Bluff City 02: A Bowling Alley, A Boxer, and A Bird, Pt. 2
Transcribed by Lucy (@battlestarvalk)
00:00:00 - 00:02:10
[Music start - A Bowling Alley, a Boxer, and a Bird]
AUSTIN [intro]: A harbour bell hangs in the Bar and Grill attached to the Splits, Bluff City's finest bowling establishment. Its ring is deep, foggy, like the ocean got inside. (beat) Metal, but sounds like the wood of an old ship... It ain't the right bell to ring in a fight night - too heavy, too dense - but ain't much right about Bluff City anyway, and it's never stopped anyone in this town before. (beat)
It ain’t stopping Sonny Veranda, the sire of a crime family he wants nothing to do with, from planning the worst heist in the city's history. It ain't stopping Finnegan Hands, dive shop owner and mentor to Sonny, from helping his friend rob from the richest and most dangerous family in the tri-state. It ain’t stopping the IRS either - every minute brings Tawny Buck and Jodi O'Brien closer and closer to the criminals they're supposed to be taking it down. It ain't stopped that bird either, all red, orange, and anger, sharp talon cruelty... And it's certainly ain't stopping the underground boxer and handyman Doyle MacKeigh from being a pawn in a game he don't understand... that young blood keep going, that pure heart keep beating, keeps pumping fury into punches... shadow boxing in preparation for the biggest fight of the year...
Get ready Bluff City... it's Fight Night... and ain’t no one stopping until the final bell rings.
00:02:10 - 00:12:23
AUSTIN: Welcome to Friends at the Table, an actual play podcast focused on critical worldbuilding, smart characterisation, and fun interaction between good friends. We are continuing our game of Fiasco in Bluff City by… Fiasco is a game by Jason Morningstar, and we are using hacked versions of Fiasco... well, not hacked versions- hacked versions of the playsets. I forget what the names are and I’ve closed the tabs...
JACK: (interrupting) Is it like, Double Down or something, and Bad Habits?
AUSTIN: (continuing) Double down by the ukroleplayers and Bad Habits by [deliberates] Nick... something...
JANINE: Nick Weh-dig? Wee-dig?
AUSTIN: Nick Weh-dig! Wee-dig? Nick, we dig. (Dre laughs)
JANINE: Nick, comma, we dig!
AUSTIN: We dig, Nick! Um… (Dre laughs)
JACK: He’s alright!
AUSTIN: When we last saw… our…
SYLVIA: (interrupting) This is awful.
JANINE: (laughing) Too late.
AUSTIN (continuing) our… heroes? Our protagonists? Our…
DRE: Our people?
(laughter in the background)
AUSTIN: I think the last thing you saw wasn’t people at all, (laughing, he continues to laugh throughout) it was a giant bird. (Jack laughs) We had gone through the Tilt of our game which introduced two new aspects... Mayhem, a dangerous animal gets loose, and Paranoia, the thing you stole get stolen. So off to a great... middle, and we're going to go to Jack, who is playing Finnegan Hands. I think we should do intros-ah! Should we do intros? People who listening via Patreon probably know who we are already, but I’m Austin Walker, you can find me on twitter at austin_walker. Jack?
JACK: I’m Jack, you can find me on twitter at notquitereal, and buy any of the music on the show at notquitereal.bandcamp.com.
AUSTIN: Sylvia[1] Clare
SYLVIA: I’m Sylvia, you can find me on twitter at captaintrash, and I also do video game stuff at VideoGameChooChoo.com.
AUSTIN: Janine Hawkins
JANINE: I’m Janine Hawkins, you can find me at bleatingheart, I’m a freelance writer across several outlets including Polygon and Waypoint.
AUSTIN: And Andrew Lee Swan
DRE: Hey! You can find me on twitter at Swandre3000.
AUSTIN: I will be playing as Sonny Veranda, Jack is playing Finnegan Hands, Sylvia is playing Doyle McKe- McKa-
SYLVIA: (sighs) It’s pronounced McKeigh (AUSTIN: McKeigh!) but everybody pronounces it McKay.
AUSTIN: Gotcha
SYLVIA: It’s very frustrating.
AUSTIN: Janine is playing Tawny Buck, and Dre is playing Jodi O’Brien aka Joni O’Brian, the last two of which are undercover IRS agents. I am playing Sonny who is a- who is the son of a mafioso who’s trying to go straight, except not really going straight at all and kinda going into his own crime business? (pause) Finnegan Hands is a mentor to both Sonny and Doyle, and also runs his own scuba and diving instruction place and has a submarine, like a tiny little submarine, a one-person sub. (pause) Doyle is a- I guess you're a mechanic at the garage, but also an underground boxer... I think that’s everybody. So Jack, it’s your scene.
JACK: (deliberates) I’m gonna-
AUSTIN: (interrupts) How do you want to start this nonsense, establish or resolve? I should note now in the second half of the game, in Act 2 you take turns and your character gets two scenes - the final die is wild, the final die can be white or black, so you don't get stuck with whatever the last die is. The other things are: you keep your own outcome die, so if you establish a scene and we give you die, you keep that die- we give you that die now, Jack.
JACK: Okay. Okay.
AUSTIN: So are you establishing or resolving?
JACK: Uh… I’m gonna establish
AUSTIN: Okay!
--00;05;28--
JACK: It’s (stutters and deliberates) It’s a full moon, and we see the moon over the water, and the lights of Bluff City in the distance… Much like the first shot, we’re coming in over the water. And there’s a light moving beneath the water (Austin sniggers), and it’s probably like 3:30 in the morning, 2:30 or 3:30 in the morning. What is Doyle doing at 2 or 3:30 in the morning, on the night that Finnegan goes to get the bird?
SYLVIA: I feel like Finnegan probably asked him to keep watch, and in doing so Doyle is asleep (Austin, Jack laughs) on like, a deckchair by where he was told to keep watch.
AUSTIN: Is there like, a boat to take the submarine out on, and then you go deep down? Like, what’s the-
JACK: (following on) No, the way the submarine works is- it's like, such a- (pauses, sighs) Look, submarines are going to be expensive, but you can get cheap submarines... and they've got a cheap submarine. (AUSTIN: Okay.) So how this works, is that you basically drive the submarine right up into the shallows, so you basically beach it. And then you climb out, pull a little handle from the back, and push it up on terrible wheels out of the water.
AUSTIN: Oh my god… Okay… Do you have to like, walk it out into the deep end?
JACK: Uh-huh.
AUSTIN: Of the sea? Okay.
JANINE: I have a question! Does it have an engine, or does it have, a little bike inside? And you have to go on a bike and… (laughs, Dre and Jack laugh)
SYLVIA: (in background) Oh god, I hope it’s the last one.
AUSTIN: I mean, I was imagining like… (trails off, laughing)
JACK: I think it probably has to have some sort of engine because of like, oxygen supply? Maintaining an oxygen supply as well?
AUSTIN: (muttering) Oh my god, what a disaster.
JACK: Um, so…
JANINE: (laughing) Someone’s gonna die in that thing!
JACK: The other person who is...
SYLVIA: (interrupting, overlapped) It ain’t- It ain’t happened yet.
JACK: (continuing) ...who is definitely here. Who is sitting in her car in the parking lot is Maggie Darcy, the head of the Bluff City IRS branch. (Janine laughs)
AUSTIN: And she’s just watching? She’s just- (trails off)
JACK: She is watching with a pair of binoculars and a mug of coffee. And Doyle is woken up by the sound of Finnegan shouting. And Finnegan is shouting-
JACK (as Finnegan): Get the net! Get it! Get the net!
JACK: And Doyle looks up, and Finnegan is staggering out of the water with one hand held to his ear. And there is blood coming out from under his hand. And as Doyle stands up, from the hatch on top of the small, round submarine explodes a red bird. And it is mostly claws? And a beak (Austin laughs) at this point, and it immediately gets right back to attacking Finnegan, who is running towards Doyle across the beach.
(Pause. Sylvia sighs, Dre laughs)
JACK: I should say that this bird, this isn’t like- this isn’t like the size of an ostrich or anything, it’s not like an absurdly large bird, but if we were expecting a bird that I could comfortably hold in my hands… the bird that we’ve got is about the size of like, a large eagle.
AUSTIN: (muttering) Oh my god. (Dre laughing). Ohhh… but you have it?
JACK: Well, it’s attacking me. And also seemingly attempting to both attack me and leave.
(pause)
SYLVIA: I think… what I like, the way this ends up is Doyle like, runs and grabs a net. But it’s not like, a net with like, a handle. It’s a big fishing net, and he throws it, and he tries to get- get it, but it manages to like, slip through the netting because it’s not… the- the netting is too big, and so Finnegan’s just there in this net while the bird flies away. (Austin laughs, Jack laughs).
JACK: Is the bird- is the bird leaving?
SYLVIA: Well, didn’t… the bird escape, isn’t that one of the things? (JACK: It gets loose.) An animal gets loose?
AUSTIN: It gets loose…
SYLVIA: Okay
(Jack and Austin begin to speak at the same time)
JACK: I don’t know if it’s flying away so much as like...
AUSTIN: It gets loose but this is a positive scene, so…
JACK: Yeah.
SYLVIA: (laughing) So, it could just like… (laughing) This is even better then, (Austin tries to speak) wait no, I’ve got a great idea… He throws the net, it flies out, and right as it’s flying by him he just grabs it by his foot? (Jack laughs) So the net’s on Finnegan, but he’s just got the bird in his hand.
AUSTIN: (whispering) Oh my god.
SYLVIA: And the bird’s for some reason way more chill with him than it is with Finnegan.
AUSTIN: Oh, my god. (Janine laughs)
JACK: What is Maggie doing?
JANINE: Uh, I think Maggie- so like, Maggie’s sitting in her car, right?
JACK: Uh-huh
JANINE: So she’s got her coffee, she’s got her binoculars, I think she’s got like, a cigarette hanging from her lips? And she’s just like, really quietly watching this, and once Doyle gets the situation under control she like, puts the binoculars down on her lap, she puts her cigarette out, and what’s left of her coffee - dumps it out the window, and like, makes a voice note on her phone or something.
AUSTIN: Yeah (laughing)
JANINE: Of just- just to like record what’s going on here.
DRE: Classic IRS stakeout.
JACK: I think… yeah, you know, the IRS? (Dre laughing) So I like this idea of we- we get this very sudden wide shot of the two men wrangling with the bird and it’s like, basically soundless from this angle? There’s just a distant squawk and shouting, this like- this visual noise on a beach at 2:30 in the morning of two large men trying to fight a bird.
AUSTIN: God, the sound of like, the ocean vessel, like, the horn?
JANINE; No! Oh God, no- You know what it is… it’s like, the camera zooms out from that and it’s like, in her car, and she’s like, listening to Hotel California or something. (Austin laughs, Dre laughs, all laugh). She’s got something on.
AUSTIN: Yeah, of course, of course. You know what I like is, we’ve gone from “a dangerous animal gets loose” to “a dangerous animal refuses to be in a cage, refuses to be in a net”. (Jack confirms) What we mean by gets loose is- this bird’s just out in the open for the rest of this game, like we can’t- (JACK: Oh yeah.) It refuses to be in a cage, or a net, or hidden. It’s just public.
JACK: You can’t really get it into the house.
AUSTIN: No. (clearly holding back laughter) No, but it’ll- it’ll be held by Doyle, and that is it.
JACK: And yeah, just to reiterate this - this bird is extremely valuable and very well-loved by the very dangerous Veranda patriarch.
AUSTIN: Yep! Whose name I should come up with… Uh, okay. You should take your positive die.
JACK: Okay.
00:12:23 - 00:17:44
AUSTIN: Doyle,
SYLVIA: I'm thinking... is it too soon for the fight?
AUSTIN: It's not too soon for anything.
SYLVIA: Alright... I think that's what I want to do.
AUSTIN: (talking over her) Right. Um… Yeah, we can do it, we can do the fight.
SYLVIA: Yeah… or we can wait on that, and I can resolve something, because that's the only real idea I have right now….
AUSTIN: Right.
SYLVIA: ...Is the actual fight.
AUSTIN: I'm trying to dec- yeah, we should do the fight! Let's do the fight. (SYLVIA: Okay) Let's do whatever you want, it's your scene, you know?
SYLVIA: Yeah, okay. I think- I think it's the next day… (Sylvia laughs) Doyle is... (huffs laughter) he's got like, very conspicuous bandages up his arm, because this bird… (Dre laughs)
AUSTIN: Right.
SYLVIA: ...and he's just like all, ‘it's from work, don't worry about it’ and I think... the other people in the scene are... Was his name Achilles Apollo or Apollo Achilles?
JANINE: It was Achilles Apollo.
AUSTIN: [same time] Achilles Apollo.
SYLVIA: Achilles Apollo, alright... I knew it was one combination of those two names, it's very good, and I think Tawny and Sonny are there as well and, uh…
DRE: ...Whitaker?
AUSTIN: Frederick Whitaker?
SYLVIA: Frederick Whitaker, yeah.
JANINE: [crosstalk] Wasn’t it Walt Whitaker? Or something?
AUSTIN: It was Walt Whitaker. It was Walt.
JANINE: Yeah.
AUSTIN: Who’s Frederick? Why do I have Frederick written down?
JANINE; I don’t know, maybe it was Frederick… no, it can’t be Frederick Veranda, that’s terrible.
AUSTIN: No, it’s definitely not Frederick Veranda.
SYLVIA: I don’t know, Freddy Veranda’s not bad. (Janine laughs)
AUSTIN: Freddy V, yeah. (pause) Anyway.
SYLVIA: Anyway so, I… (deliberates)
AUSTIN: So is it the fight? Is it the- like the fight is happening now? Or do you-
SYLVIA: (interrupting) Yeah
AUSTIN: (continuing over them) Do we get the intro? Do we get like, you- (SYLVIA: Oh…) actually, do you know what, does anybody else have a scene to jump to before the fight?
SYLVIA: (interrupting) Yeah! We can come back to it.
JANINE: (overlapping) This could actually be like, the weigh-in.
AUSTIN: [crosstalk] And then we’ll get back-
SYLVIA: [crosstalk] Oh, I don’t think that-
JANINE: Isn’t that like, a thing?
SYLVIA: I don’t think that’s a thing in underground boxing. (Austin laughs)
JANINE: Well you never know it could be-
AUSTIN: [crosstalk] With illegal underground boxing…
JANINE: [continuing] Well, that’s true.
DRE: Well, I could see like, Sonny being like, “Well, nobody does weigh-ins, so I’m gonna do a weigh-in”.
SYLVIA: (laughing) That actually would be pretty good. (Dre laughs)
JANINE: He wants to prove it's legit, you know?
AUSTIN: I could do that scene... I’ll use my next scene on the weigh-in.
SYLVIA: Okay.
JANINE: He doesn't want this guy coming back and being like, (snotty voice) ‘Oh, you were a different class than me, and I lost.”
AUSTIN: Yeah, I have to make sure that the word gets out with the Whitakers are in town and, that like- and through the grapevine, I need to set the stage... so like when I need the Verandas to like, to do the killing, or whatever has to happen at the end, they need to know that the Whitakers are here so I do a big fancy, like, weigh in situation. (SYLVIA: Alright.) But! Okay, here we go.
This is the set-up... the set-up is… I need Doyle there, I need the bird there (Dre laughs), but I need to not know that the bird is going to be there. (SYLVIA: Okay.) And my family is here - my dad is here, my uncle... like the Verandas sent… (pauses, stumbles), I need a name... what's a good name... another Veranda name. Um… (pauses)
JACK: Vincent.
AUSTIN: Vi- Vin- Vinny? Vinny Veranda? Good fucking name (Janine laughs) right there (Dre laughing) that’s what- that’s what I’m fucking talking about, my uncle… my uncle Vinny is here. (laughs, Jack laughs) Vinny Veranda.
JACK: (in background) Yeah sorry, who’s here?
SYLVIA: Ah, big Vinny V’s in town.
AUSTIN: My uncle, Vinny. My uncle? Vinny? (Dre laughing)
JACK: (laughing) No, no, the [inaudible]. Who else is here?
AUSTIN: Uh…
JACK: We know Vinny’s here, Of course Vinny’s here.
AUSTIN: Vinny is here, Walt Whitaker is here, Achilles Apollo’s here…
JACK: The bird is here
AUSTIN: The bird is here, Doyle is here- but I don’t know the bird is gonna be here. I think we open up on me waiting. It's like the next night- or it’s that night, and it's Sonny patiently- impatiently tapping his foot and smoking a cigarette outside the bowling alley, waiting for the car to pull up that will have Doyle, the bird, and Finnegan in it.
SYLVIA: Alright. So I’m resolving this then?
JANINE: (interrupting) Wait…
AUSTIN: What’s up?
SYLVIA: [crosstalk] Alright.
JANINE: Wasn’t Finnegan going to replace the real bird with a fake bird?
AUSTIN: Yes.
JACK: (interrupting, overlapping) Yes, but that’s when we actually make the switch, right? We need to show them them the bird first, this is the-
JANINE: (interrupting, overlapping) Right, show them the good-
AUSTIN: (interrupting, overlapping) I don’t want to show them the bird.
JANINE: (continuing) Bird, so when they get the bad bird they’ll… okay. Okay, okay, I’m sorry. (laughs)
AUSTIN: I don’t want the bird to be here-
JANINE: (interrupting) Okay, I just wasn’t sure what the plan was here, exactly. (AUSTIN: Yes, yes) Okay.
AUSTIN: My plan is so- I think I'm gonna give you a call and set up like, ‘Hey Finnegan bring Doyle through we're gonna do a weigh in’, and I'm waiting for them (Jack laughs) I'm waiting for you to show up. Like maybe you actually get that text at the end of the last scene, is we're doing a weigh in, (laughing) and it's like at 2 a.m. at the bowling alley.
DRE: Does Finnegan think that Sonny (Janine, in background: Does he think they wanna weigh the bird?) wants him to weigh the bird… yes, yes. (all laughing)
JACK: Yeah, the bird is being shown off here too as well, right?
AUSTIN: Let's just jump into it. You pull up in the car... what sort of car does Finnegan drive around Bluff City in?
JACK: It's like... it's like a... I wish I knew more American cars...
DRE: Do you want like, a truck? Do you want a sedan? What are you looking for?
JACK: It's like a- it’s like a bad sedan (Sylvia laughs). A small, bad sedan. So, where I’m coming from here is, I really want a visual of-
AUSTIN: (interrupting) Was it ever a good sedan? Or… okay.
JACK (Interrupting, continuing) No, no, no, no, no. I really want a visual of, basically the bird bouncing around in the back seat of this small car (Austin laughing)
SYLVIA: Doyle’s there doing what I do whenever I’m in a car that’s too small, which is that my knees are up really high. (Austin laughing)
JACK: I’m wearing a, uh, gauze pad over, the entire right side of my head basically... it's taped on and I've had to sort of shave my head a little to get it on there.
AUSTIN: Right, right… Great, good. and you pull up and- and out hops you, Doyle, and the bird.
00:17:44 - 00:23:12
JACK: No, the bird’s still in the car. I’m sat there like-
JACK (as Finnegan): Sonny, Sonny I’ve got-
AUSTIN: (overlapping) Oh, you can’t - no! The bird has to be loose. I'm putting my foot down.
JACK: Oh, okay.
AUSTIN: We don't ever get to put the bird in a place where it is by itself. (Dre laughs) It will throw a fit and tear whatever that is up, it’s a dangerous animal.
JACK: So, what happens is– So here's what happens is, I say… (Sylvia is laughing in the background throughout)
JACK (as Finnegan): Sonny! Come on, I've got something to show you!
JACK: And as I step forward to you, the back door of the thing opens, and the bird just explodes out of it again. (Dre laughing)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Ahhh!
SYLVIA (as Doyle): Oh man! Hey, Rupert learnt how to use the door handles.
AUSTIN (as Sonny, panicking): Rupert?! Get that bird back in the car.
JACK (as Finnegan, extremely calm): You can't call him Rupert, put the bird back in the car - he can't be out.
AUSTIN (as Sonny, panicking still): Wha- wh- What’s the bird doing here?
JACK (as Finnegan, overlapping): Sorry, Sonny, I was just… (overlapping with Sylvia) Well, we’re here to weigh it?
SYLVIA (as Doyle, overlapping with Jack): We gotta weigh it?
(Dre laughing in the background, absolutely losing it)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): (incredulous) No!!! We’re not gonna weigh the bird. We’re gonna weigh you!
JACK (as Finnegan): We want to show- we're also gonna weigh him, but we're weighing the bird too, right?
AUSTIN (as Sonny): No, we’re not gonna weigh the bird!! Vi- Vinny’s in there! Vinny can’t know you have the bird! Vinny can’t knowww!
JACK (as Finnegan): Oh, because Vinnie- right, Vinny needs to think that the Whitakers have stolen the bird?
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Not yet- Vinny has to think the bird is still safe and sound. Vinny doesn't know anything about the bird. (Jack, as Finnegan: Right, so- right.) Vinny is here to make sure all the money is all good or whatever.
JACK (as Finnegan): Right. Doyle, can you put Rupert back in the car?
SYLVIA (as Doyle): I mean, he doesn't listen- I mean, I've tried- I mean... I've got to get ready for my weigh-in though.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): He has to go a weigh in, you need to watch the bird.
SYLVIA: And Doyle is like, fixing his hair back in the car- like in the side mirror.
JACK (as Finnegan): He nearly bit my ear off.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): But your arms-! Your arms are all bloody! What happened to your arms? (pause) You're a boxer, you can't just have cuts on your arms.
SYLVIA (as Doyle): It’s fine I’ll- I’ll wrap ‘em up.
JACK (as Finnegan): It’s fine, he looks- he looks tough.
SYLVIA (as Doyle): Yeah
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Ohhh…. I put…
JACK, as Finnegan: He looks tough
AUSTIN [as Sonny]: [continuing] I put five hundred… thousand… dollars on this fight.
JACK (as Finnegan): Sonny, he doesn’t have to win the fight
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I know, but-
SYLVIA (as Doyle): Hey, I'm going to win the fight
JACK (as Finnegan): No, no, you don't have to- we've been through this, you don't have to win the fight
SYLVIA (as Doyle): I know, but I want to
JACK (as Finnegan): (continuing) Even if you lose, we win
SYLVIA (as Doyle): Yeah, but I want to.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): We can't let anybody see that bird... put that bird inside that car, you sit in that car, okay? You-
JACK (as Finnegan): He doesn't want to go inside the car, Sonny
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Then you take him for a walk (laughing)... you take him for a walk, you just keep him away from this bowling alley… you can't let him see that bird.
JACK: So far, Doyle has just been like, holding (Austin laughing) the bird. Like just hugging- hugging this bird, (Dre laughs) that is looking very suspiciously around.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Doyle, give the bird to Finnegan
JACK (as Finnegan): No, Doyle.
SYLVIA (as Doyle): I mean, he doesn’t like- he doesn’t like Finny that much, but I can.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I don't care what you do with him, you just can't carry him into the bowling alley
AUSTIN: I'm looking over my shoulders
JACK (as Finnegan): Okay. Doyle, here's what we're going to do, you ready? I'm going to get in the car-
JACK: and as I'm saying this I’m getting into the car. And I get into the car, and I close the door, and I wind the window down and I say-
JACK (as Finnegan): Put him in the back and then I'll just go (Austin laughing) just post him into the car Doyle (laughs)
SYLVIA (as Doyle): Alright.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Get in the car!
SYLVIA: And Doyle, like pets the bird a little bit before putting him in the car and then closing the door as fast as he can. (Jack laughs)
JACK: And the car just immediately speeds away, just straight away speeds away into like, a fence post on the outside of the weigh-in, and reverses very slowly before heading back to the scuba shop.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): (sighs) Alright Doyle, this is gonna be okay.
SYLVIA (as Doyle): I mean, I’ve been saying that- you guys have been worrying about this and like, I got this. It’s fine. The bird thing? Eh, Finnegan’ll figure it out. I’m gonna- Let’s go say hello to uh- to your buddy in there, right?
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Alright. You know what Doyle? I just want to say you've been great through this whole thing, and it's all gonna go great going forward that's all - I have a lot of faith in you... you're a good boxer, you're a good kid
AUSTIN: And I kiss you on the forehead. And then I like, open the door and go in and I think we maybe get another shot of the IRS agent like, in the background in a different car, or maybe one of you drives by following the bird (Dre and Sylvia laughing)... A negative die was dragged to a positive scene.
SYLVIA: Yeah… See, I didn’t realise that- yeah, yeah.
JACK (overlapping): I thought this went negatively.
SYLVIA: Yeah, I though the scene was gonna go into the weigh-in, and things were gonna go bad from there.
JACK: I can- I can push us towards a negative resolution, Sylvia
SYLVIA: That also works. Yeah, sure.
AUSTIN: Sure.
JACK: The Toyota Yaris comes back.
AUSTIN: Oh no.
JANINE: (groans)
SYLVIA: Oh no.
JACK: It just comes back and pulls into the parking lot, and Doyle gets out. Sorry- Finnegan gets out, and he walks into the weigh-in. There are scratches on his arms, and the bird is not with him. And he walks into the weigh-in, and he says-
JACK (as Finnegan): Sonny, I had to. Sonny? It was bad in there, and I had to bring it back-
SYLVIA: Oh no…
JACK (as Finnegan): And I just- I had to bring it back.
JACK: And the door opens and the bird walks in slowly behind Finnegan.
SYLVIA: Oh, jesus. That is negative!
AUSTIN: I think that’s cut, also (Janine laughing in background) at that point we definitely leave. So Doyle, was that you resolving a scene?
SYLVIA: It was, yeah.
AUSTIN: Okay cool, alright. Awesome, so you get that die.
SYLVIA: Yeah, sorry. I know that was reading as more comedic, but I wanted to cut and introduce more conflict with it.
AUSTIN: It’s just because I said I would skip my scene later, so I wasn’t sure if I was taking over and establishing, or if we were just resolving yours.
SYLVIA: Let’s just resolve it, because it keeps the flow going probably.
AUSTIN: Yeah. So, Tawny, what’s your scene?
00:23:12 - 00:29:12
JANINE: I think… so I’m going to- to establish a scene. And I think it’s like, at this exact same time? Wait- is this like, the middle of the night?
AUSTIN: Yeah, we’re in the dead middle of the night now.
JANINE: Okay.
AUSTIN: We’re at like, 2;30am or something.
JANINE: Maybe it’s- maybe it’s a scene of like, one hour earlier or something. It’s probably like- maybe, midnight-ish? Or, I guess it could even be the next morning- I don’t know. But it’s, sort of a similar timeframe and it’s Tawny coming home to her apartment where the birds are. And realising that the toucan is gone (Jack laughs, Austin laughs), and she knows exactly who it is.
AUSTIN: Who is it?
JANINE: So I think- I think that’s what the scene is.
AUSTIN: Okay
JANINE: [continuing] Is, she’s gone to her apartment and she notices the toucan has gone, because it’s really hard to miss a toucan that’s in a bachelor’s apartment and now isn’t in the bachelor apartment, and she stomps off down the hall, and she is just shouting for Ricky. Ricky Delaney.
AUSTIN: Oh god… who’s Ricky?
JANINE: Ricky Delaney… stole her Nintendo.
AUSTIN: Oh no. [laughs]
JANINE: And now (laughs)... and now she is 99% sure that he also stole her toucan. He’s that dude- like, he’s a nice boy, but he steals your shit and now you gotta go get your shit back from Ricky.
DRE: How old is Ricky? Because you said nice boy… so is this just a 14 year old who routinely breaks into your apartment?
JANINE: No he’s… he’s probably like 28?
AUSTIN: But he’s also 14 in his heart still?
JANINE: (laughs) Yeah, I mean-
AUSTIN: How many toothpicks does he have in his mouth right now?
JANINE: Uh… one, but he’s also got that thing where he’s got a pack of cigarettes rolled up in his sleeve.
AUSTIN: (laughing) Okay, good.
(Dre laughing)
JANINE: He doesn’t know the Pokemon.
AUSTIN: I think he doesn’t even hide it, either. Do you like, bang on the door?
JANINE; Yeah
AUSTIN: I’ll play Ricky. I got a Ricky voice (Janine laughs)
AUSTIN (as Ricky): T- Wh- Who is it?
JANINE (as Tawny): It’s Tawny, Ricky.
AUSTIN (as Ricky): Aw Tawny, I’m busy [makes bird sound, Dre, Jack laugh)
JANINE (as Tawny): What you busy with, Ricky? (Jack laughing)
AUSTIN (as Ricky): Oh…. You know… I got a new job… I got a new job, working from
home. You know how it is. Catch up with you… next week. [makes bird noise]
JANINE (as Tawny): What kinda work you doing from home? I’m looking for a side gig… a third side gig
AUSTIN (as Ricky): You know, the internet… the internet stuff… (flounders) You do a lot of business on the internet!
JANINE (as Tawny): Why don’t you show me, Ricky? I know how to use Google.
AUSTIN (as Ricky): Ohhh I’m more of an Alta Vista man (Dre laughs) Tawny, you sho- Tawny, you- don’t get the feds involved Tawny, I’ll be right down- I’ll be right there, I’ll be right there.
AUSTIN: And he like, hurries up and puts the chain on his door and opens it a little bit.
AUSTIN (as Ricky): Tawny? C’mon…. Gi- give me a break, you got- you got so many- five birds. You don’t need five birds! (Jack laughs)
JANINE (as Tawny): Yeah, and they’re my birds, Ricky. I’ve been holding onto those birds. I got a friend.
AUSTIN: And his eyes dart back and forth as he like, takes the toothpick out of his mouth and puts it behind his ear.
AUSTIN (as Ricky): You holding those bir- who you holding those birds for?
JANINE (as Tawny): Why would I tell you that? You gonna go steal the bird after I hand it over?
AUSTIN (as Ricky): I just wanna know, is this a bird situation where I gotta be careful, or what?
JANINE (as Tawny): That bird’s- you gotta be careful, all birds carry diseases, I’m-
[bird sound]
(Tawny sighs)
AUSTIN (as Ricky): I just need to know because… I saw an ad, a man- he needs a bird that looks like that bird.
JANINE (as Tawny): Who’s- who’s putting out that ad?
AUSTIN (as Ricky): I don’t know, it was- it was on the Internet, they don’t have names, on the Internet. They just have places, you meet down by the corner, you give me this bird, I give you- I give you a couple- a couple of stacks. So I thought, I’ll give ‘em that bird…
JANINE (as Tawny, interrupting): (sighs) Look, just give me- Nah, just give me the bird
AUSTIN (as Ricky, interrupting): And then we could go out to dinner?
JANINE (as Tawny): I swear to God Ricky I am done with this
AUSTIN (as Ricky, interrupting): You and me, the Gold Bullion
JANINE (as Tawny): Ricky, I will break your face. Gimme the bird.
AUSTIN (as Ricky): (deliberates) ...Okay, I’ll be right back.
AUSTIN: And he closes the door and I’m moving a nega- fuck! Ah, you beat me to it. (Dre laughing) And he comes back with the bird. Uh, and it is a toucan that he has painted orange. (Janine sighs) And he has made the bird’s snou- uh, the bird’s beak black.
JANINE (as Tawny): What?!
AUSTIN (as Ricky): The listing said-
JACK: It’s in a box
AUSTIN: Yeah, it’s in a box, it’s just in a box.
AUSTIN (as Ricky): And it’s the bird- the listing said it had to be a black and orange bird, and you had a black and orange bird, and I looked at the listing again, and it said the orange had to be the top part and not the bottom part. I don’t know what someone wants an orange and black bird for, so-
JANINE (as Tawny, interrupting): The orange was-! The to- that’s the beak, man! A beak’s orange on a toucan!
AUSTIN (as Ricky): Look well I- I- Ohhhhh….. Uh-oh.
(Dre laughing)
JANINE (as Tawny): God, Ricky.
AUSTIN (as Ricky): I got confused. You know I’m not good with-
JANINE (as Tawny): Were you looking at your phone upside down in bed again?
AUSTIN (as Ricky): Yeah... It’s broken! The geometry meter or whatever doesn’t work on it!
JANINE (as Tawny): Wel- mm. You know, go to my cousi- my cousin’s shop, he’ll fix it up for you. Just give me the bird.
AUSTIN (as Ricky): Alright. Here you go.
AUSTIN: And he gives you the bird.
JANINE (as Tawny): Goddamnit, Ricky. And you have my Nintendo!
AUSTIN (as Ricky): It’s pretty good, you ever play that ninja game?
JANINE (as Tawny): (sighs) Have a good night, Ricky.
AUSTIN (as Ricky): Think about it.
AUSTIN: (laughs) Door closes.
DRE: Think about Ninja Gaiden. What?! (all laugh)
AUSTIN: I don’t- he doesn’t- (laughing)
JANINE; I’m glad that worked out because I was definitely gonna have her kick his door down (AUSTIN: Uh-huh) If it didn’t.
AUSTIN: Take your die.
JANINE: Damn right!
AUSTIN: (laughing) Very excited for a game featuring Ricky Delaney.
(Janine laughs, Jack laughs)
DRE: Oh, Christ.
AUSTIN: I really wanna know who put out a fuckin’ ad for a bird that looks like this.
JACK: For a third-?!
AUSTIN: A third person who wants these birds!
SYLVIA: (laughing) Fuck!
(Dre laughing)
DRE: It was Van, Van was like “Aw man, gonna get busted!” (laughter in background)
AUSTIN: Maybe! It might have been! (Jack laughs) That’s a good answer…. Fuck… Uh… Jodi.
00:29:21 - 00:35:28
DRE: Um… Gosh… I think the scene…
AUSTIN: We’ve got seven scenes left, I’m just putting it out there
DRE: Yeah… The scene that I wanna do with Jodi involves Sonny, but I think it has to take place after the weigh-in?
AUSTIN: Oh, we’re post weigh-in at this point, I think. I don’t need more on that weigh-in- Oh, I guess we do… No, the bird came in, right? Fuck.
DRE: Yeah
AUSTIN: Oh, the bird came in.
JACK: Vinny doesn’t have to see the bird… we could make a very sudden bird-hiding
AUSTIN: We could do that scene now… Jodi, do you want to switch a scene with me? I’ll establish a scene.
DRE: Yeah! That works.
AUSTIN: And you’ll do the follow-up scene
DRE: Sure!
AUSTIN: Okay. So I think the bird comes in and- I think we just jump from the bird had come in, to the weigh-in is happening- when is- how are we hiding this bird?
JACK: Is the weigh-in…
AUSTIN: It's happening at the bowling alley… I think it's happening in the lanes of the bowling alley... in the far end of a lane is where it’s all…
JACK: So everybody's wearing bowling shoes? (AUSTIN: UH-huh) Because Sonny really doesn't like (Dre laughs) people going… (trails off)
AUSTIN: but it's all setup to be because I needed the galactic stuff to make it a big deal... and also I could fit more people in the lane part than the bar part.
JACK: Yeah.
(pause, Austin sighs)
AUSTIN: I think it’s just loose in the back behind the pins.
JACK: And it’s just the sound of…?
AUSTIN: The sound of talons on floor as it steps back behind them and is just literally right behind Apollo and Doyle, who are being weighed at the centre of the- the middle of the two lanes.
JACK: Finnegan is standing in front of like, the staff entrance to the- behind the pin bit? And he is looking bad. [laughs]
AUSTIN: Um, what’s Vinny look like? Vinny is like… (sighs) I just need to know what he’s wearing, that’s what we need to know. Vinny is wearing… I think he’s wearing a fresh suit? Like… it’s 3am, he’s not wearing the same suit he was wearing at 3pm. This is a different suit. He put on a different suit for this occasion. And I want to say he’s like, sitting, just in the group with the rest of people and not up at the weigh-in table, he’s just like observing the whole situation, because he’s heard… something.
JANINE: Can I add a visual detail about Vinny?
AUSTIN: Please.
JANINE: He’s got glasses, and he has those glasses where you’ve got a little magnet bit with the sunglasses bit. So he’s wearing the glasses but the magnet bit with the sunglasses is in his front pocket.
AUSTIN: Okay. Good, good.
JANINE: Like, just in his chest pocket (Dre laughs)
AUSTIN: It’s the Chekov’s Gun of sunglasses. (Janine laughs, Dre laughs) So I think Sonny is at a microphone and he’s- he’s too close to the microphone.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Thank you everybody for coming tonight, this has been… it’s the first of what I think is really, gonna be a bunch of showstopping bouts here at The Splits bowling arena and also a fight ground. Uhhh… I’m really just thrilled, we couldn’t have two better competitors… probably, the greatest hands in Bluff City with Doyle. Sure, he’s a welterweight. Sure- or a middleweight, or something. And sure, Apollo is a super heavyweight but, that’s what we do here. We’re not here to do, you know, fair fights. We’re here to really mix it up, isn’t that right Doyle? Ah-hah!
SYLVIA (as Doyle): Yeah.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): (flustering) So without further… addage… come on up and get on the scales. (beat) Where are the sc- where (sighs, flusters) Jodi’s not here… Finnegan, can you get the scales?
JACK (as Finnegan): Where are they?
AUSTIN (as Sonny): They’re in the back.
JACK (as Finnegan): No. (Dre laughs, Janine laughs)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): We- we have- I’ll be right back folks with the scales, you guys just… exchange words.
AUSTIN: And I- Sonny disappears into the back room. How are Doyle and Apollo doing?
SYLVIA: I think Doyle’s just kinda like… not used to this much attention outside of fighting?
AUSTIN: Great (Dre laughing)
SYLVIA: So Doyle’s just kinda like…
DRE: (talking over them) Doyle, you’re- you’re still-
SYLVIA: (continuing) Looking around a lot?
DRE: Doyle, you’re still scratched up, right?
SYLVIA: Yeah.
DRE: Apollo kinda side-eyes you and is like “the hell happened to you in the last four hours?”
SYLVIA (as Doyle): Wo- work hazards. [bird noise in background]
DRE (as Apollo): You hear something?
SYLVIA (as Doyle); It wa- it was my stomach, I haven’t had my dinner yet. Have my weigh in, gotta make sure I’m not too… you know (sighs)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): (in background) Fuckin’ bird!
SYLVIA (as Doyle): (suddenly coughs out “fuckin’ bird!”) Sorry, I got a cough too, uh…
DRE (as Apollo): Are you-? Listen, I mean… I’m happy to make this money but, uh, are you sure you still wanna do this?
SYLVIA (as Doyle): (overlapping) Nah, nah I’m good. Listen, I know you’re scared, but don’t worry
[bird noises]
DRE (as Apollo): Oh, I see, you’re trying to get something started at this weigh-in. Okay. Okay.
SYLVIA (as Doyle): Hey- I didn’t- Hey, I just- this is just trash- This is how this goes, right? This is how the… we do the talkin’ but we don’t- we don’t hit ea- we don’t hit each other yet, right?
DRE: Uh, I think Apollo (starts to laugh) punches Doyle at that point.
AUSTIN: And at that moment, it also- a door opens in the back. And the bird flies away.
JACK: Out of the back?
AUSTIN: (doesn’t notice this comment) And you- are you- knocked out? Is Doyle knocked out?
SYLVIA: Yeah, Doyle’s just out cold.
AUSTIN: Sonny comes out the front with- just a huge scale, carrying a big- like, a doctor’s scale. (Dre laughs) And just sees Doyle knocked out and like, just drops the scale. And also has like, a cut on his own face.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): (panicking) Ohhhhhhhh….
AUSTIN: And I think that’s the moment Vinny takes the sunglasses and clips them on the front (Jack laughs, Dre laughs) of his regular glasses.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): (panicking) Ohhhh….
AUSTIN: So Jodi, it sounds like- oh, that was a negative die right? Incredibly negative-? Yeah, okay. (Jack laughs, Janine laughs) What- what do we cut to, Jodi?
00:35:28 - 00:38:15
DRE: The scene I want is with Jodi and Sonny (AUSTIN: Okay) And I think it’s, Sonny walking into his office after the- like, all of this stuff resolves, like-
AUSTIN: Is it the morning?
DRE: (continuing) Vinny walks out in disgrace… Uh, no, I think it’s the same night. (AUSTIN: Okay) I do think it’s the same night. And Sonny walks in and Jodi, aka Joni, is like sitting in his chair, and says-
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I could’ve used you three hours ago (flusters)
DRE (as Jodi): Sonny, we’ve gotta talk. We’ve gotta talk.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): You’re not due in for another five hours? You’re not in until 11- what are you?
DRE (as Jodi): Sonny, I know you’ve got something else on and I want in.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I… there’s not enough cuts, not enough-
AUSTIN: And he takes like, he opens up the bottom drawer and takes out some like, rubbing alcohol to clean his wound.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): There’s not enough cuts- I got enough cuts, but there’s not enough cuts of the pot I- Wait, what do you me- what are you doing in my office?
DRE: I think Joni gets up and takes the cotton ball with the alcohol from him and starts like, you know, cleaning his cut for him and goes-
DRE (as Jodi): Dammit Sonny, it’s not just about the money, I- We- I wanna be equals with you because… I love you Sonny, you gotta let me in on this.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): This is a lot to take in all at once, this- you’ve been- you know, any other week. Any other week this- we go out, we get some cheese fries, we go out to the boardwalk, we go out to the old pier, we ride th- the little rollercoaster that they have, that’d be fine…
DRE (as Jodi): Dammit Sonny, I don’t wanna get boardwalk cheese fries, I wanna get your cheese fries. (Sylvia starts to laugh)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I don’t- It’s been a long time since (laughing) anybody’s said they want my cheese fries. And I got the best cheese fries in Bluff City, so- (laughing)
DRE (as Jodi): I know Sonny, I know. You gotta let me in. (pause) You gotta trust me Sonny.
AUSTIN: I think Sonny like, walks back and closes the door to his office, and then he like, leans back and rests his head in his hands. And then he walks over to you and puts his hands on your shoulders, and he says-
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Tell me everything you know about birds (Dre laughs)
AUSTIN: And then kisses you square on the lips (laughs)
DRE: Perfect. I think the end of the scene is, while they’re kissing, is behind her back (Austin: Uh-huh) Jodi is texting Maggie Darcy, and it just says ‘I’m in’ (Austin laughs, Janine laughs)
AUSTIN: Oh, fuck. Take that positive die (Dre laughs) Goddamnit. Alright. We are back to Fin.
00:38:15 - 00:45:52
JACK: Hmm…. (laughs)
SYLVIA: This is the last round of scenes too.
AUSTIN: It sure is… five scenes left, lots of black dice left (laughter in the background) Lot of negatives. That last one is wild so hey, you never know.
JACK: (sighs) I'm going to call... I'm trying to- I'm trying to work out- I'm going to call Tawny... yeah, I'm going to call Tawny. I don't know what time of day it is, I think it's probably after I've got out of the- the weigh in and seen the bird disappearing. I'm gonna call Tawny
JACK (as Finnegan): Tawny, it’s Finnegan
JANINE: I think the shot of her answering the phone is… (Austin laughing throughout) She's in her bathroom... washing a painted bird. Like, the birds’ in the tub, and she's got that Dawn soap because that's what they say in the commercial about the oily birds, and she's giving this toucan a nice little bath with the phone like... between her shoulders.
JANINE (as Tawny): Yeah Finnegan I-
JACK (as Finnegan): (cutting her off) Tawny, I don't want the bird
JANINE (as Tawny): ...What?
JACK (as Finnegan): I don't want the bird, Tawny. Tawny? I don't want the bird [bird noise in background]. The bird got away- (laughs) the bird got away, and it got away with my ear, Tawny. I don't want that bird in my shop. Have you ever seen it?
JANINE (as Tawny): Which bird? I’ve got the bird right here, he doesn’t have your ear.
JACK (as Finnegan): Th- th- the bird, Tawny! The real bird, the bad one! The bird from under- from under the Menagerie.
JANINE (as Tawny): Okay, you don't want that bird. Well, what does tha- that has nothing to do with me, I don't have that bird.
JACK (as Finnegan): Well wh- Okay.
JANINE (as Tawny): I got all these other birds. Do you want one of these?
JACK (as Finnegan): (interrupting) This is what I'm trying to tell you- I don't need any birds Tawny!
(Austin laughing in background)
Tawny, I'm done with birds... but I could actually use your help with finding the big one. Please.
(Dre, Austin laughing)
JANINE (as Tawny): You just said you didn't want it!
JACK (as Finnegan): No, but I need it- we need to give it back to the Whitakers
(Austin in background: Oh no)
JANINE (as Tawny): Why?!
JACK (as Finnegan): (pause) Oh, Are you not to up speed on the plan, Tawny?
JANINE (as Tawny): You know the plan from the beginning... was never the most- the most fucking translucent, crystal clear fucking plan?
JACK (as Finnegan): (takes a breath) Okay. Well the Whitakers-
JANINE (as Tawny): (interrupting) Well the bird- just- (sighs)
JACK (as Finnegan): (continuing) The Whitakers need the bad one.
JANINE (as Tawny): But- Okay. Okay. So the bad bird- you want- okay. You wanted- you don’t want the bad bird now.
JACK (as Finnegan): I don’t want it personally.
JANINE (as Tawny): Okay. You want the bad bird for other people, who were going to get the fake bird- the toucan?
JACK (as Finnegan): (sighs) I need the bad bird for professional reasons... for like work reasons. (Austin laughs)
JANINE (as Tawny): (interrupts) No- no, this isn’t- no. That bird isn't- that's not- you just said you didn't want that bird, so it's obviously not going to be a scuba bird, no?
JACK (as Finnegan): No.
(Pause. Austin laughs, Jack laughs)
It's not going to be my scuba bird, but I need it, to give it to the Whitakers so they can... you know, so that- you know, so that Vinnie.. you know, with the Whitakers?
JANINE (as Tawny): (sighs) I don’t- I don’t know what the- (sighs) So is this- is this just a straight deal now? Is this just… all the… this is just- this is… the thing you’re saying, is we’re just facilitating a totally normal bet now?
JACK (as Finnegan): No, because we need the bad bird and the bad bird is loose. Tawny?
JANINE (as Tawny): [resigned] What- ugh, okay.
JACK (as Finnegan): Tawny! I’m going to walk you through it. It’s really simple (Dre laughs) Except for the bit where the bird has escaped.
JANINE (as Tawny): Yeah… yeah.
JACK (as Finnegan): The Whitakers. They've got this big boxing guy, right? Who's going to fight your guy... who's also my guy.
JANINE (as Tawny): (interrupting) Yeah… he’s also your guy.
JACK (as Finnegan): (in background) Yeah, and he’s also Sonny’s guy
JANINE (as Tawny): (continuing) Don’t… Look, okay. Here’s about that. Don’t let him- when you’re in front of him, don’t like, say, he’s not your guy. It hurts his feelings, okay?
JACK (as Finnegan): Yeah, I feel bad about that, actually (Austin laughs, Dre laughs)
JANINE (as Tawny): Okay, good. That’s good, that means you care. But I like to hear it. Anyway, continue.
JACK (as Finnegan): Right, moving onto the next step of the plan... The Whitakers put a large amount of money in a crow, right? (Austin laughs) That money is being- (laughter in background)
JANINE (as Tawny): (interrupting) Hang on, hang on, we’ve got like- I’ve got three pigeons here, no, I’ve got two pigeons [pigeon noise in background] I’ve got-
JACK (as Finnegan): (interrupting) No, not the bird- not the-
[bird noises continue, as pause as Austin laughs]
like the bank- (laughs) like the banking crow.
(laughter in background)
The Whitakers put a lot of money into a banking crow.
(pause as laughter in background continues)
And Sonny also… Sonny also put in the money into the crow, okay?
(more laughter in background)
You’re following that bit, right?
(pause for more background laughter)
JANINE (as Tawny): ...Yeah.
JANINE: [trying not to laugh] She’s not, but she’s saying yeah.
JACK (as Finnegan): Ok. Now, now, this is the bit of the plan that I need your help with. We give the bad bird to the Whitakers, right? Now this is collateral, okay? For the money- for the bet, the bad bird is collateral, because the Whitaker guy, the Whitaker man- Walt- he loves birds, he’s got a whole apiary up in New York full of ‘em. So…
JANINE (as Tawny): (interrupting) That’s bees, Fin. (Austin laughing)
JACK (as Finnegan): What’s the word for where the birds go? If you’re rich?
JANINE (as Tawny): (overlapping) Aviary. With a V.
JACK (as Finnegan): Aviary! Ahh, with a v. Okay-
JANINE (as Tawny): (interrupting, continuing) A ‘b’ it’s when it’s… yeah.
JACK, as Finnegan: Oh, okay sorry
JANINE (as Tawny): [continuing] With a p, actually, sorry. Abiary isn’t a word. (laughter) Fuck man, it’s like 4 in the morning and I’m washing a toucan, come on. (Austin laughing, continues laughing in background)
JACK (as Finnegan): Okay, so they get the bird, right? So this bird, right, remember when I stole it?
JANINE (as Tawny): ...no! (laughing) I don’t think I was there for that.
JACK (as Finnegan): So I stole the bird from Sonny’s- from Sonny’s dad, from- I stole this bird from Sonny’s dad, right? And he loves the bird, right? And that’s why he was at the weigh-in, and as soon as he finds out that the Whitakers have got the bird, you know, Sonny, Vinny, the Whitakers, Vinny, the bird, the Whitakers, you know. So Sonny gets to keep the money that goes into the crow.
JANINE (as Tawny): I’m sorry, I’m not sure I’m following what you’re implying here. You mean we need to steal this bird? So Sonny Veranda’s gonna get someone killed?
JACK (as Finnegan): No, I’m just saying that Vinny and the Whitakers and- and- you know, you know… the bird.
(pause as Austin laughs)
JANINE (as Tawny): You’re making a real shit case right now, Fin.
JACK (as Finnegan): Please help me find this bird again.
JANINE (as Tawny): I’ll help- okay, okay, you know what, you know what? Fuck this Sonny shit, I’ll help you find this bird, if you help me get rid of all these other birds.
JACK (as Finnegan): Easy. Easy! We just show them where the sky is, no problem.
JANINE (as Tawny): That’s… (sighs) they’ll ju- okay. Mm.
JACK (as Finnegan): So, I’ll drive over to your place, uh… now?
JANINE (as Tawny): Yeah, fucking… drive over to my place, it’s four in the morning to look for this fucking bird.
JACK (as Finnegan): Great, sounds great. Thanks- Tawny, you’re a pal. You’re a pal.
JANINE (as Tawny): (pauses, sighs)
JANINE: I think she just hangs up
AUSTIN: Mm-hm.
JANINE: I think… god, what’s the negative part there?
AUSTIN: Oh, you don’t think the negative part is-?
JANINE: Well… (Jack laughs)
AUSTIN: The whole thing?
JACK: I have communicated the hit to the IRS officer.
AUSTIN: Yes. Yes.
JANINE: Oh, right. Yes, okay. Okay, yeah.
AUSTIN: Yeah. Uh-huh.
JANINE: That’s a negative part.
AUSTIN: So, a pretty negative part. You should take that negative dice, Jack.
JACK: Ah, fuck! I now have a- shit. I got- I got two of each
JANINE and AUSTIN: Mm-hm.
AUSTIN: You wanna have a lot of one, is kind of the thing you want. (JACK: Mm-hm.) That’s the way you win this game. Win. (sighs) Doyle?
00:45:52 - 00:56:59
SYLVIA: So, do we wanna do- this is the fight now, right?
AUSTIN: I guess- the fight now, let’s do the fight. Let’s do it.
SYLVIA: Okay.
AUSTIN: Ah- which means… all this bird stuff is happening- I guess one thing we could do is have the fight be…
SYLVIA: We could have that happen later.
AUSTIN: Or we could just have it playing out throughout the next few scenes, if you know what I mean? (SYLVIA: Yeah, sure) Like, this could be the start of the fight. Though, I guess the thing is- do you guys spend that whole time looking for this bird?
SYLVIA: I feel like- (trails off)
JANINE: I feel like Tawny would feel bad if she missed Doyle’s fight
AUSTIN: True…
JACK: I think that like, I wonder whether or not to an extent it’s easy to find the bird, because it’s fucking huge, and fighting everybody.
AUSTIN: Bluff City is- Bluff City is big
JACK: Yeah, but we just drive along the coast until we see someone who has been attacked by a bird.
AUSTIN: Oh is this like- is it just a shot of you like, actually going from place to place-
JANINE: Observing various bird maulings? (Jack laughs)
AUSTIN: Like, following up the ambulances?
JACK: (laughing) Yeah. I think we corner it in a parking lot.
AUSTIN: Yeah, was that like you- the actual follow up to that hang up is you getting that bird whilst Tawny is texting the details of the deal to- to (JACK: Oh, yeah) Maggie Darcy, to like- every cut between (JANINE: Oh, yeah) you chasing and interacting with somebody it’s like, a new detail about like- alright, here are the people involved, here are the names, where the hand-off is gonna happen.
JANINE: That’s definitely the negative wrap-up of that, because like- (AUSTIN: That’s the negative result) not that I’m just gonna tell but like, Maggie’s got that info.
AUSTIN: Yeah, Maggie has the info, Maggie knows when the fight is, where the fight is, where the money is being held, et cetera. Yeah, I like that.
JANINE: It makes things real clean for the fight then
AUSTIN: Yeah. So then it’s the next night?
SYLVIA: Yeah
AUSTIN: I think Sonny’s closed down shop early, so you tell me, what’s the fight look like? What’s the lead in to the fight look like?
SYLVIA: I think that, so like, I don’t wanna speak for Sonny but (AUSTIN: It’s your scene) Sonny looks like, way nicer than usual, right?
AUSTIN: Yeah
SYLVIA: Like… that seems in character… I think he got like, like he- he rented a lighting rig from somebody-
AUSTIN: Yeah, good idea, good idea.
SYLVIA (continuing): And he doesn’t know how to use it right (AUSTIN: Nope!), so it’s a little too dim...
(Janine laughs)
AUSTIN: You think too dim and not too bright?
SYLVIA: One’s too dim, and one’s too bright.
AUSTIN: Okay, good (laughs)
JANINE: That’s very… representative, yeah.
AUSTIN: Yeah (laughs) Of a lot of things.
SYLVIA: Yeah… And then, I think like, he set up an entranceway? From like, the bathroom for the fighters to walk out from?
AUSTIN: What if it’s like, kitchen?
SYLVIA: Oh, that’s even better
AUSTIN: Like, out the place where the truck stops to let off all the produce- like, the frozen food and stuff? Like, the kitchen double doors where you walk through the kitchen and like, out to the front where there’s just a bar and you have to walk just around the bar? Like… your music is playing… what’s Doyle’s song?
SYLVIA: (pauses) Oh man, I should’ve thought about this beforehand. (pauses) Something by Billy Joel, probably.
AUSTIN: Oh my god
SYLVIA: Yeah. I can’t think of a specific one off the top of my head, but he seems like he’d be way into Billy Joel.
AUSTIN: Right, good. So you come out first, or second?
SYLVIA: Oh, definitely first. Doyle’s- Doyle’s not the main event here. Like he is, but- (trails off)
AUSTIN: So it’s me, it’s Tawny, it’s you, is there anybody else at the- is everybody at the fight, basically?
SYLVIA: Probably? Like… Achilles has to be here, uh, Walt needs to be here.
AUSTIN: (overlapping) Yeah, Jodi, like… yeah. Jodi, I think you’re all the way in now, right?
DRE: Oh yeah.
AUSTIN: I think Sonny just has you like, serving drinks, or something? He got- he got like real- he went to Pier 1 and got regular glasses, but did not get better ice, so (laughter in background) the- The Splits Special tonight is whiskey on ice, but it’s- it’s still just crushed ice from the soda machine.
DRE: I think also, Sonny’s told Jodi to wear like, a nice cocktail dress or something? (AUSTIN: Yes, yes) But I think the nicest dress she owns is just like, her prom dress.
AUSTIN: Oh my god (Sylvia laughing in background)
JANINE: Oh, boy. (Jack sighs)
AUSTIN: So, you come out to a Billy Joel song…
SYLVIA: Yeah
AUSTIN: The crowd roars- I think people like you, right?
SYLVIA: Oh definitely! I think the locals definitely like Doyle but I don’t know if like, the faith is there?
AUSTIN: Right, well, I think when Achilles Apollo’s theme song, which is “Simon Says” by Pharoahe Monch, (SYLVIA: Fuck) starts- which starts with the, Godzilla theme song, starts playing and he comes out just like Samoa Joe, basically (Dre laughing)... he’s just like the biggest man anybody has ever seen with his shirt off then... maybe there might be a faith change.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I- I should really start thinking about doing weight classes, huh Fin? Tawny, you think he has this one?
JANINE (as Tawny): (pauses) You know… I’ve been surprised before but I- (stumbles) I don’t know, I’m gonna see Jo for a drink.
(pause)
SYLVIA: Doyle’s like, stretching himself out a lot, and getting ready… Trying to show that he’s not fucking terrified.
AUSTIN: Where is the bird?
JACK (overlapping): Finnegan’s very confident…. Oh, the bird? Is, um… the bird is… well, we’ve said that the bird can’t be in anything (AUSTIN: Right) So I think that it’s gone- gone backstage again?
AUSTIN: (sighs) And it’s just, walking around?
JACK: And it’s just walking around backstage
AUSTIN: Oh! What if it’s not backstage, what if it’s in the frontstage- in the lanes, back behind where the shoes are- but everybody else is in the bar? Like, everybody’s in the bar, so we have to lock ourselves in the place. No-one’s allowed out!
JACK: At this point it’s not necessarily bad news if the Whitakers learn about the bird, right? Because Sonny’s already positioned them to them, as like- the thing, right?
AUSTIN: Yeah, but Vinny is the one who shouldn’t know about the bird
JACK: And Vinny’s here?
AUSTIN: Vinny’s definitely here… Sylvia says- says they have an idea for the bird.
SYLVIA: It’ll come later
JACK: Oh dear
(Janine laughing in background)
SYLVIA: Yeah
AUSTIN: Okay
SYLVIA: So I think, if we wanna talk about- yeah, that’s right- if we wanna talk about the fight, then (AUSTIN: Yeah, we do) it’s actually more competitive than people expected? And Doyle’s not technically great- like, he can take a hit better than… when he’s actually prepared for it, and he like, has a decent hook here and there. So like, he’s getting beat, but he’s getting a hit back.
AUSTIN: He’s a competitor, he’s a contender.
SYLVIA: Yeah. This is like- all he sees himself at being good at, so he wants to do a good job.
AUSTIN: Oh, buddy
SYLVIA: And then… I’d say like, a couple of rounds in… the bird who learned how to open a car door also learned how to open a locked door, right? (Austin exhales deeply) Doyle’s like, lining up for another right hook and the bird like, flies in and he gets both of-
AUSTIN: (interrupting) Do we get like, the backlit version of it, where it’s just like the silhouette of the bird as the light’s too high?
SYLVIA: It’s in slow motion too, and there’s just this bird [bird noises in background] that just gets punched into Achilles Apollo’s face (Austin hollers, others laugh) And it’s… a mess.
AUSTIN: Does the bird get killed? Did you punch the bird to death?
SYLVIA: I don’t know if we want to say if the bird got killed, but the bird ain’t- the bird ain’t… great.
JACK: I think for the potential future of Bluff City it would be interesting to keep this bird around in some respect?
JANINE and AUSTIN: Yeah.
SYLVIA: I think the bird’s going to be okay? I think Achilles got the worst of it. (JANINE: Yeah) Because like, the beak went through his cheek? (Austin is screaming in horror)
JANINE: Yeah, I think that’s a really good way to make that a negative resolution though, isn’t it?
DRE: And I want to give Achilles a fucked up eye, because I want Achilles to come back with an eye patch.
SYLVIA: Oh yeah! (others mumbling in background) I’m just seeing him as Samoa Joe now, because Austin described that entrance, I’m just thinking Samoa Joe with an eyepatch.
AUSTIN: So, talon goes into- into the face of Achilles Apollo and beak goes through the cheek of Doyle McKay… Mc-Key… Mc-K-
SYLVIA: McKeigh
AUSTIN: McKeigh. That’s the one I’m never gonna guess.
SYLVIA: Yeah I know, it’s a very intentional (AUSTIN: It’s very good) reference to a dumb thing
AUSTIN: I…. Ah, what’s the crowd do?
SYLVIA: They’re silent, they don’t know what just happened. I think like… (trails off)
AUSTIN: Does the bird like-
JANINE: Tawny definitely yells ‘holy shit’ over the silence (Austin laughs)
SYLVIA: Is Achilles out?
DRE: …yeah
SYLVIA: Okay, I think Doyle like, puts both fists up in the air
(all laugh, crosstalk)
AUSTIN (imitating Doyle): Yeaaaa! I did it!
JANINE (as Tawny): That’s my boy
AUSTIN: (laughing) That’s- yeah, that’s Rupert, that’s my boy (Dre laughing) And then we just get like, the bird walking around on the ground, and Vinny stands up, and Sonny runs over to Jodi and says-
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Honey, we gotta go
AUSTIN: And just like, grabs you by the wrists
(pause, laughter in background)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Right now!
DRE (as Jodi): Okay, okay (continues to repeat this)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Gotta get out of Bluff City, ohh- okay, let me just- let me run to the office real quick, I’m just gonna grab a couple of things you- you meet me outside, you meet me by the old Crown Vic.
(pause, some laughter)
AUSTIN: Sonny Veranda owns a Crown Victoria, which is like an old cop car, but he’s painted it all black. That way it just looks like a cop car, but it’s still just a regular car.
SYLVIA: (sighs) God
AUSTIN: And he like, runs out the back into his office to just grab some stuff. But I think that’s- the scene is definitely… the bird is out, the Verandas know the bird is out, they know people here are involved with the bird being out. I think he- Vinny unsnaps the- the sunglasses and puts them back in his shirt pocket, and takes out a phone and makes a call.
SYLVIA: (laughing) God
JACK: People in the- people in the bar are like, skittering away, like getting up from their chairs and skittering away as Rupert kind of, limps around the… (trails off)
AUSTIN: (laughing) Yeah
JACK: Even- even- Motivated by love, but even Vinny is like, looking at this bird with sort of a look
AUSTIN: Oh yeah, definitely. I think even Vinny knows like, the Veranda patriarch, or maybe matri- or whoever’s in charge of the Veranda family like, loves this bird. But nobody like, likes this bird, like… (JACK, laughing: No) They keep it in a vault under the water, you know?
(pause, Jack laughs)
AUSTIN: Like, I’m sure there’s also an elevator down there that’s way harder to get access to than the submarine, right? Like… (trails off)
JACK: Yeah. And also, they can enter the vault without it being a crime
AUSTIN: Right, exactly. But Vinny doesn’t move to get this bird back. I think for the reason you just described, so. Alright, I think it’s Tawny’s scene.
00:56:59 - 01:06:14
JANINE: I would like to…
AUSTIN: (interrupting) Doyle, you should take this die
JANINE: (continuing) I would like to resolve a scene
AUSTIN: Okay… I want the scene... I want the feds rolling in- I want the IRS rolling in- I want Maggie Darcy in a bullet-proof vest that says ‘IRS’ (others laugh) at the same time- at the same time that the Veranda family rolls in with their like, Lincoln town cars like- coming to two different ends of the bowling alley… that's what I want- that's the scene that I want. And then you’re there-
JACK: (interrupting) I’ll be-
AUSTIN: (continuing) Yeah, go ahead
JACK: I’ll be the FBI chief
AUSTIN: Not the FBI- the FBI isn't here, the IRS is here
JACK: Oh, the FBI is not coming at all?
AUSTIN: No, this is an IRS operation, Jack (crosstalk ensues, Jack mumbles “this is the worst”
or similar in background)
JANINE: This is the armed unit of the IRS.
AUSTIN: The IRS has guns, y’all. That’s not a joke.
JACK: I’ll be IRS vest, Maggie Darcy.
AUSTIN: Okay (pauses, laughs)
JANINE: Is that like, the special action figure version- variant? (Laughing in background)
JACK: Yeah, yeah
JANINE: IRS vest Maggie Darcy vs coffee with a cigarette Maggie Darcy?
AUSTIN: I'm Sonny who was caught in between the two, so I'm just going to keep playing Sonny
JACK: (continuing) You can just hear her with the line playing “Is that a bird?” when you pull the string (laughter in background)
JANINE: Oh, my god. So where are they all rolling up, just on this… bowling alley?
AUSTIN: I think one side is going through the main entrance... I think the Verandas are coming through the main entrance, and the IRS is coming through the- (trails off)
JACK: (interrupting) I think so- I don't know, is it interesting for them to make the move now?
AUSTIN: No, that's the scene. I think the scene is- they're making the move, this is the ‘move’ scene
JANINE: So, they’re rolling up like, as this fight is coming to a close?
AUSTIN: The fight is over, and I think it's- I'm in the scene as Sonny hiding, or like, getting ready to leave... The IRS rolling up to the back entrance to come through the kitchen where the fighters came in- even a good detail will be that music plays on trigger when someone comes in through the- it's like, set up so that when they come in, the music starts playing again and it's- that's definitely a Billy Joel song, what Billy Joel song did you enter to? We need to know now.
SYLVIA: I’m really need to pick… (deliberates) Only the Good Die Young?
AUSTIN: Only the Good Die Young! Good, yes. (Jack laughs)
JANINE: Oh, god (Dre laughs)
AUSTIN: And in this the Verandas are coming through the front door, that's the scene I want to see… coming through like, Vinny, a bunch of dudes in black suits, you know like- it's the whole family, you know, the enforcers in the family.
JACK: (sighs) Oh, my god
AUSTIN: Jodi, did you meet Sonny in his office? Or did you meet up with Tawny?
DRE: I think like- yeah, the plan was, Sonny was going to come out... she was going to like, cuff him to the Crown Vic
AUSTIN: Right, Gotcha
DRE: Yeah
AUSTIN: So you’re just standing there- I think Sonny is caught between the two, like literally is in his office still when the IRS rolls up and- Tawny, are you with them?
JANINE: I mean I think there wouldn’t be enough time for Tawny to have left if she was watching the fight. And… [she’s been] cheering Doyle on
AUSTIN: Sure… Alright, so- it’s your scene. I just wanted to establish that that’s what was happening.
JANINE: Okay… Alright, okay. I think Tawny realises that Vinny’s called these people in and, knows that this could go exceptionally bad, exceptionally fast, so I think the thing she does is- wait, what- where's the bird at? Is the bird just chilling-
AUSTIN: The bird is just in the back room, in the bar of the Splits bowling alley
JANINE: Okay. I think what Tawny does is, she is going to dive behind the bar and get a giant bag of like, giant bar peanuts and empty them on the ground the way Vinny’s dudes are coming-
AUSTIN; Uh-huh, so just the front door of the bar
JANINE: She just- so that they like, just walk into this carpet of peanuts in the hopes that the bird is going to get real interested in peanuts- she’s got no idea what this bird eats, I mean the toucan likes fruit, she figured that one out. But this bird- this bird could eat bugs, it could eat mice, it could eat cotton candy, she’s got no fucking idea- So she just, dumps out this huge fucking thing of peanuts like, birds, IRS, maybe the agents will be… safe?
AUSTIN: Okay (Janine makes a noise to indicate uncertainty) Maggie, what’s that entrance look like?
JACK: It’s... Maggie… [chuckles] the music starts playing as Maggie opens the door very slightly (Austin laughs) and she kind of looks around at her people- how many people, how many IRS people has she brought?
AUSTIN: You tell me, you’re Maggie
JACK: Oh, okay, she’s brought- she’s brought… [pause] there are eight (AUSTIN: Okay) Her and two groups of four behind her… All of them have receipts in their pockets, this is the IRS. They also have bulletproof vests and guns. And Maggie kind of, looks back like, “Is this Billy Joel?” and like, steadies herself.
AUSTIN: (singing) Don’t let me wait, you Catholic girls start much too late (Jack laughs) (stops) Like, that’s what’s happening right now
JACK: She’s like “What the- what is?” And she steadies herself, kicks down the door and shouts
JACK (as Maggie): Maggie Darcy, IRS
(pause, Janine and Austin laugh)
AUSTIN: I think that's probably where Vinny comes in and sees the bird- did the bird take the bait?
JANINE: I mean, I think as they're coming in, she's dumping the peanuts out... so it's like, they come in, peanuts on the ground (Jack laughs), bird goes for them and then is probably like peanut territorial, because- who are these assholes coming after my peanuts?
(pauses)
AUSTIN: And at that moment, the doors open and- the Verandas- (trails off)
JACK: Yeah this is absolutely the image- this is the image: it's a bowling alley, seen from the side in Galaxy bowl.
(starts to laugh throughout, others laugh and Austin mumbles confirmation throughout)
On the right hand side of the bowling alley, having come through the door, are 15 to 20 armed criminals, they’re wearing suits, they’re carrying a variety of weapons, there's some melee weapons going on there as well, there's some guns… (briefly trails off)
JANINE: Pipes!
JACK: Camera- in the middle of the frame, dead middle of the frame is the bird, picking at peanuts, it's got its wings up and is looking very, very upset... and on the left of the frame, coming up some steps to the sound of Billy Joel are eight members of the IRS and their intrepid leader, Maggie Darcy. (pause as Janine, Austin laugh) And like… all hell breaks loose? I think? Right? Is this a standoff, or is it like, immediately bad?
DRE: Well, it is a positive scene
JANINE: I think... yeah-
AUSTIN: Right, for Tawny? We don’t know- What’s that mean, Tawny?
DRE: (laughs) True
JANINE: Tawny’s- well, Tawny’s goal is to like, avoid a bloodbath? With like, two armed factions shooting with a crowd in the middle?
AUSTIN: Okay, fair.
JANINE; And her- mechanism for avoiding this is a really pissed off, mean bird. So, yeah, I think- I think the mechanics of that is, you’ve got these two factions coming in, the bird is going to be like- here’s the thing, Vinny’s not gonna be wanting one of his dudes shooting that bird.
AUSTIN: No, no! Definitely not.
JANINE: That’s the fucking family bird! You don’t shoot the bird. You- you catch the bird, gently, so you don’t injure it’s legs or wings, because those are very expens- exotic pet vets are very expensive. They don’t have one of those on staff, at the Veranda house.
AUSTIN: [crosstalk] So what’s the IRS doing? At this point? Like- are they trying to arrest, like…
JANINE: Were you about to say arrest the bird?
AUSTIN: [definitely lying] ...no?
JANINE: Okay
AUSTIN: Maybe? (Janine laughs)
JACK: So… they come in, expecting it to be bad, and Maggie stops immediately as soon as she sees the bird, and all the eight members kind of pile up behind her… And she calls out to, uh, is- is Tawny hidden?
JANINE: I mean Tawny is probably out standing at the bar, holding a giant empty bag of peanuts... so she's not super hidden right now (Austin sighs)
JACK (as Maggie): Tawny!
JANINE (as Tawny): The office, he's in the office
JACK (as Maggie): Who? Which one, Tawny?
JANINE (as Tawny): The… I- the one who doesn’t have a gun and sucks at this, go get him.
AUSTIN: I think Vinny goes at that point. I think that’s probably the end of that scene, right? Like…
JACK: Oh yeah, it’s Vinny going for, for Sonny right?
AUSTIN: Yeah? It’s now a race for Sonny. The IRS wants to arrest him, and Vinny knows. Jodi, do you want this scene to be ‘Sonny gets to the car’?
01:06:14 - 01:09:18
DRE: Oh yeah.
AUSTIN: I think it’s like- Sonny gets to the car, has a pair of blue bowling shoes like, tied to themselves and wrapped around his shoulders like a towel- like, his lucky bowling shoes? And he has a briefcase and he has a dress shirt and a pair of dress pants that he was not wearing before, like a different pair of pants that don’t fit him quite right, and he has suspenders on now, and like- a bright blue prom jacket like, it might be his prom jacket? It’s hard to know (Dre laughs)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): (panting, flustered) Alright baby, it’s time to go- what are all these other cars?
AUSTIN: And like, opens the back trunk and tosses the bag in
DRE: I think as he like, is leaning into the trunk- Jodi like, grabs his hands and puts them into cuffs.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey! (repeats this a lot very quickly) Hey, oh, uh- we’re in public, this is not- we didn’t (SYLVIA: Jesus) have this conversation yet. Let’s-
DRE (as Jodi): Sonny, you’re under arrest.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Under arrest-? They’re gonna kill me
DRE (as Jodi): Well-
AUSTIN (as Sonny): We gotta get me out of here! You wanna put me under arrest? We can do that tomorrow. Right now, we gotta get out of town. (pause) You’re a cop?! You’re a-
DRE (as Jodi): I’m not just any cop, Sonny. I’m an IRS agent.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): The worst kind of cop. Can’t believe I fell for the worst kind of cop- listen! If you don’t-
AUSTIN: And the door opens, and Vinny comes out.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Jodi, I’m telling you, please. We gotta go. Jodi, please, we gotta go.
DRE (as Jodi): Can’t let you do that, Sonny.
JACK: Vinny steps forward.
DRE (as Jodi): Sir, I’m a federal officer, and I’m going to need you to keep your distance.
JACK (as Vinny): Who are you with, the IRS?
DRE (as Jodi): I am a federal officer-! And you’re gonna need to keep your distance.
JACK (as Vinny): You’re with the IRS, aren’t you?
DRE (as Jodi): I’m making an arrest, and if you come closer, you could be charged with… interfering with an arrest.
JACK (as Vinny): All our books are good, except one.
AUSTIN: And Sonny makes a break for it. And starts trying-
JACK: (interrupting): Wait, in handcuffs?
AUSTIN: (continuing) Yeah, in handcuffs, dodging between IRS cars.
JACK: Vincent immediately just, just breaks for Sonny and tries to catch him by his hair
DRE: So does Jodi, and I really love this scene of her running in a prom dress with bowling shoes on
(pause as others laugh)
AUSTIN: Oh, so now we’re just running down Bluff City in a three way chase that’s going on.
JACK: Wait, Vinny’s also wearing bowling shoes, right? Because he was invited to the fight?
AUSTIN: He wasn’t invited- Yeah, true, yes. (sighs as Dre laughs)
DRE: So really, Sonny’s the only one with real shoes on?
AUSTIN: Yes, he changed his shoes, yea! (starts to laugh) He put on real shoes, yea, that’s why he got away! (Dre laughs)
DRE: Oh, I’ll take this negative dice.
AUSTIN: Alright! Last scene.
01:09:18 - 01:18:33
AUSTIN: Do I wanna resolve or establish? (sighs) I wanna resolve. Someone set up… whatever this scene is.
JACK: So this is just a foot chase down…
AUSTIN: The last shot was a foot chase, and the question here is- we end on that foot chase, what else-? You tell me.
JACK: We’re running towards the water
AUSTIN: Oh, yeah
JACK: And we come down onto the beach
AUSTIN: Uh-huh. Can it be at the dock or whatever that the-
JACK: The boardwalk?
AUSTIN: The boardwalk, the scuba, the- Hands Scuba and Diving Instruction is.
JACK: Yeah, I think it's on the beach, to the one side of the boardwalk because I really like the idea that in this final scene, we don't see Bluff City at all... the camera’s just pointed towards the ocean, and it takes the place between the camera and the ocean.
AUSTIN: (agreeing throughout) Yeah, okay. And is it just Jodi, Vincent, and Sonny?
JACK: (pauses) Anybody else got characters that they want here?
SYLVIA: I… don’t think Doyle would be there. I can’t think of anybody else to really add?
AUSTIN: Whitaker could be here?
DRE: Oh yeah, he could be here to collect his money.
JACK: (overlapping) Why would Whitaker have come- oh
AUSTIN: Yeah, he wants his money. He wants the money that I’ve hidden in the back of my car.
JACK: (sighs) Which is a payout so gigantic that dwarfs what Sonny put in, which was his life savings, right?
AUSTIN: Of course, yes.
JANINE: I bet Maggie’s in this chase too, because like… she- she’s after Sonny as well, she’s after all these assholes. Kind of. (pause) Maggie Darcy doesn’t stay in the bowling alley when there’s a foot chase. (Austin, Jack laugh)
JACK: She’s with the IRS! What weapon does Vinny have?
AUSTIN: Oh, he definitely has a silenced pistol or something, right?
JACK: Yeah, I think he’s carrying like, a silenced pistol and like, a bat or something.
AUSTIN: And I'm just like running through the sand, and I'm like kicking out sand as I run, and just running for the water- running down the coastline, definitely running-definitely away from the camera, and then I think like, we see the three bodies passing one after the other, like running- running after Sonny into the distance... and you can hear him slobbering, you hear him crying as this is happening.
JACK: What is- what is Jodi doing? What is Jodi’s goal in this foot chase?
DRE: (pauses) I mean, Sonny’s her first chance to get an arrest
AUSTIN: Ooh, yeah
DRE: I think it’s both to arrest Sonny but also like- if he dies, then she can’t arrest him. So it’s like a weird mix of trying to catch and arrest him, but also protect him.
AUSTIN: I think at some point Sonny trips and falls, and he's just like... we just get the shot of him like, laying on the sand looking up at the stars and the Moon, half lit by Bluff City, like there's the pink and purple on the right side of his face. And on the left side the waves are lapping up at him and he like, with his hands still in cuffs like, tries to get the water on him and like, smooth his hair out a little bit? And then he’s just, laying on the ground.
JACK: I think Vincent catches up to him and like, stands over him. Kneels down in the sand next to him.
JACK (as Vinny): This is going to go badly for you, Sonny
AUSTIN (As Sonny): It already did, Uncle Vin. I made a play- I made a stupid play, I made a stupid play.
JACK (as Vinny): You know that there’s like, there’s ways of doing that, Sonny?
AUSTIN (As Sonny): Ahh, I know.
JACK (as Vinny): But you had to steal the bird!
AUSTIN (as Sonny): [sighs] Don’t tell my dad, don’t tell my mom, you gotta deal with me.
JACK (as Vinny): I think it’s past that.
DRE (as Jodi): (panting) Sir! You need… to step away… from…
JACK (as Vinny): Step away from your guy, step away from your guy
DRE (as Jodi): (still panting) God, bowling doesn’t have a lot of cardio, does it? Ohh….
(Austin laughs, others laugh)
DRE (as Jodi): He’s… under arrest!... And I’m a federal officer.
JACK (as Vinny): Yeah, yeah. No-one says that about Bluff City- you know who runs Bluff City? The IRS. Go home, we can deal with this.
DRE (as Jodi): Oh, I can’t… oh, I can’t do that
JACK (as Vinny): No? It’s so easy.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Jodi, let him, let him- don’t worry about it Jodi, you just get out of here, you, uh, listen- you got- I got some illegal stuff in the office, you go claim that and make a big deal about it in the news or whatever- you busted me, just- just get out of here, Jodi.
DRE (as Jodi): Sonny it ain’t- it’s not just about the papers. It’s the cheese fries.
(Sylvia laughs)
DRE: And I think Jodi tries to tackle-
JACK (as Vinny): (interrupting) What are you talking about?
DRE: (continuing) Vinny.
AUSTIN: Oh, no.
SYLVIA: Oh no
AUSTIN: Oh no
(Jack exhales deeply)
JANINE: (sighs) I would, mmm-
(pause)
AUSTIN: Is this when, so what happens with the tackle?
JACK: It don’t think it goes well for Jodi
AUSTIN: Ohhh
JANINE: How- mm. What if the thing that happens is like, Vinny turns the tackle around on her, but as he is about to hit her, or something-
AUSTIN: I think he’s about to shoot her, is what’s happening.
DRE; Yeah
JANINE; Well, yeah
AUSTIN: That’s what’s on the table right now
JANINE: He like, reaches for his weapon and, Maggie who had been hanging back to kind of, see how things went and not immediately be in play- tasers him
AUSTIN: From off screen? An off screen tase? (Dre laughing)
JANINE; It’s like, camera is focused on Vinny and Joni and, there’s like that weird electric sound, and then he drops, and the shot is of Maggie in the background holding the taser.
AUSTIN: Is it one of those cool ones with the wires attached?
JANINE: Yeah. It’s like the shooty-outy one.
AUSTIN: Okay.
(as Sonny) Oh, this is worse, this is worse, this is worse.
JACK (as Vinny): This is so much worse.
AUSTIN: (laughs) Is that you saying that, or is that Vincent on the ground saying that? (Janine laughs)
JACK: (laughs) That’s Vincent on the ground saying that.
JACK (as Vinny): This is so much worse. This could have been so easy.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Oh, I hate the IRS. I hate them.
JACK (as Vinny): I just wanted to watch some boxing
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I just wanted to steal… slash scam… slash sell a bird.
(pause)
JACK (as Vinny): Who stole it?
DRE (as Jodi): Okay (trails off)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Okay, I can’t- I won’t tell you that
JACK (as Vinny): Ohhh, you know…
AUSTIN: What, are we being like pulled up, like put into the back?
(crosstalk)
DRE: Do IRS agents read you your Miranda rights to you?
AUSTIN: Yeah! You’re federal agents
JANINE: If you’re getting arrested you should be getting read something.
AUSTIN: Yeah.
DRE; Yeah… And I think like, when Vinny asks Sonny who stole it, Jodi very pointedly saying
DRE (as Jodi): You have the right to remain silent!
AUSTIN (as Sonny): (wordlessly gasps)
JACK (as Vinny): You know, this taser’s gonna wear off, Sonny. And then I’m gonna go home. And we could make this really easy. You just say a name.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I- (deliberates) I- (sighs) Ohhhh, I hate this. This is all bad. (pauses) It was- it was-
DRE: At this point I think Jodi and Marcy [sic] are taking them to two separate cars
JACK (as Vinny): We haven’t got long here, Sonny. This is it, this is your time Sonny.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): It was- it was- it was Fi- f- fuck! It was me, it was me, I stole the bird, I stole the bird! I stole it, I stole the bird. You tell that-
JACK (as Vinny): Where did you steal the bird from?
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Under- the plans are in the-
AUSTIN: And we’re getting put into the back of the car, and I’m shouting like-
AUSTIN (as Sonny): (rising panic) It was me! I know where it is! I stole the bird! I used it and I went down- underwater- it was me, you tell ‘em it was me! You tell ‘em it was me!
JACK (as Vinny): I’ll make sure your dad knows.
AUSTIN: And I’m like, backseat-
JANINE: At this point, Maggie’s got- Maggie’s like- (searches for phrasing) she’s got her hand on the back of Sonny’s neck, and is like, guiding him in. And in this moment, thinking she’s being quite clever, and says, like-
JANINE (as Maggie): You’ll have plenty of time to talk about birds in the cage, Sonny
(collective groan, Janine laughs)
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Every woman I know is in the IRS, (others laugh) this is unbelievable. I don’t even understand it! What is going on with Bluff City, what is- (sighs)
AUSTIN: And that’s a negative die. Die retain whatever their number is in that last segment, even that wild die, but it was already a negative die, so… that is… the end of Act 2. There is no act 3, (Dre laughs) there is only the aftermath.
01:18:33 - 01:23:07
AUSTIN: (pauses, laughs) Oh fuck, alright I’m gonna read from the Aftermath...
(reading) The Aftermath is usually the game’s denouement. It’s likely that the action has peaked, and that’s totally OK. By this point we can probably see each character’s general trajectory, but there’s still time for tragic and unwholesome surprises. The Aftermath should be told in montage, and it should be fast. The Basics: Roll all the dice in front of your character... Total them by color, as in the Tilt…
(stops reading) I’m gonna go through them now and roll those dice, okay? Alright, all those dice have been rolled. (laughs) So, you totalled them before, as by colour. So I have a six black, a one black and a one black, that’s eight black, and I have two white. Jack, what do you have?
JACK: I have a three black, a six black, uh…
AUSTIN: Oh, buddy
JACK: A five white and a four white. So that’s nine white and nine- oh dear.
AUSTIN: Uh-huh. Oh, buddy. So you got nine and- you got nine and nine?
JACK: Uh-huh
AUSTIN: Oh, oh. Oh no, I tried at the end, I really tried.
(Dre and Jack laughing)
AUSTIN: Sylvia? What have you got?
SYLVIA: I got two white, and then a six black, and then two four blacks. So that’s…
AUSTIN: Fourteen black, two white?
SYLVIA: Fourteen black, two white.
AUSTIN: Ah… Tawny? Janine?
JANINE: I have got a… 3, 4, 5, and 6 white. So I’m at eighteen white
SYLVIA: Well….
AUSTIN: Jesus Christ…
JANINE: Tawny Buck plays to win. (Dre laughing)
AUSTIN: Jodi… Dre
DRE: Let’s see, I have… six and four black, and six and two white.
AUSTIN: So ten black and two white… okay
DRE: So I guess I’m at two black total?
AUSTIN: Yeah, so yeah, it’s… I’m at… uh, so I’m at four black, Jack is at zero, Sylvia is at twelve… twelve black?
SYLVIA: Yep!
AUSTIN: Janine is at eighteen white, and Dre is at… what?
DRE: I think you miscounted, I think you mistyped
AUSTIN: Oh, I think I mistyped… you’re at two black total, right? Alright, cool. Now, we consult the Aftermath table. Play the Aftermath as a montage. I’ll actually-
(reading) Consult the Aftermath table on page 58. The Aftermath chart will give you your marching orders for the game’s finale. Black results are generally physical and white results are generally social, mental, or emotional. You really, really don’t want those dice to cancel each other out – the further from zero your final result, the happier the ending. (Jack laughs) At this point the game enters the final phase, the Aftermath. Check out the replay for an example, blah blah blah
Alright, so, here’s the format − you take one of the dice that ended up in front of you and say “This is (my character), (doing something).” It should be active, and it should be about your character, not somebody else. Then somebody else takes a die and does the same thing − you’re describing the outcome of the game, maybe tightly focused, maybe meandering across many years. Your group will find its own preferred way of handling the montage. Keep it brisk, broad, colorful, and poignant.
When you are out of dice, your story is over. When the dice are gone, the game is over. If you end the game with few dice (it can happen!) not only will your poor guy have a horrible outcome but you’ve got precious little say in the matter. Maybe you just disappear. That said, chances are some character’s Aftermaths will be more complicated than others, and tossing a die to a friend so they can have a satisfying ending isn’t a crime. Similarly, if you have more dice than story, that’s cool, too.
(stops reading) We all have four dice, so… I haven’t even looked at the Aftermath tables yet, I’m really nervous
DRE: It’s not great, man
JANINE; It’s rough
DRE: It’s not great
JACK: Ohhh, I gotta look at it.
JANINE: I mean, it’s great for me, but it’s rough for everyone else.
AUSTIN: Oh, it’s rough for everybody else, huh
SYLVIA: Eh, I’m okay
DRE: I think Sylvia’s pretty good, yeah.
SYLVIA: Yeah. I think mine is literally pretty good, actually.
AUSTIN: I didn’t do that- Austin’s at five- at four black. Great. Good.
JACK: Uh….
AUSTIN: Okay, where do we want to start? What’s the first scene?
JACK: Hmm.
AUSTIN: Uh-huh
JACK: Do I have white high or black high, because I have zero?
AUSTIN: Did you- did you read these? It’s the same, Jack.
JACK: Oh, okay.
AUSTIN: (laughs) Zero says (reading) The worst thing in the universe.
JACK: I know what this is.
AUSTIN: (reading) This probably doesn’t include death, since death would be way better than whatever this is. Be creative and don’t settle for the first “worst” thing that comes to mind – there’s something darker, more awful, more wretched in there somewhere.
01:23:07 - End
JACK: Oh yeah. I know what mine is.
AUSTIN: Alright, so what’s your first scene? So remember, we do this as in, this is- where’s the thing- this is my character, this is Doyle- sorry, this is Finnegan for you- doing [blank]. Or not doing, but “verb”.
JACK: (sighs) This is Finnegan working in the scuba shop. And he's- he's alright, his ear hurts... this is two days- no it's like, a week after the events. His ear really hurts, he's had some visits from the IRS but they couldn't necessarily pin anything on him, he’s got stitches, he’s going ok... and there is a shadow on the door, and he looks up, and it's Vinny.
AUSTIN: Let’s go around the table. Doyle.
--01;24;18--
SYLVIA: I think where we’ll start is with this dice here... this is done after the fight, some of the people going there like, take him out in the commotion- they took him to some nearby dive bar, and he's just celebrating with those people like, the king of the castle right now.
AUSTIN: (laughs) Great. Tawny.
JANINE: I think Tawny…
AUSTIN: (laughs) Tawny, whose number isn’t even on the charts (all laugh) I should note that Doyle is at pretty good.
SYLVIA: Yeah, at the second highest
AUSTIN: Tawny is at fan-fucking-tastic
--01;25;02--
JANINE: So word of mouth is a hell of a thing, especially when... for underground fights that don't get properly covered by the media, or recorded and disseminated that way is- sorry, I mean sometimes they do, but this one particular probably was not... I think that the story that goes around about this fighter who took down Achilles Apollo... there's a story that goes around that reflects very well on her, about this secret technique she teaches her students called the “Firebird Punch” (all laugh) So, her gym starts doing phenomenally well… and she’s gotten rid of all these birds, but people keep talking about this Firebird thing so she’s like, well, why don't I rebrand? Firebird Gym. You get a bird in the lobby, it's the most orange bird-
AUSTIN: It’s not “the bird”? It’s just an orange bird?
JANINE: It’s just an orange bird. It’s probably like, an Oriole or something- one of those birds that’s like, orange on the bottom and black on the top, like those confusing ones. And she… sets it up in her gym, doesn’t have to- gets a nice, full apartment, or house even. Does great.
AUSTIN: Perfect. Jodi- oh, make sure you drag a die inside, Janine.
DRE: So I have black two... which is “brutal”.
AUSTIN: Uh-huh
--01;26;28--
DRE: So, I think like the- the camera shot is like, it's like a split screen - on the left side is Jodi's dad, and on the right side is Jodi and they're both on the phone talking... and Jodie is talking is about her first big arrest and how she thinks she's probably going to get a promotion, and they go back and forth and she's giving him the play by play but it's lat, so she says- you know, they say they love each other, they hang up... and after they hang up, the camera pans away from both of them to the twin bowling trophies... and there's just the sound of a scuffle on both sides, and suddenly there’s blood on both those bowling trophies
AUSTIN: Jesus christ.
DRE: We don’t know if they’re dead! But something not great happened.
AUSTIN: And you still have three more scenes to describe, so....
(pause, some laughter in background)
AUSTIN: So, drag one in.
DRE: Does it matter which colour I drag in?
--01;27;29--
AUSTIN: No, it doesn’t matter. It’s… visual. (pause) This is Sonny - standing in front of a... whatever they call mugshot boards, having his photo taken and being processed through the…. the system- waiting for his attorney to show up, his family attorney. His family attorney does not show up, he does not have any money, so he gets public defender who is not interested in defending him, frankly, for the crime he committed - many crimes he has committed - and then it's just Sonny on the bus on the way upstate in prison orange… Finnegan.
--01;27;55--
JACK: This is Finnegan... looking up first blankly, and then with a sort of dawning awful recognition as Vinny says-
JACK (as Vinny): You stole it, didn't you? You stole the bird.
JACK: And Finnegan realises there's not much he can say in the face of Vinny, in this context, especially since Vinny is carrying a silenced pistol and is taking out his coat, and Finnegan begins to back away but one of Vinny’s guys who's in the door grabs him.
AUSTIN: Doyle
--01;28;37--
SYLVIA: This one... I think is Doyle coming into work the next morning and nobody else being there (others laugh) and I think he's confused about it, and kinda goes about his day like normal, like he's done this before - there are days where Finnegan doesn't come in, and as he's like, doing his job he's like - you know maybe I should learn how to swim.
AUSTIN: Tawny.
--01;29;06--
JANINE: I think this one is... Tawny training with like, a new star pupil and they’re just so much like - you know, this girl is so much like her when she was that young, and she knows exactly like - this is what you need to do to improve, and oh- here is, these are my old tricks - and... you get this shot of her watching this girl train and being like, this girl’s gonna- she's gonna do it.
AUSTIN: Jodi
--01;29;44--
DRE: The scene is just... Jodi's dad on the floor, and he's dead, and somebody has left a single orange feather on his body. (Austin gasps)
--01;29;58--
AUSTIN: Fuck! (pauses) This is... I need to get the timing right on this - this is the first postcard that Sonny writes to Finnegan, from inside and it's a letter- it's a letter and it’s a postcard that is like- the Upstate Penitentiary- whatever the penitentiary is called, we’ll have to work that out sometime later - it's probably something like Orange County like, you know- something something something… and it's a letter about- you know I think it's like, from here on out it's narration from Sonny
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Fin, for a lot of tough- for a lot of years, I thought that the- the lessons you taught me were useless, but in here they're starting to make sense in here- things are exactly the way you said the real world was... thanks
AUSTIN: Finnegan
--01;30;56--
JACK: This is... Finnegan being bundled out of the front of the scuba shop, Vincent with his silenced pistol at his back, and Vincent says-
JACK (as Vincent): You were... you took a journey, right? In one of those little submarines, to get the bird? To get the bird back on one of those submarines? Ok, ok, now you’re going to take another one. Get in, get in the submarine.
JACK: And Finnegan weakly fights back and is pushed into the tiny submarine. And Vinny says-
JACK (as Vincent): I got men all up and down the coast, so you know how this is gonna go, ok? Alright, take him away.
JACK: And one of the goons rolls this submarine down the beach and pushes it into the water, and there's a moment where it sits there, and then the engine starts and the submarine begins to move away down to the dark waters away from Bluff City, and Vincent puts his gun away, but he stands there watching the submarine move away through the water.
AUSTIN: Doyle.
--01;32;08--
SYLVIA: I think this is a few months later... Doyle is now - through some... help from the community - he's now the owner of the scuba shop, he's got a little- he's changed the name- actually, let me rewind this a little. He's at a grave, for Finnegan - people just assumed that a guy that age, who went missing after what happened. There was a small ceremony, stuff like that, and he's got a postcard- he's got a few postcards from Sonny that he leaves on the grave.
AUSTIN: Yeah
SYLVIA: and he talks to him a little and he's like-
SYLVIA (as Doyle): I think you'd really like how the shop’s doing- I got a good name for it, it's “Fin’s Fins” since you know it's like, how a fish have fins, anyway I think you’d like it... dogs are good, dogs are doing good- I know you didn't like them around the shop, but it's kind of hard sometimes... anyway, miss you. Same time next week?
SYLVIA: And he just nods and walks off.
AUSTIN: Tawny
--01;33;24--
JANINE: I think... this scene is Tawny and Maggie Darcy, and they're at lunch, and they're like at lunch at a good place now because Maggie's always been able to afford it, but now Tawny can also afford it well enough. So they’re at lunch and Tawny's like-
JANINE (as Tawny): You know, I got out of this business, Maggie and I’m doing fine. I don't need to- I don't need to do it anymore.
JANINE: And Maggie, just like, passing a bullet-proof vest across the table to her and says like-
JANINE (as Maggie): You've dealt with this thing before
JANINE: And the bulletproof vest says like, “Animal Control”
(Dre and Austin laugh)
AUSTIN: Great. Good. Perfect.
DRE: Oh boy
AUSTIN: Jodi
--01;34;20--
DRE: A super bright lights taps on, and Joni is tied to a chair- beaten up, but still alive, and then a mobster says-
DRE (as unknown mobster): Look Jodie, what you did... it cost the Whitaker family a good decent bit of money, so you've got two choices: you can work for us and pay off your debt, or we take your debt out with the people you care about most.
--01;34;55--
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Look Finnegan, I’m not one to brag but, I’m getting smarter.
AUSTIN: And we get a picture of Sonny at like, an SAT preparation class.
DRE: (laughs) Oh buddy
AUSTIN: Putting flashcards together. And he goes-
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Erudite; scholarly, learned.
AUSTIN: And then he’s- it’s like a-
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I've been taking these classes and I've been writing back to to the family, I got back in touch -
Escalate; to increase, to grow rapidly, to intensify.
We've been through so much stuff, and I have to- the end of the day, I can repay for all of that you've done for me -
Escapade; steep cliff.
I just- when I get out, I think we both keep distance. I don't want my family to ever know that you were involved with all this- especially if they're going to take me back in the fold-
Eschew; to avoid, to keep away from.
I don't know what type of work they’re gonna give me, but I'm sure it'll be good, and I'll have support, and I'll have family again like... you're always my main -
Escrow; money deposited with a third person pending fulfillment of a condition
You'll always be my first family though-
Esoteric; for a select few, not generally known.
I love you, Finn.
AUSTIN: And it’s the last postcard Sonny ever sends.
--01;36;19--
JACK: They have good engines, you know? It's easy to make fun of these tiny little submarines, especially when the tourists come, but you know, they have good engines - they were good enough to get all the way out to the entrance, and back, with a bird... and he makes it some distance - he doesn't really know where he’s going, he thinks if he goes out far enough and heads East or West along the coast, he might be able to find a place... but after a while the engine stops and dies. So here is Finn, sitting in the dark, with water above him, and he looks at his hands, and he looks at the back of his hands, and reaches up to touch the wound on the side of his head, and it's healing ok... and he reaches out and feels the plastic glass that he replace the summer before, on this submarine, and he sits back in his little chair and hits his head back and closes his eyes.
AUSTIN: Doyle
--01;37;22--
SYLVIA: So, this last one I think, takes place maybe like, 25 years later? Like this is a long time in the future, and it's again at Finnegan’s grave - Doyle's older, he's got like a beard now that is like- he was never able to grow a great beard ,but it's probably the best it's ever gonna look. He’s balding a little, like he used to have really thick hair, and it's kind of receding, and he is definitely like, more out of shape than he was. He look ha- he looks good, and he just kind of talking like-
SYLVIA (as Doyle): Yeah, you know, the shop’s doing good. Managed to get an actual boat. Kids are okay - Lily’s still a troublemaker, but you know, she’s at that age… Fin, he’s, uh, he’s a lot like me, and I worry about that? But I think they’re doing okay. I think you’d like ‘em. You know, I still sometimes hope that you’re out there somewhere but, (sighs) getting to the point where I gotta stop thinking that, right? Anyway, I’ll see you again sometime soon.
SYLVIA: And he leaves like, a little like- I don’t think they would be flower guys (Austin laughs) it’s like a tiny little- like a hotel sized bottle of whiskey, like the really tiny ones, and-
AUSTIN: Can I give a detail?
SYLVIA: Yeah, sure
AUSTIN: There’s a picture on it of- of a pirate, with a parrot. It’s nautical.
SYLVIA: Perfect.
AUSTIN: Tawny.
--01;39;08--
JANINE: (sighs) Man.
AUSTIN: Mm-mm. Fan-fucking-tastic.
JANINE: Yeah, it’s- in the book, when you’re playing and stuff, and you’re trying to aim for a nice ending, you don’t think about, “Huh, maybe everybody else might be really sad” (Austin laughs) And then you’re just having a fun bird adventure. (Austin and Dre laugh) Doesn’t really cross your mind at- you know. I think there’s- I think there's a scene of like, Tawny's got the new paperwork for being an animal control… agent? I feel like there's a term for that... Parks and Wildlife services? Maybe?
AUSTIN: Yeah, sure. Bluff County.
JANINE: She’s got her kit for that, and she’s like, she’s- instinctively reaches for the phone to call Finn like, no- Finn’s- Finn’s, you know, at that point it’s like Finn’s not there, for sure. And then, calls Joni and there’s no answer. And like, thinks of calling Doyle but it’s like, nah- let him do his thing, this is not twenty-five years in the future, but this is like, you know, Doyle’s got the business now that he’s taking care of, just let him be. So I think it ends up with this shot of her in her car, with binoculars and a cup of coffee, and she's playing oldies radio- something. No, she's not playing oldies radio, she's playing like, hot new hits she's not- she's not Maggie, she’s not- and she is watching- what the fuck was his name - Van McLaren
AUSTIN: Great, good, okay. (laughs)
JANINE: Man who knows about some birds.
AUSTIN: He does know about some birds. Jodi.
--01;41;20--
DRE: Jodi has a gun drawn on somebody, who's laying on the ground and is just saying, this is a mistakes, you've got the wrong guy, you don’t have to do this, and Joni says-
DRE (as Joni): I don't, but you crossed the Whitakers, and I know what that means.
DRE: and the camera goes dark as the gunshots ring out.
--01;41;54--
AUSTIN: We get a shot of Joni leaving that place, and out front leaning on the black Crown Vic is Sonny Veranda, in a suit that fits him too well, and then we get a bunch of shots of Sonny - we get him being picked up by Vinny at the prison in a black town car, and then they get him back at the bowling alley in his shitty blue prom jacket, with like dead eyes but moving dope for the Verandas- just like huge packets of coke- and then we get him breaking someone’s knee with a baseball bat, and then we get him running something across state lines in the back of a car, and now we get him leaning on this car with a holster- like a holster, what do you call it, like a side holster on his torso.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): You beat me to this one, O’Brien. Whitakers strike again. Don’t come near Bluff City. No more Whitakers in Bluff City.
DRE (as Joni): Don’t wanna talk it out over some cheese fries?
AUSTIN (as Sonny): I gave up cheese. I lost some weight!
AUSTIN: And he opens the jacket a little bit, and he’s lost a little weight.
AUSTIN (as Sonny): Picked up a few new hobbies. I see you did too. You know, I realised one day - only the good die young. And, I’m not quite ready yet.
AUSTIN: And he gets back in the car and drives away.
[Music starts: A Bowling Alley, a Boxer, and a Bird.]
[1] The name in the audio recording is no longer in use, hence the audio/transcript discrepancy.