I've been an avid fan of all the podcasts WoTC has been putting out surrounding D&D, first with the guys from Penny Arcade (plus Scott Kurtz and Wil Wheaton) and then the Robot Chicken videos. I've also read Zak's blog before. I love playing D&D, and I love watching people play it, now that I can't, due to my current workload. (Yaaay, college!) That said, I think the show could benefit from a few things (don't worry, there's some good news at the end):
First, slowing down on the jump cuts, or at least giving us a sense of time passing. One of the things I really enjoyed about the WoTC 'casts was that they represented an entire play session, which gave a nice sense of narrative continuity. I'd be interested to see what an informative subtitle, such as "two rounds later" would do to help that. One of the most important things to me when I play or DM is the flow of the game?how it progresses over time. There's a very organic process at play, and while I understand the need to edit down a play session to get the most time for the juicy bits, I would appreciate knowing how y'all got from point A to point B, rather than just knowing you made it there.
Second, understanding the rules elements at play here would also be nice. I'm not asking for an exhaustive review, but there are some of us who didn't grow up playing AD&D, and I know that the system Zak's running is a hybrid of both AD&D and 3rd Ed. So, from my point of view, as a player, I'd love to see some of the behind-the-scenes details so that it's possible to have a rudimentary understanding of what people are rolling for.
Finally, I'd love to hear more from the PCs. When Kimberly talked about how much she enjoyed rolling a crit on that elf in episode 6, it was fantastically enjoyable, because it reminded me of my first crit ever, and how much fun that was. Having the players share moments like that with the camera is both compelling and adds a sense of personal connection to game events. As a DM, I know that every person plays differently, and values different things. I'd rather get a taste of who everyone is as a player than what plays they make.
Now, for some praise: this episode was definitely better than some of its predecessors, and the quality of the show in general has improved since episode 1. Whoever is doing all the editing really seems to be catching his or her stride. Also, as some others have mentioned, this definitely brings me back to all the time I've spent around the table, with intra-party squabbling and the usual tomfoolery regarding bad die rolls. Y'all get an A for nostalgia. There's also a great cast sitting around the table, with a bunch of awesome personalities, all of whom seem to be genuinely enjoying themselves, and that's what D&D is all about: people coming together, having fun, and kicking some monster ass.
I guess at the end of the day, the only question that matters is: "Will I watch this again?" My answer: maybe. It's not something like LRR or ZP that I have a physical and psychological compulsion to watch every week, but it's enjoyable. If you improve the show, I'm sure it'll turn into destination viewing for me.
First, slowing down on the jump cuts, or at least giving us a sense of time passing. One of the things I really enjoyed about the WoTC 'casts was that they represented an entire play session, which gave a nice sense of narrative continuity. I'd be interested to see what an informative subtitle, such as "two rounds later" would do to help that. One of the most important things to me when I play or DM is the flow of the game?how it progresses over time. There's a very organic process at play, and while I understand the need to edit down a play session to get the most time for the juicy bits, I would appreciate knowing how y'all got from point A to point B, rather than just knowing you made it there.
Second, understanding the rules elements at play here would also be nice. I'm not asking for an exhaustive review, but there are some of us who didn't grow up playing AD&D, and I know that the system Zak's running is a hybrid of both AD&D and 3rd Ed. So, from my point of view, as a player, I'd love to see some of the behind-the-scenes details so that it's possible to have a rudimentary understanding of what people are rolling for.
Finally, I'd love to hear more from the PCs. When Kimberly talked about how much she enjoyed rolling a crit on that elf in episode 6, it was fantastically enjoyable, because it reminded me of my first crit ever, and how much fun that was. Having the players share moments like that with the camera is both compelling and adds a sense of personal connection to game events. As a DM, I know that every person plays differently, and values different things. I'd rather get a taste of who everyone is as a player than what plays they make.
Now, for some praise: this episode was definitely better than some of its predecessors, and the quality of the show in general has improved since episode 1. Whoever is doing all the editing really seems to be catching his or her stride. Also, as some others have mentioned, this definitely brings me back to all the time I've spent around the table, with intra-party squabbling and the usual tomfoolery regarding bad die rolls. Y'all get an A for nostalgia. There's also a great cast sitting around the table, with a bunch of awesome personalities, all of whom seem to be genuinely enjoying themselves, and that's what D&D is all about: people coming together, having fun, and kicking some monster ass.
I guess at the end of the day, the only question that matters is: "Will I watch this again?" My answer: maybe. It's not something like LRR or ZP that I have a physical and psychological compulsion to watch every week, but it's enjoyable. If you improve the show, I'm sure it'll turn into destination viewing for me.
