This week the word is Zombies. The nerds have a lot to say about zombies, and how they differ from other undead beings including vampires, ghosts, and reanimated corpses. After all that, Keith recaps the start of his Fugue State: Threshold campaign running via Twitch, and Andy again has things to say about Taskmaster. Next they talk about what book they should read next. Behind the spoiler curtain they talk about What If and Lower Decks.
SPOILER WARNING: contains spoilers.
This week the word is Collectors, and begins with the nerds talking about their own collections and various types of collectors. The discussion includes classic arcade games (including the obscure hit, Rip Off), Magic cards (and what it was like in the very early days), collecting topics ranging from curating to completeness, Keith’s story about the difficulty of obtaining RPG dice in Bulgaria, and the mystique of Cosmic Wimpout dice. Moving on to media, Andy talks a little about The Expanse and a lot about Taskmaster. After dropping the spoiler curtain, they discuss the first two episodes of Lower Decks and What If? episode 2.
SPOILER WARNING: contains spoilers.
This week the word is Stakes. First they nerds discuss the importance of stakes in story-telling, and in games. Keith reports on the D&D game he’s running on Patreon, then they discuss 7 more Donald Barthelme short stories. Lastly, after the spoiler they discuss the Loki season finale and The Tomorrow War.
SPOILER WARNING: contains spoilers.
This week the word is wizard. First the nerds discuss their favorite wizards at length, which leads to them both sharing stories from their early LARP game experiences. Then they talk about Bill and Ted Face the Music without getting too spoilery. Lastly, Keith gives some high-level thoughts about Doom Patrol season 2 and the first 3 episodes of Lovecraft Country.
BLOOPER WARNING: contains bloopers.
This week the word is malinger. First the guys discuss what the word actually means, then they share memories of malingering, including the time Keith when was trapped in a closet while staying home from school. Next they discuss the 3rd episode of Star Trek: Lower Decks. Keith talks about work stuff and games he’s playing, and the challenge of making Bingo cards for Lovecraft Country. Then Andy talks about the newest Parsely game he’s writing, and asks Keith to describe what he remembers about a game idea they pitched in the final days of their time together at Magnet, which would have been called the Secret City. Keith also talks about how those ideas helped inspire work he did later on Crossroads and Over the Edge. After the lowering the spoiler curtain, Andy gives his thoughts on Season 2 of the Umbrella Academy.
SPOILER WARNING: contains spoilers.
This week the word is Midichlorians. The nerds talk about what the new Star Wars movies might have been if Disney had taken the suggestions they’d gotten from George Lucas, and they debate which of the movies they think is the worst one. Keith talks about his current work projects, which leads the nerds discuss the differences between a storytelling game and a role playing game. Then Andy talks about Astronomy Fluxx, which is about to go to the printer. Lastly, they talk slightly about recent and upcoming media.
This week the word is Gen Con, which the nerds spend a lot of time discussing. But first Keith talks about being in Maine, and his distaste for lobster. They talk about the year 2020, seeing multiple people wearing a lab coat and carrying a watermelon, and zany stunts they used to do at sci-fi conventions before they each started a game company. Keith talks about his new project with the Adventure Zone, then they speculate more about the upcoming Picard series. Andy asks Keith to compare the gore factors on Stranger Things vs. The Boys, since Andy is very adverse to graphic depictions. Then Keith talks about the start of Season 3 of Legion, and Andy mentions a theory about Star Wars Episode 9 that’s been going around. After lowering the spoiler curtain, the discuss season 3 of Stranger Things.
SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS
This week the word is expectations. The nerds talk about how expectations can make or break an experience, and discuss the impact of expectations on everything from Star Wars to Harry Potter, including the Twilight Zone and various role-playing games. After they spoiler warning, they discuss Game of Thrones, the Orville, and Avengers: Endgame.
SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS
This week the word is crabgrass. The nerds talk about what they mean by this writers’ term and wonder where it came from and how well known it is. Along they way they discuss the early days of LARPing, issues with The Last Jedi, “Mystery Box” stories, unreliable narrators, and their favorite movies in the Marvel franchise. Andy rants about an issue he had with Ant Man and the Wasp. Keith talks about Gloom of Thrones, and Andy talks about his first colonoscopy. After the Spoiler Warning they water-cooler the most recent episodes of the Orville and Star Trek: Discovery, and also discuss Captain Marvel.
SPOILER WARNING:CONTAINS SPOILERS
This week the word is love. The nerds discuss unusual romantic relationships, in particular stories in which robots and humans fall in love. Then they talk about romance in role-playing games. Keith tells stories about playing a bear in a game of Blue Rose, and they talk about love stories in LARP games. They talk generally about Brooklyn Nine-Nine and It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, and then they drop the spoiler curtain to discuss the latest episodes of The Orville, Star Trek: Discovery, and Future Man.
SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS