Title: Cloudward, Ho!
GM: Brennan Lee Mulligan
Players: Emily Axford (she/her) as Marya Junková (she/her). Zac Oyama (he/him) as Daisuke Bucklesby (he/him). Siobhan Thompson (she/her) as Vanellope ‘Van’ Chapman (she/her). Lou Wilson (he/him) as Montgomery ‘Monty’ LaMontgommery (he/him). Ally Beardsley (they/them) as Olethra MacLeod (she/her). Brian Murphy (he/him) as Maxwell Gotch (he/him).
Streaming Service: Dropout

If you missed them, catch up on our review of the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth episodes!

We rejoin our Intrepid Heroes in their custom mech, Mr. Big Britches, stumbling through the land of Zern. Marya and Comfrey work together. They steer the giant mech forward, and as they head to high ground, everyone remains on high alert.

The barrier between Zood and Zern permits some communication between; however, the more beacons that go out, the more that can get through. When the final one falls, they will be as connected as they had once been, allowing the Queen of Zern to invade Zood and, in turn, Gath. In turn, she explains what she’s found in the connections of energies between Zood, Zern, and the other realm where Jazzy Tazzy comes from.

They group makes their way to Ludmila’s castle. Marya remains optimistic, hoping to save her protege by destroying the Primarks, but Comfrey reminds her that more than one life is in the balance. We also learned that the keys which Maxwell has been carrying were a gift to Comfrey from his own grandfather long ago. They came from an order of monks who had access to the stone towers in Gath which seemed to connect to Zood and Zern.

As they enter, the group finds a Zoodian crystal, which Marya attempts to fix. As she does so, the energy pushes outward, attacking the structure around. Olethra puts a spark of Gathi energy into the door, causing it to open. Inside, a dusty control panel awaits.

Inside the dusty room was where Ludmila waited for Marya. Guilt holds Marya back, but Van and Olethra search in her stead. Buried within the dam, Olethra finds the stone tower like the ones that they had previously seen in Zood and Gath. As she explores the workshop, Olethra discovers a graveyard of automatons while Sandy works on Torse. Continuing to explore, she finds a Zoodian automaton, which isn’t dead but simply powered down. Olethra replaces the crystal, awakening it.

The Zoodian automaton, Buzz, reveals that they were betrayed after coming to Zern as a delegation. Buzz met Ludmila, and she said she’d wait one more day before things went south. During this conversation, Torse awakens. He panics and crushes the mechanical frog.

Meanwhile, Van casts water into the empty space of the dried riverbed. Comfrey and Van talk as they watched the water flow, discussing the mythical squid horror and everything involved with the barrier. The Chapmans who were taken by the curse were all scooped up in a single swoop to build the temple and do what had to be done, which was in part but not fully Comfrey’s fault; however, the visions leave a bit of a strange loop between what or who helped ensure Comfrey managed to get as far as she did. In the end, hopeful that the octopus-squid god can help, Van finally calls out the beast’s name.

High above the group, Maxwell sees a tidal wave of water from above. He warns, swooping down to get Daisuke to safety as Van helps Comfrey, but before anything can happen, the water stopped.

Finding reassurance in Monty’s unfailing optimism and determination, Marya ventures forward, discovering a collection of information in a collective of memories in the console.

As our Intrepid Heroes regroup, Maxwell sees an older version of himself. Van hears Tazgw’agwa’s voice, saying that it couldn’t grab her because if it had grabbed her, then Comfrey would have never returned. Reaching up, Van cuts the net that binds the creature between the two worlds.

A spike drives into her hand. Visions flash through her mind of Ludmila, being saved, building a life, trying to ease the way as she believed Marya would follow and be harmed. Slowly, Ludmila fades, growing tired and ill as she realizes Marya won’t come. She accidentally builds Straka, and then she has her heart ripped from her chest.

Highlights

Marya and Monty’s conversation about trying to save others and dealing with the guilt of those they couldn’t save was heart-wrenching. Both have been very emotive characters, and Monty’s genuine enthusiasm for each new life in Zood was such a perfect reflection of Marya throughout the series, but to have them specifically and overtly acknowledge the gap was wonderful.

Monty desperately wants to conserve and preserve wildlife, and he has spent his life doing so; however, he has failed, but regardless, he tries again and again, leaning on his successes even if they are fewer because he knows himself capable. Inversely, Marya seeks to save a single person. She failed to save Ludmila back in Gath, and she yearns to try to save her now.

Final Score (4 out of 5 Stars)

The sound editing issues seem to have continued in the first half of this episode, popping up at times while the group informed Comfrey of what she’s missed in Gath with the passing of Maxwell’s grandfather, but it’s far less noticeable and less overall than it was in the prior episode.

Ally leans into the bits this episode, but frankly, with the emotional weight of this episode, their efforts lightened the load. Time loops abound, Straka and pants being fixed points, and in absolute insanity. With everything aligned and all cards on the table, we’re ramping up at warp speed for the ultimate ending, but will it be Zood versus Zern or a more personal final battle? 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. 

New episodes of The Boss Rush Podcast release every Monday morning on YouTube and all major podcast applications like Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Patreon supporters gain one week early access. 

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