One of my friends tagged me on Discord to let me know that several cast members of Critical Role were appearing in a comedy sketch called Dirty Laundry. Dirty Laundry is a show on Dropout where various comedians submit their stories. The guests need to guess who submitted it, and if they do, they receive a point. If the comedian tricks everyone and it’s their story and no one guesses them, they get three points. I have been wanting to watch Dimension 20 for a while, so I decided to try the free trial to watch this particular episode of Dirty Laundry. I ended up subscribing for a full year since it was 20% off, which I felt was a good deal considering all the content I have access to. For the amount of content I get to watch for the price, it’s been well worth it so far.

I mentioned Dimension 20 earlier. Dimension 20 is Dropout’s TTRPG streaming show. The first series, I believe, is Fantasy High and features Brennan Lee Mulligan as the DM with Murph and Emily Axford as players. If that sounds familiar, it’s because both Murph and Emily are on NADDPOD. I don’t know much more than that, but I like how it’s not as huge a commitment as Critical Role is. There are multiple seasons, but they also stream shorter series, which I think complements the longer campaigns that I watch with Critical Role. If you aren’t feeling that campaign, another one should start soon that might fit what you’re looking for. I will probably love Dimension 20, and I’m hoping to start it officially sometime next year.

I haven’t had my subscription for very long, as the only show I have watched so far is Dirty Laundry. It’s so funny. The Critical Role one was hilarious. There was a story someone shared about how they rode on a drug dealer’s horse. I won’t spoil whose story that was, but the one Matt shared, where he was at an orgy and didn’t even know it. It didn’t surprise me at all that it was Matt’s story. I watch Dirty Laundry at night after work because it’s a show I don’t have to pay much attention to after a long day. I also watched Dirty Laundry while I walked on my walking pad. With it being winter, it’s not ideal for walking outdoors, so I use my walking pad much more in the icky months. I watched two episodes while I walked, and the time flew by.

I’m looking forward to using my Dropout subscription. I think it will be something I use fairly often, and I can’t wait to start watching Dimension 20 next year.

The Mighty Nein has premiered on Amazon Prime with new episodes releasing on Wednesday. The Mighty Nein chronicles Critical Role’s second campaign, and arguably the campaign that Critical Role is known for. I have introduced my husband to both The Legend of Vox Machina and The Mighty Nein, even though my husband has never watched a full episode of Critical Role before. I am loving The Mighty Nein, and I think the show streamlines the campaign in a way that’s easy to follow.

There will be spoilers for both the show and the campaign.

The Mighty Nein follows seven characters, with six being introduced in the first four episodes. Caleb Widogast (played by Liam O’Brien), Nott The Brave (played by Sam Riegel), Beauregard Lionett (played by Marisha Ray), Jester Lavorre (played by Laura Bailey), Fjord (played by Travis Willingham), and Mollymauk Tealeaf (played by Taliesin Jaffe). Yasha (played by Ashley Johnson) makes an appearance, but doesn’t say much and isn’t connected with the group at this moment. Caleb and Nott meet after Nott steals Caleb’s spell components. Beau is investigating an attack with the Cobalt Soul, and Jester has a run-in with Fjord after his ship is wrecked in a storm. Mollymauk is helping Gustav prepare for the carnival. After the carnival is ransacked by a devil toad, the characters team up to prove their innocence and that they were not behind the attack on the carnival.

My favorite characters in the campaign were Fjord and Caduceus, who have not been introduced yet. From the show, I like Beau and Molly. It’s interesting because, during the campaign, I disliked Molly, which I would say is a somewhat unconventional take considering how much the fandom loves Molly as a character. I liked how Molly was portrayed in the show. They were less pompous, and I like how there was more emphasis on the Tarot cards. Beau’s story with The Cobalt Soul is one of the major plot points in the show, as it should be. I also liked how the earlier episodes emphasized how all the characters met. In the campaign, they meet, but the show ties everything together in a nice way, so it provides more emphasis on Caleb and Nott’s friendship before meeting the others.

Focusing on the NPCs, I liked how Trent Ikithon is a major focus right away. One thing I wish from watching the campaign is more emphasis on Trent and how evil he was. He would appear every now and then, but was more of a background character. In the show, that’s not the case. He is ICKY. He is a major player in the upcoming war, and he experiments on people, which is again, really gross. Trent’s early appearance helps establish his eventual downfall, and I look forward to it. Another notable NPC is Dairon, Beau’s mentor. Dairon is voiced by Ming-Na Wen, who also plays Melinda May in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. I thought that was a perfect casting for the character. Dairon was one of my favorite NPCs from the campaign, and I love how she’s voiced by another one of my favorite actors.

With most of Critical Role’s campaign adaptations, there are changes from the campaign to the animated show. The first notable change was Yasha. In the campaign, Yasha knew Molly from episode one, whereas in the animated show, Yasha is nowhere to be seen. I think this change may have been necessary, considering Ashley Johnson was still filming Blindspot during the campaign. I think it could have been more difficult to explain narratively why Yasha disappears. If I had to guess, I think the group will meet Yasha when she’s under Obann’s influence, and they will have to free her. I wonder if this will happen in the first season of the show or a lot later. Another change was the death of Gustav. In the campaign, Gustav survives the attack, whereas in the show, Molly is forced to kill him when he’s turned. I think this provides Molly more direction as a character. It gives more meaning to the scimitars that he carries.

I’m curious to see if Avantika will appear this season or if she will be saved for later on. The Mighty Nein is an enjoyable rendition of Critical Role’s beloved campaign. The Mighty Nein can be streamed on Amazon Prime.

In between watching Bells Hells, I have also been watching Aramán, Critical Role’s fourth campaign. The campaign recently completed the Overture, comprising four episodes designed to introduce the characters and establish three individual tables: Soldiers, Schemers, and Seekers. Everyone was waiting anxiously to see how this campaign would be. There’s a lot of change, with a new DM and a new world. I’m happy to say that this campaign has been interesting to watch. I wanted to share what I’m really enjoying about this new campaign.

There may be spoilers for Campaign #4 below. I will try to keep spoilers to a minimum.

The Campaign Feels Fresh

I like how this campaign takes place in a new world. I loved Exandria, but it’s nice to have a break. As I listen to Bells Hells, it hasn’t gripped me as much as other Critical Role campaigns and one-shots have. When I compare Bells Hells to Aramán, it feels different. I’m genuinely looking forward to Aramán each week. With Bells Hells, I can go days without watching an episode because I know the episodes will be waiting for me; however, I also don’t feel compelled to do so. With Aramán, I don’t want to be spoiled, so I watch the episode the next day, which has worked for me.

Matt as a Player

Matt is popping off, especially in the fourth episode. There’s a combat sequence, and Matt completely tanks. It’s nice to see him as a player and also being knowledgeable about what his character does. He understands the mechanics, and it makes him a powerful ally for the players to have at the table. Matt has played as a player character in Exandria Unlimited, but I felt his character was a dud. Dariax was around, but he didn’t have a personality. Sir Julien Davinos is making waves. Matt has taken to being more combatative with the other players as Julien and I’m here for the drama.

All the Characters are Intriguing in their Own Way

There isn’t a character that I have been introduced to that I haven’t liked. With there being thirteen characters to follow, it seems obvious that someone would show up that I forget about. That hasn’t been the case. With Taliesin, his characters are a hit or a miss for me. Bolaire has been a hit for me. I think it’s a nice blend between the characters that Taliesin wants to play and setting Bolaire up for success in this world. The cursed mask is fascinating and as someone who had cursed masks pop up in the campaigns I play in, they can have major consequences to a story. Other favorites have been Occtis (played by Alexander Ward), Julien, Tyranny (played by Whitney Moore), and Wicander (played by Sam Riegel).

The New Cast

I mentioned earlier about how this campaign feels fresh and I think the new cast is one of the reasons why. I watched Private Nightmares with Alex, Aabria, and Luis and if you haven’t watched it yet, you need to. I knew these three would be great. Robbie Daymond is back and I think he brings this excitement to Critical Role that is fun to watch. Whitney Moore, I had no idea who she was before she was a cast member. I knew she narrated a few of their panels at comic book conventions, but that’s about it. I mentioned Tyranny already, but I think her chemistry with Sam has been great. Their stories are linked together and I’m curious to see how that develops in later episodes.

Aramán has been a blast to watch. I am curious to see how things develop in later episodes. If you have any theories or thoughts, I’d love to hear them.

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.

Critical Role’s fourth campaign is premiering on Thursday, October 2nd, which is already a week away. I’m curious to see what type of story Brennan is going to spin for the cast. When Critical Role announced their fourth campaign, it was unclear if they would play Dungeons & Dragons or Daggerheart, the TTRPG system they created. With their announcement of playing Dungeons & Dragons, some fans felt burned that they invested in Daggerheart and wondered if Critical Role isn’t invested in the success of their game. Is that the case?

I disagree with this take. I think it would have been a risk for Critical Role to make their fourth campaign tied to Daggerheart when the system had only been released for four months. On top of that, most Critical Role campaigns last years, so to have a year-long campaign with a brand new system, I’m not sure if that’s a good idea. I don’t think Daggerheart is bad. I have played it twice in one-shots, and while I did have some reservations at first, I felt that I was proven wrong. I think there is a lot of potential for Daggerheart to eventually be used in a Critical Role campaign, but it’s too early right now.

I’m also wondering if adding a new system would have been too big a change. This campaign will already spotlight Brennan when all previous campaigns have been DMed by Matt. I think it would be a lot for fans to also accept a new system. Listen, I have no doubt that Brennan could learn a new system. If you’re already asking Brennan to DM this campaign with a ton of players at the table, and make it Daggerheart, I think that’s a lot to put on Brennan, but also for long-term fans to be on board with.

In between Critical Role’s fourth campaign, I’d love to see more Daggerheart mini-series. Matt has teased that Age of Umbra is coming back. I’m wondering if that will be a focus in October for Halloween? I’d also like to see more mini-series with the other campaign frames. There have been some live plays on the Darrington Press YouTube channel of the other frames, but of course, I’d love to see Critical Role’s take as well. I’d love it if NADDPOD tried Daggerheart. Emily Axford can do no wrong, and I’d love to see her try to break the system. If anyone could, it would be her.

I’m remaining optimistic. I think this campaign holds a lot of promise, and I have no reason to be skeptical. October 2nd can’t come soon enough.

I finally did it. I finished watching The Mighty Nein, Critical Role’s second campaign. I started watching The Mighty Nein in 2023 and completed it this year. It took me two years to watch Vox Machina, Critical Role’s first campaign, so the timeline fits. I’d argue that The Mighty Nein is the more popular campaign within the fandom due to the higher production value amongst other reasons. The Mighty Nein had a slower start for me, but once I was in it, I grew to enjoy it. If you aren’t able to watch 141 episodes, but want to know what happens, this post is going to be an overview of the campaign as a whole. As such, there will be spoilers.

Spoilers for The Mighty Nein

This post will have four sections: the characters, the story arcs and the NPCs (non-playable characters played by Matthew Mercer), the romances, and my overall view of the campaign. Before I begin, I will reiterate that there will be spoilers for the campaign. If I’m going to deep dive into it, I want to talk about all of it. This will be my third and final time mentioning it.

The Characters

There were eight characters in this campaign and they are as follows:

• Caleb Widogast, Human Wizard. Played by Liam O’Brien
• Nott The Brave / Veth Brenatto. Goblin / Halfling Rogue, Wizard. Played by Sam Riegel
• Jester Lavorre. Tiefling Cleric. Played by Laura Bailey
• Fjord. Half-Orc Warlock Paladin. Played by Travis Willingham
• Beauregard Lionett. Monk of the Cobalt Soul. Played by Marisha Ray
• Yasha Nydoorin. Aasimar Barbarian. Played by Ashley Johnson
• Mollymauk (Molly for short) Tealeaf. Tiefling Blood Hunter. Played by Taliesin Jaffe
• Caduceus Clay. Firbolg Cleric. Played by Taliesin Jaffe

My two favorite characters from this campaign were Fjord and Caduceus. I think Fjord’s character was interesting especially his ties to his patron. His story gripped me right away and I liked how Travis could be a character to help advance the plot. For Caduceus, I felt he fit in with The Mighty Nein especially being a later addition. Caduceus offers great advice to the party especially when it came to Fjord choosing to serve The Wild Mother, which is who Caduceus serves. Caduceus was an excellent foil to the other characters as he was serious which balanced Jester’s personality.

Jester, Caleb, Yasha, Beau, and Nott / Veth are all tied for me as far as which ones I like the best. Jester’s attitude and her approach to the group was sweet. She often offered levity in dire situations. Caleb’s tragic back story shapes his character and why he is who he is. Caleb getting the vengeance he deserved was satisfying. Beau was abrasive and downright rude at times. However, I think Beau had the strongest character development out of everyone in The Mighty Nein and that’s worth mentioning. Beau comes to terms with the Cobalt Soul and the work that she does and I liked seeing Beau rise to the occasion. Finally, I liked the humor that Sam brought with Nott. Nott is a chaos gremlin at times, but when she has her chance to tell her story, it was really interesting to watch.

My least favorite character from this campaign was Molly. Molly’s personality rubbed me the wrong way from the get go. I think Molly was pompous and while that was probably an intentional choice by Taliesin, it didn’t work for me. It’s important to say that while I didn’t like Molly, I loved Caduceus, who was also created by Taliesin. Taliesin had my favorite and least favorite character in this campaign.

The Story Arcs and the NPCs

As I mention Mollymauk, I think it’s a great time to talk about the story and Molly specifically. Molly was killed in episode #26 “Found & Lost”. During a standoff with Lorenzo, Molly tried to use one of their Blood Hunter abilities. Unfortunately, Taliesin rolled too high and Molly went unconscious. Since Molly was right next to Lorenzo, Matt asked Taliesin what his last words were and Molly spit blood in his face before being killed. The moment itself is brutal! When I watched it, I could see the emotion behind Matt as this played out. While I wasn’t a fan of the character, I never would have wanted Molly to go out like that. The Mighty Nein killed Lorenzo eventually, but this moment changed the tone of the campaign.

On a lighter note, my favorite story moments were Fjord’s pirate arc, saving Yasha from Obann, Rumblecusp, and the final two episodes. This goes right into the NPCs, but Avantika is my favorite NPC from campaign #2. I loved her. She was flirtatous and every time Avantika would flirt with Fjord, my eyes would go to Jester because she HATED it. The drama, I’m here for it. I liked the combat sessions on and off the ship, they were entertaining to watch. I liked watching The Mighty Nein save Yasha from Obann. It helped explain Ashley’s time away as she was filming Blindspot at the time the episodes aired. When The Mighty Nein lost Yasha to Obann, it was a devastating blow to the group. That’s the thing with Dungeons & Dragons, sometimes you win, and something you lose. While the wins are exciting, the losses can also help shape the story. When The Mighty Nein finally took out Obann and Yasha rejoined, I was happy for them and to get to see more of Yasha.

The Rumblecusp arc aka. TravelerCon is another standout story point for me. Seeing Jester’s love for The Traveler and how The Mighty Nein save this island from Vokodo were fun episodes to watch. I found myself flying through episode after episode during this point of the story. Also, this arc had a huge reveal when The Mighty Nein meet Keyleth’s mom. This was spoiled for me before I watched it, but it didn’t ruin it for me. I liked the crossover from the first campaign and tying up a loose end from that story. The final two episodes from The Mighty Nein are also favorites. I liked the Lucian boss fight and all the eyes. Each eye had their own ability and it was interesting to see what they all did. The final episode wrapped up the story in a heartwarming way. I found myself feeling happy at the conclusion instead of being sad that it was over.

Before moving on, I wanted to mention other NPCs besides Avantika. I loved Pumat Sol. Pumat owns “The Invulnerable Vagrant” a shop that The Mighty Nein frequents. Matt’s voice that he comes up for Pumat is perfect and everytime The Mighty Nein finds themselves at “The Invulnerable Vagrant”, they seem to be in good spirits. Marion Lavorre, Jester’s mom, is another notable NPC. The love that Jester has for her mom shows no bounds. I think Marion abandoned Jester a lot in her childhood, but Jester still loves her anyway. The final NPC that I will mention is Dairon. Dairon serves as Beau’s mentor and pops in and out throughout the story. If I had to choose a second or third favorite NPC, Dairon would be in one of those spots.

The Romances

In TTRPGs, characters can romance each other or romance NPCs. In Vox Machina, there’s Percy and Vex, Keyleth and Vax, and Scanlan and Pike. In The Mighty Nein, there’s Jester and Fjord, Beau and Yasha, and Caleb and Essek. I’m not including Veth and Yeza since they were married prior to the events of the campaign. With the romances in campaign #1, I adored them. Percy and Vex were meant to be together and I was giggling watching them get together over the course of the campaign. Keyleth and Vax were also cute together, although their romance ended in heartbreak. Scanlan and Pike were a later developed romance, but I liked them together especially when Scanlan could mature into the man Pike deserved.

For The Mighty Nein, I feel that the romances were forced and I think it detracted from the story. Starting with Jester and Fjord, I felt Jester was more into Fjord and it wasn’t as reciprocated by Fjord. While they kissed in the end, it didn’t feel genuine to me. Beau and Yasha, while I think they are cute together, it felt like they got together in the last few episodes of the campaign. It didn’t have the same effect that the romances from Vox Machina had. I felt Caleb and Essek were better off as friends than being in a relationship. I think this campaign was less about developing relationships organically and instead was more of “I like you, let’s date”. That’s fine! I prefer campaigns with romances where the romance develops over time and it develops based on the events from the story.

Final Thoughts

The Mighty Nein was a fun, chaotic, and heartwarming campaign. I’d describe The Mighty Nein as a Guardians of the Galaxy type story with a bunch of misfits teaming up together. This campaign is absolutely worth the time commitment if you’re able to dedicate the time. If not, there are several abridged recaps including an animated one by Dani Carr that’s available on Beacon.

Now that I’m finished with The Mighty Nein, what’s next? I am planning on watching any remaining Mighty Nein adventures including the one-shots, the campaign recap, and the Vox Machina vs. Mighty Nein one-shot. Once those are done, I’m going to recommit to Bells Hells, the third Critical Role campaign. I watched it on and off in 2022 and 2023, but then left it behind to go watch The Mighty Nein which was absolutely the right choice for me. On top of that, Critical Role’s fourth campaign is set to premiere in October, so I will be balancing that on top of Bells Hells. Eventually, I will reach a point where I can say that I’m caught up on all things Critical Role. Today is not that day.

It seems that The Fantastic Four have been difficult to adapt to a movie. Personally, I didn’t think the early 2000s Fantastic Four films were that bad. They were cheesy, sure, but I think there were far worse superhero movies than them. There was that one reboot, which I’m not even going to bother looking up. Now, Marvel has finally decided to take on the Fantastic Four, so they can be incorporated into their cinematic universe. It makes sense; the Fantastic Four are a huge part of the comics and the Avengers’ storylines in particular. The Fantastic Four: First Steps was excellent and has a unique approach to the superhero franchise.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps follows the Fantastic Four, comprising Sue Storm (played by Vanessa Kirby), Reed Richards (played by Pedro Pascal), The Thing (played by Ebon Moss-Bachrach), and Johnny Storm (played by Joseph Quinn). They have been established superheroes for a few years, and the world has grown to love them. During the evening, Earth is visited by the Silver Surfer (played by Julia Garner), and she warns Earth that Galactus is coming for them. The world looks to the Fantastic Four, who fly off into space looking for Galactus and hoping to stop them. When Galactus asks for something that the Fantastic Four can’t give, they rush back to Earth and try to figure out how they will protect the planet.

If you’re going into The Fantastic Four: First Steps hoping for some action-packed fight scenes, you might be disappointed. At the center of this film is science, and using science to solve a problem. I think it’s endearing that the Fantastic Four genuinely do not know what they are going to do. The world looks to them to fight everything, but it also makes this movie more real that the heroes don’t know what to do. After watching Superman recently, I feel The Fantastic Four: First Steps offers a different approach to superhero films.

One thing that I feel this movie captures that previous Fantastic Four films did not was the importance of family. Sue realizes that Galactus wants her child and refuses to give him up. She speaks to Earth in an eloquent speech that she will protect her son, but she will also protect them. The last half of the movie, when Sue is fighting Galactus, and it’s clear that she is motivated to protect her son, I was getting emotional. To be fair, I cry at most movies, but I think it speaks to a mother’s love for her child.

I’m glad that this movie wasn’t terrible. Similar to Superman and how James Gunn had a lot riding on this, I’d say there was a lot on Marvel for making this movie good. Fantastic Four has been all over the place, so I’m glad to see that it is possible to make a great adaptation for the Fantastic Four. This movie also sets up Avengers: Doomsday, and I’m excited to see the Fantastic Four appear with the other heroes.

I was scrolling on Instagram as one does, and I saw news that The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood was being adapted into a movie. I read The Love Hypothesis in 2021 when it was released, and loved it. Ali Hazelwood is one of my favorite authors, and I have enjoyed every book she has written. To say that I was excited for the film adaptation would be an understatement. The cast was also revealed, with Lili Reinhart posting on Instagram with The Love Hypothesis. Lili is playing Olive while Tom Bateman is playing Adam Carlsen. I can’t wait for this movie.

The Love Hypothesis was inspired by a Reylo fan fiction story. For those who have no clue what that means, Reylo fan fiction is short stories where Rey and Kylo from Star Wars end up together. I’m not here to shit on what other people love, but I am not a fan of Reylo. Kylo Ren is not a good person, and I find Reylo fan fiction glosses over all the evil atrocities Kylo’s done. If there were any Star Wars fan fiction that I’m in favor of, it would be Finn and Poe. Anyway, reading The Love Hypothesis and the way the characters are described, Olive has brown hair, and Adam is tall, dark, and broody. This tracks considering what I just said.

Interestingly enough, Tom Bateman is married to Daisy Ridley, who played Rey in the films. With The Love Hypothesis’s origins, I find it hilarious that Tom is playing Adam and is married to Daisy in real life. I have no idea if that played a role in Tom Bateman getting the part of Adam, but that feels too perfect to me. The other ask I’d like from this movie is for Adam Driver to have a cameo. I don’t care where he is in the movie, but he needs to be there. The budget for the film may not be able to afford Adam Driver, but I think it would make the film even better. Quite frankly, throw Daisy Ridley into this, too. It wouldn’t be too much to ask, considering her husband is one of the leads.

I don’t think I have been this excited for a book-to-movie adaptation in a long time. The Love Hypothesis absolutely deserves a movie, and I cannot wait for this movie to have a release date.