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Happy New Year, ya'll!

We're kicking 2021 off with a bang as this week we had the absolute pleasure of chatting with the founder of LionWing Publishing - Bradly Halestorm!

I case you're not familiar, Bradly and his team at LionWing specialize in localizing Eastern tabletop games for gamers in the West. In other words: they specialize in one of the most challenging and meticulous jobs in the industry. One might think it's as simple as asking the Google to translate some words into English and calling it a day. And one would be wrong. So very, very wrong. There's so much more to it than simply translating text verbatim and in this episode Bradly gave us the inside scoop on all the work that goes into localizing Japanese board games.

LionWing Kickstarted three different games in 2020 alone and, despite the ongoing pandemic, they have no plans of slowing down. They're charging full-steam-ahead into 2021 with their first campaign of the year launching next month. Check out the landing page for Embryo Machine to learn more!

Huge thanks to Bradly for taking the time to join us and to his team for doing what they do. Be sure to follow them on the various socials and keep your eyes peeled for future campaigns...you never know what game might be coming next!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.15.2021_Episode_420.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:49am EDT
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This pandemic sucks. I think we're all aware of it and we can all agree the last 10 months have just straight up sucked. I could write about 5,000 words just off the top of my head listing off all the sucky things about pandemics but I'm not going to do that. What I'm going to do is hype up our friend Babs because unlike me, she has spent her pandemic time being productive. Specifically, she has spent her pandemic time logging literally hundreds of hours as virtual Dungeon Master in multiple D&D games and is showing no signs of slowing down. In fact, in a way it almost feels like she's just getting started? (Listen to the episode, you'll get what I'm talking about once you hear how good she is at this stuff.)

I have played the role of Dungeon Master one (1) time in my life in a one-shot that lasted maybe 4 hours and it was exhausting, stressful, confusing, ...and an absolute blast. So when I'm casually scrolling through my Twitter feed and I see countless tweets from Babs and what she's been doing with any number of the seven (7!!!) groups she's currently running I can't help but be blown away by not only her work ethic, but also her creativity and stamina. DM'ing can be tough, DM'ing for dozens of people multiple times a week? I'm exhausted just thinking about it.

The ultimate irony? As I work on this episode I'm also preparing to take part in a game she's running later today. That's how fast she works. We recorded this episode on Monday and now today, Saturday, she's got a game set up for me and the usual gang. (I'm playing a paladin named Seraph, how rad is that?) For reference, I think it took me about a month of planning for the one-shot I ran a few years ago. Bonkers.

So yeah. We talked with Babs about D&D this week and I'm psyched with how this episode came out. Be sure to give Babs a follow on the Twitter and do the usual like/share/subscribe if you dug the episode. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a brand new character I made at 11pm on Christmas Day that I have to familiarize myself with.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 12.20.2020_Episode_419.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:44am EDT
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That's right, folks. It's just us and this week we're getting festive.

The holidays have always had a special place in my heart. Growing up, Christmas was always the best day of the year and my parents did everything they could to make sure that me and my two siblings enjoyed every moment of it. Now, many moons and 10 years of holiday retail later......you'd be surprised to learn that not much has changed. I still love the holidays and everything that comes with them and even though this year is going to be a little different, I'm still looking forward to "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year".

With that said, we thought it would be fun to get festive and take a trip down memory lane as we talk about past holidays and the things that meant most to us. Also presents. Mostly presents. It's not that presents mean the most to us, but my initial pitch to Alex was

I guess if we dive deep into my subconscious it was just an excuse to talk about toys. But overall, the episode ended up being about more than just presents. We also dove into the differences between families and how the holidays can mean the world to some people, but not as much to others.

I could ramble endlessly about holiday stuff (hell we didn't even touch on movies) but I'm guessing I've already lost most of the audience already so I'll end it here. Check out the 'sode, like/share/subscribe, and drop a comment if you want to join in on the conversation.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 12.18.2020_Episode_418.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:47am EDT
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Reddit is the ultimate time waster.

I can't begin to count the amount of hours I have spent scrolling on that damn site and for the most part it's full of things that make me smile, laugh, or want to happy cry. There is some garbage there, like any other site (and long time listeners know I've been critical of Reddit in the past) but it's mostly full of things I enjoy seeing.

Now rewind to a little over two years ago. A young and innocent Jayare casually scrolling through his various subreddits suddenly comes across this beautiful barbarian dragonman and it's love at first sight:

You see, for the last couple of years I have been playing my own dragonborn barbarian in an ongoing D&D quest and of all the fan art and commissions that I have seen, this is without a doubt the closest representation of what I've been picturing in my head when it comes to how my guy would look. As it turns out, this piece was a commission for someone and their character named "Krivgar Vuldrear" and it was brought to life by illustrator Peter Lim aka Polygraf.

Now, two years later, through the power of the internet Peter was kind enough to come on our show and chat with us about his beginnings, his experiences in the D&D and fantasy worlds, and how he's been able to adapt and improve his artistic abilities every time he hits a dreaded plateau.

As usual, be sure to check out Peter's work on all his various socials and if you've been looking for someone to bring your favorite original character to life, who knows? You might have just found your guy.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 12.4.2020_Episode_417.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:48pm EDT
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And we're back!

Jumping right into things, I'm going to start off by just saying toys are rad. Yes, I'm in my mid 30s. Yes, I have little-to-no use for toys these days besides displaying them on a shelf. And yes, I'm stuck in the past when it comes to my bias towards certain brands. But toys are rad and talking about toys with someone who designs them for a living is even more rad. And that's where this week's guest comes in.

Len Nicholas is a designer and concept artist who has worked for brands like Fisher Price, Hasbro, Spin Master, Honda, and Toyota to name a few. From GI Joe to Paw Patrol, presentation rendering to mechanical design, Len has seen and done just about everything in his 20+ years in the business. He's also a huge Pokemon and LEGO fan so needless to say he fits right in with the OMV aesthetic.

Check out our chat with Len and browse his Instagram while you're at it (we reference it a bunch so it'll be a handy resource); it's jam-packed with robots, toys, LEGO creations, and Otters. What more could you ask for?

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 11.19.2020_Episode_416.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:48am EDT
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Happy Halloween, everyone!

We're closing out the spooky season in style by visiting one of our favorite topics to talk about every year: haunted houses. This one is extra special because we've gathered five (5!!) of our closest haunt friends to discuss the dream scenario: Create the perfect haunted house. Create a reasonable, realistic house. And create the ultimate, no-holds-barred, sky is the limit, dream house.

The combined haunting experience between everyone who took part in this episode probably clocks in at around 75+ cumulative seasons. That's a whole lotta screaming, shocking, scaring, and spooking and all of that experience certainly makes for some amazing haunted house ideas.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 10.28.2020_Episode_415.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:06pm EDT
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Well, it's October and the spooky season is here. It goes without saying that this year's season is a little different with there being a massive pandemic and all. But, even though haunted houses are closed and trick or treating is on standby, Alex and I still wanted to bring you your yearly doses of spooky to try and fill the void.

We've practically covered it all over the years: haunted houses, special effects, makeup, cryptozoology, UFOs, videogames, theater. The list goes on and on. But there are a few things we have yet to cover and this week, we're going to do our best to tackle one of them.

That's right, folks.  Buckle up because we're dipping our metaphorical toes into the uncharted waters of true crime.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

 

Sources:

Direct download: 10.16.2020_Episode_414.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:25pm EDT
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I learned a lot this week. In addition to learning that I'm hopelessly outnumbered when it comes to the "how to tape your comic bags" debate, I learned that Mike and Nick of the I Read Comic Books podcast are two of the raddest people we've had the pleasure of interviewing. I also learned that being interviewed is a whole different ballgame when it comes to the pressures of recording a show.

You might be questioning that last sentence and we wouldn't blame you. But you'll be surprised to learn this episode is actually just one part of a collaboration between IRCB and OMV and if you take a peek at their latest episode you might see some familiar names and voices associated with it (Hint: It's Alex and me). That's right, sportsfans, not only were Mike and Nick our guests this week but Alex and I were guests on their show as well!

We're thrilled that the IRCB crew was kind enough to have us on their show and it goes without saying that Alex and I had a blast chatting with them about what comics we've been reading, what books we're looking forward to, and how OMV got started. Plus, in our episode we got to dust off a classic and hit them with some Flash Questions before we got the inside scoop on IRCB and how they've assembled such a great crew over the years.

If you haven't already, give them a follow and check out their work. If you're craving pure comic book content week in and week out, IRCB is the way to go.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.27.2020_Episode_413.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:14pm EDT
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It's been a minute since we talked comics. So let's talk comics. Specifically with someone who makes comics. Literally takes ideas out of his brain and, with the help of some artists/letterers/editors, brings them to life for others to enjoy on a monthly basis.

That someone is Johnnie Christmas! Johnnie is the #1 New York Times Bestselling artist of Margaret Atwood's Angel Catbird, the writer of ComiXology's Crema and currently he's on writing duties for his new book Tartarus from Image Comics. Check out our chat with him as we take a dive into his world building process and his experiences publishing comics both online and in print.

The first collected volume of Tartarus hits shelves on September 30th (yes, that's next week!) so if you haven't been snagging the floppies over the last few months, now is your chance to hop on board this wild space opera that Johnnie and his team are putting together.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.22.2020_Episode_412.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:35pm EDT
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This year has certainly been...a year. I don't think it's unfair to say we've gone through an unprecedented amount of change and adjustment over the last 6 months with little sign of things returning to "normal" any time soon.

There is some light on the metaphorical horizon, though. While PAX West and PAX Aus were both cancelled this year, we are getting something in their place: PAX Online. And even though Alex and I aren't covering the show in any formal capacity, we figured talking with some people involved with it would be a great way to kick off the groundbreaking festivities.

First up is game developer Chris McQuinn! Chris is one half of the creative team behind WashBear Studio and their game "Parkasaurus" has been selected as one of the titles to be featured in this year's PAX Online Indie Showcase! In other words, the PAX team reviewed over 350 indie games on Steam and picked 20 that they considered original and compelling. This year, they decided the WashBear's dinosaur tycoon management sim was worthy to be one of those 20 games. Check out the first portion of the episode as we chat with Chris about the creation of their game, the importance of listening to criticism, and how a game about dinos can seem so simple yet surprise you with its depth.

Our second guest is someone more directly involved with the running of PAX Online. Travis Eriksen is the Executive Director of Child's Play Charity and also dabbles as the Chief Omegeatech at all the various PAX shows. I've rambled at length about how much I enjoy the Omegathon in the past so to get a behind the scenes look is exciting to say the least. In addition to running intense gaming contests, Travis' work with the Child's Play Charity has helped improve the lives of children and teens in over 180 children's hospitals around the world. They're going to have a big presence at PAX Online this year so be sure to check out their schedule and tune in throughout the week!

We can't thank Chris and Travis enough for giving us the opportunity to chat with them right before such a huge and revolutionary show. PAX Online officially kicked off today (depending on when you're reading this) and there's a ton of fun to be had over the next week. It might not be the same as the big show in Seattle, but unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.11.2020_Episode_411.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:04pm EDT
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