All posts filed under “Spoilers

Episode 166: Scheherazade vs. Babylon

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This week the nerds talk about plans. They discuss various media that purported to have a plan, but didn’t (like Battlestar Galactica and Lost), and media that really should have had a plan but never did (like the new Star Wars movies). They discuss the differences between stories that are meant to go on forever vs. those that are complete and self-contained. Andy talks gives his reactions to some first season episodes of Babylon 5, which he is finally watching. He also shares a few thoughts about the new Doctor Who and reports on his recent trip to Costa Rica. Then they discuss the issue of human ashes being dumped at the Haunted Mansion. Lastly, they discuss Manifest and The Good Place (with a few little spoilers).

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Episode 164: The Quicksilver Dilemma

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This week the nerds take on the topic of time, and stories about characters who can stop time, slow time down, or, of course, travel through time. Specific subjects include Doctor Who, Hiro from Heroes, the Flash, Quicksilver from the X-men, Voyagers, the First Men in the Moon, Manifest, Seven Days, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, The Man in the High Castle, Fringe, Sliders, and others. At the end they lower the spoiler curtain to discuss the most recent episodes of The Good Place and Manifest.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Episode 163: The Hour of Scampering

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This week the nerds take on the topic of pizza. They have much to say on the subject. It starts with the debate about pineapple on a pizza, they discuss other toppings (and the endless negotiations a group must go through to ordering one), and how some toppings are more “pick-off-able” than others. Then they move on to their childhood favorite pizzas, their go-to choices for ordering a pizza now, garlic, types of bacon, pizzas of different cities, different ways of cooking pizza, how they each cook a pizza at home, and their favorite national pizza chain. Then they move onto popular media depictions of pizza, the adult adventures of pizza delivery guys, all the references to pizza that Andy has included in his games, and the joy of calzones. Finally moving on from pizza, Andy gives his impressions of the first 10 episodes of Babylon 5, which he’s has finally started watching after all these years. Lastly, after lowering the spoiler curtain, they discuss the first episodes of The Good Place and Manifest.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Episode 159: Druid Law

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Andy just got back from Burning Man so he spends a lot of this episode talking about his experiences there this year. He ran a lot of games at his camp, which hosts a game convention called RaiderCon, and had a great breakthrough while playtesting his new game, Are You a Robot?. Meanwhile, Keith just returned from DragonCon and interjects with stories from his weekend, where he played a lot of great games of Illimat and learned about Druid Law from Ken Hite. Andy describes a couple of the most intense Burning Man art projects he experienced, including a crazy stack of seven junked cars and a recreation of the Great Train Wreck. Other topics they discuss along the way include the works of Doug Michels, the future of Star Trek, Ed Harris in westerns and some spoilery theories about the next Avengers movie.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Episode 158: What Does The Ambassador Say?

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First Keith talks about being in Ithaca again to help his mother, and Andy talks about the recent passing of his father. Then Andy talks about his plans for Burning Man, which leads to a discussion of robots. Andy reports on his progress with the design of ChronoTrek, and Keith talks about Action Pups! They discuss some media, including Humans, Making It, and Nailed It. Andy talks about Jenny Nicholson’s ideas for naming horses, the Renwick Gallery’s Burning Man exhibit, and gives more thoughtful answers to the favorite and least favorite aliens.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Episode 157: It’s Something or Other, Charlie Brown!

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First Keith reports on a couple of D&D games in the middle of playing, which included a scene with a fancy dance involving daggers. Then Keith talks about several podcasts he listened to recently, and some of the issues discussed thereon. The guys then talk more about their experiences at GenCon. Andy talks about awarding Homeworlds medal #17, and describes new ideas he’s been playing around with for a variation of the game that has no combat and a different end condition. Keith talks about Potion Explosion, Root, Arkham Horror, and the how difficult it is to walk the enormous exhibit hall when you’re busy running a booth. They talk about the meaning of name Delos, and Andy talks about an RPG called TimeWatch. Keith talks about media he’s been catching up on, including Cloak & Dagger, Castle Rock, and Making It. Kristin interrupts to bring Andy the first samples from the factory of Fairy Tale Fluxx and Mary Engelbreit Loonacy, and talks about the progress he’s been making on the Star Trek version of Chrononauts he’s currently designing.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Episode 155: Cane, Walker, Wheelchair

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First the guys talk about Gen Con and other travel plans. Then Keith talks about The Wayfinder’s Guide to Eberron, which he’s been working on for months and which was just released. Andy reports on his progress with the new game he’s developing called Are You A Robot, then tells of moving his aging father into the next level of care at his retirement home. Andy talks about installing a TV screen showing a looping video of a fireplace inside an old wood stove, and Keith talks about seeing a Rick & Morty episode he’d missed the first time around. Moving onto media, topics include Timeless, Travelers, Cloak & Dagger, and Ant Man. Things get spoilery when Andy starts talking at length about Future World, the 1976 sequel to Westworld and end with their views on the first season of The Crossing.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Episode 154: Colonel Custard

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The show begins with a lengthy discussion of custard and other desserts. Keith talks about The Story George Told Me and How I Met Your Mother, which leads to another discussion about TV series finales. Andy steps away briefly to take some custards out of the oven, leaving Keith to talk about ice cream cake, and then they get into a big discussion about villains in the MCU. This leads to a discussion about long-term continuity in writing about famous characters, in particular the changes in direction in the recent Star Wars movies. (Beware of some slight Solo and Last Jedi spoilers towards the end.)

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Episode 153: The Perfect Sky is Torn

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First the guys chat about the weather, and work stuff… Andy talks about some new design ideas he’s been having for Space Fluxx… but they spend the most of this show talking about Westworld, first discussing the original 1973 film, and later, the finale of season 2 of the series.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Episode 149: One Rulesheet To Rule Them All

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First Keith talks about Slurpees and a game called Vye. Andy talks about work stuff he’s been focusing on, including a massive redesign of the standard Fluxx rulesheet. Keith mentions his upcoming trip to Wales and the guys talk about games in and about The Prisoner. This leads to a discussion of reboots and problems that different shows can run into in their second season. Comments sent in by a listener named Michael get the guys into another conversation about stun guns and various other big-picture questions about the Star Wars universe. After dropping the spoiler curtain they discuss Westworld, the Expanse, and the Crossing.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS