All posts filed under “Uncategorized”

August 29, 2017

Episode 117: You Really Don’t Need ‘em When You Don’t Need ‘em, But When you Need ‘em, You Really Need ‘em!

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Andy & Keith are back from GenCon and begin by telling GenCon stories, with Keith’s including Traveler’s Rest beforehand plus general life-in-a-van-with-a-pug stories, and Andy describing the total eclipse of the sun he got to see on the way home. In between they discuss they ups and downs and reading reviews of their games, and Andy talks about a small gameplay issue he’d like to make to the Creepers in Firefly Fluxx. They also talk about the samples of fantasy money they picked up at GenCon from a game called Shadows of Esteren, which leads to a discussion of currency design, and of course, game design. Later topics include Space Age Bachelor Pad Music, the newer works of They Might Be Giants, and the differences between dogs and cats. Then they brainstorm ideas for a game about cryonically frozen heads hoping their investments allow them to buy good replacement bodies upon resuscitation, and an idea for a Star Trek sitcom starring the cryonically-revived trio of characters from 20th century who appeared in TNG Season 1, Episode 26. Lastly, the guys give non-spoilery reactions to the newest episodes of Rick & Morty and Game of Thrones.

August 22, 2017

Episode 116: Sorry Bob, You’re the Cleric

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Keith talks about his Vanagon and the summer tour he and Jenn are about to embark upon, and Andy talks about his upcoming travel plans, including GenCon, the eclipse, and Burning Man. Keith talks about getting his hands on his first real copy of his Scott Pilgrim game, and about the status of Action Cats! Andy talks about a totally new card game he just invented, which uses just 23 cards and which he’s really excited about. They drop some Rick & Morty references, including the meaning of Getting Schwifty, and Keith mentions the most recent Game of Thrones. Andy talks about his aversion to depicts of violence, and how animation somehow makes it more tolerable. Keith goes off on a bit of a rant about Clerics, which includes stories from an Over the Edge campaign in which Kristin played a particularly fascinating character. This leads to a discussion about how to deal with “Alpha gamers,” in RPGs as well as regular tabletop games. Lastly, they discuss the most recent episode of Rick & Morty at length.

August 15, 2017

Episode 115: The Kramden/Kramer Theory

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The conversation begins with the word Fiddlesticks, which leads to the discovery of the Kramden/Kramer theory as well as a discussion of the Blinovitch Limitation Effect. Their meandering discussions include villains who control the weather, and the tick bite that causes meat allergies. Lastly, they discuss Rick and Morty, the Santa Clarita Diet, and the differences between zombies and vampires.

August 8, 2017

Episode 114: A Bear and a Spare

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First Keith talks about seeing a bear during a hike while on a family reunion trip to Jackson, Wyoming. He also talks about his upcoming travel plans, Action Cats!, and Scott Pilgrim. Andy talks about receiving the first samples of the new Zendo pieces, and Keith talks about receiving the first samples of the Okus tokens for Illimat. Keith talks about wolverines. Andy talks about filming flashback scenes for the Drinking Fluxx History video. Keith talks about GOT Bingo. Andy talks about the camp he’s found for Burning Man, and his plans to run games at RaiderCon, the playa’s only role-playing game convention. Moving on to media, the guys discuss the Ready Player One preview, and about misleading advertisements with out-of-context quotes. Media topics include Rick & Morty and Glow, plus Keith talks about a podcast called Presidential.

August 1, 2017

Episode 113: Apoplectic Giraffe

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First Keith reports on the status of the Action Cats! Kickstarter, and describes his 9 step process for evaluating photos of cats. Keith also talks about an amazing birthday party he just attended, the theme of which leads them into a discussion of Game of Thrones. Other topics include cosplayers, fashion police, and sword-fighting lessons. Andy talks about what’s new and different in the new edition of Nanofictionary, which launches on August 17th. He also reports on the status of Zendo. Media topics include Better Call Saul, The Leftovers, Rick & Morty, and a movie called Her.

July 25, 2017

Episode 112: Tuna of the Dirt

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First the guys discuss Keith’s newest Kickstarter, for his card game Action Cats! Then Keith talks about research he’s been doing into the history of party and parlor games. Lastly, they spend a lot of time discussing superhero movies, specifically Spider-Man: Homecoming and Wonder Woman, and before that, the preview for The Inhumans.

July 18, 2017

Episode 111: Zombies Rule Belgium!

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First the guys talk about what they’re each up to, including Keith’s newest Kickstarter. Then they talk about how movie sets of important locations, like the Oval Office, must get re-used by various film productions. Andy observes that many episodes of the original Twilight Zone series were westerns, and wonders if the real reason for that was the easy availability of western-themed backlots at the time. They discuss Spider-Man movies at length, along other superhero movies, including the Fantastic Four. Other media topics discussed include GLOW, Man in the High Castle, and Rick & Morty.

June 27, 2017

Episode 108: Mansplaining Man

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First the guys discuss production issues each of their companies are currently dealing with, including delays caused by overseas manufacturing. Keith talks about a new D&D campaign he’s running, and about Zorak’s search for a new henchman. Andy talks about Wickerman, a regional Burning Man event he and his friends had just returned from. Media topics include Wonder Woman, other superhero shows, and a web-series about one man’s search for the worst movie ever. After lowering the Spoiler Curtain, they discuss the latest episode of Fargo and the season finale of the Americans.

SPOILER WARNING: Spoilers inside!

June 20, 2017

Episode 107: A Non-Narrative Artistic Experience

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First Andy talks about the muddy camping trip he just returned from, a Burning Man regional event called Playa Del Fuego. Keith and Andy each then talk about the work projects they are focused on right now, and the tricky process of making sure that a game’s rulesheet is clear enough to learn the game from. Keith talks about the new Twin Peaks, having softened his initial views. Other media topics include Archer, The Man in the High Castle, and after they lower the spoiler curtain, The Americans.

Spoiler Alert: Contains spoilers!

June 6, 2017

Episode 105: Time Spanks Tom Hanks

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First Keith talks about his recent trip to Portugal, where, among other things, he enjoyed seeing the roof cats of Porto. They discuss the mystery of why we have different names for foreign geographic locations than the names used by the people who actually live in those places. Keith mentions a couple of books including Anno Dracula and Last Call. Andy reports on some of the stuff going on at Looney Labs, then talks about TARDIS technology and the time traveler known as The Plumber. They discuss Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 without being very spoilery, along with The Americans, Princess Leia’s Stolen Death Star Plans, Rouge One, and the BBC series from the 80’s called The Tripods.