So About That Total Eclipse 

Red: "Hmm, I want to talk about this eclipse, but I need a way to visualize it for my viewers." "I know! I'll use Cleo, the creature with sharp claws and unpredictable temperament that I'm allergic to! I see no complications with this plan- AH, MY HUBRIS!"

To quote Terry Pratchett: “It doesn’t stop being magic just because you know how it works”

"i may not get to go to space, but the cool thing about being on a planet... is that we are already in space" i cannot express how comforting that is to hear, as a person who was literally traumatized into hating and being terrified of the concept of getting on a plane, let alone going on a spaceship, but still loves to learn about space. i don't need to leave the ground; the ground is space, too

"It doesn't stop being magic just because you know how it works" - Terry Pratchett

Red's like a werewolf but instead of turning into a wolf at the full moon she turns into a science communicator at any given event of astronomical significance

*Fun Fact:* A real eclipse was filmed during the production of the 1961 Biblical film "Barabbas." The director Richard Fleischer decided, after being informed that a total eclipse would occur in Italy, to shoot the scene of the death of Jesus Christ during such extraordinary event. This resulted in one of the most amazing scenes in Hollywood history

For me, it was all the crowd reactions and the memefications that felt weirdly profound. Like, you’re watching people react to a natural space event as if it’s a Beatles concert and people on instagram are coming up with the funniest ways to anthropomorphise two celestial bodies, and it just fills me with a weird sense of community. Also, Red, you are poetic AF and your video essay section was glorious. Thank you for being you!!!

"Having a special interest can be like chewing the same piece of gum and hoping the flavour will come back" is so real. You got me misty eyed, Red, I relate so hard.

"You're so stinkin' cute OWW." is the quintessential cat experience.

Sunburned by a solar eclipse. And that's why they call her "Red".

Oooohhh, I am EXCITED for a trope talk or whatever on Eclipses in culture! It's always such a powerful image, usually used as a Bad Omen. I really wanna hear about that.

Your rant about not being able to feel like you're experiencing something amazing... I can relate to that way more than I'm comfortable with. Good to know we're not alone.

🎵Your magnifying device is a deadly laser” “Not anymore there’s a filter”🎵

*Red:* "With the help of my lovely assistant, Cleo." It's good Red finally has some help to make things easier-- *Cleo the Cat has entered the picture* --I take what I said back, that's just going to make things so much worse...

The -1 hp bit was hilarious. I live near Buffalo, and we had cloud cover for totality but it cleared up before it was over and we got to watch it until it ended from the parking lot at work. It really did get as dark as night outside for a couple minutes

Watching that lookaround shot of dusk in every direction, with stars in the daytime sky, beneath the gaze of a hollow angry Sun, I half expected dire orchestral music to herald the approach of "the Final Boss of Earth" stepping from the shadows to challenge Red in single combat.

- "Did you guys see the sun today" - "Why, yes! And thus, we cannot see anymore" - "Ah, ok. Glad I wasn't the only one then"

Why is "I fucking told you guys it was a weird shape" so relatable

I just want to say, I really love the camera-fit-for-animation picture quality. I know it probably wasn't intentional, but it gives the air of authentic, "I didn't plan to record this, but I just couldn't help myself," energeticness, almost like found footage from a rare cataclysm.

Red's concern about being let down by something she was so hype about but then having her expectations exceeded is so damn relatable. I was so excited to see it but was very worried I wouldn't be that impressed and I was still blown away

28:14 “Sometimes, having a special interest is like chewing old gum and expecting the flavor to come back.” I’ve never heard it described so well and so vividly. I have to pinball myself to different special interests periodically because of this. Feeling the “gum” lose its flavor is always so frustrating.

THE WAY I WAS WAITING FOR RED TO CONTINUE TALKING ABOUT ECLIPSES THE MOMENT I HEARD OF THIS ONE HAPPENING

Well, you did it Red. You evoked the feeling. I've seen an eclipse and you managed to capture the wonder with your description! I'm a very religious person, and when you mentioned "seeing the clockwork" and "looking behind the curtain", I felt my soul stir in familiar, wonderous ways. I missed this eclipse, but thank you for sharing the experience of it with the rest of us!

I was there for the 2017 total eclipse by complete chance. I was in JobCorps in Oregon and they gave the whole center a couple hours off training classes to see it. We all went to the back bush where there was a firepit and a big field, they passed out eclipse glasses, and I cannot begin to describe the utter euphoria and awe that I experienced being there and seeing it happen. I still have the glasses as a souvenir of that once in a lifetime experience I had, by complete chance. If I hadn’t been at JobCosps, if I hadn’t picked the trade and center that I did, I would have missed it. Thank you Red, for reminding me of how it felt to be in the eye of a god. To know that fate can be fickle and Murphy’s Law cruel, but sometimes? Sometimes the universe lets something momentous happen. And I got to witness it. I might never get to see an eclipse from the Path of Totality again in my lifetime. But you reminded me that, I had once. And many other people will see it again. And they might feel the same way I felt in those brief moments of perfect alignment. It’s nice to not feel alone.

Blue's confusion about the sun and the moon at the end was so adorable and a reminder that yes, not everyone is a nerd about space, but even they can still get something from the absurdity of totality

I bet Red has waited her entire life for this moment XD

4:42 The worst part is when something horrible happen coincidentally and everyone start blaming the eclipse causing a mass panic whenever the next one happens.

Red, you are the ONE person I must thank for being the one to inform me about this eclipse!! THANK YOU SO FREAKING MUCH!!!! 🤩🤩🤩 I remember so vividly, I was on an evening shift at work (medical field) right around 11PM, watching your video in waiting for a patient to arrive... At the part of the video with the moving shadow across North America, I literally had to pause, do a double take, searching the video image by image, and when I saw my OWN TOWN pretty much straight under the center of the path of totality, I cannot tell you the rush of adrenaline that submerged me! I COULD NOT BELIEVE MY LUCK!!! And when the day finally came, the weather COULD NOT HAVE BEEN BETTER!! I was basically an 8 yo on Christmas eve for a few hours, there! I CRIED during totality! I was so overwhelmed that I did not realised how cold it got until AFTER the totality! 😂 That evening (on an other evening shift), I was just like you, I could NOT stop smiling!! I still get giddy thinking about it from time to time! I was so glad to learn that you saw it too!! That was SUCH a spectacle!!! You're so right, nothing could have prepared any one of us for the emotional part of it!! Thank you Red, once again, for that video in november! And thank you for this very video as well!! To get to relive the moment was a treat! And the Cleo Cameo was an adorable bonus!!! 🐈 PS: Cats ALWAYS favor the allergic!!! 😉

Cloe:"Are you explaining how a rare and amazing natural phenomenon works?" Red:"..." Cloe:"Eight hitpoints."

During the Total Eclipse. Red: “It has begun, 1000 years of Darkness.” Blue: “Really?” Red: “Well it actually about 3 minutes but 1000 sounds more ominous.”

I adored everything about this. Seeing the gang out and about being goofs, space content, learning so much about how eclipses work, and most of all hearing Red gush about something she clearly loves and felt deeply and profoundly passionate about. Your enthusiasm was absolutely contagious and I'm so fricking sad that I live on a TINY ISLAND so our chances of being in the totality of an eclipse are tiny. Loved the video, easily one of your best.

Your whole video essayist segment just left me speechless. I felt those same exact feelings during the eclipse, but I could never have articulated them as beautifully as you did. There's this overwhelming sense of awareness that washed over me, knowing that at one point in time, we were staring up at the same sky and thinking about the same things, and feeling the gravity of this once in a lifetime thing at the same time. It's feelings like these that make being alive and human seem so cool.

Ngl, one part of Eclipses that i think people dont consider enough is how weird they make everything around you. The weird ass physics that create sickle shadows or shadow bands. Like forget the bite taken out of the sun, what happens when youre in the woods, or just chilling by a willow tree when suddenly everything gets slightly darker, and all the shadows of all the leaves seem WRONG somehow. The ground beneath you writhes and shimmers. Then the darkness lifts and everything goes back to how it normally is. I wouldnt blame someone for thinking they temporarily slipped through another realm or something

The moment I knew that eclipse was happening, I knew Red would be dying to talk about it. And I'm just as excited to hear it. Eclipses are so cool. Also, cute Cleo cameo.

I started crying with you sharing how you have felt so much for the eclipse in comparison to other experiences you’ve wanted to as well, I relate so much and it’s so good

One thing I would add to your description of the eclipse as to why it feels so emotional is that things are happening so quickly! It feels like you barely have time to take in one wonder and then it’s already changed to something even more magnificent. The 360 sunset is my favorite. And I’m glad I was able to watch the eclipse with lots of other people, despite how annoying that made parking. The collective gasps and cheers as the sky got dark will stay with me for a while. (Also I’m so sad I missed you at PAX! I’m glad you got to see totality though :’] )

"I may not get to go to space, but the cool thing about living on a planet, is that we are already in space" Beautiful summary, and beautiful video in general

Me: "Eclipses are really beautiful unique events, don't you think?" Guts: *Cries intensely*

Honestly that bit about being frustrated with yourself not really feeling anything in the moment during something you know is very cool or otherwise significant really resonated with my experiences. Glad you had a good time eclipse chasing!

Whether or not you could succeed in portraying the moment as a storyteller, you sure portrayed how YOU felt so vividly, and that's a beautiful and special thing to share. Thank you.

Red with Cleo in her lap and explaining the intricacies of eclipses seems eerily similar to a Bond villian with their cat explaining their entire evil plan.

"I like who I am when I'm yearning for impossible things." - Red You gotta put that on a t-shirt, that's a good one. I saw the 2017 Eclipse, and I've also been frustrated trying to describe it, because no image or description actually describes the feeling of it.

Hey Red. I'm much the same way with being unimpressed or less emotional than everyone when achieving a goal or seeing something special, so I understand. And yet, I also had the opportunity to see the 2017 total eclipse, and I decided not to take it, thinking what I could see would be special enough. I got the chance to see the 2024 total eclipse and I am so glad I took it. I would try and describe it, but you already did that better than I ever could. The darkness, the stars, the sense of power, the emotions. And much like you said, I was surprised by it all despite how much of it I already knew.

I'm glad Cleo got more than a tiny cameo 😂 I really dig these videos. It was cool that you let us be a little part of your trip, and I was smiling with delight as you reflected on your experience.

I was under the path of totality at a park in my hometown, and the temperature went from "Too warm, I shouldn't have brought my coat" to "YIKES, it's COLD!" over the course of an hour, let alone the weird and wonky way the light started fading, so yeah, partials are VERY weird. But the full eclipse? That was definitely one of the most magical moments of my life. My girlfriend said "I can see how one of these cutting over a battlefield could make everyone drop their swords". It was like the sun turned into this great big bright eye, with a perfect band of molten silver around it, and the literal planets easily visible. Definitely worth taking some days off of work to go see! The photos and videos do not do it justice.

"A solar system family photo" hit me like a punch. Why am I about to cry

I really appreciated the art of your conclusion; actually being able to experience the sight of 'standing under an alien sky'.

Okay this gave me all the feels. I get the "unable to connect" thing and it drives me mad, it's nice to know I'm not the only one. Your joy is absolutely shining off you here, thank you for this :)

An overcast solar eclipse feels like a perfect metaphor for our times. Something so banal ruining what should be a wonderful experience.

Hey Red.. that empty feeling of being unable to connect is what I experience. Even during the eclipse I felt like the magnitude of the situation was lost on me, that I didn't feel as powerful as I thought I would have, that I took too many photos, that I didn't "enjoy" it enough whatever that means. That was until you said that one single line in your emotional reaction section. "It's a solar system family photo.. It's like we can finally get everyone in the shot" It was a joke and yet that was the one thing that seemed to snap me out of my self deprecating spiral, making me realize that I was there for the solar system's little family reunion, it gave a sort of personification to the cosmos, made my photos mean a little more, made it truly feel momentous, all five visible planets, the moon, and the sun, all in one picture. I can finally look back on that once in a lifetime event and feel satisfied after weeks of feeling nothing but regret, and it only took a silly line in a youtube video to help me realize that I got to pose in the solar system's family photo after they finally got together again. Thank you Red 🧡

Thank you for sharing your perspective!

Thank you for this! I love pieces like this where your enthusiasm and heart open up, its your inner truth and never let that go. Let it carry you and inspire you through the rest of your life!

The best part about listening to Red is how her curiosity and positivity makes this disaster of a world feel beautiful and exciting. It's the best treatment I've found for chronic hopelessness and disillusionment. She's such a source of _joy,_ like rain in the desert. Thank you! From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

"I don't think I am succeeding in doing that" you in regard to painting the picture. My partner, who couldn't even quite hear everything you said from where I was listening, piped up in the other room with "oh you are absolutely successful". Just based on your tone, the pauses, and what she did actually hear she managed to very clearly understand what you were trying to convey. So my immense thanks, Red, for another amazing video and for sharing your passions and sense of wonder

This made me cry so hard. Your sense of longing and wanting to experience more from the universe is something I've felt for a long time. Amazing video

I have never felt so seen, everything you said is so hard to let out, thank you

I felt so seen when you discussed your issues of not being moved by moments that the majority of people espouse to be profound. I drove with my family for over 11 hours round-trip up to Vermont to see totality, specifically because I wanted to challenge that. It was a sort of "If this doesn't phase me, then I guess nothing ever will" situation. Good lord am I glad that I felt SO MUCH during the eclipse. I teared up during totality. TEARS! That never happens to me. The universe forced the absolute beauty of nature down my throat and I'm so grateful it did. As someone who loves writing, I was always irked by my inability to truly FEEL the profundity of life and nature, and I couldn't be more happy that I made the effort to prove to myself that I can, in fact, still feel this way.

Red: “this simultaneous awareness of the inextricable passage of time and-“ *Alarm goes off, highlighting the passage of time*

This was such a wonderful display of geeking out on your interest! Thank you for sharing it with us. I love seeing how the THING makes people really excited and happy.

You and Vhart show me how truly amazing this is! I'm gonna try to see it in 20 years

Cleo: *affectionately tackles, followed by damage over time*

_Thank you_ for sharing this. I wasn't able to get to the totality path, even though it was only three or four hours drive from me. I've been waiting 58 years to see a total eclipse, so it felt like a complete failture of life that I didn't make it, even though it was so close. But you've made me feel better, just by describing your excitement in a way I totally "get." I know what you mean by being too "in your head" to feel the emotional impact of something...and I know what it's like when something is profound enough to reach through that. You reminded me of that. I felt it once, years ago, when I saw a _perfect_ double rainbow from a downtown parking lot. I've _known_ exactly how rainbows happen since I was six or seven; I've always made a habit of looking west after afternoon thundershowers to catch them. I always get excited (coworkers or friends would giggle when I'd go "Ooo! Rainbow, check it out!"}, even though it's usually just a partial rainbow - a strip or a short curve, occasionally an open arc. It's still so pretty, I don't mind being laughed at. But it's like spotting an art car on the road: fun, unusual, but still an _everyday_ sort of unusual. But just once, I not only saw a full semicircular rainbow, but a perfect nested pair of them. They were brilliant, all the colors shining, the second one dimmer and reversed in colors. The sky was blue behind them, and the strip of sky between the two bows was darker than the sky on either side. It looked like...a vast tunnel in the sky. Small cumulus clouds moved visibly toward me, blown by the brisk wind, like strange white airships sailing through the sky-tunnel from some mystical, alien world. I felt the full wonder of that, even though I _knew_ it was nothing of the sort. It was like...a perfectly secular but still _profoundly_ spiritual experience. It's always felt too odd to explain to anyone that one of the most meaningful experiences of my life happened in the most mundane of places...that I felt the wonder of the cosmos in the parking lot of a downtown Sears (RIP). But so it was. And by making this video, you've reminded me of that day, and made me understand that the eclipse was the same kind of experience. And I feel _better,_ not worse, even knowing I missed it. Because watching you talk about it, I felt that sense of wonder again, even if just for an instant. And it's almost like I was able to be there, too. So _thank you_ so very much for sharing your experience, and reminding me what it was like to stand (if ever so briefly) under an alien sky.

Thank you for recording all of this. I managed to get a good view of eclipse in North East New Brunswick 🇨🇦 but didn't record as much I would've liked and you've done a really good job at capturing and explaining the experience of the eclipse.

This made me weep tears of joy. I love this channel so much. ❤

I was thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2017, and my parents drove up to pick me up from the trail and drive me down to Georgia to see it. I was in a similar boat; I'm a fairly jaded person, and I wanted to experience it to cross it off a list, but I was fully expecting it to be something that I see, go "Huh. Okay." and then move on from. Actually experiencing it was an absolute punch in the gut; probably the most incredible experience in that entire thru-hike wasn't even on the trail. What surprised me the most was how incredibly happy everyone was who was going to see it. Everyone was cooperative, and the usual cut-throat traffic my truck-driver father was used to in that part of Georgia was completely absent as everyone on the road had turned into a model courteous driver. We hadn't actually prepared, so we were getting ready to just tank the eye damage and kinda indirectly look at the eclipse, until a super friendly guy saw us, said "Hey, I brought a ton of extra eclipse glasses, do you need some?" and we got to look at it minus the eye damage. Also there was a guy handing out bottles of Corona to fit the theme, so just as the partial eclipse was starting, I sent my group chat a message, "Guys! I got a pic of the corona!" Then when they excitedly clamored for it, I sent a pic of me with a shit-eating grin holding the bottle. Their angry responses are something I still treasure.

By my estimate, Red has at least 31 hit points. She took 15 hp worth of "loving Cleo-stabs" and is clealy not yet bloodied. 😸 I realize this is completely irrelevant to the greatness and vastness of space, but the editor allowed me to count the damage done as a gag and by Iðunn's very convenient apples *I DID!*

You articulated my own feelings very well, both the love of the cosmos, and how things don't always move us as much as we'd like. I'm glad I got to watch the eclipse through your video.

Ever since I heard about the American eclipse I have been waiting for this video! Love your enthousiasm, love from Amsterdam

The Day of Black Sun, the Day of Unity, and the day the Dead Moon invaded... All of them involved an eclipse. It's so prominent in fantasy because it's fantastical.

When I was a small child, I didn't feel moved at church. But at the top of a hill on a sunny day with the wind in my face? I *felt* that, I *marveled* at that. The only times I've felt anything approaching a spiritual experience was watching the world go about its mundanities and being Blown Away by dirt, and grass, and how the vascular systems of trees bring water up into their trunks which produces a cooling effect in summer. I'm amazed watching a spider web up an eve of my house and guard her eggs, and excitedly celebrated when I saw her spiderlings throwing out silks to catch the wind and start their own lives somewhere new. I told my mother, who is devout Christian, that I Do Not Feel God In A Building, I Feel God In Nature.

This was neat! I didn't get to see it for myself but your thoughts really helped inspire a DnD scene I'm doing involving an eclipse. Thanks Red!

Kudos to the ending where you put on your video essayist chapeau. Between the obvious passion for the subject in your words and the excellent selection of backing music I was getting very strong Pale Blue Dot vibes, a compliment which I cannot think of a way to imply more highly.

Eclipses are fun, especially when people hear about one coming up and start throwing at it like "it's the Rapture!!!" Or "apocalypse!" And then are confused when it doesnt happen XD

that "video essayist" speech, especially the part about being unable to just flat-out enjoy things even when you're in the middle of exciting events happening was honestly really comforting, as the person who always ends up feeling the same way. I also could've, and didn't, see the 2017 eclipse, and I only ended up driving to the 2024 one basically on a whim. You really summarized the experience of viewing the eclipse beautifully. Thank you for this, and as always thanks for continuing to make videos, you guys are probably my favourite channel.

Red ... That's so beautiful. I love that you allow yourself to be so vulnerable and in awe here. Love you and love sharing in this incredible moment with you!

Thank you for this. This eclipse had me crying like a baby, and I am so happy to hear how others felt as well.

As someone who did skip a day of college to travel to totality, 10/10 would recommend doing so for momentous celestial occasions. The makeup work was awful for a week, but it was still absolutely worth it.

"red experiences emotions" 18:13 Puts into words something about myself that I have always struggled to reckon with. I have also felt the exact same way in terms of never experiencing the joy I expect to and felt the same way as you during the eclipse. In your "Failure" to paint a word picture of the eclipse, I think you painted a word picture of something much more profound

You did a really good job painting the word picture, I got shivers. What a fantastic video.

Wow didn’t realize I’d be crying today thanks Red😭❤️. But seriously, really makes you think about life and such

Love that Cleo was presumably so sick of hearing Red talk about space, she decided to perforate her to interrupt her big Eclipse Speech (TM)

That part 19:36 - 20:45 really hit me. I have that same frustrating disconnect, and finding out that someone else experiences the same and was able to put it into words better than I ever managed, helped me feel a lot less alone with it. You have moved me to physical tears and that is not an easy thing to do. Thank you Red

I just want to say thank you @OverlySarcasticProductions. I saw the video you posted months ago about the April 8th one that happened a few weeks ago. It inspired me to go to Dallas with my girlfriend to try see it. We didn't think we were going to see anything, we were getting forecasts of overcast all day, but the clouds started parting about one-and-a-half hours before the eclipse. We got to see an amazing uninhibited sight of the sun eclipsing the moon, and it never would have happened without you. Thank you so much for what you do!

You made me cry, that was a beautiful essay/speech.

I cannot tell you how DELIGHTED I am to hear you talk about this subject whilst taking minor damage from a kitty cat

We already know that Blue loves Greece and Rome…. But I am now starting to appreciate how much Red loves Space! I mean it is awesome that she has her own interests and thing to focus on. And also yes the eclipse is extremely cool. In conclusion thanks for sharing your experience with us.

You guys went through what could be an Epic Quest that is similar to all of the Myths and Legends you tell us about in your videos and I loved it!

Gorgeous video, Red. "Under an alien sky" was a perfect formulation too.

I'm not the type of person that is moved by natural beauty. I've been across the county and been to hundreds of national parks, seen the Grand Canyon, hiked through the Painted Desert, and I felt little. I happen to live under the path of totality, it was one of the most moving and incredible things I've ever seen

Your talk at the end about being disappointed by not being wowed by something is exactly how I felt about going to see the Grand Canyon. Sometimes a thing that stuns many people just doesn't do the same thing for you. That doesn't mean you should stop trying to seek out those things. Maybe the Grand Canyon didn't do anything for me, but maybe if I ever got the chance to see the Sistine Chapel *that* would send me into awe. I just have to keep trying to find those experiences, even if I get disappointed. I didn't see this recent eclipse, but I did see the 2017 one and while it was a short experience it was cool. What got me was the weird light level. It was dark, but not.

Really glad it didn’t get clouded out for you. I’m hoping to catch the next one.

Your descriptions are the most epic , it’s a strange poem that connects us to hopes of reality and beauty of the cosmic expanse, wrapped in the sublime .

One of the science teachers in my school desperately tried to get a grant for eclipse glasses for our entire school, and she actually got it! So at the end of the school day we all got to go outside and watch the eclipse, but we only got to about 95% totality. Tons of people missed school cause they were traveling up north into the path of totality and it was sick.

"This isn't even time-lapse, this is just a video." "NooO!" 😆

I am so happy you got to experience that joy during the solar eclipse, and that it wasn't nearly as cloudy as it had been when you visited Eugene, Oregon. As I watched this, and you described how you felt, I had tears in my eyes. Sometimes the best thing is to preserve the mystery of an event until after you have experienced it, just to have that child-like wonder for a few hours.

I've followed this channel for years and it's so nice finally putting a face the voice in my head that goes off when I dive into literary criticism!

The eclipse was so cool to be a part of. Totality felt insanely magical with so many people around, on top of a mountain. There was even a wedding that happened at the same tine of totality, and I got interviewed by a local news station right after totality ended and right before the couple had a live interview

Honey, wake up, new 30 min OSP with Cleo cameo just dropped. Edit: whelp, I started crying around minute 27 just from the pure joy in Red’s voice. At 25, I also sometimes worry that I lost the ability to wonder so deeply. I know I don’t, and this video was a great way to remind me.

I appreciate you sharing your feelings about feeling unable to enjoy things, I’ve felt that too before

Thank you for such a wonderful description! I've been trying to find words to describe what totality was like and I think you nailed it with everything from 25:30, especially: "You're standing under an impossibility."