Pan and the trippy world to find some tree.
Introduction
The future.
What comes to your mind when you hear those words?
Do you think of a high-tech city filled with holograms and flying vehicles, or a barren desert occupied by the few remaining humans on Earth? Rather than imaging the answer, why not listen to one of them?
BBC Radio 4’s sci-fi podcast, Forest 404 is a captivating thriller set in the 24th century. It has nine episodes along with nine accompanying soundscapes and pod-talks. Each episode is packed with exhilaration and curiosity to keep you on your toes while the soundscapes and pod-talks create an immersive and educational experience. Furthermore, Forest 404 features Pearl Mackie, Tanya Moodie and Pippa Haywood with original music by Bonobo.
Expanding on the storyline of Forest 404, the world has completely changed. Forests are an idea of the past and the human population has been replaced by robots with advanced AI. Information is no longer stored in the brain but rather in cloud storages which are far more developed than the current world. The physical health of the beings occupying earth no longer matters due to the fact that medicine has been sophisticated in such a way that it has taken over. Moving onto the story, it begins after a data crash called the Cataclysm in EP1: Life in the fast times, and we are introduced to Pan, our Protagonist. She is a young woman who has a job in which she deletes memories in the form of sound files. However, Pan discovers a selection of sound recordings which were from rainforests in the 21st century. These noises had not been heard in over two centuries because the agents of the new world are opposed to the slow world. Listening to the sounds caused Pan to be compelled to find how the forests of the old world died, forming the story of Forest 404.
Episodes
Forest, 404. Earth in the 24th Century. A world where cities cover entire continents. Every single building is a skyscraper so tall that mirrors are required to reflect sunlight down to the surface. Progress is exponential. But not a single speck of nature remains.
Listening to Forest 404 was very interesting, and it gave attention to some quite engaging topics regarding AI, the environment and where our society is currently heading. But although the podcast had some very fascinating themes, the ending and method of storytelling weren’t as effective as it could have been.
Firstly, there’s the accents. The British accents of the voice actors were quite difficult to comprehend, and, during the first episode, I couldn’t understand more than half of the dialogue. Although I eventually got used to the British accents, I still struggled, resulting in confusing action scenes and disengagement. Personally, I would have preferred Forest 404 to be in the form of a book instead of a podcast. Even if books lack fancy sound effects and voice acting, they give a clearer picture on what is happening, but of course it’s different
There’s also the particularly unusual ending. Most good stories end with a definite, clear, ending. A resolving ending. A satisfying ending. Usually, the only time the plot ends with a cliff-hanger is when the author is producing a sequel. However, in the case of Forest 404, Pan escapes into the Slow World after broadcasting a recording that could either end her species or save it. She never ventures up into the Fast World again, meaning the consequences of her actions are unknown. What happened to Pan’s people? We have no idea. Did they die? Did they come to accept nature? Did anything change at all? The lack of answers to these questions can be quite disappointing, especially if you were extremely engaged in the plot.
However, although some parts may need improving, there are many aspects of Forest 404 that really connected with me. The plot of Forest 404 stood out for being frighteningly similar to the world we live in (and what it is starting to become). Listening to Theia’s recount on what will happen in a few decades was really fascinating, and I could definitely see it happening to humanity in the near future. With our carbon emissions still on the rise, and with little to no action being taken at the present, I wouldn’t be surprised if, in 100 years or so, half of the planet had been “boiled”, and St. Petersburg had a tropical climate.
There’s also the Hands. These tall, creepy, far-reaching creatures are the Government’s agents, and they are content on finding Pan and putting a stop to her quest. Throughout Forest 404, they are always on Pan’s tail, and the high-speed chases that follow leave us on the edge of our seats by the end of the episode. They increase tension in the plot and give a sense of urgency throughout the series.
There’s also the plot twist. At the end of Episode 4, it is revealed that Pan is actually a robot, and not human. This revelation really spiced up the story and gave me a whole new perspective on Pan’s world. It made the plot more interesting and really got me hooked.
The writers of Forest 404 managed to make a plot that was creative, but also relatable. A perfect harmony. A balance. Coupled with the genuinely shocking plot twists and the intense action scenes, Forest 404 is definitely a podcast I would recommend.
Podtalks
In Forest 404, the pod talks could be explained as long, boring and just not attention grabbing but I beg to differ. The pod talks are usually the last thing we listen to after the episode and the soundscape. Often, they talk about a cool feature in the attack itself. Anything could have been talked about from the curious questions that we have about robots or just the ways of conserving trees and plants on earth. I admire these pod talks because it obtains something from a made-up story and applies it to real life. The theories in which these apply to life are very futuristic (when they talk about Ai and cyborgs), or they are simple and get used in unthinkable ways.
Building on many compelling ideas stated, like becoming part human for a more leisurely lifestyle (e.g. having a chip for a myki or debit card in your arm) or just questioning how humans will die out? Before listening to this podcast and the pod talks, I was pretty questionable if I enjoyed the theory of robots or AI in the human world in general because of my lack of knowledge. However, after listening to these pod talks, they helped educate me on how AI societies and Cyborgs could and would work. It made me engaged when listening as well. The pod talks are fascinating in the sense of getting professionals to describe and evaluate how things like cyborgs or AI could impact our society in good and bad ways.
In addition, there is another side of these pod talks. The talks explain to the listeners about nature and their requirements for sustainability. Close to half of the pod talks are talking about forests or have something to do with them. T4: Why do trees live so long? It is one of my favourites as well as T9: Love Letter to the Forest… It catches the topic of how trees are so important to us and how we thrive and live because of these beautiful creations of nature. Talk 9 was something I was thrilled to hear; we don’t appreciate trees as much as we should. The way the poem is written and spoken was genuinely delightful, and it does express how much we require these trees to sustain our life. Personally, the pod talk describes how I feel towards trees.
Would you have thought about living in the darkness? I doubt it, which is why I like this pod talk the most. Pod talk T3: Could I live in darkness? Explains what and how it would work. Crazy right? The theory of living in darkness, which we could do, but our brains just wouldn’t be able to tell the time of day, making our body system entirely corrupt. Personally, I know I haven’t thought of that before. This is an example of getting crazy theories from the episode and turning them into real-life examples. It could compare to humans being nocturnal like an owl or a fox. These animals thrive in the darkness; is this because they got used to it? Or is this because their instincts are ready for being in the dark? Could we live in darkness? It also helps explain how without sunlight, our brains just wouldn’t be able to tell if it was night or day.
These pod talks are intricate yet interesting, it really creates realistic concepts from a fictional story. It is amazing how us humans are looking so far into the future and are able to generate ideas for ourselves later down the track.
Soundscapes
The sounds used in forest 404 is really what makes this podcast unique and special. After all, the story is pretty much how Pan reacts to a new, unknown sound. Since the first time Pan heard the sound of trees rustling, birds chirping and the roar of waves crashing down on the beaches, she immediately fell in love with it. She was entranced by this new sound that she had never seen before, and the fact that there might be more out there than just building after building. She loved the way the leaves sounded, the whistling of the win. She loved the way enchanting birdsong seemed to be created by the trees. The familiarity that most people would experience when hearing the sounds of nature is absent for Pan, which allows her imagination to run free and paint images in her head of where these bizarre sounds might’ve come from. It is easy to see why Pan would’ve been so intrigued.
When Pan hears these sounds, she is bewildered. Suddenly, these new sounds become important to keep safe, to safeguard from the hands. To her, protecting these sounds is as important as eating or breathing. All Pan was used to was the sound of cities. The people arguing, cars honking, phone calls and brakes screeching all seemed like daily occurrences to her. A society that’s constantly moving, almost as if the city never went to sleep. Seems only fitting that this era would be referred to as the fast times by everyone living. For people who lived like that everyday, It is understandable how Pan was initially a little frightened, but also curious as to what these sounds actually were. Maybe Pan’s future really is our future. The description I just gave seems frighteningly similar to cities of the world, such as London, or New york, the city that “never sleeps.” What if one day we would wake up to a world like the fast times, where the only sounds people knew were those of the city?
I find the soundscapes very soothing and calming. Listening to the soundscapes provides an option to just close your eyes, listen and let your imagination run wild. One soundscape in particular that I thought provided this opportunity was the soundscape of the birds singing in the rainforest. The dripping of water droplets falling from the leaves of great big trees falling to the floor, the frogs croaking and birds singing, all these marvelous sounds creating images. Another soundscape I thought provided this opportunity was the soundscape of whale song. Just listening to these gentle giants communicate while floating around a vast array of dark blue nothingness.
To me this image is a calming image whales. But to someone with thalassophobia, it’s a nightmare, a dark picture of ominous beasts drifting away in the unknown. Looking at this question, it seems almost easy to see why everyone but Pan was so afraid of the nature sounds. After all, Humans will always be afraid of the unknown.
Throughout the series, I began to realise how important sound is in our world. To Pan, sound allows her to envision new things and realise that there are more things in this world then she had thought. The soundscapes are, in my opinion, one of if not the most crucial part of the Forest 404 story.
Conclusion
Forest 404 has one of the most enticing and unique storylines that are based on the future. The development of the characters was an unanticipated factor to the majority of the listeners. In EP7: Dreams of the autopilot, Daria who was insinuated to be afraid of the forest sounds managed to prosper and thought, “What if Artemis didn’t just want these memories to record pain, regret and sadness?” Her experience reminded myself of an experience where I was terrified of a thought but eventually began to love it. Furthermore, the abnormal ending is very particular to Forest 404 because there are many questions which remain unanswered such as What happened to Pan’s people? Or did anything change at all? The lack of information is a major mood killer for listeners engaged in the story.
However, the absence of answers allows you to become engrossed within the pod-talks. The talks state ideas which permit a greater understanding of robotic/AI theory. While the pod-talks provide questions, the soundscapes are an escape from reality. The Zenlike sounds include vast amounts of noises from nature allowing Pan and the listener to find the truth of Forest 404.
Overall, Forest 404 is an excellent podcast that succeeded in teaching the world about the potential future if the elimination of forests continues.
