Patreon mini-podcasts

Aazealh

Aazealh

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By popular request, this is a thread dedicated to discussing our Patreon exclusive mini-podcast episodes. They're released monthly as a way to thank the generous donors who give back to Puella for her translations, and are meant to complement the public SkullKast episodes.

Three have been released so far:

Mini-Podcast 1: Reactions Over the Years
We turn back the dial to the beginning of the community (and even a little further!) to review some of our reactions to big Berserk events over the years.

Mini-Podcast 2: Drunk Podcast
Walter and I drink more than we normally do and then turn on the mics to discuss Berserk. @Gobolatula delivered us a list of questions that we must each answer, whether we want to or not.

Mini-Podcast 3: A Day in the Life of a SKnet Admin
How much time do we spend on the forum and talking about Berserk in our daily lives? What does it take to run a Berserk site for 20 years? Walter and I discuss these and more questions.
 
Thank you guys for the mini-episodes! I think this format is a very nice complement to the regular Skullcast. I for one can't wait for more episodes.

Aazealh said:
Mini-Podcast 2: Drunk Podcast
Walter and I drink more than we normally do and then turn on the mics to discuss Berserk. @Gobolatula delivered us a list of questions that we must each answer, whether we want to or not.
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Really fun episode! It's nice to hear you guys at your most relaxed.:serpico:

I guess I'm biased, and not in a good way, but I was also reminded of Native American chants when hearing Aaz sing. :farnese: @Aazealh, are you taking requests for singing other songs in future podcasts? :iva:

Aazealh said:
Mini-Podcast 3: A Day in the Life of a SKnet Admin
How much time do we spend on the forum and talking about Berserk in our daily lives? What does it take to run a Berserk site for 20 years? Walter and I discuss these and more questions.
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I thought that this episode was really informative. On a personal note, I check the forum the same way Aaz does. I guess I'm betrayed by my age as well.

One aspect of the life of an admin that I'm very interested in is the impact on your families. In Aaz' case, I guess there's not much (negative) impact, since both are fans of the series and both are members of the forum, but Walter's case is completely different. I'm not sure it's fair of me to ask about it, but I guess I'm asking anyway. :rakshas:

I'm not an admin, but I can say that by now my wife is pretty much used to my spending time on the forum, though she still makes comments about it, perhaps something like "again on the forum?"
 
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m said:
I guess I'm biased, and not in a good way, but I was also reminded of Native American chants when hearing Aaz sing. :farnese: @Aazealh, are you taking requests for singing other songs in future podcasts? :iva:
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Absolutely not taking requests! And I hadn't listened to that song in years, but I still say it's a close enough rendition (and I couldn't really belt it out because it was late at night). I'd like to see you do better!

m said:
One aspect of the life of an admin that I'm very interested in is the impact on your families. In Aaz' case, I guess there's not much (negative) impact, since both are fans of the series and both are members of the forum, but Walter's case is completely different. I'm not sure it's fair of me to ask about it, but I guess I'm asking anyway. :rakshas:

I'm not an admin, but I can say that by now my wife is pretty much used to my spending time on the forum, though she still makes comments about it, perhaps something like "again on the forum?"
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Well I'm a free man, I'm allowed to use electronic devices without supervision. :iva: More seriously, forum use doesn't take that much time outside of new episode releases. It's a commitment to be sure, but it's no big deal compared to the "standard" work/life balance issues more and more people seem to be dealing with.
 
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m said:
Thank you guys for the mini-episodes! I think this format is a very nice complement to the regular Skullcast. I for one can't wait for more episodes.
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That's great to hear. I like the short format quite a bit. Can just sit down for one brief, focused topic and then bounce.

m said:
One aspect of the life of an admin that I'm very interested in is the impact on your families. In Aaz' case, I guess there's not much (negative) impact, since both are fans of the series and both are members of the forum, but Walter's case is completely different. I'm not sure it's fair of me to ask about it, but I guess I'm asking anyway. :rakshas:
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I would say there's little to no impact on my family (wife + 2 kids). It's no different from work, really. And since I do most of my intense forum responses during work time anyway (shhh :rakshas: ), they don't really notice. It's all just typing on a screen, after all. Most people these days have their phones out for Instagram/Twitter/Facebook, I don't really do any of that, so the forum and chatting with Aaz occupies that slot in my life.

Now the podcast, that does take up family time, since we record those on weekends. I've had to arrange for babysitters in the past so that I can have an uninterrupted time to record, but not since Covid. Still, after close to 10 years of doing it, my wife and kid(s) get it. Once a month I'm in my office yelling about Berserk into a microphone for 3h.
 
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Thank you @Aazealh and @Walter for your replies! :serpico:

Aazealh said:
Absolutely not taking requests! And I hadn't listened to that song in years, but I still say it's a close enough rendition (and I couldn't really belt it out because it was late at night). I'd like to see you do better!
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Me? Sing that particular song better or at all? Impossible! :magni:

Walter said:
Still, after close to 10 years of doing it, my wife and kid(s) get it. Once a month I'm in my office yelling about Berserk into a microphone for 3h.
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It's been almost ten years already? Time sure flies...
 
I just finished listening to the episode on Griffith's tactics and I have to say I really like the laser-focus of these episodes. Really nice!

Also, for a moment you had me wondering whether this was a solo episode. No Aaz until about the five minute mark! :schnoz:
 
Nice episode indeed. I remember seeing some meme or video making fun of Griffith's "Guts-centric strategies" a few years ago, so this was a pretty interesting topic. (Griffith really seems to have the devil's own luck sometimes, eh? :void:)

m said:
Also, for a moment you had me wondering whether this was a solo episode. No Aaz until about the five minute mark! :schnoz:
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Yup, same. I was pretty surprised when Aaz appeared out of nowhere.
 
m said:
Also, for a moment you had me wondering whether this was a solo episode. No Aaz until about the five minute mark! :schnoz:
Click to expand...

Just couldn't get a word in. :iva: There's some more stuff I wanted to say too that ended up not fitting in, like how Miura gives us a nice aerial view of the setting in volume 4, or how he bothers drawing camps and divisions properly.

That aside, there’s a cool shot in volume 7 of Griffith riding at the front of his men, then being overtaken by Guts and the raiders. There’s a visually similar instance during the battle of Vritannis when Locus and his men come from either side in front of him to form an invincible vanguard against the Kushans. I thought it interesting to compare those two scenes.
 
Great choice of topic, as always. Even though they feel very bittersweet to me at the moment, I still enjoy them a lot.
 
Here's an update on the Patreon podcasts that have been published so far.

#1: Fan reactions over the years
We turn back the dial to the beginning of the community (and even a little further!) to review some of our reactions to big Berserk events over the years.

#2: Drunk Podcast
Walter and Aazealh drink more than we normally do and then turn on the mics to discuss Berserk. @Gobolatula delivered us a list of questions that we must each answer, whether we want to or not.

#3: A Day in the Life of a SKnet Admin
How much time do we spend on the forum and talking about Berserk in our daily lives? What does it take to run a Berserk site for 20 years? Walter and Aazealh discuss these and more questions.

#4: Griffith's Tactics
Was Griffith a tactical genius before he became a member of the God Hand? We take a look at the battles we see during the Golden Age arc and talk about what set the White Falcon and his band apart.

#5: The Berserk Trading Card Game
We take a look at the Berserk Trading Card Game released by Konami between 2003 and 2005. Still popular among collectors nowadays, it featured over 50 new paintings by Miura himself and remains one of the best merchandise produced for Berserk.

#6: On continuing Berserk
We discuss the limbo the series is currently in, with the frustration it brings among many fans. We share our thoughts on why continuing Berserk without Miura is all but impossible, go into detail on the complexities of creating the manga, and touch on what our ideal scenario would be.

#7: What Are We Up To
Since we just released two special episodes of the SkullKast to discuss the news about episode 364, we figured we would do something different for this month's Patreon podcast. That's why you'll hear us talk a bit about ourselves and what we're reading/watching/playing outside of Berserk. Hope you like it!

#Special: Ask us anything
Walter and Aazealh answer various questions from our Patreon subscribers for over an hour, with two live guests.

#8: Berserk video games
This month's podcast is all about video games. Walter and Aazealh give their thoughts on the Berserk video games of the past, but also discuss what they would like to see in future games.

#9: Discovering Berserk in the future
Following a work as it is released is quite a different experience from finding out about it years after all's said and done. In this mini-podcast Walter and Aazealh recount their own encounters and explore how Berserk might be different for future readers.

#10: Casca
We revisit the main heroine of Berserk and her difficult role in the story. From her introduction during the Golden Age, her survival of the Eclipse, her years as a shell of herself where she's paradoxically the one thing keeping Guts sane, and why she is the one and only woman for Guts.

#11: Casual talk about games
Merry Christmas everyone! In the spirit of giving for the holidays, we recorded a bonus podcast just for you guys. It's a non-Berserk talk where Walter & Aazealh just casually chat about what video games they're currently playing and what they're looking forward to in 2022. And you won't believe it, but we don't even mention Elden Ring!

#12: The Dragon Slayer
On this episode of our Patreon-exclusive podcast, we talk about Guts' iconic weapon: the Dragon Slayer. From its core concept to its stripped down design and of course its depiction and the story, we go over why it's essential to Berserk and how it has shaped the series.

#13: 80s movies
Join us as we time warp back to the 1980s, when action movies were king. We discuss what made this era of movies special, their influence on us, and naturally — their influence on Miura and the creation of Berserk.

#14: From Software & Berserk
With the recent release of Elden Ring, with which From Software seems to have broken into the mainstream, Walter & Aazealh go over the oft evoked connections between the studio's games and Berserk.

#15: Reacting to Hoshi's tribute to Miura
In this episode, Walter & Aazealh go over Takashi Hoshi's tribute to Kentarou Miura that was published in Young Animal last year (for reference, you can find it translated here). We touch on their relationship and on Hoshi's perspective about the one who was both a friend and a mentor to him.

#16: The Berserk "Splatter Platter"
To spice things up this time around, we decided to each pick three scenes in the series and submit it to the other to get his reaction. Of course, it wouldn't be complete without a gimmicky name, so Walter christened this... the Berserk "Splatter Platter" (like a sample platter).

#17: Who is Kouji Mori
With Kouji Mori now being in charge of Berserk's continuation, we take a deeper look at what both he and Miura have said about each other over the years to better understand who he is and what their relationship was.

#18: Guts' battles during the Golden Age
For this show we're going over Guts' fights during his youth and how they helped shape him into a man that could survive the Eclipse... And subsequently become the Black Swordsman. We also had a few drinks as we talked!

#19: Influental works
We recorded this podcast directly following the previous one, where he had some drinks while we talked. We are therefore slightly buzzed as we go over the cultural works that marked our childhoods, be it novels, comic books, TV series, movies or video games —and how they prepared us to fall in love with Berserk.

#20: Reacting to Mori's tribute to Miura, part 1
In this episode, Walter & Aazealh go over Kouji Mori's tribute to his best friend, Kentarou Miura. This tribute is both the most expansive as well as one of the most personal ones, going over a friendship that spanned 40 years. In fact it's big enough that we're splitting our commentary in two. This is part one!

#21: Reacting to Mori's tribute to Miura, part 2
Second part of our review of Kouji Mori's tribute to Kentarou Miura, who was his best friend for 40 years and to whom he owes his life. Mori goes over the plans they had made for their late life and the manga about their life Miura was pushing him to do.

#22: The Splatter Platter Returns
The Splatter Platter is back! Walter and Aazealh each choose three moments from Berserk and submit them to the other, who then has to give his thoughts on them without preparation. What will it be this time? Listen and find out!
 
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