Can't Help Falling by suudonym: Recent Episodes
Chororine
A podfic of the Osomatsu-san story Can't Help Falling (https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16258172) by a rank amateur voice actress stuck with a built-in laptop mic - but the important thing here isn't the messenger, it's the message. And the message is damn good: you'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll feel Karamatsu's pain in a totally different way that you're used to.
IT LIVES!!! Happy early KaraKaraKara Day
Word Of The Day: “Engraft” - to firmly attach something onto something else
Idiom Of The Day: if something “doesn’t agree with” a person, it causes them physical discomfort
(Content warning: starvation and suicidal thoughts) The climax is up next and it might take a while because the next two chapters are absolute behemoths of audio files that’ll take ages to edit; be patient and read ahead if you want
Japanese Word Of The Day: “Obon” - a holiday focused on remembering one’s ancestors and late family members, when the spirits of the dead are said to visit
English Word Of The Day: “Scornful” - filled with contempt, hatred or disrespect
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16835066
(Content warning: fasting/starvation) Fun fact, this takes place right before the last scene of chapter 21
Word Of The Day: “Abate” - lessen; decrease; lose its grip
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16835036
this is fine.jpg
Word Of The Day: “Farce” - a ridiculous act; a facade (also a genre of absurd and fast-paced comedy theatre)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16835015
major volume warning from 2:10 to 3:00
Word Of The Day: “Unbidden” - uninvited; unexpected
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16810576
Content warnings: vomiting and vivid description of a panic attack
Word Of The Day: “Unglued” - to come unglued is to lose all sense of stability and rationality
Content warning: mentions of non-consensual drug use (pardon my wrong pronunciation of the drug in question, I’ve been on fluoxitine for well over a decade so that’s all I know ¯\_(ツ)_/¯)
English Word Of The Day: “Squander” - to waste something
Japanese Word Of The Day: an “omiai” or “marriage interview” is basically Japan’s variation on arranged marriage (if you’ve seen Aggretsuko season 2 you know what’s up)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16787515
nice Bart the Murderer reference
Word Of The Day: “Marionette” - a puppet, usually one controlled by strings
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16787482
Here it is, the chapter I warned you about before - again, no hard feelings if you wanna skip a few chapters and/or read the traditional way for a bit
Word Of The Day: "Medieval" - as an adjective, it means cruel and old-fashioned
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16764670
Content warning: mention of parent death and background barking (we’ll just say Matsuri’s neighbours have a dog I guess)
Word Of The Day: “Modicum” - a small measurement; tiny bit
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16764658
Content warning: vomiting
Idiom Of The Day: to “miss the memo” is to be unaware of something that’s considered obvious
Word Of The Day: “Parse” - to think carefully; analyze (not to be confused with “pass”)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16740946
while editing Chapter 25 I discovered Audacity’s “fade in/fade out” function and I’ve been having way too much fun with it ever since
Word Of The Day: “Reprieve” - rest; downtime; a break
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16721026
In which the fic proves itself to not only be an excellent story, but excellent meta on the Osomatsu-san fandom (circa 2016-17 anyway)
Japanese Word Of The Day: “Karaage” - Japanese fried chicken, basically
English Word Of The Day: “Austerity” - sternness; coldness
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16720999
(Content warning: moderate injury) I guess you could say Karamatsu’s life has become a Misery
Japanese Word Of The Day: “Oyakodon” - a dish made with chicken and eggs (“oyako” means “parent and child”. The Japanese have a dark sense of humour)
Idiom Of The Day: “knock yourself out” - almost always used sarcastically, it basically means “have fun with this thing I don’t care about”
English Word Of The Day: “Grievously” - severely; disastrously
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16699354
Quick PSA: “you don’t consent to this now, but you will in the future” is an excellent example of how NOT to consent check. The author gets it (as does Karamatsu)
Word Of The Day: “Disconsolate” - hopeless; impossible to console
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16676287
This story arc (and chapter 31 in particular, just so you’re on your toes) may be triggering to survivors of abuse (particularly being held somewhere against one’s will). If this (or anything else mentioned in the fic’s Ao3 tags) is a sensitive subject for you, now would be a good time to read the traditional way so you can skip over any particularly rough parts
Word Of The Day: “Purchase” - means “buy” of course, but this chapter uses another, less common meaning: “support; stability” (think “perch”)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16676251
“A perfect stranger says one nice thing to you and suddenly you think you’re in love.” - Todomatsu, chapter 2
(there’s some background wind and car noise here but at least it kind of fits for the setting of this chapter... and oh, in case it’s not clear: chronologically, this picks up where chapter 15 left off. non-linear narratives are fun)
Word Of The Day: “Immoderately” - to an insane degree; the opposite of “moderately”
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16653193
I was extremely proud of Choromatsu last chapter but in this one, I admit I want to slap some sense into him. Come on, man, which is worse: breaking and entering, or… well, you’ll see
Word Of The Day: “Headway” - progress, basically
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16631788
It’s a Kara-smas miracle!!! You’ll be glad to know I’ve had all the remaining chapters recorded for a while now, just need to edit it – the culprit behind the year-long hiatus was a particular Choromatsu line in this chapter that I wanted to get just right and recorded a ton of takes for. Now I’ve finally picked one, enjoy and look forward to the second half of this project in 2020
Word Of The Day: “Timbre” - the tone of one’s voice. Not to be confused with “timber” (wood)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16608739
This chapter’s one of my favourites, both for the gradually-unraveling mystery and the intermittent bits of quality Choromatsu content
Word Of The Day: “Trimester” - one third of an academic year (or pregnancy but it’s obvious which they’re talking about)
In the true spirit of Halloween I burst from my grave screeching that I’ve been pronouncing “Tachibana” wrong this whole time
Japanese Word Of The Day: “Gakuran” - the jacket that forms the basis of a traditional boys’ school uniform English Word Of The Day: “Peerless” - unmatched; without equal
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16565950
This being the shortest chapter so far (but, cleverly, still pivotal to the plot) meant I could get it out quickly - unfortunately I can’t say the same about chapter 19 since it’s on the long side, but the good news is I’m on track to finish recording by the end of the month and then focus solely on editing. Sit tight (and remember you can always read ahead) until October
Word Of The Day: “Taciturn” - reluctant to talk; stubbornly silent
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16561381
Oh hey I decided to go ahead and finish editing this chapter after all just in case season 5 of Bojack wasn’t depressing enough for you
While you wait for chapter 18, I recommend reading the first 3 chapters of “Snippets” by Eridescence: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7562557/chapters/17202529 It’s sort of a fanfic of a fanfic, and boy is it a good one (though I suggest scrolling past the chapter list at the beginning, since it contains spoilers for future chapters)
Japanese Word Of The Day: “Karamatsu” - “larch”, a species of pine tree. ...hey, isn’t it also the name of one the sextuplets from that gag manga from the 60s? English Word Of The Day: “Spent” - exhausted; in a figurative sense, it describes a person the same way it describes money (both a spent person and spent money are fully used up and no longer useful)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16544407
As touched upon in the last chapter’s description, this one has the opposite problem to most other chapters in that Audacity recorded it too quiet, so don’t be shy about turning your volume up
Also, I’m toying with the idea of ploughing ahead and recording all the remaining 30 chapters at once before the rainy season (which, in Britain, means the entirety of autumn and winter) starts and makes it impossible to record without background noise – not 100% sure yet but if this project seems to die completely for about a month, don’t be alarmed, I’m just busy gathering audio to edit during the winter
Word Of The Day: “Reimburse” - to pay someone back (therefore “preimburse” means to pay someone in advance)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16522906
The Karamatsu Gulls™ and some car noise might be audible in the second-to-last scene, but I was reluctant to re-record all the offending lines because at some point after I recorded this chapter, Audacity suddenly decided to start recording much quieter than before for some reason I tried but failed to figure out. There were, however, a few lines where I had no choice and since I’ve kept you waiting long enough as it is (...and might need to leave you waiting again, since I'm working on a big art project due on the 24th, sorry in advance) I was NOT about to re-record the whole thing just for consistency’s sake so, yeah, I admit this chapter is a bit of a patchy mess... but ONLY recording-wise. Remember: message, not messenger
Word Of The Day: “Maelstrom” - a violent vortex or whirlpool
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16501987
The promised “storm” may necessitate you turning the volume down for the last two-and-a-half minutes or so, just a fair warning
Word Of The Day: a “Band-Aid” is a little tab you put over a small cut or scrape; they’re known for being more painful to remove than the wound they cover. I think most people know what they are but I considered it worth mentioning because it’s a specifically American term (I’m used to calling them “plasters”, for example) Idiom Of The Day: something that “pales in comparison” to something else isn’t as extreme/impressive as that something else. It doesn’t refer to literally paling in colour (...although, in the context in which the last scene of this chapter uses it, it COULD)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16483291
The calm before the storm.
Slang Of The Day: to “chew someone out” is to verbally punish them Idiom Of The Day: to be “beside oneself” with an emotion is to be overcome by said emotion Word Of The Day: “Wont” - predisposed; known; if someone is wont to do something, they have a tendency toward it. not to be confused with “won’t” or “want”
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16457773
...for better or for worse.
Word Of The Day: “Wan” - weak; pale (also, coincidentally, the Japanese onomatopoeia for a dog’s bark. If a dog were ill, it’d let out a wan wan)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16453315
In which you’ll discover why I – a young woman pining for the Matsuno brothers from afar - have found it scarily easy to play Matsuri
Word Of The Day: “Bluff” - an action intended to mislead someone
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16434445
To slightly paraphrase the author: If you've been waiting for the shit to hit the fan then boy oh boy do I have good news about this chapter
Slang Of The Day: “Put out” - to be put out by something is to be bothered or discouraged by it; “put off” is also used (side note: to “put out FOR” someone is to have sex with them. the English language is a surreal monstrosity) Word Of The Day: “Amenability” - helpfulness, basically
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16414294 (if the cliffhanger is too much to bear, remember you can always read ahead!)
Two relatively short chapters in a row means two recordings in as many days, yay! Just you wait for chapter 10, though...
Word Of The Day: “Beaned” - we all know that as a noun, “bean” means a little thing you eat, but as a verb it means “lightly hit someone/something.” The green bean beans his big bro a bunch
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16394353
My Chibita voice is supposed to be a Cockney accent but the more I listen back, the more I realise I’ve got him hovering closer to Australia. Since my inspiration for this whole project was the Red Dwarf audiobooks, maybe I should study Holly’s East London twang?
English Word Of The Day: “Relinquish” - give up; to relinquish something to someone is to give it to them with some degree of reluctance Japanese Word Of The Day: “Okonomiyaki” are a savoury dish similar to pancakes that come with a variety of toppings like green onions, pork, seafood and such
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16387810
This, the longest chapter so far, really gave me a chance to show off my burgeoning acting chops - hope you enjoy it!
Word Of The Day: “Awry” - badly or wrong
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16372351
I enjoyed doing a certain voice last chapter so much that I couldn’t resist letting some of it seep into my regular Karamatsu voice.
Word Of The Day: “Rendition” - a version or interpretation of something
I had a LOT of fun with this chapter and I hope it shows
English Word Of The Day: “Ascertain” - to make sure of something Japanese Word Of The Day: an “imagawayaki” is a small cake made of batter and filled with bean paste, or sometimes custard – you might remember them from the Osomatsu-san skit “Four”
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16347053
this chapter (well, technically a few lines in chapter 3 that I had to re-record) was the point at which I found Audacity’s “Normalize” function, thank god
Word Of The Day: “Extricate” - to free or release something
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16322606
The KARAMATSU GULLS™ make an appearance, I have an utterly hilarious way of pronouncing “Iyayo” and Ichimatsu ends the chapter on a rather prophetic note
Japanese Word Of The Day: “Konnyaku”, or “konjac”, is a kind of jelly made from yams (it’s what the triangular section of a skewer of oden is made of) English Word Of The Day: “Asphyxiate” - to choke to death
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16301348
Today's theme is “bad impressions”. Get it? Because Karamatsu made a bad first impression, and my impressions of the sextuplets are..... never mind
Word Of The Day: “Counsel” - advice; not to be confused with the verb “console” (to comfort) or “council” (a group of important people)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16277993
A quick explanation of my motivations and methods before we kick off!
Read (and give kudos to) the original text here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7161263/chapters/16258172
Follow me for more Osomatsu-san fan content: https://twitter.com/chororine http://chororine.tumblr.com
...and check out my webcomic! http://mudskipper.the-comic.org