getting involved in podcasting/spec fic. These kids will only get better with the experience they gain listening to stories and reading themselves.  Hell, Abby's no worse than I was episode one of Drabblecast.

About the story:  Kitty is a neat character and I'd love to see her charatcer down the road as she ages in future stories.  JDR, the coolest thing ever is when Union Dues characters from one story make cameos or tie in different stories and the reader/listener gets to go "Ooo, I remember that story!"
Lookin forward to the next one.

Thanks Norm, you'll see Kitty in every one of the Team Shikaragaki stories. She has a big supporting role in the next one, a little less in the third and fourth, but she's there. Since each of these stories is told from the POV of one of the kids, and then Miss Jennifer, and they are pretty much together all the time, there will be more overlap. There are also a few guest appearances from old friends, and a new character who isn't going to seem all that important, but tied in very closely with the first Union Dues series. But that is still in development. I've tried hard to keep the universe as consistent as possible, and one of the things I always liked about the comics I collected when I collected them (1983-1985) was running into Spider Man in a Fantastic Four book, or seeing Power Pack show up for a couple of panels in an Avengers story, so I've tried to duplicate that with these.

[Russell Nash]

I listened to it today.  The girl really did step up her game.  She was better than I've ever heard her.  There were several editing problems though and her pronounciation was off on several words and a city.

i found the podcast through another thread so i walked into it with no expectations.

my thought process went from 'well, this isn't going to work' through 'ok, i see what they're going for' finally into 'there's some genuine synergy here.' some of the mispronunciations actually added to story (eg, 'stuffs' instead of 'stuff'), Abby naturalized the story to a younger vocabulary.

kudos for giving this a try. i look forward to the next installment.

Recording aside, what did you think of the story itself?

I liked the story, but I wasn't compelled to keep the file.  I've kept every other Union Dues story, but normally keep about 10% of all EP stories.  I don't know if there is any real reason I didn't keep it.  Maybe it just didn't have that wow factor.

[Thaurismunths]

This won't come as a surprise, but I really enjoyed this UD story.

[Russell Nash]

This won't come as a surprise, but I really enjoyed this UD story.

Really??

You??

[Sandikal]

I listened to this story a few weeks ago.  I really enjoyed it and I thought Abby did a perfect job on it.  Whatever mispronunciations there were didn't even register in my brain.  I have an almost-13 year old son and that's just how kids talk.  Kitty's story just broke my heart and I think part of my reaction was due to Abby's reading.

[stePH]

I listened to this story a few weeks ago.  I really enjoyed it and I thought Abby did a perfect job on it.  Whatever mispronunciations there were didn't even register in my brain.  I have an almost-13 year old son and that's just how kids talk.  Kitty's story just broke my heart and I think part of my reaction was due to Abby's reading.

One would think she would at least learn to say "Shikaragaki" correctly since it's in the title of the series.

Yeah, I know I'm in a minority of one here.  I still think her reading sucked.

[Thaurismunths]

This won't come as a surprise, but I really enjoyed this UD story.

Really??

You??

Well, yeah. The rest were crap.

[Thaurismunths]

I listened to this story a few weeks ago.  I really enjoyed it and I thought Abby did a perfect job on it.  Whatever mispronunciations there were didn't even register in my brain.  I have an almost-13 year old son and that's just how kids talk.  Kitty's story just broke my heart and I think part of my reaction was due to Abby's reading.

One would think she would at least learn to say "Shikaragaki" correctly since it's in the title of the series.

Yeah, I know I'm in a minority of one here.  I still think her reading sucked.

You do realize that you are actually, literally, genuinely, really, truly, verily, in all honestly, with no exaggeration, picking on a little girl, don't you?

[stePH]

I listened to this story a few weeks ago.  I really enjoyed it and I thought Abby did a perfect job on it.  Whatever mispronunciations there were didn't even register in my brain.  I have an almost-13 year old son and that's just how kids talk.  Kitty's story just broke my heart and I think part of my reaction was due to Abby's reading.

One would think she would at least learn to say "Shikaragaki" correctly since it's in the title of the series.

Yeah, I know I'm in a minority of one here.  I still think her reading sucked.

You do realize that you are actually, literally, genuinely, really, truly, verily, in all honestly, with no exaggeration, picking on a little girl, don't you?

Yes, and I make no apology for it.  She very nearly ruined a perfectly good story.

[Tango Alpha Delta]

I listened to this story a few weeks ago.  I really enjoyed it and I thought Abby did a perfect job on it.  Whatever mispronunciations there were didn't even register in my brain.  I have an almost-13 year old son and that's just how kids talk.  Kitty's story just broke my heart and I think part of my reaction was due to Abby's reading.

One would think she would at least learn to say "Shikaragaki" correctly since it's in the title of the series.

Yeah, I know I'm in a minority of one here.  I still think her reading sucked.

You do realize that you are actually, literally, genuinely, really, truly, verily, in all honestly, with no exaggeration, picking on a little girl, don't you?

Yes, and I make no apology for it.  She very nearly ruined a perfectly good story.

Ah, come on, stePH... ease up on the poor kid.  Pobody's nerfect!

[jrderego]

The Saga of Tam Suji just went live at Clonepod.

Enjoy, and comments welcome.

[stePH]

The Saga of Tam Suji just went live at Clonepod.

Enjoy, and comments welcome.

Even if I want to rip the reader up one side and down the other, and back up again for good measure? 

Seriously, I haven't listened yet (I haven't synced my iPod since this morning to get the Podcastle episode) but I'm looking forward to it, if for no other reason than it's more Union Dues.

[jrderego]

The Saga of Tam Suji just went live at Clonepod.

Enjoy, and comments welcome.

Even if I want to rip the reader up one side and down the other, and back up again for good measure? 

Seriously, I haven't listened yet (I haven't synced my iPod since this morning to get the Podcastle episode) but I'm looking forward to it, if for no other reason than it's more Union Dues.

I think you'll like the reading more this time.

[stePH]

I think you'll like the reading more this time.

Very likely.  Children's voices grate on me at the best of times, but on a scale of one to ten (ten being most irritating) Zack is about a three or a four, as is the other boy (I've forgotten his name) -- while Abby is a solid twelve.

[stePH]

Got to listen on the bus this morning.  I like this one a lot better than its predecessor, and not just because of the reader.

I'm not looking forward to TK's story though, because TK is a girl, which I'm sure means another read by Abby. 

Anyway, Zack's reading could have been better, but it was acceptable.  There seemed to be some variance in pronouncing "Tam" ... most of the time rhyming with "Ham" and only a few times with the Japanese pronounciation that I'd expect in a series called "Team Shikaragaki."

[jrderego]

Got to listen on the bus this morning.  I like this one a lot better than its predecessor, and not just because of the reader.

I'm not looking forward to TK's story though, because TK is a girl, which I'm sure means another read by Abby. 

Anyway, Zack's reading could have been better, but it was acceptable.  There seemed to be some variance in pronouncing "Tam" ... most of the time rhyming with "Ham" and only a few times with the Japanese pronounciation that I'd expect in a series called "Team Shikaragaki."

TK will be read by someone other than Abby. I only had her in mind for Kitty. I've requested Leslie Ann Moore, but I don't know what her schedule is like. As for the pronunciation of Tam, I imagined it being slightly westernized as I wrote it so it was pronounced like Ham in Ham Sandwich on purpose.

[stePH]

I'm not looking forward to TK's story though, because TK is a girl, which I'm sure means another read by Abby. 

TK will be read by someone other than Abby. I only had her in mind for Kitty.

  You just made my day.

[deflective]

the gorilla suit seems to be a lightning rod for injury in the ud universe.

[The Dunesteef]

The Saga of Tam Suji just went live at Clonepod.

Enjoy, and comments welcome.

When this is all over, is there a good liklihood of getting a great big Union Dues Omnibus with all the stories in print?  Anyone (publisher-wise) interested yet?

By the way, nice to see Frank Welker making an appearance.  Voice of hundreds of your favorite cartoon characters.  Too bad El Supremo didn't go easy on him.

[jrderego]

The Saga of Tam Suji just went live at Clonepod.

Enjoy, and comments welcome.

When this is all over, is there a good liklihood of getting a great big Union Dues Omnibus with all the stories in print?  Anyone (publisher-wise) interested yet?

By the way, nice to see Frank Welker making an appearance.  Voice of hundreds of your favorite cartoon characters.  Too bad El Supremo didn't go easy on him.

There may be two volumes of the Union Dues stories coming out in the relatively near future. I am working on a contract with a publisher as we speak.

[The Dunesteef]

Sweeeet!  I'll be one of those people buying a copy.

[MacArthurBug]

I, also, am enjoying the UD stories over on clone pod. I love them! I agree wholeheartedly that the readers need to practice practice practice, then edit like all get out. The readings are always a bit of a disappointment to me. I like a LOT of the stories presented over on clone pod- but it's hard for me to get past being read to by a kid. I do LOVE that this group is trying something, and I put up with the bad editing and mispronunciations because they are kids.. but, overall it CAN get annoying when they mispronounce or slur words.

[stePH]

I, also, am enjoying the UD stories over on clone pod. I love them! I agree wholeheartedly that the readers need to practice practice practice, then edit like all get out. The readings are always a bit of a disappointment to me. I like a LOT of the stories presented over on clone pod- but it's hard for me to get past being read to by a kid. I do LOVE that this group is trying something, and I put up with the bad editing and mispronunciations because they are kids.. but, overall it CAN get annoying when they mispronounce or slur words.

... or falter mid-sentence, my primary complaint about the first story.

[mrgoldenbrown]

I just wanted to put in a word of support for Abby's reading.  Apparently my brain is better at parsing imperfect data than stePH's, because I enjoyed the story and was able to gloss over the errors in reading just fine. 

[Russell Nash]

Just listened to the second UD on CP.  The reading and the editing were horrible.  The story was great, but I deleted it, because I'll never sit through that reading again.

[stePH]

Just listened to the second UD on CP.  The reading and the editing were horrible.  The story was great, but I deleted it, because I'll never sit through that reading again.

Wow.  That's exactly my feeling about the first one; I thought the second was perfectly acceptable.

[Zathras]

I just listened to a UD story on Clonepod.  I thought I would be the only one who didn't care for the younger readers.  It wasn't their age that bothered me, but the quality.  If an adult read a story like that, I would give up on the 'cast entirely.  I'll probably still check out the UD stories over there, but I can't see me listening to anything else until the quality improves.

[stePH]

I just listened to a UD story on Clonepod.  I thought I would be the only one who didn't care for the younger readers.  It wasn't their age that bothered me, but the quality.  If an adult read a story like that, I would give up on the 'cast entirely.  I'll probably still check out the UD stories over there, but I can't see me listening to anything else until the quality improves.

No, you've got it wrong.  Only the Union Dues stories are read by the kids who host the show.  All other stories I've heard on Clonepod were read by older readers, and some have been quite enjoyable.


[addendum]
Just listened to the latest, "Inside Every Successful Man", last night.  Not an example of one of the better readings.  But earlier ones have been about the same quality range as on Escape Pod.

[goatkeeper]

Gotta agree, this has not been an easy podcast to listen to so far.  I'll check back in the future.

[Russell Nash]

The kicker is that even with poor sound quality, they are lining up good quality stories.

[stePH]

Just finished the latest "Team Shikaragaki" story, the one featuring TK the telepath/empath.  As expected, I liked it.  Reading could have been better, but nowhere near the low-water mark set by Abby with Kitty's story. 

Looking forward to the next one, Mr. DeRego ... keep 'em coming, and I also hope to see a print anthology someday soon.

[Corydon]

I just listened to, and enjoyed, the latest Team Shikaragaki story.  Those kids *do* seem to spend a lot of time at traveling fairs, don't they?  Anyway, I thought that the story was one of the stronger TS stories.  TK is just a great character.  She's a real outsider, torn between the adolescent and adult worlds, and with a much more solid connection with the normal world than most of her superheroic counterparts.  Maybe it's because she's a psychic, but she seems lot more reflective than most of her peers (including the older Union members we've seen).

I've also really enjoyed watching the story arc develop- I'm dying to know what happened to Tam at the Supreme Court.  Seems like one of these days the shit is really going to hit the fan for the Union.

Anyway, a couple of ignorant questions: the TS members all seem to have normal names (or nicknames, I guess) rather than proper superhero names: Tam Suji, Kitty, TK, etc. rather than Megaton or Spoonbender.  I assume that these are Union-given pseudonyms and not the kids' real names, right?  And does giving characters "real" names represent a manga/anime superhero naming convention?

[jrderego]

I just listened to, and enjoyed, the latest Team Shikaragaki story.  Those kids *do* seem to spend a lot of time at traveling fairs, don't they?  Anyway, I thought that the story was one of the stronger TS stories.  TK is just a great character.  She's a real outsider, torn between the adolescent and adult worlds, and with a much more solid connection with the normal world than most of her superheroic counterparts.  Maybe it's because she's a psychic, but she seems lot more reflective than most of her peers (including the older Union members we've seen).

I've also really enjoyed watching the story arc develop- I'm dying to know what happened to Tam at the Supreme Court.  Seems like one of these days the shit is really going to hit the fan for the Union.

Anyway, a couple of ignorant questions: the TS members all seem to have normal names (or nicknames, I guess) rather than proper superhero names: Tam Suji, Kitty, TK, etc. rather than Megaton or Spoonbender.  I assume that these are Union-given pseudonyms and not the kids' real names, right?  And does giving characters "real" names represent a manga/anime superhero naming convention?

The kid's name are pseudonyms playing of the colors of their uniforms as Shikaragaki loosely means "4 color kids".

Taizen Kiiro = Mello Yellow
Tam Suji = Big Green
Johnny Turoku = Johnny Blue
Kitty Momoiro = Kitty Pink

They are meant to be more accessible than the regular Union hence the more 'normal' sounding names.

[Zathras]

I don't want to discourage anyone from putting out podcasts, so this is not meant as a slam against clonepod.

Are they getting any better over there?  Their story selection was pretty good, but I had to step away for a while.  Since Steve's on hiatus, I figured I might get caught up again.

[stePH]

I don't want to discourage anyone from putting out podcasts, so this is not meant as a slam against clonepod.

Are they getting any better over there?  Their story selection was pretty good, but I had to step away for a while.  Since Steve's on hiatus, I figured I might get caught up again.

Stories are still good; hosts are still annoying.  I live with it because I like the stories.

[stePH]

I've also really enjoyed watching the story arc develop- I'm dying to know what happened to Tam at the Supreme Court.  Seems like one of these days the shit is really going to hit the fan for the Union.

My guess is that the Miss Jennifer story will deal with the court case (at least in part).

[Zathras]

It took 3 more tries, but I finally got through the Ballad of Kitty over there. 

I guess Escape Artists spoiled me.

[Corydon]

The kid's name are pseudonyms playing of the colors of their uniforms as Shikaragaki loosely means "4 color kids".

Taizen Kiiro = Mello Yellow
Tam Suji = Big Green
Johnny Turoku = Johnny Blue
Kitty Momoiro = Kitty Pink

They are meant to be more accessible than the regular Union hence the more 'normal' sounding names.

Aha!  So they are more like the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, then. 

Anyway, for the record, I like the kids' voices on the TS stories.  I like their enthusiasm, and I think that they do a good job of capturing the feel of the characters.

[jrderego]

The kid's name are pseudonyms playing of the colors of their uniforms as Shikaragaki loosely means "4 color kids".

Taizen Kiiro = Mello Yellow
Tam Suji = Big Green
Johnny Turoku = Johnny Blue
Kitty Momoiro = Kitty Pink

They are meant to be more accessible than the regular Union hence the more 'normal' sounding names.

Aha!  So they are more like the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, then. 

Anyway, for the record, I like the kids' voices on the TS stories.  I like their enthusiasm, and I think that they do a good job of capturing the feel of the characters.

Yes. The Power Rangers were an inspiration for the look and presentation of Team Shikaragaki.

[MacArthurBug]

I love the stories, like Steph I tolerate the voices. Those kids need training (and or) someone else to do the stories. Even the intro/outro sequences make me unhappy. BUT then, I'm one of a few women who DON'T think that kids who lisp, speak like babies, mispronounce words, etc are "so cute". When my own kids went through these stages they were eased through them gently but thoroughly.  I like a lot of the stories they do over on CP and agree that it's a great way to help these kids learn more about new media.

[Zathras]

I love the stories, like Steph I tolerate the voices. Those kids need training (and or) someone else to do the stories. Even the intro/outro sequences make me unhappy. BUT then, I'm one of a few women who DON'T think that kids who lisp, speak like babies, mispronounce words, etc are "so cute". When my own kids went through these stages they were eased through them gently but thoroughly.  I like a lot of the stories they do over on CP and agree that it's a great way to help these kids learn more about new media.

+1

[stePH]

I love the stories, like Steph I tolerate the voices. Those kids need training (and or) someone else to do the stories.

Again, the only stories I've heard the host kids read are the UD stories.  All others have been read by adults as far as I can tell.  If the kids were reading more of the stories, I would not still be subscribed to the feed.

[Clutron]

I am very appreciative of ClonePod for bringing us awesome free stories.  It's a podcast where the intros are done by teens and pre teens for teens and pre teens.  You can't hold them to the same standard that EP sets.  It's just not realistic.  These kids are outperforming anything I could have done at 11 (and probably even now) and I am very impressed. 

[Zathras]

I am not holding them to the same standard.  I do think that with just a little more effort, they could vastly improve.  I guess I just have a higher opinion of what teenagers are capable of.

[wintermute]

I have to admit, I've not yet listened to the CP UD stories; I do plan to, but I've not had a chance yet. So, this is from a position of complete ignorance:

I'm sure the kids producing the podcast comfortably exceed every reasonable expectation that could be placed on children of their age, but that doesn't mean that they reach an acceptable standard.

As an egregious example, if my -almost-two-year-old daughter managed to press record and then fart into the microphone, that would certainly exceed my expectations of her ability to create a podcast. I would not, however, expect that to be considered sufficient grounds for anyone to actually listen to it.

For the record, I don't mean to draw any parallel with the production qualities of CP, other than that listeners have a right to set their own personal standard, and if that standard cannot reasonably be met by a particular production team, saying that they "exceed expectations" is a meaningless defence.

[MacArthurBug]

Ok I'll agree on that.  Perhaps I'm ranting at the into/outro sequences.  I have little girls and though they get all high pitched and Squee-ish mine just don't seem as annoying at the young'n on this show.  Perhaps I'm biased and my girls really ARE this annoying.  As to the quality of work the kids themselves do? Meh.  They get their shows out, that I can say for them. BUT mind you this is MY opinion and I'm judgemental as all get out.  I dislike my amazingly sweet neighbor simply because he hubby is really really dumb.. so yeah.

[wintermute]

I've now listened to the UD stories on CP, and my considered opinion is this:

The first one was right at the very limit of listenability. I was continually on the verge of turning it off. The main problem was that I could never tell who was speaking, or even (sometimes) the difference between dialogue and narrative, which made conversations hard to follow.

The other two were not great, but I didn't have to force myself to leave the stop button alone.

The stories were good enough to carry it, though.

[fuzzygnome]

Ok, gotta chuck in after putting this off for awhile.  I agree that this is a VERY hard podcast to listen to...not just the union dues.  The stories are all good- very good actually- but that doesn't matter when you jump into an audio world where its all about story telling... I haven't been able to finish many of these.  That being said, I don't think the style is bad (in terms of quality), it's just not something I can really get into.   

[stePH]

Ok, gotta chuck in after putting this off for awhile.  I agree that this is a VERY hard podcast to listen to...not just the union dues.  The stories are all good- very good actually- but that doesn't matter when you jump into an audio world where its all about story telling... I haven't been able to finish many of these.  That being said, I don't think the style is bad (in terms of quality), it's just not something I can really get into.   

Again I have to wonder if I'm listening to the same podcast that some of you are.  Maybe I just have a low listenability threshold (which speaks volumes about Abby's reading  ).  But most of the readings are fine, and apart from the "Union Dues" pieces, have been read by adults, not kids.

[Zathras]

stePH, my problem is that I feel an obligation to listen to the intros and outros.  These kids took the time to put up the podcast, I feel like I owe it to them to listen to the whole thing.  Most of the stories are read by adults, but the quality is still lacking in some.  I think that the kids put some people on edge before the story even starts. 

I really don't want to discourage them from putting out a podcast.  I think it's fantastic that they are that ambitious. 

Maybe that helps pinpoint the problem.

[MacArthurBug]

stePH, my problem is that I feel an obligation to listen to the intros and outros.  These kids took the time to put up the podcast, I feel like I owe it to them to listen to the whole thing.  Most of the stories are read by adults, but the quality is still lacking in some.  I think that the kids put some people on edge before the story even starts. 

I really don't want to discourage them from putting out a podcast.  I think it's fantastic that they are that ambitious. 

Maybe that helps pinpoint the problem.

what he said

[stePH]

stePH, my problem is that I feel an obligation to listen to the intros and outros.  These kids took the time to put up the podcast, I feel like I owe it to them to listen to the whole thing.  Most of the stories are read by adults, but the quality is still lacking in some.  I think that the kids put some people on edge before the story even starts. 

If anybody should have an issue with the intros and outros, it's me ... I dislike kids to a degree that could almost be called "hate".  But I still listen to the intros and outros for the reasons you give above.  The story content, however, more than makes up for it to me.

[fuzzygnome]

FF'd past the intros, but still didn't enjoy the readers.

[Russell Nash]

CP is one of the podcasts I recently chucked.  I'm subscribed now only to get the UD stories and delete everything else.  As soon as they have all been "published" I'll unsubscribe.

[Darwinist]

I though the most recent CP story, Cold Duty by Dan Sawyer was really good.  The narration was excellent.  Better than most of the prior stuff.   It was steam punk, which isn't usually my thing.  Anyway, I would recommend it.

[Zathras]

Steampunk isn't my thing, either.  I did enjoy Cold Duty. 

Default announcement:  Their story selection is out standing.

I haven't listened to CP 26 yet.  I listen to CP when I get around to it. 

I am starting to have an issue with the lack of improvement of the intros and outros.  I especially dislike the car commercial dislcaimer reading of teh Creative Commons License.  Really, it only takes a few seconds longer to read it normally.

[stePH]

I though the most recent CP story, Cold Duty by Dan Sawyer was really good.  The narration was excellent.  Better than most of the prior stuff.   It was steam punk, which isn't usually my thing.  Anyway, I would recommend it.

+1.  One of the best I've heard on Clonepod in a long time.  Maybe best CP ever.

[izzardfan]

After all the CP raves here, I went to clonepod to download the files, first through iTunes, and then when that didn't work, through their website.  Their file server must be down because nothing will download.

[Zathras]

http://feeds.feedburner.com/clonepod?format=xml

Is the feed that I use.  My last update was on the 10th.  Trying to download an older episode now...


Oooohhhh, look!  Two new Pseudopod episodes!  Shiny!

Ok, back to the test, I am downloading episdode 13, Incarnation Day right now.  I'll post again if there are any problems with the download.

::edit::  I downloaded it with no problem. 

[izzardfan]

Thanks, that worked.

[izzardfan]

I subscribed to CP but am only downloading the Union Dues stories, plus Cold Duty since it was reviewed positively here.  I've gotten halfway through ep. 11, the first UD (The Ballad of Kitty Momoiro), and I'm really having a tough time with the reading.  Some words are pronounced wrong and I only got them through a combination of context and replaying the sentence a couple of times (eg. "gauge" pronounced as "gawj").  When my 15 year old son speaks like this, I ask him to stop and repeat what he said without mumbling.  The story is great so far, so I'll hang in there, but wow, it's not easy.  If they're all that way, I'd be willing to throw a few bucks (each) at Jeffrey for text versions.

[Zathras]

Izzardfan,  The Ballad of Kitty is the Hardest one to get through.  CP has a great selection of stories.  A lot of their production leaves something to be desired and all of the intros and outros are pretty bad.

I'd recommend # 2,5,6, FF3, 13, 14, 15, 19, FF4, 23, and 25, depending on personal preference.  I just grabbed these from the episode list, so I'm remembering the stories, not the production.

[stePH]

Izzardfan,  The Ballad of Kitty is the Hardest one to get through.  CP has a great selection of stories.  A lot of their production leaves something to be desired and all of the intros and outros are pretty bad.

I'd recommend # 2,5,6, FF3, 13, 14, 15, 19, FF4, 23, and 25, depending on personal preference.  I just grabbed these from the episode list, so I'm remembering the stories, not the production.

I recommend avoiding the latest, "Dazzle Joins the Screenwriter's Guild".  Story wasn't bad, but wasn't worth sitting through the poor reading either.  I swear, this guy sounded like he hadn't even given the story a preliminary read-through before starting to record.  It put me in mind of Abby's reading of "Kitty Momoiro" without the annoying voice.

[izzardfan]

I swear, this guy sounded like he hadn't even given the story a preliminary read-through before starting to record.  It put me in mind of Abby's reading of "Kitty Momoiro" without the annoying voice.

That was what bothered me about "Kitty" too, almost as if Abby had tried to memorize the words, as in a script for a play, and couldn't remember all of them, instead of having the words to read right in front of her.  I didn't mind her voice otherwise, as it gave me a better mental image of who Kitty was than if it had been read by an adult.  That said, I think if Cunning Minx had read it, she could have done a voice suitable for the story.

I did finally finish the story, and I heartily agree with Zathras' comment about the Creative Commons License.  He doesn't need to be John Moschitta (YouTube).

[stePH]

UGH!  Listening to the intro of the latest, "The Last Dog", tempted me to drop the axe.  But remembering great stories such as "Cold Duty" stayed my hand.  I'm strongly inclined to start skipping the intros and outros though.  They're even fluffing the lines they wrote themselves now?

[Zathras]

Is the Last Dog worth listening to?  I greatly appreciate the screening you do for us!

[stePH]

Is the Last Dog worth listening to?  I greatly appreciate the screening you do for us!

Couldn't say.  I stopped after about two minutes and switched to another podcast.  I'll get back to it later ... it's a Mike Reznick story and I don't recall anything by him that I've actively disliked -- and the reading is better than passable.

[MacArthurBug]

Meh. It wasn't bad. Sort of sweet.
The intro outros are getting worse if anything.

[izzardfan]

I just listened to "Cold Duty" and the 2nd and 3rd Union Dues (Team Shikaragaki) stories in the last 24 hours, and while I applaud the ambition and effort of creating a podcast run by teenagers, I have to agree that the quality of the intros and outros leaves a lot to be desired.  I, too, am skipping the outros, though I can't skip the intros as I don't know where the story starts.  It seems to me that when a youth reads the story, either they don't prepare enough ahead, or aren't comfortable enough reading (nervous, maybe?).  They end up reading it as if it were a report given in front of a class, instead of telling a story.  I admit I'm spoiled by the readings from EP and PC, but when an adult reads one on CP (such as the 3rd Union Dues and "Cold Duty"), I can enjoy it.  I've downloaded all CP episodes and I'm going to listen to them all because the stories are good (so far).

I read this board and Swamp mentioned:

The prize could also be more specific like a complitation of all of the Union Dues strories, maybe we could even get Mr. DeRego to throw something in.

Has there been any mention of a text compilation of all of the Union Dues stories?  I'd definitely buy one.

[stePH]

I just listened to "Cold Duty" and the 2nd and 3rd Union Dues (Team Shikaragaki) stories in the last 24 hours, and while I applaud the ambition and effort of creating a podcast run by teenagers, I have to agree that the quality of the intros and outros leaves a lot to be desired.  I, too, am skipping the outros, though I can't skip the intros as I don't know where the story starts. 

Skim.  Scroll ahead about two minutes -- if the kids are still talking, scroll ahead another half minute.  If there's somebody else reading the story, scroll back.

[MacArthurBug]

The skim scroll is generally how I handle it- unless I'm driving, then it's to hum (if the girls are in the car)  or quietly tell the CP kids to shutupshutupshutup under my breath. No cool coping skills- but I've never been good with the coping.

[fuzzygnome]

Clonepod needs to put chapters in their podcast like Drabblecast does, so listeners don't have to skim.  Although, I usually don't want to miss Norm's intros. 
Coincedentally, Drabblecast also did Resnick's the Last Dog this week-- and did it much better.  Worth listening to again.

[Zathras]

I unsubscribed.  I had to turn off the latest episode. 

[stePH]

I unsubscribed.  I had to turn off the latest episode. 

For some reason, I have it twice.  WTF?    Haven't listened yet, tho'.  The latest EP is next on deck.

[Darwinist]

I unsubscribed.  I had to turn off the latest episode. 

I'm considering the same after this last episode.  Listened to it all the way through (almost an hour), not sure why.  I was totally lost and missed the point of the story.  I heard at least three repeated lines and several words were cut off.  It just didn't flow.   It seemed like the editing was fouled up and I had a hard time following the reader also.  To me it was one of their worst episodes. 

[stePH]

I unsubscribed.  I had to turn off the latest episode. 

I'm considering the same after this last episode.  Listened to it all the way through (almost an hour), not sure why.  I was totally lost and missed the point of the story.  I heard at least three repeated lines and several words were cut off.  It just didn't flow.   It seemed like the editing was fouled up and I had a hard time following the reader also.  To me it was one of their worst episodes. 

I'll give it a miss, then.  But I'll stay subscribed.  "Cold Duty" makes up for a lot, plus there's more Union Dues to come.

[BethPeters]

Axe dropped.  Maybe Robert Reed and J Derego will start submitting to places that won't scew their stories up?