I first started watching Bells Hells, Critical Role’s third campaign, at the end of 2021 when it first aired. I was trying to watch both The Mighty Nein and Bells Hells at the same time, and it was a lot. With most episodes being three and a half to four hours long or longer, it’s a lot to try and watch both campaigns. Towards the beginning of 2023, I decided to drop Bells Hells and focus on The Mighty Nein. Now that I have finished The Mighty Nein, and Bells Hells has finished, I feel like I missed something. Overwhelmingly in fandom spaces, Bells Hells was not as well-received as the other campaigns, so what happened?

I don’t have facts or numbers to back this up; this is simply based on what I have read online from other fans. I stopped watching Bells Hells at episode #40, and I’m on episode #10 of my rewatch. When I first started watching, I remember loving Laudna as a character. Laudna inspired one of my first Dungeons & Dragons characters at the time. I thought Bertrand Bell’s death was surprising, and Chetney’s quick introduction a few episodes later brought chaos to the party. There was a lot of potential to explore every character, their back story, and whatever plot Matt was planning behind the scenes.

It sounds like the campaign took a turn regarding the gods of Exandria and the gods of Dungeons & Dragons lore. I know bits and pieces that were spoiled for me before watching, but not enough to explain what happened without watching it for myself. However, from what I learned, I’m not sure if I love the direction that Bells Hells or Critical Role took in that regard. I don’t want to say much more about it until I have seen it myself and can form my own opinions.

I think it’s important to note that you can still be a fan of something and not love everything from that fandom. For example, fans of Game of Thrones can still be fans even though they hated the last season. You can be a fan of Critical Role without loving Bells Hells. Sometimes I find that people take things personally when someone critiques something they love. A year or two ago, one of my friends was reading a book I loved. When she finished the book, she said she didn’t like it. I remember feeling defensive about it. It’s so silly when I think about this now because who cares? If she didn’t like something, it doesn’t change how I feel about it. She isn’t wrong, nor am I right. We both are allowed to like or dislike something, and it doesn’t change how the other views it. All of this to say, it’s okay if there are fans who liked Bells Hells or who didn’t like Bells Hells.

Getting back on topic, I am looking forward to Bells Hells and being fully caught up on all things Critical Role. I’m curious as to how I will feel about the campaign and the direction it took.