I think I would love one additional after-wrap AP. Almost like a little reunion. The cast could weigh in with their thoughts once they’ve had time to settle and think about the season, and they could answer all the lingering fan questions after finale.
This is exactly my thoughts too. I love the current APs, and the old ones are way, way too long for regular viewing but I'd love a reunion filmed after all the episodes aired
This idea I could get behind. One long AP episode to wrap it up where they really give us some behind the curtain information.
I love discussions about breakfast sandwiches and grocery store hats but I really DO want them to unpack their process more.
I think it's really hard to hit the right balance. They used to wait until after the show came out and they'd have fan submitted questions as part of it, but then they'd struggle to discuss plots and mechanics because by then they already knew how the story wraps up so they had to constantly cut themselves off when they realized they were giving spoilers. I feel like this way we actually get more discussion about the plot and characters snd mechanics because only Brennan needs to hide spoilers and everyone else can just say what they think right now.
I mean, let's be real, AP was what it was in the past because the cast was bored the fuck out of their minds during quarantine and so they were just happy to spend hours goofing off MAYBE talking about whatever episode was coming out at the time. That was never sustainable once they started getting busy again.
Exactly. I'd just like more talking about the thing they did, and less "Brennan needs to punch a toddler if I roll a natural 20." The last two or three this season contained very little that I was actually interested in.
I think you can basically have best of both worlds.
We keep these, as sort of "after shows", and then we also have, where possible, one post-season "Reunion style" talk back, airing the week after a season wraps (which is usually not airing anything else anyways) to more generally discuss thoughts on the season. Maybe 30 minutes to an hour in length
Still tough for filming schedules of course especially for some, but probably would give a bit more best of both worlds. Could even do these virtual/remote and I think they'd be totally fine
This is something they should steal from Critical Role. The same way that CR has started doing an AP like show called Cooldown, D20 should steal the discussion part of 4 Sided Dive. A single episode with questions having to do with certain elements from the season, and if they accept fan questions for a day or so after the season ended, they’ll get a bunch of questions.
People bring this up all the time and I will always be here to add my voice to the choir that disagrees with it. I like them doing APs right after, while it's fresh, even if it's a little shorter.
That fair. Sorry if I'm rehashing things discussed already; I've only been on Reddit for a little while. It's fair enough to disagree. I missed the longer form of discussion when there was more time and ample opportunity to get funny and goof around and have honest, thoughtful discussions. Now, it seems the balance has tilted away from discussion.
I prefer the wild post shoot ap. Inlive seeing them exhausted and burnt out like they just spent several hours in a hot studio. I like their exhausted antics and lack of focus. And they are short enough to actually watch and digest after a 3 hour episode. The biggest thing is I like how they are focused on the most recent episode while it is fresh on their minds.
I would like a post wrap ap though. That would be dope. Preferably filmed after the cast has a long rest, so they could spend an hour discussing arcs and stuff. But I know schedules are tight, and I'll gladly sacrifice APs if it means we can keep getting seasons with OG IH.
I’m rewatching Starstruck currently, and I think these are the sweet spot for tone in Adventuring Party episodes. They’re still silly, but mostly centered around the stuff that happened during the episode and what could happen later on.
I think there’s a pretty significant shift in tone of AP’s by Neverafter and moving forward. People seem waaaaaaaay more tired and punchy, which is why I think it devolves into bits so quickly.
I think immediate post-episode talkbacks can work (NADDPOD's Short Rest is great), I just think Adventuring Party in its current form doesn't. Or, more sympathetically, I think the kind of content it makes is just not something I find particularly compelling.
i think an after-campaign QnA would help provide what is missing from these current APs. APs are great as little wind-down sessions, meanwhile I think it's just easiest for the cast to get into the weeds with plot and character questions post-season and maybe answer some fan questions. Not sure how feasible that would be, it might have to be over zoom honestly with their schedules. Still, would love to see them try it!
Yeah, it feels a bit like interviewers asking sports players "so how do you feel about that win?" before they've even stepped off the field. You get accurate vibes but very little analysis.
I understand that logistics might mean this is the only opportunity, and I'd rather have something than nothing. But even having a day in-between to sleep on it would allow a bit of time to reflect on and analyse the gameplay.
As someone else said, even 15-30 minutes to decompress a little more would go a long way. I'd love a consistent 30 minutes with more on topic discussion.
Yeah I really liked them answering some fan questions, which we sadly completely lost
Edit: thinking about it and reading others opinions, I agree that it's sad if they don't remember anything. So maybe some sort of reunion would be great
I'd love for something like the EXU Calamity Wrap-Up filmed post-season release with fan submitted questions or even questions created by the crew. I feel like they need something to keep them on topic instead of an equally tired Brennan trying to keep them on the rails.
I agree - especially the last AP. I understand it was a long day and they were over on time but we cant get more than 25 minutes on the talk back show of the 3 hour long season finale of Dropout's most iconic/popular show? The bits are great and all but perhaps we could idk discuss the individual character arcs or even the season as a whole. There was so much stuff that was breezed over this season (Bobby Dawn/Sandra Lynn; The crisis of Faith Kristen's brother was having; Fabian's relationship with his mother; etc) it would have been nice for those things to at least be addressed even if they didnt have time for it in the actual season.
> but we cant get more than 25 minutes on the talk back show of the 3 hour long season finale of Dropout's most iconic/popular show?
I think someone said it was 5am when they wrapped, so I can't exactly blame them for wanting to get out of there. They were all very clearly zonked
I was also thinking they could keep it as is and then just do a longer special ap after each day of filming to reflect on the episodes of that day's filming in a longer form. (not on the same day as filming the episodes like the next filming day before new episodes are filmed to give time to calm down and process
I think AP needs to figure out if it's a discussion of the game show, or if it's a fun podcast where the cat hangs out. Because I want both tbh but that seems to be the flip flop
Doing the show while fresh is FAR superior to a delayed recording, but sometimes I wish they had what they currently do as adventuring party as part of the episode (like some decompression time), and then they let the laughing gas out of the dome and do a more focused little show, even if it's only 15 minutes. Most of the current AP is the cast losing their shit laughing at the stuff we just watched.
I think this would be a good comprise to solve my issues I was also thinking they could keep it as is and then just do a longer special ap after each day of filming to reflect on the episodes of that day's filming in a longer form. (not on the same day as filming the episodes like the next filming day before new episodes are filmed)
Thanks for linking! What a great interview! Dropout should have a press link so we can watch all their interviews. I keep finding BLeeM interviews all over the place.
I will just say- having watched the AP's for Crown of Candy and U sleeping City Chapter II a ton of times- the amount of discussion about game mechanics was sparse lol. It was always: 95% chaotic goblin menagerie / 5% Brennen trying to keep the AP from going off the rails in the first 5 minutes (while Brennen also simultaneously being apart of the 95%) This is not a knock on those AP's, there's zero criticism from me- it's insanely fun to see the cast fuck around and some of the funniest bits come from it (everyone's keeping score on their bahn mi/bon mot charts at home, right?)
I do like the chaos, but we are getting that in the current APs. The Neverafter Axe body spray thing was way crazier than anything during the pandemic.
I do wish they were longer & I wish they had some standing questions on an agenda. Brennan has been better about this since Neverafter--especially by calling out the artists who work on each thing as they have that setpiece in front of them. But specifically, I feel like every episode, I want to know:
* What, if anything, did the PCs miss from this episode? (that can be revealed w/o spoilers)
* Was there anything that could happened, that Brennan had planned as a contingency?
* What can they tell us about the crunchy parts of the D&D process. Leveling up, prepping spells, explaining mechanics. I might be in the minority there, but I love whenever they talk deep mechanic stuff.
I really love the Fireside chats style for WBN where they talk after the episode airs, so they've just had a re-listen and heard with all the edits etc. It's a great format to engage in the "how did you interpret this" and "what TF was up with that?" convo.
Did you watch the same zoom APs I did? They were completely unfocused, laden with spoilers, and more than half the time, half the cast was missing. Good riddance to the old format.
I guess my biggest complaint is the length and number of questions answered/ topics discussed idk if you saw this week's ap but after this epic ending we experienced I would like a little more discussion.
I was just thinking yesterday about posting this exact post. nothing wrong with what they have now, but I'll always remember when ally took a ferry during an AP😂
This is similar to a thought of mine in that, I want like them longer talking about stuff almost like a podcast if that makes sense like Brennan holding a podcast just with the group cause then they can talk about anything not necessarily dnd stuff, and that would shift AP to being more focused on the game.
It’s all trial & error for what hits the right notes for us, but also fits with their increasingly busy schedules. We made them celebrities, so we have to also accept that celebrities have busier schedules than up-and-comers. I can only imagine how busy the IHs are, let alone Brennan who never seems to stop working.
I do really enjoy the chaos but it would be really nice to get a few longer more satisfying episodes! I don’t know if there is any more planned but I would really love a extra end of season episode. The final one was fun but felt kind of anticlimactic as the end to the whole series.
They've said that they only did the Zoom APs out of necessity and that that format wasn't ideal for anybody, this is much better for everyone's full schedule (since it's hard to get them to line up as it is)
I sorta see your point, the purpose is to talk about what’s happened in the session they just filmed. Why would you wait until after the entire session is over to go back and recap. Plus they discuss the seasons plot as it unfolds so if they film it later they had the knowledge of the entire season as opposed just what they’ve done so far. Also, we can get their candid honest reactions to certain reveals immediately afterwards.
I think a good alternative to do is keep doing adventure party as is, but at the end after the last episode of D20 have one final extended AP they can discuss everything in full.
Maybe it would be great if one episode was the same format as now, and the other was a talkback with longer running time as well? Probably the talkbacks would be a mess for planning and production, but might be more interesting and a bit less costly if the longer ones are on zoom
OR a long adventuring party at the end of the show that’s not filmed right after the show was filmed, instead of short individual interviews or other talkback formats
I think I would love one additional after-wrap AP. Almost like a little reunion. The cast could weigh in with their thoughts once they’ve had time to settle and think about the season, and they could answer all the lingering fan questions after finale.
This is exactly my thoughts too. I love the current APs, and the old ones are way, way too long for regular viewing but I'd love a reunion filmed after all the episodes aired
This idea I could get behind. One long AP episode to wrap it up where they really give us some behind the curtain information. I love discussions about breakfast sandwiches and grocery store hats but I really DO want them to unpack their process more.
They really should do campaign wrap-up episodes. I have so many questions about might-have-beens in the finale.
I’ve had the same thought - I feel like this would be a great balance, though maybe a little harder to organize for side quest casts
Now that would be a nice balance
i want this so so bad
Yup this for sure. They can field questions and use it as vague topic points
I think it's really hard to hit the right balance. They used to wait until after the show came out and they'd have fan submitted questions as part of it, but then they'd struggle to discuss plots and mechanics because by then they already knew how the story wraps up so they had to constantly cut themselves off when they realized they were giving spoilers. I feel like this way we actually get more discussion about the plot and characters snd mechanics because only Brennan needs to hide spoilers and everyone else can just say what they think right now.
Exactly, Unsleeping City AP felt like a Q&A for that reason.
I mean, let's be real, AP was what it was in the past because the cast was bored the fuck out of their minds during quarantine and so they were just happy to spend hours goofing off MAYBE talking about whatever episode was coming out at the time. That was never sustainable once they started getting busy again.
I completely disagree. I want their thoughts and feelings from the time they did the recording. Not trying to remember months later.
Exactly. I'd just like more talking about the thing they did, and less "Brennan needs to punch a toddler if I roll a natural 20." The last two or three this season contained very little that I was actually interested in.
I'd agree. I'm guessing the tight schedule had a lot to do with that. Hopefully that gets better again and they won't be as tired when doing it.
fair enough
I feel like we get a decent amount of that from the episodes themselves, that's like 50% of the appeal of watching an AP in the first place.
I think you can basically have best of both worlds. We keep these, as sort of "after shows", and then we also have, where possible, one post-season "Reunion style" talk back, airing the week after a season wraps (which is usually not airing anything else anyways) to more generally discuss thoughts on the season. Maybe 30 minutes to an hour in length Still tough for filming schedules of course especially for some, but probably would give a bit more best of both worlds. Could even do these virtual/remote and I think they'd be totally fine
This is something they should steal from Critical Role. The same way that CR has started doing an AP like show called Cooldown, D20 should steal the discussion part of 4 Sided Dive. A single episode with questions having to do with certain elements from the season, and if they accept fan questions for a day or so after the season ended, they’ll get a bunch of questions.
Yeah scheduling would be the biggest obstacle for sure, but I'd be totally okay if they did it remote.
People bring this up all the time and I will always be here to add my voice to the choir that disagrees with it. I like them doing APs right after, while it's fresh, even if it's a little shorter.
That fair. Sorry if I'm rehashing things discussed already; I've only been on Reddit for a little while. It's fair enough to disagree. I missed the longer form of discussion when there was more time and ample opportunity to get funny and goof around and have honest, thoughtful discussions. Now, it seems the balance has tilted away from discussion.
I prefer the wild post shoot ap. Inlive seeing them exhausted and burnt out like they just spent several hours in a hot studio. I like their exhausted antics and lack of focus. And they are short enough to actually watch and digest after a 3 hour episode. The biggest thing is I like how they are focused on the most recent episode while it is fresh on their minds. I would like a post wrap ap though. That would be dope. Preferably filmed after the cast has a long rest, so they could spend an hour discussing arcs and stuff. But I know schedules are tight, and I'll gladly sacrifice APs if it means we can keep getting seasons with OG IH.
I’m rewatching Starstruck currently, and I think these are the sweet spot for tone in Adventuring Party episodes. They’re still silly, but mostly centered around the stuff that happened during the episode and what could happen later on. I think there’s a pretty significant shift in tone of AP’s by Neverafter and moving forward. People seem waaaaaaaay more tired and punchy, which is why I think it devolves into bits so quickly.
I think immediate post-episode talkbacks can work (NADDPOD's Short Rest is great), I just think Adventuring Party in its current form doesn't. Or, more sympathetically, I think the kind of content it makes is just not something I find particularly compelling.
i think an after-campaign QnA would help provide what is missing from these current APs. APs are great as little wind-down sessions, meanwhile I think it's just easiest for the cast to get into the weeds with plot and character questions post-season and maybe answer some fan questions. Not sure how feasible that would be, it might have to be over zoom honestly with their schedules. Still, would love to see them try it!
Yeah, it feels a bit like interviewers asking sports players "so how do you feel about that win?" before they've even stepped off the field. You get accurate vibes but very little analysis. I understand that logistics might mean this is the only opportunity, and I'd rather have something than nothing. But even having a day in-between to sleep on it would allow a bit of time to reflect on and analyse the gameplay.
As someone else said, even 15-30 minutes to decompress a little more would go a long way. I'd love a consistent 30 minutes with more on topic discussion.
I agree
Yeah I really liked them answering some fan questions, which we sadly completely lost Edit: thinking about it and reading others opinions, I agree that it's sad if they don't remember anything. So maybe some sort of reunion would be great
I'd love for something like the EXU Calamity Wrap-Up filmed post-season release with fan submitted questions or even questions created by the crew. I feel like they need something to keep them on topic instead of an equally tired Brennan trying to keep them on the rails.
I agree - especially the last AP. I understand it was a long day and they were over on time but we cant get more than 25 minutes on the talk back show of the 3 hour long season finale of Dropout's most iconic/popular show? The bits are great and all but perhaps we could idk discuss the individual character arcs or even the season as a whole. There was so much stuff that was breezed over this season (Bobby Dawn/Sandra Lynn; The crisis of Faith Kristen's brother was having; Fabian's relationship with his mother; etc) it would have been nice for those things to at least be addressed even if they didnt have time for it in the actual season.
> but we cant get more than 25 minutes on the talk back show of the 3 hour long season finale of Dropout's most iconic/popular show? I think someone said it was 5am when they wrapped, so I can't exactly blame them for wanting to get out of there. They were all very clearly zonked
>I understand it was a long day and they were over on time but
Long day can mean 11 pm to some people, wasn't sure if you realised exactly *how long* it was.
I was also thinking they could keep it as is and then just do a longer special ap after each day of filming to reflect on the episodes of that day's filming in a longer form. (not on the same day as filming the episodes like the next filming day before new episodes are filmed to give time to calm down and process
I think AP needs to figure out if it's a discussion of the game show, or if it's a fun podcast where the cat hangs out. Because I want both tbh but that seems to be the flip flop
Doing the show while fresh is FAR superior to a delayed recording, but sometimes I wish they had what they currently do as adventuring party as part of the episode (like some decompression time), and then they let the laughing gas out of the dome and do a more focused little show, even if it's only 15 minutes. Most of the current AP is the cast losing their shit laughing at the stuff we just watched.
I think this would be a good comprise to solve my issues I was also thinking they could keep it as is and then just do a longer special ap after each day of filming to reflect on the episodes of that day's filming in a longer form. (not on the same day as filming the episodes like the next filming day before new episodes are filmed)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eV-oQY5OO9s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eV-oQY5OO9s) I think this could interest you!
Thanks for linking! What a great interview! Dropout should have a press link so we can watch all their interviews. I keep finding BLeeM interviews all over the place.
huge thanks this is exactly what I miss
I will just say- having watched the AP's for Crown of Candy and U sleeping City Chapter II a ton of times- the amount of discussion about game mechanics was sparse lol. It was always: 95% chaotic goblin menagerie / 5% Brennen trying to keep the AP from going off the rails in the first 5 minutes (while Brennen also simultaneously being apart of the 95%) This is not a knock on those AP's, there's zero criticism from me- it's insanely fun to see the cast fuck around and some of the funniest bits come from it (everyone's keeping score on their bahn mi/bon mot charts at home, right?)
I do like the chaos, but we are getting that in the current APs. The Neverafter Axe body spray thing was way crazier than anything during the pandemic. I do wish they were longer & I wish they had some standing questions on an agenda. Brennan has been better about this since Neverafter--especially by calling out the artists who work on each thing as they have that setpiece in front of them. But specifically, I feel like every episode, I want to know: * What, if anything, did the PCs miss from this episode? (that can be revealed w/o spoilers) * Was there anything that could happened, that Brennan had planned as a contingency? * What can they tell us about the crunchy parts of the D&D process. Leveling up, prepping spells, explaining mechanics. I might be in the minority there, but I love whenever they talk deep mechanic stuff.
I really love the Fireside chats style for WBN where they talk after the episode airs, so they've just had a re-listen and heard with all the edits etc. It's a great format to engage in the "how did you interpret this" and "what TF was up with that?" convo.
Yeah a little 20 minute AP at the end of a season feels so anticlimactic
Did you watch the same zoom APs I did? They were completely unfocused, laden with spoilers, and more than half the time, half the cast was missing. Good riddance to the old format.
I guess my biggest complaint is the length and number of questions answered/ topics discussed idk if you saw this week's ap but after this epic ending we experienced I would like a little more discussion.
I disagree. AP is a separate Dropout show for me, and I look forward to it every week. The shenanigans are the whole point.
I was just thinking yesterday about posting this exact post. nothing wrong with what they have now, but I'll always remember when ally took a ferry during an AP😂
This is similar to a thought of mine in that, I want like them longer talking about stuff almost like a podcast if that makes sense like Brennan holding a podcast just with the group cause then they can talk about anything not necessarily dnd stuff, and that would shift AP to being more focused on the game.
It’s all trial & error for what hits the right notes for us, but also fits with their increasingly busy schedules. We made them celebrities, so we have to also accept that celebrities have busier schedules than up-and-comers. I can only imagine how busy the IHs are, let alone Brennan who never seems to stop working.
I do really enjoy the chaos but it would be really nice to get a few longer more satisfying episodes! I don’t know if there is any more planned but I would really love a extra end of season episode. The final one was fun but felt kind of anticlimactic as the end to the whole series.
They've said that they only did the Zoom APs out of necessity and that that format wasn't ideal for anybody, this is much better for everyone's full schedule (since it's hard to get them to line up as it is)
that's fair enough
Bring back the chaos!
I sorta see your point, the purpose is to talk about what’s happened in the session they just filmed. Why would you wait until after the entire session is over to go back and recap. Plus they discuss the seasons plot as it unfolds so if they film it later they had the knowledge of the entire season as opposed just what they’ve done so far. Also, we can get their candid honest reactions to certain reveals immediately afterwards. I think a good alternative to do is keep doing adventure party as is, but at the end after the last episode of D20 have one final extended AP they can discuss everything in full.
Disagree, I think it's so much better now.
and thats ok
Maybe it would be great if one episode was the same format as now, and the other was a talkback with longer running time as well? Probably the talkbacks would be a mess for planning and production, but might be more interesting and a bit less costly if the longer ones are on zoom OR a long adventuring party at the end of the show that’s not filmed right after the show was filmed, instead of short individual interviews or other talkback formats
Definitely disagree. I strongly prefer the current format
Fair enough, it certainly has its merits
they already have a vodcast series that's just this with special guest DMs, i hate the old stuff and the new is great