I answered all the questions! Like I said above, I really enjoy reflecting on what I’ve loved about a piece of media and why, and talking about those things that I loved, so this was fun.
1. What is that one moment from the show that you will find yourself thinking back to, intermittently, for years to come?
Probably Wilde’s first death, because it absolutely broke me. The first time I listened to the show, that episode was the last one that had come out when I caught up and then the show was on its Halloween hiatus, and I was completely wrecked by Wilde’s death. I cried so hard my face was red. There aren’t many stories, in any medium, that have earned that kind of visceral response from me.
2. What has been your favourite relationship to see (well, hear) develop?
Zolf and Wilde. Enemies to lovers is my favourite trope so when it crosses with my favourite characters in a story, that’s the end of the line for me. There could never be anyone else. I loved the snark and antagonism of their early relationship, but the exasperated care they have for each other in Season 4 is what really stole my heart.
3. What was your favourite running joke, in or out of character?
‘I’ve got loads of hit points.’
4. Who was your favourite PC, and why was it Sasha? Jk: who was your favourite PC?
Although I do love Sasha, Zolf is my favourite. He was my favourite in the beginning and he was my favourite at the end. I’ve been surprised by how much I relate to him, and that’s something that I’ve only realised over the last few months while I’ve been writing fic.
5. Pick a character and make a prediction for their epilogue.
Cel will adopt Brutor and will give him the home he always deserved. I think they’ll return to Japan at some point, in the far distant future, but they’ve got other things to learn about for now.
6. What is something you are wholly convinced will happen in the finale?
I mean, if you’d asked me this a week ago I probably could have thought of something and it would have absolutely not been what actually occurred. Honestly, I didn’t think much about what I thought might happen or not happen in the finale. I was too stressed worrying that Zolf and/or Wilde might die so I was too busy manifesting survival.
7. What is something you do not at all think will happen in the finale, but is just fun to daydream about?
8. What mystery do you really hope still gets resolved, and how do you predict that will happen?
I want to know two things: everything about Wilde (ok, that’s a big thing – mostly how he got his scar and what was happening with him during those lost 18 months) and what happened to Barret. Was he really that thing that attacked them outside the lab? Did he escape and is he now loose in London again? Did he disintegrate under the weight of a whole fandom’s hatred? Inquiring minds need to know! As for how we’ll find out these things, probably some kind of Q&A. I don’t anticipate them coming up in the epilogue.
9. Which was your favourite arc and why?
France, Japan and the airship, but don’t ask me to choose because I can’t. I loved them all for different reasons. I think the show really hit its stride in France and there were some really good character moments scattered around the fun adventure. Japan felt really new and exciting because you get a sense of how much the world has changed since Azu and Hamid have been gone. Also we get Zolf back. And the airship was just fun. So many interesting characters and dynamics that really shook things up.
10. Who was your favourite NPC, and why is it Skraak? There’s no joke here, if it’s not Skraak you’re wrong. (Fine, fine, who was your favourite NPC?)
Wilde. Just Wilde. I loved him from the beginning, even when he was supposed to be annoying and insufferable.
11. Which raw-ass line will stick in your mind for years to come?
‘You are more important than a thing’.
12. Is there an episode you keep downloaded at all times, just in case you want to go back to it? If not, which episode would this be if you did?
Eat, Drink and Be Merry, for what should be obvious reasons, the metacasts, and also the specials that Tim Meredith was in.
13. What’s a moment from another piece of media that reminds you of RQG?
I mean, literally any time I see a real-life image of any of the historical figures I think of RQG. But that’s it really.
14. What’s a detail of the show that you always forgot, and when you’re reminded of it it always comes as a shock?
I always forget the Bertie rolled a Natural 20 on his statue disguise check. I don’t know why I can’t hold onto that detail, but at least it means it’s always an incredible surprise when I hear it again.
15. Which moments have genuinely made you cry?
There haven’t been many, to be honest. Wilde’s first death was definitely the moment that got the biggest reaction out of me. Wilde’s second death was a shock, and I did get teary, but there was so much going on in that fight and Ben, Bryn and Alex were throwing so many numbers around, that it almost felt like they’d saved him before I’d had time to process that he was dead again.
16. If you’ve ever created fan content for the show, which piece are you most proud of?
I’ve written 18 fics for RQG in the last 7 months and I don’t know how to choose a favourite. Maybe the most recent one, ‘But Hope Remains’, which I wrote immediately after the finale? It just came so easily and I really like the way it sounds in my head.
Memes aren’t really my thing. Let someone else do this one.
18. Why did you first start listening to the show?
I came for TMA but stayed for RQG. I started listening to RQG after I’d caught up with TMA and it quickly owned my whole heart. TMA is a great show, but RQG has so much heart, and I love all the characters so much.
19. Can you try to put into words the crushing nostalgia you now feel when you think back to the prologue episodes, and how you felt listening to them for the first time vs how that would feel now?
I’m currently listening to the show for the fourth time (the party are in the Shoin Institute while I’m writing this) so I’ve listened to the start a few times now, and every time I get excited because I know what I’m in for, and I can’t wait to experience the ride again. The first episodes don’t have the quality of the later ones, but they’re special. There’s something about them that always feels new.
20. I’m a firm believer that everyone takes at least a little piece of every piece of media they consume away with them, to become a part of their lifestyle, or moral code, or even a part of themself. What will you take from Erasing the Line?
A real genuine love for Oscar Wilde’s work. He’s my favourite character so I got really interested in the real man and I just find him so fascinating but his story so tragic. I listened to The Picture of Dorian Gray on audiobook and loved it so much I had to go out and buy a physical copy of the book. I now want to put together a collection of all his work. It’s weirdly comforting to know that, in 30 years, I’ll still have this connection to a character and a show that made me so happy during a time that was really hard.