ITC58: ScandanavianCryptids

In The Crease (ITC) is where history, mystery, and the human condition collide. Hosted by J E DOUBLE F, each episode blends storytelling, analysis, and dark humor to explore the strange, the forgotten, and the unsettlingly relevant.

🎧 New episodes release bi-weekly.
📅 Current Season: ITC Season 4 (Episodes 61–80).

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:17):
Name, and good evening.

Speaker 2 (01:55):
I hope everyone is having a fantastic Sunday night, and
I apologize. It looks like my chat window for those
watching live is going to be broken, so I'll try
to break fix that. Uh yeah, fix it at the
first opportunity. So once again, welcome two in the Crease
to another hopefully spine tingling dive into the shadows of

(02:16):
history and legend. You're locked in within the Crease, the
show where well we skate the thin ice between the
known and the unknown, peeling back the layers of the weird,
the wild, and the downright of the worldly. I am
your host, je doublef your cosmic guide to the fog
of time, better known on Twitter and or x as

(02:37):
a cosmic barn. If you're new in around here, strap in,
because sometimes we don't just tell stories. We try to
make them alive, breathe them, and chase them into the
dark corners where they were born. Today we're heading north,
way north to the rugged wind whip lands of Scandinavia.

(03:02):
Picture it, endless forest cloaked in twilight, feord silencing through
cliffs like the gods themselves carved them, and a sea
that whispered secrets older than memory. This is a cradle
of Viking sagas, a place where the line between reality
and myth sometimes will blur like mist over a frozen lake.

(03:22):
On this episode, in the Craze number fifty eight, we're
cracking open Scandinavian cryptids and mythical creatures. It's a journey
through a folklore that's really, really rich, so vivid that
it'll make your campfire tails sound like bedtime lullabies. We're
talking about the restless stead, the dragar shambling out of

(03:45):
their burial minds with eyes like cold fire, the mayor
or the mayor, the nightmare hag who rides your chest
till you can't scream. You usually have to pay extra
for that. Beholdra, a forest temptress with a beauty that
hides a tail, and the truth you might not survive.
We got trolls hawking under bridges, and giants who have

(04:07):
shaped the mountains. Oh, and don't forget the Nissy, the
little barn gnomes who will bless your farm or maybe
curse it if you happen to forget his poor age.
These aren't just monsters. There are lessons, warnings, and echoes
of people who live with nature's teeth at their throats.

(04:29):
So grab your mead, stoak the fire, but keep one
eye on the shadows. We're about to step into a
world where every creek in the woods might be a
story waiting to wake up. This is in the crease,
and Scandinavian cryptids are calling. So Scandinavian folklore is rich

(04:55):
with some very eerie cryptids and legendary beings that have
stalked the imagine of people for centuries. From the dim
glow of campfires and Viking Age longhouses to the folklores
and folk tales told by nineteenth century farmers. These mythic
creatures were brought to life and storytelling traditions. They were

(05:16):
not just me or entertainment. They're often carrying cultural lessons,
explaining maybe the unexplainable nature, and served as warnings against
dangers lurking in the wild. And we're gonna start off
with the dragar, the restless dead. Now, for you out
there that have maybe played Valheim, you know exactly the

(05:38):
creatures I'm talking about. But late one winter's night in
Viking Age Iceland, a farmer's family huddled in terror as
heavy footsteps thump on the turf roof the door creaks
open unbidden, and an unbearable stench of the ka floods
the hall. A towering figure Blar or death blue in complexion,

(06:03):
squeezes inside, bloated with unnatural strength. It is their deceased neighbor.
Risen from a grave, a dragar come to torment the
living with glowing eyes in a menacing grin. The men
rush forward with swords, but the dragar only laugh, immune
to ordinary steel. For such is the horror of the dragar,

(06:26):
a restless, undead being of Norse legend that defies death's finality.

Speaker 3 (06:33):
Now.

Speaker 2 (06:33):
The dragar, also known as absker Angar meaning again walker,
appears in numerous old Norse sagas as reanimated corpses that
wander from its burial mounds. These creatures were said to
possess hideous strength and a necrotic black blue appearance, often
accompanied by the foulriak of decay. One famous example comes

(06:55):
from the Greti saga, where the hero Gretar fights a
dreadit dragar named after Glamour dies on Christmas Eve. Quote
people became aware that Glamour was not resting in peace.
He wrought such havoc that some people feinted at the
sight of him, while others went out of their minds unquote.
Grettier eventually wrestles Glamour into submission, but not before the

(07:18):
undead fiend curses him with ill luck. This saga episode
highlights how seriously North society took the concept of a
physical revenant. The Averrey Yeah saga Like Eyes, recounts hauntings
of multiple dragar. In one case, a shepherd is killed
by a blue black dragar and rises in the next
night as one himself, and in another, a chieftain named

(07:42):
thor Rof's twist foot prowls after death until he is
dug up and reburied with elaborate precautions to put these
remnants to rest, The saga describes holding a large ritual
called door Doom to summon each dragar and banish it
from the house, followed by purification of the dwelling. Now
in later Scandinavian folklore, the dragar concept evolved and sometimes

(08:04):
blended with ideas of ghost and Norway traditional tales referred
to as to the sea dragar or dragon, the spirit
of drowned sailor that appears a long storm coast, wearing
oil skins, often rowing a half boat and heralding death
at sea. Unlike the mound dwelling dragar or the sagas,
this later folk version is more phantomly, sometimes depicted as

(08:27):
a headless specter with seaweed trailing from its body, and
reflects the fears of fishermen and sailors alike. Although across
Scandinavia generally, as Christianity spread and burial practices changed, stories
of corporeal drag ar gave way to more incorporeal ghosts,
yet the dead of the restless dead remained strong. Now,

(08:52):
belief in the dragar was closely tied to Norse burial
customs and notions of the afterlife. The Norse did not
regard and animated corpse as entirely implausible or even unnatural.
Many tales presented as the expected result if proper funeral
rates were neglected, or if the decease had unresolved grievances.

(09:13):
To prevent a dead person from returning, people employed apotropic measures.
Archaeological and literal evidence suggests practices such as tying the
corpse's big toes together, placing open iron scissors on the chest,
or driving needles through the soles of the feet, all
aimed at pinning the dead in place. Some graves were

(09:34):
even designed with corpse door special porder through which the
body was carried out feet first and then bricked up
to confuse the spirit in bar it's return. Now a
remarkable example is the Northern Azine ruinstone from Denmark, which
bears a rare gravebinding inscription believed toward a dead man's
spirit from walking such precaution. So the cultural significance of

(09:57):
Dragar law. It was a way for communities to cope
with the mystery of death and the fear that a
malicious soul might not rest peacefully. Now, scholars have noted
that the legend may have been used to explain the
otherwise puzzling phenomenon or post mortem decomposition in the movements
of gases in the corpse, which can of course cause

(10:18):
a body to bloat or even shift in appearance. A
body dug up in the winter preserved by frost might
look unnaturally fresh, but swollen and dark, matching the saga
descriptions of black as death and swollen to the size
of an ox. Pre Scientific societies could interpret these observations
as proof that the corpse was actively undead. The reregar

(10:40):
legend also enforced moral and some social norms. Those who
were greedy, cruel, or evildoers in life were often the
ones said to become these things, thus serving as a
bit of a cautionary tale that one's misdeeds might follow
one beyond the grave. Now over time, the fear of

(11:01):
the corporeal undead in Scandinavia blended with imported Christian notions
of demons and the restless soul. By the medieval and
early modern period, the emphasis shifted from the physical to
the spiritual. Nevertheless, echoes of the dragar survive in later
folklore about the undead beings. For example, Norwegian tales of

(11:21):
the Milings or Uxford in Norwegian describes a ghost of
unbaptized infants or children who died tragically. These milings, while
not as bodily as dragar, share their grim relentlessness. They
haunt a living with some eerie cries seeking proper burial.
The miling's legend likely arose from real historic practices and

(11:44):
infanticide and child mortality and guilt, just that drag ar
tales may have arisen from anxiety over improper burials, or
the return of the repressed dead. Even today, the legacy
of the dragar endures in popular culture, a testament to
the enduring power of the Viking Age mon It symbolizes
the ultimate blurring of life and death, a nightmare that

(12:06):
the grave might not hold its inhabitant, and the death
piece might be violently overturned by something old and vengeful
crawling up from the cold, cold earth. Now imagine you're
in a small Scandinavian village. A sleeper thrashes in the

(12:30):
dark of the night, sweet sweat beating on his forehead.
He cannot wake, he cannot scream. An invisible weight presses
down upon his chest, a crushing pressure that steals his breath.
In his mind's eye, he sees a hideous figure perched
atop him, a pale, tangled haired woman with glowing eyes,

(12:54):
grinning as she tightens her grip. He tries to shout,
only strangled whimper escapes. This is the Mayor or Mara
of legend, the very embodiment of a nightmare. In Norse folklore,
the mayor is an evil spirit or witch that rides

(13:14):
sleeping people, bringing nightmare so intense that they feel real,
and yes, already you do have to pay extra for
this now. The concept of the mayor is ancient and
Germanic folklore, and it even finds mentioned in early Norse literature.
The Yelanga Sanga saga in thirteenth century by Snorri Sturluson

(13:37):
recounts one of the earliest known mayor legends, and the
saga is Swedish king named van Landi stays the winter
in Uppsala and neglects to return to his wife Streifa
in Finland. Drisa, angered by his abandonment, hires a Finnish
sorceress named Huld to work witchcraft on the king, and yes,

(13:58):
you knew I was going to work finlay into.

Speaker 1 (14:00):
The show anyway.

Speaker 2 (14:04):
The sorceress sends Mara to kill Vinlendy in his sleep.
The saga describes the king's fate vividly. When he had
slept but a little while, he cried out, saying that
the mar was treading upon him. His men hastened to
help him, but when they took hold of his head,

(14:26):
she trod on his legs, And when they laid hold
of his legs, she pressed upon his head, and it
was his death. This account a king killed by an
oppressive nightmare not only gave a name to the phenomenon mara,
but also illustrates how rio and deadly such nocturnal assaults
were believed to be. The Yingling saga tale of vin

(14:49):
Lindy is essentially in an early description of sleep paralysis
with a bit of a mythic twist. The word mayre,
an old Norse in other Germanic language, became the root
of the modern English nightmare. Other Norse texts also reference
to mara, and the Icelandic Vatsnatia saga, a spirit called
a mara is tied to a family's fate, and in

(15:11):
the Elfrega saga, a sorceress named Kerro is said to
take the shape of a maleander lately literally a night rider,
essentially amara. At least snippets suggest that the idea of
malicious night terrors was well ingrained in Viking Age beliefs,
and both interpretations survived into later folklore. Now in later

(15:33):
Scandinavian folklore, mainly Norwegians, Swedish and Danish, the mare is
typically an unwelcome female spirit that slips into the house
at night through the tiniest keyhole or crack Lan sits
on the sleeping person's chest to cause horrible nightmares. She
might also ride livestock, leaving them drained and sweaty by mourning,

(15:53):
hence the term mare ridden.

Speaker 1 (15:56):
People in rural.

Speaker 2 (15:57):
Communities develop a variety of folk methods to ward off
the mare. For instance, I know wordy right unwelcome. I
guess there is a limit. In one instance, a Swedish
tradition was to place a bunch of steel scissors or
knives under one's pillow, or to recite charms before bed.

(16:18):
In Norway carvings called mare crosses often an intertwined symbol.
We're scratching the bed frames or stable doors to keep
the mare away. The mayor's victim upon waking often describe
feeling pressure on the chest, immobility in dread, which we
now recognize as the cliant sake, symptoms of sleep paralysis,

(16:39):
but lacking a medical explanation. Earlier people gave it a
supernatural cause, and it still could be. I'll let you decide.
And one eerie aspect of the mayor legend is that
it sometimes blurs with witchcraft and accusations of witch behavior,
and some folklore lamar is not a separate ghost, but
actually a living person whose spirit wanders during sleep to

(17:02):
trouble others. A woman might meet not even though she
was even a ma if she was cursed or inattentive
at church, her soul could slip out at night to
torment neighbors unwittingly. And Danish and German folklore similar beings
called mayor or alp could also be male, but the
prevalent image in Scandinavia is female, and because of this accusation,

(17:26):
some accused witches in the seventeenth century may have been
blamed for causing nightmares or sending a mayor to harm people.
Despite its frightening aspect, the mayor also had a place
in explaining everyday problems. Have you ever woken with a
feeling of panic from a nightmare and a slight weight
on your chest? Well, to an old Scandinavian villager, that

(17:47):
was just not simply a bad dream, It meant a
mar had paid you a visit. Now, once again, modern
science would quickly identify the mayor's attack as sleep paralysis,
sure phenomenon where a person wakes up but remains briefly
paralyzed and often hallucinates a presence or pressure, and many
cultures create supernatural explanations for this unsettling experience, from demons

(18:10):
to witches in La Mar and Scandinavia's version of this
universal human fright once again similarly beings across Europe. German
folklore is alf or the French Hashmia, from where the
world cashmi air for Nightmare comes and near identical to
the Mayor, indicating a shared Germanic route in exchanges of folklore,

(18:34):
but the concept luckily dates back to Proto Germanic mythology,
given that Old High German, Old English and Old Norse
all have cognats for this creature. Even outside Europe, there
are parallels, for example, the succubus incubus and medieval lore,
or the Old Hag syndrome in Britain in the New World,
which also describe a witch presence upon the chest. Over

(18:59):
the same entries. As education and scientific understanding spread, the
Mar gradually receded into superstition rather than accept the truth.
Yet she survives robustly in language such as every time
You say Nightmare and in cultural references. The images of
Fusili's famous seventeen to eighty one painting The Nightmare with

(19:20):
a demon croushing, a sleeping woman captures the Mayor's haunting
essence and becomes an icon of Gothic horror. Very Podcast
audience Today, the mayor might not no longer be a
literal fear. But the next time you wake from that
crushing dream at three am, you might recall the old
tales and wonder if some ancient mar still lurks flitting

(19:42):
from dream to dream in the Nordic night, or he
forgot to pay her the money. Next, we had deep
in the Nordic forest, where twilight paints the mossy trunks
in silver, a solitary woodcutter pauses, sensing he is not alone.

(20:08):
From behind the pines comes a sound, a soft, humming melody.
Stepping into a moonlit glade, he holds a young woman
of astonishing beauty, flaxen hair cascading over her shoulders and
eyes gleaming with other worldly light. She smiles and beckons
him to follow deeper into the woods. Enchanted, he nearly does,

(20:30):
until a fleeting glimpse behind her reveals a long cow's
tail swishing behind her back. In that heartbeat, he realizes
the truth she is a Haldra, the hidden forest spirit
with a prayer on his lips, he averts his gaze

(20:51):
and stumbles back to safety, the forest once again erupting
into an eerie silence as the spell has been broken.
The Haldra, also known as holder or Skakshkra, is a
legendary creature in Scandinavian folklore, often described as a beautiful,
beguiling woman of the forest with one peculiar feature betraying

(21:14):
her supernatural nature, commonly a tale. Usually this is a
cow's tail in Norwegian and Swedish tales, or a hollow
back made of bark or rotten wood. The very name
Haldra comes from the Old Norse hauled, meaning covered or secret,
reflecting her status as one of the hidden folk that

(21:34):
dwell unseen along beside human communities. A References to haldre
like beings go back to at least medieval times. They're
not always under that name. The idea for a spirit
is hinted in Old Norse sources. For example, the etic
poem Uruspa mentions trolls and beings in the woods, and

(21:55):
later medieval lore speaks of Skolgskra or the forest guardian
in Sweden and of course in Finnish pantu now Skokescruten
Swedenish tradition is essentially the same as the haldra, a
solitary forest female who can charm or kill. By the
time the region of Swedish folklore was being collected in

(22:16):
the nineteenth century by folklors like Peter Christian Abjorsen, Jorgenmeau
and others, hundreds of folkstores about the Holder will recorded,
and these tales share that common feature. The holder is
stunningly pretty from the front, but a scene from behind
she is She has either a cow's tail or a
hollow tree leg back, and one Swedish Christian says she

(22:36):
look like a fair maiden, but a tale was peeking
out under her skirt. We know what we call them
in modern times, but I will not say it on
this show.

Speaker 4 (22:48):
Now.

Speaker 2 (22:48):
In legend, holder are known to have interactions with humans
that range from benevolent to deadly. Many folklore tell of
Halder who is kind to chrocral burners working alone in
the forest. She might wake them if their charcoal can
is about to catch fire or go out, saving their livelihood.

(23:11):
In exchange, the men would leave a portion of their
food or tobacco for her as thanks, she could be
a protector for those who showed her respect. There is
a famous Norwegian tale of a halder who saved the
farmer's son from a bear tack, and there after the
family always left a bowl of porridge and the barn
for the holder folk. On the other hand, cautionary tales

(23:34):
a bound of men, often hunters or lumberjacks, who were
lured astrade by the charms, and these stories, a man
enchanted by a halder might follow her into the deep
forest and never ever return, or he has found days
later bewildered and pale, having danced to exhaustion with the
haldras under the moon. Sometimes the even male could even

(23:57):
marry a haldra, though this typically ended either tragically or magically,
when legend says, if the haldre marries a man in
the church, you will lose her taale and become fully human,
albeit with a temperament that might turn ugly once your
beauty is no longer supernatural. Indeed, some tales end with
the haldra now talists and human turning into a shrewish wife,

(24:19):
an outcome perhaps reflecting male storyteller's rueful chokes. Now Historically,
Haldre doesn't appear by that name in the sagas. The
sagas mostly stick to heroes, trolls, and known mythic figures,
but there is a bit of an interesting linguistic link.
The word Haldra may be related to the name Hold.
In Norse mythology, Hold is mentioned as a sorceress. In

(24:44):
the Yelanga saga, we see a witch named Hold conjure
the Mara, and some scholars think the concept of Haldra
as a hidden being mitestem from an older Norse idea
of minor goddesses or spirits of the nature. Additionally, the
Iceland and Faroese traditions of the Hoda folk or hidden
folk or elves shared DNA with the Holdra. In both

(25:05):
cases we have a parallel race of beings living unseen
alongside humans. Now, a Christian era origin story even tried
to explain the hidden folk. One tale says Eve had
many children, and when God came to visit, ashamed of
those she hadn't washed, she hid them, and God declared
the hidden one should remain hidden forever from mankind. Thus

(25:27):
they became of the hidden people, which in Norway and
Sweden were often identified with haldras and other underground dwellers.
This story, recorded by folklores, provides a pious explanation that
the hidden folk were descendants of Eve's concealed for children,
giving them a place in a Christian world views people
who missed out on being presented to God. Now, the

(25:52):
Holdra embodies the mystique of the Scandinavian wilderness and a
culture where dense forest and mountains dominate the landscape. It's
made sense to personify these places with guardians and temptresses.
The Haldre can be seen as the spirit of the
fort itself, alluring. Now, from an anthological perspective, one can
interpret the Haldre in her kens such as elves, fairies,

(26:15):
and raw spirits as remnants of pre Christian nature worship,
the old Norse or Pagan belief system, including many spirits
of land and water. When Christianity took over, these beings
were not entirely forgotten, were often recast as either demonic
or simply supernatural, but beneath God's notice. The Halder specifically

(26:35):
where some portrayed outright evil in folklore. More often, she
is a moral following a different set of rules than humans. Notably,
some tales indicate a Haldre could be saved or converted,
as in the church marriage scenario, implying a Christian hope
that even a spirit could face find God's grace. Interesting,

(26:57):
the hare lore may have served as a social tool
as well, for instance, warning young men against the dangers
of seduction by unknown women and conversely perhaps giving an
outlet to discuss sexuality in a veiled manner. Many Holder
stories have a subtle erotic undercurrent, which you know, the

(27:18):
Halder's beauty and the bewitching of man, which in a
conservative royal society could and would be more acceptable to
tell in the context of a fairy tale. But today
Halders remain a beloved part of Scandinavian cultural heritage. Statues
of Halder figures adorn some Norwegian parks, and she is

(27:40):
featured in modern novels, fantasy games, and even tourist folklore tours.
While few and Scandinavia literally believe in a cow tailed
woman in the woods anymore, the fairy tale itself lives on,
and next time you hike in a Nordic forest and
the trees fall silent, you might just feel a tingling
at the neck, as if unseen eyes are watching. Perhaps,

(28:05):
just perhaps the halder still keeps her visial among the
pines forever the wild heart of Scandinavia. Now everyone everyone
knows to beware of trolls, those hawking lumpy figures, lurking

(28:29):
under bridges or on x or in dark caves waiting
to waylay unwary travelers. In Scandinavian folklore, trolls are among
the most iconic mythological creatures, depicted as everything from the
dim witted rock giants to sly human like tricksters. The
very landscape of Norway and Swedeness said to bear their mark.

(28:51):
Great craggy boulders and a peculiar stone spirals were often
explained as trolls turned to stone by sunlight. Now these
beings have a dull reputation, sometimes fearsome and hostile, other
times almost comical or foolish. And if you have called

(29:15):
Vincent Charles Project last Sunday, you would have seen a
fine example of trolls in the works of J. R.
Are Token. Now the concept of the troll actually ships
forms from the earliest Norse sources to later folklore and
Old Norse literature. The edis and sagas. Troll was actually
a bit of a broad term. It could mean any uncanny,

(29:39):
being a giant, a witch, a shape shifter, or a werewolf.
For instance, in the Habbamah, a poem of the poetic Eta,
there's a warning about trolls that seem to refer to witchcraft.
The word was sometimes synonymous with the uten or the
giants and other monstros creatures. However, by the Middle Ages,

(30:04):
and especially in the later folklorees in the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries, troll came to denote a more specific creature
in Scandinavian peasant belief. Now, these folklore trolls usually live
in isolated mountains, caves, or forest, far from human habitation,
and are often patrolled as large, strong, and not very smart.

(30:24):
They might even have multiple heads, and some fairy tales
a troll has three or even seven of them, or
just one, but with you know, grotesque features like big
noses and shaggy hair. Some are enormous, like giants, while
others are human sized or smaller. The defining trait is
their antipathy to people in sunlight. A common belief across

(30:46):
Scandinavy was that sunlight turns trolls to stone, thus explaining
the countless strange rock formations. Many a traveler has been
told that that craggy pillar over there, well, that's a
troll who was caught by the sun rise. Indeed, the
Icelandic word for a specific lava column, rhina strangar, comes

(31:06):
with a legend of trolls petrified at dawn, and in
classical Norse myth one could say trolls are a subset
of the jotnar or the giant race being zahrung near
a stone, giant defeated by Thor, or Theomir, the giant
who stole Thor's hammer. They all share qualities with the
later story tellers, who we would become called trolls. By

(31:30):
the time we get to the Norwegian folk tales collected
by Abjornsen and Moe around eighteen forty, trolls have become
staple villains in fairy tales akin to ogres. Think of
the well known tale Three Billy Goats Gruff, where a
hungry troll under a bridge threatens to eat the goats.
That story originated in Norway and encapsulates the fairy tale troll. British,

(31:54):
mischievous and very fond of human flesh if he can
get it, but as yet often outwitted by a bit
of cleverness. No focalore often depicts trolls living in family
units or clans, a big old troll father, a troll wife,
sometimes equally British. Other times the females are slightly more

(32:15):
refined and troll children. They dwell in caves or within mountains,
in great halls, where they hoard their treasure. Many stories
describe travelers hearing sounds of troll feast and dancing from
inside the mountain. For in some local legend, trolls would
even interact with human communities. From time to time. They
might even, for example, trade or barter on occasion. There

(32:39):
are Swedish tales of farmers leaving a bowl of porridge
what is it with porridge for the local trolls, in
exchange for the trolls not messing with their cattle. However,
most often trolls were seen as a threat, for they
could cause land slides with you know, things like throwing
a boulder and anger, snatch, stray live stock, or even
kidnap humans. One recurring motif is that trolls stealing human

(33:03):
children and leaving behind a changeling, though in Scandinavian lure
it's often other beings like the underground folk who do that. Nevertheless,
to the old farmers and herders who actually believe in trolls,
these were creatures to be respected and avoided. Folklore often
offers some consistent methods for dealing patrol. Sunlight, as mentioned,

(33:26):
is very very lethal to them. They also apparently dislike
the sounds of church bells, reflecting maybe the Christian overlay
that sees them as Unchristian. Many stories are count trolls
abandoning an area when a church was built and its
bells rang rag regularly. Additionally, trolls could sometimes be fulled
or reasoned with. In one legend, a clever farmer's girl

(33:49):
tricks a troll into sunlight by baking bread at night
and telling them the sun is rising. In another, villagers
outwit a troll in the building. A famous Danish legend
of yatunfien Fenn the Giant says a giant or troll
made a deal to build a church, which was louned

(34:09):
cathedral in exchange for the sun and the moon or
the priest's eyes. The priest cleverly guesses the troll's name,
breaking his power and infuriates the troll to the point
where he would turn to stone, becoming a statue within
the cathedral wall. Now, trolls are also linked to specific

(34:30):
locales through place names. Throughout Scandinavia, many natural features are
named after trolls, indicating a rich local folklore. For example,
Trochfjordan or the troll Fjordan, Norway, troll Haughten or trolls
Bonnet in Sweden. These name carry stories. Trolhaughten has legends
of trolls playing tricks there, and in Norway one finds

(34:52):
numerous troll mountains and troll peaks. Often it's a bit
of a backstory of a troll that has been turned
to stone. And in modern times, trolls have taken on
a new life in fantasy fiction and even internet slang.
But in their original sense, trolls remain a beloved element
of Scandinavian folklore, and whether terrifying or amusing, the troll

(35:13):
continues to be an ambassador of Scandinavia's magical heritage, reminding
us that even in the age of technology, a part
of us still thrills to the bump in the night,
and the possibility that someone somewhere in the dark forest
there might just be a pair of large yellow eyes
that might just be watching. And with that we will

(35:35):
be back in about three minutes.

Speaker 3 (35:45):
La, feel the win start to call my name a
soft whisper and endless flame. Time slips through our hands
like sand Ah, hope, I taught you how to stand.

Speaker 1 (36:00):
Every night.

Speaker 5 (36:01):
I'm pray you.

Speaker 4 (36:02):
Find your way.

Speaker 3 (36:04):
Even when I'm gone. My heart will stay. Leave behind
the love we've grown, the echoes of a light you've
always know.

Speaker 1 (36:16):
Ah.

Speaker 3 (36:16):
Hold God taught you, and my son hat stands all
and I am gone.

Speaker 6 (36:22):
See Behide in the darkest guise to chase.

Speaker 3 (36:25):
Your dreams and never hide when your snick over boat.
Know you are hellbi evers.

Speaker 7 (36:33):
Long do I go, You'll.

Speaker 6 (36:35):
Never be long in the stars.

Speaker 1 (36:39):
My heart will guide you home.

Speaker 3 (36:47):
It'll be days, the storm will raise.

Speaker 8 (36:50):
The world may feel like a heavy cage. Let my
words be a guiding head to help you rise and understand.
Feast that forward, don't fear the fall.

Speaker 3 (37:01):
I'll be buried in a few stumble, crawl, hold the
memories softened right and know You've been My craziest line.

Speaker 4 (37:14):
I hope mace, aren't you r my son?

Speaker 3 (37:17):
How stands all? And I am gone to see the
light in the darkest guy is to chase your dreams
and never go to hide when you're lost, look out
for battle. Know you are held by andrss love, go Hackle,
You'll never.

Speaker 9 (37:33):
Be wrong.

Speaker 6 (37:36):
In the star my heart, Well, God you hurt. If
I could stay, I never eat.

Speaker 3 (37:48):
The life goes on like the otungrees.

Speaker 6 (37:51):
I trust the man you mess be.

Speaker 3 (37:56):
And I hope you know how proud you made me.
Hope that's how you write, My son, how stance home?

(38:17):
And I am gone see the light in the darkest
Guise to chase your dreams and never hide the many
loss Look your father, Know you are health guys, love.

Speaker 1 (38:31):
Do I go.

Speaker 3 (38:32):
You'll never be lone in the stars.

Speaker 8 (38:36):
My heart will guys.

Speaker 10 (38:38):
You home.

Speaker 11 (38:44):
Is love and carry you on.

Speaker 3 (38:48):
Youre my legacy, Oh my song. When you see the
nice guys fast and wide, remember son, AM right by
your side.

Speaker 1 (39:03):
Welcome back.

Speaker 2 (39:04):
Hope you've enjoyed the first bit first well half hour
plus of a two hour plus extravaganza that I'm going
to try to get through tonight. For those who don't know,
there will be a special loss wonder immediately after in
the crease. I hope you stick around for that, and
it will be in the same same stream, so you
won't even have to leave. I have it all geared

(39:25):
up that we should, in theory, be good to go.

Speaker 1 (39:30):
But back.

Speaker 2 (39:32):
To the Scandinavian myth encryptids. The violin's melody drifted eerily
over the moonlit pond, its notes at once heartbreakingly beautiful
and yet suitably sinister. A traveler following an old forest
path in Sweden pauses who could be playing music out here?

(39:56):
Naked by the water. Through the fall of the water's edge,
he glimpses a pale figure with long hair and an
intense gaze, drawing a bow across a fiddle. The melody
tugs at the traveler's mind, inviting him closer to the
rippling dark water. He shudders. A warning from his grandmother

(40:17):
echoes in his memory, Beware of the Nakian, the water
spirit who plays for your soul. Gathering his wits, the
traveler pulls out a steel knife and sticks it in
the ground, a known ward against such spirits, before hastening away,
the enchanting music still trailing behind him now. Scandinavia's abundant lakes, rivers,

(40:43):
and waterfalls have their own supernatural denizens. Chief among these
are the nokin sometimes called nakin or neck in Swedish
and Danish, and the close grim. These are male water
spirits who are often portrayed as exceptionally skilled musicians learning
humans to drowning with their haunting tunes and some tales.

(41:05):
They can also shapeshift, appearing as animals like horses to
drag victims into the depths. They embody the mesmerizing but
dangerous aspects of water, life giving and beautiful yet quite treacherous. Now.
The nook or neck is a fickle sprite found in
freshwater rivers, streams, and ponds. Usually male, he can appear

(41:29):
as a handsome young man sitting in the water playing
a violin or harp. He is often naked and sometimes
with long kelpie like hair, and the music is legendary.
It can be which anyone who hears it, causing to
forget everything and walk, as if in a trance, into
the water to drown. A Swedish description calls Nakin's music

(41:53):
quote seductive yet mildly sinister, symbolizing the danger surrounding water.
If these spirits were away to warn children away from
swimming alone or getting too close to dangerous currents, a
lovely melody on the breeze might just be the neck
trying to lure you. Now that said nokans were not
entirely evil, many stories show humans interacting with them and

(42:17):
even learning from them. In Norwegian folklore, the phosogram or
literally waterfall grim, is a close cousin of the nook,
essentially well the same being, but emphasized as a teacher
of music. If a person made the right offering to
the Phosogram, such as a sacrificial goat thrown into the
waterfall on a full moon, the water spirit might agree

(42:40):
to teach them to fiddle. A legend says that if
offering was insufficient, they might only tune the student's violin,
but if pleased, he would seize the learner's hands and
guide them over the strings. He plays so intensely that
the student's fingers would often bleed, but afterwards they would
have acquired the other worlies skill quote able to play

(43:01):
so well that the tree shall dance, and waterfowls stop
and their flow. Now this dramatic detail highlights how these
spirits personified musical inspiration for Scandinavians and the age when
the fiddle was a primary instrument. An exceptionally gifted fiddler
in the village might be whispered to have learned from that.

Speaker 1 (43:20):
I can.

Speaker 2 (43:21):
In fact, historical figures like toger Agrunson, a famous Norwegian
hardanger fiddler, was rumored to have such supernatural tutelage now
no Oak, who also appeared in animal form. One common
manifestation is a beautiful white horse standing near water, also
known as bajas brook or brook horse and Swedish lore,

(43:45):
this horse would allow children for unwary adults to climb
on its back, then dash through the river, drowning in
its riders. And I'm going to take a side note
here because Ordy this year does sound like your episode
on music about Crossroads, doesn't it. Now? Often the back
of the horse would supernaturally lempen so that it could
accommodate many children at once. A chilling image of a

(44:06):
line of kids stuck to a ghostly horse as it
plunges into a lake. In one tale, a quick thinking
boy murmurs the name of God when mounting the horse,
causing the spell to break and saving the children. The
hatred of holy names is to trade. These spirits share
with most Scandinavian supernatural beings a mark of their pagan

(44:27):
slash demonic nature as viewed under a Christian lens. Now,
the belief in Noken and related water spirits reveals the
deep respect and fear Nordic people had for water in
agrarian communities. A drowning accident could easily be given a
supernatural explanation as simply the neck took them. The spirits

(44:49):
also served as guardians of nature sanctity, and some stories,
if people polluted a stream or overfished a river, they
might incur the wrath of an oak. Conversely, a water
spirit might reward someone who ca cleans upon, or shows reverence,
and these tales encourage a kind of proto environmental respect
well before it was popular. Musically, the legacy of the

(45:11):
Nakin is quite direct. There are traditional Swedish fiddling tunes
named after the knock, supposed to mimic his enchanting music.
Romantic era artists io were fascinated. Swedish painter earned Josefsan
painted Knocking in the eighteen eighty four depicting a wild
eyed nude filler in the forest dream, capturing the allured

(45:33):
and madness of the spirit. The painting shocked some contemporaries,
mainly for its nudity and well raw emotion, but has
since become iconic the word world phenomena Underlying these legends
are a mix of auditory illusions and safety lessons. Running
water can produce melodic sounds that might be imagined as music.

(45:56):
One can see how sitting by a burbling broke at dusk,
a lonely person might start hearing faint strains of a
tune before scientific understanding. Attributing it to a water dwelling
barred was as good an explanation as any, and not
necessarily wrong. As for a horse aspect, shallow areas with
reeds might resemble the shape of horses at twilight, or

(46:18):
perhaps real incidents of children falling into the water while
playing were dramatized as the work of a malevolent shape shifter.
Now the noake is not unique to Scandinavia. Similar beings
exist in German the nix or nixy British you have
things such as Jenny green teeth peg pallor female water hags, etc.

(46:42):
Slavic the Bonayan water spirit in etc. But the Scandinavian
version is sustinct for the sad beautiful fiddle music theme.
It gives the nok a veneer of tragic artistry, and
some folkal or interpretations suggest the noake is lonely and
just lungs for company or love, hence luring humans. And

(47:02):
one Danish ballad tells of a neck who falls in
love with a human girl, but ultimately cannot escape his
fate in the water, adding a touch of pathos.

Speaker 1 (47:14):
Now I said not not all.

Speaker 2 (47:16):
Skinnavian folklore beings are fearsome or even deadly. Some are small, domestic,
and when treated well, even friendly. The Nissi in Norway
and Denmark, or Tomty in Sweden is a prime example
of a nele, a cryptid of sorts, a tiny noome
like house spirit who lives on a farmstead and secretly

(47:36):
helps the household. Imagine a bearded, little old man no
taller than a child's knee, wearing gray clothing and a
pointed red cap, with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.
He roams the barn at night looking after the livestock,
and he might even just do some chores, all in
exchange for respect. In the occasional once again poorridge offering. Yet,

(47:58):
if angered or neglected, if this little guardian can become
a trickster tangling horses, manes and hiding tools. Now, the
nissi tonte has been a fixture of Scandinavian farm life
lower for centuries. The term nish likely comes from Niles
or Nils, a nickname for Nicholas, and tonte for tont,
a plot of land. In essence, these are local spirits

(48:22):
of a homestead, comparable to the brownies or hobgobms of
British folklore or the domovoi of Slavic tradition. They are
often usually male, depicted as elderly, and often invisible, looks
up to those with second sight. Every farm was said
to have its own nissi living in the barn or storehouse,
and by doing small taskla grooming the farm animals, keeping

(48:42):
foxes away from the henhouse, or ensuring the milk cow's
steady health, the nissy became a symbol of good luck
and prosperity. Respecting the nissy was a serious matter. Farmers
would thea about a bowl of duell grot which is
Christmas porridge with butter and the barn on Christmas Eve

(49:04):
for the Nissy, and failing to do so could offend him.
One popular tale tells of Ammer's wife who thought it
wasteful to give butter to the tomsy's porridge and hid
it at the bottom. When the Tomty saw no butter,
he grew angry and went to kill the farm's prize
cow and retaliation. But as he stormed off, he decided

(49:24):
to eat the porridge and discovered the hidden butter. Ultimately
realizing the kindness regrettful. He then went to the neighbor's farm,
took their best cow and brought it to his own
farmer to replace the one he nearly harmed. This humorous
story underlies the Nissey's capricious nature. If pleased, he blesses
you have been salted. He's going to cut a bitch now.

(49:49):
The Nissy's roots likely stemmed from ancestor warship, the idea
that the original farmer of the land, perhaps a family ancestor,
continued to look after it and form Over this time,
this concept evolved into a distinctive Old Glory character, and
in the Christian era, the Church found on the belief

(50:10):
in Nisser as pagan superstition, but it was so ingrained
that it persisted well into the nineteenth and early twentieth century,
albeit more as a quaint tradition like the porridge offering
than literal belief. Interestingly, though by the eighteen hundreds, the
Yule Nissi started merging with Santa Claus tradition in Scandinavia. Today,

(50:33):
mutten or yu'll Nissen is the bringer of Christmas gifts,
visualized as a cross between the folkloric Pharmnissy and the
American Santa. He's typically depicted as a short gnome in
the red outfit. Thus a folklore creature became central to
Christmas folklore, and every Scandinavian child knows about the Nissi
in this festive context, and families often speak of Nissa

(50:57):
hiding in the house around Christmas time, sometimes leaving treats,
and this modern depiction is benevolent, with most of the
old trickster edge sand it off, except for maybe perhaps
some prankish holiday traditions. But beyond Christmas, niss He also
still talked about playfully. In rural areas, people might have

(51:18):
jokingly attribute a lost item into the Tompty's mischief and
marketing and media. In this a Tomte figure, the little
nome with a red cap is ubiquitous in winter holiday
image across Sweden, Norway and Denmark, and the nissy embodies
values of hard work for I ain't going to try

(51:38):
to say that word. That's a new one I can't say,
and respect for the unseen. He's a reminder that treating others,
even the smallest creatures or imagined spirit, with kindness is rewarded,
and that arrogance or stinging silliness it can backfire on
a practical level the tradition of feeding them. This he
may have just insured farmers remembered to put out extra

(52:00):
feed for cats or the barred animals on the coldest
of knights. Or perhaps it was merely a psychological comfort.
Believing a friendly spirit co labors on the farm can
ease the loneliness of farm life. I said there was
also wader and vitra land spirits that lived underground on
farms more prominent and Swedish folklore. People would be careful

(52:25):
not to spill hot water on the ground without warning
the vitra so as to not be scaled or as
to not scald them. These in the Nissi were all
part of the invisible ecosystem of severance that governed daily life.
They illustrates the traditional animistic world view of Scandinavians. Every tree,
spring and house could and probably did have some spirit.

(52:48):
One could caness nissy Tomte lore with a broader Norse
belief in land vashir or land whites mentioned in medieval
texts the Icelandic Sagas, for example, Dick takes that one
should not approach Iceland with a dragon on the ship's
prow so as to not scare of the land sprites,
and Icelanders to this day pay homage to hidden folk

(53:08):
in their culture. The nissy Tompte is basically the household
branch of the same conceptual tree, a friendly domestic spirit
among more wild nature sprites. Now why no one is
claiming to spot Neisser with empirical evidence. These characters live
on robustly and story and celebration. Children will leave out

(53:31):
Porridge on Christmas. Novelsville sometimes feature them. The popular Swedish
children's books The Tompton by Astrid Lingren was inspired by
the classic poem about a farm of Tomty depicting a
knife in the life of this little guardian. They also
have become a decorative staple. These little nome figurines with

(53:52):
long white beards and red hats that appear in Scandinavian
homes each December are representations of the Nissy. My fun
aspects is that in some places people create little Nissi
doors or tomtebo on the wall, tiny doors to let
the house know the come and go. This modern playfulness
shows how a folklore believe it can adapt into a

(54:14):
whimsical custom, continuing to spark the imagination. So, in conclusion,
Nissi tompte is the kindly counterbalance to the darker legends
of Scandinavia. If the dragar and mar were what people feared,
the Nissy was what made them feel protected at home.

(54:36):
So from the misty forest and feords to the farmsteads
and the fathomless sea, Scandinavian folklore is alive with cryptid
and mythed beings that reflects the hopes, fears, and natural
awe of Nordic people through time. We've journeyed with the
drag bar rising from its grave with malevolence. We've been

(54:59):
held down by the mar Rah suffocated by nightmare. We've
been charmed and mourned by the forest hal Dra and
heard the distant bells that turned screaming trolls the stone.
We stood in the sprays of waterfalls, listening to the
sorrowful fiddle, and then we returned home, where the Nissy
by the hearth embodies the spirit of care and tradition,

(55:21):
a reassuring presence after all the dangers outside and within.
Each creature carries layers of meaning. They were characters and
bedtime stories, yes, but also teatures of cultural norms and
explanations for the unexplainable. They connected the Norse and later
Scandinavian people to the environment. Intimately. Every sound in the woods,

(55:44):
every strange ripple in the water, every unexplained loss or
stroke of love could be woven into a rich tapestry
of narrative featuring these beings and a time when life
was ruled by nature's unpredictability. Such vocalore gave a sense
of understanding and sometimes control, and these myths have proven

(56:04):
remarkably enduring. North Saga's pinned down over seven hundred years
ago still and formed modern fantasy epics and heavy metal
music alike with their Dragar and Jutans vocalore collected in
eighteen hundreds about the Holders and tom Tar continue to
be told to children or re enact it in festivals.
The creatures evolved with the culture of the mayor might

(56:27):
be discussed now in terms of sleep, paralysis and psychology.
The Nissi might appear in a Coca Cola Christmas ad
as a cute little gnome, yet the essence remains. They
are expressions of the human relationship with the unknown. Scandinavians
Cryptis and legends demonstrated balance between terror and comfort in folklore.

(56:51):
For every deadly Dragar, there is a hopeful Nissy. The
wilderness will have its holder cotrols, but the village has
protective traditions and family spirit. This balance helped communities psychologically
manage both external and internal dangers.

Speaker 1 (57:05):
In ethics.

Speaker 2 (57:07):
The story telling element, as we've kind of done in
this podcast, brings these beings to life, making us feel
what it might have been like to truly believe on
a visceral level, and that will be a wrap for
this episode of In the Crease. It is now safely

(57:30):
put away and a bag hidden next to the Nissy.
I am jewle F also known as a cosmic bard
on Twitter. Next, signing off from in the Crease, we
will be in about five minutes starting an episode of

(57:51):
Lost Wonder of Presents, where we're going to review something
that was recently put out in a way maybe only
I can do. We'll see, we'll see exactly what happens here,
but we will be back, like I said, about four
and a half five minutes.

Speaker 4 (59:05):
And then the the.

Speaker 12 (01:01:59):
Time for this nation to take a clearly leading role
in space achievement, which in many ways may hold the
key to our future on Earth.

Speaker 9 (01:02:11):
H m hmm.

Speaker 12 (01:02:19):
On all their man.

Speaker 4 (01:02:23):
On Bia.

Speaker 12 (01:02:34):
Today is a day from morning, and remember Nancy and.

Speaker 2 (01:02:38):
I are gained the core, but the tragedy of the
Shuttle challenge.

Speaker 12 (01:02:42):
The following program may contain flus language, adult teens, and
bad attempts for human listener discretion as it vibe.

Speaker 2 (01:03:04):
What is President Trump's goal?

Speaker 1 (01:03:06):
What is his vision?

Speaker 2 (01:03:08):
He wants to put an American flag on Mars?

Speaker 12 (01:03:25):
Within anguality based here, they ain't gonna have landed.

Speaker 2 (01:03:31):
Good evening, shallow wanderers. I am j E. Double for
those of you who may know me better as a
cosmic bard over on x slash Twitter Welcome tonight to
a hell interesting episode, a unique edition of the Lost
Wanderer program. Tonight, we're gonna look at some of the

(01:03:52):
layers on a document that was first released by none other,
none other than Glenn black Beck in The Blaze. Okay,
of course, I'm talking about the Artemis Brand Playbook, a
twenty twenty one PDF that was designed as a comprehensive
guide for NASA's Artemist program. But behind this glossy rhetoric

(01:04:14):
of interplanetary dreams and inspiring journeys lies perhaps a disturbing truth,
a strategic, commercialized and almost theatrical narrative that not only
muddies the true goal of reaching the Moon, but apparently
actively divert resources and public trust away from genuine scientific progress.

(01:04:36):
I invite you to join me on this journey as
we explore the content of this playbook. It's lofty language,
it's relentless focus on storytelling and branding, and maybe some
implications for a very real challenge of putting humans back
on the lunar surface. We'll take a look at how
maybe this playbook's emphasis on marketing and commercial partnerships takes place,

(01:05:00):
including proposals that seem to border on turning space exploration
into a theme park spectacle, and how it undermines the
noble aspiration of space exploration. Will reveal who the document targets,
who NASA deemed as adversaries, and why such a shift

(01:05:22):
in focus could have long lasting negative consequences on our
journey beyond Earth. Now, at first glance, the Artemis Playbook
is a masterclass in modern public reliance. Let me the
quality is just amazing. It's a document crafted to inspire,

(01:05:45):
to rally support, and to position the Artist program as
the next giant leaf for humankind. Quote we go to
the Moon to learn how to live on other worlds,
it boldly proclaims. Throughout, we dig deeper, a ponny merge
that raises serious questions about priorities instead of focusing on
the painstaking engineering and scientific breakthrough is required for lunar exploration.

(01:06:10):
This document is saturated with language that speaks more to
the art of storytelling than to the realities of space travel.
Throughout the playbook's creators aren't with buzzwords like ambition, partnership,
and impact, have turned what could have been a technical
blueprint for the future of space exploration into a marketing campaign.

(01:06:34):
The narratives laid out in the playbook appears to cater
to a variety of audiences, ranging from future supporters and
the general public to collaborators and advocates. But who are
these audiences really and at what cost are we being
sold a dream that may never be realized and materialized
from NASA.

Speaker 4 (01:06:57):
Now?

Speaker 2 (01:06:57):
One of the recurring themes of the document is that
the idea that Artemis reference it's not just a mission,
but a cultural revolution. At NASA, we have always answered
the innate call to explore. The playbook declares, suggesting that
Arnamis is the culmination of centuries of human curiosity. However,
the over emphasis on inspirational messages risk overshadowing the critical

(01:07:19):
technology and logistical challenges that lie ahead. Instead of robust
discussions on propulsion systems, radiation shielding, and or sustainable habitat design,
we are giving a litany of inspirational phrases and carefully
curated sound bites and pictures. For instance, consider the repeated

(01:07:42):
assertion our story is one of people, all those who
make this journey possible. This statement, while emotionally stirring, sidesteps
the hard facts. How do we overcome the technical hurdles,
what are the real challenges facing NASA engineers, and the

(01:08:03):
playbook prioritizes a feel good narrative over an honest appraisal
of the risk and resource constraints that currently hamper any
and all NASA. Perhaps most troubling is the document's enthusiastic
embrace of commercial partnerships. Throughout the playbook, there are multiple

(01:08:27):
references to collaboration with industry giants such as Boeing, Lockheed,
Martin north Or Grumman, and even up and coming companies
in the private space sector. Ornamois is embracing commercial partnerships
to optimize spacesuit technology and inspire pioneering in the space market.
The playbook will note now, on the surface, such alliances

(01:08:47):
might seem beneficial, after all, public private partnerships have driven
much of the recent much of the recent innovation in aerospace,
but when you look closer, it becomes evident that these
commercial interests are steering the narrative and directions that may
not align in the core mission of lunar exploration. And

(01:09:10):
I'm gonna take a brief moment here, Raptor says, I
keep moving away from my mic I wonder if something's
changed here.

Speaker 1 (01:09:16):
Let me.

Speaker 2 (01:09:20):
Let me do that here. Hopefully that will sound better
moving forward. Thank you for letting me know. Now. The
document spends considerable time outlining marketing strategies, audience engagement tactics,
and content creation frameworks. While these aspects are vital for, say,

(01:09:45):
building public support, they also rest turning a scientific endeavor
into a series of public relations events. Worshet. There's an
unsettling suggestion that cultural interest or commercial interest might be
prioritized over sign tipic ones in an era where every
dollar is scrutinized, diverting funds toward elaborate branding exercises. Emphasize, uh, really,

(01:10:13):
it resembles the setup of a high budget amusement park
attraction that could leave the real technical work underfunded. Imagine
a scenario where resources that should be used to develop
critical technologies are instead spent on designing and interactive exhibits
and multi moti multimedia storytelling events that, while entertaining a

(01:10:35):
little to do with actual landing humans on the moon.
And I am going to fast forward here to a
specific page, give me one second. Let's talk about one
of the more interesting aspects of the playbook. A proposal

(01:10:58):
that appears to lean toward creating a space experience that
is frankly reminiscent of an amusement park. Although the document
does not explicitly use the term amusement park, the language
and imagery suggest a version of Artemis that is more
about spectacle than science. Phrases like Artemis Life beyond Earth

(01:11:22):
and other Worldly Style evoke images of immersial, immersive, entertainment
driven attractions rather than rigorous, fact based exploration. In one section,
the playbook outlines a series of activations meant to engage
audience through installations, events, and even digital experiences. While public

(01:11:45):
engagement is critical for maintaining interest in space exploration, there
is a fine line between educating the public and trivilizing
the monumental challenge of interplanetary travel. The risk here is
that the public begins to view the Moon as a
sort of cosmic theme part a destination for leisure and entertainment,
rather than as the frontier for scientific discovery. When commercial

(01:12:10):
interests push for experiences that prioritize flash over substance, the
true purpose of Artemis to expand human knowledge and capability
is sidelined, and I apologize for those that are only listening.
I am showing some of the aspects of these partnerships

(01:12:30):
and the commercial aspect that are mentioned in this document. Yes,
there is NASA Moon made toothpaste, toothbrushes, Sodas air conditioning units.

Speaker 6 (01:12:51):
This is just.

Speaker 2 (01:12:54):
Let's not forget Hey, let's join up with Nike or
Adidas to make Moon boots. How about a hoodie?

Speaker 1 (01:13:03):
You'll need a hoodie?

Speaker 2 (01:13:04):
Right, And it goes through this throughout the and I'll
go back to some of the earlier pages here in
a little bit. Delving further into the playbook, we find
that its messaging is tailored to appeal to a wide

(01:13:25):
array of audience segments. The documents categorizes its targets in
the groups such as future supporters, public collaborators, and advocates.
Each group is defined not by the potential to contribute
to the technical success of the mission, but rather by
their ability to amplify a feel good narrative for future supporters.

(01:13:49):
The playbook aims to convert critics into advocates by highlating
the visionary nature of Artemis.

Speaker 1 (01:13:55):
Quote.

Speaker 2 (01:13:56):
Artemis is an ambitious space program that will accelerate advancements
and science, technology, economics, politics, global diplomacy, and more, it
proclaims a statement that is designed to inspire an ex
site rather than to inform. Similarly, the category labeled public
is targeted with messages that are overly simplistic, such as

(01:14:19):
I see my role in Artemis and how it will
impact my daily life. I care about space exploration now.
But what is most concerning here is the way the
playbook positions these groups as mere cogs and a vast
public relations machine. By reducing complex scientific and logistical challenges
to catchy slogans and emotional appeals, the document reveals an

(01:14:41):
underlying the jenda to sell a dream that is more
about the branding and less about the real, arduous work
of getting to the moon and beyond, and doing so
it actually risk aliening those who understands the true cost
and complexity of such travel. Now. Another unsettling aspect of

(01:15:07):
the playbook is its implicit identification of enemies and crafting
its narrative. The document doesn't shy away from naming who
or what it sees as obstacles to the Artemis mission.
In one section dedicated to antagonists, the playbook lays out

(01:15:28):
a range of characters that oppose the mission. Among these
we will find I can't even believe this. I can't
even believe I'm going to say this. Among these we
find the unaware public, skeptics who control budgets, competing space agencies,

(01:15:55):
conspiracy theorists, and even, perhaps the most insulting of all,
dissatisfied NASA employees. And this framing is particularly worrisome. By
categorizing critics and even internal dissenters as enemies, the playbook

(01:16:19):
ends up creating us versus them mentality that is more
characteristic of political rhetoric than of scientific programming aimed at
expanding human horizons. Instead of inviting healthy debate and scrutiny,
it appears designed to silence criticism and consolidate support by
demonizing anyone who might question the directions or priorities of Artemis.

(01:16:42):
Such an approach not only stifles innovation, but also undermines
the open collaborative spirit that is essential for true progress
in space exploration.

Speaker 1 (01:16:57):
And I'm we're.

Speaker 2 (01:17:01):
Going to try to low round blow pressure here a
little bit now. When a nation's most ambitious space program
is reduced to what essentially is a series of press releases,
social media campaigns, and immersive experience, one has to ask
at what cost the art of his His brand playbook is

(01:17:22):
repleate with strategies for activation and engagement that prioritizes the
image over substance. For example, the playbook constructs content creators
to capture the magnitude of the mission and inspire a
generation using multimedia and interactive formats. While these efforts might
boost public enthusiasm, they can also divert critical resources away

(01:17:45):
from the technical development needed for a successful lunar landing.
Every dollar spent on elaborate branding exercise is a dollar
that isn't going toward improving propulsion systems, enhancing life support technologies,
or developing reliable lunar habitats in a time when budgets
are tight and the technological challenges are immense, such misallocations

(01:18:06):
could delay the actual return of the moon as it
already has, and worse erode the public's trust and as
his ability to deliver on any of its promises. And
as we've seen, the playbook has overten a desire to
attract commercial partners. It TETs benefits such as job creation

(01:18:28):
and economic stimulus, suggesting that companies and individuals working with
ornaments will fuel the economy and their respective states. They're
the creation of thousands of jobs. Now, on paper, this
seems like a wind, but I have to add it
raises a perhaps critical question about whose interests are really

(01:18:51):
being served. The reality is that commercialation commercialization of space
expiration can lead to a conflict of interest in the
private more actually more in the public sector. When private
companies become deeply involved in what should be a purely
scientific and exploratory endeavor, there is a rest that profit
motives will override the pursuit of knowledge. The playbook's heavy

(01:19:15):
reliance on commercial partnership not only dilutes this mission scientific rigor,
but also opens the door for vested interest to influence
decisions that should be driven solely by technical and explotory considerations.
And it's kind of weird to think Artemis World Artemiss
universe otherworldly style that evokes the kind of spectacle one

(01:19:38):
might expect more from a commercial company pushing the latest
greatest than a serious exploration initiative. But let's examine some
of the scientific activations proposed in the playbook. One such
initiative is dubbed Artemis Living Beyond Earth. One such according

(01:20:08):
to the document, this activation is intended to be a
multi media series that shares the art of his story
through the eyes of those who are committed to its success.
At first glances may sounds like a good effort to
human humanize this mission, but it is designed to entertain
and inspire rather than inform. The focus is more on

(01:20:29):
personal stories and emotional appeal, with a little mention of
what it took to get there. Another activation, called We
Go Together, is geared towards fostering a sense of collective
identity and shared destiny. Again, the message is optimistic in
community focused, but the risk is such that a narrative

(01:20:53):
may lead to complacency, of belief that we only feel
our way through the mission. The hard work of engineering
and logical innovation will somehow, somehow just take care of itself,
like they have little nissies working in the.

Speaker 1 (01:21:09):
When the stakes are as.

Speaker 2 (01:21:10):
High as they are in space expiration. A reliance on
emotional appeal over empirical problem solving is not just misguided,
it is dangerous. The playbook's messaging is crafted with a

(01:21:32):
keen awareness of public sentiment. It leverages emotional storytelling to
capture the imagination of its audience. Often employing sweeping inspirational
phrases like we are called to the moon because we
are called to go beyond. The language is designed to

(01:21:55):
evoke a sense of destiny and they need to go
further than we ever could before. Yet it also serves
a more insidious purpose to distract from the real challenges
by focusing on the emotional and aspiration of facts. We
see it with the motto of the whole premise of
the artemist to put the first woman in personal color

(01:22:16):
on the moon, the playbook risk creating a disconnect between
public perception and technical reality. It's really really disheartening. And moreover,
by actually defining some of the enemies as those who
question this narrative, be they so called budget controlling skeptics

(01:22:37):
or even dissatisfied NASA employees, the paybook establishes an atmosphere
of intellectual intolerance. Rather than welcoming any constructive criticism as
means of improvement, it frames any to send us a
threat to the mission, and you have to be left
asking what is this mission according to this document?

Speaker 1 (01:23:04):
What den is the.

Speaker 2 (01:23:05):
Ultimate agenda behind this elaborate branding exercise. On the surface,
the playbook appears to be a roadmap for public engagement,
a tool to rally support which is needed, but the
true purpose may be far more commercial and politically driven
than even we were aware of. By co opting the

(01:23:29):
language of exploration and discovery, the playbook transforms a technical
mission into a marvel cinematic universe campaign aimed at consolidating
support from diverse interest groups. The commercialization of space is

(01:23:49):
not really a negative, as much as it could be
and should be. But when NASA's focus on it, you
have to ask why consistence of emotional engagement and immersive
experience to suggest that for some the allura space lies
not in its mysteries, but instead more on its marketability

(01:24:15):
and its political benefits. I need to take a break,
go grab it. I'll actually go in another drink here.
We'll be back in a few During the break, I'll
probably show more pages of the Artemis document. Be back

(01:24:37):
in a little bit.

Speaker 9 (01:25:00):
MS.

Speaker 10 (01:25:45):
Fire the Coultown's low steal and thunder starts or steal
the precious starts to.

Speaker 5 (01:25:53):
Grow hot is counting, launching, riding fire, breaking tree feel.

Speaker 7 (01:26:01):
A crushing sign my chest Terry sky Ward Burn remains
pushing through this crutal test. Maskew hits the walls of

(01:26:27):
Shake Man All Girls, but holds me tight locket, screaming
no mistake.

Speaker 5 (01:26:35):
Terrings faster through the night, running fire breaking chains, feel
a crushing sign my chest, Terry sky wood Burn remains
pushing through this brutal test fast.

Speaker 3 (01:27:15):
Then the silence takes control, like a whisper in my
goot oiless now my body.

Speaker 10 (01:27:25):
Swords lost in endless stars, unknown, silver.

Speaker 11 (01:27:43):
Shs, fills and skies, drift and free beyond the past,
and gold voices whispered highs here in space, on home
and fire.

Speaker 3 (01:28:00):
Lady and armhole.

Speaker 11 (01:28:02):
Gravity hasn't let me go, floating away, less free mussel.

Speaker 3 (01:28:10):
Dressed in

Speaker 6 (01:28:17):
And started