01101000 01101001 Translation
Hello Internet is a podcast created by two educational YouTubers: CGP Grey and Brady Haran of Numberphile fame. It consists of the two friends discussing a range of topics including technology, productivity, flags, life, plane crashes, and just about whatever catches their interest. It originally began as a 10-episode project, but after that, the hosts decided to continue it. After the second season of 10 episodes, they stopped dividing into seasons. Aside from a growing list of recurring topics and running gags, the format has remained consistent since about episode 4. Each episode usually contains an opening followup section and occasionally some sort of theme, though the discussions tend to wander (a lot).
You can listen to the show right here,
or via their Youtube channel here, which also has "animated" episodes by both Dovksy (formely) and Hm Boutet (currently).
The podcast has been inactive since Episode 136 was released on 28 February, 2020. On the 18th May, 2020, Brady said on Reddit that the two were simply taking a break, and are still on good terms with one another.
Hello Internet contains examples of the following tropes:
- A.I. Is a Crapshoot: Grey does not like this trope and is an advocate against "computer racism".
- This is a major theme of Episode 52, where Grey seems to have reversed his position on the matter.
- Call-Back: SO MANY. At this point Hello Internet is like "Callbacks: The Podcast". Discussions of past topics is common and hell the beginning of every episode is followup and feedback from the last one
- This has slowed down significantly after Project Cyclops
- Child Hater: "It's easy to whinge about kids, because they're like little monsters." - Grey
- Deadpan Snarker: Often the role of Grey and the reaction to many stupid things and lame jokes Brady says.
- Deceptively Human Robots: A theory of Brady's about Grey that has since been made a running gag and popular joke within the fandom.
- Deceptively Silly Title: Not really deliberately but even episodes with really dark discussions have really weird titles like any other episode.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: The first few episodes are a lot more focused on a theme and shorter. The format has remained consistent since around episode 4 as "2 hours of two dudes rambling about things and way too much followup."
- Forced Meme: Brady's forte, and it even works some of the time.
- The Mighty Black Stump and Brady's endless need to find "The Official X of Hello Internet", which the fandom enables like crazy.
- Freebooting is the most notable example, in part because it became a part of internet lexicon when referring to people who steal content to reupload for views and/or ad revenue.
- Gosh Dang It to Heck!: Brady NEVER (ever) swears (except for "ass" if you consider that a swear). This is not for any real moral reason but solely because he has a streak going of never having said any swears that he doesn't want to break.
- It Makes Sense in Context: The animated series running on the podcast Youtube channel often takes sound clips out of context in hilarious ways and adds animation that gives it a much different one (can you say voodoo witchcraft summoning ritual?)
- Odd Couple: Grey and Brady show a lot of this. Grey is focused, driven by routine and likes his environment empty. Brady jumps from thing to thing and has shit lying around everywhere. Of course this is often a point of discussion.
- Once an Episode: The jingle for Hello Internet plays at the start of each episode, which is binary for "hi" (which, in addition to being a greeting, primarily stands for "Hello Internet").
- Precision F-Strike: Grey doesn't properly swear very often, but when he does..."You could fix this! You could fix this WITH A F[BLEEP]ING SIGN!"
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: One might think Grey is the Blue Oni here; there's a Running Gag of Brady calling him a robot because of his emphasis on efficiency and utility (sometimes bordering on asceticism), and his rational, emotionally detached, and often unpopular views on many subjects. Yet of the two, Grey laughs more (and louder), swears more, is more opinionated, gets more fired up when discussing his opinions, and gets more excited about things he likes. Brady is more soft-spoken, more middle-of-the-road, doesn't get very emotional when discussing his opinions, and never swears. So if anything, Grey is the Red Oni, and Brady is the Blue Oni.
- Running Gag: Brady has an endless variety of ways to say "Derek from Veritasium" wrong.
- Simulation Game: Grey is a big fan of these and has had a Prison Architect kick going for a while. He's also dabbled in Euro Truck Simulator too.
- So Unfunny, It's Funny: Brady's humor is almost always this.
- Sound-Effect Bleep: Regular swears are censored with these (Grey has said that this is for comic effect more than anything else) but they have also been used for comic effect with the word "naughty" especially in the (aptly named) "The Naughty Episode".
- Stating the Simple Solution: In one episode, Grey laments that try as he might, he can't find a collared shirt with the exact attributes he wants. He's gotten so frustrated about this that he has occasionally, but very seriously, considered starting a small factory just to create the shirts he wants. In the next episode's follow-up, Myke mentions that many fans asked why Grey didn't just go to a tailor. Grey admits that this had never occurred to him, partly because he unconsciously thought of tailors as something from a bygone era.
- The Stinger: Often after a very long period of silence at the end of each episode.
- Suckiness Is Painful: Often Grey's reaction to Brady's jokes. The "inspired by a divine being" discussion and subsequent lame joke by Brady comes to mind. It's a part of this Hello Internet Animated episode.
