# Pastebin PTCIwJ0h
<•cybersqyd> So, first impressions?
12:07 PM <red3> I'm still debating whether or not this is a better piece of characterization than Impressions, since this has more of an outside force making the character show their traits, but I'd say that Impressions is better written in general.
12:07 PM <BlueJones> It started off nice and then... bam! We're in a different scene and I for sure now think that A) their psychics and 2) I witnessed a psychic hallucination in this writing
12:10 PM <red3> I liked the descriptions for what they were: a person describing something without fully knowing what it is. Beyond that, I felt that they were a bit boring and didn't bring me into the world.
12:10 PM <•cybersqyd> this really doesn't feel like an ending
12:11 PM <BlueJones> It was curious really. Like I was looking at this and thought okay, so he's watching a film and then all of a sudden I'm watching this guy re-live his memories if I was reading this correctly
12:12 PM <red3> Yeah, this feels more like it wants to be the beginning of something. The inciting incident of this series. But it stops just short of setting up the promise of what the narrative is probably going to be about.
12:12 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:12 PM <•cybersqyd> it's,,,the same feeling a lot of these pieces have had?
12:13 PM <BlueJones> I felt like "Oh goodness! This is new and weird and I like it" and then... stops
12:14 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:14 PM <•cybersqyd> it's a shame? cos like as a whole this series has had a lot of potential
12:15 PM <•cybersqyd> it just feels like it's never acted on it?
12:15 PM <BlueJones> This series has so much potential under the ice but it never dug down, just skated around
12:15 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah :9
12:15 PM <red3> I really didn't like the inclusion of the SCP in this. It wrings in another story about the SCP while also trying to shoehorn in the story about Sakarn missing this one girl he knew and it all ends up being tedius.
12:15 PM <•cybersqyd> mmm
12:16 PM <•cybersqyd> It feels like it's quite...drily written too?
12:16 PM <•cybersqyd> Like a lot of the pieces have had a tonne of charm in the writing style
12:16 PM <•cybersqyd> whereas this one feels...more grounded and clinical?
12:16 PM <BlueJones> Then again, we need to remember that these pieces were written like 8 years ago, when half of these authors were just getting on their feet with their writing
12:17 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:17 PM <•cybersqyd> Like I can definitely understand imperfections
12:17 PM <•cybersqyd> But at the same time...it feels...like a missed opportunity?
12:18 PM → Penguin joined (uid425391@a.queendom.of.ice.snow.and.igloos)
12:18 PM <DrMoned> I think they tried to do it as a collection of short stories with an overarching narrative. But the narrative was never properly fleshed out
12:18 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:18 PM <DrMoned> As you said, it feels like they wanted to do more, but it was forgotten
12:19 PM <BlueJones> DrMoned: I think that's why we all like TTP, cause its short stories but there is an overarching narrative behind each story. If I may interject here
12:19 PM <•cybersqyd> yep
12:19 PM <•cybersqyd> oh yeah, it feels like this didn't follow qntms one weird trick to write a good series at all
12:19 PM <•cybersqyd> > 
Write a complete story in one chapter.
12:20 PM <DrMoned> Never yeah of it but v that makes sense cyber
12:20 PM <red3> I thought qntm's one weird trick to writing a good series was not to write a series.
12:20 PM <•cybersqyd> I mean, it kinda is
12:20 PM <DrMoned> That also sounds like solid advise
12:20 PM <•cybersqyd> but for me it's about like, having a solid narrative heft to each story?
12:20 PM <•cybersqyd> Like, a series here isn't like...a book chapter where it's relatively fine if the chapter can't stand alone?
12:21 PM <DrMoned> I think you either have to have strong short stories, or a well told narrative overall
12:21 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:21 PM <DrMoned> They tried too hard to do both
12:21 PM <red3> I can see that. Each chapter gives the reader a reward for completing it, rather than just hooking the reader deeper and deeper into a story which might not leave them feeling satisfied by the end of it.
12:21 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:21 PM <•cybersqyd> which is where this fails, cos it feels kinda like a series where every instalment has been "Book Chapter 1"
12:22 PM <DrMoned> A series is only as strong as it's weakest part imo
12:22 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:22 PM <BlueJones> Mhm
12:22 PM <red3> cybersqyd: That captures a lot of my thoughts exactly. And half of them don't give enough of a hook to really pull that kinda thing off, so I have to legitimately work to read through them,.
12:22 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:23 PM <•cybersqyd> It's a shame cos there's some really great moments of characterisation here?
12:24 PM <DrMoned> I think this is a huge problem with series on this site. If an author runs out of steam, the series has a huge build up with no payoff
12:24 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:24 PM <red3> That's why there's a lot of series which just have one or two entries and then die out.
12:24 PM <BlueJones> This canon in my opinion deserves a revival cause there is so many good ideas here that can be and should be utilised
12:25 PM <DrMoned> Hence why proper self contained stories that happen to occur in chronological order. Tend to do better
12:25 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:25 PM <•cybersqyd> Which ties back into qntm's one weird trick ;p
12:25 PM <DrMoned> Damn it all goes back to qntm :p
12:25 PM <•cybersqyd> yep
12:25 PM <red3> qntm is the father of all.
12:26 PM <DrMoned> That's kind of what I tried to do for my Nexus stuff. They all happen in the same place. But don't require knowledge of the previous
12:26 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:26 PM <DrMoned> For older stuff, that seems to have been rarer and this series have been abandoned
12:26 PM <DrMoned> *thus
12:26 PM <•cybersqyd> I think it's fine to require knowledge of previous entries as long as like...you still have a whole narrative arc in a current part?
12:27 PM <DrMoned> Yeah
12:27 PM <BlueJones> DrMoned: Thats why things like La Rue and TTP work, so long as you know the setting and have a tiny bit of knowledge, anything can work :D
12:27 PM <red3> Getting back to the topic, this is going to be a strong downvote from me. This entire series of made up of pieces that really need to act like pieces, but there's just not enough of them in order to make a coherent picture. Each piece of scattered across where they need to go for the picture so much that they feel like they might not even belong together.
12:27 PM <•cybersqyd> yep
12:27 PM <•cybersqyd> this definitely doesn't feel like a tale series per se
12:28 PM <•cybersqyd> so much as...a collection of things?
12:28 PM <BlueJones> Agreeing there
12:28 PM <DrMoned> I liked the intro alone, but not the rest really
12:28 PM <DrMoned> .s Antarctic Exchange hub
12:28 PM <•Secretary_Helen> DrMoned: Antarctic Exchange Hub (Rating: +67. Written 7 years ago By: Djoric) - http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/antarctic-exchange-hub
12:29 PM <•cybersqyd> I retroactively dislike the intro?
12:29 PM <•cybersqyd> Like, I think it's a good intro but it only works as an intro; and because it's not really an intro that set like, a good sense of where this was going, it feels...iffy
12:29 PM <red3> I liked the intro and maybe Turn a New Page, but that's an extraordinarily slight maybe.
12:30 PM <•cybersqyd> yeah
12:30 PM <DrMoned> The last two tales I remember being better
12:30 PM <•cybersqyd> I liked Impressions but I think it's more because I like Zyn's slice of life style
12:30 PM <DrMoned> But I assume we aren't covering that?
12:31 PM <BlueJones> Personally I loved the collecting and the "From on High" tales because they're hints of connectivity
12:31 PM <red3> cybersqyd: I agree that it doesn't really work as a tale, but more as just a hub of character with some prose slapped on there, but I would disagree with your second point. This series seems to be exploring the character dynamics of people from a wildly different culture who are also anomalous, and flashing between each character and showing their traits and how they initially respond to this new world is a great way to 
12:31 PM <red3> introduce that.
12:31 PM <DrMoned> Taking about that, are we going to read the last two Ihp and Byrx tales?
12:31 PM <DrMoned> Cyber^
12:32 PM <•cybersqyd> red3, see, I don't necessarily disagree per se; except that to me the introduction primed me for like, a big overarching thing where all the characters would be important together? But instead it felt too lowkey and slice of life-y?
12:32 PM <•cybersqyd> DrMoned, mm not sure
12:32 PM <•cybersqyd> We gotta talk about what's next as a group
12:32 PM <DrMoned> Those are on the foundation pov in the empire
12:32 PM <red3> I can see that.
12:33 PM <•cybersqyd> Does anyone have much else to say? Or should we talk about what's next?
12:33 PM <DrMoned> Damn both the newer ones only have 1 downvote
12:33 PM <BlueJones> I've said what I wanted to say
12:33 PM <DrMoned> Aye
12:33 PM <SharpEmbrace> DrMoned: that's a big problem for series i feel
12:34 PM <SharpEmbrace> a lot of the people who read the whole thing are the ones who like them
12:34 PM <DrMoned> True
12:34 PM <red3> That only really applies though when the new entry is continuing the main story. Since this is a kind of offshoot, I don't think that most of the people upvoting it are doing it just because it's another part of the canon.