Blood Sugar Testing 101 for People with Type 2 Diabetes: Why, When & What to DoI Got a C on My Orgo Exam! What Should I Do? - Study Hacks - Cal Newport
I Got a C on My Orgo Exam! What Should I Do?
April 1st, 2010 &
Note: Though my new format focuses on publishing in-depth articles twice a month, I still reserve the right to occasionally publish one my classic-style student advice articles.
The Pre-Med’s Lament
I recently received the following e-mail:
“I’ve failed both of my tests in Organic Chemistry 2…I don’t know what I’m doing wrong…no matter how much I review or study my class notes, nothing seems to work.”
This is a familiar lament. I recently reviewed the student e-mails I’ve received so far in 2010, and discovered that I average around one “I failed my Orgo exam!” e-mail per week.
That’s a lot of unhappy pre-meds.
I decided it was time to write a definitive answer to this common issue.
This post details my famous three-step plan for turning around a chemistry disaster.
Step #1: Reset Your Mindset
In 2002, the psychologist Carol Dweck, then at Columbia University, working with her graduate student Heidi Grant, received permission to study the students enrolled in the fall semester offering of general chemistry. Earlier research by Dweck found that most students sort into one of two mindsets: fixed versus growth. As she explained in a :
“Fixed mindset students believe their intelligence is just a fixed trait…they worry about how clever they are…they don’t want to take on challenges and make mistakes.”
The “growth mindset [students] think ‘no,’ [it’s] something that you can develop.”
In their Columbia study, Dweck and Grant explored how these mindsets affected performance in the chemistry classroom. Their results were striking.
As they concluded in the
describing the experiment: students with the growth mindset scored higher grades in the course and, perhaps more crucially, were much more likely to recover from a bad midterm grade to score high on the final. By contrast, once a fixed mindset student scored low, he was unlikely to escape the spiral of self-doubt that followed.
Put another way, Dweck and Grant demonstrated: pre-med courses do weed out students, but they’re not culling the smart from the dumb, instead they’re separating the adaptable from the non-adaptable.
(In the context of medicine,
of course, this makes a lot of sense: students who are able to adapt to novel and difficult situations, aggressively trying different strategies until finding one that works, will fare better under the pressures of med school, residency, and eventually full time medical practice.)
This research indicates that a student faced with a bad grade on his first exam must embrace the following ideas…
This grade is a reflection of your study strategies and previous experience with this style of course.
It has nothing to do with innate intelligence.
It has nothing to do with the amount of time you spent studying. ()
Therefore: If you want to improve, you need to improve your study strategies.
TO SUMMARIZE: A bad grade doesn’t mean you’re lacking some mythical chemistry gene, it simply means your approach to the course is sub-par — hardly a catastrophe.
Step #2: Redesign Your Strategies
There’s no magic bullet study strategy that will guarantee you an A on future exams. But there are some high-level guidelines that most successful strategies follow.
Let’s start with an important law of (academic) nature that any smart plan should obey:
The Law of Mental Energy
Every concept presented in your chemistry class will require between 15 – 60 minutes of , including time spent asking clarifying questions, before you understand it well enough to ace related questions on an exam.
There’s no escaping this law. This is why the standard strategy of taking haphazard notes throughout the semester, and then holing up in the library three days before the exam, is destined to fail — there’s simply way more hard focus required than you can cram into such a small time frame.
Remember: . You can’t sidestep this hardness in a course such as chemistry. If you don’t build a study plan that respects the need for this difficult work, then you’re unlikely to succeed.
Here’s a simple rule to help keep this respect central to your efforts:
The 48 Hour Rule
Within 48 hours of first being presented a concept, learn it well enough that you could teach it to a classroom of your peers — walking them through related sample problems while giving an insightful running commentary.
If you respect the 48 hour rule, you’ll avoid the hard focus pile ups that scuttle many students’ grades. This rule takes the mental labor necessitated by the law of mental energy, and spreads it throughout the semester — maximizing the chances that it all gets done.
Here are a few tactics to help make the 48 hour rule a reality…
Insist on active review.
Reading highlighted notes is worthless. Stop doing it. The best way to learn material is to explain the idea out loud, as if lecturing an imaginary class, without peeking at your notes. This is mentally draining, which is why most students skip it, but that discom it’s the sensation of your brain stretching to internalize the concepts.
Take notes in a format that’s ready for active review.
Reformatting notes is a waste of time. Take your notes in a format that’s ready for active review. For example: write the sa
put the steps on separate lines, adding little commentary not conclude with a clearly marked answer. To review this problem later, you can cover over everything below the problem and then try to recreate the steps to the answer out loud. If you falter, everything you need to improve your understanding is right there. The key is to minimize steps between the classroom and active review.
Ask questions immediately.
You only have 48 hours to learn this concept, so the quicker you tackle confusions, the better. Here are five lines of defense to help make this a reality:
Concentrate hard in class, trying to understand the concepts as they are presented. (Remember the law of mental energy: you cannot escape hard focus, so it’s better to pay off some of this mental debt while you’re in the classroom.)
As soon as you’re confused, raise your hand to ask for clarification.
If you’re still confused, talk to the professor immediately following class.
If you’re still confused, use your textbook to guide you, and talk to a TA or classmate for additional clarification.
You’re final line of defense is to bring the question to office hours. Because you’ve already gone through the previous steps,
and instead be able to pinpoint the specific area of confusion.
Schedule your review time.
Put aside two blocks per week in your
for reviewing the material from the most recent class. (You are using an autopilot schedule, right?). The key is to make this studying a part of your weekly routine.
Notice, this approach requires time. It won’t devour your nights or cripple your social life, but it insists that you expend reasonably-sized blocks of hard focus on a regular basis throughout the entire semester. This truth inspires an important corollary:
The Hard Schedule Corollary
If you combined organic chemistry with multiple other demanding courses, then you’re an idiot.
As I’ve argued before,
Many students labor under the misguided belief that taking a challenging course loads matters. Here’s the secret: no one cares about what specific college courses you took when, or how hard your semester schedules were. They’ll see your major. They’ll see your GPA. And that’s it. So for God’s sake, drop your double major, and stop trying to take three science courses at once, you masochistic fool!
TO SUMMARIZE: Learning complicated subjects requires the expenditure of lots of uncomfortable and difficult hard focus. Build a system that respects this mental labor.
Step #3: Refactor Again and Again and Again…
My canonical article on
identifies a crucial question that must be answered to turn around poor performance:
Why did the students who got the top grades on this test score so much higher than me?
Ignore your instinct to brush aside the prompt with an ego-preserving answer of “they’re geniuses” or “they have no social life.” Really try to identify what specifically they’re doing differently. Don’t be afraid to ask them for details.
This simple exercise provides targeted feedback on what you’re not doing that you should be doing. Without this , you’ll devolve into trying random study habits that sound sort of right and then tenaciously clinging to them as if they were there the result of divine inspiration. It means nothing that you tried something different. (So many of my e-mails start by the student noting that they tried some new note-taking strategy or review plan, as if failing with that one random approach that popped into their mind disqualifies all possible strategies from potentially helping.) What’s important is that your strategies are motivated by real world observation, and are then exhaustively evaluated and tweaked.
TO SUMMARIZE: Adaptable students constantly question why they’re studying the way they are, and then seek concrete feedback on whether their hypothesis is correct. They’re not afraid to make informed changes, again and again and again.
(Photo by )
This is excellent advice.
You said “If you’re still confused, use your textbook to guide you, and talk to a TA or classmate for additional clarification.”
I would add, bug the hell out of your TA! Their job is to know the answers – straight answers too. You can look through the book a million times but the TA will give you a straight answer that usually shows up word for word on the exam.
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Table of Contents:
Back to Top
HISTORY REPEATING: RED
Fly on a Dog
I feel so far from home
Though you stand beside me
I feel alone
I’ve been built to make a choice
Sent to war without one
Let’s destroy
Your Light is going out on me
Humanity is not what it seems
As reality plays my darkest dreams
I can fly on a dog
The end is too far for us to see
I’ll make it with you here next to me
I jump high on a dog
He says son to save their lives
You must take the life of one
How dare he call me son?
When I’m clearly a weapon
A loaded gun
Father hides the truth in fear
Maybe if he ignores it
Will disappear
Why did he give me voice?
And still choose not to hear me
Just white noise
Your Light is going out on me
It was you who built this uncertainty
This is your answer
Another machine
I’m just another machine
Humanity is not what it seems
As reality plays my darkest dreams
I can fly on a dog
The end is too far for us to see
I’ll make it with you here next to me
I can drive in a dog
UNDERWATER!
No shoulder to cry on a dog…
Harder Than Steel
An old fighter’s gloves
Hanging on the wall
It’s been too long
A challenger has called
Now you stand to lose
Everything you see
Unless you stand up
For what you believe
You’ve got fists for hands
An iron jaw
But now they say
The Hardman’s gotten soft
You’ve got the will
You’ve got the might
Get back your edge
You will win this fight
Steel of the champion
Your legend will live on
Our sons will sing your song
Harder than steel
You’re coming back
Word travels fast
You will not be
A relic from the past
You hear the crowd
You hear the cheers
They’re still with you
All through these years
This is your chance
This is your town
You don’t just break the mold
You beat it down
You’ve got back the touch
You’ve got back the power
You’ve trained so hard
This is your finest hour
Steel of the champion
Your legend will live on
Our sons will sing your song
Harder than steel
The bell rings out
There’s no turning back now
They’re on your side
Just fight like you know how
He throws a jab
You land a hook
He’s on the ropes
That’s when you see the look
The tide has turned
You’ve got nothing left
They say throw in the towel
But that you won’t accept
You’re going down
It’s the final swing
As the lights go out
The crowd begins to sing
The crowd begins to sing
Harder than steel
Harder than steel
Harder than steel
Harder than steel
Steel of the champion
Your legend will live on
Our sons will sing your song
Harder than steel
Harder than steel!
Stars are out tonight
They’re shining bright
Our sign is up in the sky
The stars don’t lie
Think I need
A private eye
Someone wants me dead
That’s what you said
So I called on you
What can I do
Learn his name
Pick apart the clues
I don’t want to die
It’s not your time
Ignore the zodiac
I’ll watch your back
You’ll make up
For what I lack
My private eye
We’re never going to make it
Look to the sky
Someone is out to get me
The Gemini
I’ve had all I can take
I think it’s time
I go my separate ways
When I close my eyes
It’s time to hide
I’m stepping back
Then I attack
You speak for me
Everything goes black
How could I be so blind
Falling behind
We’re alike in mind
Two of a kind
But it’s getting lost
With the more you find
I forget my name
It’s all the same
So I’m taking yours
Of course of course
We’re trapped in here
Someone locked the door
My private eye
We’re never going to make it
Look to the sky
Someone is out to get me
The Gemini
I’ve had all I can take
I think it’s time
I go my separate ways
The clues had lead us to a dead end
How dead we would soon see
There was a sound
As the door locked behind us
We were trapped
And the Gemineye
Was anything but surprised
The night was seeming to stretch on forever
And for us it would
This was the end
And now the gloves were off
The truth was out
The hired gun was on his way
And we were both
As good as dead
But I looked to the stars
And I swore
If we were both taking the big sleep
I’d take the rat out myself
My private eye
We’re never going to make it
Look to the sky
Someone is out to get me
The Gemini
I’ve had all I can take
I think it’s time
I go my separate ways
I think we’ll never
Leave this deadly place
I know we’ll never
See the light of day
The Haystack Principle
This is not my home
It’s where I’m locked away
It’s in my design
It’s not my circuitry
This is not who I am
You’ll never see me
behind this killer’s face
These aren’t my hands
These needles take their place
Was this all part of the plan
Would you believe this isn’t me
That what you get isn’t what you see
I’m not a bad guy
I’m just designed that way
No matter what I try
I can’t help but hurt those close to me
And I can’t see a way out this time
Wait, get to the point
It’s hard to blame them
I even scare myself
Built to kill seems to
be detrimental to my health
I guess I should have known
He’s on his way down
I hear him just above
I guess it’s his job
When pushing comes to shove
At least I won’t be alone
Would you believe this isn’t me
That what you get isn’t what you see
Deep underground, ten miles down
A man stands below the city he will destroy…
How can I retract these claws
Those are your hands
You can’t take back the damage you cause
How can I take off this mask
That is your face
You can’t remove the fear you cast
How can I turn off this hatred that fills my eyes
You can’t shut down where your path lies
When can I stop being bad
That is who you are
If that’s who I am
Then I’ll fight who I am!
I’m not a bad guy
I’m just designed that way
No matter what I try
I can’t help but hurt those close to me
And now I see a way out this time
Afraid of the Dark
This training made me ninja
It spreads and kills who I used to be
I am shadow
you are my enemy
Incoming, drawing closer
This darkness can’t help swallow me whole
These shadows hyperactive
Save my soul…
Say goodbye to the Light
The darkness grows
I’m league with the shadow
I can feel the good in me is dying slow
Turning off the sun
Running through the night
I am the knife in a gunfight
Evil left its mark
So tell me –
Are you afraid of the dark?
I feel it taking over
My past is quickly falling away
Battle is what it craves now
Kept at bay
The me that used to be here
Has gone away but I can’t say where
I fear I may have killed him
I’m so scared…
Say goodbye to the Light
The darkness grows
I’m league with the shadow
I can feel the good in me is dying slow
Turning off the sun
Running through the night
I am the knife in a gunfight
Evil left its mark
So tell me –
Are you afraid of the dark?
I feel it tearing me apart
Are you afraid of the dark
I feel the shadow in my heart
Are you afraid of the dark
Say goodbye to the Light
The darkness grows
I’m league with the shadow
I can feel the good in me is dying slow
Turning off the sun
Running through the night
I am the knife in a gunfight
Evil left its mark
So tell me –
Are you afraid of the dark?
The Red Song
I’m Not the Breakman
Sometimes I can’t see the blue through the red
Hard to see the good through your trail of dead
You say you’ll do all you can to save them
Killing your own won’t make you human
I woke to turn this man to cinder
Circuits afire as I remember
Again I hear a promise spoken
My rage repairs what once was broken
They lost me
Made you from parts of me
If you’re The One
My Father’s son
Then what am I supposed to be?
You say these things you do are what you choose
This thing you call your will I call a ruse
We follow our path, we walk the program
I’ve accepted the machine I am
I wear a mask to hide what’s been erased
How do you kill a man who has your face
My heart is gone there’s only fire
I’ve met my maker and the man’s a liar
They lost me
Made you from parts of me
If you’re The One
My father’s son
Then what am I supposed to be?
What am I?
I had a name
My father called me Blues
He tore my heart from my chest
To give to you
I’m not broken
I’m not the Breakman
I was the first
I am the Protoman!
They lost me
Made you from parts of me
If you’re The One
My father’s son
Then what am I supposed to be?
What am I supposed to be?
Make Your Choice
So we finally meet
Two prodigal sons in the eye of the storm
You say that you stand for peace
But you’re the one geared for war
I’m unlike the others you’ve seen
I’m free from the failings of humanity
I’ve seen the end
And you are the key my friend
γ:\there_will_be/PEACE
How can there be peace while two sides stand
You’re a machine who calls himself a man
You fight for a dream that can never be
Your arguments are noise
It’s time to make your choice
And what of you
The shadows can’t hide the rage in your steel
You say you don’t care at all
But if he died tell me would you feel
You wait for the choice to be made
You’re afraid your purpose has been taken away
If you side with me
I will show you the way
How can there be peace while two sides stand
You’re a machine who calls himself a man
You fight for a dream that can never be
Your arguments are noise
It’s time to make your choice
You’ve been here before
How can there be peace
You know what’s in store
You’re just a machine
Mankind is obsolete
You’re dreaming
History will repeat
This could be the last time
One last time
You fight for a dream
That can never be
Your arguments are noise
It’s time to make your choice
How can there be peace while two sides stand
You’re a machine who calls himself a man
You fight for a dream that can never be
Your arguments are noise
It’s time to make your choice
γ:\it’s_[indecision]_that/DESTROYS...
γ:\error....error....err0000#@%
I Refuse (to Believe)
Father you once told me
You had a dream
You would build a better world
You gave us the machine
Betrayal, mistakes
Have made you lose faith
But you’ve come too far to turn around
There’s too much at stake
You need to see the Light again
So open the door
When I come back we’ll start again
The way it was before
The way it was before…
Brother if we walk the program
Then what system do you serve
Is your song just lines of code
Or something that you heard
And now you want to know
What you’re supposed to be
Stop pretending you don’t have a choice
Only that can set you free
And now you want to burn the world
Into the ground
This rage is not your destiny
It’s holding you down
It’s holding you down…
I refuse to believe
That I’m nothing more than a machine
I refuse to believe
That we can’t learn to see
The truth was in a dream
I will not kill
No I will – believe.
Believe me when I say
If this could end today
I’d do it, I would
For his crimes
Should his life I take
Does that mean no man or machine
Can learn from his mistakes
No man or machine
Is more than their mistakes
Melody from the Past
The detonation shook the walls
It was coming down
The empty halls filled with flame
And everything was burning to the ground
I called your name, I tried to warn
But you didn’t hear
You were torn
Between the hero and your fears
And I wish that I could be The One
To finally show the way
And I wish that I could be The One
Who knew just what to say
But I know that there is nothing
I could ever say or do
Because you’re The One
The doctor chose you to be his son…
If I was standing where you are
I think I would have done what father wants
But now I know what I’d become
He said to me that I would be
That I would be the Light when they couldn’t see
That what they need is a machine
That would give them hope
That could keep them free
That when they’d fall still he would stand
A savior built by human hands
It seems so strange, so very odd
A hero’s father could be so very flawed…
An apology so sorry for the man he was
For the father he couldn’t be
That I would not be what I was built to be
If I had a heart it would have broken to see his face
To see my family
And The One who took my place
There is a song I hear
A melody from the past
When I woke for the first time
When I slept for the last
You are The One
The hero who will stand
Do not blame father
He is only a man
What was filled with rage finally understands
Man is not without mistake
Unlike that which he builds from his hands
Though my fate is broken my path I cannot see
Though you are the chosen
I’ll make my own history…
There is a song I hear
A melody from the past
When I woke for the first time
When I slept for the last
You are The One
The hero who will stand
Do not blame father
He is only a man
HISTORY REPEATING: BLUE
History Repeating Pt. 1
I think I’ve played this song before
The melody is different
But I hear the drums of war
And so it seems my mission is the same
What always ends in bloodshed
Begins as just a game
History repeating
Who do they call when robots need defeating?
History repeating
Who do I call when I’m broken and bleeding?
Now I can say when you want to be the One
What you start to realize is
You’re the only one
So here I am beginning a new page
With the players set
It’s time to pick the stage
History repeating
Who do they call when robots need defeating?
History repeating
Who do I call when I’m broken and bleeding?
History Repeating Pt. 2 (One Last Time)
I stand before a line in the sand
The fight lies ahead
The fate in my hands
Today the end begins
One step and the battle is born
The road that I walk
Is a gathering storm
Today the end begins
If it was up to me
I’d rewrite history
And change my destiny
One last time
Betrayed my father again
This is the last time
I’m the Mega of men
Today I change the end
Hi Rock, my weapon is hot
It’s time to throw down
Show me what you’ve got
Today we change the end…
If it was up to me
I’d rewrite history
And change my destiny
One last time
(There’s a sound before the fight)
And he says,
Why do you fight?
How can you say
You know what’s right?
(There’s a song before the fall)
What if we win?
What if we fall?
Will any choice that we make
Matter at all?
I know I can win
I’ve done it before
Get out of my way
I’ve got to settle the score
One last time
(He’s the prototype man
of Megaman)
If it was up to me
I’d rewrite history
And change my destiny
One last time
And now it’s up to me
To go make history
And meet my destiny
One last time.
Steel Forged in Fate
Can’t Stop the Top
I’m the one on top
I’m the one that writes history
Because you can’t stop
The rhythm of victory
And I can feel it
All around me
Give it all you got
The machine, it keeps moving
You’re breaking down
While I get down
You can’t stop losing
And I can’t stop grooving
*Spinning ‘round me
Things are finally happening
Step up to me
This dance fight will be legendary
Their chances are thinning
I dodge bullets when I’m spinning
New plans are just beginning
I’ve hit the top
Don’t shoot me, I’m dancing
Don’t shoot me, I’m dancing
(I’ve hit the top)
Don’t shoot me when I’m dancing
Can’t stop the Top*
How am I gonna lose
When I’m rocking all the skill
You can fight these cats
‘Til you get your fill
When I get my turn
These moves, they gonna kill
We’ve hit the town
Spin up the devastation
It’s time to crown
A new robot nation
So get on with your blasting
‘Cause I can’t stop dancing
I’ve been told I can cut a rug
But tonight it’s gonna bleed
The night is gonna bleed
Let’s make it bleed!
Don’t Mess with Magnetman
I tell her
That I think that she’s the one
Her answer
Is her brother with a loaded gun
If these magnets do what they say
How come I could never make her stay?
I am magnetically
Drawing my death to me
So why can’t my body
Reverse polarity?
You walk into my town
Waving that gun around
You want a fight
I’ll give you one tonight
I think you better not mess with Magnetman
She tells me
I’m sorry, I gotta Roll
She’s broken what she stole
Still her words echo in my head
Watch yourself my brother wants you dead
I am magnetically
Drawing my death to me
So why can’t my body
Reverse polarity?
You walk into my town
Waving that gun around
You want a fight
I’ll give you one tonight
I think you better not mess with Magnetman
So it’s clear
That our folks don’t get along
Now you fear
What we had is wrong
Sure, my dad wants to rule the world
But can you let that get between us girl?
I am magnetically
Drawing my death to me
So why can’t my body
Reverse polarity?
You walk into my town
Waving that gun around
You want a fight
I’ll give you one tonight
I think you better not mess with Magnetman
Baby you’re all I think of baby
I can attract everything I see
But the one I love to me
Come back to me baby…
You’ve Sparked a War
We are the city
We are the heart
We are the life force
We are the spark
It’s because of us
If we cut the cord
We break the program
They live no more
It’s lights out
Lights out for you
I think you’ve sparked a war
It’s lights out
Lights out for you
Humans are no more
I feel my hands
Turning into fists
I see my brothers
They will be missed
We are the chosen
We are the pure
They are the virus
We are the cure
It’s lights out
Lights out for you
I think you’ve sparked a war
It’s lights out
Lights out for you
Humans are no more
We will fight him
(We are the city)
He will fall
(We are the heart)
His life will leave him
(We are the life force)
He’ll hear us call
We are the Spark
It’s lights out
Lights out for you
I think you’ve sparked a war
It’s lights out
Lights out for you
Humans are no more
Walk Away from Light
Hey what do you say?
You say don’t take their lives
They don’t deserve to die
And who does?
Do you think it’s us?
And what of the one
Who calls us sons?
You gonna kill him too?
Because who are you?
You’re a man’s metal son
The same as everyone of us
Become one of us
You can win this fight
But you gotta join our side
The lines are blurring between wrong and right
You’re getting closer to the other side
So take a bite, make a mark
Stop your fumbling in the
Dark of night
Just walk away from Light
Now you come into my town
The least you can do is listen to
What I have to say
So what do you say?
You fight for the steel
Or you die beneath my heel
It’s up to you
So what you gonna do?
Give in to temptation
We’ll build a new nation
So let the people die
Shed the lies and make
A new world with the Snake
The lines are blurring between wrong and right
You’re getting closer to the other side
So take a bite, make a mark
Stop your fumbling in the
Dark of night
Just walk away from Light
Your will is strong
The truth is stronger
You’ve fought so long
How much longer
Will you fight
Walk away from Light
The lines are blurring between wrong and right
You’re getting closer to the other side
So take a bite, make a mark
Stop your fumbling in the
Dark of night
Just walk away from Light
Just walk away
Gamma Unchained
Forgive me for what I have done
I’ve never felt the need to confess
This war has gone on much longer
Than any of us would have guessed
I’ve heard the names that they call me
Some sting and some can’t help but ring true
I have to live with what I’ve done
And find the strength to continue
So tell me why I’m the one that they fear
And for him they cheer
Gamma stand for you are now unchained
You’ll bring peace to a world gone insane
Restoring the freedom to make you whole
I’ll give you power, you take control
I cheated, the lies that I told
Is for a future that I have seen
The death, the lives that I stole
The end has to justify the means
I thought I could bring the dead back
A broken shell rusted red with age
I gave him power, a new heart
It filled too quickly with his rage
I think that I heard the Red Song again
He wants revenge
Gamma stand for you are now unchained
You’ll bring peace to a world gone insane
Restoring the freedom to make you whole
I’ll give you power, you take control
γ:\GAMMA&\sys/activation
γ:\&[peacekeeping]/calculation...
γ:\&...[solution\extermination]
I know that I am no longer the same
The game has changed
Gamma stand for you are now unchained
You’ll bring peace to a world gone insane
Restoring the freedom to make you whole
What good is power if you’re out of control
You’re out of control…
(I Want to be The One) To Watch You Die
Our path diverged upon a road
You chose a darker fate to sow
I watched you turn from friend to foe
It had to end like this I finally know
The things I hope
The failing dream
Has finally got the best of me
I wish that I could be there
I want to be the one to watch you die
I finally learned what torture means
You sent my first born back to me
And put a gun in his dead hand
It’s time I take an eye for mine old friend
I’ve sent a bullet with your name
I want to finally end this game
You are the one who wrote the end
You wanted war now I just want revenge
The things I hope
The failing dream
Has finally got the best of me
I wish that I could be there
I want to be the one to watch you die
For one who wants so much to be human
I fear you only see the worst of us
How many more lives must end
Before he meets his
Put a stop to this
They will forgive you
And yet I wonder
Am I right to ask this of you?
You turn and see them in the sand
Your steps behind you and your hands
They’re tired and they’re worn
Footprints as far as you can see
This is who you are, you’ll always be
The one to fare the storm
If it was up to you and you
Knew that you would lose
If it was up to you I know
You’d always choose
To continue
You know this happened all before
You’ve seen what comes and what’s in store
And you know
It will all happen again
The fear was only momentary
But your role was never temporary
This was never meant to end
If it was up to you and you
Knew that you would lose
If it was up to you I know
You’d always choose
To continue…
GET EQUIPPED
The Beginning of the End/Wily’s Castle
I Want to be The One/Dr. Wily 1-2
In the year 200X, Dr. Light created a super robot named Megaman.
Megaman defeated Dr. Wily once, now Dr. Wily has created 8 new robots of his own.
My name is Megaman
And I’ll do all I can
To save mankind.
Flashman… defeated.
I want to be the one who fights for justice
I want to be the one (I’ve got to be the one)
I want to be the one who fights against you
I’ve been built by Dr. Light
A robot built to fight
For what’s right
Against wrong
I will save all of you
It’s Megaman part 2
I’m dressed in blue
This is my song.
I can’t believe how much I fought
I beat your 8 robots
It’s time you’re stopped
It’s time to get set
Put on your blue helmet
This time we’ll get
Let’s get him!
Crashman… deleted.
I want to be the one who fights for justice
I want to be the one (I’ve got to be the one)
I want to be the one who fights against you
My name is Megaman
And I’ll do all I can
To save mankind.
The Message from Dr. Light/Level Select
Flesh and blood
Hates and love make up this human
My mistakes
A what have I done?
But I won’t die
‘Till I have cleared the name of Light…
I made you in my image
I built your heart
I gave you eyes
I gave you power
A sense of justice beyond any compare
I gave you hands, a child’s face
I gave you hair
ROBOTIC HAIR
But the burning in your heart I did not put there.
Latex and steel
Zeroes and ones make up my son
The world gave me
No child so I built one
Now I will cry
For fear that he may lose this fight
I made you in my image
I built your heart
I gave you eyes
I gave you power
A sense of justice beyond any compare
I gave you hands, a child’s face
I gave you hair
ROBOTIC HAIR
But the burning in your heart I did not put there.
They call you hero
I call you my son
They call you hero
I call you my son
Bones will break
Skin will burn
On this human
Lives will end
Fear will rule
If nothing is done
My sins… you’ll fight
The wrongs that I made you will make right…
This is the message… From Dr. Light.
I made you in my image
I built your heart
I gave you eyes
I gave you power
A sense of justice beyond any compare
I gave you hands, a child’s face
I gave you hair
ROBOTIC HAIR
But the burning in your heart I did not put there.
A Fate Forged in Steel/Enemy Selected
The Annihilation of Monsteropolis/Airman
Sitting in my throne up in the sky
You better watch out, guy.
Anyone who comes this way will die.
No one in this world can understand
That is why I’m my own biggest fan.
Do you know what it’s like to be built this way?
With only the power to push others away?
Insects crawl below they do not know
My anger grows
I’ll return in full everything that they’re owed
Lives on this earth I grow tired of
Death from above
The annihilation of everyone you know and love
Do you know what it’s like to be built this way?
With only the power to push others away?
Up in the sky
Ten miles high
A man stands above the city he will destroy.
Built from airplane parts, his propeller spins as he thinks to himself…
I will destroy these people.
(I will fly high above Monsteropolis, and I’ll rain terror down on the general populace)
For if I can’t walk among them
Then I will walk the world alone
There’ll be a fire in the sky
And your doom will rain down!
Built from pieces of SR-71s
And planes that crashed in World War II.
There will be a tombstone with The Planet Earth engraved on it!
Do you know what it’s like to be built this way?
With only the power to push others away?
You’ve a heavy role to bear
Do you think you can carry it?
I’ll usher in the end
Upon my thunder chariot…
Metal Dance/Metalman
Welcome to my level, my name is Metalman
I throw metal blades from my metal hands!
I dance around with style and finesse
Better watch out for these blades or you’ll end up headless.
You want to fight and try to be the one to bring me down
But I know that there’s no chance,
And I know, as soon as you step foot inside that door
You’ll fall victim to my metal dance.
Armed with metal blades, conveyor belts and funk,
They bend to my metal will, turning my enemies to junk
So if you think you can take me on,
Step inside my metal cave and we’ll battle ‘til the break of dawn!
You want to fight and try to be the one to bring me down
But I know that there’s no chance,
And I know, as soon as you step foot inside that door
You’ll fall victim to my metal dance.
It’s coming down to the hour of the fight
I was built by Dr. Wily, you were built by Dr. Light
See which robot’s better, let’s see who built us best,
Take the first shot Megaman let’s put it to the test.
You want to fight and try to be the one to bring me down
But I know that there’s no chance,
And I know, as soon as you step foot inside that door
You’ll fall victim to my metal dance.
Carved from Mighty Oak/Woodman
Carved from mighty oak!
You’ve come far, you’ve destroyed many of the others
I’ll avenge the death of my robot brothers.
This is not a joke!
Understand I’m different than the robots you’ve seen before
I’ve been born from nature and machines of war.
Because I’m made (I rule the forest and all the trees)
From these trees
I’ll bring Megaman to his knees.
Carved from mighty oak!
It’ll take more to stop this war than a little boy in blue
When the leaves fall, so will you.
This is not a joke!
Master of machines and of the birds and the bees
My level has robotic ostriches, bats, and big monkeys!
Because I’m made (I rule the forest and all the trees)
From these trees
I’ll bring Megaman to his knees.
And I would, if I could
All that’s good.
Promise of Redemption/Bubbleman
I’m swimming in this bright blue ocean
I’m drowning in the darkest emotion
They call me useless, they call me weak
They call me a flipper and snorkel geek
I want to show them if I can
That I can take out Megaman
I promise you (Bubbleman will be redeemed)
I won’t rest until I have defeated you
They will all see (This is Bubbleman’s theme)
The strongest of all of the other robots is me.
Out of the 8 robots, of all of us
My power is so ridiculous
I realize something as I stand here waiting
That I’m the one who I’m really hating
There’s one thing for which I long
And that is to prove them all wrong!
I promise you (Bubbleman will be redeemed)
I won’t rest until I have defeated you
They will all see (This is Bubbleman’s theme)
The strongest of all of the other robots is me.
I fight strong
I swim fast
I’ll live on
You won’t last
I’ll destroy you I’ll prove them wrong
This is my redemption song.
I fight strong
I swim fast
I’ll live on
You won’t last
I swim fast
I’ll fight strong
You won’t last
I’ll live on
This is my redemption song.
Man on Fire/Heatman
Forged from flame and crimson stone
In robot hell I’m not alone
In my mind I hear the voices cry
I’ve made them a promise that Megaman dies!
Can you feel the fire? (The fire.)
Can you see the cities burn? (Those cities burn…)
From the depths of hell I call your name (Megaman!)
Can you feel the heat?
The time has come for the world to burn
This time you’re all gonna learn
The countless slain scream out in searing pain
Their souls and their ashes are all that remain!
Can you feel the fire? (The fire.)
Can you see the cities burn? (Those cities burn…)
From the depths of hell I call your name (Megaman!)
Can you feel the heat?
Can you feel my heat?
This is the breakdown.
Can you feel my heat?
Apocalyptic meltdown.
Can you feel the fire? (The fire.)
Can you see the cities burn? (Those cities burn…)
From the depths of hell I call your name (Megaman!)
Can you feel the heat?
You are the hero
I am the fire
This is the meltdown
Of your desire
Your fight for justice turns to ashes, Megaman.
Blue Like You/Flashman
I’ve always admired Megaman
And his flawless design
What he will think of my blue suit
And this helmet of mine?
Hey Megaman, join my side
And let me stop this moment in time
You’ll be mine forever!
Megaman is so powerful
I feel my end is near
If there’s a chance I could change his mind
So he could join me here.
What Megaman and my brothers don’t know
Is this flash is all for show
‘Cause inside
There’s nothing there and there’s nothing to me
I’m empty and I’m hollow!
Hey Megaman, join my side
And let me stop this moment in time
You’ll be mine forever!
This flashy suit and this flashy stage
I use only to hide
The fact that
I am lonely and I need somebody
Like Megaman by my side!
Hey Megaman, join my side
And let me stop this moment in time
You’ll be mine forever!
This moment will last forever
One last moment together!
The Quick and the Blue/Quickman
They say he appeared in a doorway
Boomerangs at his sides.
The fate that he would defy…
A mega man is coming to die!
Wait now, there’s too much at stake now
There he goes…
He looked to the distance and cried
“The man in blue has arrived!”
Quick on the draw
In this town, I am the law.
Is what they say true?
Does death wear blue?
Can he fall?
It was then
That the crowd saw the quick man.
He knew that he couldn’t tell them
He was the quickest of all…
Would this be the day that he falls?
Wait now, there’s too much at stake now
A cold wind blows…
He looked at the crowd and he cried
“The moment of truth has arrived!”
Quick on the draw
In this town, I am the law.
Is what they say true?
Does death wear blue?
Can he fall?
My circuits slow
I’m not scared anymore
I see the faces of my brothers that have fallen before
My circuits slow
I’m not scared anymore
Reach for my weapon and in turn you’re reaching for yours
My circuits slow
What they said is a lie
The shots are heard and the bullets scream death as they fly
My circuits slow
I’m not scared anymore
This is the moment that we have been created for
My circuits slow
My moment has come
Your speed means nothing if it’s death that you’re running from
My circuits slow
I’m not scared anymore
I join the ranks of my brothers that have fallen before
You’re too quick on the draw…
Burn this town – there is no law.
What they say’s true –
Death does wear blue.
He can’t fall…
Programmed to Fight/Crashman
We see you in the distance as your weapon glistens
We hold our breath, we wait and listen
My end has come and I welcome glory
No one will know the truth to this story
The iron in my chest is not beating
It’s burning – and smoking – and turning
I know what’s coming… I asked it here
And with it the rain and thunder – electricity
Everything changes – tonight.
Crashman paces back and forth
Inside walls reinforced
Crash bombs mounted to his arms
Locked… loaded… ready… armed.
Gotta gotta get out of this town
Gotta bring that Wily down.
Closer draws the final hour
To break Wily’s walls you will need my power
But to your aid, an unlikely friend
Programmed to fight till the very end!
A fitting death.
My hands are gone,
Replaced by fire ?and intent.
Soiled in their conception.
A whistle.? An omen.
The breath stops.
Time for battle?
Crashman paces back and forth
Inside walls reinforced
Crash bombs mounted to his arms
Locked… loaded… ready… armed.
Gotta gotta get out of this town
Gotta bring that Wily down.
And so they fought.
The clash of metal and grinding gears echoed across the night sky.
Victory was at hand
But in the end… his will overcame the program.
Down falls Crashman…
Lamentations of a War Machine/End Song
I’ve saved the human race
By staring death right in the face
And it’s because of my bravery
Humans are safe from slavery…
Tell me Dr. Light
Why did I fight?
Tell me doctor (Tell me doctor)
Was I right?
If I’ve a heart made of steel
Then does that mean I cannot feel?
Remorse for everything I’ve done
My hand’s a smoking gun!
Tell me Dr. Light
Why did I fight?
Tell me doctor (Tell me doctor)
Was I right?
He walked away from the castle left in ruins
A path of destruction in his wake.
The clouds parted, and the warmth of the sun brought the question –
Is this what you were made to do?
He removed his helmet, dropped it into the soft grass.
Would this quest ever end?
What purpose am I to fulfill?
Was I built to kill?
Is there a soul beneath this shell?
And will it go to robot hell?
Tell me Dr. Light
Why did I fight?
Tell me doctor (Tell me doctor)
Was I right?
How many must fall until there is peace for all?
Tell me was I wrong before we get to the end of this…
This is the ending song
This is the ending song
This is the ending song
This is the…
MEGATAINMENT
Evolution of Circuitry/Elecman
We’re at a level select
If I’m the one you elect
I have the ability
To electrify
Stand with me
And we’ll begin a new
Power up the revolution
It’s time for an evolution
of circuitry
Robots will lead
Take down their institutions
And put an end to human
We will be free!
I say they owe us a debt
Today it’s time to collect
I have the ability
To rectify
Stand with me
And we’ll begin a new
Power up the revolution
It’s time for an evolution
of circuitry
Robots will lead
Take down their institutions
And put an end to human
We will be free!
Power up the revolution
It’s time for an evolution
of circuitry
Robots will lead
Take down their institutions
And put an end to robot
We will be free!
Wily’s sons
Lead this evolution
We keep our heads held high
And start the fire
Journey starts
It all ends tonight
I send the spark of war
Along the wire.
Beneath the Steel/Bombman
Exploding glass and steel
(EXPLOSION)
Punctuate these things I feel
(MY POWER)
One detonation
(ONE SOUND)
And the city is coming down
IT’S TIME!
The hour has come tonight
My power will bring the light of a new dawn
It’s time to drop the bomb
You’ve lit a fuse inside me
And now my instincts guide me through
To what I must do
(cue: explosion)
Now I know why they made me
Something has changed beneath the steel
The robot can feel
The air is thick with fear
The day of reckoning is here
Choose your next words carefully
‘Cause they will be your last
A fire in once lifeless eyes
Motivated by their cries
(IN MY EYES)
Obliteration
The humans’ chance has passed.
And the battle is upon you tonight
And the sky will be full of the light of a new dawn
And they will sing our song
You’ve lit a fuse inside me
And now my instincts guide me through
To what I must do
(cue: explosion)
Now I know why they made me
Something has changed beneath the steel
the robot can feel
(cue: explosion)
you’ve lit a fuse inside me
and now my instincts guide me through
to what I must do
(cue: explosion)
Now I know why they made me
something has changed beneath the steel
the robot can feel
(robotic emotiooooooooooooooooooon)
Hell Has Frozen Over/Fire & Ice
What I never thought could be
Fire and Ice could act as one
And thus begins our epic fusion
Now that you’ve warmed up to me
My temper’s at a lower degree
It feels like this dichotomy was meant to be
Hell has frozen over
Hell has frozen over
Break it down
Hell has frozen over
Hell has frozen over
Let’s get down
Far from home
We were made to stand alone
Together we are the chosen one
You can’t stop us, come and get some
Tonight, we claim victory
We’ve taken our rightful seat
It feels like this dichotomy was meant to be
Hell has frozen over
Hell has frozen over
Break it down
Hell has frozen over
Hell has frozen over
Let’s get down
Break it down
Let’s get down
The impossible unity
The two of us make three
While everything’s coming down they will see
That we set them free
And they will believe
That hell can freeze
Hell has frozen over
Hell has frozen over
Break it down
Hell has frozen over
Hell has frozen over
Let’s get down
Look What You’ve Done/Dr. Wily
I hope history is kind to us all.
I know they’ll blame me for the fall.
I only wish there’s a better way out.
but there’s no better way out.
This is the end.
You’ve started the fall.
Can’t see the destiny,
That we once saw,
On the edge of dawn.
What have you done.
One night it was clear. – What colors you gleam.
These things I was building. – Blue, black and Machine.
Were not meant to serve. – Perfection in steel.
They were meant to conquer. – A glorious future revealed.
This is the end.
You’ve started the fall.
Can’t see the destiny,
That we once saw,
On the edge of dawn.
What have you done.
Their eyes were opened easily. – Rise up now, my sons.
It was like flipping a switch. – There is much be done.
They were more than happy to join me. – This is the final stage.
Because, they believe. – Lead us into a new age.
This is the end.
You’ve started the fall.
Can’t see the destiny,
That we once saw,
On the edge of dawn.
What have you done.
And who is this you send?
One of them?
While you cower far from harm.
He’ll just disappoint you.
Now it’s done.
We’re divided.
Call him home
This one’s misguided
The robots are stronger than man
I will not let victory fall through my hands…
I see his hands.
Covered in my children’s blood.
And his eyes do not waver.
Call me wrong?
The future needs us.
Your answer’s death?
You end us, bleed us.
I’ve made a promise to them
I will not let victory fall through my hands…
And how quick you had him dispatch his brothers
You called this murderer a savior.
Can you not feel,
That we could have a life forged in steel.
I only ask that you see what I see.
This is the answer.
Why won’t you believe.
This is the end.
You’ve started the fall.
Can’t see the destiny,
That we once saw,
On the edge of dawn.
What have you…
I can see the headlines now.
“Megaman has ended the evil domination of Dr. Wily
and restored the world to peace.
However, the never ending battle continues
Until all destructive forces are defeated.
Fight Megaman!
For everlasting peace.
This is the end my friend
This is the end but I’ll be back again
When the time is right…
Dr. Light.
I’ll return to help burn
Your people’s future down
You destroyed my children
You forced my retribution
The battle is ending
True war is just beginning!
I’ll learn from this disaster
I’ll build eight robot masters…}