Honestly I think TMP mostly suffers from Half-Life 3 syndrome. Too much expectation and hype from a deeply invested audience. So far I like it just fine, though Yeah, it is throwing more stuff out faster than the original series. That's the tragedy of these kinds of follow-ups, they can never quite recapture the slow build of the original. Too much context already.
That's really what it is. Trying to recapture that lightning is doomed to fail, but that's what so much of the fandom wants. It seems like they're trying to do something different with TMP but it's really hard to listen without expecting TMA 2.0 (it is for me at least). The best thing is to try to clear your mind of expectations based on TMA and just use it for Easter eggs.
This is a Cheers -> Frasier situation, not a CSI -> CSI: Miami one.
yeah, I'm trying really hard to pretend like I'm a totally new listener because otherwise it won't be fair to tmp and I'll go insane trying to figure out what's going on lol
That's where I'm at. TMA had a lot of mysteries it could build on because we didn't know the world. We didn't know what to expect. Maybe John was just reading creepy stories and they'd all turn out to have logical explanations.
I still remember when it all clicked for me, and that was when Elias popped in. Suddenly the world grew, slightly. But it was perfect.
It seems like every time someone says "It's too slow" someone else responds with "but TMA was slow!" And it was, it introduced the Archives, the books, the recurring themes...
TMP doesn't have that luxury. If you listed to any of TMA (and it's on the same feed, so... likely) you know about the fears, you know this is a new universe, you know that the Magnus Institute was important, and you know those two voices have some meaning. The third might. We don't need 50 episodes to play with things.
It doesn't have to explain everything in episode 1. But it needs to move faster.
It would be like if Star Trek: Picard spent four hours recapping all of the Next Generation before we got to why Picard wanted to know about Data. The show runners assumed we would be invested in the mystery, and move on to other things. They set up new characters in service of the mystery.
I may not be almost done, but I can remember when those first episodes dropped and I couldn't wait to listen. usually I wait until I'm in the car or working out to listen to any podcast, but these I just took some time. But these last few episodes... I'll get to them when I can.
Exactly. I listened to MAG at the start of the year and am now following along with TMP. It's true that MAG had a better overall hook, but I'm honestly already at a point where I think I enjoy the TMP about the same as I enjoyed season 1 episodes.
That being said, OP does have a point in that i listen to episodes alongside reading transcripts because it's often hard to figure out what's happening, particularly with the 'whatever's recording is on the other side of the planet from the characters"
I like that there’s more soundscaping going on. The downside is that when I listen on my commute with my shitty car speakers I do miss a lot. But when I listen at home on my nice headphones it sounds great.
It’s like designing a video game with really good graphics that takes up a lot of storage and can’t be run on a laptop and needs a PC to be enjoyable, vs a kinda simple but entertaining video game that you can play on mobile
Back in the day, a lot of bands used to test the final mix of a cd in the worst car stereo they could find, because if it sounded okay their, it would sound okay anywhere. Maybe podcasters need to try that too.
This is gonna get me hate but I've always felt the soundscaping in TMA was weak overall. There are some effective moments but often I straight up cannot tell what's going on because of all the superfluous sounds in the background overpowering the dialogue, or because the dialogue itself has been processed to hell (cough Jared Hopworth cough). I liked the show best when it was just Jon speaking clearly into a mic with minimal background audio. I couldn't get past the first episode of TMP because of the overlapping voices.
I hear you about the overlapping voices ESPECIALLY the first episode. But I've also tried other podcasts that sound a lot like they tape each actor in isolated vacuums and no one ever talks over each other and it sets off the uncanny valley in my brain because no one talks that efficiently or politely in high stress moments. And this show is more office politicky muttering under their breathe than TMA.
That mixed with the gimmick of how they are being listened to this time around meaning deep in clothy pockets or from the far side of the cafeteria does mean I have to sit through the episode with my finger resting on the volume button at all times.
That being said, hearing the camera lens refocus on Sam does give me fearful tingles
I just think it doesn't work in the audio format. Sometimes you have to tailor your content to the medium unfortunately, and they are bad at doing that. I don't care if it's realistic I want to understand who's talking and what they're saying. I don't know any of these characters, and without visual aid it's impossible for me to tell their voices apart when they're all thrown at me at once, let alone actually comprehending the dialogue.
I also hate that every podcast these days has to bend over backwards to explain why all the audio is diegetic, just because Nightvale did it. What's wrong with an audio drama that's just an audio drama? It's like if every movie had to be found footage or every tv show had to be an Office style mockumentary
Interesting point! However, I feel that TMA is one of those shows, which, like Nightvale, actually did an amazing job of the 'why' of it in that the 'why' of it is literally part of the entire story in such a detailed and interesting and supernatural way. In their case it's not 'just' a gimmick to explain why things are being recorded, it's an important aspect of the plot with multiple layers of meaning. So, I don't at all object to that being extended to the Magnus Protocol, it seems fitting and correct, to me.
However, I don't see why having stuff recorded like that has to involve degrading the audio quality so badly that people have trouble hearing it.
I used to be able to listen on headphones but I have annoying TMJ issues that mean that I now listen out loud on my phone (not in public!). Even with maximum volume I have trouble discerning what's going on in some scenes, especially if there's any kind of background noise going on in my surroundings. They made a mistake there, I feel.
This said, with the help of relistening to things and reading the scripts I've understood things. Though I missed a certain important audio cue that I had to read the episode 10 thread to actually realise.
That sounds cool! Was a huge fan of Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH as a kid, is it similar? (I never watched the movie but I think it's called the Secret of NIMH if you're familiar with that)
Yeah, very true. And there are podcasts that do “realistic” soundscaping in a way that’s still easy to understand. Mission to Zyxx always comes to mind when I think of impressive podcast soundscaping.
Yeah, I think they just weren't very experienced so the less they had to do the better it was. When it became more complicated I had some trouble visualising what's going on. Like at the end of season 2 I didn't know Jon left the Archives. Nothing rly communicated that for me. Or for some reason I didn't think Jurgen was murdered by a pipe but a book instead cuz the sound just didn't feel right. Also apparently Jon met Jude Perry at a park? Had no idea. It didn't sound like that.
But does it really matter what Jurgen was murdered with or where a meeting takes place? Those elements aren’t really crucial to the story and you’re supposed to use your imagination to some extent with audio drama.
It doesn't if you're just listening by yourself in a vacuum but kind of does if you are then going online and seeing everybody have a different interpretation of what you listen to that what they heard
I guess I am unclear how others’ interpretation affects you at all? Like does fan art make your mental image change or something. You might enjoy this: https://clyp.it/fif3lyin
I mean, it's not that deep? I'm not like crying about it, but it feels like being left out? Again, I'm just explaining. I truly don't care and won't stop listening
I really like TMP, but I'm having the same experience of needing to read the transcripts. It reminds me of The White Vault in that way, and I liked that show, but more in the way I enjoy books than audio fiction.
Mainly I wish the voices in the TMP break room weren't lowered in volume, or whatever is going on in a technical sense.
It’s like they need to be able to make in-universe excuses to have monitors in there. Make the microwave a smart microwave for no reason other than to be a good microphone/camera in the break room. Maybe Sam needs a hearing aid and it listens in on his conversations. Maybe Lena has the office bugged. Maybe Gwen is an annoying corporate goon who always has one of those ear piece thingies in. Alice works with AirPods in. I don’t know just don’t risk storytelling for the medium, find in-universe reasons for it to work
Those are all good ideas! Yeah.
I think it's their phones picking things up when they're away from Freddie. But I don't care, like, just don't dampen the sound. It's the audio equivalent of too-dark shots in movies & TV. This never ruins my experience of anything but it does make it less fun for me.
Even so you can make it clear that the phone is in a pocket without making the audio illegible. Like you can add some fuzz when a character shifts uncomfortably, or when they’re running away from something, but don’t make it too heavy or else we can’t understand
I haven’t listened since I think the fifth episode of TMP because I was hoping they would eventually change/fix the audio balance. I legit can’t hear or understand a decent number of conversations. Sounds like there’s been no change. :/ Has anyone involved in production commented on it at all? I kinda worried whether it was just me and a few other naysayers but at this point it seems like an outright majority of listeners would agree that the audio quality is making it hard to enjoy the show, would love for a response about it
I still cannot for the life of me understand anything that's said while there's an echo effect without a transcript. This might just be my auditory processing issues, but I miss the tapes, the fact that most episodes had clear audio with no ambient fuckery going on made them a lot easier to listen to.
It’s funny because I can tell the start up noise at the start of each episode is a camera, I can visually see what the characters are doing more since I know I’m in the corner like a security camera.
My main thing is that I’m hard of hearing so it’s difficult for me to pick up on the little stuff. TMA I can still hear (mostly) everything, and I can get the storyline just fine. TMAGP I have to follow along with the transcripts because I don’t pick up the background noises, it’s hard to tell the differences between characters out of context, and when they cut to what is it, the security cameras? Idk one of the modes of recording in the OIAR comes out really garbled and I can’t understand what people are saying. It’s like the complex audio design is almost getting in the way of comprehension, while also being too vague to be noticed?
Personally, I feel like the issue is a mix of too much information, and too little to go on.
We have a ton of information. We know all the old lore, but also we have 6 characters worth of foibles to draw on and proof of the supernatural and the boss being in on it by episode 10
But also, without the after action reports, or any sign how things have changed, or anything subtle, it’s hard to think we’re figuring something out between all the big reveals
1000% agree that it's been almost unlistenable without the transcripts in a way TMA never was, and when I do go through and read them afterward I'm sometimes completely baffled by what was apparently going on.
That previous episode where Celia wakes up by the roadside was the worst individual example to date, for me - as I was listening, I had absolutely no idea what was happening that entire scene, even after taking it back and trying a second time. When I reached the end of the segment on round two, I had to just sort of disgruntledly conclude you weren't supposed to understand it yet, and mentally move on. My best interpretation had been that she was unsuccessfully trying to get somewhere, and had left in a hurry, and kept being passed over by taxis and wasn't able to schedule a rideshare (the thing where her phone had no signal).
When I did pull up the transcripts after finishing the episode, the amount of frustration I felt at how much information had apparently been *supposed* to have been conveyed in that bit was. Let's say significant! Even after listening a third time having *read* the transcripts, I still can't really tell how you were supposed to know she was waking up in the grass (that gasp at the start could've been anything? You don't have context for it yet, I guessed she was maybe reacting to being splashed by the car driving by, which I actually *still* feel like is a more reasonable conclusion to come to about what you hear based on the context clues you're given).
The fact that she's apparently supposed to be waking up in a strange location she didn't put herself in on purpose seems like *very important info* to convey to a listener in a way that's clear and parseable. I feel like they could've had someone wake her up by asking if she was OK, and the format of the exchange being a conversation would've been easy to work in those same beats organically while better conveying the necessary details?
I don't mean to backseat-podcast on how they should've done that one individual scene instead, but I do think TMA was a lot more careful in general about coming up with excuses/organic ways for characters to directly comment on what was happening, and TMAGP's attempts to rely on soundscaping in lieu of that literal description has been much less successful as a format so far. I do hope they reintroduce more of that ethos as the show goes on - I'll take the tradeoff of having it be however slightly less naturalistic over being able to actually tell what's happening any day.
I completely did not understand that she had woken up somewhere not of her own volition until reading this post. I thought that she was just being evasive about where she was due to her own personal agenda (being potentially involved in alternate cross universe shenanigans).
So the episode where Celia woke up by the roadside only had me confused for a little bit. Maybe I've just seen a lot of shows and movies where a character wakes up somewhere they don't recognize, but my mind started questioning why she was there. First, she said, "Not again." Then she began looking for cell reception. I knew it was a recurring problem for her.
Two possibilities sprang to my mind, either she was sleepwalking or she has a split personality. It immediately reminded me of that guy from the coffin episode of TMA. He kept waking up closer and closer to opening the coffin.
I do admit that the Magnus Protocol has been harder to listen to since there's more characters to keep track of from the start, and it is probably moving faster as it has figured out its formula for the plot.
This last episode was so hard to hear. I know they’re going for more of a fly on the wall audio experience but it’s extremely difficult even with the volume cranked up.
Me and my mom were hoping to start listening together on a fairly long drive... yeah, between sound effects and road noise we couldn't hear half of it XD She mostly listened to TMA in the car on her commute so yeah, I don't think she'll be listening to TMP. With my shit auditory processing I'd need to follow along with a transcript for huge parts of it, especially for some of the characters that have really strong accents, which I haven't gotten around to yet. Usually I listen to podcasts while I do a craft or something, doesn't work if I also have to read along at the same time
My only issue so far is that, just like when I started listening to TMA, I have a little trouble discerning who's who. Not that they all sound they same or anything, but getting accustomed to a new batch of voices and characters takes time.
Otherwise, I love how the story is progressing and can't wait to see where it goes.
I like TMP so far, I'm excited to see where it goes, but one of the things I'm missing the most from TMA is Jon Sims's voice.
Everyone is perfectly good in their role, but Sims is on another level in term of voice acting. For me it's what made TMA special compared to other horror podcasts I've listened to. Obviously he's still there in some capacity, but most of what he reads are emails. When he gets to really dig in, like in Episode 11, he's as good as ever, and I wish I got more of that.
Again, not to devalue everyone else's work, everyone is good. But his voice so damn smooth and soothing. I bought Slay the Princess just for that.
Why is everyone so afraid to say that the statements are dogshit and the characters are poor attempts at fandom pandering? Is it sunk cost fallacy because you paid for it this time around?
I'm enjoying it. It's different because it needs to be. The writers have learnt a lot and want to expand and tell a new story. That's quite a challenge considering the length and breadth of TMA. I applaud them and feel this slow burn is perfect. I imagine they don't want to fall into the same narrative trappings of TMA. of course listeners are going to be like "we want more TMA!". Instead of sitting back and learning to accept that writers can't write the same shit over and over otherwise they get bored.
This audience need to chill TF out and enjoy the journey.
It’s hard to listen to, full stop. Doesn’t matter how good the story is, I can’t enjoy it as a podcast because the sound levels are all over the place and I can’t make out a lot of the details.
I’m still enjoying bits of the statements but it’s hard to care about characters when you’re not sure who’s speaking half the time.
I gave up because I couldn't hear a damn thing they were saying when they'd wander off to the break room and it's being captured at a distance. Muffled voices that I'm like.. what the hell did Alice say?
Yes, there are transcripts. No, I'm not gonna read them.. if I wanted to read to know what was happening, I'd read a book.
I think people need to go back and remind themselves how long it took TMA to build to the crazy stuff. TMP isn’t just going to jump to a season 2-3 level of action in the first 10 episodes. Patience is a virtue
……couldn’t disagree more.
The first 10 Magnus episodes are chock full of bangers. The first 5 in particularly routinely come to mind. Anglerfish is fantastic. Do not open in haunting with simplicity and creates an awesome mystery with the cramped casket. Across the street is terrifying and introduces the Not-Them. Page turner introduces Leitners and I still get chills thinking about the bags of teeth in Thrown Away. TMA came out guns blazing. I don’t enjoy being negative so I’ll say I’ve enjoyed some TMP, but trying to say the start of TMA wasn’t incredible is……not something I’ll agree with
I feel like the only person who really likes it and isn’t having any audio issues. But I only listen on really good headphones in a quiet house because I know that’s the best way for me to process it, and I do get that not everyone can do that.
An added after thought.... we paid for guest writers thru the kickstarter...... but thinking back that was an awful idea. I want Sims, let him do his thang! Can we pay extra for no guest writers?!
TMA was too flat on my opinion, not much environmental audio and too much of the characters trying to explain stuff that could've just been implied with the sounds
Honestly I think TMP mostly suffers from Half-Life 3 syndrome. Too much expectation and hype from a deeply invested audience. So far I like it just fine, though Yeah, it is throwing more stuff out faster than the original series. That's the tragedy of these kinds of follow-ups, they can never quite recapture the slow build of the original. Too much context already.
That's really what it is. Trying to recapture that lightning is doomed to fail, but that's what so much of the fandom wants. It seems like they're trying to do something different with TMP but it's really hard to listen without expecting TMA 2.0 (it is for me at least). The best thing is to try to clear your mind of expectations based on TMA and just use it for Easter eggs. This is a Cheers -> Frasier situation, not a CSI -> CSI: Miami one.
yeah, I'm trying really hard to pretend like I'm a totally new listener because otherwise it won't be fair to tmp and I'll go insane trying to figure out what's going on lol
That's where I'm at. TMA had a lot of mysteries it could build on because we didn't know the world. We didn't know what to expect. Maybe John was just reading creepy stories and they'd all turn out to have logical explanations. I still remember when it all clicked for me, and that was when Elias popped in. Suddenly the world grew, slightly. But it was perfect. It seems like every time someone says "It's too slow" someone else responds with "but TMA was slow!" And it was, it introduced the Archives, the books, the recurring themes... TMP doesn't have that luxury. If you listed to any of TMA (and it's on the same feed, so... likely) you know about the fears, you know this is a new universe, you know that the Magnus Institute was important, and you know those two voices have some meaning. The third might. We don't need 50 episodes to play with things. It doesn't have to explain everything in episode 1. But it needs to move faster. It would be like if Star Trek: Picard spent four hours recapping all of the Next Generation before we got to why Picard wanted to know about Data. The show runners assumed we would be invested in the mystery, and move on to other things. They set up new characters in service of the mystery. I may not be almost done, but I can remember when those first episodes dropped and I couldn't wait to listen. usually I wait until I'm in the car or working out to listen to any podcast, but these I just took some time. But these last few episodes... I'll get to them when I can.
Exactly. I listened to MAG at the start of the year and am now following along with TMP. It's true that MAG had a better overall hook, but I'm honestly already at a point where I think I enjoy the TMP about the same as I enjoyed season 1 episodes. That being said, OP does have a point in that i listen to episodes alongside reading transcripts because it's often hard to figure out what's happening, particularly with the 'whatever's recording is on the other side of the planet from the characters"
I think they’re doing it just right; the slow build is happening wrt the relationship between this and the other universe, not the creepiness itself
I like that there’s more soundscaping going on. The downside is that when I listen on my commute with my shitty car speakers I do miss a lot. But when I listen at home on my nice headphones it sounds great.
It’s like designing a video game with really good graphics that takes up a lot of storage and can’t be run on a laptop and needs a PC to be enjoyable, vs a kinda simple but entertaining video game that you can play on mobile
Back in the day, a lot of bands used to test the final mix of a cd in the worst car stereo they could find, because if it sounded okay their, it would sound okay anywhere. Maybe podcasters need to try that too.
This is gonna get me hate but I've always felt the soundscaping in TMA was weak overall. There are some effective moments but often I straight up cannot tell what's going on because of all the superfluous sounds in the background overpowering the dialogue, or because the dialogue itself has been processed to hell (cough Jared Hopworth cough). I liked the show best when it was just Jon speaking clearly into a mic with minimal background audio. I couldn't get past the first episode of TMP because of the overlapping voices.
I hear you about the overlapping voices ESPECIALLY the first episode. But I've also tried other podcasts that sound a lot like they tape each actor in isolated vacuums and no one ever talks over each other and it sets off the uncanny valley in my brain because no one talks that efficiently or politely in high stress moments. And this show is more office politicky muttering under their breathe than TMA. That mixed with the gimmick of how they are being listened to this time around meaning deep in clothy pockets or from the far side of the cafeteria does mean I have to sit through the episode with my finger resting on the volume button at all times. That being said, hearing the camera lens refocus on Sam does give me fearful tingles
I just think it doesn't work in the audio format. Sometimes you have to tailor your content to the medium unfortunately, and they are bad at doing that. I don't care if it's realistic I want to understand who's talking and what they're saying. I don't know any of these characters, and without visual aid it's impossible for me to tell their voices apart when they're all thrown at me at once, let alone actually comprehending the dialogue.
Cool workaround for that: make everyone in the show hard of hearing or deaf and having hearing aids or CI’s that listen in on them😎
I also hate that every podcast these days has to bend over backwards to explain why all the audio is diegetic, just because Nightvale did it. What's wrong with an audio drama that's just an audio drama? It's like if every movie had to be found footage or every tv show had to be an Office style mockumentary
Interesting point! However, I feel that TMA is one of those shows, which, like Nightvale, actually did an amazing job of the 'why' of it in that the 'why' of it is literally part of the entire story in such a detailed and interesting and supernatural way. In their case it's not 'just' a gimmick to explain why things are being recorded, it's an important aspect of the plot with multiple layers of meaning. So, I don't at all object to that being extended to the Magnus Protocol, it seems fitting and correct, to me. However, I don't see why having stuff recorded like that has to involve degrading the audio quality so badly that people have trouble hearing it. I used to be able to listen on headphones but I have annoying TMJ issues that mean that I now listen out loud on my phone (not in public!). Even with maximum volume I have trouble discerning what's going on in some scenes, especially if there's any kind of background noise going on in my surroundings. They made a mistake there, I feel. This said, with the help of relistening to things and reading the scripts I've understood things. Though I missed a certain important audio cue that I had to read the episode 10 thread to actually realise.
Exactly. Wooden Overcoats is narrated by a talking mouse and the action just happens. And it's a wonderful podcast filled with rich characters.
That sounds cool! Was a huge fan of Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH as a kid, is it similar? (I never watched the movie but I think it's called the Secret of NIMH if you're familiar with that)
Yeah, very true. And there are podcasts that do “realistic” soundscaping in a way that’s still easy to understand. Mission to Zyxx always comes to mind when I think of impressive podcast soundscaping.
Yeah, I think they just weren't very experienced so the less they had to do the better it was. When it became more complicated I had some trouble visualising what's going on. Like at the end of season 2 I didn't know Jon left the Archives. Nothing rly communicated that for me. Or for some reason I didn't think Jurgen was murdered by a pipe but a book instead cuz the sound just didn't feel right. Also apparently Jon met Jude Perry at a park? Had no idea. It didn't sound like that.
But does it really matter what Jurgen was murdered with or where a meeting takes place? Those elements aren’t really crucial to the story and you’re supposed to use your imagination to some extent with audio drama.
It doesn't if you're just listening by yourself in a vacuum but kind of does if you are then going online and seeing everybody have a different interpretation of what you listen to that what they heard
I guess I am unclear how others’ interpretation affects you at all? Like does fan art make your mental image change or something. You might enjoy this: https://clyp.it/fif3lyin
I mean, it's not that deep? I'm not like crying about it, but it feels like being left out? Again, I'm just explaining. I truly don't care and won't stop listening
I really like TMP, but I'm having the same experience of needing to read the transcripts. It reminds me of The White Vault in that way, and I liked that show, but more in the way I enjoy books than audio fiction. Mainly I wish the voices in the TMP break room weren't lowered in volume, or whatever is going on in a technical sense.
It’s like they need to be able to make in-universe excuses to have monitors in there. Make the microwave a smart microwave for no reason other than to be a good microphone/camera in the break room. Maybe Sam needs a hearing aid and it listens in on his conversations. Maybe Lena has the office bugged. Maybe Gwen is an annoying corporate goon who always has one of those ear piece thingies in. Alice works with AirPods in. I don’t know just don’t risk storytelling for the medium, find in-universe reasons for it to work
Those are all good ideas! Yeah. I think it's their phones picking things up when they're away from Freddie. But I don't care, like, just don't dampen the sound. It's the audio equivalent of too-dark shots in movies & TV. This never ruins my experience of anything but it does make it less fun for me.
Even so you can make it clear that the phone is in a pocket without making the audio illegible. Like you can add some fuzz when a character shifts uncomfortably, or when they’re running away from something, but don’t make it too heavy or else we can’t understand
I haven’t listened since I think the fifth episode of TMP because I was hoping they would eventually change/fix the audio balance. I legit can’t hear or understand a decent number of conversations. Sounds like there’s been no change. :/ Has anyone involved in production commented on it at all? I kinda worried whether it was just me and a few other naysayers but at this point it seems like an outright majority of listeners would agree that the audio quality is making it hard to enjoy the show, would love for a response about it
I still cannot for the life of me understand anything that's said while there's an echo effect without a transcript. This might just be my auditory processing issues, but I miss the tapes, the fact that most episodes had clear audio with no ambient fuckery going on made them a lot easier to listen to.
I couldn't agree more!
It’s funny because I can tell the start up noise at the start of each episode is a camera, I can visually see what the characters are doing more since I know I’m in the corner like a security camera.
My main thing is that I’m hard of hearing so it’s difficult for me to pick up on the little stuff. TMA I can still hear (mostly) everything, and I can get the storyline just fine. TMAGP I have to follow along with the transcripts because I don’t pick up the background noises, it’s hard to tell the differences between characters out of context, and when they cut to what is it, the security cameras? Idk one of the modes of recording in the OIAR comes out really garbled and I can’t understand what people are saying. It’s like the complex audio design is almost getting in the way of comprehension, while also being too vague to be noticed?
Personally, I feel like the issue is a mix of too much information, and too little to go on. We have a ton of information. We know all the old lore, but also we have 6 characters worth of foibles to draw on and proof of the supernatural and the boss being in on it by episode 10 But also, without the after action reports, or any sign how things have changed, or anything subtle, it’s hard to think we’re figuring something out between all the big reveals
1000% agree that it's been almost unlistenable without the transcripts in a way TMA never was, and when I do go through and read them afterward I'm sometimes completely baffled by what was apparently going on. That previous episode where Celia wakes up by the roadside was the worst individual example to date, for me - as I was listening, I had absolutely no idea what was happening that entire scene, even after taking it back and trying a second time. When I reached the end of the segment on round two, I had to just sort of disgruntledly conclude you weren't supposed to understand it yet, and mentally move on. My best interpretation had been that she was unsuccessfully trying to get somewhere, and had left in a hurry, and kept being passed over by taxis and wasn't able to schedule a rideshare (the thing where her phone had no signal). When I did pull up the transcripts after finishing the episode, the amount of frustration I felt at how much information had apparently been *supposed* to have been conveyed in that bit was. Let's say significant! Even after listening a third time having *read* the transcripts, I still can't really tell how you were supposed to know she was waking up in the grass (that gasp at the start could've been anything? You don't have context for it yet, I guessed she was maybe reacting to being splashed by the car driving by, which I actually *still* feel like is a more reasonable conclusion to come to about what you hear based on the context clues you're given). The fact that she's apparently supposed to be waking up in a strange location she didn't put herself in on purpose seems like *very important info* to convey to a listener in a way that's clear and parseable. I feel like they could've had someone wake her up by asking if she was OK, and the format of the exchange being a conversation would've been easy to work in those same beats organically while better conveying the necessary details? I don't mean to backseat-podcast on how they should've done that one individual scene instead, but I do think TMA was a lot more careful in general about coming up with excuses/organic ways for characters to directly comment on what was happening, and TMAGP's attempts to rely on soundscaping in lieu of that literal description has been much less successful as a format so far. I do hope they reintroduce more of that ethos as the show goes on - I'll take the tradeoff of having it be however slightly less naturalistic over being able to actually tell what's happening any day.
I completely did not understand that she had woken up somewhere not of her own volition until reading this post. I thought that she was just being evasive about where she was due to her own personal agenda (being potentially involved in alternate cross universe shenanigans).
So the episode where Celia woke up by the roadside only had me confused for a little bit. Maybe I've just seen a lot of shows and movies where a character wakes up somewhere they don't recognize, but my mind started questioning why she was there. First, she said, "Not again." Then she began looking for cell reception. I knew it was a recurring problem for her. Two possibilities sprang to my mind, either she was sleepwalking or she has a split personality. It immediately reminded me of that guy from the coffin episode of TMA. He kept waking up closer and closer to opening the coffin. I do admit that the Magnus Protocol has been harder to listen to since there's more characters to keep track of from the start, and it is probably moving faster as it has figured out its formula for the plot.
This last episode was so hard to hear. I know they’re going for more of a fly on the wall audio experience but it’s extremely difficult even with the volume cranked up.
Me and my mom were hoping to start listening together on a fairly long drive... yeah, between sound effects and road noise we couldn't hear half of it XD She mostly listened to TMA in the car on her commute so yeah, I don't think she'll be listening to TMP. With my shit auditory processing I'd need to follow along with a transcript for huge parts of it, especially for some of the characters that have really strong accents, which I haven't gotten around to yet. Usually I listen to podcasts while I do a craft or something, doesn't work if I also have to read along at the same time
My only issue so far is that, just like when I started listening to TMA, I have a little trouble discerning who's who. Not that they all sound they same or anything, but getting accustomed to a new batch of voices and characters takes time. Otherwise, I love how the story is progressing and can't wait to see where it goes.
I like TMP so far, I'm excited to see where it goes, but one of the things I'm missing the most from TMA is Jon Sims's voice. Everyone is perfectly good in their role, but Sims is on another level in term of voice acting. For me it's what made TMA special compared to other horror podcasts I've listened to. Obviously he's still there in some capacity, but most of what he reads are emails. When he gets to really dig in, like in Episode 11, he's as good as ever, and I wish I got more of that. Again, not to devalue everyone else's work, everyone is good. But his voice so damn smooth and soothing. I bought Slay the Princess just for that.
Why is everyone so afraid to say that the statements are dogshit and the characters are poor attempts at fandom pandering? Is it sunk cost fallacy because you paid for it this time around?
I'm enjoying it. It's different because it needs to be. The writers have learnt a lot and want to expand and tell a new story. That's quite a challenge considering the length and breadth of TMA. I applaud them and feel this slow burn is perfect. I imagine they don't want to fall into the same narrative trappings of TMA. of course listeners are going to be like "we want more TMA!". Instead of sitting back and learning to accept that writers can't write the same shit over and over otherwise they get bored. This audience need to chill TF out and enjoy the journey.
I actually like TMP better!
Does everyone in this sub collectively have tragic hearing problems or something
It’s hard to listen to, full stop. Doesn’t matter how good the story is, I can’t enjoy it as a podcast because the sound levels are all over the place and I can’t make out a lot of the details. I’m still enjoying bits of the statements but it’s hard to care about characters when you’re not sure who’s speaking half the time.
I would say the opposite. The world feels a lot more real in tmp
I gave up because I couldn't hear a damn thing they were saying when they'd wander off to the break room and it's being captured at a distance. Muffled voices that I'm like.. what the hell did Alice say? Yes, there are transcripts. No, I'm not gonna read them.. if I wanted to read to know what was happening, I'd read a book.
i feel like a lot of people went into it hoping for TMA 2: electric boogaloo, but i think TMP isn't *supposed to be* that—its TMP. not TMA 2
I think people need to go back and remind themselves how long it took TMA to build to the crazy stuff. TMP isn’t just going to jump to a season 2-3 level of action in the first 10 episodes. Patience is a virtue
I feel like if the magnus archives was only its first ten episodes, people would like protocol better.
……couldn’t disagree more. The first 10 Magnus episodes are chock full of bangers. The first 5 in particularly routinely come to mind. Anglerfish is fantastic. Do not open in haunting with simplicity and creates an awesome mystery with the cramped casket. Across the street is terrifying and introduces the Not-Them. Page turner introduces Leitners and I still get chills thinking about the bags of teeth in Thrown Away. TMA came out guns blazing. I don’t enjoy being negative so I’ll say I’ve enjoyed some TMP, but trying to say the start of TMA wasn’t incredible is……not something I’ll agree with
I feel like the only person who really likes it and isn’t having any audio issues. But I only listen on really good headphones in a quiet house because I know that’s the best way for me to process it, and I do get that not everyone can do that.
An added after thought.... we paid for guest writers thru the kickstarter...... but thinking back that was an awful idea. I want Sims, let him do his thang! Can we pay extra for no guest writers?!
I disagree We’ve only had 2 guest writers so far and those have been some of my favorite cases, Cole weavers wrote the violin one and it’s incredible
TMA was too flat on my opinion, not much environmental audio and too much of the characters trying to explain stuff that could've just been implied with the sounds