{"id":803,"date":"2020-11-16T23:21:36","date_gmt":"2020-11-17T07:21:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/?p=803"},"modified":"2020-11-16T23:21:37","modified_gmt":"2020-11-17T07:21:37","slug":"someone-knows-something-s1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/2020\/11\/16\/someone-knows-something-s1\/","title":{"rendered":"“Someone Knows Something” S1"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The second episode of Someone Knows Something <\/em>begins with a hook much different than that presented in the first. Rather than using sound effects to bring the listener in, Ridgen describes a dream he commonly has. That he is running from a bear in the forest, eventually being cornered in the room of a cabin he has come to know all too well. However, it is at this climax\u2014back to the wall and gun in hand\u2014that Ridgen always wakes up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He says that this dream has become so common to him that for it to disappear would leave him missing it. The euphoria he experiences when he wakes up to find that he is safe in bed rather than in the room of that cabin leaves him wanting more. Ridgen, having had this experience, says that he slightly understands the similar experience of the McNaughton family when they dream of their Adrien playing in the yard as he once had. However, their experience with these dreams is almost the opposite of his own, as, they wake up to nightmare rather than from it. Morning after morning, their Adrien is taken from them, and the sense of loss is experienced again and again. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The variance in the hooks used is experienced throughout the first few episodes of “Someone Knows Something” season one, although, I must say that the homonymous nature of the dream comparison has made episode two’s hook my favorite so far. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Ridgen does a good job hooking listeners with his intros, it is the ambiguity in the hooks connection to the rest of the story that really draws me in. These hooks, having absolutely no initial links in which a listener may draw parallels to what they believe to be the continuation of the case of missing Adrien McNaughton causes early questioning by said listener. They require a sort of focus and depth of thinking which something forward or obvious would condemn. This is important because what Ridgen presents as the theme of these short-story style intros is an idea which listeners may reference throughout each episodes segment of the overall case. Keeping whatever question he intends to ask in presenting the story allows for a deeper understanding of what he hopes to accomplish in that episode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ridgen moves swiftly from the hook into interviews, allowing for few lines of narration between the two. What does assist in this transition however, is his use of overlapping. Where the last story ended is not exactly where the next episode is started, rather, Ridgen takes a few steps back to make sure that listeners are caught up on all details futile to understanding the next segment of the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rest of each episode is filled with a mix of narration and interviews that leads the listener through each episodes progression of the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A tactic that Ridgen uses that I both like and dislike is his editing out of his own questions in interviews. Rather than allowing for his voice to be heard throughout the questioning, he instead narrates over his speaking. A tactic that allows for Ridgen to add additional levels of clarification which may not be clear to listeners of the interview itself. Through this he allows himself to narrate intent in questioning a specific interviewee, often including a question to keep in mind while listening to the interviewee speak. However, not producing the original audio in the podcast\u2014as he almost entirely removes his own voice\u2014begs listeners to question his credibility. While we may believe the questioned to be speaking true to their understanding of the case, the context becomes unclear when the original question is not also presented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite this, I do find his interviews to be rather expertly conducted and edited into the podcast itself. Through the precise use of his narrating voice as well as background music, he conveys a tone consistent with what’s at question. The rise and fall of volume levels as commentary enters and exits dramatizes what may have been an originally bland audio. This, in addition to his use of sound effects as a way of conveying setting changes, draw in interest in there including of the listener as part of the story rather than only an observer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before concluding each episode, Ridgen provides a final line of questioning, not to any interviewee but to the listener themselves. Something he does in order to prepare them for the context of the next episode in the series. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, a trait similar to every Someone Knows Something<\/em> podcast episode is its cliffhanger. Often being the beginning and abrupt cutting off of an interview which begs listeners to begin the next episode if only to complete their broken understanding of what has been said. Ridgen’s use of sound effects and music also aid in calling the listener to the next episode, creating an eerie, mysterious tone which forces one to reminisce on all that has been discovered and what has yet to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the use of progressional tactics Someone Knows Something <\/em>season one makes for a captivating series that leaves listeners wanting more at the end of each episode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Word Count: 857<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The second episode of Someone Knows Something begins with a hook much different than that presented in the first. Rather than using sound effects to bring the listener in, Ridgen describes a dream he commonly…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/42"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=803"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":828,"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803\/revisions\/828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mattpoland.net\/sherlockpod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}