Random TV Show Thoughts

[The Cat]

There's also one where Laura Bailey does a CR ad with Ginny Di as Jesters, but you can't watch that one yet, there's spoiler in it.
This is just a fun spoiler free song​

 

[The Cat]

Once upon a time, they all met in a tavern...​

 

[SirCanSir]

Kind of both. "The Mighty Nein" is an Amazon Prime TV show based on Campaign Arc #2 of the video-streaming TTRPG gaming group Critical Role (where all the players as well as the GM are English voice actors for animation shows, anime shows, and/or computer RPGS/MMOs).

So basically the storyline we're discussing, they are all RPG characters with the storylines streamlined and smoothed out to make a TV show voiced by the same people who played them in the campaign, since they are all VAs.

Jester btw is voiced/played by Laura Bailey, she's been in lots of stuff over the years but I first knew her as Jaina Proudmoore from the MMO World of Warcraft.


Yeah, I am in two different RPGs every week -- tonight is our Pathfinder 2nd ed game (and soon we'll be starting a new campaign in the Exalted RPG), and Friday's is my long running Pathfinder 1st ed game (which is basically AD&D 3.75), we've been playing those characters since 2017 and are now fighting demons and outsiders in the temple of Orcus off-world.

Whether you think it's fun or not depends on the other players + the GM, and whether you like the character you are developing, but the big thing is that computer RPGs are great for solo players, while in TTRPGs it's very much a group creative effort and you get all these other players to "play off" as you develop your own character. It's also more sandboxy than a computer RPG (because pretty much you can try anything, the GM is determining what happening on the fly and can tailor the story as you do things they might not have expected). However, it can feel a bit slower than a computer game, due to turns and multiple people needing to provide input, plus the mechanics are done manually.

I dont know if it is partly my generation, but I always found it more convenient if the interface was set up virtually and provided the options for online or couch co op, that said how ive heard and seen the play shops that provide tabletop to be described and themed, makes them seem pretty interesting. I have friends who host tabletop games online as well but i dont know what kind of platform they are using and whether there are animations and video gamey elements involved. In the past when i used to research all kinds of shiny new indies i had found several applications of DnD online play that were not directly linked to the official organization behind the tabletop. Pretty sure there are games that allow you to build maps, craft pawns, characters, imput scripts etc.

 

[The Cat]

"I'm gonna take you there myself. Fly you to the moon. That's a promise."

 

[Totenkindly]

I dont know if it is partly my generation, but I always found it more convenient if the interface was set up virtually and provided the options for online or couch co op, that said how ive heard and seen the play shops that provide tabletop to be described and themed, makes them seem pretty interesting. I have friends who host tabletop games online as well but i dont know what kind of platform they are using and whether there are animations and video gamey elements involved. In the past when i used to research all kinds of shiny new indies i had found several applications of DnD online play that were not directly linked to the official organization behind the tabletop. Pretty sure there are games that allow you to build maps, craft pawns, characters, imput scripts etc.

there's a lot available nowadays. The old experience was a lot of fun (playing in person) -- you get interaction with people around the table, the whole "thrown-together" snack food sharing, seeing the dice roll, etc, it was like socializing in a lot of ways for people of whom some might have trouble doing regular socialization -- but basically there was a push towards the virtual tabletop when it became viable in the 2010's, and then when COVID hit it almost became a necessity. And after COVID, people just found the convenience of not having to travel (due to busy schedules) important enough to just continue playing virtually. Both of my groups have been virtual ever since COVID took off in March 2020.

I had also done some shorter episodes of virtual table tops in the 2010's. I was on a different forum with people around the world, and we tried a pathfinder game using Roll20. We had people in Europe and I think even someone in Australia, plus myself and another player here in the States. it didn't last long because people are people and interests fluctuate, but yeah we were playing virtually then, with friends we couldn't have played in-person with.

Basically all the prep that goes into table-top with maps and figures and the like needs to be translated to the virtual tabletop -- maps uploaded, tokens created, etc -- so there is still prep work, just a different kind. One advantage of virtual is that you can more easily see auras and blast radii mapped out automatically. And as you say, for more math-intensive games (Pathfinder = "Mathfinder"), you can input calculation scripts for your character to simplify RNG during play. [However, sometimes RNG isn't great on the virtual systems, I've seen Virtuasa roll an inordinate amount of 1's or 20's before in a row.] But everyone does have to have computer access with a voice program (whether it's separate like Discord or built into the virtual TT software) as well as software accessing the web site you're using. My groups use Owlbear and Virtuasa. I think the GM probably pays some kind of access fee for at least the latter, to upload things and plan for sessions, but the players don't pay.

So in-person vs virtual both have benefits and disadvantages, but pretty much nowadays people have the option of what to do.

 

[Totenkindly]

Critical Role founders reveal their favorite characters

"Which of your characters would you play forever if you were limited to one?"

www.polygon.com

I laughed about Beau, since my current character is a shit-talking overly dramatic monk based on Tyrian Callows (RWBY), and it's simply the most fun I've had in a long time.

“Beauregard. I love my badass shit-talking monk,” she says. “The good thing about monks is that your punch is always there. You can always just punch people, and you get a few opportunities at it every turn. So when in doubt, punch a bitch.”

 

[The Cat]

Cyberpunk Edgerunners...you're breaking my heart in all the best worst ways.

 

[SirCanSir]

View attachment 33611
"I'm gonna take you there myself. Fly you to the moon. That's a promise."

Very fitting song. Fun fact, they released the update that fixed most of the bugs in the gsme shortly before the series, CD Project red learned a lot from their marketing fumble in 2020, that was really a case that should be studied for "how to revive a game that every media outlet dunked on for 2 years". I got back and played it again because of that series.

 

[The Cat]

There's always something special to me about True Detective's Season 1.
I wish they'd put Douglas Preston & Lincoln Childe's Penderghast Saga into a decent running series.
Season 1: The Relic
Season 2: Reliquary
Season 3: The Cabinet of Curiosities
Season 4: Still Life with Crows
Season 5: Brimstone
Season 6: Dance of Death
Season 7: The Book of the Dead
There's more but that's probably a good place to stop a series and transition to movies for the rest.​

 

[The Cat]

Yoooo! They brought out Nidas! LOU WILSON!!! Well played Mighty Nein, way to connect the dots.

 

[Totenkindly]

Yoooo! They brought out Nidas! LOU WILSON!!! Well played Mighty Nein, way to connect the dots.

I didn't really know who that guy was but nifty way to work it in.

So e7 -- what a hell of an opening, and leaves no doubt as to how brutal this story will become. Which of course dovetails with Essek's narrative at the end of the episode. Damn.

I kinda like how they split for a bit, only to result in some "new" pairings of characters compared to the earlier episodes. So then we get some crazy moments like Jester and Nott stirring up temple shit (and the infamous Exorcist moment, what a classic!), or Fjord and Beau actually having a real conversation.

Still waiting for my &@#*(!@ Nott backstory, but I think some of the others are developing interestingly. Still want to know what is up with Lucien aka Molly, and also what Fjord's patron wants ultimately.

 

[The Cat]

 

[Totenkindly]

So e8 of Mighty Nein -- mostly just action, although it was funny to see Beau and Jester forced to switch roles and our beloved pugilist in a fancy ball gown.

I did not get the background info I was hoping for in regards to Nott. I guess I'll have to wait another year.

Overall, Vox Machina was a typical TTRPG campaign with all the typical humor.

Mighty Nein is a bit more low-key, more time on character development and backstory, and takes a regular plotting approach. More serious mature tone to the development.

 

[The Cat]

So e8 of Mighty Nein -- mostly just action, although it was funny to see Beau and Jester forced to switch roles and our beloved pugilist in a fancy ball gown.

I did not get the background info I was hoping for in regards to Nott. I guess I'll have to wait another year.

Overall, Vox Machina was a typical TTRPG campaign with all the typical humor.

Mighty Nein is a bit more low-key, more time on character development and backstory, and takes a regular plotting approach. More serious mature tone to the development.

Tracy in the TTRPG version, was so hilarious.

 

[Riva]

I finally finished Better Call Saul. It was good, but not quite as incredible as people make it out to be. Some claim it’s even better than Breaking Bad, but I don’t think it would have been such a hit without the original series.

The main character, Saul, keeps self-sabotaging. At first, it made sense, but after a while it got repetitive and, frankly, a bit cringey. Things only got interesting once the cartel was introduced—at that point, the show basically became a cartel drama.

Lalo Salamanca, one of the main antagonists, felt cartoonish. He single-handedly killed four or more heavily armed, trained assassins with just a knife in a “surprise attack” scenario. He’s often introduced while cooking or fixing something, which became repetitive and clichéd. And, of course, he’s always charming—because of course he is.

 

[Totenkindly]

There's an entire thread for Better Call Saul here.

Better Call Saul (spoilers)

Just opening this thread and noting that this series releases this Sunday, February 8th, on AMC. Looks like they're also doing the "back to back" thing too of releasing the next episode for 24 hours following the current one, before it airs the next week. My FIOS DVR picked up episode #2 airing...

www.typologycentral.com

 

[Totenkindly]

Tracy in the TTRPG version, was so hilarious.

​

Beau is so bad at this shit lol.

 

[The Cat]

And suddenly the character makes perfect sense.​

 

[SensEye]

I've watched a couple of recent Netflix series as I have been a bit bored and reaching a bit for things to watch, so I will mention them just in case they pop up on people's radar.

1) The Abandons - this is a Netflix attempt to horn in on the Yellowstone (and it's prequels) popularity. Set in the late 1800's (I think) it stars Gillian Anderson as the evil capitalist trying to push poor farmers/ranchers off their land to mine silver. Her main nemesis is a plucky Irish widow who has taken in a bunch of strays (teens to young adults - hence the title). Big on girl power this one. It has received pretty poor reviews but I didn't think it was all that bad. Not all that good either, but watchable if you need something to watch and the genre appeals to you. I would give it a 6.5/10 rating.

2) Sunny Nights - a comedy drama starring the guy from Last Man On Earth. He and his sister go to Australia to try and start a spray tan in a can business. A major part of his motivation is to try and win back his wife who moved down there and the sister is kind of a lifelong wild woman who has never accomplished anything. They run afoul of some low level criminal thugs (loan sharks/extortionists) and hijinks ensue. Amusing at times, but overall the plot is kind of cheesy. Under realized potential due to mediocre writing. It's one of those, oh we are in deep trouble, wait, we find a way out, oh wait, a curveball gets us back in deep trouble, and the cycle repeats several times. Just barely watchable, maybe a 6/10. It ends foreshadowing a season 2, not sure if it will get one.

Also, Spartacus has a sequel in case you missed it. It's an alternate reality where apparently Asher (yeah, I couldn't remember him either) stabbed Spartacus in the back and was granted ownership of the gladiator school from the original series. If you liked the first one (I did) you'll like this one. The school has lost much status and Asher is eager to gain it back wit h a black female champion (wokeism lives!). It has the same vibe of Roman politics and gratuitous violence as the original series.

 

[Totenkindly]

Rhea Seehorn got a Best Actress Golden Globe for Pluribus. So happy for her, after she often wasn't even nominated for BCS stuff.

Also Adolescence swept three Best Acting awards for its category (the father, the son, and the psychologist roles). There was pretty nuanced, amazing acting going on in that show and I'm glad it was recognized.