This week we have a special guest for you from the Defiance Community. Defiance Radio Personality Mr. Beck Altar of KTAM Radio. Join us as we discuss the latest episode “A Well Respected Man” and delve into the gaming community surrounding Syfy’s Defiance Universe. Also, is EGO going insane? Tune in to find out.

EPISODE 3 A Well Respected Man

RECAP Kenya and one of her “porters†gets kidnapped by the only bioman in Defiance and taken to a secret drug lab outside the city. Now it’s up to Nolan, Amanda, and even Datak to find them.

Thoughts and Observations

• 
  
•  Why did the town council decide it needed to quietly have weapons run into town? Was there a reason for their secrecy in their dealings with Datak? And Amanda is STILL mayor, appointed or elected, why is information being held back from her? Side question: Who will be her opponent?
  
• Did they say Mag-lev? How is siding with E-Rep to get a Mag-lev through town a bad thing? And why is Amanda so against the idea? Does she have some insight as to how E-Reps work or is she just poisoned by Nicki’s words?
  
• Apparently Nolan isn’t a stranger to the synthetic Adrino “Blue Devil,†having been forced to take it in the Pale Wars
  
• It is clear there is drug running and the question is Who is running the drugs, Datak or the Votanis Collective. Was the plot of Meeko a red herring.
  
• Anyone else get the “Of Mice and Men†feel between Ulysses and Meeko. Obviously Meeko is the brains of the outfit, what with being a chemist and Ulysses being all muscle. How is it that Datak’s muscle happens to have another boss? Are we supposed to believe that drugs are being pushed in his town without getting a cut?
  
• Interesting tidbit found on the forums: The crashed Stratocarrier crashed 30km outside Bissel Pass. Assuming the pass is at least a few miles from the city center, the stratocarrier crashed where the current city of Defiance, MO is.
  
• Of course the whole episode is about building the relationship between rigid Amanda and free spirited Kenya. As most episodes of this type start, there’s an argument or disagreement until one is gone and the other suffers guilt. The nice twist to this one is that Kenya actually gets to be the matronly one to her porter while they flee from the Volge. Of course this led to the lie of St Finnigan and the revelation of their mother. Would Amanda have ever told Kenya about their mother? Ever?
  
• Datak seems to get a whole new dimension to his character this episode. When Nolan physically accosts Datak in the streets in his sleepwear, we really get to see Tony Curran shine. Its also probably the only episode you will hear Datak tell the complete and honest truth. From his honest and accurate description of Nolan to his keen understanding of the town’s relationship.
  
• Who is leaving the TV show verse to join the game verse? (It’s Rynn)
  
• Lack of Game Tie in’s/nods otherwise.
  

Favorite scenes

Ben

• 
  
• Datak and Nolan working together. To see Datak trying to look like the hero by setting up a false witness, only to get shut down by Nolan was priceless. Still Datak does have a point in that Nolan does have to stop with the brutish, heavy handed policing and get to know the town and its people.
  
• The revelation of St. Finnigan and what happened to Mother Rosewater. To me having a metal of a saint named after a fallen soldier held more weight and sentimentality than actually using the Saint’s name, no matter that it wasn’t the initial intent. There’s more that ties it to the moment.
  

Beck

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• The ending when Nolan Figures out Stahma is the motivator. Though I wonder if it is not going to backfire on her.
  

Dislikes?

Ben

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• Seems to me that Syfy is having trouble with Biomen. With the impressions I’ve got, biomen seem to be nothing but raging killing machines and experts of brute combat. Yet Ulysses seems like the runt of the litter in this episode
  

Speculations for Next Week

So right now the audience is wondering about Nicky and Birch’s plans to find the Kaziri,  and what Rafe’s plans for the artifact are, we can now wonder about those cave paintings. How old are they? 12 years or 12 thousand years?  What do the pictograms represent? Is there a silver disk to match the gold one found and the horned being holding them.

Preview of next week’s episode - The Serpent’s Egg

http://youtu.be/3yEVyY5IZe4

• 
  
• So while Nolan and Amanda are transferring a prisoner, Irisa spots someone from her past and decides to exact a bit of revenge.
  
• Where are they taking Rynn and who attacked them mid transfer?
  
• Who is that Castithan and why is TOMMY INVOLVED IN THIS?
  

[Show Predictions]

Next week I think we’re going to find out that Rynn was rescued NOT by the spirit riders, but Birch and Nicki since she’s proven herself resourceful and they could use someone like her in their plans.

Shooting the Shtako Episode 4

http://youtu.be/NNiSaKDW-mM

Mia Kirshner sits down with Defiance EP Kevin Murphy in this week’s Shooting the Shtako to dish the dirt about playing Defiance’s sexiest business owner, Kenya.

• 
  
• Interesting. When shooting the kidnapping scene, Kenya’s cuts and bruises and sense of immobilization were not played up too much since she was involved in a bike accident before shooting.
  
• Then there’s some interesting discussion about whether knowing some back story helps the actor know where you’re coming from or if its just more of a hinderance.
  

Reviews Across the Web

We at Defiance Reporter received an email for a listener (we’ll get to that a bit later) mentioning that io9 is not the only place to find a show review if we find them to be unfair, so to be fair to the viewers, I’ve decided to go with a review from TV.com’s Noel Kirkpatrick

http://www.tv.com/news/defiance-a-well-respected-man-review-and-4-episode-test-due-deference-136777896614/

• 
  
• Now l felt that the show is pretty heavy handed across all its episodes but that’s not necessarily a bad thing, if its entertaining and/or interesting
  
• The show’s pilot had laid out the groundwork for the challenges that would be faced by the Rosewater sisters and their polarizing positions within the town, but this episode quickly cuts through the rising tensions and makes their conflict seem more like a “one-off that provided some character background instead of offering much in the way of character development.â€
  
• “Datak’s wounded-pride speech was motivated by the apparent snubbing by the council due to Nolan busting up the arms smuggling, but it also ended up playing into the schemes to better position the Tarrs to gain control of the town, thanks to Stahma’s ability to properly manipulate the situation. So when she and Nolan shared an exchange at the end of the episode—”You know, I’ve had my eye on the wrong snake. You’re the dangerous one.” “You’re very sweet.”—it was actually the perfect way to end the hour: with the giving and acknowledgment of respect.â€
  
• “I wouldn’t necessarily recommend Defiance to someone without knowing their science-fiction leanings, and if I weren’t reviewing it, it would probably slip into my Friday-night catch-up queue. It hasn’t really made itself appointment viewing for me. But I would still be watching it, and that’s the important takeaway, I think. I find the idea of the show, this Western + sci-fi + immigrant story mash-up, interesting enough that I want to see how it goes. While I’m not interested in Nicky’s plan for the town, how that golden knot figures into things, or the relationship between Christie and Alak, the rest of the show generally holds my attention week to week. There are plenty of episodes left in the season, however, so there’s plenty of time to become more invested… or less so.â€
  

[What we did in game]

Ben

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• Currently I’m at EGO rating 923 and still slowly climbing. I’ve completed the Svushinnira episode pursuits. I’m also nearly done with the main and side missions together in San Francisco.
  

Beck

• 
  
•  My EGO rating is somewhere around the 1300s and I basically wander around in game while I do the show. Right now I’m working on completing the elemental hellbug pursuits.
  

Still Struggling to get those Elemental Hellbugs?

By now most arkhunters have completed their contracts in exterminating those elemental hellbugs, but if you’re still at it, here are some helpful tips, curtesy of Arkhunters Academy.com

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• Look for A New Pair of Genes, Exotic Goods and Thinning the Herd events along the roadside.
  
• One helpful strategy is to port to the Muir Processing Plant and travel west towards Mine 99 and just go back and forth completing the events.
  
• If you see an Arkfall even called Hellbug Destruction, complete it. It will spawn dozens and dozens of elemental hellbugs to complete your pursuit.
  
• “Svushinnira: Thinning the Herd†Contract for Paradise Territories has not appeared in game yet and completing the previous pursuit with the same name will not complete the objective for Unconventional Methods (though I understand patch 1.014 has taken care of the confusion by removing the objective completely)
  

Across the Badlands Episode 4 

http://youtu.be/Z3JvGez7274

Greg Laabs and Elizabeth Tobey came back this week to discuss the show and game.

• 
  
• A little more about Adreno from the lore writers: “The new variant of adreno was twice as powerful as the original synthetic version and twice as addictive. This has created an addiction problem among EMC war veterans.†By the wars end the adrino use spread to the civilian sectors and was soon being developed by criminal chemists working out of makeshift adreno labs.†Obviously the rise in popularity, usage and addiction, led to the eventual adreno-napping crimewave.
  
• While playing the game, I never realized that the quick, blue burred enemies like those in Liberate the Lost are adreno addicts.
  
• Interview with Narrative Designer Trick Dempsey
  
  • 
    
  • His job is to make sure they are using all the storytelling devices they have to their maximum effectiveness.
    
  • Preparing characters that cross between the game and show is by far his most difficult task to undertake. They need to establish that crossing the storm divide is extremely dangerous and not everyone that crosses survives. (Hints at an established character shown in the previews for the next show will make the trip. Guesses?)
    
  • Who is EGO? She is the person you’re going to hear the most and we wanted it to be someone you like. Do you like her? Is EGO insane? No she is not progressing towards insanity in the course of season 1, but she’s definitely manipulating the way you see things in the world.
    
  
  
  
• What’s up with Half-breeds and how do they exist? Dempsey didn’t really give an answer to this other than to say science wont allow for half breeds, but the line mentioned in the show leaves that door open for them later, solely because it would be cool.
  
• Will there be any other playable races in the game? Maybe *wink*
  
• Very soon a character of the TV show will be crossing the badlands into San Francisco! Watch Facebook.com/defiance to get a few other hints.
  

Synergy and How it Works

http://community.defiance.com/en/2013/05/07/weapon-synergy/

• 
  
• Synergy effects can be gained by obtaining and equipping multiple items that belong to a set.
  
• There are two types of synergy: weapon-weapon, and weapon-mod.
  
• Weapon-weapon synergies require two weapons with the same synergy to be equipped, which will activate that synergy effect.
  
• Weapon-mod synergies require a weapon and attached mods with the same synergy. In weapon-mod synergy, the more matching mods are added to the weapon, the more powerful the synergy bonus that is gained.
  

State of the Game

Another patch released March 8th, designated as Patch 1.014

• 
  
• Freight Yard is back…again.
  
• Svushinnira, “the rain of pollutionâ€, grows ever more severe. Horribly mutated Hellbugs dot the Paradise landscape as the Hellbug mating season continues. Nano-effect imbued Hellbugs are now more common and many familiar encounters now carry a new and dangerous change. This includes more Electric and Syphon Monarchs and mutated Hellbugs now appearing at Parraba Ranch, Happy Pow, Bug Basin, Ridgecrest Mine, Big Stone Reach, and Diablo Station.
  
• Completing Ranks of Echelon now gives you a second outfit to equip in competitive matches.
  
• Some EGO rating 1900 to 2000 weapons were not getting their rarity bonuses appropriately. This is now fixed.
  
• Fixed a crash that could occur when hitting Ctrl-Q.
  
• Fixed a crash that could occur when resetting missions.
  
• Fixed a crash associated with Dogtown Mine.
  
• Removed some of the level up spam that happened upon load in.
  
• Vehicles can now only be found as specials on vehicle vendors.
  
• Vehicle special price has been increased.
  
• Additional Challenger variants added.
  
• Mine 99 rewards have been reduced.
  

Sledgehammer70 also notes that the design team is looking at weapons and mods and how those items affect gameplay vs. all the other weapons in the game. We will be addressing balancing shotguns as needed in upcoming patches. With these changes you can look forward to some in-depth details on why changes are being made.

Listener Letters

Dave writes “Thanks for the Great Podcast! It has made the Defiance Universe so much more enjoyable and entertaining for me. Like many SyFy viewers, I was seeing a ton of promos for the show before its debut. It looked interesting enough to record the series on my DVR, but I didn’t delve deep into the universe. Up until Episode 4, I had ONLY been watching the show. And to be honest, it did fall a little flat for me. Good enough to record, but nothing I was excited about week in week out. And my perspective would of stayed the same had I not found the Game, your Podcast, and all the Online information. This universe has SO much depth, but it isn’t presented in the show….yet. I think it will take a full season, or maybe more, to provide the information needed to make the viewer care about the Defiance Universe. Unfortunately, I think many viewers will have checked out by then. It’s hard for you guys to see how others view the show without your knowledge of all the backstories, but let me tell you; the show falls flat on its own. And to be honest, the game kind of “Meh†on its own as well. But when you combine the two, along with the Online information, they are both engaging and exciting.â€

 

We also received an email from Ken from Chicago, but I think I’ll be saving that for next episode to share with my co-host Chris.

LAST MINUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS

Defiance: The Essential Guide (http://www.defiance.com/en/series/news/get-defiance-the-essential-guide) is now available for the Kindle Fire, Nook, and Kobo as well as on the iBookstore

  

Join our clan IGNI FERROQUE! <defiancereporter.guildlaunch.com>

No registration required, just look for one of these officers in-game, Corso Vanlocke, Jack Thundersteele, or Almazar to get an invite!

 

iTunes 5 Star Reviews

We’d like to thank the following reviewers for giving us a 5-star rating on itunes:

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  • Jath30
    
  
  

CONTACT US!

Email: defiance@mmoreporter.com

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