#mentopolis episode 2

[marlinspirkhall]

This is so fucking funny

[sunshine-1722]

Maybe all our consciences are scared lil kids selling newspaper with a talking dog

[saingirl101]

Mentopolis Episode 2 Liveblog as Gifs (SPOILERS)

ello everyone I am back on my live watch gif along BS. I forgot that the new season came out last week + work being insane so I missed doing the first episode. However, I watched it and loved it and want to do the new episode tonight. As always spoilers under the read more

Hunch full on tasting the dead thugs blood to confirm they worked for the avaricce family:

The fix vs Hunch Curio Look at Youing each other:

The fix getting his chair Albert as Nostalgia:

The fix going from relunctantly wanting to kill conrad and then wanting to adopt him probably:

Dan Fucks full on guzzling pancake syrup at the dinner:

Danny fucks taking every moment to reinforce his rivalry with Conrad:

Anastasia also not being able to say Dan Fucks full name:

Dan fucks creating a distraction:

Anastasia finding out that The Big Guy has sustained a traumatic head injury:

The Fix getting the heebie jeebies from Conrad's 'home':

Okay but actually the fix really adopting conrad:

Hunch Curio failing to convince the library university bouncer that he's a student but somehow surviving getting wailed on:

The PIs getting ambused:

Anastasia and Hunch being able to act first THOUGH:

THE FIX ONCE AGAIN BEING INTIMIDATING BY GIVING 'True Facts':

THE GANG FINDING OUT THE BIG GUY HAS BEEN DEFENESTRATION:

US ENDING ON THAT CLIFFHANGER:

Brennan as always because hes a wily man who loves tormenting us all:

[katoninefandoms]

I couldn't stop thinking about it because it almost rhymes and this is where I learned what the word means

@dimension20official

[hamable]

I didn’t realize how deep the itch was until now, but Mentopolis is scratching a narrative/meta narrative itch that’s one of my favorite things as a reader and writer. Like they all have roles in the human body and in the brain and everything they do in their little body society correlates in real time to Elias Hodge’s body and getting to decipher what each relationship and interaction means both for the characters and for the mentality of Elias is mmmmm scrumptious delicious I love it I eat it up

More thoughts in notes

[quevadilla]

"it's time to unlearn that lesson" what if I cried.

[raemeh]

finally watching mentopolis and had a thought

if Conrad is Elias’s conscience would Elias look like Conrad just older?

[brainrockets]

Brennan's favorite kinda place. A diner.

[workingwhileidream]

Okay Burrow's End had me thinking some thoughts... So here are my favorite Dimension 20 moments that rotate like a rotisserie chicken in my brain (in no particular order other than the order I thought if them).

- Riz goes into the butthole of the Corn Ooze Monster (Fantasy High). The first absolutely insane shenanigans move anyone makes on D20, setting the tone the show will have forever.

- Raphaniel kills Queen Pamelia (Ravening War). I think I saw Brennan's soul leave his body briefly when he got that How Do You Want To Do This from Matt. Time was an absolute flat circle that day.

- Hank convinces Brennan to let him role savvy instead of sneak (Mentopolis). Hank is one of the most famous content creators, having him on the show was phenomenal to begin with. Then right out of the gate, he pulls this move in his first episode. And it just works. Hilarious, instantly iconic.

- Jet Dies (A Crown of Candy). When Lapin dies, it is shocking but I wasn't attached to him as a character. Lapin was a bit antagonistic and his death happens early in the season. On the other hand, Jet is instantly likeable. Emily and Siobhan are amazing as siblings, their performances this campaign are some of my favorites. I have siblings and I am very close to them, so this hit me like a ton of bricks.

- The entire epilogue of Burrow's End. "Are you pitching and Air Bud ending?" is one of the instant hall of fame quotes from this show. I started crying I was laughing so hard.

- Ylfa's bottleneck and the TPK (Neverafter). There are so many close calls for total party kills in Dimension 20 history, but this is where it finally happens and it's only 3 episodes in. I was on edge, expecting another TPK at any turn, for the rest of the campaign.

- 3 nat one initiative rolls for the battle that literally opens the season (A Starstruck Odyssey). The beginning of a new season is always full of excitement. This season was extra special, having everyone back in the dome after the pandemic and the season being based off Brennan's Mom's comics. The zoom energy is still in the air and I still think about this season opener a lot.

- Mother Timothy Goose breaks Snow White's concentration with a cantrip (Neverafter). Only Ally Beardsley could and we all damn well know it. Still didn't stop me from being so far in disbelief that all I could do is laugh.

- Hob's "You will never know another lonely day" speech to Rue (A Court of Fey and Flowers). I will still cry about this if I think about it for too long. Rue and Hob's romance is the heart of this season to me. I won't be over it ever.

- Gertrude convinces Nyruth to give the Questing Queens very powerful boons after the Queens tried to rob them only a few hours earlier (Dungeons and Drag Queens). The fact that this season exists drives a level of serotonin into my brain that is unimaginable. This is the definition of a big swing and when Bob rolls well, Brennan has no other choice than to honor it. This is one of the moments I have made a meme of. I cannot wait for season 2.

- Wuuvy shows up to the duel and she did not come to play (A Court of Fey and Flowers). Aabria has talked about how Wuuvy is one of her favorite NPCs and I feel the same. Wuuvy and Rue's relationship has such a great arc and this moment is so pivotal.

- Fabian's no good very bad day (Fantasy High Sophomore Year). An iconic moment in D20 history that was truly wild to watch live. For everything to go so fantastically bad for Fabian and Lou was unprecedented. There is a reason why people still talk about this moment to this day.

- Amathar survives being pushed off the castle (A Crown of Candy). Brennan tried to kill Lou so many times in this campaign. I really thought Brennan had gotten him with this one, my stomach sunk. But Lou pulls it out and Amathar lives once again.

- Pib plays "Smoke on the Water" (Neverafter). "I stepped out to play 'Smoke on the Water' " is also a hall of fame quote to me. This list could be all Pib moments if I'm being honest, he's my favorite Zac character. And the fact that Zac doesn't roll well makes this moment funnier to me.

- Buddy Bear gets planted with the All Blossom (Dungeons and Drag Queens). Jujubee and Brennan owe me a therapy session for this one. I sobbed. My cat is my baby and I will be ruined the day she leaves me, so I get it. I really do.

- "Eat your dice, Brennan" (Fantasy High Sophomore Year). A great bit made physically possible by Siobhan. I hope Siobhan gives him gummy dice or something like that so that Brennan can continue to eat his dice for Junior Year.

- Orange Top Hat Fairy (Neverafter). It's a horror season and the cast is doing bits about how hot a mini is the entire finale and the Adventuring Party that followed. I felt the stress and off the walls energy through the screen. The Smooth Criminal pin was the first piece of Dimension 20 merch I bought.

- Viola's epic takedown of Phoebe (Burrow's End). Watching Rashawn absolutely crush it her first time in the dome was amazing. I loved Viola from the jump, her arc was so satisfying and fun to watch. Also the idea of a tiny stoat kicking a gun just the right way to get it to fire is hilarious. No notes other than please have Rashawn come back on every season she possibly can.

- Evan Kelmp warns the Rosemont student not to duel him (Misfits and Magic). Brennan's deadpan warning matched with the reactions of the other players and Aabria really make this scene. An underrated Brennan moment for sure.

- Stacey Fakename turns out to be real (Mentopolis). This was such a good reoccurring bit, so to have Stacey be real at the end of the story was too funny. In a season of bits, tropes, and puns - this one has the most payoff to me and is definitely my favorite.

[sneakerdoodle]

what i expected more people to talk about with Mentopolis is how it represents trauma. how Conrad hangs onto a core, defining memory that dwells in the depth of the subconscious (he lives in the Red District!), how that traumatic experience became internalized in a way that is very directly implied to have affected Elias' behaviour and personal choices throughout his entire adult life; how Elias himself literally does not have the memory of it, and the part of his consciousness that holds it is singled out and sectioned off and isolated, and forever stunted in its development. how Conrad holds the memory, and that's why the voice of conscience is so rarely accessed - because to come into contact with it would be to come into contact with the memory, and that would be excruciating, and so Conrad is neglected and forgotten because Elias cannot have one without the other. something so deeply poignant about a profound experience unconsciously influencing the way Elias moves through life, without him even being consciously aware of it, and without the option to safely reflect back on it

and then the lose-lose of a traumatic response, how the severing of his conscience was an expression of a self-protective instinct: get rid of this, don't act like this and you will be safe from experiencing such pain again. and holding the memory is part of hurting, and so repressing it is part of the self-preserving urge - but this unconscious choice, made by Elias as a hurt, scared child, led him to shut out an entire function of his conscious. how, in a way, his very employment choice could be considered reckless. how our responses to trauma, in a desperate attempt to keep us safe after a harrowing, incomprehensible event, often only expose us to more danger, with no option to escape it as we are unable to process the root of it and we're only 2 freakin episodes in

[dropoutdottv]

This week on Dropout: on Monday, a new Make Some Noise with Rashawn Scott, Ross Bryant, and Wayne Brady; on Tuesday, the trailer for Dirty Laundry season 3; on Wednesday, episode 2 of Dimension 20: Mentopolis; on Thursday, the Adventuring Party talkback; and on Friday, a new Um, Actually with Saige Ryan, Omar Najam, and Persephone Valentine!

[marlinspirkhall]

[ID] Brennan Lee Mulligan says I'll remember that you did a favor for ol' Johnny Gullible. [End ID]

[dimension20official]

🚨TONIGHT! Episode 2 of Dimension 20: Mentopolis launches on @dropouttv at 7pm Eastern / 4pm Pacific - featuring Brennan Lee Mulligan, Hank Green, Danielle Radford, Alex Song-Xia, Siobhan Thompson, Mike Trapp, and Freddie Wong.

[cariocake]

dream d20 campaign blunt rotation in no particular order

>acofaf 2: winter ball

>acofaf 3: beach episode

>acofaf 4: hallows eve

>aso 2: a new crew

>unsleeping city 3: viva las vegas

>mismag 2: american wizards are just as weird as the other ones

>the seven 2: community college (sam & zelda kiss)

>mentopolis 2: anxiety riddled brain that functions like a groovy 60s spy movie instead of a film noire

>weird western cowboy side quest with mike trap in it please please please im on my knees

>cryptid side quest where everyone plays cryptids

>crown of candy 3 house of the dragonfruit (aabria dm)

[fillingthescrapbook]

Let's Talk About Misfits and Magic Season 2

I love Aabria Iyengar's mind. I love the way she creates a story that is many levels of profound--but, still, at its core: is about being good, doing good, and hoping for goodness in a world that's wrapped up in different shades of bad.

Around midway through this season of Misfits and Magic, I stopped sharing my thoughts. Not because I didn't have thought to share. It's mostly because I have complicated feelings with this show. I have not made it a secret that I didn't really care for the first season. Nor the holiday special. And I really didn't like how fans of Dimension 20 were so divided about this title because of its connection to a franchise we don't want to like anymore. Because of many reasons. This season did turn things around for me--but the feelings didn't become simple just because I liked the world and the characters more now.

When I write my reaction posts, I make a list of observations. Thoughts and reactions that I then try to turn into a coherent essay. It's really hard to do that with this season. I feel like I was working through my own history and connection with fantasy, of how I became enamored with the genre, alongside the magical misfits journeying from island to island encountering the many forms of magic. Magic that were tied down, bound, and made simple--but is allowed to be messy and unwieldly again. And, now, after the finale: magic that's allowed to be simple again, but not because it was distilled--but because it's been given a new definition. A more apt definition.

I fell in love with Danielle Radford while watching Mentopolis (and, aside: I love that Danielle remembered 57 as Alex Song-Xia's favorite number). But it's this season of Misfits and Magic that really gave her a spotlight of what she can do. Maybe only a sliver of what she can do. But from what was shared with us? Danielle is an emotional powerhouse. Episode after episode, she hits us with emotional beats that network or streaming television shows would kill for.

Then there's Lou Wilson. This may not be a well-shared opinion, but I feel like Misfits and Magic has Lou at his most reserved. And it's not a bad thing. He's letting the other players go buck wild, and he's the one who's grounding everything down. And we really see the importance of a straight man with Lou's performance. Because some of the most emotionally-charged moments of this season wouldn't have been as powerful had it not been for Lou's reactions.

Erika Ishii has always embraced the goblin-gargoyle characterization they've been given. I think that's most true with their Misfits and Magic character. And while K/Dream/Etsy Bit.ly Spider is never one of my favorite Erika characters--they still managed to make the character so engaging that you can't help but be pulled into their orbit…and want what's best for them.

And then we get to Brennan Lee Mulligan. For the man who doesn't get to play a lot of TTRPG because he's almost always behind the DM's screen--it's really refreshing to see him go balls-out with every decision his character makes. I, ultimately, still ended up not an Evan Kelmp fan after the finale--but there truly is something magnetic in the way Brennan plays him that you want to root for Evan. From afar.

That said-- I am still very against the Sam-Evan 'ship. Now more than ever. During the scene where Brennan and Danielle were trying to vocalize what happens now to their characters' relationship, and the situation and feelings that lead into this development…it kind of put into words my discomfort with them becoming a couple.

Evan is, ultimately, a broken person. Sam is too, but in a different way. Evan sees Sam as the person who brought some good into his life, and I feel like that's doing a lot of heavy-lifting in what he's feeling for her. And I really don't think that's fair to Sam.

Do the two actors have great chemistry? Yes! They're just describing scenes together and we can feel the romantic tension between the two characters! But that's not enough for me. I want someone better for Sam. But that's a discussion for, maybe, another season of Misfits and Magic. Maybe.

If there's anything I've learned with Season 2--it's that Aabria, Lou, Erika, Danielle, and Brennan are GOATs. And if they feel the need to revisit this world, we're going to get something truly magical.

I'm glad I gave this title another try. I guess I have to thank the haters who prodded the petty side of me into watching this live and not just taking a break from actual play for a bit.

That said… I really do hope that Aabria's next game on Dimension 20 isn't a sequel. Because I can't wait to see what new system Aabria is going to introduce next.

(Also, just to add: the editing of Dimension 20 is getting better and better--and it was never a slouch to begin with. And: Carlos Luna as Tabby in the last two episodes was very much missed. Aabria is great--but there's a certain mischievous sweetness in the way Carlos voiced Tabby that was just pure magic. Now, cut the feed!)

[rollforfelicity]

I think I'm doomed to always be a little unhappy with non-D&D seasons of Dimension 20 because they tend to treat any system they're running like D&D.

I'm on episode 2 of Mentopolis (which I'm loving) but Brennan Lee Mulligan keeps treating the checks like D&D handles skill checks. If you miss, nothing happens, and if you hit the DC, you do what you're trying to do. He also keeps getting so close to how Kids on Bikes works by saying "The DC is 8, but if you get a 12, you'll get something extra." That's great GMing, except that's how all the checks work in Kids on Bikes. You're always succeeding and failing by degrees. For example, here's what the rulebook says about hitting the difficulty exactly.

The character succeeds, but just barely. Decidedly, nothing surprising happens — and the player and the GM should make this success as skin-of-the-teeth as possible.

By contrast, succeeding with a margin of 10+ means you succeed "smoothly and easily," and potentially get extra bonuses from this success. But what happens if you fail a roll? There are degrees to it. For example, missing the check by a margin of 1-4 leads to this result:

The character fails, but not too badly. There might be some very, very minor short-term consequences, but these won’t shift the story for more than a minute or two. The character has tried and almost succeeded.

Even if you only fail by a little, something should happen other than "you don't succeed." Sometimes that's the result that makes the most sense, but most of the time the narrative should at least shift enough that the character would have a reason not to try to do the exact same thing again. For example, you try to jump up on a box to get a better view. You fail by a margin of 2, the box breaks when you jump on it. It's not a huge complication, but the PC will have to try another method or move on.

That's also why adversity tokens (they charmingly call them Moxie in Mentopolis) are so interesting. You can spend a few to still fail a roll, but have results be less dire, or spend some to succeed by an even larger margin.

I get that Kids on Bikes is kind of similar to D&D, but it is a different game, and the differences make the experience of playing so much fun.