1 00:00:00,320 --> 00:00:04,160 Hi and welcome to K Let's Talk, the podcast where we breakdown 2 00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:07,680 storytelling across books, television and film with a 3 00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:10,040 special love for book to screen adaptations. 4 00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:14,040 Here we talk about craft, character arcs, structure, 5 00:00:14,040 --> 00:00:17,600 dialogue, visual language, and the creative choices that shape 6 00:00:17,600 --> 00:00:20,080 how a story lands. If you like thoughtful, 7 00:00:20,080 --> 00:00:23,120 conversational, deep dives into the stories you can't stop 8 00:00:23,120 --> 00:00:24,800 thinking about, you're in the right place. 9 00:00:25,280 --> 00:00:27,240 Let's talk. Hello, everyone, and welcome 10 00:00:27,240 --> 00:00:30,440 back to the podcast. In this week's episode, I'm 11 00:00:30,440 --> 00:00:34,600 excited to continue our conversation from part one of 12 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:38,760 our Season 2 Q&A and answer some more questions that had been 13 00:00:38,760 --> 00:00:43,200 submitted to me from listeners and people over on Instagram and 14 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:46,360 TikTok and Threads. And there's so many great 15 00:00:46,360 --> 00:00:49,400 questions in here that I've tried to break them up into 16 00:00:49,400 --> 00:00:52,160 categories. Similarly to the first half of 17 00:00:52,160 --> 00:00:57,400 this Q&A, in this week's episode we have lots to discuss, so many 18 00:00:57,400 --> 00:01:03,040 things to touch upon, and I really am excited for a lot of 19 00:01:03,040 --> 00:01:05,880 these questions to be answered in Season 2. 20 00:01:06,240 --> 00:01:09,760 But want to preface first and foremost with the fact that 21 00:01:09,760 --> 00:01:14,320 there will be a lot of spoilers in this episode for The Long 22 00:01:14,320 --> 00:01:18,240 Game and some of the other books in the Game Changer series. 23 00:01:18,240 --> 00:01:21,520 So if you haven't read the other books or The Long Game ahead of 24 00:01:21,520 --> 00:01:25,000 Season 2, then this episode is not going to be for you because 25 00:01:25,080 --> 00:01:28,800 we will be spoiling a lot. The second is that Jacob Tierney 26 00:01:28,800 --> 00:01:31,760 has spoken to numerous publications and been 27 00:01:31,760 --> 00:01:36,600 interviewed countless times, and he is very much of the opinion 28 00:01:36,600 --> 00:01:41,800 that fan input is not going to be taken heavily into account 29 00:01:41,800 --> 00:01:45,200 when he is writing Season 2. So everything that I am 30 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:50,200 speculating and commenting on is purely for fun and like many 31 00:01:50,200 --> 00:01:54,080 people who are fans of the show, I will be happy with whatever he 32 00:01:54,080 --> 00:01:57,280 turns out. I trust in his vision and he 33 00:01:57,280 --> 00:02:00,960 plans to approach season 2 the same way he did season 1, and 34 00:02:00,960 --> 00:02:06,200 for that I am very excited. So this is my version of events 35 00:02:06,200 --> 00:02:10,000 and how I would approach things just based on how season 1 was 36 00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:14,520 shot and composed and written. And if it doesn't look like 37 00:02:14,520 --> 00:02:16,560 this, I'm going to be OK with that. 38 00:02:16,560 --> 00:02:21,360 So again, this is purely for fun, speculative, and I'm 39 00:02:21,360 --> 00:02:24,720 excited to see if I'm right about any of it. 40 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:27,920 But I will be perfectly OK if I'm wrong about all of it. 41 00:02:27,920 --> 00:02:33,960 And Season 2 is a masterpiece that I didn't see coming because 42 00:02:33,960 --> 00:02:37,200 Season 1 certainly was that. So the first question that I 43 00:02:37,200 --> 00:02:42,000 wanted to touch upon was how do I think the first episode will 44 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:45,320 start? What do I think we will see in 45 00:02:45,360 --> 00:02:50,640 the very beginning of Season 2? And that question excited me a 46 00:02:50,640 --> 00:02:53,240 lot because I've been thinking about that on my own. 47 00:02:53,400 --> 00:02:59,240 And I personally think we will replicate Season 1's first scene 48 00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:02,680 where we are dropped into a moment between Shane and Ilya. 49 00:03:03,000 --> 00:03:05,680 And I wouldn't be surprised if it's back at the cottage in the 50 00:03:05,680 --> 00:03:08,440 aftermath of their dinner with Shane's parents. 51 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:12,120 So I think we will get the proper ending of the heated 52 00:03:12,120 --> 00:03:16,320 rivalry book before we jump forward in time. 53 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:19,080 And there's enough left in the book that Jacob can include a 54 00:03:19,080 --> 00:03:22,560 good 5 or 10 minute scene to open the season and re establish 55 00:03:22,800 --> 00:03:25,800 to all of us what happens at the end of that book. 56 00:03:26,080 --> 00:03:29,240 Despite the happy ending of season 1, at that moment in the 57 00:03:29,240 --> 00:03:34,120 story there are still a lot of concerns on Shane's part. 58 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:37,920 Whereas Ilya has just had the best day of his life and I think 59 00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:41,000 it's important to establish that disconnect between them early 60 00:03:41,000 --> 00:03:45,040 because it is a theme of the entire long game book. 61 00:03:45,040 --> 00:03:48,880 Second to that, per the timeline, Ilya signs with Ottawa 62 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:52,960 that summer and then that fall is the season when Shane comes 63 00:03:52,960 --> 00:03:58,200 out to his team mates and tells them that he is gay, which is 64 00:03:58,240 --> 00:04:04,280 October of 2018, which Jacob has already touched upon filming 65 00:04:04,280 --> 00:04:08,760 that and shooting that because it is handled off page in the 66 00:04:08,760 --> 00:04:10,640 book. But Jacob thinks that's too 67 00:04:10,640 --> 00:04:12,560 important of a moment to not show on screen. 68 00:04:12,560 --> 00:04:14,120 And I agree with that assessment. 69 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:17,200 This is also going to be an important narrative payoff 70 00:04:17,200 --> 00:04:22,240 because when it's discovered later on that Ilya and Shane are 71 00:04:22,240 --> 00:04:26,440 together and his team finds out about that, you want to be able 72 00:04:26,440 --> 00:04:29,680 to refer back to the moment when Shane told them that he was gay. 73 00:04:29,960 --> 00:04:32,640 So that is important. And that takes place in that 74 00:04:32,640 --> 00:04:35,840 liminal space between handed rivalry and the long game. 75 00:04:35,840 --> 00:04:40,960 But I think we will get an adaptation or a new original 76 00:04:40,960 --> 00:04:44,800 scene that Jacob's writing for that moment in the story. 77 00:04:45,000 --> 00:04:48,840 Then that November is when Hayden finds out about Shane and 78 00:04:48,840 --> 00:04:51,120 Ilya. And I would personally love if 79 00:04:51,120 --> 00:04:54,720 Jacob adapts the entirety of the My Dinner with Hayden scene 80 00:04:54,720 --> 00:04:58,040 because there is so much within it that would lay the perfect 81 00:04:58,040 --> 00:05:01,920 foundation for the season. Primarily a conversation between 82 00:05:01,920 --> 00:05:05,520 Shane and Ilya that happens after the night ends where Shane 83 00:05:05,520 --> 00:05:09,240 is upset that they can't love each other freely like Hayden 84 00:05:09,240 --> 00:05:12,240 and Jackie. And that moment also re 85 00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:16,000 establishes how the relation feels for us viewers now that 86 00:05:16,000 --> 00:05:17,680 they are in a committed relationship. 87 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:20,760 Because the dynamic is going to be different and we got a 88 00:05:20,760 --> 00:05:24,640 glimpse of it in episode 6, but it will be very different in 89 00:05:24,640 --> 00:05:26,560 season 2. And the earlier that can be 90 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:30,080 established, the better I think. And I also feel it's important 91 00:05:30,080 --> 00:05:34,360 to introduce Hayden and his family early on because they're 92 00:05:34,360 --> 00:05:36,560 going to be important throughout the season as well. 93 00:05:36,800 --> 00:05:40,480 And showing us the dynamic between Ilya and Hayden is 94 00:05:40,480 --> 00:05:44,720 pivotal to and something Jacob has expressed he's very excited 95 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:48,880 to write because not only is it going to be humorous and funny, 96 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:53,840 but there is a really important emotional payoff later on in the 97 00:05:53,840 --> 00:05:58,200 show that can't happen if we're not invested in Hayden and Ilya 98 00:05:58,200 --> 00:06:01,960 and Shane's dynamic early on. The next part that I think they 99 00:06:01,960 --> 00:06:05,680 need to cover takes place in the and that's when Shane and Ilya 100 00:06:05,680 --> 00:06:09,520 announced the Arena Foundation, which also takes place that same 101 00:06:09,520 --> 00:06:13,880 month. And a side piece of information 102 00:06:13,880 --> 00:06:17,680 that they can include there is that Wyatt is also traded to 103 00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:22,600 Ottawa and Ilya attends a funeral with Ryan Price for a 104 00:06:22,600 --> 00:06:26,280 player named Duncan Harvey, who had unfortunately lost his 105 00:06:26,280 --> 00:06:29,760 battle with mental health. And I think this is a scene that 106 00:06:30,400 --> 00:06:34,480 sort of has to be included or at the very least mentioned because 107 00:06:34,480 --> 00:06:37,200 of Ilya's character arc in Season 2. 108 00:06:37,480 --> 00:06:41,080 And perhaps Ilya and Shane talk about how that funeral was if we 109 00:06:41,080 --> 00:06:44,400 don't actually get to see him attend the funeral with Ryan. 110 00:06:44,880 --> 00:06:49,040 But that is also when Ilya invites Ryan to coach at the 111 00:06:49,040 --> 00:06:52,240 Game Changers camp. So it feels like it would be a 112 00:06:52,240 --> 00:06:55,440 great on screen moment or opportunity. 113 00:06:56,040 --> 00:06:59,600 And then we have the first year of the Game Changers camp, which 114 00:07:00,200 --> 00:07:02,240 a lot of new characters are introduced then. 115 00:07:02,720 --> 00:07:08,600 And it's in tandem with the same span of time between heated 116 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:10,800 Rivalry and the beginning of the long game. 117 00:07:11,720 --> 00:07:15,520 And that encapsulates Tough Guy and Common Goal and those two 118 00:07:15,520 --> 00:07:17,680 books. I have a feeling we'll only see 119 00:07:17,680 --> 00:07:20,880 the second year, which is what happens at the beginning of the 120 00:07:20,880 --> 00:07:23,600 long game. I think that we will get very 121 00:07:23,600 --> 00:07:27,200 little screen time for those characters, but a lot of 122 00:07:27,200 --> 00:07:31,760 exposition for those books. And Ilya also gets his loon 123 00:07:31,760 --> 00:07:35,160 tattoo in that gap between heated rivalry and the long 124 00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:37,720 game. So if Jacob does choose to skip 125 00:07:37,840 --> 00:07:40,920 the ending of Heated Rivalry in the moments I just listed out, 126 00:07:40,920 --> 00:07:44,440 which take place between the two books, I don't think he will, 127 00:07:44,440 --> 00:07:47,120 but he might. Then he may dump us right into 128 00:07:47,120 --> 00:07:50,040 the beginning of the long game where this time has already 129 00:07:50,040 --> 00:07:52,400 passed. And instead of showing us on 130 00:07:52,400 --> 00:07:54,800 screen everything that has happened in that span of time, 131 00:07:55,040 --> 00:07:58,520 we would get dialogue between Shane and Ilya to explain that 132 00:07:58,520 --> 00:08:01,600 contextually. And we would drop into the scene 133 00:08:01,840 --> 00:08:04,560 where they are telling their agent about their relationship 134 00:08:04,880 --> 00:08:08,240 in the summer of 2020. They can use that conversation 135 00:08:08,240 --> 00:08:11,160 to give us all the context if need be, but I personally don't 136 00:08:11,160 --> 00:08:14,560 think that would be as gripping of a scene to reintroduce the 137 00:08:14,560 --> 00:08:16,920 show. And if that's the case, then we 138 00:08:16,920 --> 00:08:20,480 will jump into the second annual Game Changers camp, where Ryan 139 00:08:20,480 --> 00:08:22,880 Price has already caught Shane and Ilya kissing. 140 00:08:23,160 --> 00:08:26,160 We would get more Yuna. We would get Shane and Ilya at 141 00:08:26,160 --> 00:08:30,000 the beginning of the episode, already established as a couple. 142 00:08:30,360 --> 00:08:34,159 And then in the back half of the episode, we could include Shane 143 00:08:34,159 --> 00:08:37,679 and Ilya going to dinner with Ryan and Fabian or attending 144 00:08:37,720 --> 00:08:41,159 Fabian's concert together. And I think that would be a good 145 00:08:41,159 --> 00:08:44,960 way to establish their relationship dynamics if we're 146 00:08:44,960 --> 00:08:46,960 not going to get the My Dinner with Hayden scene. 147 00:08:47,480 --> 00:08:49,960 And also a gauge on how each of them are feeling at the 148 00:08:49,960 --> 00:08:52,720 beginning of the season so that it's clear as to why they are 149 00:08:52,720 --> 00:08:57,360 not exactly on the same page and establishes Ilya's headspace and 150 00:08:57,360 --> 00:08:59,560 how they are not communicating well. 151 00:08:59,560 --> 00:09:03,000 The next question I got was what is my guesstimate as to how much 152 00:09:03,000 --> 00:09:05,640 will be covered in each episode of season 2? 153 00:09:06,200 --> 00:09:10,040 And this is a hard one to answer because the way each episode 154 00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:12,200 could be structured is different. 155 00:09:12,280 --> 00:09:14,200 It doesn't all have to follow the same template. 156 00:09:14,560 --> 00:09:16,800 But if we want to paste everything properly, I'd assume 157 00:09:16,800 --> 00:09:21,640 that each episode may cover as little as a few weeks up to a 158 00:09:21,640 --> 00:09:25,240 couple of months. And some episodes might zero in 159 00:09:25,240 --> 00:09:28,720 on a day or two and make the majority of the episode cover 160 00:09:28,720 --> 00:09:32,800 those heavy moments and condense the in between times. 161 00:09:32,800 --> 00:09:36,680 So for example, we might get a longer scene covering the pride 162 00:09:36,680 --> 00:09:40,480 game and the aftermath of it between Shane and Ilya and then 163 00:09:40,480 --> 00:09:43,960 condense the timeline around the pride game, so a lot of the 164 00:09:43,960 --> 00:09:47,040 playoff run, etcetera. The next question I got is do I 165 00:09:47,040 --> 00:09:49,480 have any thoughts on the episode names? 166 00:09:50,080 --> 00:09:54,000 So I definitely think we will get a song title used as an 167 00:09:54,000 --> 00:09:57,640 episode name again, or at least I hope Jacob has a song in mind 168 00:09:57,640 --> 00:10:01,280 for some of the bigger moments in the season that he can use in 169 00:10:01,280 --> 00:10:04,320 a big way. But otherwise, Jacob names the 170 00:10:04,320 --> 00:10:08,120 episodes very simply. Rookies, Olympians, Hunter Rose, 171 00:10:08,120 --> 00:10:10,640 the cottage, they're all quite simple and point blank. 172 00:10:10,640 --> 00:10:16,360 So I'd suspect that if one large story beat like the Pike kids 173 00:10:16,360 --> 00:10:20,760 wedding, they might use a name like something like Honeymoon, 174 00:10:20,760 --> 00:10:24,480 which refers to the book because Shane and Ilya go home and they 175 00:10:24,680 --> 00:10:28,720 they say, is this our honeymoon? Or if the other big story beat 176 00:10:28,720 --> 00:10:31,680 is when their relationship is revealed, it might be titled 177 00:10:31,680 --> 00:10:34,120 something like the Commissioner or something like that. 178 00:10:34,360 --> 00:10:37,960 Simple and to the point. And for the Troy and Harris 179 00:10:37,960 --> 00:10:41,880 stand alone, if we get one, part of me feels like that episode 180 00:10:41,880 --> 00:10:46,640 might cover more of Troy before he arrives to Ottawa, like I 181 00:10:46,640 --> 00:10:49,440 said in Part 1 of this Q&A. And if that's the case, then 182 00:10:49,440 --> 00:10:52,120 maybe the episode is called Dallas or something, and they 183 00:10:52,120 --> 00:10:56,080 use it to tell the story of the league or Dallas and give us 184 00:10:56,080 --> 00:10:58,840 sort of a window into the framework that Shane and Ilya 185 00:10:58,840 --> 00:11:01,400 are so worried about. Because in the first season, 186 00:11:01,400 --> 00:11:03,800 they didn't go into too much detail about that and the 187 00:11:03,800 --> 00:11:07,640 mentality of the league. And Jacob might maintain that 188 00:11:07,640 --> 00:11:10,160 distance from the subject matter like Rachel did. 189 00:11:10,520 --> 00:11:13,120 But who knows? I'll take what I can get, but 190 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:16,640 I'm willing to suspect that the titles are going to be one or 191 00:11:16,640 --> 00:11:20,640 two words each very simple and mimic that of Season 1. 192 00:11:20,920 --> 00:11:22,640 But I like the title of the commissioner. 193 00:11:22,640 --> 00:11:26,120 I feel like that would be appropriate, but all of the 194 00:11:26,120 --> 00:11:29,560 titles from season 1 are sort of broad brush. 195 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:32,600 So rookies, Olympians, Hunter Rose, the cottage. 196 00:11:32,920 --> 00:11:36,600 So maybe the commissioner is too specific or Dallas is too 197 00:11:36,600 --> 00:11:39,520 specific. So hard for me to say, but I 198 00:11:39,520 --> 00:11:41,600 like honeymoon too, or the wedding. 199 00:11:41,920 --> 00:11:44,000 I think that would be really sweet if we got that. 200 00:11:44,240 --> 00:11:48,120 The next question I got is which scenes of Ilya and other books 201 00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:52,320 do I want in season 2? I think from the jump, the one I 202 00:11:52,320 --> 00:11:55,840 really would love to see is the funeral scene between Ilya and 203 00:11:55,840 --> 00:11:58,680 Ryan. But I'd also like to see the 204 00:11:58,680 --> 00:12:02,360 scenes from the Kingfisher bar, which I think we will certainly 205 00:12:02,360 --> 00:12:04,480 get. And there's also the scene 206 00:12:04,480 --> 00:12:07,880 between Ilya and Troy when they're in New York and they 207 00:12:07,880 --> 00:12:10,640 come out to one another. And I think we're definitely 208 00:12:10,640 --> 00:12:13,320 going to get that one. So if they combine that with 209 00:12:13,360 --> 00:12:19,520 Ilya clocking Eric and loop his book and story into it that way, 210 00:12:19,680 --> 00:12:23,080 that works for me. If I think they're going to add 211 00:12:23,080 --> 00:12:27,040 some new scenes between him and Hayden, which it sounds like 212 00:12:27,040 --> 00:12:31,760 they might, I'd be thrilled. And Jacob sounds very excited to 213 00:12:31,760 --> 00:12:36,120 write those. But to me that those 3 feels 214 00:12:36,120 --> 00:12:39,160 like enough to satisfy the crossover and not take away from 215 00:12:39,160 --> 00:12:42,600 the moments in the long game. And I feel like we will probably 216 00:12:42,600 --> 00:12:46,720 get a lot of the moments of Ilya showing up in Role Model just 217 00:12:46,720 --> 00:12:49,480 because they're happening in tandem with the events of the 218 00:12:49,480 --> 00:12:52,040 Long Game. So they don't necessarily feel 219 00:12:52,040 --> 00:12:55,600 like moments of him popping up in another book per SE, because 220 00:12:55,600 --> 00:12:58,880 it's part of his story too. And it would be expanding upon 221 00:12:58,880 --> 00:13:01,600 things we already know are happening and will happen in the 222 00:13:01,600 --> 00:13:03,840 long game. The next question I got was how 223 00:13:03,840 --> 00:13:06,680 do I think Hudson will handle reciting Russian? 224 00:13:07,160 --> 00:13:09,760 And in the book Shane is learning Russian. 225 00:13:09,760 --> 00:13:13,280 So if Hudson is also learning Russian for the show, I think it 226 00:13:13,280 --> 00:13:16,680 will feel really authentic and I'm excited for those details 227 00:13:17,000 --> 00:13:21,800 and also to see Connor portray how Ilia feels about Shane 228 00:13:21,840 --> 00:13:24,440 learning Russian with his face acting. 229 00:13:24,440 --> 00:13:27,120 Because it will need to convey all of the internal thoughts and 230 00:13:27,120 --> 00:13:30,840 feelings that we read for Ilya in the story that he doesn't say 231 00:13:30,840 --> 00:13:33,480 out loud per SE. I think we will also probably 232 00:13:33,480 --> 00:13:37,200 get a lot of subtext of this, maybe by inserting a scene or 233 00:13:37,200 --> 00:13:41,760 two of Shane listening to a Russian podcast in his car or on 234 00:13:41,760 --> 00:13:46,280 a plane ride, maybe even just seeing it on his phone so that 235 00:13:46,280 --> 00:13:49,760 the viewer has that back story that Shane's been teaching 236 00:13:49,760 --> 00:13:52,760 himself Russian. And it doesn't need to be called 237 00:13:52,760 --> 00:13:55,720 out explicitly for us. But whether or not they want to 238 00:13:55,720 --> 00:13:59,640 spend the time creating a small scene or a shot like that is 239 00:13:59,640 --> 00:14:01,960 doubtful. So I think it will show up as 240 00:14:02,040 --> 00:14:04,680 small teaching moments where Ilya call Shane something 241 00:14:04,680 --> 00:14:07,920 ridiculous and he tries to guess what the word is, just like in 242 00:14:07,920 --> 00:14:10,280 the book. And I think Hudson will do a 243 00:14:10,280 --> 00:14:12,880 really good job conveying the struggle of learning the 244 00:14:12,880 --> 00:14:17,200 language because he will be feeling the struggle himself as 245 00:14:17,200 --> 00:14:20,280 an actor. The next question is, do I think 246 00:14:20,320 --> 00:14:22,960 Ilya and Svetlana's relationship will grow colder? 247 00:14:23,200 --> 00:14:25,280 How will they justify the big reveal? 248 00:14:25,800 --> 00:14:29,200 And I've shared thoughts on this before and I lean towards them 249 00:14:29,200 --> 00:14:32,480 not growing colder, but rather the physical distance between 250 00:14:32,480 --> 00:14:35,320 them leading to a normal amount of separation. 251 00:14:35,720 --> 00:14:38,600 But because shows that Lana knows Ilya is in love with a man 252 00:14:38,600 --> 00:14:41,720 already, I don't think she'll be going quietly. 253 00:14:41,720 --> 00:14:45,480 I do think that the conversation of why Ilya is moving to Ottawa 254 00:14:45,680 --> 00:14:48,840 is going to have to happen before the move actually takes 255 00:14:48,840 --> 00:14:50,880 place. And then I think she will 256 00:14:50,880 --> 00:14:53,880 hopefully be getting a job in the league with another team. 257 00:14:53,880 --> 00:14:58,120 Maybe keep her with Boston like she is in the book and she'll 258 00:14:58,120 --> 00:15:01,080 check in with Ilya. But Ilya pulls away due to his 259 00:15:01,080 --> 00:15:03,160 depression. And that, to me feels far more 260 00:15:03,160 --> 00:15:08,280 impactful because they are so close and he's not confiding in 261 00:15:08,280 --> 00:15:12,400 her or Shane or anyone who's on the inside and retreating 262 00:15:12,400 --> 00:15:14,600 further into himself. And I think that's another way 263 00:15:14,600 --> 00:15:17,720 to narratively convey that something is really wrong with 264 00:15:17,720 --> 00:15:21,880 him if he's not confiding in the two closest people to him. 265 00:15:22,120 --> 00:15:25,600 And I think that will be effective storytelling. 266 00:15:25,840 --> 00:15:28,720 The next question I got is, since they've changed Svetlana's 267 00:15:28,720 --> 00:15:31,320 role in the show, do I think Ilya will be as depressed and 268 00:15:31,320 --> 00:15:34,880 alone in Season 2? And my answer is yes, because 269 00:15:34,880 --> 00:15:39,360 it's central to the storyline and it is the tension of the 270 00:15:39,360 --> 00:15:41,560 entire season. The fact that he's struggling 271 00:15:41,560 --> 00:15:44,200 with his mental health and cannot and will not let Shane 272 00:15:44,200 --> 00:15:47,080 see it or help him with it is massively important. 273 00:15:47,360 --> 00:15:51,160 And I think like I said before, Ilya distancing from Svetlana as 274 00:15:51,160 --> 00:15:55,160 well as Shane will double down on this notion of his self 275 00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:59,520 isolation and come up in his therapy sessions with Galena 276 00:15:59,520 --> 00:16:02,240 probably. And perhaps Svetlana's words and 277 00:16:02,240 --> 00:16:05,640 advice in addition to Galena's can help him to be brave and 278 00:16:05,640 --> 00:16:10,080 admit that something is wrong to Shane and encourage him to let 279 00:16:10,080 --> 00:16:13,160 Shane in. Because we got to see how 280 00:16:13,160 --> 00:16:16,480 Svetlana's words were a big impetus for Ilya calling Shane 281 00:16:16,680 --> 00:16:20,480 before the Russian monologue scene in season 1, so I suspect 282 00:16:20,480 --> 00:16:23,680 she might be used in a similar way in season 2. 283 00:16:23,800 --> 00:16:26,640 The next question is, do I think the writers will let Shane 284 00:16:26,640 --> 00:16:29,120 correct Hayden for being an Ilya hater? 285 00:16:29,960 --> 00:16:33,280 Probably I think we'll get some sort of scene just like in the 286 00:16:33,280 --> 00:16:36,720 book where he calls out people for their behavior pre 287 00:16:37,480 --> 00:16:41,680 specifically Hayden and JJ who are upset that Shane had lied to 288 00:16:41,680 --> 00:16:46,480 them and they can't understand that their behavior is exactly 289 00:16:46,480 --> 00:16:51,400 why Shane felt obligated to lie. And neither of them spoke of 290 00:16:51,400 --> 00:16:54,600 Ilia highly ever, so Shane never felt like they would fully 291 00:16:54,600 --> 00:16:57,280 understand or accept that he loved him. 292 00:16:57,400 --> 00:17:01,040 And that manifests just as Shane had suspected. 293 00:17:01,040 --> 00:17:04,680 So I hope that we get the My Dinner with Hayden scene because 294 00:17:04,760 --> 00:17:08,680 within that, Shane calls out both Hayden and Ilya for their 295 00:17:08,680 --> 00:17:12,440 childish behavior. And while it can be used as a 296 00:17:12,440 --> 00:17:15,839 humorous moment between Ilya and Hayden, it's also an important 297 00:17:15,839 --> 00:17:19,440 one for Shane because he gets to voice his feelings to the two 298 00:17:19,440 --> 00:17:24,760 men that he values and wants to also establish boundaries now 299 00:17:24,760 --> 00:17:27,000 that Hayden knows about Shane and Ilya. 300 00:17:27,200 --> 00:17:30,440 And that's so important before the rest of the season kicks off 301 00:17:30,440 --> 00:17:33,360 because Hayden is harboring their secret now, too. 302 00:17:33,360 --> 00:17:36,360 So they they need to have those types of conversations and air 303 00:17:36,360 --> 00:17:39,360 out The Dirty laundry. And I think that doing it over 304 00:17:39,360 --> 00:17:43,280 the My Dinner with Hayden scene is the perfect environment for 305 00:17:43,280 --> 00:17:45,600 them to do that. And there's already dialogue 306 00:17:45,600 --> 00:17:48,600 written that would reflect that conversation as well. 307 00:17:48,760 --> 00:17:52,200 The next question I got is what do I think of dinner with Rose, 308 00:17:52,200 --> 00:17:54,400 Svetlana, Shane, and Ilya would look like? 309 00:17:54,760 --> 00:17:58,880 That is a dream for season 2. I think this is so fun to think 310 00:17:58,880 --> 00:18:00,800 about. I believe it would probably take 311 00:18:00,800 --> 00:18:03,240 place before their wedding because everyone would be coming 312 00:18:03,240 --> 00:18:05,800 to town for that. And I think Rose and Svetlana 313 00:18:05,800 --> 00:18:11,120 would be so excited to finally meet the boyfriend of their best 314 00:18:11,120 --> 00:18:13,720 friend and also their close friend. 315 00:18:14,080 --> 00:18:18,440 And at first, I think it would kind of bubble over with Rose. 316 00:18:18,440 --> 00:18:20,800 I think she'd be more outwardly excited about this. 317 00:18:20,800 --> 00:18:24,640 And Svitlana would probably be more protective at 1st and spend 318 00:18:24,640 --> 00:18:27,320 the first couple of minutes sussing out Shane. 319 00:18:27,680 --> 00:18:30,800 And then once she determines that Shane is harmless and 320 00:18:30,800 --> 00:18:33,840 endlessly devoted to Ilia, she'd be able to focus on Rose and get 321 00:18:33,840 --> 00:18:36,840 to know her properly. And those two characters are 322 00:18:36,840 --> 00:18:39,960 ones that we know can have fun. So I think if Shane and in 323 00:18:39,960 --> 00:18:43,240 particular was worried about them meeting, the two of them 324 00:18:43,240 --> 00:18:46,000 would bulldoze right through that fear and get a couple 325 00:18:46,000 --> 00:18:48,840 drinks and everyone and start swapping stories about their 326 00:18:48,840 --> 00:18:51,280 best guy friends. And when they both knew they 327 00:18:51,280 --> 00:18:54,080 were in love with someone else. And Shane and Ilya would 328 00:18:54,240 --> 00:18:57,600 basically be hearing their love story told back to them through 329 00:18:57,600 --> 00:19:00,760 the eyes of Svetlana and Rose and the things that they thought 330 00:19:00,760 --> 00:19:03,960 they were being so secretive about that these two women 331 00:19:03,960 --> 00:19:06,680 clocked right away, which would be quite funny. 332 00:19:07,240 --> 00:19:10,600 And I think just like Rose spearheaded her and Shane's 333 00:19:10,600 --> 00:19:13,560 friendship dynamic, she'd probably ask for everyone's 334 00:19:13,560 --> 00:19:16,240 numbers at the end of the night. And when she says let's keep in 335 00:19:16,240 --> 00:19:18,640 touch, she'd mean it. And she'd create a group chat 336 00:19:18,920 --> 00:19:22,560 while driving home. The next question is Jacob has 337 00:19:22,560 --> 00:19:25,720 confirmed he's writing Shane's coming out moment with the team. 338 00:19:26,000 --> 00:19:28,200 Where do you see that slotting in? 339 00:19:28,240 --> 00:19:32,760 So canonically, he comes out to his team at the beginning of the 340 00:19:32,760 --> 00:19:35,760 story because it takes place between the end of heated 341 00:19:35,760 --> 00:19:39,440 rivalry and the beginning of the long game so early on in the 342 00:19:39,440 --> 00:19:41,600 timeline. But I'd say there are two 343 00:19:41,600 --> 00:19:43,520 moments. The 1st is when he tells his 344 00:19:43,520 --> 00:19:46,600 team that he's gay, and the second is when they find out 345 00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:48,520 that he's in a relationship with Ilya. 346 00:19:48,760 --> 00:19:50,640 And I suspect he'll include both. 347 00:19:51,040 --> 00:19:57,040 So one at the very beginning and the second will probably be in 348 00:19:57,040 --> 00:20:00,960 the second to last episode if I had to predict that, I think. 349 00:20:01,720 --> 00:20:05,800 In Episode 1, it probably will fall closer to the end of the 350 00:20:05,800 --> 00:20:09,880 episode and it's going to be used as a narrative callback 351 00:20:10,280 --> 00:20:13,880 that they will need to have established for that secondary 352 00:20:13,880 --> 00:20:18,120 moment when his team accuses Shane of letting Ilya score in 353 00:20:18,120 --> 00:20:21,080 the playoffs. So I think it will be at the end 354 00:20:21,080 --> 00:20:24,040 of Episode 1 for when he tells his team he's gay. 355 00:20:24,320 --> 00:20:28,200 And then probably in the second to last episode when that 356 00:20:28,560 --> 00:20:32,280 confrontation with his team where he owns up to the fact 357 00:20:32,280 --> 00:20:34,520 that, yes, him and Ilya are in our relationship. 358 00:20:34,680 --> 00:20:37,080 I think that will happen in the penultimate episode. 359 00:20:37,200 --> 00:20:39,560 This next question is I'm curious on your thoughts as to 360 00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:43,440 how Season 2 will address Shane's macro biotic diet and if 361 00:20:43,440 --> 00:20:46,320 you think it will be explored as an eating disorder as so many 362 00:20:46,320 --> 00:20:49,800 readers interpret, or whether it will remain a performance 363 00:20:49,800 --> 00:20:52,280 enhancing diet as Rachel Reid stated before. 364 00:20:52,640 --> 00:20:55,120 Is there a route you hope the show takes over the other? 365 00:20:55,480 --> 00:20:58,480 Do you think season 1 planted the seeds for this to be further 366 00:20:58,480 --> 00:21:02,000 explored in season 2? So I've talked about this in 367 00:21:02,000 --> 00:21:07,680 another Q&A episode and my spin on it is that it's very 368 00:21:07,680 --> 00:21:10,840 important for everybody to keep in mind that Shane and Ilya are 369 00:21:10,840 --> 00:21:14,640 professional athletes and they have access to trainers and 370 00:21:14,640 --> 00:21:18,680 nutritionists and people whose entire job it is to make sure 371 00:21:18,680 --> 00:21:22,160 that they are being fueled properly and can perform at 372 00:21:22,160 --> 00:21:27,720 their at their best every night. So a lot of Shane's viewpoints 373 00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:32,560 on nutrition are going to come from those conversations he'd be 374 00:21:32,560 --> 00:21:35,400 already having with his trainers and nutritionists on the team. 375 00:21:35,920 --> 00:21:40,960 And I think the added layer of that is that Shane is someone 376 00:21:40,960 --> 00:21:44,400 who loves control in all areas of his life because control 377 00:21:44,400 --> 00:21:47,000 makes him feel safe. And so food naturally is an 378 00:21:47,000 --> 00:21:49,840 extension of that. And we see him exhibiting that 379 00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:52,920 control through this diet that he goes on. 380 00:21:53,880 --> 00:21:56,560 And in the long game, he actually has a really important 381 00:21:56,560 --> 00:22:01,080 conversation with Rose where he says that he might be drawn to 382 00:22:01,080 --> 00:22:05,320 exhibiting discipline because of how it makes him feel mentally 383 00:22:05,560 --> 00:22:09,800 more so than how eating the food makes him feel physically 384 00:22:09,840 --> 00:22:13,040 better. And so he's quoted saying I like 385 00:22:13,040 --> 00:22:15,720 to practice discipline and self-control and be rewarded for 386 00:22:15,720 --> 00:22:16,840 that. That's all. 387 00:22:17,040 --> 00:22:20,920 So to me this can be broken down further given his personality 388 00:22:20,920 --> 00:22:25,040 and it can be interpreted as him needing routines and structure 389 00:22:25,240 --> 00:22:28,680 to feel safe and regulated. And we know that in the long 390 00:22:28,680 --> 00:22:32,160 game he feels out of control in a few areas of his life. 391 00:22:32,440 --> 00:22:37,240 And so he would lean further into that regulation as a way to 392 00:22:37,400 --> 00:22:42,640 feel self soothing or or give himself a sense of consistency 393 00:22:42,640 --> 00:22:46,480 and structure. And that reward aspect is more 394 00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:52,280 of a way to have measurable data of how he's being rewarded. 395 00:22:52,280 --> 00:22:55,240 So if he eats better, he might play better. 396 00:22:55,520 --> 00:22:59,640 And with the food, he's trying to use that food to improve his 397 00:22:59,640 --> 00:23:01,640 performance, yes, but he's also aging. 398 00:23:01,960 --> 00:23:04,560 They're going to be 30. And that's where players start 399 00:23:04,560 --> 00:23:07,920 to feel their age in hockey. And so all of those things are 400 00:23:07,920 --> 00:23:12,720 very common concerns that players in the NHL or any 401 00:23:12,720 --> 00:23:14,440 professional sport would be having. 402 00:23:15,080 --> 00:23:20,680 I think there's just that added notion of Shane's control being 403 00:23:20,680 --> 00:23:25,440 a factor that teeters it into that disordered eating space. 404 00:23:25,960 --> 00:23:28,760 But again, I don't know if Jacob's going to want to touch 405 00:23:28,760 --> 00:23:32,720 that because it's so nuanced and similar to how he handled 406 00:23:33,280 --> 00:23:36,840 Shane's autism. Each of these things is so 407 00:23:36,840 --> 00:23:40,040 personal that I don't know if he'd want to specifically label 408 00:23:40,040 --> 00:23:44,200 it at all, and I feel like that's probably what he's going 409 00:23:44,480 --> 00:23:47,280 to do. We do in the book at that moment 410 00:23:47,280 --> 00:23:50,560 when Shane and Ilya are discovered and Shane spirals and 411 00:23:50,560 --> 00:23:55,480 eats a Snickers bar, which I had previously said is is like 412 00:23:55,480 --> 00:23:58,080 triage. Because Shane would be so 413 00:23:58,080 --> 00:24:02,640 dysregulated that he reaches for something he has coded as bad in 414 00:24:02,640 --> 00:24:05,800 his brain. And that reinforces that Shanes 415 00:24:05,800 --> 00:24:07,640 not someone who deviates from a plan. 416 00:24:07,840 --> 00:24:11,200 He's dealing with a lot of internal pressure and he's 417 00:24:11,200 --> 00:24:15,440 feeling like he's losing control, and the food is a way 418 00:24:15,440 --> 00:24:19,560 to showcase that. And it clues the reader into 419 00:24:19,560 --> 00:24:22,960 Shane's motivation for the dieting being largely set around 420 00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:27,360 his career first, but also as he spirals in his personal life, it 421 00:24:27,480 --> 00:24:30,000 kind of gets enveloped into that as well. 422 00:24:30,320 --> 00:24:33,640 And then at the end of the book, he occasionally eats a 423 00:24:33,640 --> 00:24:36,680 cheeseburger and feels like he can continue doing that. 424 00:24:36,680 --> 00:24:39,880 So again, his personal life falls into a place where he 425 00:24:39,880 --> 00:24:42,800 feels he has relative control and happiness over it. 426 00:24:43,040 --> 00:24:47,280 Then he loosens up on the diet. I feel like that is saying 427 00:24:47,280 --> 00:24:48,480 everything that needs to be said. 428 00:24:48,480 --> 00:24:53,360 About what his motivations are behind it without Jacob having 429 00:24:53,360 --> 00:24:55,480 to explicitly label it as anything. 430 00:24:55,760 --> 00:24:58,480 And so I feel like that's probably what is going to be 431 00:24:58,920 --> 00:25:00,800 done in the show. OK. 432 00:25:00,800 --> 00:25:04,560 I think I'm going to wrap things up there and continue this on in 433 00:25:04,560 --> 00:25:08,600 a future podcast episode. And as always, thank you so much 434 00:25:08,600 --> 00:25:10,320 for listening. If you've made it this far, I 435 00:25:10,320 --> 00:25:14,120 really appreciate it. And if you have a question about 436 00:25:14,120 --> 00:25:17,280 season 2 or about the book series that you want me to cover 437 00:25:17,280 --> 00:25:21,400 on a future podcast episode, please leave me a message on any 438 00:25:21,400 --> 00:25:25,960 of my socials and I will try to get to it in a future recording 439 00:25:26,240 --> 00:25:28,840 because I absolutely love all of the questions I've been getting. 440 00:25:28,840 --> 00:25:31,880 There are so many brilliant takes and opinions on there and 441 00:25:31,880 --> 00:25:35,040 it's so fun to interact with people about it on a larger 442 00:25:35,040 --> 00:25:37,520 scale. So thank you so much for 443 00:25:37,520 --> 00:25:40,840 listening and I will talk to you all in our next chat.