With Raphyel having gone under a medical procedure, the team keeps the EpiXode light with a great nerdy chat discussion. Abby is prepping for the third book launch in her Torth series while Scott gets recognized for his inclusion in an anthology filled with some good company.
SHOW NOTES
A Hero of A Different Stripe
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
With Raphyel having gone under a medical procedure, the team keeps the EpiXode light with a great nerdy chat discussion. Abby is prepping for the third book launch in her Torth series while Scott gets recognized for his inclusion in an anthology filled with some good company.
SHOW NOTES
A Hero of A Different Stripe
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
yeah, I'm actually going through it right now, which is why my camera is off, so you guys don't have to look at me in my discomfort.
Speaker 2:I'm sorry we could do this another day.
Speaker 1:No, we don't have to do it right now yeah, I'd rather do it now so we can go ahead and get it over with, but it is what it is. I'm just gonna take deep breaths and I might call on you guys to chip in and maybe read the nerdy news and stuff. But yeah, I can manage for the most part. But, needless to say, I'm probably going to go through this fairly quickly so I can lie down and regret my existence, because right now I feel like Mr Meecy's existence is pain.
Speaker 4:Oh God, Meecy's only listening for a few seconds. Jerry, my existence is pain. Welcome to the Stories for Nerds. This is episode 9.9 of the Stories for Nerds podcast, the show featuring a group of sci-fi and fantasy authors who not only love to discuss the latest adventures in books, TV, film, video games, anime and all other forms of nerd entertainment, but they also read and collaborate on stories as well, and I have the immense pleasure of being here with Miss Abby Goldsmith.
Speaker 2:Hello.
Speaker 4:Mr Scott Parkin, hello, and Mr Raphael M Jordan.
Speaker 1:You know what. Anything triggers the pain I'm having right now. Even like, when you said immense, I was like oh my God, why would you do that? He was saying hello. And like I was like helping my coworker, that he was saying like and like I was like helping my co-worker and so I was like thanks, rolf, you rock.
Speaker 3:I was like rock is the last thing I want to hear right now Don't say that word.
Speaker 1:Oh, that is the worst trigger word right now.
Speaker 4:It is my small pleasure to be here on this very smooth and nice night.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, thank you so much. Thank you so much. You're welcome. I'm going to have to omit that audio.
Speaker 4:Yes.
Speaker 1:Good night.
Speaker 4:Yeah, and someone's phone's ringing.
Speaker 1:Yes, so disclaimer folks. I hope to God my parents pick up that phone.
Speaker 4:Oh, you're at your parents' place, okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, okay. So some backstory, folks. I found out that I have a kidney stone and so I had to go through a procedure to help it go through the process of going through the exit passage. I'm not going to get too gruesome with it, but because of that process I have to be supervised for the next 24 hours and so I'm crashing at my parents' place. So if you hear any random noises, apologies my parents, they're not set up for anti-background noises or stuff like that. So, yeah, that's why I'm here Just hanging out with the folks. You definitely got to tell Papa and Mama J I say hi, I most certainly will. I most certainly will. But folks, this is going to be our Nerdy Chat episode and I am just going to. I don't want to say stomach Stomach's not bad, stomach's not a trigger word. I'm going to push. Oh god, no, no, no, not that you did it to yourself.
Speaker 1:Why would I do that? We're just going to endure as much as we can right now.
Speaker 4:Resign ourselves to a nerdy chat instead of a topic chat.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes we are. We're just going to keep it nice and easy for this conversation and just talk up lovely nerd stuff. And right now the gang they can't even see me just because I'm having a series like I'm going through a series of palpitations right now with the stones and I don't want them to see me just because I'm having a series like I'm going through a series of palpitations right now with the stones and I don't want them to see me in my grimace when you stay there every time I went.
Speaker 1:Oh god, no, don't make me laugh. I'd love to see other people in pain. It's great.
Speaker 4:Or a ref, can we?
Speaker 1:No, Yo, you cannot. Hey, I have the power to mute you guys. Never forget that. That's true. That is true, oh man. But you know what that reminds me of, given that this is such a wild wild West Circus right now. Are you guys recording?
Speaker 2:Yes, I am.
Speaker 1:Okay, well, no worries, I'm going to start recording right now. Do I have?
Speaker 4:to redo the opening.
Speaker 1:Abby got it, abby, you got them right.
Speaker 2:I mean I might be able to dig it up. What do?
Speaker 1:you, no, you do the whole.
Speaker 2:Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, I did record it.
Speaker 1:We'll just use that portion, eric. Okay, I can do it again on TNT. It's all good. It's all good because then I have to go over my misery. I can explain it. No, no, it's okay. The crazy thing is it comes in waves. So when you think it's gone, it's like oh okay, I'm glad that's over with. Okay, wait a minute. I think I'm starting to feel.
Speaker 3:Oh yeah.
Speaker 1:So, oh yeah, the worst roller coaster ride ever. So, guys, just a PR announcement Drink water, Drink lots and lots of water. I can't stress that enough For all that is holy. In the name of humanity, please just drink water. Don't let this. Don't be like me.
Speaker 3:Oh my gosh, I'd like to be like you in most aspects, Raph, but I'll let you. Yeah, I appreciate that.
Speaker 1:Scott. I appreciate that, scott. I mean no one. It's not easy being me, trust me, especially in these sorts of predicaments. It's not easy being me, trust me, especially in these sorts of predicaments. But anyway, we always like to get some updates with the authors on the panel and seeing what they've been up to on the personal front of their writing projects. So, starting off with you, abby, how's everything going on when you're in?
Speaker 2:Oh well, probably by the time this episode airs, book three, world of Wreckage will be launched.
Speaker 4:Yay.
Speaker 1:Yay, how exciting.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Moving right on along. That is awesome. Yeah, and just a disclaimer it is going to be on all major online retailers.
Speaker 2:Yes, yeah, primarily Amazon Audible, but I'm pretty sure you can find it. It's print-on-demand and Barnes Noble and all that.
Speaker 1:All that fun jazz. Yes, yes, yes indeed. And then, don't worry, when it comes out in our next episode, we'll be sure to include a link to that in our show notes. So, congratulations on the launch of book number three, Abby.
Speaker 2:Thank you.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, indeed indeed. And then how about you, Mr Markin?
Speaker 3:Just you know plugging away on Yonder Novel wrote a short story for the Superstars Anthology and then submitted it two minutes late, so it was instantly rejected. Two minutes. I missed on minimum requirements. It was a hard deadline and I started the submission on time, but I didn't hit send until two minutes after, so I got the auto reject that's ridiculous, yeah anyway, and needless to say, I've been in.
Speaker 1:I haven't been in a position for various, for various health reasons, um. So, yeah, unfortunately, no right front for no. No ranks up for me. And at this disclaimer, I was even uh, planning on this to be one of the nerdy chat epic shows where we have a topic of discussion, since we were supposed to do a loop around, but after coming back from my procedure yesterday I was not, I wasn't all there. So I was like, uh, okay, no, bid, bid please, please, bid, bid, good bid are good bid, please, bid, bid, good Bid our good, bid our good. Yeah, so don't worry, we'll definitely be sure to have like one of those topic of discussions for sure.
Speaker 1:I know you guys enjoy going over them and I know the listeners like having that more refined conversation. So we'll get to that for sure eventually. More refined conversation. So we'll get to that for sure, eventually. But we are going to move right along with this podcast, trying to be as painless as possible. So how about we move into some nerdy news where we offer the latest in sci-fi and fantasy book recommendations, along with updates in their culture? And since I'm trying to do as little as possible, we are going to let the fantastic Scott bear us the wonderful news and book and sci-fi fantasy recommendations.
Speaker 3:And there we go. This week we've got a book and a movie Starting out. The book available on Amazon is an anthology called A Hero of a Different Stripe. This is not your standard hero. We all know what heroes are like right Brilliant smiles, superpowers, above-average beauty, love to pose for the cameras and bask in the lamplight. The heroes found here are not your standard hero. Here you'll find shapeshifting but ditzy detectives, considerate sidekicks, avid romance readers, lunar garbage collectors and more. These stories tell of heroes like Tom Grover, who was a hero of a different stripe in the Utah SFNF community in the 1980s. He was always willing to help. He took care of issues that came up without being asked, and this anthology is put out and dedicated to him.
Speaker 1:On the movie front, Excuse me, scott, if I can cut in, because you're going to be really modest about it, but folks definitely be sure to check out that anthology, because our very own Scott Parkin is one of the authors who contributed to this fantastic story. So congratulations again to you, mr parkin, on that, your inclusion to that anthology, and, uh, looking at the names, uh, you, you, you're in some pretty good company, good sir we have some very high quality authors submitting here um.
Speaker 3:Of course, the Utah science fiction fantasy community is famous for being fairly well stocked.
Speaker 1:You got good company around you, my dude.
Speaker 3:We have a nice pool to pull from and they're happy to contribute Good stuff and yes my story is actually the cover illustration is of my story Hoo-ha.
Speaker 2:That's awesome.
Speaker 1:Hoo-ha, that's awesome. Congrats. Very nice, very nice indeed. Oh, and I'm looking at it right now. Holy crap, wow. As far as physical copies are concerned, they're almost sold out. Oh, wow, yes, as of May 1st, there are 10 copies left, so I'm sure they're gonna restock. But if you want to get uh, get a physical copy as soon as possible, be sure you call dibs on those asap, for sure okay, um, so moving right along to film uh.
Speaker 3:Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is releasing on May 10th. Director Wes Ball breathes new life into the global epic franchise set several generations in the future, following Caesar's reign, in which apes are the dominant species, living harmoniously, and humans have been reduced to living in the shadows. And humans have been reduced to living in the shadows as a new tyrannical ape leader builds his empire. One young ape undertakes a harrowing journey that will cause him to question all that he has known about the past and to make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike. Again, that's Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, and it releases on May 10th.
Speaker 1:Thank you very much, Mr Parkin.
Speaker 3:I have to thank you for that, by the way.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 3:And it looks fantastic. When I saw it coming out, I was like oh, another one.
Speaker 1:And you had that reaction and I was like oh, another one. I have been such a fan of this remake since the very first one, which came out well over 10 years ago. By this point, it was Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and they have just done a phenomenal retelling of this story. It's not the campy version that came out in the 70s 70s yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. So it takes a lot of cues from that. But what's also fascinating is, well, by this point we learn how the apes actually came into power, and that was something that was kind of loosely glazed over in the previous films. But pretty much the, the, the first three films, uh, the, the, the trilogy, the first trilogy, um, that was a build-up explaining how the shift in the? Uh dynamics came to be.
Speaker 1:And so now, um, this one, uh, this latest installment, I think, is going to be a little more filled as as far as, like the background that, like, the apes are actually talking to each other and they, they actually are building their own civilization and then they're hunting humans for prey. It there's, it's a little, it's actually fitting closer to what the original take was. I talked to my brother about it and, much to my pleasant surprise, he is such a huge fan about it. He's such a huge fan too. It's coming out on IMAX and this is definitely going to be one of those films where we're like, okay, yeah, you can have our money, we're definitely going to check this out.
Speaker 1:Again, I can't praise this film enough. It is so, so good. Um, it's check it out, I, I think. Well, okay, if you haven't watched the first films, I wouldn't recommend it because, well, this one, it is kind of like the Assault reboot, so you don't need too much of the background, but the story is so much better if you understand the context of exactly how the apes in this franchise came to be. So I would definitely recommend checking out the first three films before going into this one.
Speaker 1:Again, I don't think it's because you'll be lost or confused or anything like that, but it, I, um, the other films definitely deserve, uh, the having a look before going into that. Just personal disclaimer. Um, so, yeah, that is coming out may 10th and I am going to be checking that out, hopefully without a kidney stone in my body, but whatever the case, folks, if you want to stay up to date with our sci-fi fantasy book recommendations, along with updates in nerd cultures, be sure to check out the direction nerdscom website along with our Facebook group. So, to that end, we are moving right on along with this nerdy chat segment, and we have arrived to the nerdy chat episode, starting with our fire redhead. Abby, you had quite the exciting weekend, didn't you, young lady.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, yeah, I went to Atlanta, georgia, your old hometown.
Speaker 1:Yep, hometown, yep, yep, yep, atl, um you know what?
Speaker 2:yeah, I'd never been there before. Um, oh, your first time, just through the airport.
Speaker 1:I've never actually been to the city, yeah oh, oh, dude, okay, well, how long were you there?
Speaker 1:well, just for that weekend and it was just for the convention, so I didn't really see much of it okay, yeah, so you weren't really able to do too much of that and, from what I understand, where, at least the one time I went to uh this convention I'll let you spill the beans on it, but it was actually. It wasn't in atlanta, it was on the outskirts. It was actually in alpharetta. I'm not too sure if it was in that, oh no't, in Atlanta, it was on the outskirts, it was actually in Alpharetta.
Speaker 2:I'm not too sure if it was in that oh no, not Alpharetta, but Roswell.
Speaker 1:It's in Dunwoody. Oh, so it's in Dunwoody.
Speaker 2:Now I mean, yeah, it's at a Crown Plaza Hotel in Dunwoody.
Speaker 1:Okay, okay, Very nice, very nice. But hey, you know what it's like? Any major metropolitan area, any of those suburban outskirts around a major city, it's all Atlanta. More or less it's the Atlanta area.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I mean. Anyway, it was cool and of course people were coming from all over the country and world to come to the convention.
Speaker 1:So and what was the name of this convention? It was JordanCon, just like you, founded by rafael m jordan. Um, no, no, I'm just kidding, it was not.
Speaker 2:Um, if that was the case, I'd be sitting on feathers with this kidney stone right now, right, yeah, um no, no, it's founded by well, kind of founded by, fans of the wheel of time by robert jordan yeah yeah. So I'm a big fan and I wanted to go to this convention for years and years.
Speaker 2:Dress up like an eye-to-eye and bring my warder, which would be my husband and um yeah so, so, yeah, I finally got to go and, um, I went as an author on the lit rpg track, which is a kind of a new track they have there for the first time this year yes, um, yes, so you also were a guest panelist I was. I was on three panels and I sat in author alley. It was fun. I mean, all this was kind of last minute and it I. I have to give props to Geneva Agnos of Legion publishing because she was the one who set all this up.
Speaker 4:It wasn't me did you meet any fans for your book like, did anyone come up and say I love your book, I wish?
Speaker 2:no, I'm not that famous, but but it was cool anyway. I mean, I I met some authors that I'm a fan of, so that was great nice um and I gave my book to one of them so yeah yeah, um, matt deneman, who wrote dungeon crawler carl, so he's oh okay yeah, yeah yeah, so I got my photo taken with princess donut and oh. And then I have to say, like they had this um karaoke night and it was a bunch of audiobook narrators singing and oh, that must have been all right right.
Speaker 2:I thought it was so funny. It was really unfair because they're all like incredibly good singers oh, 100, 100.
Speaker 1:Yeah. Anyone who wanted to go like after them, like no, I'm fine, I'll just I'll. I'll just have another drink, thank you right, exactly, that was kind of it.
Speaker 2:They kind of took over, but of course I'm like they all they can do like these crazy voices, they can like basically do anything at all with their voice. So, right, um, and they were all like really like the top narrators in the field, basically so that was really cool, really cool yeah, I met jeff hayes, who does the voices for dungeon crawler carl and all that, and that was funny.
Speaker 1:I was just like, oh man, um, I didn't realize I was speaking to him, you know, because he doesn't look like his voices you know, I had the same reaction when I, when I saw troy baker for the first time, I was like how, how, how is this beautiful man making all these voices like? You're not supposed to be a voice actor, you're supposed to be like a, a walkway mother, or something like that. It doesn't make any sense, it's not right. It's not right, I tell you right yeah, yeah and yeah.
Speaker 2:The panels were great and I met, like some other lit rpg authors, um people that run some of the small presses that are in the industry, and it was a really great vibe, like. It kind of reminded me a little bit of cal arts, like my days at at college, oh yeah oh, I love that yeah, yeah, I was like oh man, I feel like you know everyone's like, yeah, you know the sky's the limit.
Speaker 2:Um yeah, so I'm a little more jaded than some people because some of them are a lot newer, but um it was still really nicely.
Speaker 1:Oh, did I say that out loud? I'm sorry, I can't, I can't. Yeah, uh, that's one of the benefits of having my camera off. I don't you. You can't look at me with your daggers we can look at we can look at you.
Speaker 3:We can't see you, see us looking at you. Yeah touche.
Speaker 1:that is fair. That is a fair assessment. That is a fair assessment. But how many days? Yeah, how long was the convention? It was just like two days, right?
Speaker 2:Three days.
Speaker 1:Oh, three days, Okay yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, like Friday, saturday, sunday, okay. So yeah, it's not like the biggest. Like I know. Dragon Con, of course, is gigantic and that's that's a big one in Atlanta. This one's kind of more like 600 people maybe.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's, it's very, it's very, it's very, it's a very, it's very niche, very, very it's it's. Yeah, like you say, it's a little more compact than anything, since it's in one one, one hotel, but I mean at the same time, I mean that's 600 people who are there for the exact same reason, and you know it's so funny.
Speaker 2:The hotel changed their menu to have it all like real time themed it was great. Yeah, they had like drinks. They're like have a Shan Shan sipper and things like that and I was like, oh, this is great. You know, in the cosplay they did have some. There were some people that had great, like Rand, matt and parent cosplay. I was impressed. I was tempted to buy myself a nice and I shall. I wore my my eyes that I ring and I met some fans too.
Speaker 2:I like the real time where I, where I was like, oh man, these people, they have taste, yeah, so it was great, that's awesome.
Speaker 1:So I mean, are you going to go back there?
Speaker 2:I would love to Now, maybe just because it's such a trek for me. You know, and you know how it is like travel.
Speaker 1:You have to like get hotels and all that. It is an expense. It is an expense, for you have to like get hotels and it is like expensive. It's a expense, for sure. Yeah, but I'm glad you had a good time out there and uh, um, next time you're on this side of the country and maybe if, um, I don't know, for whatever reason, might be in georgia or whatever, for whatever instance, uh, definitely be sure to check. You know, swing by and say hey, say hey, or say hey to Eric, or you can make a quick little for yeah, quote unquote quick little for our detour to Murfreesboro.
Speaker 2:You know, if I ever do it as a road trip, we'll do that.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, there you go.
Speaker 4:There, you go. Say it after your visit, I'll have to take you to Badum Brew.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, you and your husband, y'all would love that for sure.
Speaker 2:Cool, yeah, I'd like that.
Speaker 4:Yeah, very nerdy bar. They name their drinks Like. One of their drinks is called New Cola. They have the Rainbow Dash. They probably have some Wheel of Time ones now as well.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's awesome.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, I oh yeah. I'm sure they kind of upped the game based on the convention and everything. So yeah, they really embrace the nerd culture out there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they do. That was kind of cool. It seemed like a lot of people we met were very into nerd culture.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that was one of the bittersweet things that I was going to miss when I decided to leave Atlanta. I was like, oh man, I can just go down the sidewalk and see people sporting their video games, anime or whatever nerdy gear and it's not that taboo and you see that here in the Murfreesboro area in some instances, but it's not quite as huge. That demographic isn't nearly as big as it is in the Atlanta area.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that makes sense.
Speaker 1:But again, I'm so, so, so happy that you were able to go there at least once, and not only that, but actually be there as a panelist. So that is huge on that. So hopefully you get to go there again and and if and if you don't get to go there as a panelist, just go there as an attendant yeah, yeah if the finances permit you to do so that's the thing.
Speaker 2:But yes, for sure, yeah, yeah yeah, I, I understand that.
Speaker 1:I mean that's uh, even that two. How many days was in Texas? Even that three day trip to Texas, I was like oh my god, this is so great, I loved it. And then, when I look at my account, I'm like, oh, I can't do this all the time yeah, yeah, it just seems you know inflation and all that, but yeah, anyway, yeah yeah, but uh, yeah, how about you, mr Park? And you said that you had deviled into a couple of Anna new?
Speaker 3:anime series, watching a fair amount of an eclectic mix of things, this time trying to figure out where to start. Okay, going back, watch the flick from 2020 called Project Power, which was a lot of fun. The core idea is that you can get a superpower for five minutes if you take a pill, but the power is somewhat addictive and it's also a government experiment. And once your power manifests, that's the only power you get and you don't know what you're going to get. So a lot of people die on first manifestation because they can't control their power. Oh yikes, it's a really interesting thing. It's basically almost a drug movie, right, about police doing drug stings and trying to find the syndicate that's running it. Very interesting, but of course, superpowers are part of the game. I really enjoyed it, jamie Foxx, so anyway, watched.
Speaker 3:So I'm not generally a big fan of isekai or portal anime, portal fantasy, but I ended up watching a couple of those this time.
Speaker 3:One called uh sasuke and peeps, which is a weird little story. Um, 40 year old office worker guy wants to buy a pet, so he to the pet store and it turns out that the pet he buys is actually a powerful star wizard from a different world who shows up in the form of a small bird and, as a result, he starts going back and forth between that world and this world and it's basically intrigue, trade, government agency, all kinds of fun stuff there. What made it work for me was that it wasn't a I vanished from this world and went into another world to have an entirely different life. It was just we have the ability to go from here to there and back again, which made it different. And then how they're able to use, how the main characters are able to use, various things from each world in the other world. So a lot of fun Watched one called the Mists of sorry, that's not's not it ascendance of a bookworm, um, which was from I think that's actually from this year, um I haven't heard of that one.
Speaker 3:You haven't heard of it. It's. It's fairly new. It's 36 episodes altogether, including the OVA and the recap episodes. Basic idea a librarian dies when her own bookshelf topples over and kills her. She shows up in the body of a 10-year-old who has just died for other reasons and she re-inhabits the body at the moment of death so that the parents never know. She just has a fever and when she wakes up she's a different person. It's a really interesting story because she brings all of this eclectic knowledge that she's gained from being a librarian to introduce technologies and manufacturing methods and things like that in this world. At the same time, it is ascendance of a bookworm. She is pulled into the political intrigue of the kingdom and ends up ascending to royalty for many and various reasons. It was good enough that, even though the series ends, I wanted another season and it looks like there will be a fourth season. Maybe it's been talked about, but it hasn't been released, so we'll see I really enjoyed it.
Speaker 3:Again, I don't normally watch portal anime, portal fantasy. It's not my thing, but I really enjoyed this one Well and that says a lot then.
Speaker 2:Well, I've certainly been reading a lot of it. Yeah, have you?
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, Okay yeah, it's a series of light novels, and the novels go further than the anime did, I think, which is why there is room for a new season.
Speaker 2:I believe it. Yeah, I think a lot of it comes from the light novel genre.
Speaker 3:Yeah, oh no, that's where a lot of these iskai are coming from is light novels. Yeah, I think a lot of the animes.
Speaker 4:I've been watching recently have been based is light novels. Yeah, I think a lot of the animes I've been watching recently have been based on light novels that are turned to mangas or just light novels.
Speaker 2:It's funny, you can tell just by the title. Yes, the super long titles.
Speaker 3:Which is why this one was not bad. It was relatively short. Ascendance of a Bookworm. Good job, you guys.
Speaker 2:It's not terribly long I've been um reading jake's magical market, which is just great uh, yeah, that sounds fun so anyway yeah, how many, uh, and how many?
Speaker 1:well, I guess you want to know how many novels or how many mangas are out for that right now. Right, scott, I can look it up. Um, so yeah, I'm just wondering how how long of a series this has been before it switched into an anime. Uh, let's see uh Wikipedia page.
Speaker 3:The light novel there were 33 volumes.
Speaker 1:Oh, okay.
Speaker 3:There were 7 volumes of manga. Sorry, there were 24 volumes of manga and then there was 36 episodes plus two OVAs and there's a rumor of a part four coming out, oh okay, or a season four coming out. And the part four manga also came out seven volumes. So yeah, part 4 manga also came out 7 volumes. So yeah, the series, apparently. Well, the last release was December 9th 2023. So it's possibly still in process, don't know. You might know more about that than I do, abby, if you're actually reading them.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I haven't. No, that's like a little bit of a different when they're coming across translated.
Speaker 3:I don't usually read the translated ones, okay Okay, watched a really interesting little horror flick starring Liam Neeson called After Life, which is not like the TV series After Life I watched last time. It is possibly the creepiest straight up psychological horror story I've seen in recent years.
Speaker 1:That's great.
Speaker 3:That means I'll never see it, Yep never watching it. It's a hidden gem of Liam Neeson's filmography. He did a really stunningly good creepy job in this thing. And then, kind of the big thing, I watched another series that I'm not going to talk about. Okay, fine, I'll mention it Tenjo Tenge, which is a magical high school intrigue old guard, new kids fights, family history, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Speaker 4:That didn't end it just stopped.
Speaker 3:So, yeah, I wouldn't end, it just stopped um. So yeah, I would recommend it. It was interesting enough, but it. But don't go in believing you're gonna get a story, because it's obviously the first part of a much longer story and they haven't. There's no sign that they're going to continue, okay, so, um, and then, of course, I watched um the net.
Speaker 3:Sorry, the um amazon amazon, uh series, fallout, um. Now, having never played the games I've barely played them I don't know what some of the complaints about it are, but let me say I talked to one of my kids who played all the games, um about it. And here's the thing is those games have are necessarily kind of open in, in structure, um, and they're revealing things that you make your own decisions on, whereas a tv series is going to be a coherent narrative that has to bound certain things and has to collapse. Certain ideas make generalities specific. So, having said that, I adored this series.
Speaker 3:Eight episodes, a little over an hour each, or around an hour each, first and last, or a little bit longer. A lot of characters, a big setup. After the first episode I wasn't sure I was going to watch any more of it because it was a whole lot of characters, a lot of absurdity. It's really funny, but an absurd, you know, 50s pastiche in the nuclear age, sorry, in the post-apocalyptic age. It's, it's very cute and I highly recommend it. I mean it's, it's got interesting characters. It's got interesting characters. It's got intrigue for miles, and there are some good guys that may not be as good as they look like and some bad guys that may not be as bad as they look like, and that's kind of the point of the series. It ends up, I think, as one of the darkest stories I've seen recently in terms of its underlying commentary on the nature of humanity. Having said that, it's a very entertaining, absurd experience and there will be a season two, it's been announced.
Speaker 4:I liked it. I thought it was fun. I've barely played any of the games so I can't really compare the games to it, but my fear was it was going to be Halo. It was going to be another Halo. Halo, in my opinion, started off really good and every episode kind of got worse. That's my personal opinion. I know some people love the series, but I thought Fallout was the opposite. It started off I thought little weak. You know it was a little confusing, trying to like I had my wife, who had never played the games, you know, was kind of a little lost.
Speaker 3:And then it kind of got better and better and as it picked up steam about halfway through episode three it finally kind of finds itself and we have the two main narrative threads and that's really well done. From there on out, it's really well done. I mean, I watched the first episode, waited two days, watched the second and third episode waited a day and then watched the rest of the series in one set which was seven hours deep into the night.
Speaker 1:So that's how much I know we talked about it a little after our previous recording, but this might have to be the show that makes me go ahead and buy a quick subscription to Amazon Prime, just so I can check it out. I've heard nothing but good things about it, even from I haven't, at least in my network of people. I haven't heard about any complaints from the actual fans of the game.
Speaker 3:There's a couple of things where they had to make decisions and they had to combine a couple of games and do some things that were never done in the game, because this is about specific characters, not a broad world and do some things that were never done in the game. I mean they had to because this is about specific characters, not a broad world. They have to do that.
Speaker 4:I will say some of the deep cuts they've done after that game I find hilarious. In one of the episodes there's a if you have a problem with your vault, call this number. You can actually call it and you actually hear the guy who plays the ghoul screaming and yelling in the background. Um, and then uh, there's they actually released how you can actually build each main character in the game, in the game itself, like here's the builds you you would do to make these characters in in the actual game.
Speaker 4:I was like that's okay, that's actually pretty fun to actually, you know, come up with that and do that um but but yeah, I thought fallout was a fun, was fun and I think in my opinion it's probably the uh, probably, I wouldn't, I might. I still think that sonic is the best video game adaptation movie. I think fallout, suppose, has been one of the best video game adaptation shows that has come out has been one of the best video game adaptation shows that has come out.
Speaker 2:I look forward to seeing it. But yeah, I just have been watching Shogun and then I'm kind of starting just saw the first episode of the Three-Body.
Speaker 1:Problem. Oh yeah, Let me know what you think about that one.
Speaker 2:So far, so good. Yeah, it's not bad.
Speaker 1:It's not that many episodes, is it? I think it's like only eight episodes.
Speaker 2:I think so.
Speaker 1:Okay, I still got some. Oh my gosh. I was looking through my Netflix list again and remembering why I had unsubscribed the first time, because I was like, oh my god, I am never going to get through this list, there's no point in it. I've become a little more selective, and Three-Body Problem is a good one that I keep hearing good things about, so definitely want to check that one out too.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think so.
Speaker 1:It's worth it Cool and well how about you, mr Johnson.
Speaker 4:I have watched a lot of anime because the fall-winter lineup has ended and now they've started the spring lineup. Some of it I want to get scott's opinion on, so but the ones that you know, I wouldn't recommend to to you guys, because one I like are. You know some of the sk ones? Um, it's, I watched one called um, living living in a world with level two, uh, level two cheat magic or something on those lines. Um, it's, you know the again, two, uh, two people get summoned.
Speaker 4:One of them has like really crappy, like he. One of them was already living in a fantasy world, like and, uh, he got summoned to another fantasy world and uh, and he, uh, he basically had like some, some really like bad stats, while this other kind of snobby character had like 999 for every single stat. So the king was like hey, this guy's and it's obviously hero, you're no one we're like. Oh, like they basically waited too long. Oh, we waited till I send you home, so we don't want you to. We don't want people to know that we screwed up and accidentally blocked you here, so we're gonna banish you.
Speaker 4:So they basically banished the guy out to this forest where the demon king's army is supposed to be and he ends up being like he ends up casting a spell that levels him up and all the stats are infinite and he's just like I just want to live my life and do nothing. So it's entertaining in itself, it's goofy, so it's like I said I wouldn't recommend it to you or Scott, but, like I said, it's one I'm kind of enjoying. Yeah, I finished up Free Run and I'm re-watching it in English and Raph those first few episodes. Even in English I'm still just like oh god, free Run, I just want to hug you. It just feels so bad for you.
Speaker 1:I watched the first one. My first run in it was in English.
Speaker 4:So I watched it all in Japanese First. Now I'm going back and re-watching it in English, but I will say I still think that is one of the best animes that has come out in a while and I fully support all the awards it's won so far. Just because it's, I really love the idea of the story that you know, as we mentioned before, it's a little bit of Survivor's Guild, but it's also kind of the take time and stop and appreciate what you currently have in your life, because Freerun's whole ideology for the first 10 years was it's only 10 years. Then she realizes oh wait, other people don't live long as me and I really regret I didn't know them. I think one of the characters actually mentions to her. She goes hey, they basically tell her to go free running. You should enjoy the people you have in your life, because it's not always death that causes them to leave. So it's, you know. So it's one of those where I was like you know, this is just a really good story and it just kind of reminds you to appreciate, you know kind of the things and people you have currently in your life, because you never know, the next day something could easily change. Yep, because you never know, the next day something could easily change. Yep, yep, yep, um. So I highly recommend.
Speaker 4:If you haven't watched that show yet, I highly recommend it. It's. It's like I said, I personally think it's one of the best ones to come out in a couple years. Um, demon slayer is a really good one, but I still think free run beats it out. Um, so I was very sad when I finished it and I saw a post which I found hilarious was uh, after free run ended, they go. This is the first. This is the first week in 28 weeks we don't have a new free run, and I just kind of laughed and I was like I kind of laughed. I was like, oh, they're right. Um, so I was looking for leave quite the void it does.
Speaker 4:So I was looking for another anime to watch and I found, as you recommended, like I'd heard about but never watched it, I found diaries of aaries of an Apothecary and I fell in love with that series. I power watched that. It was so good. One thing I really love about that series it does have a few goofy moments.
Speaker 4:As they call her the apothecary she is obsessed with poisons, absolutely obsessed. She loves the taste of poisons. She loves to test out new poisons, yeah, yeah. Well, as the story goes on, you kind of find out from her family lineage it's not much of a big surprise, but it's one of those where but?
Speaker 4:So she basically ends up like she runs an apothecary for a brothel that she lives in and she ends up getting during that time and age, a lot of girls were kidnapped and sold into uh, either sold into slavery, sold as as to become uh, become, um, uh, concubines themselves, or sold, you know, to houses, um, and so she ends up getting sold and there's a lot of like political backing and a lot of talking about, like how women were treated in that era.
Speaker 4:Um, and it's really interesting, just because she ends up getting sold to one of the, what it's called, one of the uh, the rear palace, which is where only women are allowed and it's where the king, uh, or the emperor, keeps his concubines. So he's the only one, like only the only man can work. There are eunuchs, so he is the only one who comes in there, so that way he knows that, oh, the children are only his, so you know, he could create heirs. That's like the entire purpose of that place is to create heirs, uh, for his, for that fast in human history, all right yeah, but so, but it's just interesting because she kind of gets they.
Speaker 4:They eventually figure out that you know, she knows how to read and write and she ends up getting hired as a taste tester and you know, and yes, and so that's one of the reasons she also loves poison. So she's like, oh, I love this job, I get to eat great foods, I get to taste poison if there's any in there and you know she's very knowledgeable. That's like the comedy of it is her loving poison and all the other characters going. That's really not normal. You shouldn't be happy that someone's trying to get poisoned well, I appreciate her half glass full mentality.
Speaker 4:Yes but, like I said, the one thing I love about that political backstories they have going on because there's again, because you have these concubines, each one kind of vying to be the emperor's favorite, you have some subterfuge going on and she tends to get dragged in because they quickly realize she's kind of like a Sherlock Holmes-esque character where she's very observant and is very knowledgeable because she's been kind of training her entire life to be like an apothecary slash doctor. So she has a lot of just different knowledge that gets used in it and she's really good at kind of figuring out puzzles. So it's very entertaining. I recommend that one Raph. I think you'll enjoy it. It's on Crunchyroll and, like I said, one I want to recommend but unfortunately it looks like Scott is having some internet issues I think Scott would like. It's called God's Game and in this anime the gods had gotten bored so they descended down onto Earth basically and challenged humanity to a series of games like non-lethal games, where if you win ten in a row you are granted any wish your heart desires, but if you lose three in a row you're banned from ever playing the gods' games again. The main character named Faye, he is what they're calling humanity's kind of hope to get the wish because he's won three games and he loves games. He just absolutely loves any type of game. The humans have found a fallen god who also loves games and she, like, demands the best player of their generation, which is Faye. So they kind of decide to form a team and go play these gods games. And the interesting thing about the game when they show them playing playing it is there's a set of rules you generally have to figure out. So one of them is a sort of game of tag, but it's of course there's an under rule you have to figure out about the game. And it's really interesting as the game goes on. They kind of show you the rules that they figured out so far and at the very end of the episode they show you the entire rules of that game that they figured out in either won or lost. So it is a little campy at some points. But I more like the when they're trying to. I more enjoy them figuring out the games and figuring out the puzzle of it. So, like I said, I was going to recommend that one to Scott. I know he kind of likes some of those as well.
Speaker 4:I watched two shows on netflix. One is based on a 1985 manga by the same name called city hunter, um, where basically if you have a problem or if there's something you want to find, you go to this chalkboard in this um uh subway and you write xyz and then put your issue. The city hunters will come and solve your problem for you. And uh, the main, and it's it's very much you can tell this is based on a manga, anime, the main they do. So far I've watched about half the movie um, and apparently the city hunters is extremely popular. It's been remade multiple times into tv series, animes, um. This is the latest iteration in a movie. I think they do a very good job of keeping humor into this and like watching, like, yeah, you can tell this is based on anime because it's the actor does a really good job of selling that um, but so far I'm enjoying it. It's a fun, kind of goofy uh series uh so far, with a little bit of detective kind of mixed in, because his, the city hunters, are two people one of them gets killed and the other one is trying to solve the murder of what's going on, and so it's a little interesting in that. So I kind of have a little detective kick going.
Speaker 4:The other one I was going to recommend to Scott is on Netflix as well, called Judge D. It is based on a I believe it's a. It's based on around Japanese or Chinese novels that were written of a Sherlock Holmes-esque character that is from Chinese or Japanese history I apologize, I can't remember which one it is and the main character is a detective. He basically solves crimes. The main character is a detective. He basically solves crimes and each one and they each one kind of there is like an underlying main case he's trying to solve, but he kind of solves little cases in between, like in between the episodes, between the main story.
Speaker 4:So it's, it's very entertaining. So far I'm I'm enjoying it a lot. It's, you know, it's been a pretty interesting one. It's live action, so it has some martial arts fighting, has the clues kind of hidden around and the character kind of being again like a Hercule S Sherlock Holmes-esque character. I couldn't tell you which one came first because I honestly don't know which character was written first or which one's based off, possibly based off the other one. I'd have to do a little more research on that. But other than those, I've been playing Dragon's Dogma 2, which I know you beat, and I've been having fun just more running around the first area, still just goofing around having fun, and of course, final Fantasy XIV as well.
Speaker 1:Very nice Segmenting into that. Like Eric said, yes, I did complete the Well, my first playthrough of Dragon's Dogma 2. I went back and decided to do the Game Plus just because there was a lot of things that I missed, despite me trying to flip over every nook and cranny and find all the missions and all the side quests and stuff. But the the world is so, it's not even that. The world is so big, it's just so rich and they just it's. It's really, it's a really, really, really great. Uh, take on good open world, uh, level design, because, um, I was talking to one of my uh buddies and we all know about the dreaded hinterlands and dragon age inquisition, where it was just, or like a lot of those maps in dragon Age Inquisition, where it was.
Speaker 1:We're coming into that period. You know the 360 yeah, that was 360, right. Yeah, yeah, the 360 PS3 period where video games were well, the consoles and computers are getting a lot more powerful and so a lot of people could, a lot of developers, they could make these huge worlds as big as they wanted, but we quickly realized that sometimes it's quality over quantity and so there's a bunch of games that came out that were just obnoxiously huge for no good reason. And then you get a game, a bunch of games that came out where there were just obnoxiously huge for no good reason. And then you get a game like dragons dog more or, or, or, or.
Speaker 1:A lot of people bought boulders gate. I know a lot of people were really, really when it came out. Elden ring was a great example of solid, open, world level design. Just be it, just wasn't mindless. Annoying fluff just for the sake of fluff. I mean everything in that world. You were captivated to check it out like you wanted to go see what it was I will say one thing.
Speaker 4:That about dark dragon 2 that doesn't annoy me a little bit is I really wish they would either lower the respawn time of enemies or have them more spread out, because at least in the first area I get a little annoyed when I'm trying to get from point A to point B and I run into about 60 different enemies. I'm just like, okay, yes, the combat can be fun, but I really just want to get here. I'm really getting tired of having to fight my way to get to this point. It's like I already killed everything on this road, you know, without even resting, and I'm going back and everything's been respawned. I was like it's kind of a little annoying.
Speaker 1:Well, that's a you problem, because you're playing the game in your own unique way.
Speaker 4:I like to run around and explore.
Speaker 1:Which isn't. This isn't the wrong way, but I don't think the game developers designed the game with the expectation of people playing the game for this length of time and not having moved on to certain areas by this point.
Speaker 4:I can't help it if the PlayStation says I've been playing for 20 hours and 0% of the story has been completed.
Speaker 1:Well, again, that's a you problem, but I mean, like I said, hey, you play the game the way that you want to play it. But I have been very, very much enjoying my second playthrough. I am looking forward to eventually venturing out into the second area, just because because right now, the area I'm at I'm ridiculously OP, so I kind of roll my eyes whenever I come across a griffon or ogre or a troll. I'm just like man, I really don't have. Okay, okay, fine, fine, fine, okay, let's get you out of the way real quick. But but I I've been enjoying finding all these uh additional, these additional, um, uh, side quests that I missed out on and actually, main quest storylines that I missed out on.
Speaker 1:Uh, much to my surprise, there's some stuff that really, um, once I got to the end game, I was like, well, wait a minute, what about this situation that happened that never got covered? Well, it never got covered because, uh, my first playthrough, I did it, I didn't talk to the right people in order to unravel more of the storyline and stuff. So I mean it's, it's, it's a really, really fun game. It's not. I don't expect it's not. I don't expect it like story-wise, I don't expect it to be a game of the year as far as story is concerned, but things get really, really interesting near the end, and I told Eric to make sure that he gives me a heads up when he gets to the credits, because yeah.
Speaker 4:It's going to be a while. Well, yeah, but please remember to do that, Otherwise you might regret yeah, I mean I I have an idea what I need to do. I I saw something that kind of told me something I'm supposed to do around that time okay, cool.
Speaker 1:Um, what else was there? Uh, oh, I finally got around to watching, uh, masters of the Universe Revolution on Netflix. I know it's been out for quite some time.
Speaker 4:Revelation or Revolution. It's Revolution, revolution, okay, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:I've watched like three episodes of that. It's only five episodes. And again, it's one of those cases where Kevin Smith wrote the story, assuming that you know everything about he-man and masters of the universe, um, from when you're a kid itself. So, um, it doesn't really give you a lot of background. It just kind of picks up where the original series left off and like, okay, here you go, um, but, um, I, I really like this. I guess you would kind of call it the second season of, like the netflix version of this. Um, they did set up to have another season, uh, after this, um, but yeah, it's just been a really interesting take and I, I like seeing, uh, all these childhood action figures I used to play with as a kid, getting a modern uptake with animation and all that stuff. That was pretty fun, what else? There was something else.
Speaker 1:I also watched the second part of Rebel Moon Scargiver. I actually liked the second part more than I did the first part. Maybe it was because I was able to temper my expectations a little bit with the second part and not not to say I was like, oh my god, it was like so bad. I like really had to lower my standards, but at the same time. I knew exactly, I knew what I was getting into. Uh, story story wise. But aside from that, I think I told everyone, basically it's the seven samurai or the magnificent seven in space, and I'm not going to give too much of a spoiler. But if you watch any of those takes on the uh, magnum 777, that that that story, you, you should have a general idea of like how things unfold. But now, uh, things are pretty much up in the air.
Speaker 1:After the first, well, after the second installment came out and I was like, oh well, now it's up to Zack Snyder to interpret where this story is going to go. They dabbled into all the seven key characters, what their background was, what their story was, because in the first half or in the first movie, I felt it was a bit rushed. But that was just because Snyder knew that he was going to have more time to actually delve into what makes these characters more special, whereas in the first film he was just more like, okay, I'm routing up this crew of people and stuff. So, yeah, I was pleasantly surprised by the second installment and I honestly look forward to seeing where it goes from here. So, yeah, rebel Moon on Netflix. Be sure to check that out if that gets your interest. Beyond that, I think that was about. Oh, I also went and saw Dune for the third time in IMAX. Okay, you're at number two, scott. I saw it with my wife on IMAX. Okay, you're at number two.
Speaker 1:Scott I saw it with my wife on IMAX.
Speaker 3:Let me tell you something that movie on.
Speaker 1:IMAX is unbelievable, ain't it?
Speaker 4:Oh my. I don't have a movie buddy anymore, so I didn't get to go see it because my wife didn't want to see it at all.
Speaker 1:That hurt my feelings so much when you told me that, eric, you might just have to suck it up, you might just have to go by yourself.
Speaker 4:It's not in the theaters anymore.
Speaker 3:Oh really, Really I didn't go yesterday.
Speaker 4:I haven't seen it in theaters near me.
Speaker 3:Well, it was only in the one theater for me, so it might have been its last week out. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I actually had to go a little ways out to see the IMAX version again myself, because it was originally the first time I saw it. It was in my hometown of Franklin, where they got IMAX there, but this time I actually had to go to Nashville to see it. But I was just like you know what. I know it's not going to be in the theaters for much longer. I got to see it again and I need to see it on IMAX. It needs to be seen on IMAX. Oh, my goodness, wow, it's such a movie. It is such a movie. And when I say it's such a movie, I mean they recognize the medium that they're using to tell this story. Right, you know this thing has, sorry, no, no no, go ahead, go ahead.
Speaker 3:Like I say, this thing gets the sense of grandeur. I mean the word is not nearly big enough for what this movie does. I mean the word is not nearly big enough for what this movie does. If you ever saw Lawrence of Arabia and were amazed at its just sense of scope and size, that's kiddie animation. Compared to this thing, it is absolutely extraordinary. The cinematography, the sound, design, everything about this is just dead on perfect. It is an almost perfect use of the medium.
Speaker 4:yes, seen in imax, with the big sound and the wraparound screen oh, oh, golly, gee willikers batman, that's a good show apparently today was the last day they were showing an imax near me. They're showing it in other places, but not an imax, and I don't. I won't be able to see it because apparently they stopped showing it on the ninth and I'm actually leaving town for a? Uh for a week. And I won't be able to see it because apparently they stopped showing it on the 9th and I'm actually leaving town for a week and I won't be back until it comes out, which I'm very sad about as well, because Gundam Seed Freedom comes out only for three days and I'm out of town for those three days.
Speaker 3:See, not kidding, I currently own a 48-inch HDTV, which is perfect for my family room To watch this movie at home. I will go buy a 72 inch, or just so I can get it on the screen as I possibly can. It's worth it, it's absolutely worth it.
Speaker 1:I mean, even my parents, who aren't really big into well, my dad's into sci-fi he was a big Trekkie growing up actually, but I know my mom really isn't into those sorts of films but even they saw they after hearing me talk about it on the imax and they my dad, text me. It's like yeah, your mom and I we just saw it in imax. Wow, I was like right, yeah, um, so, eric, hopefully maybe in the five, ten year anniversary and a celebration comes back.
Speaker 3:When they release Dune Messiah which you can guarantee they'll do they'll reissue the first two movies.
Speaker 4:Go see them all well, maybe Marcus will be in Atlanta by then and I can get him to come watch it with me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, for sure. But yeah, I think that's going to go ahead and wrap things up and that's going to conclude this Nerdy Ted episode. So stay tuned in another two weeks because, don't worry, we do Nerdy Ted episodes every month, but in two weeks we will be in the second segment of our story by nerds segment, that being Snowfall, and Scott Parkin is going to be at the second segment of our story by nerd segment, that being snowfall, and scott parkin is going to be at the helm. But whatever the case, folks, if you like our nerdy chat epixels or our story by nerd segments, be sure to give us a like heart thumbs up stars.
Speaker 1:Whatever source it is, a podcast is whether that's itunes, spotify, iheart radio I always do this, etc. Etc. By this point you iTunes, spotify, iheartradio I always do this, et cetera, et cetera. By this point you get the idea. But, folks, that's going to do it for this episode of the Storytellers Podcast. Hey, I'm Rafael. I'm doing all key thinking better on the collective level. This is Scott, abby and Eric signing off. Scott, what is going to be fun?
Speaker 3:Everybody wants to save the world.
Speaker 1:We just disagree on how I figured it's simple Just give everyone some cotton candy and call it a day.
Speaker 4:What about the people who are sugar intolerant? Oh my God, see, that's what the poet is. Thank you,