Pretty Hate Machines (Atomic Array 052)

Where do I complain about less Rone in the show?

Good interview Ed. You kept it together despite Rone’s mysterious absence. And you didn’t censor out your one stumble, for that I’d buy you a beer. Rone’s rant was one of the funniest yet… I hate watching regular TV because of those damn ads for an upcoming show that pop-up NON-STOP!! And the commercials…Pretty, pretty pain cave. Now I’m going to interrupt myself and go on an ADD/brainwashing rant! No! Must resist!
Not a big fan of the Mansen… I miss Faith No More. Loved the range of Patton’s singing on some of those albums. I wish Tenacious D would do a cover of Digging the Grave. And yet again, I digress. I blame Rone’s rant.

You’ve come to the right place, Theodric.

Thanks, Sean. I’ll take you up on that offer at PaizoCon if you’re coming again this year…

That’s one vote for Rone and one vote for Ed, thus far.

Thanks for the rant compliment, Sean… but slide any gifts for gaffs left in the show on over to me as I’m the show’s editor. Ed should get nothing but a bill for a really expensive Blu-ray collection.

Oh, and a sincere thank you for your vote, Theodric. I’m new to this kissing hands and shaking babies thing. If I win this election, I promise to save you a seat on the couch so we can watch the films Ed has to buy me.

Rant continued… (I kept on ranting over on FB while talking to Pathfinder contributing author Julian Neale.)

I shouldn’t have to go check IMDB for credits, nor are they anywhere near as thorough over there. The credits should appear legibly at the end of the film or program. The filmmaker’s artistic intentions for them should be honored. The soundtrack should not be interrupted. The film not sped or shrunken in a small box.

When they squash that information, they’re paying lip service to the idea of credit being given, but they’re “loopholing” the process. Either you believe that credit should be given for work done don’t or you don’t. They clearly don’t and so they’ve sabotaged the process, but always only a small step at a time so we won’t complain loud enough or raise a fuss, like a cautiously filched civil liberty. Thus, as long as we let them keep finding new ways to interrupt our immersion into our art, bit by commercially bit, they’ll keep upping the ante and TV and film in ten years will be astoundingly cluttered with new, absurd kinds of interruptions that would make us gasp present day. As it is, trying to watch a TV program is like watching a stage play where a naked fire swallower keeps sauntering through the orchestra pit every five minutes as a sort of Dadaesque non-sequitur. Then, just as the actors all begin to bow at the finale… someone shouts fire.

I thought the interview was fine. What I’d really like to see is Rone doing a show on his own. That way we can compare them all. You guys might be able to get more shows out if you could split them up, and that would be good for everyone.

That’s two for Ed. One for Rone. Thank you for your terrible vote, Bryan. ;)

Splitting interviews would not lead to more shows, because the problem with show release isn’t really my availability for the interview segment. That’s not what happened this time around. Ed just went and, oddly, did an interview without me. It’s not something you’ll ever see happen again on an Atomic Array podcast with the possible exception of a Special Edition. Nevertheless, it was a teaching moment, and all that.

Splitting Ed and I up on interviews would deprive people from hearing our team dynamic on them, which we thought was something special. Neither Ed nor I would do an Array episode on our own. It wouldn’t be fun enough for us to bother. Our friendship and teamwork is what makes it enjoyable.

As for what a Rone solo show would be like… you could always listen to my solo interviews on the Open Design podcast (We’ll archive them here soon), or listen to my solo interviews on the Iron GM podcast (available only at irongm.com until we get a better site up)… that’ll give you the gist.

Haven’t had a change to listen yet, but this is either the third or the fourth interview with BlackWyrm Games and i’m curious as to why? Not that i don’t enjoy the podcast, but each other, other than the first which was Gestalt, are all about Hero System adventures, which have a rather limited use, at least to me and most of the gamers i know, who don’t play much supers or Hero at all. Are their just less people interested in being interviewed or scheduling conflicts?

Why do we feature HERO System adventures? We kinda like ‘em. We try to pepper in a variety of genres and systems - from 4th Edition Dungeons & Dragons to Kagematsu. There are a healthy number of system-specific podcasts out there, so we try to touch on a little of everything. I guess you could say that we talk about the games that we find interesting, and we like more than just one game, so…

what i ment was of the last 4 episodes, 3 of them have been these Blackwyrmm products, previously there had been a lot of different products, and rarely more than 2 or 3 with the same company. I’m curious as to how it came about and of there are just fewer companies willing to come onto the podcast?

Hi Dave,

Two of the last four were Blackwyrm Games, but we haven’t had those guys on for a while.

We were going to talk to Michael about his adventure at some later date, in order to space it out, but when our next guest wasn’t available in time to do a show, it was actually a good thing Ed did this interview or we’d have had nothing to make a show with.

So Ed gets the stick for whimsically doing interviews without me, but he gets the carrot for accidentally saving our bacon.

So your answer is clearly stick, carrot, bacon. I hope that helps. :)

Speaking of rendering credit where the credit is due…
Have you ever noticed an actor give credit to the film crew and/or the writers, producers, directors, etc. of a film during an interview? I have not, ever!!

(Pssst, you egomanical narcissist, if it wasn’t for all of the other people involved on the project, you would look like sh–!)

I hear ya, Sean. Actors often have a way of only paying credit to their immediate peers and those who may hire them again.

Some actors are very cool about thanking their crews though. But you do have to sift a lot of sand to find them.

Their aint no array, without the jade!!!!!!

We have a tie! Thank you, Ben. :)

I really enjoyed Ed’s interview and I look forward to more Atomic Healy. Of course, I’d like to hear the Rone Array…

Thank you for your vote, James.

Three votes for Ed’s solo interviews needing no two man chemistry to make our show what it is. Two votes for our two man chemistry being integral to what makes our show what it is. Those were the only critera for this poll. But worry not, our next poll will ask which one of us has the most alluring kneecaps. I’m your man if you like a manly prominence, but Ed’s got the edge on smooth joint integration.

If we’d released a show this Friday, we would have been tied before this last tie-breaking vote that just came in and I wouldn’t have to reach into my wallet and dress the Healy. But as it stands, one week until the vote closes. I will be *chewing fingernails until then.

*Not my own. I have a girl who comes in once a week.

I’ll happily vote to tie things up again. I’ve come to expect a certain amount of trash-talk in my array and a solo format just wouldn’t support it.

March 28th shall forevermore be known as Erik Day in my house. We are tied once more!

Did Rone leave Ed behind when Ed had the flu that left him crawling on the floor like green slime? I say no! It’s the combo of Ed + Rone that makes the Array! No more solo acts please.

As for your bet, if you’re gonna spend $80 on Rone, spend it on something that will clear his drive on his little haunted house on the hill so he isn’t cut off from civilization from Christmas to Easter.

I love it when Michael is a guest. His games are a mirror to our real world, and his villains are always more than someone who twirls his mustache. He has his finger on the pulse of supers games. Bravo to him.

You enjoy watching the credits, Rone. I’m on my way to the parking lot and warming up the car while they’re rolling.

LOL. I know watching the credits roll isn’t a popular practice, but to hear how you run from them!

I’m so glad you see in Michael what we do. It’s a rare author who can bring a rare take to a genre.

Thank you for the vote! As for spending the $80 on snow removal instead of the Lord of the Rings Extended Edition Blu-Ray box set… yeah, probably a sensible idea. It’ll pay for most of a single plowing of under six inches. Anything more than that and they have to charge for you swinging back around and hitting it again. You know, shoveling six inches with a snow shovel, even on a 4000 sq foot monster of a steep hilled driveway isn’t that hard really. But as it tends to begin snowing overnight, I wake up to what looks like the top of Everest. Sometimes I go out and spend a twenty minutes shoveling up 100 sq foot of wet, heavy snow and tell myself, “Only 39 more of those to go!” Halfway through the job I’m often laying in the snow, spent, and yet hoping that my distant neighbors don’t spy me there and thing I had a coronary. Seriously. I actually life on of my legs up and rest it on my knee so they’ll know.