Title: Never Stop Blowing Up
GM: Brennan Lee Mulligan
Players: Ally Beardsley (they/them) as Russell Feeld (he/him) / Jennifer Drips (she/her). Ify Nwadiwe (he/him) as Wendell Morris (he/him) / Vic Ethanol (he/him). Isabella ‘Izzy’ Roland (she/her) as Paula Donvalson (nee Buocadifuoco) (she/her) / Jack Manhattan (he/him). Rekha Shankar (she/her) as Usha Rao (she/her) / G13 (he/him). Alex Song-Xiao (they/them) as Liv Skyler (she/her) / Kingston (he/him). Jacob Wysocki (he/him) as Andy ‘Dang’ Litefoot (he/him) / Greg Stocks (he/him).
Streaming Service: Dropout

A home-brew inspired by Hunters Entertainment takes center stage in this latest season of Dimension 20. Like Mentopolis, there won’t be any battle maps, which is an interesting foundation for a season all about action films. With all our players covering two characters, introductions bounced between action staples and mundane regulars.

Dave’s Video World connects our regular cast of characters. Vic Ethanol fits the Vin Diesel Fast & Furious mold, wonderfully countered by Wendell Morris’s awkward geeky teenage. If their personalities didn’t differentiate them enough, Ify shows off his voice acting chops, making them almost unrecognizable audibly as coming from the same actor.

Alex checks off the self-destructing valedictorian as well as the most heavily villain leaning character on the action side with Kingskin, a clear play on Marvel’s Kingpin.

Both Alex’s regular character Liv and Ify’s Wendell appear to have opportunities to leave but are caught in their town for reasons not yet explained despite opportunities for higher education elsewhere.

Rekha gives us the hacker, countering the tech savvy hoodie-wearing genius, G13, with an extremely old luddite named Usha Rao who has a habit of unplugging phones to save their battery.

Ally came in swinging, playing Russell Feeld with a swagger that seems better fit of the action world. There is a clear sense that he could’ve gotten out, but something caught him in the town in the same way Liv and Wendell are now.

From hot handy man to femme fatale, Ally definitely leans into the physical appeal of both characters; however, the unlabeled numbers in Russell’s phone and the lone wolf mentality shown by Jennifer in her quick introduction suggest good looks might not be the only things these two characters have in common.

Living with Russell is his nephew, Andy ‘Dang’ Litefoot. This is Jacob’s first time at the table, but he quickly strikes up a rapport with Ally as Russell, physically putting himself into his character. His excitement when talking about his ensemble leaves me certain that he’s going to hit that grungy punk rocker motif.

From a man who stands out to the spy who blends in, Jacob introduces the James Bond mimic, Greg Stocks. What starts as a subtle accent and the usual dry wit swings a bit more Austin Powers.

The final introduction goes to Isabella ‘Izzy’ Roland, playing Paula Donvalson. Immediately flirting with Russell, she takes no sass from Brennan as Dave. Brennan and Izzy always brilliantly bounce off each other. Izzy’s enthusiastic and flirtatious Paula is an absolute treat.

Divorced and incredibly hurt by her ex’s new relationship, Paula has some clear anger in her, connecting her to the Die Hard John McClane counterpart of Jack Manhattan:

While Paula definitely is the thirstier of the two, Liv shares the attraction to Russell, who is clearly rooting for Wendell’s success with his crush on Liv and possibly oblivious to Paula’s interest in him.

Our cast ends up drawn Jumanji-style into a video thanks to bird-obsessed action flick aficionado, Barsimmeon Higgs.

Highlights

The sheer level of chaos happening at this table is insane. Throwing themselves into their characters, the players embodied their tropes. Their energies fit together perfectly. Izzy’s mid-western recently divorced middle-aged security guard stole the episode, but with Rekha’s ancient no-cares widow and Jacob’s alien channeling eccentric, it’s a hard won victory.

Final Score (5 out of 5 Stars)

Dimension 20 hit it out of the park. From 80s action references to the sheer chemistry between the cast, they put together a group built for action. Rekha, Izzy, and Jacob are expressive masters. They throw themselves so thoroughly into their personas that they manage to make Ally Beardsley, renowned for their talent for chaos, look tame.

While this is mainly an introduction to set the stage for the story to come, the pacing is perfect, never slowing or stumbling. The dynamics between the characters come across clearly, allowing each one a chance to shine.

We don’t have a full idea of the how or why yet, but trapped in the machine stories like Tron and Jumanji rarely needs anything more complicated, and Dimension 20 definitely set a tempting lure.

Let us know what you think in the comments below or go over to our Discord channel to join the conversation.

Featured Image: Dimension 20

The Boss Rush Podcast: The Flagship Podcast of Boss Rush Media and the Boss Rush Network

The Boss Rush Podcast – The Boss Rush Podcast is the flagship podcast of Boss Rush Media and the Boss Rush Network. Each week, Corey, Stephanie, LeRon, and their friends from around the internet come together with other creators, developers, and industry veterans to talk about games they’ve been playing, discuss video game and entertainment based topics, and answer questions solicited on social media and the community Discord. 

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