WEBVTT - Listener Mail: Oh Mighty Krampus 0:00:03.040 --> 0:00:06.080 Welcome to Stuff to Blow Your Mind, a production of iHeartRadio. 0:00:09.800 --> 0:00:12.399 Hey you welcome to Stuff to Blow your Mind. Listener mail. 0:00:12.720 --> 0:00:16.000 My name is Robert and I am Joe McCormick, and 0:00:16.040 --> 0:00:18.120 it's Monday, the day of each week that we read 0:00:18.160 --> 0:00:21.680 back messages from the Stuff to Blow your Mind mail bag. 0:00:22.040 --> 0:00:24.200 If you've never gotten in touch before and you want 0:00:24.200 --> 0:00:26.720 to give it a try, you can email us at 0:00:26.840 --> 0:00:30.520 contact at stuff to Blow your Mind dot com. Whatever 0:00:30.560 --> 0:00:32.680 you want to send us fair game. But we especially 0:00:32.960 --> 0:00:35.800 like if you want to respond to a topic we've 0:00:35.840 --> 0:00:38.400 talked about on the show recently and add something interesting 0:00:38.960 --> 0:00:41.640 of your own. Let's see, rob We've got a bunch 0:00:41.640 --> 0:00:46.120 of messages in response to our invention series on crossbows. 0:00:46.640 --> 0:00:48.320 I think I'm going to kick things off with this 0:00:48.360 --> 0:00:50.199 message from Ahmed If that's cool with. 0:00:50.200 --> 0:00:51.559 You, Yeah, let's do it. 0:00:51.920 --> 0:00:54.560 Ahmed, who has written many great emails to us in 0:00:54.600 --> 0:01:02.240 the past. By the way, Ahmed says, hey guys, I'm 0:01:02.400 --> 0:01:05.600 ed again here. I loved your recent episodes on the crossbow, 0:01:05.760 --> 0:01:10.000 especially the discussions of its association with evil that seems 0:01:10.000 --> 0:01:12.880 sort of unfair and out of proportion with the technology 0:01:12.920 --> 0:01:15.640 itself and as a refresher on the side. This is 0:01:15.640 --> 0:01:18.120 from the episode where we talked about how if you 0:01:18.240 --> 0:01:21.880 watch movies from the modern period where some kind of 0:01:22.000 --> 0:01:26.480 medieval fantasy is depicted or there's a medieval technology context, 0:01:26.760 --> 0:01:29.280 the crossbows are always used by the bad guys, almost 0:01:29.319 --> 0:01:33.440 always exclusively a villain weapon, and how this wasn't a 0:01:34.280 --> 0:01:37.280 It hasn't always exactly been seen like this, but there 0:01:37.280 --> 0:01:40.319 are threads of that going back to the medieval period itself. 0:01:40.360 --> 0:01:43.360 There are some writings from the period that characterize the 0:01:43.800 --> 0:01:47.800 crossbow as a uniquely wicked or barbaric weapon, and we 0:01:47.800 --> 0:01:51.400 were wondering, like, why that, why the crossbow compared to 0:01:51.480 --> 0:01:56.160 any other weapon. Ahmed's message continues. One important example in 0:01:56.240 --> 0:01:58.760 literature that came to mind for me was the Rhyme 0:01:58.800 --> 0:02:02.760 of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Coleridge. For those not acquainted, 0:02:02.880 --> 0:02:05.800 this is a Romantic Movement English poem that tells a 0:02:05.840 --> 0:02:09.079 story within a story of a sailor who shoots an 0:02:09.120 --> 0:02:12.600 albatross with a crossbow and is cursed for it before 0:02:12.720 --> 0:02:16.240 ultimate redemption. It's had a big culture impact, with famous 0:02:16.280 --> 0:02:20.800 imagery like an albatross hanging around someone's neck and lines 0:02:20.880 --> 0:02:24.680 like water water everywhere, nor any drop to drink. I 0:02:24.720 --> 0:02:27.880 always thought it weird that this poem, published in seventeen 0:02:28.000 --> 0:02:31.680 ninety eight, so centuries into the gunpowder age, had the 0:02:31.800 --> 0:02:35.480 crossbow as the weapon the unnamed narrator uses to shoot 0:02:35.520 --> 0:02:38.800 the albatross. After listening to your episodes, this seems to 0:02:38.880 --> 0:02:42.840 fit into a broader cultural association of the crossbow with 0:02:43.040 --> 0:02:46.280 evil and wickedness, and in this case, a wicked act, 0:02:46.639 --> 0:02:50.040 as the poem itself says. Quote by him who died 0:02:50.120 --> 0:02:53.680 on cross with his cruel bow, he laid full low 0:02:53.840 --> 0:02:58.840 the harmless albatross, Ahmed goes on. I wonder if part 0:02:58.919 --> 0:03:02.040 of this association comes from the fact that the crossbow 0:03:02.080 --> 0:03:05.640 made it easy for the first time to accidentally or 0:03:05.880 --> 0:03:10.280 unthinkingly kill or hurt someone. After all, the energy is 0:03:10.440 --> 0:03:13.079 already stored up, and all it would take is an 0:03:13.120 --> 0:03:18.360 accidental or impulsive pulling of the trigger. Besides dropping something 0:03:18.440 --> 0:03:21.720 on somebody from high up. This was probably the first 0:03:21.760 --> 0:03:25.480 time a regular person without a catapult or ballista could 0:03:25.520 --> 0:03:28.880 get a ton of kinetic energy into something all of 0:03:28.919 --> 0:03:32.480 a sudden without much work. You certainly get the idea 0:03:32.520 --> 0:03:35.400 that the mariner shoots the bird on a whim and 0:03:35.480 --> 0:03:39.440 I wonder if countless such unsung instances or half baked 0:03:39.560 --> 0:03:43.480 or accidental maiming and killing with crossbows were the reason 0:03:43.600 --> 0:03:46.560 for its bad rap that stuck around even centuries after 0:03:46.640 --> 0:03:50.200 gunpowder made even higher energies deployable with the push of 0:03:50.240 --> 0:03:53.480 a trigger. I couldn't find any actual scholarship on this, 0:03:53.600 --> 0:03:56.720 but the speculation was too juicy not to share. Anyways, 0:03:56.800 --> 0:04:00.520 keep up the great work and happy Thanksgiving, Ahmed uh 0:04:00.520 --> 0:04:03.520 on it. Yeah, I don't know if that had occurred 0:04:03.560 --> 0:04:05.080 to me. I don't think it had. And that's a 0:04:05.160 --> 0:04:09.760 really interesting idea that the crossbow makes it easier to 0:04:09.840 --> 0:04:13.760 do to cause a lot of harm accidentally or with 0:04:13.960 --> 0:04:17.080 very little immediate physical effort. I mean, it does take 0:04:17.080 --> 0:04:20.279 physical effort to cock it back, but that's something you 0:04:20.320 --> 0:04:23.279 can do in advance, and you know, the release of 0:04:23.320 --> 0:04:27.760 the mechanism to to unleash the violence is quite simple. 0:04:28.960 --> 0:04:32.200 Yeah. Yeah, I think it's a great point on top 0:04:32.200 --> 0:04:35.240 of the fact that just like the basic technological metaphor 0:04:35.440 --> 0:04:37.800 is so irresistible, you know, and we touched on that 0:04:37.839 --> 0:04:40.400 a little bit Louis. It's referenced in sun Zoo and 0:04:40.440 --> 0:04:43.840 so forth. But yeah, here is this this lethal the 0:04:43.920 --> 0:04:46.160 lethal force has already even applied, and then it may 0:04:46.160 --> 0:04:49.960 be the device may be set aside, and virtually anyone 0:04:49.960 --> 0:04:52.320 could then pick it up and fire it or misfire it, 0:04:52.480 --> 0:04:55.360 or whatever the case may be, and and could commit 0:04:56.160 --> 0:04:59.159 heinous crimes with it, such as in the case of 0:04:59.480 --> 0:05:02.080 the rhyme of the ancient marrin are shooting that blessed 0:05:02.160 --> 0:05:04.520 albatross out of the sky exactly. 0:05:04.560 --> 0:05:06.600 So thanks for the email, Ahmed, I think that is 0:05:06.880 --> 0:05:12.760 a really interesting idea. Okay, Now, we invited listeners to 0:05:12.920 --> 0:05:15.680 chime in on a couple of topics related to crossbows 0:05:15.760 --> 0:05:19.600 in Dungeons and Dragons and rob There are several emails 0:05:19.640 --> 0:05:22.280 of this genre that you might need to help explicate 0:05:22.320 --> 0:05:25.320 and interpret for those not as deeply familiar with the game. 0:05:26.040 --> 0:05:26.560 Do you want to do? 0:05:26.600 --> 0:05:26.680 This? 0:05:26.720 --> 0:05:28.320 One from Emily Sure. 0:05:33.680 --> 0:05:35.680 Emily writes it and says, Hi, guys, I'm listening to 0:05:35.680 --> 0:05:38.479 your episode about crossbows and wanted to chime in since 0:05:38.520 --> 0:05:42.240 you asked for comments relating to crossbows in tabletop RPGs. 0:05:43.200 --> 0:05:46.080 A few years ago, I DMed a game of Pathfinder, 0:05:46.160 --> 0:05:51.040 playing a published adventure path called Second Darkness. Mild spoilers 0:05:51.080 --> 0:05:54.359 follow for this fifteen year old AP. The central plot 0:05:54.400 --> 0:05:59.120 revolves around the Drow rhymes with brow not crow, okay 0:05:59.320 --> 0:06:02.560 for anyone out there, or dark Elves, which at the 0:06:02.600 --> 0:06:06.159 time the AP was written, were an explicitly and exclusively 0:06:06.240 --> 0:06:10.920 evil race. Yeah, this is true. Nowadays in Duns and Dragons, 0:06:11.920 --> 0:06:16.480 you're finding a lot more needed nuance with specific races 0:06:16.560 --> 0:06:20.039 or species. So I think there were exceptions to the 0:06:20.080 --> 0:06:23.479 rule in the Older Lord, but nowadays it's less a 0:06:23.480 --> 0:06:26.000 matter of like, oh, yeah, the Drow are all evil, 0:06:26.040 --> 0:06:28.760 They're all awful evil. Now we're opening it up and 0:06:28.800 --> 0:06:31.120 realizing you, no, no, it's okay that some of the 0:06:31.200 --> 0:06:34.120 Drow are evil and some are not evil. It's like 0:06:34.160 --> 0:06:37.360 they're just like people, right, And I think that's a 0:06:37.440 --> 0:06:42.240 much healthier place to land everything. Anyway, Emily continues. I 0:06:42.279 --> 0:06:45.720 believe the recently released second edition of Pathfinder has been 0:06:45.800 --> 0:06:47.919 updated such that this is no longer the case, but 0:06:47.960 --> 0:06:50.560 I'm not sure. The big twist of second Darkness in 0:06:50.680 --> 0:06:54.360 Universe is that normal elves turn into Drow if they 0:06:54.360 --> 0:06:58.120 are sufficiently wicked. There's an important scene where this happens 0:06:58.120 --> 0:07:01.680 to an NPC picture below for your amusement. Kicking off 0:07:01.720 --> 0:07:04.039 the back half of the adventure rob. 0:07:04.080 --> 0:07:05.920 Maybe we should go ahead and look down to this 0:07:06.000 --> 0:07:10.800 ps of this character, who is I don't even know 0:07:10.800 --> 0:07:13.640 how to begin to describe this a V neck shirt 0:07:13.720 --> 0:07:16.200 so deep it goes down to his belly button, and 0:07:16.240 --> 0:07:19.480 he's got like about six swords hanging off of his belt. 0:07:19.560 --> 0:07:21.520 And yeah, he looks like he's no good. 0:07:21.960 --> 0:07:25.680 He looks like he should be fronting a really ridiculous 0:07:26.280 --> 0:07:29.080 I don't know, in late eighties, early nineties kind of 0:07:30.240 --> 0:07:33.320 satanic heavy metal band, I'm not sure, a little bit 0:07:33.320 --> 0:07:34.040 glam rock. 0:07:33.920 --> 0:07:36.080 In there, Yeah, like the kind of bands that have 0:07:36.280 --> 0:07:39.680 song titles that translate to I dislike Christians. 0:07:41.320 --> 0:07:47.320 Also, the Drow and this image has pale skin, which, 0:07:47.400 --> 0:07:50.720 of course in dungeons and dragons they're generally depicted as 0:07:50.760 --> 0:07:54.880 having a dark skin, which of course plays into some 0:07:54.920 --> 0:07:58.240 of the problematic aspects of having the Drow the evil. 0:07:58.680 --> 0:08:02.000 And then also always threw me for a curve because 0:08:02.320 --> 0:08:05.680 it's like, Okay, there's subterranean creatures. Shouldn't they be pale? 0:08:06.160 --> 0:08:09.400 Like subterranean creatures, shouldn'y have like translucent skin or something? 0:08:09.920 --> 0:08:13.800 But clearly I am and was overthinking that that aspect 0:08:13.800 --> 0:08:14.480 of the scenario. 0:08:15.000 --> 0:08:18.000 Oh, and we should say Emily has a ps regarding 0:08:18.040 --> 0:08:21.000 this image. It reads who in the world would have 0:08:21.040 --> 0:08:25.520 suspected this guy of being evil? He has so many swords, Yeah, 0:08:25.560 --> 0:08:28.160 like six swords. Going back to in the same discussion 0:08:28.160 --> 0:08:31.080 we talked about, for some reason, in movies the sword 0:08:31.160 --> 0:08:34.240 is identified as like an honest and virtuous weapon, which 0:08:34.240 --> 0:08:37.560 is pretty equally silly to the crossbow being more evil 0:08:37.600 --> 0:08:38.440 than other weapons. 0:08:38.920 --> 0:08:42.400 Yeah, all right. Anyways, she continues on to I guess 0:08:42.440 --> 0:08:44.320 the main point here, given your discussion in the second 0:08:44.320 --> 0:08:47.520 episode about crossbows being evil coded weaponry in fiction, it 0:08:47.520 --> 0:08:49.800 should come as no surprise that every single Drow the 0:08:49.840 --> 0:08:53.440 PC's encountered was packing a master work hand crossbow as 0:08:53.480 --> 0:08:56.640 part of their load out, even the castlers and folks 0:08:56.960 --> 0:09:00.520 with other weapons, including swords. I suppose it makes sense 0:09:00.520 --> 0:09:02.720 for the Drow to favor the crossbow for the same 0:09:02.800 --> 0:09:05.360 reason Rob said dwarfs would favor them, good for low light, 0:09:05.480 --> 0:09:09.080 close quarters underground combat. Also, for the record, according to 0:09:10.120 --> 0:09:14.600 d twenty pfsrd dot com, an online pathfinder reference document, 0:09:14.679 --> 0:09:17.680 loading a hand crossbow is technically a move action that 0:09:17.720 --> 0:09:21.640 provokes attacks of opportunity. Why they have conveniently forgotten this 0:09:21.720 --> 0:09:24.360 while I was running the ap but my players still 0:09:24.400 --> 0:09:27.400 manage to defeat the Drow and avert the titular second 0:09:27.520 --> 0:09:28.840 darkness all the same. 0:09:29.120 --> 0:09:31.600 Oh wait, so in your campaign the Drow we're getting 0:09:31.640 --> 0:09:33.480 double the amount of attacks they should have. 0:09:34.160 --> 0:09:37.200 No, if I'm understanding what she's saying correctly, it's like 0:09:37.760 --> 0:09:41.440 by engaging in reloading of the crossbow, you would be 0:09:41.520 --> 0:09:44.880 provoking an attack of opportunity, meaning that the enemy would 0:09:44.920 --> 0:09:47.400 get to make like an out of turn attack on me. 0:09:48.080 --> 0:09:52.040 Unless I'm misunderstanding something. But anyway, again, that sounds like 0:09:52.040 --> 0:09:54.520 one of those rules that suddenly makes using a crossbow 0:09:54.960 --> 0:09:57.840 in the game less fun, and maybe isn't a great rule, 0:09:57.840 --> 0:09:58.440 but that's just me. 0:09:58.760 --> 0:10:00.840 I think we got another email this coming up. 0:10:01.120 --> 0:10:04.840 Okay. Emily closes with this was a really interesting series 0:10:04.840 --> 0:10:07.040 of episodes. I liked Invention a lot when it was 0:10:07.080 --> 0:10:08.959 its own separate thing, and it's been a while since 0:10:09.000 --> 0:10:11.280 you guys have done a proper Invention episode, so this 0:10:11.400 --> 0:10:13.200 was a pleasant surprise to see when I opened my 0:10:13.280 --> 0:10:15.760 podcast app this week. Thank you as always for the 0:10:15.800 --> 0:10:16.600 excellent podcast. 0:10:16.760 --> 0:10:17.760 Well, thank you, Emily. 0:10:18.280 --> 0:10:21.360 Yeah, I enjoyed dipping back into the Invention content from 0:10:21.360 --> 0:10:27.080 time to time. You know, a splash of something different 0:10:27.360 --> 0:10:29.520 from time to time, so we'll definitely keep doing it. 0:10:29.760 --> 0:10:39.640 Okay, here's more about crossbows and fictional worlds. Andrew says, Howdy, 0:10:39.720 --> 0:10:43.360 regarding your recent crossbow episode, you failed to mention Chewy's 0:10:43.400 --> 0:10:46.720 crossbow from Star Wars. I've always been confused on the 0:10:46.720 --> 0:10:50.400 physics of a laser crossbow. Did he have to reload it? 0:10:50.800 --> 0:10:54.320 How is a laser propelled forward with stored energy in 0:10:54.360 --> 0:10:57.120 the way? The traditional one is how is his weapon 0:10:57.160 --> 0:11:01.600 any different from any other Star Wars blaster? Thanks Andrew, Andrew, 0:11:01.640 --> 0:11:03.959 I have the same question growing up. I had no idea. 0:11:04.000 --> 0:11:07.520 Why would you need a blaster to be a crossbow blaster? 0:11:07.600 --> 0:11:09.320 I don't know what advantage it provides. 0:11:10.080 --> 0:11:13.520 Yeah, I mean it never made sense to me either. 0:11:13.600 --> 0:11:16.520 I'm sure it has been explained. Someone in the Star 0:11:16.600 --> 0:11:19.560 Wars fan world has explained this. I just haven't looked 0:11:19.559 --> 0:11:23.959 it up, but I guess I always tended to lean 0:11:24.000 --> 0:11:27.760 towards two possible sort of headcanon explanations. One, it's not 0:11:27.880 --> 0:11:30.200 really a crossbow. It doesn't have a string. Maybe it 0:11:30.200 --> 0:11:32.040 does have a string, but in my mind I just 0:11:32.120 --> 0:11:35.160 remember it has the like the bow shape, and then 0:11:35.160 --> 0:11:37.240 they are like these balls on the end. So maybe 0:11:37.800 --> 0:11:43.120 those are for some sort of like electromagnetic rail gun scenario. 0:11:43.200 --> 0:11:45.920 I don't know, so something other than aiding in the 0:11:46.679 --> 0:11:50.280 drawing back of a bow, or is there is a 0:11:50.320 --> 0:11:53.600 string there and it's not so much about propelling something 0:11:53.720 --> 0:11:58.000 but as facilitating some sort of a fast function mechanical 0:11:58.400 --> 0:12:01.480 aspect of the device that plays into its launching of 0:12:01.520 --> 0:12:02.480 a laser boult. 0:12:02.360 --> 0:12:02.840 Or what have you. 0:12:03.240 --> 0:12:05.800 I'll have to go on Wikipedia to find out. 0:12:06.120 --> 0:12:09.240 Wikipedia. Yeah, I think there's gonna have to be your answer, 0:12:09.240 --> 0:12:10.640 but it never made sense to me either. 0:12:11.080 --> 0:12:13.240 All Right, Well, I'm just gonna go and read from Wikipedia. 0:12:14.040 --> 0:12:17.840 Here's what that Wikipedia says. Okay, quote the weapon used 0:12:17.960 --> 0:12:22.000 metal quarrels developed with plasma energy as ammunition. Two polarizing 0:12:22.120 --> 0:12:24.040 orbs placed on each end of the bow, creating a 0:12:24.080 --> 0:12:28.080 magnetic field that boosted the corals momentum. Once the cocking 0:12:28.240 --> 0:12:31.040 spring was pulled back, the trigger fired the coral, which 0:12:31.120 --> 0:12:35.520 was enveloped in plasma energy. So if I'm understanding that correctly, 0:12:35.559 --> 0:12:37.800 it's still kind of a traditional crossbow, but with some 0:12:38.360 --> 0:12:39.440 sci fi stuff. 0:12:40.200 --> 0:12:44.480 It's shooting bolts, like hard metal bolts that are surrounded 0:12:44.520 --> 0:12:47.640 by plasma energy. Like it's like a metal bolt with 0:12:47.720 --> 0:12:51.920 a blaster casing. It's like an eminem h that's kind 0:12:51.920 --> 0:12:55.839 of vicious, Like I can only imagine that blasting through 0:12:55.840 --> 0:12:56.840 your stormtrooper armor. 0:13:04.280 --> 0:13:05.320 All right, what else do we have? 0:13:05.800 --> 0:13:08.040 Let's see, well we got we got another one from 0:13:08.120 --> 0:13:13.480 Matthew about tabletop RPG rules with crossbows. Do you want 0:13:13.520 --> 0:13:14.320 to do this one around? 0:13:14.400 --> 0:13:17.280 Oh? Yeah, yeah, sure, Matthew says, good morning. I just 0:13:17.320 --> 0:13:20.000 caught up with the two part an crossbows, and I 0:13:20.000 --> 0:13:22.040 have to admit I was stumped for a moment because 0:13:22.080 --> 0:13:24.840 I thought i'd seen statistics for the repeating crossbow in 0:13:24.880 --> 0:13:28.480 the wild. Instead, what I remembered was the esthetic choice 0:13:28.520 --> 0:13:31.040 Wizards meaning Wizards of the Coast made when they went 0:13:31.360 --> 0:13:33.920 MMO on fourth edition and purged a lot of the 0:13:33.920 --> 0:13:36.560 three point five materials to make it play more like 0:13:36.600 --> 0:13:39.800 a video game. However, I did see the pathfinder blocks 0:13:39.800 --> 0:13:42.240 from the original version aka D and D three point 0:13:42.320 --> 0:13:45.720 seventy five, so I'm sure with a little conversion and whatnot, 0:13:45.800 --> 0:13:48.160 it can apply to the game since it still had 0:13:48.240 --> 0:13:50.040 roots in the three point five edition. 0:13:50.360 --> 0:13:52.880 Okay, so this is a response to you saying you 0:13:53.440 --> 0:13:56.160 thought that there were repeating crossbows somewhere in the D 0:13:56.200 --> 0:13:57.720 and D universe at some point. 0:13:58.720 --> 0:14:01.320 Yeah, I think in five E some enemies have them. 0:14:01.320 --> 0:14:04.000 But and it just and also it just makes sense 0:14:04.040 --> 0:14:06.640 that certainly someone's home brewed it, and it may be 0:14:06.679 --> 0:14:09.360 in a book that I just haven't seen. Anyway, Matthew 0:14:09.400 --> 0:14:11.280 serves a link with us and says, of course, I 0:14:11.320 --> 0:14:14.600 remember the two E versions having some more realistic rules 0:14:14.600 --> 0:14:17.440 on maintenance and upkeep, which made sure it was never 0:14:17.600 --> 0:14:20.400 used around the table. Kids these days and they're plug 0:14:20.440 --> 0:14:22.720 and play D and D. Thanks for everything, Nephew. 0:14:23.520 --> 0:14:28.400 You know, making things in a game more like real 0:14:28.440 --> 0:14:33.560 life is not always an improvement. I don't know if 0:14:33.560 --> 0:14:36.160 Matthew would disagree with me there, but like, yeah, you 0:14:36.200 --> 0:14:39.160 have to use a turn to like load your crossbow. 0:14:39.400 --> 0:14:40.960 Is that as much fun? I don't know. 0:14:41.720 --> 0:14:44.000 Yeah, yeah, there has to be a balance there, but 0:14:44.240 --> 0:14:47.040 I guess it's just always a struggle to figure out 0:14:47.080 --> 0:14:49.360 what the balance is. Because a certain amount of pdium 0:14:49.400 --> 0:14:52.760 in a game can be fun. I mean, there doesn't 0:14:52.760 --> 0:14:54.520 need it doesn't need to be too much like a 0:14:54.600 --> 0:14:57.240 video game, but you don't want it to be so 0:14:57.360 --> 0:15:00.560 complex that you know, only rocket scientists can play it 0:15:01.800 --> 0:15:03.040 part of the struggle. 0:15:03.520 --> 0:15:07.640 All right. This next message is from Heraldo and it 0:15:07.760 --> 0:15:12.680 goes back to our episodes called from Before You Could Remember, 0:15:12.720 --> 0:15:22.320 our episodes about infant amnesia. Basically, Heraldo says, Hello, Robert 0:15:22.360 --> 0:15:24.680 and Joe, hope you're well. I live in Brazil and 0:15:24.720 --> 0:15:26.640 I've been a regular listener to the Stuff to Blow 0:15:26.680 --> 0:15:30.160 Your Mind podcast since twenty seventeen to twenty eighteen. Actually, 0:15:30.240 --> 0:15:32.640 I try to keep up with every episode in sequence 0:15:32.720 --> 0:15:35.200 and with the daily routine. I am currently still listening 0:15:35.240 --> 0:15:40.080 to episodes from April. Yesterday, I finished the third part 0:15:40.120 --> 0:15:42.680 of the Before You Could Remember series, and I think 0:15:42.720 --> 0:15:45.040 I have something to share about it. You referred to 0:15:45.080 --> 0:15:48.000 a proposal which states that quote, it's not until we 0:15:48.040 --> 0:15:51.080 have mastered the concept of a self different from others 0:15:51.440 --> 0:15:54.720 that we're able to organize our memories into a sensical 0:15:54.800 --> 0:15:59.280 form that can be retrieved across time. That idea immediately 0:15:59.320 --> 0:16:03.080 reminded me of a common phrase that I've listened since 0:16:03.200 --> 0:16:06.520 my childhood from my parents and other older members of 0:16:06.520 --> 0:16:10.960 my family, and which I've incorporated in my own verbal expressions. 0:16:11.400 --> 0:16:14.680 They used to say something like and I guess this 0:16:14.720 --> 0:16:17.800 is in Spanish or Portuguese, so I apologize if I'm 0:16:17.800 --> 0:16:22.160 not saying this right, say disso des de qu au 0:16:22.280 --> 0:16:27.000 maintendo poorhente, which could be translated as I've known this 0:16:27.160 --> 0:16:30.760 since I've known myself as a person, as a way 0:16:30.840 --> 0:16:33.640 to say that the point when you identify yourself as 0:16:33.640 --> 0:16:37.080 a person is as far as your memory can reach backwards. 0:16:37.520 --> 0:16:40.080 I'm not a native English speaker, as you have probably 0:16:40.120 --> 0:16:42.480 already noticed, so I can't say if there is a 0:16:42.680 --> 0:16:46.640 correlate expression in English. Anyway, I find it really interesting 0:16:46.680 --> 0:16:50.000 that such an idea is concealed in rather daily expression, 0:16:50.400 --> 0:16:53.320 and I thought it would be a shaable thing. Thank 0:16:53.360 --> 0:16:56.160 you for the delightful hours listening to the ever interesting 0:16:56.160 --> 0:16:59.200 and thought provoking subjects that you bring weekly to our appreciation. 0:16:59.600 --> 0:17:03.720 Please doing this brilliant work you do. Best regards, Heraldo. Oh, 0:17:03.960 --> 0:17:06.600 thank you so much, Heraldo. I did not know that expression, 0:17:06.720 --> 0:17:11.320 and yeah, that is interesting. Yeah, I wonder where something 0:17:11.359 --> 0:17:14.479 like that would come from since I've known myself as 0:17:14.520 --> 0:17:16.240 a person, But. 0:17:16.160 --> 0:17:17.960 It makes sense. It makes sense within the context of 0:17:18.000 --> 0:17:20.480 what we were talking about. I like it, all right, 0:17:20.480 --> 0:17:23.000 Shall we dive into some weird house cinema listener mail? 0:17:23.560 --> 0:17:23.879 Sure? 0:17:24.280 --> 0:17:24.520 Uh? 0:17:24.600 --> 0:17:27.480 Yeah, Kick this off with whichever of these you want 0:17:27.480 --> 0:17:28.160 to read, Rob. 0:17:28.320 --> 0:17:35.119 All right, This one comes to us from Adam. Adam 0:17:35.160 --> 0:17:37.560 says after listening to the most recent Weird House episode, 0:17:37.600 --> 0:17:40.720 The Butterfly Murders and watching, I found the look of 0:17:40.720 --> 0:17:44.720 the leader of the ten Flags ten thing reminded me 0:17:44.760 --> 0:17:47.080 of the main character in the graphic novel Fin Shing 0:17:47.480 --> 0:17:51.800 g wou Jing, though it's mostly the hair and cloak. 0:17:52.440 --> 0:17:55.760 I haven't thought about Fein Shinji in years, but recall 0:17:55.800 --> 0:17:58.560 really enjoying it. It's said in a mythical world, thematically 0:17:58.640 --> 0:18:01.320 reminiscent of ancient China, where people and god's are fighting 0:18:01.400 --> 0:18:05.159 for supremacy. It's gorgeously illustrated and a fun read. I 0:18:05.200 --> 0:18:08.160 got hooked on Joe's recommendation and asterix by this will 0:18:08.160 --> 0:18:10.760 come back to this kill six billion demons years back, 0:18:10.920 --> 0:18:13.280 and thought I would return the favor. I enjoyed the 0:18:13.320 --> 0:18:15.760 main show quite a bit, but Weird House definitely quote 0:18:15.840 --> 0:18:18.639 unquote rubs the fur and I am always excited to 0:18:18.680 --> 0:18:20.959 hear what film will be discussed next. Thanks for your 0:18:21.000 --> 0:18:22.320 hard work, best Adam. 0:18:23.080 --> 0:18:25.120 Now I think I know what your asterisk is, Rob. 0:18:25.440 --> 0:18:28.880 I don't personally recall recommending kill six billion demons. That's 0:18:28.920 --> 0:18:31.760 not anything against it. I'm just not really familiar with this, 0:18:31.920 --> 0:18:34.560 So was that you or maybe Christian years ago? 0:18:34.800 --> 0:18:37.159 I honestly don't remember. I know that I had a 0:18:37.160 --> 0:18:39.879 copy of it of one of the books of it 0:18:39.960 --> 0:18:42.639 and really loved the artwork and ended up passing it 0:18:42.680 --> 0:18:46.640 on to a friend, but I cannot recall if it's 0:18:46.640 --> 0:18:49.080 something that I learned about through someone else, or if 0:18:49.160 --> 0:18:51.639 Christian recommended it and I picked it up because Christian 0:18:51.760 --> 0:18:54.960 liked it. But at any rate, I recommend checking it out. 0:18:55.000 --> 0:18:58.600 It's pretty fun. As for this series that Adam is recommending, 0:18:59.000 --> 0:19:00.840 I'll have to check it out. I'm really not familiar 0:19:00.880 --> 0:19:02.240 with it, but it sounds intriguing. 0:19:02.560 --> 0:19:05.280 I mean, if the main character is like Bosston Funngro 0:19:06.359 --> 0:19:11.000 from Butterfly Murders, that's already in the plus column for me. Yeah, 0:19:11.080 --> 0:19:19.200 all right. This next message comes from Alan. Alan says, 0:19:19.280 --> 0:19:22.040 I've been catching up on past podcasts that I missed, 0:19:22.080 --> 0:19:24.000 and just listen to the Weird House episode about the 0:19:24.040 --> 0:19:29.240 movie Conquest. This is the Luccio Fulci Sword and Sorcery movies, 0:19:29.280 --> 0:19:33.119 kind of a Conan ripoff, starring the guy from Werewolf. 0:19:33.200 --> 0:19:36.600 The bad guy from Werewolf as a conan type guy. 0:19:37.440 --> 0:19:40.639 I recall this movie having some well speaking of were wolves, 0:19:40.680 --> 0:19:42.800 doesn't have to like some wolf men that serve a 0:19:42.880 --> 0:19:47.000 sorceress and oh yeah yeah, and I recall a lot 0:19:47.000 --> 0:19:49.720 of good stuff. But it's been a while. Oh I 0:19:49.760 --> 0:19:53.399 remember this is one where they like, they like journey 0:19:53.440 --> 0:19:56.400 through a poison swamp that just ends up with Folci 0:19:56.480 --> 0:19:58.840 giving us like a three minute close up of the 0:19:58.880 --> 0:20:00.600 heroes Pustula wounds. 0:20:01.359 --> 0:20:05.480 Yes, it is, I can say, without a shred of irony, 0:20:06.040 --> 0:20:08.840 is a great movie. I absolutely love Conquest. Yeah, I 0:20:09.200 --> 0:20:11.480 love it more every time that I watch it that 0:20:11.880 --> 0:20:13.320 I'll have more to say on this in a second 0:20:13.320 --> 0:20:15.840 once the email is finished. 0:20:16.640 --> 0:20:20.160 Well, so Alan says. After listening, I immediately watched the movie. 0:20:20.200 --> 0:20:23.760 It sounded intriguing and visually I was not disappointed. Otherwise, 0:20:23.800 --> 0:20:26.719 I still haven't decided if I liked it or not. However, 0:20:26.880 --> 0:20:29.359 that did want to share a moment from the movie 0:20:29.359 --> 0:20:31.679 that made me laugh out loud. At the end, the 0:20:31.720 --> 0:20:34.800 wolves run to the forest, the hero walks to the shore, 0:20:35.560 --> 0:20:40.200 both somehow into the sunset. Good observation, and the credits 0:20:40.200 --> 0:20:42.879 start to roll. The first thing you read is quote, 0:20:43.280 --> 0:20:50.040 any reference to persons or events is purely coincidental. Alan says, huh, 0:20:50.200 --> 0:20:52.680 I realized this could be something the studio just does 0:20:52.720 --> 0:20:55.680 regardless of the movie. But the idea of someone making 0:20:55.720 --> 0:20:59.159 the decision to add that disclaimer after making that movie 0:20:59.359 --> 0:21:03.440 is hilarious. Maybe they added it ironically, which I can appreciate, 0:21:03.800 --> 0:21:06.920 but it's more amusing to imagine a group of people 0:21:06.960 --> 0:21:09.520 sitting around a table agreeing that, you know, boys, we 0:21:09.600 --> 0:21:11.920 cut this one pretty close to reality, and we better 0:21:11.920 --> 0:21:16.719 cover our butts so nobody thinks the movie was about them. 0:21:17.240 --> 0:21:20.000 That's all. Keep up the great work. Happy holidays, Alan, 0:21:20.400 --> 0:21:21.040 Thank you Alan. 0:21:21.440 --> 0:21:25.400 Well. Now on the comment about not being sure if 0:21:25.400 --> 0:21:27.760 you liked it or not after watching it, as someone 0:21:27.800 --> 0:21:30.080 who loves Conquest, I will say this is the correct 0:21:30.080 --> 0:21:34.199 response to the first viewing of Conquest. It takes a 0:21:34.200 --> 0:21:36.919 while to figure out how you feel about it and 0:21:36.920 --> 0:21:41.920 to grow in your relationship with this particular film. But yeah, 0:21:41.920 --> 0:21:45.919 it's a bonker's one, especially bonkers, so the idea of 0:21:46.000 --> 0:21:49.040 anything in this movie matching up closely with reality is 0:21:49.280 --> 0:21:50.200 a bit ludicrous. 0:21:50.640 --> 0:21:53.879 Imagine someone suing Fulchy for the way they were depicted 0:21:53.920 --> 0:21:54.760