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janus1172

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Posts posted by janus1172


  1. It's kind of interesting that this started with Brett B tweeting at me asking me to be held accountable for comparing Collins to Jackie Robinson.

     

    I wish there had been more time to return to this issue. As the conversation eventually led to, both are heroes, but it's hard to compare what each had to go through (for Jason, still going to go through). But the original comparison Matt made in his tweet was about rednecks mad with Robinson and homophobes mad with Collins. And this is a totally fair comparison—the homophobic backlash to Collins IS going to look just as disgusting as the racist backlash to Robinson in 20 years. Brett missed the actual crux of the analogy in the first place. Not that he needed more things to get called out on, but his reasoning for engaging with Matt in the first place was flawed.

     

     

    Also, just my two cents, but I don't think Matt should worry at all about having the other improvisers on during Case Closed. Usually, they lighten the mood a bit (because they're less invested and more likely to joke), throw in a few comments, or even clarify the caller's points. And if it does start to seem like a pile-on, he can always tell them to back off.

    • Like 1

  2. Good news! Cigarette Juice!!

    Artwork seems to be coming through on Mac iTunes for me now. Got CBB and imrov4humans logos last week no problem automatically. And just saw improv4humans auto downloaded again. Thanks for whoever fixed it!

    It's not the worst thing in the world, but with a dozen or so podcasts on my phone it's nice to see at a glance what new eps I have.


  3. Ok to jump on this jazz run up: I'm also a big jazz fan and have played in jazz groups off and on. I watched the above video including a turn with Take the A Train. I would rate the improvisation throughout at about the level of a competent state university jazz ensemble. That is, perfectly fine, but nothing to write home about at all. But also nothing I'd want to sit through 3 hours of.

    That's been my experience of Phish throughout listening to this podcast: so so singing, so so to silly lyrics (which can be fine if I "got" the joke more), and so so improvisation. It seems like every aspect of the band I could find better elsewhere. But they do bring together a lot of elements, which produces a unique product. There's just not a hook in any of it for me.


  4. Is anyone else having trouble getting Earwolf podcast art to download in iTunes?
     
    Every Earwolf show doesn't automatically the art and when I select "Get Album Artwork" it doesn't do anything. Other podcasts do auto download (Nerdist, NPR shows); some don't auto download but I can use "Get Album Artwork" to get art (JJGo, Judge John Hodgman).
     
    Happened today when I downloaded the new Totally Laime, which had always come with the art, but now on Earworlf it doesn't.


  5. Here's my thoughts after listening to the epilogue:

    1. TRANSPARENCY. I think the biggest issue, which did get touched on a fair bit, was on lack of transparency at certain points. Having the discussion about what counts as a recurring segment or using the guest or what funny means is fine. But it worries the audience with so much confusion that judgments aren't fair. If like Matt said in this show, it didn't have a deep impact on the decision, then saying that in Day 3 quells a lot of the problems. Same thing for the LHR elimination. If Matt had said clearly, "We did give them some leeway because of the nature of the challenge but we still felt it wasn't good enough given that leeway," then people would be more appeased. In retrospect, the producers, Matt, and judges were not tripped up by criteria or fairness, it just needed to be more transparent and clearly communicated throughout.
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    2. NATURE OF CHALLENGES. I think there are plenty of options for Season 2 challenges that ARE real challenges, but don't push podcasts outside of their wheelhouse in terms of content or production. For example, Intro, Recurring Segment, Using the Guest all were general enough and open enough that the playing field was limited. Challenges about, for instance, interacting with listeners or pitching the overall show are general and open. Challenges such as focus on a current event or use a certain catch phrase are fun challenges that are also open, but specific for the Earwolf Challenge. Focusing on a solid list of open and level challenges will help mitigate complaints.
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    3. HOSTING VS. JUDGING. Having a separate host and constant judge is a great idea. Someone who opens the show, maybe leads through Day 1 is great. Then the recurring judge (hopefully Matt!!) is joined by 2 guests judges. Matt can base his judging off all weeks and the guests can do it for just that submission. This would give the show a more structured tone, I feel, and give Matt room to do the part he liked best.
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    4. DAY ONE. This is where having a host would be helpful. I really like the idea of just having the host give a quick recap of the judges' comments and having the show talk about how they hope to change (or not) for this week. For example, "F Plus, the judges said they thought you needed to break up the reading with more commentary. What do think? How can you fix that this week?" That would give the shows a chance to talk about their ideas for this week and respond to criticism. It's similar to the defense part of Day 3, but now they know they're safe. I think this would also give the listeners a chance to hear the character growth. The host can even talk about who is the front runner, how did you feel about last week, blah blah, like Matt did. The coaching aspect depends too much on the podcasts being really prepared and got too repetitive. Discussions on criteria and definitions can wait for Matt and the judges on Day 2, since not all the podcasts are privy too those discussion anyway. And again, as long as they are transparent about if/how those criteria discussions affect judgment, then everyone will be fine.
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    5. SEASON TWO. Please can we haz it???

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