Author Topic: EP306: Radio Nowhere (Read 34702 times)

stePH · **Reply #75 on:** September 13, 2011, 06:01:28 PM

Quote from: ToooooMuchCoffeeMan on August 20, 2011, 10:28:48 AM

Plus, the "is anyone out there?" voice on the radio was just left dangling with no explanation. I was expecting that voice was going to turn out to be Liam's - finding himself thrown out of the timestream or some such after his hubristic attempt to monkey with the universe.

So, sorry...overall one of your less satisfying presentations.

This. It's a Chekhov's Gun that misfires.

mbrennan · **Reply #76 on:** September 18, 2011, 03:15:19 AM

Maybe it's just my scarring experience with Perrin in the Wheel of Time talking, but I don't find the attitude of "The person I love is the ONLY THING IN THE WORLD THAT MATTERS" romantic in the slightest. Especially when you're apparently willing to accept unspecified amounts of collateral damage in the course of saving that one person. If my husband risked the mass death of others to save me, I'd leave him.

I agree with, well, all the criticisms that have gone before, but want to add that I'd actually prefer to leave Ziggy's decision to walk out onto the water unexplained, if the explanation on tap is that she was suicidal. I was really afraid the story would go the route of "he saves Jackie, but has spent those fifteen years grieving over Ziggy instead."

Honestly, what I really wanted was for Ziggy to show up that night with a gun and try to murder Liam. It's the reverse of the obsession I complained about at the start of this comment: if on one side of the scales there's the person I love, and on the other side there's a crap-ton of other people -- in this case, maybe the entire world -- and one is going to cost me the other, I'd like to think I'm a moral enough person to choose the greater good. And that, at least, would not have been so predictable of an ending.

Unblinking · **Reply #77 on:** September 19, 2011, 01:57:31 PM

Quote from: mbrennan on September 18, 2011, 03:15:19 AM

Maybe it's just my scarring experience with Perrin in the Wheel of Time talking, but I don't find the attitude of "The person I love is the ONLY THING IN THE WORLD THAT MATTERS" romantic in the slightest. Especially when you're apparently willing to accept unspecified amounts of collateral damage in the course of saving that one person. If my husband risked the mass death of others to save me, I'd leave him.

I'm glad I'm not the only one! I've been reading the WoT one last time to be ready for the final book's release, and some of the character relationships really drive me nuts.

CryptoMe · **Reply #78 on:** September 22, 2011, 05:18:55 AM

I thought this story was okay.

Sure it had flaws, but for some reason they didn't bug me as much as they did so many others on this thread. And I didn't find the duck, the radio voice, or Ziggy walking out on water to be particularly confusing. Though I did have a problem with a pond that is deep enough to drown in (I've never seen one).

But otherwise, an unexceptional story.

digitalbusker · **Reply #79 on:** October 03, 2011, 06:26:38 PM

I'm way behind on my EP listening, but I had to comment on this story. I'd like to lobby for the addition of some new warning categories before EP episodes.

Warning: Contains a supposedly brilliant scientist with the emotional maturity of an eighth grader who evaluates paradigm-shattering new scientific discoveries solely on the basis of how they can be used to affect his or her love life.
Extra Warning: This character is the protagonist, and his or her obsession is the plot. All of it.
Warning: Contains a supposedly strong and outspoken character who nevertheless is incapable of expressing his or her interest in the protagonist except in the most passive-agressive ways possible.
Extra Warning: No, seriously, this character actually says "That's your problem, $protagonist_name! You can't see what's right in front of your face!" Without. Apparent. Irony.

I have no wish to deny this kind of story to people who might enjoy it for some reason, but it would be nice to have some warning beforehand.

Umbrageofsnow · **Reply #80 on:** October 04, 2011, 08:47:55 AM

I thought this was a very human story of a man hung up on the past for far too long. The resolution is a key moment of personal growth for our protagonist, and that's really what I ask for in a story. I'm glad Liam finally reaches the acceptance part of his grieving process.

I don't want to go into depth arguing about perceived plot holes, it seems like reasonable answers have already been posted (most of which are conclusions I came to on my own), but the existence of those answers does little to calm the complaints of people who didn't come up with them. So I'll just say that I thought the plot made perfect sense, and the radio broadcasts aren't sent by Anton Chekov and needn't behave accordingly.

Also I don't think you can claim to hate a story based on thinking an arbitrary number of years is an excessive number and this story really stands on the merits of character growth backed up by spooky atmosphere.

I didn't detect much whining, just being hung up, and I've seen real life examples of almost everything in the story besides the time travel. This one really worked for me, and I wasn't going to post so late, but reading the comments I realized the minority need one more voice.

Unblinking · **Reply #81 on:** October 04, 2011, 02:12:08 PM

Quote from: Umbrageofsnow on October 04, 2011, 08:47:55 AM

Also I don't think you can claim to hate a story based on thinking an arbitrary number of years is an excessive number and this story really stands on the merits of character growth backed up by spooky atmosphere.

You can claim to hate a story based on whatever you like, really. Aren't opinions fun?

Umbrageofsnow · **Reply #82 on:** October 04, 2011, 04:35:46 PM

Haha, true. I just mean that dismissing a whole story on one or two words seems unlikely, and perhaps people are dissatisfied with character or atmosphere or plot elements which I was not, even though the complaints seem to be mostly about more trivial things.

Unblinking · **Reply #83 on:** October 05, 2011, 01:39:12 PM

Quote from: Umbrageofsnow on October 04, 2011, 04:35:46 PM

Haha, true. I just mean that dismissing a whole story on one or two words seems unlikely, and perhaps people are dissatisfied with character or atmosphere or plot elements which I was not, even though the complaints seem to be mostly about more trivial things.

Fair enough. You might be right, and I was mostly just teasing.

deflective · **Reply #84 on:** October 11, 2011, 02:09:03 AM

a flawed story, most weaknesses have already been covered here.

i just wanted bring up a pet peeve (or back up it up, if someone already mentioned it). i'm not sure when "quantum" became a special word that changes arbitrary fantasy magic into scifi but i'm hoping the trend ends soon.

Kaa · **Reply #85 on:** October 11, 2011, 02:12:23 AM

Ugh, you and me both, deflective.

I also would like to put in my request to the universe to please make the real-life woo-woo types stop using it as an explanation for everything from UFOs to homeopathy.

Oh, and while I'm at it, I'd like a pony.

Oh! And world peace.

Scattercat · **Reply #86 on:** October 11, 2011, 04:09:28 AM

Don't read White Wolf's game, Aberrant, where "quantum" is tossed in about every other word and used to explain everything from Reed Richards' costume stretching with him to a living plant-man.

Ocicat · **Reply #87 on:** October 11, 2011, 04:17:43 AM

Quantum might get replaced as the magical word du-jour. In the recent comic book series Stormwatch a character has "dark mater DNA" - which of course allows them to do any kind of magic junk they feel like.

Kaa · **Reply #88 on:** October 11, 2011, 09:28:59 AM

The other thing that bugs me is that the word "quantum" itself actually means "the smallest discrete quantity of some physical property that a system can possess."

It really got under my skin on the show "Quantum Leap" and in the way it gets used...well, pretty much everywhere. I've heard news anchors say things like "this new technology is a quantum leap forward for <some company>," and I KNOW they have no idea what they're really saying.

But I'm off-topic. This isn't the Pet Peeves Discussion Board.

Listener · **Reply #89 on:** October 11, 2011, 12:59:34 PM

Quote from: Ocicat on October 11, 2011, 04:17:43 AM

Quantum might get replaced as the magical word du-jour. In the recent comic book series Stormwatch a character has "dark mater DNA" - which of course allows them to do any kind of magic junk they feel like.

*cough* midichlorians *cough*

Unblinking · **Reply #90 on:** October 11, 2011, 01:41:18 PM

Quote from: Kaa on October 11, 2011, 09:28:59 AM

The other thing that bugs me is that the word "quantum" itself actually means "the smallest discrete quantity of some physical property that a system can possess."

It really got under my skin on the show "Quantum Leap" and in the way it gets used...well, pretty much everywhere. I've heard news anchors say things like "this new technology is a quantum leap forward for <some company>," and I KNOW they have no idea what they're really saying.

But I'm off-topic. This isn't the Pet Peeves Discussion Board.

According to Dictionary.com, the general definition is actually just "a particular amount". The definition you quoted is very science-specific, which is fair enough, since its misuse tends to be in science fiction.

Not that this definition works any better with the general use, as a "quantum leap forward" then just means "a leap forward of a particular amount" which is so vague as to be meaningless. That one aggravates me too.

eytanz · **Reply #91 on:** October 11, 2011, 02:51:40 PM

Quote from: Listener on October 11, 2011, 12:59:34 PM

Quote from: Ocicat on October 11, 2011, 04:17:43 AM
Quantum might get replaced as the magical word du-jour. In the recent comic book series Stormwatch a character has "dark mater DNA" - which of course allows them to do any kind of magic junk they feel like.

*cough* midichlorians *cough*

Nah, there's a difference between misusing a scientific term, and just making up a nonsense word.

Unblinking is right, the definition that Kaa gave for "quantum" is a relatively recent one that's used within the field of physics. The word itself has been around for a lot longer, and just means "a quantity" or "something that has quantity" (The OED gives references from the 16th century for that meaning, while the first use in the sense Kaa gave is from 1910). Of course, as Unblinking also points out, most of the SF that uses the term quantum doesn't use it to mean "quantity", it uses it to mean "impressive word that can be used to make anything we imagine sound science-y". As far as the term "quantum leap", though, it can just mean "a leap you can measure". Which is probably not what the newscasters Kaa refers to mean, but who knows?

Sgarre1 · **Reply #92 on:** October 11, 2011, 05:47:02 PM

True (on the general, non-scientific specific meaning of "quantum") - the British seem to use it in that definition fairly often (although maybe that's more last century) as I ran into it in that context in early Ballard and Ian Fleming (see its use, from a Fleming short story title, in the second Daniel Craig Bond film A QUANTUM OF SOLACE).

Gamercow · **Reply #93 on:** October 11, 2011, 08:50:34 PM

A "quantum leap" is a very specific term that is very real. It refers to the transition of an electron to a higher or lower state. The "leap" refers to there being no transition, but rather an instantaneous shift from one energy level to another. Often these shifts lead to emissions of radiation, including photons, aka light.

The term used in the news refers to the very sudden state change, and is definitely overused and trite.

kibitzer · **Reply #94 on:** October 12, 2011, 02:12:42 AM

Quote from: Gamercow on October 11, 2011, 08:50:34 PM

A "quantum leap" is a very specific term that is very real. It refers to the transition of an electron to a higher or lower state. The "leap" refers to there being no transition, but rather an instantaneous shift from one energy level to another. Often these shifts lead to emissions of radiation, including photons, aka light.

The term used in the news refers to the very sudden state change, and is definitely overused and trite.

Pffft. As if. Everyone knows it's the name of a sci-fi show from the early 90's.

Umbrageofsnow · **Reply #95 on:** October 13, 2011, 10:14:05 AM

And so, Gamercow finds himself leaping from thread to thread, striving to put right what once was defined wrong.

Wilson Fowlie · **Reply #96 on:** October 18, 2011, 07:48:42 PM

Quote from: Umbrageofsnow on October 13, 2011, 10:14:05 AM

And so, Gamercow finds himself leaping from thread to thread, striving to put right what once was defined wrong.

Gamercow · **Reply #97 on:** October 18, 2011, 09:03:20 PM

Quote from: Umbrageofsnow on October 13, 2011, 10:14:05 AM

And so, Gamercow finds himself leaping from thread to thread, striving to put right what once was defined wrong.

Oh boy!

TrapperDan · **Reply #98 on:** November 09, 2011, 07:42:30 PM

By the end of this story I was praying that Ziggy would just push his self centered, blinder wearing, hunched shouldered, perpetually crying, 35 year old emo-kid, narcissistic ass out in to traffic and just be done with it. Seriously, screw Lee. Screw Lee and his moping woe is me over a woman who probably would have dumped his stifling ass had she lived. The fact that Ziggy carried a torch for him for 15+ years is the only part of the story that made me sad. Searching back in my mind, I am at a loss to find a main character whom I hated with a deeper passion.

However,
Please tell me more about the horror world that the radio kept hinting at! I kept waiting and waiting, hoping there was something right around the corner, but no, nothing but simpering Lee and his pathetic corpse-humping modus operandi.

By the tenth year, any friend who really loved him would have bear-maced him every time he started to get all hitchy or butthurt.... staring off with weepy remembrance at "the intersection" They sell bear-mace in containers roughly the size of a small fire extinguisher, which should be roughly enough for someone who had to endure his perpetual BS for that long to extract a small bit of satisfaction through the act.

That said, if this story managed to get such a vitriolic reaction out of me, it can't be considered by myself to be a BAD story. I just found myself riding such a feel-good high from Midnight Blue, only to be torn down to the miserable world of Lee.

Edit: "Lee" is actually "Liam" however he remains possibly the most insufferable douche ever to walk the face of the earth. Ever. Like before recorded history, up til now.

ElectricPaladin · **Reply #99 on:** November 09, 2011, 07:55:13 PM

Quote from: TrapperDan on November 09, 2011, 07:42:30 PM

Please tell me more about the horror world that the radio kept hinting at! I kept waiting and waiting, hoping there was something right around the corner, but no, nothing but simpering Lee and his pathetic corpse-humping modus operandi.

Pathetic Corpse-Humping Modus Operandi would make a great name for a band!

No, no it wouldn't.