Learning settings
The story so far
Everything you need before watchingKeys bursts in celebrating: NPCs grew private lives, and a barista learned cappuccino through trial and error. Millie is not celebrating. She let Guy kiss her, then they find Antwan's sequel will wipe Free City. His whole world's about to end. She drops the accent filter and tells the blue-shirt bank teller the city is a game, and he is only a background NPC.
Chapters
13 parts · AI-cutTranscript
Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoTeaching points
Review right after watchingtrial and error
反复试错
food for thought
值得想想的事
about to
即将 / 马上就要
put aside
先把某事搁一边
non-player character
非玩家角色
of course
当然(反话)
found the button
找到那个按钮
Golden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“His whole world's about to end.”
他的整个世界马上就要完了。
about to 把删档说成下一秒的末日,短、狠、不解释。
sb's world is about to end
提醒别人眼前的生活、项目或关系马上要崩时用。
Everything he knows is about to disappear. / Her whole plan is about to collapse.
neutral
about to 弱读,end 落重音
“I'm just this idiot who's in the background?”
我只是个待在背景里的傻瓜?
用 idiot 和 background 把身份贬成路人,问句里全是心碎。
I'm just X in the background
觉得自己被当透明人、不是主角时的自嘲反问。
So I'm just extra in someone else's story? / I'm only the guy they keep in the background?
informal
just、idiot 重读,问句上扬
“There is no easy way to say this, but this city is a game.”
这话没法说得轻松,但这座城市是个游戏。
先垫一句没有轻松说法,再一刀把世界判成游戏。
no easy way to say this
摊开坏消息、分手或重大真相前的缓冲句。
There's no nice way to put this, but... / I don't know how to say this gently, but...
neutral
easy way 稍顿,but 后放慢
Monologue
One character carrying the scene — shadow the whole passageWe did it. Everything that we wanted to create, it actually happened. Okay? Did you know that the NPCs have private lives? One of the baristas learned how to make a cappuccino through trial and error. I mean, that's really difficult. I can't even do that. I can't even froth my own oat milk in the morning. And the Bombshell character in the game wrote a memoir that's a searing indictment of gender roles, the patriarchy. It's a little preachy in parts but, over all, it's pretty good. Millie, we have to celebrate!
我们成功了。我们想创造的一切,真的实现了。 好吗?你知道吗,那些NPC居然有私生活? 有个咖啡师靠反复试错,自己学会了做卡布奇诺。 我是说,那真的很难。我自己都不会。 我早上连自己的燕麦奶都打不出沫。 还有游戏里那个炸弹美女角色 写了一本回忆录,狠狠控诉 性别角色,还有父权制。 有些地方说教了点,不过整体还不错。 米莉,我们必须庆祝一下!
Wait, hold on a second. Just stop for a second. I wanna make sure that I'm getting this straight. I just wanna fully understand, here. So, I'm fake? The entire world is fake? I'm not even a main character, I'm just this idiot who's in the background?
等等,等一下。先停一停。 我想确认我没理解错。 我只是想彻底搞明白。 所以,我是假的? 整个世界都是假的?我甚至不是主角, 我只是个待在背景里的傻瓜?
Takeaways
What you walk away with- Use about to for something imminent
- Hear trial and error as learning by failing
- Know NPC means non-player character
- Buffer bad news with no easy way
People also search
Questions, then the linesWhat does about to mean in His whole world's about to end?
It means the end is imminent. Keys says Guy's world will vanish when the sequel launches.
How do you translate trial and error here?
Learning by trying and failing. An NPC barista taught herself cappuccino that way.
What does NPC mean in Free Guy?
Non-player character: someone coded as background so real players have more fun.
Is food for thought sarcastic in this scene?
Yes. Keys uses it to needle Millie: Guy the NPC is, like, four years old.
How to translate I'm just this idiot who's in the background?
Guy asks if he is only a fool stuck in the background, not a main character.
