#because Liam was absent from the last episode

[topaz-mutiny]

*sighs* it's Missing Orym Hours

[rosypenguins]

My last post didn’t do my thoughts justice. I have more to say regarding this.

First, I have to talk about this boy’s insecurities. Because my god does he have them. His egotistical and cocky attitude? It’s all a front.

Because whenever we see him brag about himself, it’s usually either about his money, his possessions, or his achievements. He never brags about his own qualities. Likely because he doesn’t view himself as anything worthwhile.

It is also confirmed Drew has issues at home, and just based on his controlling attitude and his atrocious comforting skills (“Whoever recorded you did you a favor.” DREW NO-) I believe his parents are either absent entirely or neglectful as hell. (They probably shoved a credit card in his face every time he cried.)

Anyways, this is all to say that Drew doesn’t really find happiness in himself or his family. So who does he turn to for emotional stability? His friends.

And when TMF started, Drew was at his high point. He was confident in his friendships, and had a sense of security, which is why he had the motivation to dress nicely. He felt good, so he wanted to look good.

But in episode five, his outfit changes. And the first thing we see him do is talk about how Zoey’s been acting odd. And only a minute or so later, he accuses Jake of preferring the company of others over him.

This interaction immediately shows Drew’s growing insecurities regarding his relationships, and as mentioned previously, without these relationships, he essentially has nothing. When Drew’s relationships feel unstable, he feels unstable. And he loses that motivation to put himself together, instead opting for something he can feel comfortable in.

As the series progresses, we don’t see too much of Drew and Zoey’s relationship, but it doesn’t exactly seem like it’s functioning well. Zoey seems more interested in spending time with Lia, and anytime Drew’s with them, he seems bored out of his mind.

I also believe Drew knows he’ll never be as close to Henry and Liam as they are to each other. Even though they’re all friends, we mostly see Liam and Henry stick to one another, and I’d imagine it’d leave Drew feeling almost like a third wheel. Especially knowing Liam and Henry went to middle school together, while Drew didn’t. (Due to the fact Henry didn’t recognize Hailey in the comic episode, meaning he didn’t go to middle school with her, and by extension, Drew.)

The relationship that seems to mean the most to Drew is his and Jake’s. Jake’s his best friend. Jake’s the one he sits next to in class. The one he whispers to and gossips with. The one he partners with for assignments. The one he’s the most protective of. It’s obvious that this relationship is the one that means the most to him. The one that gives him the most security. And from this point onwards, we see this relationship crumble. Jake continues to avoid him, and the more possessive Drew becomes, the further it pushes Jake away.

And I find it interesting how Drew is almost unable to fathom Jake leaving him for someone else. Specifically, for someone they both bullied. Instead of questioning Jake, or even himself, he villainizes the Music Club. He doesn’t want to believe Jake would leave on his own, and instead comes to the conclusion Jake is being manipulated. Until, of course, Jake accuses him of the recording and fails to apologize even AFTER finding out Drew was innocent. (Jake why?)

And after everything, Drew breaks things off with Zoey, and cuts Jake out of his life. Two people he thought he could trust, gone.

TLDR: Drew is co-dependent on his friends and his clothing reflects how slowly but surely, both his relationships and his own mental state crumble, until he’s left with nothing.

[aspiringsophrosyne]

A Sailor And a Gentleman: Critical Role Campaign 2 And The Misguided Urge to Run.

I'm planning on some in-depth Campaign 2 talk in anticipation of the animated series, but you can only do it in pieces.

Because Campaign 2 of Critical Role, three quarters by accident and a quarter by design, is a beautifully and surprisingly thematically consistent story.

For now, let's look at one of the themes that comes up consistently throughout the Mighty Nein's story that's easy to miss. And that is members of the Nein being tempted to or preparing to run from the group despite either wanting to stay or it being worse for them if they leave.

Spoilers for all of Campaign 2 abound.

Yasha

Now, Yasha is a unique case; she was absent so often mainly due to Ashley's regrettably inconsistent presence at the table. However, intentions are not the focus here. Today we're talking about results. And honestly, how amazing the results became, all considering.

Intentional or not, the theme is more prevalent for Yasha than for some of the others. Before the confrontation at the Cathedral, Yasha flits in and out of the Nein's adventure. She leaves. She comes back. She leaves again. And we can infer that she was also like this when she was with the circus. Molly certainly never seems surprised when she disappears or reappears. But when she's consistently a part of the group, her past is finally confronted and eventually overcome, to the point where she can ultimately start to heal from it. And even fall in love again. 

Caleb

In Caleb's story, this is as prevalent a theme as it is in Yasha's, if not more so. Hobo wizard's ready to run from almost the word go. And given his backstory, that's not surprising. Liam makes it obvious for us at home; shortly before the battle of Glory Run changes everything, Caleb spends his watch talking to himself, trying to psych himself up to leave. Telling himself that no one in the group can help him, and even if opening up to Beau and Nott wasn't a mistake, it won't do anything for him in the long run.

Caleb ultimately decides to stay. Not only that, but it's in traveling with the Nein that he begins to heal, to do good, and to walk towards a kind of redemption. By the end of the story, Caleb is one of the fiercest advocates for the Nein, for the love they have found between themselves, and for their finally becoming nine. And even if it came from a place of practicality (Liam has spoken on Talks Machina about the moment Caleb shared with Essek where the latter was revealed to be a traitor as, if nothing else, an effort to keep a lid on anything that would interfere with the peace talks the Nein were trying to facilitate) Caleb's compassion for Essek inspired him to become a better man than he had been. Which directly leads to his assisting the Nein in saving Exandria.

Beau

In contrast, Beau is less flighty than either Yasha or Caleb and is notably one of the biggest supporters of staying together from the get-go. Her stubborn and unwavering conviction in rescuing Jester, Fjord, and Yasha, alongside her honest and touching eulogy for Mollymauk, goes a long way toward rallying the group to its reunification. She's notable in that, despite her prickly and near-constant cynical attitude, she was one of the few members of the Nein who seemed to enjoy being a part of the group from the start.

Then came her (to quote Matt) asshole dad. And Isharnei.

Even before any other options were brought up with her or considered, Beau offered to walk away from the Nein. She offered to give up the place where she finally felt loved and appreciated: where Beau felt like she belonged. And she did this partially (as Beau makes clear later and Marisha talks about between episodes) because she expected to eventually lose it. Nothing good could last. Because for her, nothing good ever had.

Nott

This is a less obvious and clear-cut case because Nott's abandoning her family was less of a willing choice. She didn't want to leave and always planned to return to her family. Just, hopefully, as herself.

That said, until the Nein were called upon to rescue her husband, Nott was planning to keep her distance. To limit her direct contact with her family for fear of drawing danger to them or being rejected by them. 

Only to discover that her family would've accepted her as she was.

Fjord

Travis has said on the Wrap Up and Talks that Fjord would repeatedly consider running off and unlocking those seals or if Avantika had gotten away with the Cloven Crystal, split from the group to chase after her. Interestingly enough, if he had left for either of those reasons, he would've been the second sailor who left a Lavorre woman named after a corundum, to both his and her detriment. 

Molly

Taliesin has said on Talks that Molly had considered robbing everybody and making a break for it. He was a carnie swindler, after all.

(Although it's interesting to consider deeper character reasons for this. See also: Kingsley stealing a ship the Nein totally would've given him and sailing off into the sunset.) 

And it's not just the Nein. Let's look at Beau's and Jester's dads.

The Gentleman

Jester's father fell in love with the famed Ruby of the Sea and considered himself not good enough for her. To remedy that, he left her, hoping to make himself a better man on the sea. To eventually return, worthy of her affections.

That is, tragically, not how things worked out.

And while Jester's mother and father have reunited and reconciled, it would've saved Jester and her parents a lot of heartache and time if Babenon Dosal had stayed despite his misgivings. If he had, he would've escaped the life of the Gentleman. And not only that, he would've been loved by two damn fine women. He would've gotten to raise his daughter.

Thoreau Lionett

Beau's father's story is eerily similar. Instead of courting Beau's mother as he was, in order to secure her love, he went to Isharnei to seek guidance. And yes, she gave him advice that made him his fortune. But she left him with a prophecy that would lead to years of misery for the rest of his family. If not for him as well. So much of the Lionett family's unhappiness could've been avoided had Thoreau pursued Clara regardless of his status or finances.

And you can even make an argument for Caduceus' family.

The Clays

You could say the Clays' leaving to restore the wood (or at least the way they went about it; individually or in pairs) was a bad idea. Not only did it prove fruitless in the intervening years, and not only did it put them in a position where they could've been destroyed beyond hope of revival, but it left Cad on his own for a decade, with no way of getting help for them or for himself. 

These are just examples off the top of my head, but taking all this together, you could argue that one incidental moral of the Mighty Nein's story is: don't try to handle your trauma alone. Don't try to handle your burdens all by yourself. Don't run off because you think you don't deserve help, you do. People are better and can be better when they work together.

And also the Critical Role table is better when everybody is sitting at it playing together.

[chicanomick]

Ight gonna do a quick little cross over but!

Supernatural season 12 episode 14 when Mary and the boys have a fight and Dean says “How ‘bout for once, you just try to be a mom!”

And Mary says “I am your mother, but I am not "just a mom." And you are not a child. “ and Dean responds “I never was.”

Monica and Fiona vibes.

~*~

Monica comes back into their lives with Liam on her hip. Fiona foolishly thinks that finally, she’s here to stay.

Monica takes odd jobs to help around the house. Fiona quits her babysitter gig and goes back to school. After two months of perfect attendance, Monica forgets she promised Carl and Debby she was going to pick them up from school. 

Another day she isn't there to make breakfast. "I had an early shift," she said that night as she makes dinner.

At least she's home for dinner Fiona thinks, setting the table.

And then the occasional early shift and late shifts turn into them only seeing her when she gets home to sleep. Fiona goes back to forging signatures and ditching her last two periods to run a couple of streets over to pick up the kids on time. She cashes in some favors and is able to get Liam a babysitter for two weeks.

That same day she drops her perfect attendance.

Fiona comes home, stepping over a passed-out Frank on the front porch, and finds Lip smoking a cigarette. She doesn't scold him only because she hears her mother’s choked sobs coming from upstairs.

Monica doesn't leave her bed for two weeks. 

The shortest episode yet, Fiona thinks, holding back her mother's hair as she throws up the first meal she's had in weeks.  She goes back to school per her mother's request.

She hands in her absents note at the front desk and tries not to think about Monica.

The eighth grade seems to last forever.

She skips her last two periods and picks up Debby and Carl from school and Liam from the babysitter who says her two weeks are over.

Two weeks over. Two months over.

She cuts Monica's matted hair.

She makes a fake resume, because 16 is better than 14, and gets a job cleaning tables at a small Mexican restaurant.

She picks up the kids after work, feeds the kids, puts the kids to sleep, and then goes to babysit other people's kids while they go out. Anniversaries, girls' night out, a single dad who gets stood up. She has to lock herself in the kid's bedroom. She doesn't get paid that night.

Three months.

She graduates 8th grade. She drops Debby and Carl off at the public library while Ian babysits Liam. The two oldest Gallagher siblings go to work. Frank and Monica are helpful when it benefits them. Other times they're like two more children Fiona has to care for.

At least both parents are home

Four months.

It takes four months before Monica packs up to leave again.

Fiona yells at her and is tugging the duffel bag full of valuables and clothes out of her mother's hand begging her to stop and stay and “please just try and be a mom!”

Monica loses it and yells back about how she can’t live like this, how Frank is suffocating her and her new lover sees her for who she is. “I am more than just a mom Fiona!”

Fiona silently sobs, to be more than a mom you’d have to be a mom first.

Moving closer to her eldest daughter, Monica tries to hold Fiona’s face in her hands. Fiona is taller than her now, and has pimple scars and bags heavy under her eyes, “You are not a child anymore, Fiona. You can do this so much better than me. For me.” 

Fiona flinches out of her mother's hold. From Monica’s cold hands. She throws the duffel bag on the bed that will probably be empty come morning.

“I never was.”

[myth-carver]

Brief thoughts on c3e1 and the new folks........

Overall: Eh, it was okay. CR has a winning formula with their style of actual play, they're almost always a joy to watch onscreen and that was no different last night, but I came away feeling more like I was watching a oneshot or another ep of ExU rather than the new Critical Role campaign proper. Not super into the new cast and very disappointed that literally half the table is reused people we've seen before -- I enjoyed ExU's cast but that was sold as a separate thing and seeing them here is jarring, especially absent the rest of the Crown Keepers. Between reused characters, all the new permanent changes to the format, not even being 100% certain who in this cast is going to stay or later go at this point... It just kinda feels weird :/ But I'm excited for the Marquet setting and it took me a really long time to warm up to the c2 cast too, and it's early days yet. So I'm willing to have my mind changed, and fortunately for me, I'm more a fan of the cast themselves than any particular characters they've played anyhow. Taking a wait and see approach overall.

Imogen: She seems sweet, I love her character design, I'm very partial to purple hair lmao. Other than that I don't find her that interesting so far but Laura is a good RPer so she'll probably be fun to watch. Maybe she'll be able to join Orym in stewarding the group's brain cell lol.

Laudna: Marisha's doing an accent??????? She sounds amazing and I love the performance. Laudna certainly has a lot of intriguing stuff going on, I enjoy a character with mysteries to dig into. She doesn't inspire me fannishly but I'll look forward to finding out what her deal is. I'm ngl I'm super disappointed that all three of our girls this time are really femme though.

Ashton: Kintsugi earth genasi is an absolutely inspired concept that I hope Taliesin patted himself on the back for a lot because he Earned It. That said, aggressive punk with anger/authority issues is a trope I find super super annoying and he's already rubbing me the wrong way constantly :/ I hate that I'm just not into the only human-adjacent nonbinary character on the main cast, it really sucks. It's also driving me crazy how much the colors of his costume intensely do not match his green and purple and gold body even slightly lmao, it's really unpleasant to look at.

FCG: This is now an FCG hate blog, lol not really but holy shit I hate this character so much, Mr. Riegel I'm literally already tired of your joke character after less than 1 episode idk how I'm going to endure a whole campaign of them. Liam why would you do this to us 😩 a lot of people seem to love them a lot so lmao I'm anticipating for me this is going to be a Caduceus situation where my resentment of the character increases due to never being able to get away from posts about him. I don't want any more robots on my fantasy show, if I wanted robots I'd go watch an actual play of a sci-fi tabletop game instead...

Orym: Best boy from ExU returns, which is cool since I super wanted to know more about him in ExU, but wow does it suck they decided to actively make ExU a worse show by not going into half the cast's backgrounds and leaving it literally an incomplete story to accommodate bringing these cast members into c3. If that was the whole purpose of ExU why not just announce that instead of being coy like this??? The way ExU ended left a really bad taste in my mouth and honestly dampened my interest in seeing more of these characters. That said though, my love for Orym at least somewhat remains and Liam is usually the cast member whose character taste matches my own the most, I look forward to seeing where he takes Orym in the future. Also, if our speculation about his OOC origins during ExU turn out correct, cool to have the first gay male character on the main cast.

Dorian: Other best boy from ExU and a surprise appearance by Robbie! All three of the ExU folks I thought meshed with the CR style amazingly and it's fun to get to see him again. Very curious what dirt FCG apparently seems to have on him. And I wonder when we finally get to learn his real name... 👀

Fearne: I overall don't like Ashley's RP, which I know is ironic because I love Yasha so much lmao. But I feel like Fearne is, of everyone Ashley's played on stream, the character that seems to most match with her personal style and comes most naturally to her, it's fun to see her RP with such confidence. She's really good at invoking the fey vibe, both the sweetness and comedy and the undertone of menace. That said, Fearne's general behavior hammers my secondhand embarrassment squick absolutely like crazy lmao and it's going to be rough to have to watch that for an extended period, I find her frequently almost painful to watch tbh. I'm excited that a fey in the main cast means we'll be seeing Feywild stuff though!!! Maybe even my eladrin warlock's old patron Lady Elmenore 👀

Bertrand: Sorry man I didn't care about you in the oneshots and I still don't lmao, too obnoxious for me. It heavily seems like he's here as a guest though -- I just hope this doesn't herald something weird like Travis finishing his appearance and then bowing out of the cast, please bring a second character when you're done being an NPC Travis don't go away :(

[jazy3]

Thoughts on Grey’s Anatomy: 17X5

SPOILERS AHEAD!

I’m going to go right ahead and say it. This episode felt like a PSA to me, but it was well done. It was emotional and impactful and the storyline about Bailey’s Mom made me tear up, but at the same time the episode felt very stagnant and I feel like the lives of the other characters didn’t really move forward or go anywhere. It felt like they were all standing still. I liked the conversations between Jackson and Richard and Bailey and Maggie about how COVID has impacted black and brown people more than other races and how unfair that is and how politicians and decision makers need to pay more attention to that.

I loved the conversation between Bailey and Maggie. I liked that they addressed what happened with Maggie’s Mom because that storyline bothered the heck out of me. Maggie treated Meredith and everyone else horribly when all they did was try and help and then she forced her mother to undergo treatments she didn’t want because Maggie couldn’t handle the fact that she was dying and then they just dropped it. I’m glad to see that make a comeback and that Maggie has recognized that what she did and the way she behaved was wrong and is now using that experience to help others.

I loved their comments about guidance counsellors and others assume black people aren’t as bright or as capable as white folks and how insidious that is. It’s not something I’ve experienced myself as a white person, but I’m glad they’re highlighting it. This episode was written by Zoanne Clack who is a black woman and a former E.R. Physician. The previous episode was written by Julie Wong who is an Asian woman and I think it’s great they are utilizing the talent that they have so that people of colour can share their stories and their experiences on a global scale. 

By telling these stories through the lives of characters we know and love and can empathize with it allows people who will never have these experiences understand a little bit more. Representation is important and this show has always done a really good job in my opinion of highlighting important topics and social issues in a sensitive and thoughtful manner. These characters are fictional, but their stories are taken from the lives of real people and I think an important step in the process of creating a better fairer world is creating media that reflects people’s realities in order to cultivate empathy so that people who might not otherwise understand or get it have a window into that experience.

Maybe it changes their mind. Maybe it doesn’t. But the point is that it opens people’s minds to the possibility of seeing a side that they didn’t before and that is half the battle when trying to get people to understand someone else’s experience or point of view. I’m going to be seeing my family this holiday season virtually and in small groups from a safe distance. As is the case for many visiting with relatives over the holidays means having to listen to a lot of ignorant opinions, frustrating statements, and in some cases racial slurs and inappropriate remarks. 

So I’ve been thinking a lot about how I’m going to handle that this year because my tolerance for that crap has gone out the window. All this to say it’s nice to see good people fighting the good fight to get these stories out there to a global audience so that maybe some people will get it and maybe some good will come of it. And even if it doesn’t seeing characters and stories that represent you on screen is powerful and moving and wonderful and we all deserve that. I teared up watching Bailey suffer with the deterioration and death of her Mom.

The end scene where Bailey describes the patients she’s lost to COVID in the voice over while her and Richard sing ‘My Girl’ to give her Mom that moment of peace and a death with dignity got me. It really put a face on the disease. Watching her and her Dad struggle with it was so hard. I loved Bailey’s voice over where she shared info about the COVID patients she’d lost so far and who they were not just their disease. That was well done. Made me tear up.

I loved the talk between Meredith and Bailey at the hospital and on the beach. This episode wasn’t as shocking as the previous ones, but it was still good. I’m glad Meredith is getting better. I will miss the beach, but I’m excited to see her wake up, get better, and hopefully spend some time with Hayes. Which brings me to my chief complaint with this episode which is where the heck was Hayes?!?! This is the second episode he’s been absent from for no discernable reason and no explanation has been given as to where he is.

I did not sign up for this. A big part of the joy I felt when they announced that he was being upped to a main character was the implication that he was going to be given his own storylines and character development outside of Meredith and his relationships with Abigail, Liam, and Austin. But Hayes being absent when Meredith’s not awake robs of him that. Don’t get me wrong. I love Meredith and Hayes together and all I want is for them to be together and live happily ever after.

But, Hayes has such a rich and interesting backstory and there’s so much to explore there. Richard Flood who plays him brings such a wonderful depth to the character and he deserves to have his own story apart from Meredith and I really want to see him interact with the other characters more. We’ve seen him interact significantly with Jo and Bailey, but I’d love to see him interact with Maggie, Amelia, Jackson, and Owen more. His absence this episode reminds me of the episode after the Conference Episode last season where he was suddenly missing for no reason and they didn’t explain where he was.

I’m confused because he was upped to a main character just before this season started so he should be in every episode or almost every episode like the other characters are. I’m starting to get concerned that the actor who plays him has fallen ill or tested positive for COVID-19 or that he’s dealing with some kind of family emergency and so they had to cut him out of the episode last minute. I hope I’m wrong, but I honestly can’t think of another reason the actor would be missing for upwards of 2 to 4 weeks when these episodes were filmed.

I can’t see his absence being a story choice because it doesn’t make any sense and they haven’t addressed it on screen as they usually do when an actor has departed or needs time off and they have time to write that in. He also doesn't appear to be in the promo for next week’s episode which is strange considering it shows another meeting being held by Richard where some of the other department heads can be seen and we get shots of most of the other characters. After the Premiere aired he appeared in the promo for Episode 3 standing outside Meredith’s window and in that episode we saw them have a heart to heart that I thought was really beautiful and lovely.

At this point it’s unclear if Meredith even knows that Hayes is the one that found her and got her help and is distraught over her condition. He’s the head of Peds which is a pretty important department. Where the heck is he? They can gladly write off other characters in the second half of the season to give him more screen time in my opinion. I really hope the actor and his family are okay.  I’d also hate for his sudden absence to wreck Meredith’s storyline.

I love their friendship and flirtations and I’d hate to see her wind up alone or with someone that clearly isn’t right for her and that she doesn’t really love because something unexpected happened with the actor. I really really hope he’s in the mid-season finale next week! Jo suddenly declaring that she wants to quit general surgery to become an OBGYN came out of nowhere and makes no sense to me.

She spent years being with and then married to the Head of Pediatric Surgery and was decidedly lukewarm on the idea of having kids or even being near them. So her and Alex split and in the wake of that she randomly decides she wants to be an OBGYN and deliver babies? What the heck? I’m also confused because I feel like Hayes should have been there because it was a Peds case and he wasn’t and if Jo wants to re-specialize it would make sense for her to talk to Carina or Hayes.

Carina’s a main character on Station 19 and is still reoccurring on Grey’s so she can talk to her for an episode or two, but anymore than that and I think that would fall under Hayes perview because he’s a main character. But he’s currently MIA and we don’t know why. I did love Jo’s scenes with Levi though. They’re always hilarious and I think they bounce off of each other really well. I’m glad that Tom improved and apparently isn’t dying.

I like him with Teddy and I hope they get back together at some point. I’m glad they are choosing to be friends again. More than anything I want Teddy to pick a lane here. Owen or Tom. Pick one and go with it. Stop flip flopping all over the place like a fish out of water. Teddy’s a hot mess these days. I liked Amelia’s speech to Teddy. She has feelings about what Teddy did and didn’t do, but as she says she herself has done horrible things, some of them involving Owen, so she’s not in any place to judge, but she also doesn’t want to be friends with Teddy or really talk to her. And that’s fair. I have to say I love Amelia post-tumour. She’s great.

Also what happened to Casey Parker the resident from last season who was transgender and former military? I really liked him! Where did he go? I’d much rather see him that DeLuca or Nico on screen. Based on what I caught of next week’s promo it looks the COVID situation at Grey Sloan is about to get worse. We see Richard addressing staff in the cafeteria saying that they need to prepare for a surge of patients and that their patient load could double. We’re in May in the current Grey’s timeline so that fits.

It’s apparently also a cross over. I don’t want another cross over. I want to know where the hell Hayes is! And it looks like Amelia is back in the OR and the doctors are treating two teenagers who were kidnapped and held captive. Yikes! And we see Meredith smiling at someone on the beach before suddenly waking up. My guess is that it’s Derek and we are finally going to get to see them embrace and then Meredith is going to return to the land of the living. And hopefully interact with Hayes.

Until next time!

[thevioletjones]

The Ian & Mickey Show

Week 9

Timestamps

3:33-4:54 - Ian wakes up hugging a pillow, presumably missing Mickey’s absent body. There’s a loud rumbling and an embarrassingly clown car-ish honking outside the house waking everybody up. It’s Mickey making a grand entrance on that sweet mint green Vespa scooter, and (very horribly and stiffly) “making out” with this unfortunate looking tiny twink named Byron (they def picked the most pretentious name possible for this interloper). Mickey is for sure putting on a big show for Ian that’s like 30% revenge, 70% pettiness. At first, you would think Mickey just paid some rando to act a part for a little while, but I guess Mickey is just conning this lil guy. Mickey grabs his ass in front of Ian, boasts about the guy’s “super tight asshole,” and casually strolls past him to get into the Gallagher house, because I guess he’s still staying there. And also, Ian’s leg is broken, but we knew that, cuz Cam. {For a better scene, keep the video rolling past the 4:54 mark and ogle Jeremy Allen White naked in the shower. It was his turn this week I guess. You’re safe, Cam.}

6:37-8:20 - Ian eats breakfast with Liam & Carl, and they discuss Mickey’s being off with the other dude, and it’s clear that Ian thinks Mickey is just lashing out and once it’s out of his system, he’ll just come back. Lip and his baby mama and her crazy Trumper aunt are in the scene as well. They all concur that in Lip’s words, “Ian left Mickey at the altar,” but Ian doesn’t see it that way. He honestly thinks they were gonna get married for the wrong reason. His contradiction and ambivalence is honestly the only thing that feels realistic about all of this mess. 

13:30-14:36 - Mickey continues needling Ian very broadly and obviously about how great this Byron kid is and how much sex they’ve been having, and even implies he’s a Koch, which is silly. Mickey goes so far as to claim he’s in love with this guy (they met last night) and says he’s moving in with him. It’s dumb-o. 

18:35-20:58 - Ian somehow just now discovers that 50% of all marriages end in divorce????? That’s been true for so long now, even someone the show is now painting as kind of an idiot (but not half as big of one as Mickey is) would know that stat. It’s just more EXPOSITION. Anyway, he’s hanging out with Liam in the kitchen, and Debbie comes in. Ian tells her that: “Mickey’s a punk, and he’s decided he’s gonna fuck other people if I don’t marry him.” She says Ian’s just scared, and he should marry Mickey to make him happy, even if it does end in divorce eventually. Ian’s all, “I’m not scared,” but not even Liam believes him. Ian invites Liam to go run an errand, and they steal Trumpy Aunt’s wallet on the way out.

28:06-28:54 - OMG, small Byron has that bright Disco Overlook Hotel area rug from Ikea that I really wanted to buy some years back adorning the floor of his tiny loft. Sad face. Anyway, Mickey barges in and throws his garbage bag of crap everywhere and says he won’t share the bed, Byron needs to sleep on the floor. Says some lines about when he wants his dinner served, and how they’ll only have sex when Mickey wants to, and obviously he’ll top cuz this dude’s “basically a chick,” which is a funny line, tbh. ALSO, this pretty much proves they haven’t even actually banged, since they haven’t even discussed preferences. Lol. So yeah, Mickey is using this kid for anything and everything he can, cuz he found a big ol’ sweetie pie pushover (that’s maybe a little bit afraid of him). 

33:50-34:36 - Ian makes Liam try on engagement man-rings, because: “Mickey has freakishly small hands.” They’re at the Alibi and combing through the jewelry a shady hawker is selling. Ian buys two rings on Trumpy Aunt’s credit card. 

42:53-44:52 - I really miss Ian & Lip scenes, tbh. I used to love their brotherly friendship. Some of the old magic feels back in this scene, idk. Ian tells Lip he’s gonna go propose to Mickey. Lip asks him why, and Ian says it’s cuz he loves him, but then after a pause says that Debbie told him to. Even though Ian wants Mickey back, he also clearly wants Lip to talk him out of marriage, which he kind of does (for now). Lip says he should do it one day, after he figures out why he doesn’t want to now. 

47:06-51:10 - A genuine FOUR MINUTE scene! Ian shows up at Byron’s place (where’d he get the address tho???) and Mickey’s been hanging out there for like a handful of hours maybe, but this lil dude just wants him GONE already. Lmao. He clearly knows who Ian is and practically runs into his arms in a grateful hug, saying, “Oh, thank god, PLEASE take him back!” Ian is like wtf, and waits as this guy calls Mickey “honey” and says he has a visitor. Mickey makes another big show implying impending sexy times, grabbing at a very not into it Byron as he retreats up the stairs. Mickey seriously greets Ian like, “What’s up, bro!” I meeeean... Anyway, Ian I guess decided in transit that he’s not gonna propose, he’s just gonna say these are “promise rings” and has some line about how: “Gallaghers and marriage don’t mix well, but a Gallagher keeps his promise.” Since... when??? Like... Frank??? And... what??? Lol... Mickey’s not buying that shit either. He makes a good point about Ian not even wearing his “promise ring” on his finger, but around his neck instead (someone caught a Sex & the City rerun where Carrie carries that rock on a necklace, cuz she’s def not sure about marrying Aidan), where no one can even see it. Ian says he’s not saying “never” to marriage, and Mickey counters that he’s actually saying that he doesn’t love Mickey enough right now. And then he says he’s got Barry anyway, and Ian has to correct the name, which is a nice touch, I’ll admit. And then comes Cam’s best bit of acting on this show in like Y-E-A-R-S. I always thought he did best when he was in depressed/manic mode, and that comes through here when Ian actually gets to the heart of his real fears about committing fully to Mickey, which are of course that he doesn’t trust himself and doesn’t think Mickey should be tied to him and all his crazy bullshit. He doesn’t understand how Mickey can know for sure that he loves him. All that internalized shit is stuff I can easily actually relate to, and this is really the first 100% truly honest moment we’ve had between IxM in all of season 10. I hope we get one or two more by the end. I don’t really completely buy Mickey’s reaction being, “When you get over the ‘I’m not worthy of being loved’ shit, gimme a call,” because he is the fucking KING of not thinking he’s worthy of being loved! That's always been a huge component of who he is, and how I always write him to be, personally (always struggling to think of himself as worthy of anything good, particularly love, among many many other internal struggles, obvs). He also knows exactly how low Ian can get on his down-swings, and since we know from s5 that Mickey likes taking care of Ian, I just don’t think he’d treat him this way. I’m not saying he would give in, but we would see some softness come through. A lighter touch. Anyway, Ian looks super sad as he walks away, but then he spots Barry’s Vespa in the alleyway and gets his own bit of petty revenge (on the wrong person) by pissing in his gas tank, cuz Shameless!

Episode Tally: 8 scenes. 13 mins 10 secs.

[fragilefears]

Cheers to 5 years of Critical Role!

I want to say something about what this game, this show, these people mean to me - but I don’t really know what, or how, to say it. So I’m tempted not to. But I don’t want to bail on this because I feel some very strong things and I need to get better at expressing that.

It hasn’t even been a year since I began listening to the first episode of Vox Machina, downloading it on my phone while I waited for my very delayed flight to take me to see my family for Easter.

A friend of mine at work was (is)a huge fan and had been playing D&D for about a year before this - I was interested but also very busy and unable to take on any new commitments. But in the new year I joined a weekly D&D game with them and some other friends, a few who watched CR. It was a lot to get used to, but so much fun. I intended to try to watch CR, but sometimes I’m weird about trying to consume new content if it’s unfamiliar... It was a few months later - sitting in the plane, realising that my flight was delayed hours later than scheduled, further prolonging the long 10 months I’d been away from my family, and quietly sobbing with homesickness for my sister - that I thought what the heck, I’ll give it a go. And it was so much fun! It was slow going at first... but within weeks it all but consumed me. (Oh also i eventually got to spent Easter with my family and it was very good)

When I got home, it wasn’t long before every waking hour that I wasn’t required to speak to someone, I was listening to Critical Role podcasts on my headphones (I only really watched the live shows, and watched more of C2 as I caught up - these days I watch the new episodes each week.) It was crazy, and fun, and dramatic, and interesting, and my ADHD hyperfocus had never found something so engaging and utterly expansive to latch onto before. Everything else is so limited - movies run for a few hours and then you’re rewatching the same thing again... books can be re-read (but also you can’t read when you’re grocery shopping or crafting or paying bills....) tv shows are ok but not many are long enough to keep you going before you have to make another decision of What To Watch Next, then I’m left with a space where that world, those characters, are absent.

Not so with Critical Role! The sheer wealth of content is breathtaking and it’s wonderful.

However the volume of content is such a small aspect of my love for this show. There’s also:

THE STORIES

THE CHARACTERS

THE IMPROV

THE BEAUTY

THE COMMITMENT

THE FANTASY

THE DANGER

THE COMEDY

THE EVER-EVOLVING DYNAMICS

THE REAL LIFE FAMILY OF FRIENDS who demonstrate love and acceptance and community and joy and pain and commitment to each other and to empathy... that’s where I became hooked.

I’m not one to have or keep very close friends. And for a long time I thought that was a Horrible Thing about me as a person, but the harder I tried to force myself to Be A Better Friend the more neurotic I became, I let down others, I felt fake and pushed myself to be something I’m not.

At the time I started listening to Vox Machina I was about... 2 years after a mental breakdown, 2 years into understanding and managing my adult adhd diagnosis and monthly therapy to learn how to not hate my entire being. Which had improved over the 2 years, but just months before Easter last year, things were Very Bad and all the work I’d been trying to do to manage my shitty brain felt all for nought, and so I had just begun anti-depressants - which I swear, changed my life.

But I also attribute that life-altering shift to becoming someone who actually wanted to live; who discovered who she was at the age of 31; who stopped hating herself and stopped trying to be everything to everyone... I attribute who I am today to the influence and inspiration of the love and creativity demonstrated by a bunch of nerdy voice actors playing dungeons and dragons.

I now understand that you can say dumb things and not be rejected by the people who love you. I realise that making mistakes actually IS the best way to learn. I discovered that it’s absolutely ok to not do everything, and if you need to become obsessed with a podcast about dungeons and dragons to actually start saying no to things, that’s ok too.

Thanks to these guys - Matt, Marisha, Liam, Sam, Taliesin, Laura, Travis, Ashley, Brian and the whole team - for the first time in my life, in this past year since I began watching Critical Role... I learned that I kinda like who I am and that as long as I stay true to that, and love others in whatever ways I can, that I can actually relax and there’s a lot of fun to be had (and in a shocking turn of events, I no longer believe that I would be better off not existing! So that’s good!)

The stories they have created, the community they have grown, the love and affection they have for each other and the absolutely joy they have for their game and all the crazy risks they’ve taken and meaningful statements they’ve made - Critical Role is... I just don’t think I’ll ever have the right words to express what I’m trying to say. They just speak to my heart and soul - not just the two campaigns, but so much extra content - namely Talks Machina & Between The Sheets & All Work No Play - that have branched out from the original game (to be fair, Critical Role technically spun off from All Work No Play...) seeing and hearing and being inspired by the Actual Human Beings is such a beautiful thing.

So. Anyway. This got out of hand, but it was either this or giving up and not saying anything at all. And i think maybe they’d prefer we shared things we are grateful for, the things that inspire and change us.

There’s still so much I could say, but instead I’ll just say this: my very first memory of Critical Role is @assuredgrave turning to me at work, in fits of laughter, telling me about how a certain gnome bard ran alone into a house full of enemies, transformed into a triceratops up against a household of crossbow-armed guards and a Goliath, gets stuck in a door turns back into a gnome, slides across a table, dimension doors onto the roof, turns invisible, drinks a fire-breathing potion, and spewed fire from off the roof, before using a giant magic hand to swat the bad guy away, then falling into it to carry himself away from the burning house. What utter chaos and hilarity and adventure to be discovered.

Thank you Critical Role.

[loquaciousquark]

Talks Machina Highlights - Critical Role C2E83 (Nov. 5, 2019)

A day late and many dollars short, but we’re here! Tonight’s preroll: minifigs & what I assume are tonight’s guests of Liam & Matt:

which is followed by lazy susan rotating the D&D minis from eldritch-foundry.com for the rest of the cast. Cute! Anyway, Dani is back and ready to rumble! Brian is briefly lambasted for only getting through mumblemumble questions last week, but it’s all smoothed over soon enough and we move right along.

Tonight’s announcements: Undeadwood finale is delayed one week due to some post-production tech issues. Should premiere Friday, Nov. 15. Brian marvels over Matt’s speech about God being just as feral as what he creates. Matt is also surprised. Marisha is apparently the living dice Snitch of both campaign 2 and Undeadwood - everyone wonders if it’s the seat, the chair, the floor, or some innate karmic sense Marisha herself creates. CR is also partnering with Operation Supply Drop for the month of November to support veterans. Matt announces (re-announces?) that they are partnering with Amazon to create a full second animated season, as well as two more episodes to the original season one. All backers will be able to still watch the full season one for free. Everyone is so excited & I’m excited for them. Good job, tiny D&D friend group. More details on the CR Kickstarter Updates page.

And now! Episode 83: Dark Bargains

CR Stats: Liam poured wine for 49 seconds. Brief sidebar as Liam expresses genuine nervousness being on the couch beside Matt; he normally talks behind his back on TM, since he’s not sure if Matt ever watches it, but now he has to watch what he says. Caleb’s smell has been mentioned 60 times. Matt acknowledges that he is clean and washed. [doubt] Nott’s death was the 60th knockout and 8th player death of C2. Half of those deaths were Frumpkin. Liam calls Frumpkin a magic fart with a weak wifi signal.

Our first question (23 minutes in, NOT THAT ANYONE’S COUNTING), reveals that Matt did design the HFB with some “big red buttons” for the characters to press, or want to press. He expected more group approval before some of them were pressed, though (the dreadnought). Liam wanted to clear all the corners of the Baldur’s Gate map. 

Caleb fears Halas because he’s one of the most powerful mages ever, he fears the lab setup/experimentation angle, he still fears the siren song, and is scared of the grains of similarity he sees between the two of them.

Liam knows they’ve continually seen fun stuff come from shitty situations, but Caleb sees the story of the HFB as “you’re not welcome here; this is going to suck for YOU! You thought you were going to have fun here? Fuck you!”

Matt loves those climactic moments though, because he loves it when the dice tell the story. Liam loves that there was a day where Matt rolled terribly in Undeadwood and played it as being embarrassed to be around all these amazing people.

Matt enjoyed getting to dig into the backstory of his world. He’s had references to pre-divergence stuff before, and it was a big joy to give more context to some of the things the M9 have been encountering.

Liam: “[Caleb] is gambling big when he thinks there’s something of worth to gain.“ He’d heard of a long-vanished mage who was messing with time stuff, and thought there might be a chance this was him. Then, once they found the gem, he started feeling this might be the real chance he needed to start messing with the crazy stuff he wants to do with time.

The bound devil was a general temptation, but in hindsight he can see why Jester was drawn to him. Matt often builds scenarios and has no idea how they will react to them (and acknowledges that the M9 did not fully read the poem that would have given them more info here), and sometimes he’s right and sometimes he’s very wrong.

Caleb is very distrustful of other arcanists and always assesses their level of threat to the group. Liam does think Caleb has come a long way since the start of the campaign. “A lot is changing for him. He’s very reactive in a lot of ways. Whatever is laid out for him in the moment that he can take advantage of, or that he cares about...I don’t know. The Betrayer Gods coming back is so much more important, and I don’t know if it’s going to make him let go of that stuff. He has to re-evaluate. He has to. He’s like an addict who has a weak day.”

Brian comments that Caleb seems to be a clinic in self-forgiveness. He wants him to do well, but at the end of the day he wants him to forgive himself. He also points out that it’s possible to get addicted to grief, and he sees that in Caleb; he’s choosing to stay in that space, and we are watching what that does to a person. Brian feels that he forms an attachment to the grief because it is the only emotional connection he has to the family he lost.

Liam nods and says these are things he’s been thinking about for months and months. He does not and did not have the answers when he created the character, and is looking forward to seeing where he ends up. He is not railroading his character; he’s letting the other players affect his character so that Caleb can remain malleable.

Matt loves how it reflects how real people inform the lives and actions of their friends in real life.

Cosplay of the Week: @suchamantis on twitter for a Caleb/spellbook cosplay. It’s gorgeous work!

Brief derailment into Liam pulling a Bane out of his mug and Matt hypersensually smelling the winner’s dice vault. I don’t even know what’s happening.

Revivify in this campaign is being used as a CPR/AED type thing. If they fail, the DC goes up and a longer-form raise dead spell must be used out of combat.

It did occur to Liam that this is the second time his bestie has been killed by a treasure box. Would Caleb make the same sacrifice? Liam says in a spooky voice that nothing is as strong as the twin bond...but when Caleb goes into full-on survival mode where all emotions are pushed to the side, he doesn’t know what would happen. He knew he was with two very magical people who could work miracles and was focused on just getting her up the steps to them. Matt was sure everyone would figure it out and was shocked when no one checked it for traps.

The effect of the diamond on Nott being different from the diamond on Cad was flavor related to the Power Word Kill trap that was on the chest. He built the revivify around that imagery in the moment. A lot of Matt’s flavor text around spells is built around the moment, the characters themselves, their gods, etc. as much as possible.

Caleb is glad to find the signs of magic that may be able to return Nott to a halfling, but was way too concerned about the gem to think about anything else at that time.

Fanart of the Week: @acemasters4 on twitter for a beautiful pastel stylized portrait of Caduceus and mushrooms.

Ashley is almost here! Brian allllmost tells us how many days but refrains. COME BACK ASHLEY.

The Angel of Irons thread has been planned since the very beginning: everything with chains and hunger was planned. He pulled it together with Yasha when he realized they would mesh well. She had created her backstory, and as the campaign proceeded he was able to marry some threads together to make story points. Liam compliments Matt’s ability to weave character & world backstory together; specifically, the crystals in Caleb’s arms were Matt’s idea after Liam sent the first draft of his backstory to Matt. Liam loved it and ran with it.

Everyone is so excited that she is coming back and Matt won’t have to plan for her to be suddenly absent again.

In a moment that shakes my world, Matt is discovered to be wrong about what class of magic Cure Wounds is in 5e. The question is about how Halas’s comment on healing being necromantic is a throwback to older editions of D&D where CW was a necromancy spell, and Dani reveals to us all that in 5e it is now Invocation. Matt chooses to accept this as a deliberate throwback to older editions to emphasize that “man out of time” feel.

Chris Perkins apparently once described BWF’s personality as “Power Word Kill for someone’s joy.” He also apparently did MMA & figure skating, because why not.

Caleb’s reference to Jester suffering in the ruby was purely coincidental regarding her mother. He didn’t realize until it popped out of his mouth.

BWF talks about how he likes where the campaign is at. He has a weird gut feeling that something exciting is about to happen. “I’m finally invested in this campaign after 83 episodes.”

Everyone pauses to talk about how beautiful Matt’s hair is blowing in the wind. BWF tells a story about how based on how they were sitting in Undeadwood filming, Matt’s hair would blow ever-so-slightly in the A/C and people thought they did it on purpose.

Matt had a good time at Blizzcon! He was glad to see people gathering for the Hong Kong protests; he understands it’s a very complicated situation where the initial punishment was way too harsh and caused a ripple effect, but he was glad to see the space where the activism was welcomed in response.

Matt enjoyed cosplaying again for the first time in a long time, both at Blizzcon and as McCree for the Halloween episode. When he was buying adhesive a shop worker upsold him on an inferior product, which is why his beard started falling off during the show. Sad times, Matt. :(

And that’s all! Is it Thursday yet?

[ophelialmx]

What Caleb Wants at the Moment and Why He Did the Stuff He Did in Episode 57: A Hypothesis

The short version: Caleb is conflicted and having a hard time because his current goal is basically to protect the Dwendalian Empire (in particular its citizens)

I have come to this hypothesis because I felt the need to incorporate the following concepts:

1. Caleb did not feel satisfaction in betraying the Empire by giving the dodecahedron to the Dynasty; acting against the Empire is exactly the opposite of what his parents would want or expect (Talks e56)

2. Caleb has never expressed anger towards, or desire for retribution against, Trent Ikithon or anyone from his past (absent at any point in canon + Liam pointing this out in Talks)

3. Caleb did not want to lie to the Bright Queen at all; he advocates strongly against lying to very powerful mages (Talks e56 and from Caleb speaking about Yussa)

4. Everything Caleb said in e57 about the Empire, especially - telling the Bright Queen (see point 3) that most of the Empire is made up of good people, asking if it was possible to root out the cancer within the Empire instead of needing to continue the full-scale war, and telling her he has had a brush with those cancerous members of the Empire in the past - proposing to the M9 a new goal to ‘stop the war’ - telling Beau that he wants to remove Ikithon and the bad members of the Cerberus Assembly (and that this aligns with her goals etc.)

Also, although it doesn’t need a number to itself, I think it’s also worth noting the pretty erratic elements of Caleb in e57 (spilling info about killing his loved ones in mixed company, attracting unnecessary attention, the explicit phrase ‘sometimes you need to get crazy’)…

 SO, to connect these here dots:

Caleb has done terrible things. Part of his core motivation has been, if not necessarily absolution (which he seems to consider impossible at this juncture), then at least some way to cope with this. The central element to this is disappointing and killing his parents.

Now, Caleb has made it worse. His parents, who were strong supporters of the Empire, would not have approved of delivering a great and unknown artefact to the Krynn and ostensibly giving them exactly what they wanted. As a side-effect of handing over the beacon, however, he at least gained some access to the Dynasty, and important people therein. Maybe he can at least repent for the act of handing over the beacon.

While he has never expressed anger or a desire for revenge, he has also not shown much lingering affection for Trent Ikithon, the Empire’s structure itself, or the Cerberus Assembly (see, like, episodes 1-20 or so). Suggesting that the Krynn focus on removing these problem people, and/or in fact trying to take down the Cerberus Assembly (or at least certain members) himself, is a manner of seeking de-escalation of the Krynn’s war efforts. This is for the collective good of the citizens of the Dwendalian Empire. (As a silver lining, if removing some of these people is in fact possible, perhaps Caleb’s goose will not be quite so ‘cooked’. There hasn’t been much evidence of this being a primary motivator or something he considers likely though, at least as far as I can tell)

Having the good of the citizens of the Empire as his current driving goal (no, not the ‘long term goal’ which seems to involve far more power and time magic, but the current goal) is also hugely conflicting, however.

The last time Caleb would have called the protection and strengthening of the Empire a motivation, he was still Bren, a radicalised extremist for the cause. He did terrible things in the name of it, and the people he is now calling the ‘cancer’ – the scapegoats whose spilt blood he hopes might help usher in peace – he previously considered allies.

In conclusion: Caleb is currently driven by a desire for penance for betraying the Empire – and this is a very awkward position for him to be in.

EDIT: Also, I just want to acknowledge that this includes Caleb lying to Beau at the end of the episode, but at this point... it’s hard to think of a way around that.

[whenthespotlightfades]

What a spoilers. I’m just going to try and make sense of them really.  Monday we have the confrontation with Liam, which makes James doubt Harry’s innocence again, Harry breaks up with him and since Ste leaves his date for Harry, I’m going to assume Ste either sees it happen or runs into an upset Harry later in the episode. He takes him home and makes a move on him, but Harry rejects him and goes back to James.  Tuesday Ste tries to come between James and Harry and he will definitely tell James about the kiss, probably lie about it and make it less innocent than it was etc. James will be seething and I do think he will plan something for Ste, that has him horrified. (The hint being ‘ there is just no getting rid of you’ ). Harry finds out about what Ste did and is definitely done with him by the end of the week, as he stays with James and Marnie tells James once again to drop the suspicion of why Harry is with James (which I am assuming in James his head could still be the hit and run charges)  Then the next week, to reassure James probably (Does Marnie tell him?) Harry takes James out on a romantic date and they have a good time. Then Sadie comes back in need of money and blackmails Liam, but she goes into Labour outside the hutch with Harry there. I think this is when Tony finds out about being a granddad. Ste already knowing will be the perfect punch Ste can deliver to Tony, who he is very cross with still, remember, so he tells Tony he’s a bad dad, so of course Harry hadn’t told him. Than Sadie plans to leave, maybe because of Liam and not feeling save but Harry begs her to stay because (after a talk with his dad?) decides he wants to be there for the baby. It’s followed by ‘the truth’ about something to James which either happens before or after the plea hearing. The baby itself doesn’t seem to break up Jarry as they are still together a week later, so it really depends on what that truth is. Greg said James has a lot of inner turmoil connected to this baby, which so far has remained untouched upon with the soap as it focused on James his fear of Harry cheating. So I think whatever the truth is, it will put the focus on how James really feels about Harry asking Sadie to stay and stepping up. It’s one thing to advice this after your son puts you straight another to be confronted by it every day.  We have no spoilers for the week after that yet, but it’s possible that Hollyoaks plans to mirror the scenario from January but with roles reversed. They will break up as James isn’t comfortable with the baby and Harry doesn’t want to force him to be either. We know James has new rooms build, so this potential break up wouldn’t last all that long, maybe a 2/3 weeks like the last time. And then I have no idea. Parry doesn’t seem to have shot much in June or so far in July, and Greg has been rather absent too. So I hope the soap has learned and doesn’t give us another reunion only so they can disappear for weeks on end. But it’s definitely possible. Though so is Harry in jail for the hit and run or maybe even the murder of Sadie(?) and that is why we haven’t seen them much bts.

[eponymous-rose]

Talks Machina Highlights - Critical Role C2E4 (Feb 6, 2018)

Oh no.

Tonight’s guests are Sam Riegel, Liam O’Brien, and Marisha Ray!

New opening sequence by @wendydoodles! In true episode-50 fashion, they play it twice in a row because it’s so much fun.

Ashley accidentally calls Brian during the show, so he picks up and puts her on speakerphone.

Announcements: issue four of Vox Machina: Origins is out, the podcast will be updated with episode 4 on Thursday, tomorrow at 9:30 Pacific is a new G&S show called Weave Society (a team-up of Mines N Crafts and AXYB).

@critrolestats for episode 4!

Nott has stolen 8 items since the campaign began. Liam adds to the list: “The audience’s heart.”

20% of die rolls in this episode were single-digit even after mods. By comparison, episode 3 was only 17%. By further comparison, C1E114 was only 3.9%. Le-vel two! Le-vel two!

Sam and Liam get kicked out while Brian asks Marisha questions about her solo scene last week. The show briefly turns into Marisha and Brian dissing Sam’s clothes.

Marisha had pretty much decided on the Cobalt Soul route ahead of time, since it was part of her backstory: running away from the Cobalt Reserve monks.

There was some temptation to say no to the offer, especially when the speeches got a bit more flowery. Marisha: “Beau was sitting there like *jerk-off motion*.” It took the punch to really get her attention.

Marisha is a little concerned that the group is starting to view Beau as a liability (in a different way than Keyleth was), but she also points out that pretty much the whole group is a liability right now. She thinks it makes sense for Matt to pull in Beau’s backstory first, just to give her a more profound reason to stick around.

Beau is partly just trying to learn new moves, but she’s also motivated by her new mentor being a “hot elf monk”.

Beau’s "fuck-it” attitude is partly related to some deeper backstory stuff, but also motivated in part by rebellion against her rich dad.

Gif of the week: Matt losing it over Nott’s zero-deception roll.

All Sam and Liam know about Beau’s scene was a muffled yell of “I’M GONNA PUNCH YOUR FACE” and two natural twenties. Liam suspects Matt and Marisha were just paying bills. Marisha: “In our new segment sponsored by H&R Block...”

Sam has been rewearing his shirts in order from the first campaign, but he was absent in episode 5, so now he’s not sure what to do. He likes the idea of going topless, but “we want to retain viewers”. Marisha suggests a chroma key green shirt that can be photoshopped at will.

Sam is impressed that so much of the party managed to buy drugs four episodes in when it took Scanlan so long. Liam: “I guess you’re just bad at Dungeons & Dragons.”

Caleb knew he and Nott would be able to fake their way through the bathhouse with confidence. Sam: “Do you have a wealthy past?” Liam: “No, I’m a mermaid werewolf.”

Sam thinks that Jester’s backstory is that there is no backstory. It’s all just on the surface.

Art of the week: a gorgeous boulder-parchment-shears attack for Beau.

The intense focus on bathing was originally to mess with Laura, but now Liam’s coming up with a justification for it. There is absolutely no salt whatsoever over the cast latching onto the stinky thing to the extent they did. Not even a little bit. Nope.

Nott is not especially enthused about water.

Marisha has had fencing, stage combat, Krav Maga, little bit of taekwondo, boxing, tai chi, bo staff, quarterstaff, European fighting stick. She’s interested in different fighting styles and how they came about.

Liam and Sam share their different stories about how Sam picked goblin rogue. Sam: “I feel like we’re in a fight.” Liam: “All I hear is aerators.”

Caleb saved Nott’s life in the prison they escaped from; Sam emphasizes that Nott is extremely concerned about his well-being. “She’s seen him almost die a bunch. He is dainty.”

Liam and Matt have talked about specific spells Caleb’s interested in, including a tiny bit of homebrew. Sam asks if the new spells he learned are a part of what he’s been working towards. Liam, avoiding the question entirely: “Hmm. Interesting.”

Caleb and Nott have been "getting fucked up running shitty little cons for a while now.” Caleb’s been wanting to find people who were level-headed and could help out, and so, failing that, he gravitated towards Fjord as someone who at least seems a bit more rational (”I know he’s an asshole too”). He’s also excited to get a chance to riff off Travis more often in this campaign. The words “actor boner” come up and are inevitably mined for high comedy.

Sam mentions that we’ve seen a bit of Nott’s personality quirks that made her an outcast from her particularly bloodthirsty clan of goblins, but any further details of her backstory will play out in the game.

Sam reveals that Nott has been gifted flowers in the past. Brian: “What was her reaction?” Sam: “She ate them.”

Talks Machina Popcorns Machina on Alpha:

Everything is temporarily derailed when Marisha swats a fly into her drink.

There is already half-werewolf half-mermaid art of Caleb from earlier in the show.

Items from the last campaign they wish they had? Liam wants the Displacement Cloak. Sam wants the Tome of Leadership so Nott can get some charisma (it would put her all the way up to 7). Marisha points out that Keyleth was going to use it after a hundred years, so Liam starts plotting a heist... where they’ll have to wait 80 years after stealing it to use it. Sam: “Oh wait, goblins only live 45 years.” Marisha wants an Immovable Rod. Sam wants a Bag of Holding. Marisha wants the healing potions she didn’t use last time.

Marisha on the women in the party having the highest strength scores: “It’s dope as fuck.”

Bad travel habits: Caleb will want to go to bookstores constantly. Everyone agrees that Jester’s the kind of person who’ll want to stop every time she sees anything remotely interesting.

Sam and Liam are both having a really hard time picking their options for level 3. Marisha’s a little more laid-back: “Combat class!” She already knows what she’s doing.

Things, as they do, get a little out of hand when Sam suggests a key party. Liam gets up and leaves the studio. Sam: “You said we could make a snuff film!” Brian, talking over the Geek and Sundry logo at the end: “PLEASE END IT.” It’s about par for the course, really.

[aion-rsa]

Shameless Season 11 Episode 4 Review: NIMBY

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This Shameless review contains spoilers.

Shameless Season 11 Episode 4

“This only ends with death.”

Shameless is at its strongest when it has a focused story arc to commit to and so season 11’s more laid back nature hasn’t done the series any favors. There’s still entertainment to be found in these characters and their shenanigans, but it’s hard to deny that a third of the season has passed and it doesn’t really feel like anything has happened. The most unifying element to this final season has been its deeper look into Chicago itself and how the various Gallaghers fit into it after they’ve both significantly changed since the start of the series. “NIMBY” is a messy episode, but it’s one that does a good job at representing the many different pockets of the South Side as different characters try to assert power over the city that they love.

“NIMBY” revolves around a number of competitive rivalries and schisms between Gallaghers and members of the South Side, whether it’s professional strife like what Carl, Ian, and Mickey encounter, or the more personal conflicts that plague Tami, Debbie, and V. The biggest conflict that grows out of all of this is the new chapter in the blood feud between the Gallaghers and the Milkoviches after the two families become neighbors. This ignites a “Civil War of South Side,” which is the angle that should have started this season. A premiere that featured the Milkoviches moving in and allowing this turf war to build over several episodes is exactly the kind of larger storyline that’s been absent. It’s helpful that it’s now a part of the season, but this pacing makes it feel like it’s catching up with everything else.

After so many seasons of the Gallaghers making the rest of Chicago uncomfortable it’s actually fulfilling to see them feel like outsiders due to the unkempt nature of the Milkoviches. This tension is so severe that it has the Gallaghers consider looking to greener pastures, which would have seemed impossible at any other point in the series. The displacement that the Gallaghers experience is very real, but this story is mostly used for comedic relief as Frank finds repeated ways to compare the Milkoviches to a virus. It also leads to a scheme that aligns Frank, Liam, and Kevin, which is a strong team that’s not often together. Naturally, Liam has to be the voice of reason here.

This trio don’t get very far in their mission, but it briefly leads to them turning to help from the Nation of Islam. This produces the funniest moment of the episode, in which the Nation rescind their offer because even they’re too frightened by the Milkoviches. What’s perhaps the most interesting thing about this plot development is that Frank repeats his suggestion to turn to the Nation of Islam for support. It’s treated like classic drunken buffoonery from Frank, but it’s not the first time this season that he’s absently forgotten or confused details. It looks like these final episodes may introduce the idea that Frank’s developing Alzheimer’s and that Shameless will culminate with a very nostalgic and supportive conclusion that bands around Frank rather than rejects him. It’s also a serious enough development that might get Fiona back before the series finale.

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Shameless Season 11 Episode 3 Review: Frances Francis Franny Frank

By Daniel Kurland

Frank’s war keeps him preoccupied from his growing drug trade and the same is true with V, who finds herself consumed with another turf war, albeit with Debbie as her target. Debbie and V is a fun combination that’s also rare for Shameless, which makes it disappointing that this story is a disservice to both of them. Debbie’s aspirations for Frannie to win the pageant all circle around the same points that every Debbie storyline this season has made. It’s also honestly kind of horrible that Debbie can so casually refer to her daughter as a “dumpster fire” and that Frannie just takes it in stride like it’s the norm, even if it’s a moment that’s meant in jest. The pay off here where someone else wins the beauty pageant also isn’t very satisfying or surprising. Debbie and V just publicly drag each other and surely create new memories for their children to repress in the future.

The one redeeming factor to come out of this chaos is that V may get some legitimate business opportunities ahead of her. It’s always nice when V is properly valued, but this is something that should have been happening for seasons now after V briefly helped Fiona with the business side of her investments. There’s at least now some potential for the series to end with V’s family in a more stable place.

Lip and Tami also find themselves dealing with someone that appreciates the beauty of youth, but in a wholly more unwholesome manner. This entire storyline is very irksome and will be telling to see if it leaves any lasting effects on Tami. A seemingly innocent brunch date with Tami’s old high school music teacher initially seems like it will verge into reductive territory where Lip gets jealous for no reason or Tami is drawn to another man. Thankfully this isn’t the case and neither of these characters regress, but the end result that Tami is the product of grooming by her teacher is even more bizarre. 

Tami is initially lost in denial, but what does work here is that this revelation has Tami turn inward rather than vilify her former teacher. She’s able to learn things about herself as she slowly implodes and Lip gets to play the role of support rather than aggressor. As it stands it’s an odd character insight, but with how Shameless has taken a more breadcrumb approach to some of its storylines it’s also possible that Tami’s old teacher will be back to talk real estate.

Carl goes through a similar style of soul searching as Tami, but he comes out the other side at a much healthier place, even if it’s not an easy journey. Carl has finally been able to settle into his job with the police department when he gets pushed into a difficult situation that pits his career against his neighborhood. Carl’s enthusiasm has him “fully erect for police work,” but this causes a compelling conflict when his patrol around the area has him face-to-face with many people that he knows on a personal level. 

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Carl’s partner has no affection for the colorful characters of the South Side, whereas to Carl they’re like a part of his extended family. The conversation that this opens up is well handled and there are some genuinely uncomfortable scenes that depict abuses of power. Ethan Cutkosky really sells the scene as his respect for his new mentor decays into disgust. It’s an easy scene, but one of the better moments in the episode is when Carl figures out how to balance these halves of his life and still help the people he’s lived alongside for his entire life.

“NIMBY” has a lot of smaller moments that are easy to enjoy and Carl’s storyline remains enjoyable the entire. However, it’s still an episode that succumbs to the larger problems of this season where low impact plots make so much of this material feel disposable. It’s starting to feel like the gears are turning and that there’s bigger stuff ahead, particularly with Frank, but as it stands it hasn’t been the challenging return that Shameless needs to go out on top.

The post Shameless Season 11 Episode 4 Review: NIMBY appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[raidpirate52]

The Loud House Season 3 Scorecard by raidpirate52

More in-depth analysis under “Keep Reading”. 

Tripped: A good, entertaining episode. Not the best of the 30 minute specials, but still quite enjoyable on its own. I give the episode a "B". White Hare: I feel the number of rabbits was a bit too high to really focus on the episode and it was overall distracting. Originally it was the plan for the cast to be rabbits with various other animals, and I have to admit I'm glad they decided to go with what they did with humans. Probably wouldn't have been as popular of a show with animal humans. I give this episode a "C". Insta-Gran: It had a nice ending with the Loud kids being there for Myrtle learning she didn't have much of a family like hers after spending the episode loathing her, which was caused by some funny moments like her deleting Lori and Leni's shows.  I give this episode a "B". Roadie to Nowhere: So this might be controversial, but I don't like this episode. Everyone seems to call it one of the best and I just get so bored watching it. Sorry, but I give this episode a "D". A Fridge Too Far: It was clever to see the ways the Loud's protected their leftover food. Also when throwing away dad's food and Cliff having himself a feast.  I give this episode a "B". Selfie Improvement: Lori getting into a selfie competition with Carol was pretty funny, but it felt fairly repetitive and not exactly the most compelling plot. It was nice that she and Carol became friends in the end, so I give this episode a "C". No Place Like Home School: I really liked that Lola decided to help her siblings out to help them pass their tests and them returning the favor to go back to regular school so she can continue home school instead. Was a great episode, I give it an "A". City Slickers: It was funny how Lori struggled with the city life. I think the Lincoln and Ronnie Anne story was alright. A bit cliche with the hide from origins angle, but it was nice she embraced Royal Woods at the end. I give this episode a "B". Fool Me Twice: The different ways Luan's prank to humiliate the family was pretty ridiculous but in a funny way. Also, finally Luan gets some comeuppance in the end for the April Fools saga. Not sure if this will be the last April Fool's episode, we'll just have to wait and see. I give this episode a "B". Net Gains: It was nice for Lynn to learn teamwork in this episode, despite her team not winning in the end. Also nice that Flip wasn't terrible for once. I give this episode a "B". Pipe Dreams: An interesting plot idea with the Loud parents wanting a bathroom in their closet. Feel it had some similarities to Lock 'N' Loud from the last season with this time the parents trying to secure their new bathroom. Not as good as that one in my opinion, but I still give this episode a "B". Fandom Pains: A nice episode that gives focus to Lucy's relationship with Lori and Leni, a trio you wouldn't think to see much. It was a great episode and I enjoyed seeing the three of them hang out. I give this episode an "A". Rita Her Rights: This one is alright. Highlight was seeing which ways Rita could find ways to get community service and returning to a house of chaos. Other than that, not the most entertaining. I give this episode a "C". Teacher's Union: Only part I liked was Lori assuming Lincoln was talking about himself when asking for advice, other than that I didn't really care about the Coach Pacowski and Mrs. Johnson plot. I give this episode a "C". Head Poet's Anxiety: So this episode has Lucy interacting with Luan. Definitely a great episode. Despite initially being jealous, it was nice Luan came to her senses and in the end supported Lucy. I give this episode an "A". The Mad Scientist: A fairly good Lisa episode. It was nice that she remembered the time with her family and how much they really mean to her. I give this episode a "B". Missed Connection: A good episode with Lori and Bobby trying the long distance thing. I liked them coming together and despite not having their best dates, they still work things out. I give this episode a "B". Deal Me Out: Lincoln and Clyde feel their too old for Ace Savy. Not sure how I felt on this episode, just felt it was okay. Nothing wrong with it, but nothing spectacular to me. I give the episode a "C".   Friendzy: Another episode the siblings fight each other, but this one has a good resolution in the end with them making up and working things out. I liked the part when the sisters caught on to the friend card and caught Lola watching TV with her friend, Lincoln cried for his mom. It was pathetic but in a cute kind of way. I also liked that Lincoln's first friend to tag along him and Clyde was Liam. Great moments in this episode, I give it an "A". Pasture Bedtime: Liam actually gets a spotlight role. It was fun to see him have so much energy around the farm. Also unfortunate what happened to Lincoln, Clyde, Zach and Rusty at Girl Jordan's party but they had it coming for double-crossing Liam. Also some hilarious dark humor at the end. One of my favorites of the season. I grade this episode an "A". Shop Girl: So the Loud's try to teach Leni to be assertive. Not as good as "Walking Small" in SpongeBob, but still had some fun moments. I liked the part at the end when Lola tried to be rewarded for being nice only to push fries on a poor guy.  I give this episode a "B". Gown and Out: A great Lola episode where she spends most of it with Lori. I liked Lincoln helping out, a nice call back to Toads and Tiaras. Was nice for Lola to congratulate the winner of this episode, and I liked when Lincoln got ahead of himself and scared Lola only for Lori to hang up on him.  I give this episode an "A". Breaking Dad: It was nice to see Lynn Sr. spend some time with Lily in this episode. Quite repetitive though, but not a bad episode by any means. I give this episode a "B". Ruthless People: Not really hard to see why a lot dislike this episode, but me personally, I thought it was funny. A lot of fans want to feel bad for Lincoln's group, and that's fine, but you should keep in mind they brought their misfortune on themselves for the most part. Had they just stayed where they were and not bail at the first opportunity, they wouldn't have had such a bad time. Also, a bit of their sympathy goes away when their motive was to get the others to have a miserable time they were having, so they kind of deserved it. Overall, I give this episode a "B". What Wood Lincoln Do: The highlight of this episode was definitely Walt demanding he get his bird house back.  I also liked Lincoln trying to bribe his own mom to do his wood shop projects. Overall I'd give this episode a "B". Scales of Justice: Just like "Frog Wild" of the last season, this one compliments it by having Lana try to save a new breed of animals. It was funny when Leni would run into walls/trees.  Definitely a great episode as it showed how Lana gets along with the wildlife. I give this episode an "A". Crimes of Fashion: I liked what Clyde and Lincoln did for Leni to fight and help get her job back. Also was kind of amusing they were in their Ace Savy costumes the whole time. I give this episode a "B". Absent Minded: Kind of a meh episode. Clyde worries about his perfect attendance being tainted. Not really the most compelling idea for an episode. I give this episode a "C". Be Stella My Heart: I liked the episode pointed out that not all male-female friendships need romance. Also had some good moments with Lincoln's friends. I have to say my personal favorite was they hit each other with dodgeballs and stated the reason was for what happened at lunch. "That's for the meatball." "That's for the mustard." "That's for blinding me!" -Then Clyde misses Liam-.  I give this episode an "A". Sitting Bull: It was nice seeing Lynn take some responsibility. Even though she wasn't the best babysitter through most of the episode, it was still pretty funny. At least she wasn't neglectful. A good episode with the older Loud sisters. I give this episode a "B". The Spies That Loved Me: It was pretty funny how the family worried about Ronnie Anne but didn't seem to pay any attention that Carl was the one who fell victim to everything they worried about. I give this episode a "B". Really Loud Music: Probably my favorite of the season. While I wasn't a fan of every song in this one I still really enjoyed the overall plot. My personal favorite songs were Lana's, Lola's, Lori and Leni's, and all of Luna's. I really liked the part where when Michelle and Doug tried to pull the plug on Luna, it was Lana and Lynn who teamed up to stop them. This episode easily gets an "A". House of Lies: I did enjoy this one. I liked the Loud's working together to destroy Lisa's lie-detecting glasses and later to destroy the over-sensitive system. The montage of them having to tell full truths was pretty funny too. I give this episode a "B". Game Boys: Not a bad episode, but compared to some of the others recently, this one kind of pales in comparison. It's good, but not a standout. I give it a "C". Everybody Loves Leni: I really liked the episode showing off how Leni puts everyone before herself, but I kind of wish her friends were more interesting of characters. Overall, a good episode though. I rank it a "B". Middle Men: The horrors that was Middle School. I totally see where Lynn was coming from in this episode. Not really sure how I felt about the happy ending to this one, it was nice, but all the same, the drama of middle school doesn't ever go that way, especially for characters like Lincoln and Clyde. I still grade it a "B" though because I like that Lynn tried to help Lincoln through it. Jeers for Fears: I definitely liked seeing Chandler in another episode. Though, he was mostly only in the beginning and end of it. In the middle is where the episode kind of drops in quality for me. I didn't enjoy seeing Lincoln be a coward in Price for Admission and I didn't really like it here either. It was nice for the Loud sisters to help him out and later Bobby too. I also liked that Chandler comes to respect Lincoln and Clyde too so overall give this episode a "B". Tea Tale Heart: Lola thinking the doll was haunted was an entertaining episode. I liked that at the end it was revealed Lana just always happened to be at the same places at the same time. Of course Lucy loving the thought of the doll being supernatural too. I give this episode an "A". The Loudest Thanksgiving: Was nice to see a Thanksgiving special, but I felt it maybe had a bit too much conflict for a Thanksgiving episode. Also felt that there were too many characters to focus on. Not bad, but I feel it could've been done better. I give this episode a "B". Predict Ability: I did enjoy seeing Lincoln mix things up with his daily routine. I also really liked his hipster outfit. Also had a good mix of focus with the other characters. I give this episode an "A". Driving Ambition: It was a nice Lori-centric episode. Overall though I feel it was a bit forgettable. I give it a "C". Home of the Fave: I did really enjoy seeing Lynn Sr. interact with all his kids, though wish they evened out a bit more. Most of the first half is with just Luan and Lola. I did like how he tried to give his kids equal time, only driving himself crazy. Also, at the end when the pets started to get jealous.  I give this episode an "A". Hero Today, Gone Tomorrow: Was nice for Lynn to share the spotlight with her friend for once and seemingly keeping her lesson in tact at the end. Nice to see Paula get a second appearance. I give this episode an "A". Cooked: It was a good special. I did like seeing the Loud kids come up with different ways to promote their dad's restaurant and seeing it get put into action like Lincoln trying to drive every bus that stopped by or Lana allowing patrons to bring pets to Liam bringing his whole barn. Very entertaining episode, I grade it an "A". The Write Stuff: A pretty mundane episode where if not for Lucy would probably be the sole F of the season, but her addition keeps me from ranking this as the least. I don't care much for Principal Huggins but this episode gave him a lot of focus and I liked that Rita stepped in to take over Lucy's group, but still, not the most entertaining episode. Racing Hearts: I liked that we got a focus episode on Sam and Luna. I do like that it was shown that relationships can work even with personal differences but I wish they showed more of what they have in common to balance it out. Still a good enough episode to get a "B" grade. Stage Flight: I liked the Benny and Luan interactions in this episode, I thought it was cute. Definitely had me on board with the two. Funny how Benny has a puppet of his own. I give this episode an "A". Antiqued Off: The last episode that features Lincoln and his friends. Though most focus was on Clyde and Zach, not exactly my favorite of Lincoln's social circle. Still, it was a nice episode with a good lesson that friends should try more things that their friends like so I give this episode a "B". No F's in this season, lots of A's, so that's good. Overall, a great season. Looking forward to see what Season 4 brings.

[notthegrouch]

There's a few things I think will come back/stay a running joke.

Laura collects dice, and is highly superstitious about rolling badly (locks dice up when they don't perform well enough, throws/gives them away if that doesn't help). Laura used to keep track of the money, because she likes writing things down in extreme detail. It's been implied that her character Vex was so careful of her money because of this.

Sam never passes an opportunity for a joke, usually at the expense of himself or castmembers. In the new campaign he's already made some jokes to show just how extremely different Nott is from Scanlan. Things you might hear: random songs for no reason, because he used to play a bard; maybe also a reference to "what's my mothers name", a pretty dramatic question in Scanlans story, but has been parodied a few times after that. Sam hated (OOC) Vexs bear Trinket.

Taliesin throws natural 20s. Constantly. His record is 7 in 1 session. He gets 3 or 4 nat20s on average per episode. Matt was curious wether the die (nicknamed: the golden snitch) was loaded, and uses it now. His character was possesed at one point, and was the inventor of handguns.

Liam played Vax, Vexs twin brother, because Liam and Laura share their birthday. Maybe you'll hear a variation on his catchphrase "dagger-dagger-dagger" someday. Sometimes it seems as if he and Taliesin compete for having the most goth character, and Liam clearly won in the last campaign.

Travis played a dumb barbarian Grog, and now plays a smart warlock. He seems to have some trouble with the switch in mentality, and slips up sometimes. Grog used to have a big evil talking sword, and being a hexblade warlock, he might have a sentient sword again. Expect some references to Craven edge (there's some cuts of Conversations between Grog and Craven Edge on youtube, they're pretty funny to watch). He had a lot of catchphrases and well remembered sayings (I would like to rage, Bidet, "I have an intelligence of six, I know what I'm doing" and getting smarter from being turned into an eagle.)

Ashley played Pike, a very kind and sweet Cleric Gnome, but Ashley had confessed she really found it difficult to play such a character. She's often absent because of her role in NBCs Blindspot. Pike was best friends with Grog, and Ashleys new character Yasha seems to have inherited a few Grog traits.

Marisha played a character, Keyleth, that had a pretty strict moral code, and still ended up in prison pretty often. Marishas new character might end up in prison now that she plays a way more relaxed "I play by my own rules" kind of character. While all other characters have died at least once in dramatic action filled battles, Keyleths only death was by turning into a goldfish while falling on some cliffs.

Other things that might get referred to: Siggles (Matt pronounced Sigils wrong until the chat pointed it out), Sam wearing T-shirts with the faces of himself or cast members printed on them, critical Role having great Writers, the Wil Wheaton Curse (rolling an unnaturally high amount of Natural 1s), doors are somehow extremely difficult to open, "at dawn we plan" and Liam yelling a swear word a second before going live just to try and throw Matt off.

Other than that, there's loads of highlights of the shows collected on youtube.

Welcome to Critical Role fandom, enjoy your stay.

Hey so I just started watching Critial role which it’s new season/campaign and I really liked the first episode and I’m excited to watch more.

But I didn’t watch any of the 1st campaign for various reasons one of which is that by the time I had heard of it it was already so far in and I didn’t have that kind of time

So basically I was wondering what I missed? Not like the plot of the first campaign but like fandom related stuff I guess

What are some things a new critical role fan should/needs to know?

[torentialtribute]

England qualify for World Cup semi-finals after 119-run victory… but New Zealand face anxious wait

They looked down and out after successive defeats had let their hopes hang on a thread, but the real

It was not precise in their pre-World Cup script for an English party that had conquered everything for themselves to need victories over two of the best teams in the tournament in India and New Zealand to to qualify for the last four

But they have their last two games by regaining much of their lost mojo and conquering the pressure that was most intense when they crashed into those unexpected defeats of Sri Lanka and Australia .

They had a welcome piece of luck against New Zealand in Durham for them to help yesterday, when Mark Wood got a fingertip to Ross Taylor, drove his own bowling alley to push the ball onto the stumps and encounter the dangerman Kane Williamson

. At that stage, with New Zealand 61 for two behind England's 305 before

But Williamson was once fired in a bizarre way because of his lowest score in this World Cup and Ross Taylor then joined him when he fled when he foolishly took the arm of Adil Rashid, could breathe England again.

What a roller coaster ride England managed to achieve of the minimum of their World Cup ambitions but how confident

They have certainly looked much better on Edgbaston against India and now here at Riverside and will almost certainly have to take on Virat Kohli and run again in the second half final in Birmingham, between the second and third placed group teams.

That will be a tough collision to taste next Thursday, but for the time being England can be satisfied that they have

Nothing more than a restored opening partnership between Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy that you have so much done to save England from the mother and father of all the courts that would have been associated with their departure.

Bairstow clearly missed Roy when he was absent three games with Roy a hamstring injury, but now he got inspired

England first showed that hitting is the best way to go in this World Championship and now Bairstow and Roy are racing to their 10th

How refreshing it is was to see how England bashing the ball the way we got used to it and how ecstatic

There was a striker party from Bairstow, too, tapping his head to the amusement of the England dressing room that could be a nod to the man with whom I verbally collided in the wake of the Australian defeat in Michael Vaughan.

Then, with Bairstow unbeaten and England at 194 after one after 30 overs, it seemed a very real

But with a slower field and an attack from New Zealand minus his injured fastest bowler. Locke Ferguson finally took the right length, England made a decent effort to take advantage of it and to abandon the eternal dark horses.

Joe Root was hit by the leg and wasted England & # 39; s assessment while Bairstow fell quickly and Jos Buttler and even the in-form Ben Stokes couldn't get the wickets tumbling and England rushing their senses again set to reach 300, let alone 400.

They managed to rise to 305, mainly thanks to some productive late-hit by Liam Plunkett and Rashid, but a side of New Zealand virtually assured the semi-final date against Australia, were still halfway through .

Yet a team from New Zealand is currently shadowed by Brendon McCullum & # 39; s aggressive 50-over pioneers from the moment Henry Nicholls lbw received first ball from referee S Ravi to an episode from Chris Woakes who went over the stumps.

After Jofra Archer had claimed Martin Guptill for his 17th World Cup wicket, more than an Englishman in a World Cup, and Wood & # 39; s finger of fate for Williamson on his home field, New Zealand & # 39 ; s yacht sneaked out in an effort to protect their run-rate.

Family and friends, finished three to 34 The New Zealand were tumbled to 186 to give England a thumping 119-run victory. Work done, but how they played with our emotions on the way to this point.

New Zealand is now entering the semifinals at the expense of an unhappy Pakistan, with a mathematical wonder in the background of three consecutive

England, to the great relief of anyone interested in it domestic game, is in much finer fettle after what was, amazingly, their first win against New Zealand in every World Cup since 1983.

The & bottom of the bottom & # 39; of their humiliation in the hands of McCullum & # 39; s Black Caps four years ago that sparked England's one-day revolution, can finally be surrendered to history now and the first ever World Cup is a tempting two wins away. And breathe.

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