All posts filed under “Phoenix”

February 8, 2019

Episode 178: Just Don’t Die

This week the word is afterlife. The nerds discuss all the various types of afterlife stories, including recent shows like The Good Place and Dead Like Me, other forms of life after death such as zombies, vampires, and ghosts, resurrection in role-playing games, and the question of whether or not people in Heaven have cell phones or Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. Keith ponders a world where dead can routinely be brought back to life for a fixed price, and talks about the hard limit on extra lives he built into his game Phoenix: Dawn Command. Then they talk about changing forms during resurrections and other fantasy situations, and Andy recommends a couple of books and movies with unusual afterlife ideas. Then they discuss a recent theory that Luke was dead the whole time. After the spoiler warning, they talk again about the last episode of Babylon 5, along with the season 3 finale of The Good Place, and the newest episode of Star Trek Discovery and the Orville. Keith also talks about starting to watch Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

January 31, 2019

Episode 177: The Idea of Clowns

This week the word is optometry, as in Keith’s Sci-Fi Optometry Test. Then they discuss other equipment-less games like 20 questions, French Toast, and Battle of the Quote-Masters. Further topics include Rod Serling as a LARP character, tales from the Over the Edge RPG, magic shows, and hypnotism acts. Then they lower the spoiler curtain to discuss the starts of season two of Star Trek: Discovery and the Orville. Lastly, Andy shares his thoughts on the final episode of Babylon 5.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

January 15, 2019

Episode 175: Fanthropology 101

This week the word is fandom, as in “What are your fandoms?” What does it mean to be a fan? The nerds each talk about their own fandoms, including being fans of their own creations. Near the end they bring down the Spoiler Curtain to discuss the first episode of season 2 of The Orville, followed by Riverdale and Babylon 5.

SPOILER ALERT: CONTAINS SPOILERS

January 8, 2019

Episode 174: Scrappy Don’t

This week the word is new. Topics the nerds discuss include new elements being added into existing games or stories to freshen them up (such as Scrappy Doo, Worf, Seven of Nine, Batgirl, and the Great Gazoo), how their games have evolved as they’ve created new editions and new game mechanics, and shows that have radically re-invented themselves from one season to the next (including the Sarah Connor Chronicles and It’s About Time). Andy talks about where he’s gotten to in watching Babylon 5 and how surprised he was by the appearance of a couple of notable guest stars. Keith tries to talk about Bumblebee without spoiling it. Lastly they bring down the Spoiler Curtain to discuss Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

January 2, 2019

Episode 173: Zooty! Zoot Zoot!

This week the word is endings. Topics the nerds discuss include the all-time best ending to a TV series, stories that had the perfect ending but then continued anyway, and stories that ended before their time. Media they mention include Newhart, MASH, Lost, Battlestar Galactica, The Americans, Journeyman, How I Met Your Mother, all of the Star Treks, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Buffy, and in particular, Babylon 5. They also compare Keith’s frequently re-run RPG game, Unusual Suspects, with Andy’s Parsely games.

SPOILER ALERT: CONTAINS VINTAGE SPOILERS

December 28, 2018

Episode 172: Drive-Thru Movie Theater

This week the word is holidays. Topics the nerds discuss include made-up holidays, christmas movies about ghosts and princes, the non-existence of a Star Trek holiday special, drive-in movies, Iceland’s Yule cat and Lads, Holland’s Zwarte Piet, Leap Day Williams, holiday music, and the possibility that Santa is a vampire. Andy saw Ralph Breaks the Internet, and Keith saw The Favourite, and they tell each other a little about those. Andy talks about finally getting to see again that one really scary episode of Space: 1999. Lastly, they discuss the latest episode of The Good Place.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

December 19, 2018

Episode 171: Okus Focus

This week the word is pax, which the nerds discuss along with other words that sound like pax and other words that are just interesting, including whiz mob, grifter, and okus. They each discuss their experiences at PAX Unplugged. Other topics include the classic board game Masterpiece, time travelers who exist in every time at once, and the hand-held gizmos used on Space: 1999. They also spend a lot of time discussing sonic screwdrivers.

December 10, 2018

Episode 170: City of Termites

This week the word is bugs. Among other things, the nerds discuss the trailer for the Bumblebee movie, and Andy talks about vintage sci-fi he’s been watching lately, specifically Space: 1999, the original Battlestar Galactica, and Babylon 5. Lastly, they discuss the Good Place.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

November 28, 2018

Episode 169: Bring on the Bad Guys!

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This week the word is Excelsior because Stan Lee passed away this week. The nerds talk about their early experiences with comic books, the differences between Marvel and DC heroes, etc. Then Keith talks about a recent incident in which Illimat made the news for witchy reasons. Moving on to media, they discuss Forever, Babylon 5, the Star Trek Discovery between-season shorts, and after a spoiler warning, they discuss Homecoming at length.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

November 13, 2018

Episode 167: What Do We Need Dice For?

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This week the nerds talk about the use of dice, or lack thereof, in role-playing games. Keith just got back from AmberCon with many tales of the games he played and ran there, and they discuss various RPG systems and how they use — or eschew — the roll of the dice. Media discussions include Homecoming, Babylon 5, and First Man.