If it's not too personal - i'm curious, how did you came with idea of conversational liveblog videos with homestuckbecausereasons and how this came past her Spoiler Watcher? Shouldn't talking and pointing details in the middle of the first Cascade watch, instead of filtered asks after, count as spoilers?
Ah, this? :)
The main idea behind it was the Green Sun’s creation.
Many, many people miss the fact, during Cascade, that the Green Sun is created rather than destroyed, because of how it’s visually conveyed. I missed it too, back when the flash came out! And it’s about 50/50 for people I’ve asked about it… moreso for someone who explicitly has mentioned they have problems identifying the visual conveyances of flashes and panels.
Realizing that the Green Sun was created instead of destroyed is a, if not the, major twist of the flash. And if you realize it during your first watch of the flash, your total enjoyment of the flash is dramatically better… making a miss of the fact a real missed opportunity. Ever since this trend of Homestuck Livebloggers started, I’ve been perpetually afraid that each given liveblogger might miss that element of Cascade during their watch, and that not only would they enjoy the epic flash less, but also we wouldn’t be able to see their reaction, which is usually excellent if they get it.
Having someone sit beside them somehow — in this case, me, via Skype — is the only way to guarantee they won’t miss it. And afterwards, homestuckbecausereasons agreed with me that she was indeed able to enjoy this particular experience better with a guide, which eased any concerns I had about the idea. :) Plus I got to tell her other things she would have to have answered a dozen asks about otherwise in the subsequent flashes, like Doc being an excellent host or the Grandpa/Grandson swap she didn’t figure out earlier.
As for how I “got past” her ask screener, I’m actually the one who put her up to liveblogging the rest of her Homestuck read in the first place! :) I told her to get an ask screener, which she did, but I still have that direct line to her. I’ve cleared up other questions she’s had via IM throughout her readthrough, and have tried hard to keep my communications spoiler-free.
Bladekindeyewear and I chat on AIM all the time! My screener has been really busy lately, so he’s the one who usually gets pestered if I have a question.
It was really fun watching it with him on Skype, actually, especially since we’ve established I have trouble noticing visual things. And I have a shitty memory for so much going on.