See? SEE? Aren't you glad now that you stuck with the show beyond the teething troubles of ep 1? And we're just hitting our stride with Ep 2. Which, admittedly, was a nightmare to edit - but we got there (in part thanks to some assistance at the 11th hour from the brilliant Chris Bullock). It was such a scramble to get this done that I hadn't even seen the full, finished, episode in one go before I had to upload it.
To be honest, after the technical issues with ep 1 (which I'll re-render, mix and re-upload at some point), I didn't care what anybody thought of the content of this week's ep; I just wanted it to look and sound okay. That bothered me with ep 1, because it's something that you can't attribute to personal taste.
This week I've had quite a few people telling me not to take YouTube comments to heart, but I do need to stress that I really don't. They just wash over me, and this isn't just a "He doth protest too much" thing.
I don't get even slightly affected by the negativity (unless it's aimed at somebody I care about); either the person making shitty comments doesn't like what I've done (which is fair enough), or they're acting out (which sort of signifies something a bit sadder and deeper). Either way... whatever. I don't lose sleep over it.
And, of course, the overwhelming majority of comments have been positive anyway.
I'm proud of what we've made here, I know it's good, it's true to what I wanted to make, and I'm also acutely aware that it won't be for everyone. Somebody said to me last week that we're living in a world of niches, and Digitiser is a niche. It always has been, for 25 years now.
If you see me talking about shitty comments, it's just what Digitiser has always done. We often printed letters on Teletext saying how much people hated us, so this is comfortable territory for me.
Also, lest we forget, I wrote Pudsey The Dog The Movie. If even that hate-storm didn't get to me... this is nothing! So please... I appreciate the concern, but you really, really, really don't have to tell me to not read the comments. I know I'm old/fat/scruffy, I know my sense of humour is weird, I know some people will think Digitiser is shit. They can't tell me anything I'm not already aware of!
I wouldn't be doing this if I thought I couldn't handle it. And my wife wouldn't let me either.
And with that... on with my breakdown of this week's ep...
To be honest, after the technical issues with ep 1 (which I'll re-render, mix and re-upload at some point), I didn't care what anybody thought of the content of this week's ep; I just wanted it to look and sound okay. That bothered me with ep 1, because it's something that you can't attribute to personal taste.
This week I've had quite a few people telling me not to take YouTube comments to heart, but I do need to stress that I really don't. They just wash over me, and this isn't just a "He doth protest too much" thing.
I don't get even slightly affected by the negativity (unless it's aimed at somebody I care about); either the person making shitty comments doesn't like what I've done (which is fair enough), or they're acting out (which sort of signifies something a bit sadder and deeper). Either way... whatever. I don't lose sleep over it.
And, of course, the overwhelming majority of comments have been positive anyway.
I'm proud of what we've made here, I know it's good, it's true to what I wanted to make, and I'm also acutely aware that it won't be for everyone. Somebody said to me last week that we're living in a world of niches, and Digitiser is a niche. It always has been, for 25 years now.
If you see me talking about shitty comments, it's just what Digitiser has always done. We often printed letters on Teletext saying how much people hated us, so this is comfortable territory for me.
Also, lest we forget, I wrote Pudsey The Dog The Movie. If even that hate-storm didn't get to me... this is nothing! So please... I appreciate the concern, but you really, really, really don't have to tell me to not read the comments. I know I'm old/fat/scruffy, I know my sense of humour is weird, I know some people will think Digitiser is shit. They can't tell me anything I'm not already aware of!
I wouldn't be doing this if I thought I couldn't handle it. And my wife wouldn't let me either.
And with that... on with my breakdown of this week's ep...
FAT SOW
Get this: our Fat Sow puppet was created by Leviathan Workshop, who have also created stuff for Katy Perry's live shows. They sculpted her (Fat Sow - not Katy Perry) from a sketch I did - please, note the teats; a sow is a female pig - and I did a bit of additional painting on top of the already excellent job they'd done, just to make her look really unpleasant.
Some of you may have guessed that Fat Sow is voiced by Paul Gannon's CheapShow co-host Eli Silverman. You know: because I couldn't think of anyone with a more feminine voice.
Fat Sow will be back later in the series. I mean, you wouldn't believe how much she cost, so like her or not we're going to get our money's worth.
Some of you may have guessed that Fat Sow is voiced by Paul Gannon's CheapShow co-host Eli Silverman. You know: because I couldn't think of anyone with a more feminine voice.
Fat Sow will be back later in the series. I mean, you wouldn't believe how much she cost, so like her or not we're going to get our money's worth.
TIN MAN
Oddly, the Tinman only really appeared in the final few weeks of Digitiser's life on Teletext, but because of that he's endured in the memory. Here he's being portrayed by Ryan Livermore, who some of you may know as Cousin Dan from Barshens.
He also played the dog in last week's Duck Hunt For Real, and crops up again next week in TWO mystery roles...
He also played the dog in last week's Duck Hunt For Real, and crops up again next week in TWO mystery roles...
BARCODE BATTLER
This was genuinely the first time I've ever used - or seen running - a Barcode Battler, and my boredom is real.
I love the Head to Head segments. After the big finale game at the end of each ep, they were my favourite part of the show to film. They're just sort of nice and relaxed, and feel like a proper TV show segment to me.
And, once again - as he does throughout the series - Mr Hairs crops up with his hairy arms, sort of becoming the sixth Beatle/Yoko.
I love the Head to Head segments. After the big finale game at the end of each ep, they were my favourite part of the show to film. They're just sort of nice and relaxed, and feel like a proper TV show segment to me.
And, once again - as he does throughout the series - Mr Hairs crops up with his hairy arms, sort of becoming the sixth Beatle/Yoko.
STREET FARTER
"A fundamentally broken idea"...
DJ TRENDY PEANUT
He's back! Fresh from Mr Biffo's Found Footage! The Peanut love is strong. This is one of two Found Footage references in this episode. I'm sure there'll be more...
BIG BOY BARRY
An absolute 90s gaming legend, Big Boy Barry - as fully expected - completely took over, running rings around Gannon. Why do you think I'd asked Gannon to interview him? I'm not stupid. I kind of wish we'd asked Barry to be in more stuff, as he gives 110% every time.
STREET FIGHTER II vs MORTAL KOMBAT
The Head to Head segments are meant to echo the stupid playground arguments we had with our mates. The ones this series are - mostly - the more traditional ones (we've ZX Spectrum vs Commodore 64) coming up, but I've a few ideas where to take the segment if/when we do series 2.
It's about finding a balance between topics people will recognise and ones which will alienate the less-nerdy among us. For now, until we've built an audience, this section is more a case of us playing the greatest hits.
It's about finding a balance between topics people will recognise and ones which will alienate the less-nerdy among us. For now, until we've built an audience, this section is more a case of us playing the greatest hits.
MOCKETY-MOC!
Mockety-Moc was a lot of fun to film. Less fun to edit. We bring it back for another go-around, this time with my co-hosts on the "celebrity" panel, for episode six. It's quite something.
Hats off to Sam and Gaz, our contestants, for being good sports. And behold: more evidence of the infinite versatility of barrels...
Next week's episode is my favourite one so far. Steve McNeil from Go 8-Bit is our special guest, but it's the finale you're really going to want to tune in for.
Subscribe, and spread the word!
Hats off to Sam and Gaz, our contestants, for being good sports. And behold: more evidence of the infinite versatility of barrels...
Next week's episode is my favourite one so far. Steve McNeil from Go 8-Bit is our special guest, but it's the finale you're really going to want to tune in for.
Subscribe, and spread the word!
RSS Feed
