Author Topic: EP380: Punk Voyager  (Read 23505 times)

ioscode

  • Extern
  • *
  • Posts: 18
    • My Lab
Reply #25 on: January 29, 2013, 07:10:43 PM
This story had me laughing several times, it was silly at time, almost always ridiculous,  and great.  Loved the way it ended with Red too.



Reply #26 on: January 30, 2013, 12:24:29 AM
Ok, Ok, Fuck. I am crying here.

Punk Voyager was awesome. I literally laughed out loud when Bonesaw's real name turned out to be Reginald Bonesaw. My asshole office mates gave me a dirty look, so I punched them in the dicks. Big bonus points to Nancy Reagan for punching the aliens in the dicks. That scene is a gem not to be forgotten.

Once the rocket was made out of beer cans and paper clips, I stopped caring about the scieny whiny stuff. We were in for a ride. Fuck it, sometimes you just need a good fun story.

This is a very strong number 2 against my favorite "Exhalation". Sorry "Conversations with and about my Electric Toothbrush." you're number 3 now. Like it or get punched in the dick.

-drFLoyd5



Unblinking

  • Sir Postsalot
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 8729
    • Diabolical Plots
Reply #27 on: January 30, 2013, 05:46:10 PM
Didn't really care for it.  I didn't mind the vulgarity or implausibility, but the characters were all just so annoying.  It felt like a parody written about a punk who was making up a wish-fulfillment story. (I add the parody part because it seems like it's making fun of the punks rather than telling it fully from their point of view).
 
I admit I did laugh out loud at the reveal of Bonesaw's real name.  That was a damned good joke.



dromeda

  • Extern
  • *
  • Posts: 5
Reply #28 on: January 30, 2013, 06:39:16 PM
Fuckin' A, man. That is some seriously high-class, top-notch cockpunchery you got going there. Best fuckin' episode in a long-ass time. It seems to be the kind of thing you either really really love or really really hate, depending on if you ever went through a punk phase or not. Obviously I did, and so did Shaenon. This was amazing.



timprov

  • Palmer
  • **
  • Posts: 33
    • Personal Home Page
Reply #29 on: January 30, 2013, 06:44:33 PM
I didn't mind the cursing in the story, I understand that's the character and that's how he talks.  I also enjoyed the punk aliens, that was really funny how the leaders of the world and the media was trying to get something meaningful out of first contact and it just wasn't there.  It was a hell of a fun story, one of the better one's I've listened too on EP.

But, here is where I had the issue.  The cursing in the story was fine, but did we really need it in the Intro, outro, and comments?  I just didn't seem professional to me and, even if I don't like the story, I at least like how the intro, outros and comments usually fall on the professional side.  I felt I needed to clean my ears when I got home from listening.  I thought I had maybe missed a warning about language at the start but nope, it wasn't there, should have been there but it wasn't.


Even in failure there can be Nobility! But failing to try brings only shame!
-Silver Surfer

www.timothypcallahan.com


benjaminjb

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1389
Reply #30 on: January 30, 2013, 07:25:35 PM
I enjoyed it all, including the in-character episode feedback by Nathaniel Lee, though I sympathize with people who wanted a little more warning and a little respite from the anti-social tendencies of punk.

I'm also kind of obsessed with the Voyager records, which is why my webcomic group is named after it (http://www.voyagercomicsonline.com/) (end plug), so this story hit a nice spot: as fascinating (and frankly, appropriate) as it is that American music is represented by three African-Americans and the Navajo, I can't help but want to send out a copy of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit."

Though as the first commenter noted, I had trouble imagining Nancy "Just Say No" Reagan as easy-going enough to accept a punch as an acceptable diplomatic act. Maybe Betty Ford or Jackie Kennedy would, but the only First Lady I'd really want to see punch aliens is Eleanor Roosevelt. She'd just wreck 'em.



Scattercat

  • Caution:
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 4904
  • Amateur wordsmith
    • Mirrorshards
Reply #31 on: January 30, 2013, 08:00:06 PM
It seems to be the kind of thing you either really really love or really really hate, depending on if you ever went through a punk phase or not.

I dunno.  I loved it to pieces (I was not drafted to read it; I insisted.), and I'm approximately as punk or hard-edge as a Nilla Wafer.  I mean, I've had my CD of The Ramones since I was 12, but I'm really more of a Weird Al guy in general.  My rebellious phase was mostly directed at my peers rather than the authorities.

---

I apologize as far as the language; I confess I assumed we'd have a warning in front of the episode just due to the sheer gratuity.  On the flip side, I figured that if someone made it all the way through the story without melting, they'd probably be able to handle an f-bomb in the feedback segment.  :-P



acpracht

  • EA Staff
  • *****
  • Posts: 229
Reply #32 on: January 30, 2013, 09:32:39 PM
There exists a helpful resource called the rating system. EA 'casts have always used them with great discretion and success, and I respectfully request that the editors continue to do so. For example, a "rated R for language" would have been infinitely appropriate here.


Ehh, the story was irreverent and reasonably funny. I think it was quite successful in what it set out to do, it just happens that brand of humor isn't really my thing. I did think it was hilarious that the aliens noted the band members had "gotten old" as if that was a) avoidable and b) a crime. Great reading though.

Unfortunately, there does not exist a formalized rating system at EA to my knowledge. Mur made an effort to make mention of things at the beginnings of episodes, and we did talk about a project for formalizing it a long time ago, but it never developed. I will take the heat for this one because I've probably taken it for granted as something the editor handles and I didn't give it the right attention post-transition. I did manage to get an EXPLICIT tag on the file itself and the post on the site says "Rated 13+ for rebellious vulgarity," but I did not get it in the audio.

The good news is that my ego loves reasons to put more recordings of my voice on things, and therefore I will take it upon myself to start recording & saving warnings that I can use at the beginning and hopefully it won't be long before I have a tag for all occasions. Fair enough?

I'd call that more than fair enough! Thanks Mat!

Yep that would do it. I'm not saying I wouldn't listen, I just like a little bit of consideration in case I really wouldn't. If I'd been a first timer to EP, I might not have been back :(

I don't mind vulgarity personally, but I do often have podcasts playing with my young children around. So it's nice to have a heads up before the first F-bomb falls so I can switch to "Stuff You Should Know" or "Science Friday."



Kaa

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 620
  • Trusst in me, jusst in me.
    • WriteWright
Reply #33 on: January 30, 2013, 10:01:56 PM
This was one of my least favorite episodes, ever. Note that I didn't just say "stories," but "episodes." Because I include Norm's intro and Nathan's feedback segment for "Marley and Cratchitt" in my assessment.

The story itself did absolutely nothing for me. It started off with one-dimensional characters I hated behaving like people I can't stand doing things I find useless at best. And they basically kept doing it. And all the nods to 80s personalities got old after about the third one. As someone else said above, it was essentially a one-liner...that went on for 33 minutes. It moved from one predictable scene to the next. The only thing I didn't predict was that only one member of the band left Earth with the predictably punk aliens.

And while I certainly don't mind profanity, it was so over-the-top and pointless, here, that it became grating very fast.

The gratuitous profanity in both the intro and Nathan's segment started off mildly cute and then rapidly sped into off-putting. I get what they were going for, and they succeeded: it captured the same "Fucking fuck you, you fucking fuck! Fuck!" voice as the story. Maybe if it had been a story I actually liked, it wouldn't have made me react so negatively.

I didn't even have the patience to listen to Alasdair's essay because I was just so done with this episode by that point, I scrolled to the end.

I invent imaginary people and make them have conversations in my head. I also write.

About writing || About Atheism and Skepticism (mostly) || About Everything Else


Unblinking

  • Sir Postsalot
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 8729
    • Diabolical Plots
Reply #34 on: January 31, 2013, 02:34:03 PM
But, here is where I had the issue.  The cursing in the story was fine, but did we really need it in the Intro, outro, and comments?  I just didn't seem professional to me and, even if I don't like the story, I at least like how the intro, outros and comments usually fall on the professional side.  I felt I needed to clean my ears when I got home from listening.  I thought I had maybe missed a warning about language at the start but nope, it wasn't there, should have been there but it wasn't.

I generally like the themed spin in the episode comments at the end, but for me there was too much of a clash between the 80s punk persona and the story that was being feedbacked... fedbeck... something like that.  I'm probably more aware of it because it was my story being fedback.  (That was my first story to have feedback on a podcast, so that was cool nonetheless)



rider

  • Extern
  • *
  • Posts: 2
Reply #35 on: February 02, 2013, 06:57:54 PM
I couldn't help imagining Jello Biafra rolling in his grave over this one.  (yes, i know he's not dead yet!)
Of course, wasn't that part of being a punk?  Fun story, did enjoy the way it ended; sell outs need not apply.



FireTurtle

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 898
Reply #36 on: February 03, 2013, 01:31:32 AM
The story didnt real "do it" for me. I found it entertaining as a sort of "fuck you" to all those science stories with the uber smart people making all the good calls. Kind of like Peeps. Fluffy, funny, maybe a little amusing that they even exist, but probably not really a good idea to eat.

That said, I LOVED the themed outro. I was laughing hysterically in the car as I arrived at work.


“My imagination makes me human and makes me a fool; it gives me all the world and exiles me from it.”
Ursula K. LeGuin


KenK

  • Guest
Reply #37 on: February 03, 2013, 01:35:17 AM
Haw. He said "cock punching"!  ::)



DKT

  • Friendly Neighborhood
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 4980
  • PodCastle is my Co-Pilot
    • Psalms & Hymns & Spiritual Noir
Reply #38 on: February 04, 2013, 03:12:08 PM
Just wanted to pop in and say, I enjoyed the hell out of this story. I thought the scene on the beach, and the constant retreads, was great, but when the aliens landed and cockpunched Reagan and Bush, I burst out laughing and that was it for me. It had a very Wild Stallions vibe going on, but with a punk spin that I found very fun.

I can see how people who didn't like the story were predisposed not to like the feedback (or the rest of Norm's host spot), but I thought Nathan's feedback was hilarious.

(BTW, nice reading, Nathan.)


Scattercat

  • Caution:
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 4904
  • Amateur wordsmith
    • Mirrorshards
Reply #39 on: February 05, 2013, 07:48:56 AM
Thanks, Dave!

I know the story was set in California, but somehow, to me, punks all talk like they're from New York/New Jersey.  I was battling my accent instincts all the way through.



Talia

  • Moderator
  • *****
  • Posts: 2682
  • Muahahahaha
Reply #40 on: February 05, 2013, 03:39:43 PM
Fantastic, all around. I always enjoy it when the anonymous narrator becomes a character and and of itself. Makes it more personal-like.

The bit with Nancy Reagan was hilarious. :)

And I disagree about Peeps. I think they're an EXCELLENT thing to eat! (... in limited quantities). Mmmm, neon marshmellowy goodness.



Unblinking

  • Sir Postsalot
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 8729
    • Diabolical Plots
Reply #41 on: February 05, 2013, 03:42:24 PM
And I disagree about Peeps. I think they're an EXCELLENT thing to eat! (... in limited quantities). Mmmm, neon marshmellowy goodness.

I knew I liked you for a reason.  :)



Cutter McKay

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 952
  • "I was the turkey the whoooole time!"
    • Detention Block AA23
Reply #42 on: February 06, 2013, 12:31:50 AM
And I disagree about Peeps. I think they're an EXCELLENT thing to eat! (... in limited quantities). Mmmm, neon marshmellowy goodness.

I knew I liked you for a reason.  :)

Ever tried roasting Peeps over a campfire? The sugarcoated exterior caramelizes while the marshmallow center melts. It is the ULTIMATE in Peep enjoyment, and campfire roasting for that matter. The only thing that even compares is roasted Starburst, though the Peeps are better.

-Josh Morrey-
http://joshmorreywriting.blogspot.com/
"Remember: You have not yet written your best work." -Tracy Hickman


Scumpup

  • Peltast
  • ***
  • Posts: 102
  • ...
Reply #43 on: February 06, 2013, 01:31:09 AM
Never roasted a peep.  I've roasted those little cornish game hens, but I guess despite the vague small chicken connection, it isn't the same.  Roasted starburst?  How is that not like a glob of molten, fruity tar?



Cutter McKay

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 952
  • "I was the turkey the whoooole time!"
    • Detention Block AA23
Reply #44 on: February 06, 2013, 03:34:16 AM
Roasted starburst?  How is that not like a glob of molten, fruity tar?

That's exactly what it is. Molten, fruity, delicious, tar. Just be careful not to roast them too long or they'll melt right off the stick,  :-\

-Josh Morrey-
http://joshmorreywriting.blogspot.com/
"Remember: You have not yet written your best work." -Tracy Hickman


Kaa

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 620
  • Trusst in me, jusst in me.
    • WriteWright
Reply #45 on: February 06, 2013, 05:37:27 AM
Roasted Peeps? You haven't tasted a proper S'mores until you've made one with a Peep and some dark chocolate.

And when I say "proper" I mean that they're so unbelievably sweet that your teeth actually make a sound as they dissolve away. Serving size: One. Per ever.

I invent imaginary people and make them have conversations in my head. I also write.

About writing || About Atheism and Skepticism (mostly) || About Everything Else


Unblinking

  • Sir Postsalot
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 8729
    • Diabolical Plots
Reply #46 on: February 06, 2013, 02:39:08 PM
Roasted Peeps? You haven't tasted a proper S'mores until you've made one with a Peep and some dark chocolate.

And when I say "proper" I mean that they're so unbelievably sweet that your teeth actually make a sound as they dissolve away. Serving size: One. Per ever.

Roasted Peeps and Peeps Smores are now on my list of things to eat.  :)



knigget

  • Matross
  • ****
  • Posts: 177
  • Help! Help! I'm being oppressed!
    • apoGrypha
Reply #47 on: February 06, 2013, 03:30:05 PM
Ultimately, here is what it boils down to:

It didn't suck. Totally. Like, you're driving along listening to it and there's no desire to slam the EJECT button (the one for the seat, not for the disk) repeatedly, or chew through the seat belt to get out of earshot, or even to skip it and go on to the next mp3.

http://www.apoGrypha.blogspot.com

What would have been written. 

Spoiler (click to show/hide)


RKG

  • Palmer
  • **
  • Posts: 60
Reply #48 on: February 06, 2013, 04:11:49 PM
Fun story and it reminded me of this: http://snlfirstfive.tumblr.com/post/1195720481

That's a win-win in my book.

rkg  101010


CryptoMe

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1146
Reply #49 on: February 10, 2013, 06:41:00 AM
I am totally ambivalent about this story. There was soooo much that sucked about it; unbelievable science, douche bag characters, over-the-top gratuitous swearing, and a bit too long, to name just a few. But, the cock punches were funny.