EP232: Flash Special

[Swamp]

EP232: Flash Special

This week Escape Pod presents three flash stories:

Alloy
By Marissa Lingen.
Read by Electra Allenton.
First appeared in Nature, September 2007.

Flare
By Kyle Deas.
Read by Stephen Eley.


My Grandfather’s River
By Brenda Cooper.
Read by Anna Eley.
First appeared in Nature, August 2006.

Rated PG. Can get a bit sad in places.

Referenced Sites:
Cybrosis — A podcast novel by P.C. Haring


Listen to this week’s Escape Pod!

[ahutson]

I loved this episode.  The first story, Alloy, was well read and attenion-grabbing.  I kept picturing Eliza Dushku/Echo from Dollhouse as the character/narrator.

The first time I heard Anna Eley read I enjoyed her narration, but the sound quality of the mic or encoding detracted from it.  This time it's crystal clear and flawless!  She did an amazing job and I hope she can do more readings.  One note: listening on iTunes the phrase, "i recall his hand on my shoulder as I gazed up into his blue-green eyes," is repeated at around 18:10 and 18:15.  Not sure if this is intentional, an editing quirk, or a problem with my itunes.

Overall, great job and a good start to 2010.    

[KenK]

I really like these flash stories. I am really glad that EP is doing these again.

Alloy: Was really good. The whole consciousness emerging from a non-biologic machine meme. When and how does it occur? That theme never gets old.

Flare: Pretty good story of love and loss. That theme never gets old either.

MGR: Sweet how she makes up a virtual scrap book of the river for the old man. Sad how the river is dying just like he is.

Please do more flashes. I really like 'em. 

[Swamp]

Great stories all!  And I loved getting to hear Steve call for storytime thrice.

[eytanz]

All three stories were great - the first and last bittersweet, the second just plain sad, all very well written and well read. I'm glad flash stories are finding a place in EP again.

[BethPeters]

Great show!  All 3 stories were fantastic.  Wonderful to see Escapepod not only doing flash but doing a Drabblecast Trifecta Special type approach.  Really enjoy the diversity in it.  Good job all!

[Kathryn]

Great fun (well, maybe not fun, but certainly enjoyable) and I love Anna's voice.

Kathryn

[cdugger]

OK, here goes:

First of all, the recording quality was great! No apparent problems here.

First story: Robots in love! Does it get any better? Love the end. Saw it coming, but still done well.

Second story: Kids in love! Does it get any better? Loved and lost, and all that. Great ending.

Third story: Grandkids loving their Grandads! Does it get...ah, that's old by now. I have to admit, the very first time I heard Anna, I didn't like her voice. That, however, has changed. I don't know if I have changed, or if she's just more familiar, or what, but I really appreciate her now. I think the change came with the Squonk stories. She really shined there. (Remember, I listened newest-to-oldest). She shined here, too. Great job!

[Marguerite]

"I went home to my maker, and locked him in the basement."  Truly, what else needs to be said?  Alloy was brilliant.

[CryptoMe]

I really enjoyed the package of flash stories. What a great way to get these to the audience!

All three stories were great. But I liked the first, Alloy, the best. I particularly liked the abrupt ending. Perfect!

[SFEley]

One note: listening on iTunes the phrase, "i recall his hand on my shoulder as I gazed up into his blue-green eyes," is repeated at around 18:10 and 18:15.  Not sure if this is intentional, an editing quirk, or a problem with my itunes.

The correct answer is B.  Good catch, ahutson -- I've uploaded a fixed version.  I appreciate your spotting it and pointing it out.

[Bdoomed]

Loved the stories!  I think the strongest of the three was My Grandfather's River, it was a beautiful story.  Flare reminded me a lot of my freshman year tryst, almost scarily so.  At least my girlfriend didn't explode on a spaceship, she just broke up with me.

[cdugger]

One note: listening on iTunes the phrase, "i recall his hand on my shoulder as I gazed up into his blue-green eyes," is repeated at around 18:10 and 18:15.  Not sure if this is intentional, an editing quirk, or a problem with my itunes.

The correct answer is B.  Good catch, ahutson -- I've uploaded a fixed version.  I appreciate your spotting it and pointing it out.

Hey, it happens. I've heard it on several episodes. Doesn't take away from them at all in my book.

[Unblinking]

Now to begin my mad run of threadomancy here on Escape Pod!   

Now that I'm caught up on Pseudopod and Podcastle I'm listening to Escape Pod episodes.  So far, I'm loving them!  The Daikaiju music is my favorite music of the three.  I was afraid that Escape Pod's SF would be the stodgy over-explained variety that puts me to sleep by I'm thrilled to learn that is not the case at all!  I've been catching up since Christmas or so, have listened to about 30 episodes, and the worst opinion I've had of any of them was "that was fun" ranging up to "Wow!"  I've finished every episode that I've started, which for me is really saying something.

Anyhoo, on to this actual episode!  This was an excellent grouping of flash stories.
1-I'm a sucker for robot become aware stories, and the locking in the basement was a nice line.
2-Lots of good emotion here.  I haven't been through this exact sort of thing, but now I feel like I have!
3-This was by far my favorite of the three.  An environmental message without bludgeoning me with it, and it's really about her relationship with her grandpa.  Very sweet, very sad.

There used to be a lot more flash episodes on EP.  This has probably been discussed somewhere, but not where I've come across it.  Why so few flash recently?  And why is EP closed to flash submissions?  Just wondering.  Anyway, good show!

[contra]

I loved all of them. 

Flare was my fav though.  Maybe I just identify with it most.  The love of looking at the stars, wonder of the universe, being seperated from the one you love and a love lost.  I'd say I'd like the world to have been fleshed out more, but that's probably just because it was such a good story I want more.

[Listener]

"Alloy" -- Pygmalion retelling, right? An interesting little story.

"Flare" -- Beautiful. It gets better as time passes and you reflect on it more.

"River" -- Not bad, but I didn't feel any sense of danger; I think it would have been stronger if the grandfather had been more imperiled (ie: closer to death) and she wasn't just working hard on it to make it for his birthday but because he was very close to death. Which he may have been, but I didn't feel like that was communicated adequately to me.

[eytanz]

"River" -- Not bad, but I didn't feel any sense of danger; I think it would have been stronger if the grandfather had been more imperiled (ie: closer to death) and she wasn't just working hard on it to make it for his birthday but because he was very close to death. Which he may have been, but I didn't feel like that was communicated adequately to me.

I disagree on this, completely - not that the story lacks a sense of danger, but that it is a problem, and that the story would be improved if there were any sense of urgency. I think that would have overshadowed what the story is trying to say.

[Unblinking]

"River" -- Not bad, but I didn't feel any sense of danger; I think it would have been stronger if the grandfather had been more imperiled (ie: closer to death) and she wasn't just working hard on it to make it for his birthday but because he was very close to death. Which he may have been, but I didn't feel like that was communicated adequately to me.

I disagree on this, completely - not that the story lacks a sense of danger, but that it is a problem, and that the story would be improved if there were any sense of urgency. I think that would have overshadowed what the story is trying to say.

I'm with eytanz.  The story wasn't about danger, it was about memory and reconnecting with a loved one.  It's not a pulse-pounder, for sure, but it's not really supposed to be.

[Gamercow]

This was a mixed bag for me. 

*Alloy - I enjoyed the story, and would have enjoyed it even more if it was stretched out into a longer episode, with  more detail.  But, that's the way of flash stories, leave them waiting for more.

*Flare - I must not be a romantic, because this story did not do much for me, nor did it pull on any heart strings for me. 

*River - My favorite of the 3 by far.  I lost a grandparent who was in the grips of alzheimer a year ago, and this struck home for me.  Even today I continue tracing my geneology, which was my grandfather's passion for most of his adult life.