The word is paradox and the nerds have many thoughts about paradoxes and time travel and alternate realities. Topics include Zeno’s paradox, the grandfather loop, and of course, Andy’s game Chrononauts. Media they discuss includes Bodies, Loki, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, the Terminator 1 & 2, Back to the Future, Star Trek, Marvels, and Alien 1 & 2. Andy has a lot to say about the JFK assassination, and Keith has some opinions to share about the new Scott Pilgrim series.
This week the word is bird-dog, bird because Looney Labs just announced a new partnership with a company named Cardinal, and dog because Keith just launched a Kickstarter for Action Pups! Andy talks about two new games he’s working on for Cardinal to publish, Marvel Fluxx and Jumanji Fluxx. Keith wonders where the phrase “quitting cold turkey” comes from, and Andy wonders how you say angst in German. Andy talks about finally reading Snow Crash. Moving on to media, Andy recommends a film called Future ’38, and they discuss Bandersnatch. Then they drop the spoiler curtain to discuss the latest episode of Star Trek Discovery at great length.
SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS
First Keith reports on his recent trip to his hometown of Ithaca NY. Andy mentions that this year’s Burning Man theme is “I, Robot” and Keith tells Andy about a new game being designed by friends of his called Inhuman Conditions, which is about trying to determine if your opponent is a robot or a human. Then they talk about tattoos people have gotten featuring images from their games. Andy tells Keith about a memorable hand of Action Cats! Then they spend more than half the show talking about Star Trek: Discovery, which Keith has finally gotten caught up on.
First Keith talks about how things went in the first session of his new D&D campaign, and about a D&D event he just returned from called Level Eater 8. Keith mentions a couple who went looking for a dog they could call Kevin. Andy mourns the passing of Joe Frank, recommends a book by Roz Chast called Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant?, and asks if Keith has thought about going to Burning Man. Keith tells a morbid story, then they get into a big discussion about Star Trek Discovery, including some minor spoilers. Behind the spoiler curtain they also discuss The Good Place, Electric Dreams, and Black Mirror.
SPOILER ALERT: Spoilers inside.
First Keith talks about a new D&D campaign he’s starting up, which he’s going to be running “sandbox-style,” and Andy mentions At Your Service, a book of sandbox-style adventures Keith wrote for the Over The Edge RPG system. Andy talks about sending Get the MacGuffin and Anatomy Fluxx off to the printer, and Keith talks about the Action Cats! expansion for which Andy submitted a new photo. Then Andy follows-up on the story he told last week about a mysterious cat that showed up on his doorstep. Andy also announces the pending release of Russian Star Wars Fluxx. This inevitably leads to another round of Star Wars discussions, followed by some talk about Star Trek, Lost, Battlestar Galactica, Babylon 5, 24, and the endings of TV series in general. Lastly, behind the spoiler curtain, they discuss several episodes of Electric Dreams.
SPOILER WARNING: Spoilers Inside!
First Keith talks about skipping PAX to nurse his aching back, and Andy talks a little about his recent trip to Europe. Andy mentions that Get the MacGuffin has gone to the printer, and Keith talks about working on an Action Cats! expansion. The guys talk about being sat upon by their pets, then they get into a discussion of the finer details of Doctor Who’s regeneration process. This leads into a discussion about Andy’s idea for a Star Trek series about the DS-9 character, Dax. Keith talks about watching Legion again, then he talks about the first couple of episodes of Electric Dreams. Keith talks about a new RPG scenario he’s been working on. Andy talks about a strange cat that showed up, wanting into his house. Lastly, behind the Spoiler Curtain, they discuss Future Man and Black Mirror.
SPOILER ALERT: Spoilers Inside
First Andy talks about the trip to Amsterdam he’s about to take, with his friend Bonnie, who’s off to live overseas for 3 years. Then he talks about the development of the next version of Fluxx in the works, Anatomy Fluxx, which he’s getting a lot of help with from his friend Dr. Leila Zucker. He talks about new rules they are adding to increase the educational value. Then they get into some discussions about early LARP games they wrote and/or played in, and Keith talks about having different colored contact lenses. Then they get into another big discussion about Star Wars.
First Andy and Keith talk about various subjects ranging from Harry Potter, the holidays, role-playing character motivations, The Twilight Zone, Over the Edge, and the concept of a Mary Sue character. This gets them talking again about the new Star Wars movie, which they discuss at length, again, mostly avoiding spoilers until near the end. Other topics along the way include Star Trek, The Sarah Conner Chronicles, Thor: Ragnarok, Knights of the Old Republic, Battlestar Galactica, and Lost.
Andy and Keith spend the entire hour talking about Star Wars: The Last Jedi. They have opinions.
First, Keith talks about cooking Ellen’s Jambalaya. Andy talks about being in the Sweet Spot on the game design process, and talks a little about his 31st pyramid game. After some discussion of the Three Wise Men, the wise guys talk about some Star Wars related videos they’ve been watching in preparation for the release of Episode 8. Andy just received his copy of Action Cats! so they discuss cats. Andy talks a little about the Pyramid People Executive Retreat, and whines about a toothache. Keith rants at length about things he disliked in Guardians of the Galaxy 2 during his second viewing. Andy talks about watching Back to the Future 2 & 3 in French with his friend Bonnie, who’s moving to a French-speaking country soon, and Keith talks about a new show he’s looking forward to, called Counterpart. Lastly, they discuss the latest episodes of Legends of Tomorrow.