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Galactica Commentary Podcast Available
Kichigai Mentat writes "Apparently SciFi channel is pushing the bounds of your average TV viewing experience with "Battlestar Galactica." First came a full, uncut stream of the first episode, now a full episode commentary podcast available as a Podcast stream, episode-length MP3 file for download, or invividual MP3 files for each "Act." The podcasts are released a week in advance, and listeners are warned about spoilers."
The iPod sure is popular, but it does not dominate everything.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
Ah, Wikipedia to the rescue!
To add to that, (and re-using a previous post of mine);
1. Blog/show format vs. radio. While podcasting is referred to as a type of radio...it's not. It's an audio blog. If you don't like blogs, and could care less about talk radio or public radio, podcasting is a waste of time for you. NPR btw has a few podcasts. I suggest listening to IT Conversations as well...even has non-IT specific content that I haven't heard elsewhere.
2. You can take podcasts with you. That's the design. OK, you can also take shoutcasts with you though it's not as easy. Shoutcasting is designed for streaming and you can't stream if you're not connected to the source. The associated tags tend to make more sense with OPML/XML and embedded in the audio files themselves.
3. Podcasting is like a magazine or newspaper subscription. You pick what you want and it comes to you.
4. Podcasts can be fetched at odd hours of the day. While I have cable internet, I don't like to bog the connection down while playing Savage...so I schedule Bashpodder to fetch the podcasts before I wake up in the morning.
5. Podcasts do not require a high speed link. Got a modem and 'unlimited internet', fetch podcasts when you aren't there or late at night.
6. Podcasting is not limited to audio. Any data can be embedded in the RSS feed including video. I subscribe to Rocketboom this way.
A firewall can not protect you from yourself. Turn off what you do not need. Do not use the firewall to do your work.
I think it's fantastic that there's finally a decent sci-fi show on (no offense to the trekkies but since TNG they've all sucked). Not since Firefly has a show had 'the big three'(good cinematography, great scriptwriting and good acting). Before that, Space Above and Beyond. Kudos to Micheal Rymer (sp?) for making a mediocre (at best) original series and making it compelling. Scratch that, addicting. After watching the first few here on the space channel (CAN) I had to watch the rest within that week *cough* emule. Can't wait for next season.
I've watched the episode with the Podcast and it was great! I had already seen the episode, and seeing it again with the Director's Commentary definitely added to the experience. I've seen the Director's Commentary for other television shows like CSI, but then I had to pay upwards of $60US per season for the privildge. Giving this kind of material away is fantastic and I applaud the SciFi channel for doing it! Granted, I'm sure this promotion is designed to get me hooked so that I end up buying the $60 DVD set when it comes out, but so be it. I'd like to know that I'll like it before I buy it!
I was never a fan of Sliders (corny and illogical), but the SciFi web site tie in was a true gem, with its clever contests and imaginative episode tie-ins. My favorite was the tie-in for the ep where the good guys are captured by the evil Cromags and thrown in a prison camp. The tie-in for that ep was the camp newsletter. Great stuff!
In a nuclear winter, the first effect of multiple detonations would indeed be a ton of rain, as all the fallout in the air seeds tons of rainclouds. Then, as the dust blanket spreads around the planet, temperatures would plummet and the ozone layer would disintegrate due to the effects of the nitrous oxides released in the explosions. I'm fairly certain most of that constant rain has cleared up, so it should get very dark and cold soon.
-SPOILERS-
Baltar really is great. He's a perfect example of a character who toes the line between the "good" and "evil" sides, without committing too much to one or the other. Unlike a lot of "renegade" characters who never do anything truly objectionable, even though they might work for the other side, Baltar does things we like and things we hate.
I also like the fact that the Cylons are monotheistic and the humans are polytheistic, insofar as they are religious. There's a tendency in our society to see monotheism as a more sophisticated or advanced philosophy, and usually when we see a polytheistic society fighting a monotheistic one, the monotheistic one is the more advanced and "good" side. Mixing it up like this really gives one an insight into how we unconsciously bias towards societies with religions similar to our own.
What they're doing is smart, and I think it will pay off for them. A TV program lives and dies by ratings, which determine the price for advertising for the network or channel. BSG is attempting to grow a fan base to insure that they get high rating. They've already succeeded enough to get a second season.
The little extras they're giving us are just part of their overall campaign. It's a small part, but the attention to detail (such as the behind the scenes interviews with cast and crew) definitely adds to my enjoyment.
I join you in your hope that they will continue to release online versions of all the episodes, but I don't think it will happen beyond a very limited basis. FWIW, I got the miniseries off of BT and watched it last night and ordered the DVD from Amazon about 15 minutes ago. I don't like to think of myself as a pirate, but I'll accept the title of "illegal previewer". =)
It's not offtopic, dumbass. It's orthogonal.