Line #28 Podcast/StellarFirma


1	->''[[JustForFun/DescribeTopicHere Trope page detected]]! [[JustForFun/TVTropesWillRuinYourLife Security cancelling their weekend plans]].''
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3	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/stellafirma_albumcover_nologo.png]] %%N.B. Image provided by and used with permission of the work's creator.
4	[[caption-width-right:300:May the Board preserve and keep you.]]
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6	Stellar Firma is a improvised comedy science fiction podcast created by Tim Meredith and Ben Meredith. It is set 900 years after the Earth's death with the rise of [[{{MegaCorp}} Stellar Firma Ltd.]], an ambiguously moral conglomerate that builds planets for clients across the galaxy.
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8	The podcast centers around two intrepid employees: David-7, a beleaguered clone who was born a few days ago, and Trexel Geistman, a profoundly unstable Consultant who's utterly terrible at designing planets and constantly shows up late. They have a week before the next review session, where the results will determine whether or not David gets [[{{DeadlyEuphemism}} recycled]].
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10	Naturally, things go horribly wrong. HilarityEnsues.
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12	The podcast is produced by Creator/RustyQuill and can be found on their [[http://rustyquill.com/stellar-firma/ website]].
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14	See also ''Podcast/TheMagnusArchives'', ''Podcast/RustyQuillGaming'', and ''Podcast/TheStoragePapers'', three other podcasts made by Rusty Quill. In February of 2022, Rusty Quill started releasing teasers for a Patreon exclusive spinoff, ''Compulsory Film Appreciation'', in which Hartro and I.M.O.G.E.N. watch real-life movies and discuss and analyze them from the Stellar Firma corporate perspective.
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18	!! ''Stellar Firma'' contains examples of:
19	* AerithAndBob: You have typical science fiction-y names, like Trexel Geistman and Hartro Piltz, next to names like David, Harry, and Imogen.
20	* ArtificialIntelligence: I.M.O.G.E.N., an all-knowing and omnipotent A.I. May or may not be sentient, considering her DeadpanSnarker tendencies.
21	--> '''I.M.O.G.E.N. (after Trexel performs an impromptu jingle):''' Tune free of sedition. ''({{beat}})'' And tune.
22	** Later on, A.L.E.X.
23	* ArtisticLicenseSpace: There are entire episodes where the creators discuss their complete lack of knowledge on the subject.
24	** Half the things Trexel and David come up with [[{{EpicFail}} aren't even technically planets]].
25	** Teleporting a planet at multiple galaxies wouldn't change the strength of its gravity.
26	** [[{{MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext}} Thousands of heating devices disguised as accountants wouldn't be able to warm a planet's core temperature enough to create consistently flowing creeks.]]
27	%%* BadBoss: ''Trexel''.
28	%%** Hartro Piltz, Trexel's Line Manager, who's just as ineffectual as Trexel, but has a higher position of power.
29	%%** Stellar Firma Ltd. in general doesn't seem to be the most benevolent employer.
30	* BearsAreBadNews: The Armoured Polar Bears of Svalbard.
31	%%* BlackComedy: In ''spades''.
32	* BottleEpisode: On account of being told from David's perspective, every episode takes place in one room. [[spoiler: Episode 25 subverts this, with David and Trexel exiting the room for the first time to [[{{Courtroom Episode}} go to trial]].]]
33	* ButtMonkey: David-7, to the point of being the ChewToy. Trexel also gets a fair share of abuse (though mostly due to his own incompetence).
34	* ComedicSociopathy: The ''majority'' of the humor comes from this, whether it's Trexel's treatment of David or Stellar Firma Ltd.'s cheerful disregard for the safety of its employees.
35	* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Hartro Piltz. She initially comes across as AffablyEvil, but she ends up being just as ineffective as Trexel, and a ''lot'' more sadistic.
36	* CloneAngst: The source of the majority of David-7's suffering, as clones are a SlaveRace that aren't considered sentient. Enforced In-universe; when Trexel begins questioning whether or not the treatment of clones is ethical, a gun barrel unfolds from the wall until they openly denounce the idea and proclaim their loyalty.
37	--> '''I.M.O.G.E.N.:''' [''[[{{DissonantSerenity}} cheerful chime]]''] Clones are things!
38	* CrapsackWorld: Despite the generally comedic tone, the series is pretty firmly set in a TechnoDystopia. All of humanity have become permanent employees of an extremely amoral MegaCorp, FantasticRacism against clones is abundant and lower-ranking employees regularly get axed out of convenience or neglect, and the whole thing is controlled by an [[{{TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness}} Omniscient Council of Vagueness]] that executes dissenters for questioning the status quo.
39	* CrypticConversation: Spoofed in Episode 26 with an exchange between [[spoiler: two mysterious figures that starts out extremely ominous ... only for one to become legitimately confused by the vagueness of the conversation, leading to them storming off.]]
40	* DeadAllAlong: [[spoiler:The series finale reveals that the mysterious Board has in fact been dead for many centuries, with representatives of the shareholders having been divided into two power blocs, preventing change from being made, and the company basically running on autopilot ever since]].
41	* DeadpanSnarker: David, as time goes on and his patience for Trexel's antics grows wearily thin.
42	** I.M.O.G.E.N. on occasion.
43	* DeconstructedTrope: Surprisingly for a series that runs so hard on ArtisticLicenseSpace, the consequences of the duo's haphazard methods of planet construction are given a thorough {{Deconstruction}} during their first review session once someone other than [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} Trexel]] is in charge.
44	--> '''Trexel:''' Yes, no, that is ringing a couple of bells, and— and [[{{HeelRealization}} now you say it back to me]], [[{{ItMakesSenseInContext}} giving a potentially murderous lead singer access to… quite a lot of explosives and many, many well trained knife dogs...]] some people could look at that and say, "What have you done, you ''massive idiot?!''"
45	* DespairEventHorizon: David in episode 23, [[spoiler:after he's been informed in no uncertain terms that he will be recycled.]]
46	* DespotismJustifiesTheMeans: In a subversion of I.M.O.G.E.N.'s usual "[x] Detected! Security alerted." when Trexel tries to impose a government-controlled mandatory entertainment policy on a planet:
47	--> '''I.M.O.G.E.N.:''' Fascism detected. (''{{beat}}'') [[{{BlackComedyBurst}} Carry on!]]
48	* TheDogBitesBack: After 24 episodes of abuse from Trexel, David ''finally'' gets some revenge by [[spoiler:beating Trexel senseless with a [[{{NonstandardWeapon}} fish.]]]]
49	* TheDreaded: Cardinal Fang[[note]]Cardinal Fang![[/note]].
50	* DreadfulMusician: Trexel, which doesn't stop him from singing.
51	* EarnYourHappyEnding: In the final episode, [[spoiler:David, left as the sole person in charge of Stellar Firma, uses his power to evacuate the company space station and send the people living on it to planets where they can start new societies. Afterwards, he has the station destroyed, essentially ending Stellar Firma and its ruthless corporatocracy, relinquishes I.M.O.G.E.N. from her role as Stellar Firma's controller and goes to Galactonium to live in peace]].
52	* FanDisservice: Shirtless Trexel (thankfully an audio-only example, but we get to hear David and Hartro's [[{{BrainBleach}} reactions]]). This is actually employed InUniverse as a technique by Stellar Firma [[{{RefugeInAudacity}} to get unruly teenagers to leave parties early.]]
53	* GoneHorriblyRight: In Episode 13: "Raves And Desserts", Trexel designs a planet for the teenage son of a client to use to host wild parties. For once, Trexel does his job far too well - his weekly review in Episode 15: "Moisturiser and Measures" reveals that the party is attracting teenagers across the galaxy, some of whom are children of senior executives, with [[DidNotThinkThisThrough no way to stop the party]] short of [[ColonyDrop dropping a moon on the planet]].
54	* HoldYourHippogriffs: Save for a few instances [[{{EarlyInstallmentWeirdness}} early in the series]], 'Board' is used instead of 'God'. Hail the Board!
55	* HopeSpot: In the start of season 3, David has set up a little café while laying low and, despite having only been running it for a short time, already has a healthy customer base and enjoys living without having to constantly fear for his life. [[spoiler:In Episode 2, Hartro tracks him and Trexel down and forces them to go with her, after which I.M.O.G.E.N. incinerates the café]].
56	* ImplausibleDeniability: David-7 attempting to deny the fact that he drenched Trexel in clone slurry, five seconds after spraying Trexel with clone slurry.
57	** In a similar vein, [[spoiler:denying he tampered with the consultation room's pipes]], in a courtroom with an all-powerful lie detector as the judge.
58	* IncompetenceInc: Stellar Firma comes off more and more like this as the series goes on, what with them continuing to employ Trexel despite him causing the deaths of Board knows how many people and the general lack and poor maintenance of their office corridors. [[spoiler:In the last episode of season 2 and between-seasons supplimentary material, it turns out that the company has been neglecting several critical internal departments such as Filing, the staff of which died of old age and were never replaced. Also, when I.M.O.G.E.N.'s CPU started suffering from critical RAM shortage, she wasn't allowed to decommission some of the upper management luxurious departments, and instead shut down some smaller internal ones. I.M.O.G.E.N. even tells Trexel and David that anything for which the company can't bill clients gets downprioritized]].
59	* IncrediblyLameFun: Apparently why Trexel hates Harry's (and by extension, all galactic bureaucrats') ideas of fun.
60	* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Every single time [[{{JerkassWoobie}} Trexel]] seems like he might have a moment of genuine compassion or sympathy, it's ''immediately'' followed up by an even bigger KickTheDog moment towards David. Possibly the biggest example is [[spoiler:the finale of season 1, where Trexel gives up the key to his beloved Cosmic Lounge in exchange for saving David's life... only to casually reveal later that he could have done so all along and that there's a better bar next to the Lounge, anyway.]] [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown David doesn't]] [[ExtremeMeleeRevenge take it well.]]
61	* LargeHam: Trexel. David is sometimes prone to this as well.
62	* LockedInARoom: David is stuck in one room for nearly the entire show and has never been outside. Naturally, Trexel constantly forgets this, and it becomes a minor RunningGag.
63	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Occasionally Trexel's actions extend past mere annoyance and end up disastrously affecting interplanetary relations.
64	** Sticking heating devices disguised as accountants on a planet populated by armored polar bears, leading to them [[{{EnemyMine}} teaming up with]] the KillerRobot empire that's plotting against humanity.
65	* NoodleImplements: Most things about Trexel, like [[{{BestialityIsDepraved}} whatever he does with that fish]] or his explanations on why he's late every day.
66	* OnlySaneMan: David. Most of his blunders come from not knowing much about the world [[ReallyWasBornYesterday on account of being two weeks old]], and having those gaps in knowledge informed by [[{{UnreliableNarrator}} Trexel]]. [[spoiler:Once he starts tampering with the briefs, the planets start coming out actually decent.]]
67	* OurClonesAreDifferent: [[IncompetenceInc Stellar Firma Ltd]] makes vast use of clones, who exist in batches designated by a first name to signify the batch and their number. Said clones are [[BornAsAnAdult born fully grown]] with all their knowledge wired into their heads during the process as well as being programmed with unflinching BlindObedience to their superiors (even past the point of self-preservation), as they are used by the company as a disposable SlaveRace with the official policy being they are things not people. Likewise due to Stellar Firma's inheritance-based caste system, any failures by members of staff will result in the clones being liquified (with it being heavily implied this is where the [[TheSecretOfLongPorkPies Slurry that everyone lives off comes from]]). Clones are likewise capable of developing incredible physical prowess incredibly quickly simply through regular exercise (handwaved as being down the same process that allows them to be born fully grown) although this is largely unknown. The series protagonist [[OnlySaneMan David-7]] is the only clone to be fully self-aware due to a malfunction during his creation and spends the series trying to stay alive.
68	* PoliceAreUseless: Despite I.M.O.G.E.N.'s frequent announcements that Security has been alerted, they never actually appear.
69	** The series finale [[spoiler:reveals that the Security department was destroyed long ago during a civil war between the company's shareholders, and this was just covered up by replacing the department with a bunch of cardboard cutouts hidden behind frosted glass, pre-recorded messages, computer-generated random memos and arrest orders and the gun walls]].
70	* RealisticDictionIsUnrealistic: Being an improvised podcast, most characters talk with relatively realistic diction and stumble over words occasionally. The only character to avert this is [[{{ArtificialIntelligence}} I.M.O.G.E.N.]]
71	* ReassignedToAntarctica: In Episode 41, after [[spoiler:their failures in both planetary design and sales (as well as Hartro trying to kill them)]], Trexel and David are demoted to being expeditors, one of the lowliest positions in the entire Stellar Firma hierarchy which basically entails getting "suggestions" from various Stellar Firma employees and advising them best they can, assuming anyone even reads their recommendations.
72	-->'''Trexel:''' This is a living death. It is the pit of irrelevance. It is the- the soupçon of ''[[SuddenlyShouting no one gives a good Board damn where you are or what you're doing!]]''
73	* RedOniBlueOni: Trexel, a LargeHam PrimaDonnaDirector who comes into work [[{{TheAlcoholic}} violently drunk]] and David-7, a NaiveNewcomer clone who has to act as the OnlySaneMan.
74	* RunningGag: "Warning! [X] detected." Doubles as MadLibsCatchphrase.
75	** Trexel invariably showing up 20 minutes before the deadline.
76	** [X]. [X]? [X].
77	** Hail the Board!
78	** Trexel's fish and [[{{BestialityIsDepraved}} his unsavory relationship with it.]]
79	** bing [[{{TheStinger}} Cardinal Fang!]]
80	* SadistShow: The show Hartro goes on, hosted by Sigmund Shankaray, a man with a [[DissonantSerenity calm, affable demeanor]], who routinely interrogates her on whether she's loyal to the Board at gunpoint. In a later such bonus episode, Sigmund finds himself on the receiving end of this when Nr. 1 steps in to get interviewed by him and grills him similarly.
81	%%ZCE * SpaceWhale: A whole planet of them!
82	* ThrowTheDogABone:
83	** When Trexel and David get transferred to Sales and get a new office, David finally gets some semblance of comfort in the form of a clone pod, with a proper bed, a desk and a toilet (apparently, it had been in the original room all along, but Trexel just forgot to tell him about it).
84	** David gets an even bigger one in Episode 72, when [[spoiler:he, Trexel and Hartro have been promoted to executive level]] and David gets a special clone suite with a jacuzzi, a quadruple emperor size bed and, best of all, a forcefield that prevents Trexel from entering it. The new office [[spoiler:of the Business Warfare department]] also has a button labeled "Trexel" which automatically opens up a hatch below Trexel and throws him out (though the next episode reveals that the button is actually ''for'' Trexel, sending him straight into Stellar Firma's central distillery).
85	--->'''David:''' That is my favourite button so far.
86	* TooDumbToFool: David is justifiably angry at the end of a design session. [[{{ObliviousToHisOwnDescription}} Trexel asks him who's made him upset]], claiming he'll give them a stern talking-to. David [[{{StealthInsult}} hands Trexel a mirror]], but instead of realizing the dig, Trexel ''doesn't recognize his own reflection'' and ends up punching it, getting glass all over his hand, [[{{ComicallyMissingThePoint}} and running into the hallway to pursue "Mirror Trexel"]].
87	* TooGoodToBeTrue: In Episode 70 ("Self-Assessment and Self-Advancement"), [[spoiler:Trexel, David and Hartro are informed that they've all been promoted to work as senior executives in Stellar Firma's Department of Business Warfare. Trexel and Hartro are of course overjoyed, but David points out that the timing is quite suspicious and that there's more to it]].
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Context Podcast / StellarFirma