# Pastebin PKwlG40z 12:13 PM Well, it seems like most of us have finished, how about we start with our initial thoughts? 12:13 PM mkay 12:13 PM So I was here on monday for 3790 and I have to say 12:13 PM This feels like 3790 done RIGHT. 12:14 PM OK, so... I'm pretty happy about this article and reading it, because I felt that finally, I know more about the DoA and more things make sense. In fact, basically everything makes sense, now. 12:15 PM I love how much content there is, and how it all actually matters in terms of story. For instance, the specific anomalies are actually used in the exploration. And the backstory involving generals, and Dr. Keter, and other things, really gives a sense about the background of the DoA 12:15 PM The crosslinks with SCP-002, but also the one with the Gears Proposal (which is pretty implicit) are justified, make sense and create more lore. So, yeah, really happy with that. 12:15 PM I definitely agree with Pighead. 12:16 PM (because, yeah, the link with the Gears Proposal is actually not just only the Dr. Keter) 12:16 PM I wouldn't say that this is 3790 done right per se, since it deals with very different themes from that article. It exchanges the loneliness and isolation with body horror and slasher-tier levels of violence at the very end. It's a lot more blunt and in your face, which makes it lose a lot of the quiet qualities that other articles have. 12:17 PM <+cybersqyd> It manages to be a lot more unsettling 12:17 PM that's valid. I guess what i mean is that if 3790 culminated in something like this instead of a blunt ending, or if you read this right after 3790, the impact is much more significant. 12:17 PM <+cybersqyd> but I think in someways, it loses the punch 3790 had by being so...drawn out? 12:17 PM In fact, I think about that and if I combine that with the previous DoA articles I've read on the last meeting, it's like a puzzle. 12:17 PM ^ 12:18 PM It's like all the articles I've previously read were not placed right at the first time, but 4099 was just the missing piece. 12:18 PM cybersqyd: What do you mean by that? 12:18 PM cybersqyd: i can see what you mean. The entire beginning feels somewhat unnecessary 12:18 PM And when you read this one, you're like "Oh, damn. Oh, damn. It was that!". 12:18 PM Like if the puzzle was completed and all was, in fact, right. 12:19 PM Pighead: I can agree with that. A lot of the other articles feel like they're pussyfooting in order to avoid giving a concrete answer, like they're afraid that their interpretation will not be accepted by the creators of the DoA. This definitely gives a more concrete explanation for everything. 12:19 PM <+cybersqyd> red3, like, 3790 is quietly unsettling and it works really nicely because it never feels like it over stays it's welcome; whereas 4099 feels...like it has to keep escalating and doing more to keep the reader on board? 12:19 PM cybersqyd: i think that has to do with how the two articles are meant to have different themes 12:19 PM <+cybersqyd> yeah 12:20 PM 4099 is meant to be much more action-driven and intensive 12:20 PM I can see that. This feels more like a problem with the beginning notes, which is a very classic case of escalation, that is immediately followed by a large amount of exposition about the monsters that will eventually be faced later on. 12:20 PM whereas 3790 is atmospheric and absent 12:20 PM <+cybersqyd> yeah; but I think because of that, it feels...less intense? 12:20 PM I agree that it drags on for too long, though. 12:21 PM <+cybersqyd> yeah 12:21 PM Do you mean that in that it feels like its constantly clashing with the original theme of the DoA or...? 12:21 PM <+cybersqyd> nah, it's just, a different style that I don't like as much 12:21 PM No, i think it works fine into the DoA. It's just a differet approach and a different perspective 12:21 PM <+cybersqyd> I prefer DoA when it's more atmospheric and moody 12:22 PM I think it's fine to be atmospheric and moody as long as it eventually breaks out. 12:22 PM Hence why I like 4099 12:23 PM <+cybersqyd> hm 12:23 PM I agree with Cyber more here, I feel like DoA is just a group that goes against typical action-y things, so this comes from very far out of left field. I do say that I like it though for being a very blunt form of exposition about the entire organization. 12:23 PM Well I also have to point out that this isn't just a DoA article. 12:23 PM This is the Foundation EXPLORING a DoA article. 12:24 PM It's the clash between two ideologies, so to speak 12:24 PM <+cybersqyd> I...don't necessarily think this is bad take on DoA so much as I don't enjoy it as much? 12:25 PM Greyve: I don't quite know what you mean by that. By the nature of this being an organization only explored through SCP articles, every DoA article is about the Foundation exploring it. 12:25 PM Yes and no. 12:25 PM Unlike 3790, the Foundation is experiencing the DoA. They are inserted into the middle of the DoA 12:26 PM And they bring their normal Foundation-y action with them into the dark, atmospheric DoA catacombs 12:26 PM thematically speaking 12:26 PM So, instead of there being a feeling of abandonment, there are still things inside of the facility that could harm them? 12:26 PM Well, I don't think every DoA article is about that. Maybe it's more implicit, but for me, 4099 is the only article who actually do that. In a more explicit way, but still. 12:27 PM red3: basically, yes. I think it's the clashing of the modern Foundation and the DoA's themes. I have to point out that it was the MTF that disrupted the situation and brought a voice and action into the scene, and that it was they who pressed the button to allow the action to unfold. 12:29 PM I guess I can see that. Going onto a more grounded view, a lot of the beats in the exploration log feel very weird and/or incredibly cliche to me. From the line where the captain chastises the team member for no real reason after they point out that they see stares, to the way that the MTF just decides to push a literal giant red button, to the fact that Command just... becomes infected(?) once they enter the facility 12:29 PM for whatever reason. 12:30 PM yeah, i get that. 12:30 PM I just finished 4099 (apologies for butting in so late into the review) And I enjoyed the dark themes of this piece. I certainly have, as pighead said at the start, a more clearer understanding of this Department. I did enjoy the clashing of the two groups here - the new and main body of the Foundation and the darkness of the Department of Abnormalities. Although two things stuck out to me. One: Why didn't the O5 12:30 PM send in their MTF Alpha-01 instead of this MTF? And two, is this the same building as SCP-3790? With one of the rooms marked as "Absence" same as in this one and 3790 12:30 PM I guess that fits into my perspective better because from a thematic perspective, the Foundation is "looking for action" 12:32 PM BlueJones: don't think it can be the same building, 3790 is in London, while 4099 is in Ukraine 12:32 PM > Located in Ukraine, underneath the city of Pripyat. 12:32 PM BlueJones: That's a very slight issue I have with this article: the hallway being described in almost the exact same way as in 3790. Although, that could've just been due to the organization creating similar facilities. 12:32 PM > SCP-3790 is a structure located beneath the abandoned Port Superior Canning Company warehouse in London, United Kingdom. 12:33 PM Greyve: Well now I'm more intrigued by this "Absence" room that has so far been marked twice in both these skips 12:33 PM BlueJones: just theorycrafting here, but it seems like the DoA is building "sets", so to speak. 12:33 PM red3: One could argue that the facilities in the Foundation are described in the same sort of manner 12:34 PM Why can't the Foundation destroy anomalies? Because they may need to use anomalies to prevent other anomalies. 12:34 PM maybe "Absence" means that they're missing an anomaly from the "set". 12:34 PM Yeah, again, the DoA is probably just building the same types of facilities over and over. 12:35 PM Greyve: In any case, this is now making me intrigued to read more into these sites and anomalies that sprout from the DoA's... absence (:P) from our reality 12:35 PM Greyve: I think you're looking too far into things. Where in here does it state that the anomalies in this facility are being used to contain another anomaly? How do these anomalies specifically go into that goal? 12:35 PM BlueJones: agreed 12:35 PM red3: What does "absence" mean? 12:36 PM Maybe they don't counteract each other, but it just seems like the DoA has a reason for grouping things the way that they are. 12:36 PM It's probably just another stereotypically spooky anomaly name like a lot of the anomalies in 3790. Again, I don't see how these dots connect to each other. 12:36 PM They could obviously save a LOT of space if they moved anomlies from other sites into preconstructed "absence" rooms. 12:37 PM Of course, the other possibility is that "Absence" means it escaped. 12:37 PM <+cybersqyd> so i was digging through the comments out of curiosity here 12:37 PM <+cybersqyd> and i discovered something interesting: this was connor's first skip 12:37 PM truly? This is a pretty excellent first skip 12:37 PM Again, I think that you're looking too far into this. It just seems like a one-off anomaly which has no greater meaning to the story. After the two or three lines that mention it, it is never brought up again. 12:38 PM <+cybersqyd> yeah, I think it's likely just a nod to 3790 and not like, actually important 12:38 PM red3: yeah, i suppose so. I just like the idea of there being an interconnected narrative that the author hints at and leaves room for a canon or arc to form. 12:39 PM like i said, it was just theory crafting 12:39 PM Although I struggle to see how the DoA would use anomalies to contain anomalies unless they were a Thaumiel. But to get back on track, I do love the corrospondence between the agent and the Doctor. (From here, I'm going to theorycraft here) but what if the junior researcher that committed suicide was either a false story to keep those who are aware of the DOA away from the O5 OR the O5 killed Researcher Barnes and 12:39 PM sent an MTF throwaway to deal with this site that came from the notebook? (For some reason, the more we read DOA, the more questions we ask not about it but hte O5 council) 12:39 PM ↔ DianaBerry nipped out 12:42 PM Maybe the first solution. I can't really imagine an O5 doing that. 12:42 PM BlueJones: that's an interesting way to look at it. Perhaps the junior researcher was even originally working with shane or horton. 12:42 PM I don't have much else to say about this, so I'll just move onto my final thoughts. I tend to rate SCPs on two scales: how much I liked it and how well I think that they were written. For something like 4220, it was very well written, but I found no actual enjoyment from reading it. This has the opposite problem. I like it in the same way that I like a cheesy, 80s slasher movie like Friday the 13th or A Nightmare on Elm 12:42 PM Street, but there are numerous problems with this both narrative-wise and prose-wise that prevents me from thinking of it as good in the other sense. This is going to be a medium downvote from me, since these issues can be fixed by the author just shortening the notes section and the exploration log. 12:42 PM I mean, obviously, they do a lot of shady business, sure. But killing someone in their own ranks? Nah. 12:43 PM Oh, and for my final thoughts, again, strong upvote from me. I feel really satisfied to finally know more about the DoA. 12:44 PM Pighead: Has happened and if they want to keep a lid on something this dark, I doubt one human life in their ranks is hardly a bad thought in their mind. Example: read end of death. Final thoughts for me is this is a strong DoA article and I would so upvote this due its dark and twisty turns 12:44 PM red3: understandable. This clearly isn't an article that makes a reader go "WOW", but keeping in mind that this is a first skip, and that it challenges the idea of the DoA with its execution, I think i have to forgive its narrative impergections. 12:44 PM And the fact that this article says implicitly to me "You had already read some articles about that and you had not understand? No problem, it's a good thing to already read that, here's a reward for you, this article" is really grateful for me. 12:44 PM So, moderate upvote from me. 12:45 PM Pighead: But that's not really a quality of the article itself, it's due to the fact that we've been reading very vague DoA articles for the past week. 12:47 PM → +RageComic (voiced) joined 12:47 PM For me, it's a quality. I judge it as a quality. Plus, I also like the crosslinks and the "comeback" of what had been made in the Gears Proposal, see that this is not just a one-shot anymore. 12:48 PM I don't know how to say it, but thinking about the Proposal and after that, reading this old files, make me think "Oh, there's actually more than that. We thought it was just the Foundation when it was old, but in fact, it was that!". 12:48 PM This is really what makes the thing interesting, y'know?