#Brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

veth: wouldn't you be having an emotional breakdown in an alley if you couldn't be with this amazing man you're in love with but can't be with because of circumstances like I don't know say being a fascist wizard spy or being married?

veth: I wouldn't know anything about that, though.

#cr spoilers #widobrave #brenatto's biggest con

[eponymous-rose]

Talks Machina Highlights - Critical Role C2E94 (February 11, 2020)

Tonight’s guests are Laura Bailey and Sam Riegel!

Announcements: This Friday at 7 PM Pacific on Twitch: the Monsterhearts one-shot! Matt will be DMing, and the cast includes Erika Ishii, Ally Beardsley, Taliesin Jaffe, and Ashley Johnson! There’s a Handbooker Helper episode on YouTube that describes the Monsterhearts system! Next week, All Work No Play returns with ghost hunting!

Episode 94: With Great Power...

Stats for this week’s episode: factoring in the time spent in the Happy Fun Ball, Jester’s gift to Isharnai was a 34-day-old cupcake. Nott reached 1,500 rolls this campaign with her stealth check after the zombie fight. Travelercon is 33 days away. 176 days have passed between the reveal of Travelercon and the reveal of... Traveler’s Con.

Laura thought up her plan against Isharnai during Beau’s talk. “I had it planned pretty far in advance. I don’t know if anybody goes back and watches it, you can see when I pulled out my Dust of Deliciousness card.” She didn’t have a backup plan. “Basically, if it had failed, I probably would have died. Or no hands.”

Sam notes that Nott probably would have enjoyed killed Isharnai. “However, I mean, Laura. That was just so great. That was so great to watch.” Laura felt like if they’d gotten into that battle, someone would have died, and Sam agrees. “But I feel like at this point Nott’s just happy that it’s over. Or can be over.”

Laura Bailey out of context: “I don’t know, I think there are a lot of people out there who would be happy to have aliens inside them.”

Laura knew in advance that Artagan was the Traveler; it was her idea! “I have mentioned on the show before that my original plan was to make a warlock, and I was going to make a warlock with the Fey Pact to Artagan.” She was also thinking about the Book Pact for a book of dirty pictures. And then Travis took warlock, and Laura wound up working with Matt to shift the idea to cleric. Matt’s vagueness did manage to get Laura to doubt that he’d actually gone with Artagan, so she was surprised when he finally revealed it. She’s also nervous about what happens now. “What if this turns into, like, I don’t get to be a cleric anymore?”

Sam, on Nott seeing the physical manifestation of the Traveler: “She’s seen weird shit before, traveling with this group, so it’s not the weirdest shit. And she’s also seen Fjord be transfjormed by the power of a literal god, so it’s not that Nott doesn’t believe that religion exists, it’s just not something that she’s spent any time with. But now we’re getting to a spot right now, in the campaign, in the story, where she’s maybe kind of open to it.” Laura gasps: “Have you heard about the Traveler???”

Jester has some mixed feelings about the Traveler asking her for help. “It’s complicated, yeah. I imagine it would be really hard to have the one person, the one entity, that you think you can let all of your guard down with and be yourself turn out to not be that anymore, and you realize you have to put on the mask for them as well.”

Why did Nott choose Yasha to take the flask away? “Nott does not trust her, at all. She has betrayed us, she has frequently left us. I am undecided yet if Yasha is actually a good guy. But she is the biggest and the baddest and is good at enforcing, so that’s why Nott chose Yasha. And I think there’s a subtle desire to know more about Yasha and to connect with her in any way.”

Cosplay of the Week: a cocky Beau! (Tikatikacosplay on Instagram, photo by Elemental Photography Design on Instagram)

Jester felt fine about the group not believing her about Nott’s curse being broken; it was a pretty unlikely scenario, and she had other things on her mind. Laura notes that Jester has been very upfront with the rest of the Nein and very, very rarely lies to them.

On hiring the housekeeper: “Nott was concerned with our home when we are not there, and then Sam Riegel was also remembering, when we had Greyskull Keep in the first campaign, we had a whole fuckin’ staff.”

There’s a brief digression into about what kind of sheets everyone would have. Thread count comes up.

Laura, on being reminded of the blue dragon fight: “She pushes that one away, but yeah, seeing the blue dragon was definitely triggering for her. I don’t think anybody in the group really noticed.” Sam noticed. “I was with you in that blue dragon fight. It was rough.”

On Nott suggesting they kidnap Beau’s brother: “I would not view it as taking a son from his mother as much as rescuing a child from a toxic environment.”

Did Laura take the “everyone’s in love with you” statement seriously during the Zone of Truth scene? Laura: “Pff, no.” Sam mentions how proud he is of how far Laura’s come as a magic-user in the game. “Now you’re a magic expert! You conned Matt Mercer with magic!”

On Nott being willing to reignite the war: “Yeah, she did go pretty dark. The people involved in the war are hypothetical people who she doesn’t know or care about.” Nott wasn’t willing to consider sacrificing anything within the group; the alternative was more “rationalizable”. “She definitely wanted the curse off of her,” but that last step is a big commitment. Laura points out that, as a halfling, Nott never got to explore what else she could have been, and now her adventures are tied up with that goblin identity.

Fan Art of the Week: The Maiden and the Hag! (Lassflores on Twitter)

How’s Jester feeling about other clerics and other gods? “I think it’s really early to know that answer. It’s too early to know how I feel about any of it, because we’re in the middle of the conversation.”

On Nott’s offer: “I think she understood the severity, but again, in the moment she was just trying to come up with something that she could give that wouldn’t affect her or her friends. She wouldn’t have given up her hands, she wouldn’t have left the group, she wouldn’t have given up her son. She’s jittery. She’s not brave.”

Laura notes that it was a cool feeling, helping to orchestrate the Traveler’s story across two campaigns (especially given that Vex was the one who discovered Garmelie!).

Nott had “a nice family environment. She had brothers who were shitheads to her, but Travis and Ashley were good parents, doing what they could. Veth Brenatto is married to Yeza Brenatto. I don’t know Veth’s maiden name! I don’t know Travis and Ashley’s last name!” He settles on... Smith.

#critical role #critical role spoilers #talks machina #talks machina spoilers #long text post

[redjennies]

building off that last post, I think these quotes from Nott after Caleb tells her his backstory in episode 18 are very relevant both to their conversation in the tower where Caleb tells Veth that she doesn't have to hype him up any more and that he's back on his feet and their conversation in the dome where she tells him he has enough to feel guilty about and about her own guilt and how they will have to say goodbye someday.

I'm so sorry. It wasn't you, it's not your fault. It wasn't you, you were made to do it. It's not your fault. It's not your fault. I know you don't realize that now, but you will. This pain that you have, that you wear all over you like a mask, it's just that, and you can take it off someday. I know it hurts, but it wasn't your fault. I'm going to keep telling you that until you believe me.

[...]

What you did was awful, truly terrible, despicable and unforgivable-- until you can forgive it. At some point, you'll have to do that. I swear to you that I will be at your side until you do.

Veth promised Caleb a long time ago that she would be his positivity so long as he needed it and she wouldn't leave until he could stand on his own feet, and recently he told her that while he still very much wants and needs her around because she's his friend and he loves her, he doesn't need that aspect of their relationship any more. no wonder she has so much guilt and thinks this means goodbye. the only thing keeping her here is the fact that she wants to be with him and the Nein, and that's a much messier thing to grapple with than "I have to be with Caleb because he's a mess and he needs me."

#cr spoilers #critical role #veth brenatto #caleb widogast #widobrave #just thoughts really #Brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

me: it's fine. I knew what I was getting into with widobrave when I started watching this campaign. not every ship I like has to end up together in a romantic relationship. shipping isn't about canon or endgames. plus I have ships that I like that are happening in canon and I like other Caleb and Veth ships. it's really fine. I can appreciate their relationship for what it is and it's really quite beautiful.

veth: either way, we will have to say goodbye.

veth: I will always love you.

me:

#help me I've fallen into widobrave hell #it just HITS #cr spoilers #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

Caleb and Veth are now a sheep in space and the world's teeny tiniest halfling. how far my kids have come.

#cr spoilers #cr liveblog #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

the Magician and the Tinkerer are Caleb and Nott. ;'(((

#cr spoilers #nott the brave #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

🌱 - favorite arc setting?

xhorhas by far. I love the parts outside of the cities the most. it just really stuck with me and I found a lot of even the little random encounter fights to be so cinematic. it was peak watch conversations and a ton of character development on the backdrop of something so different and foreign for most of the characters.

also it gave me "I've seen you a lot" and "thanks Jessie" and "I feel strangely foolish about it now" and "[sniff] I killed a jellyfish fer yew" and "listening for thunder" and for that I'm forever grateful.

#asks #ask games #the by+fj gsa #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

okay but veth comparing her dynamic with caleb to kima and allura 👀

I'm just saying evil/neutral wizards hang out with goblins and good wizards marry halflings. it's just how the world works, Widogast.

#cr spoilers #asks #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

for the ship ask meme, tell us your thoughts on widobrave

I love that I got two requests for widobrave.

Ship It

What made you ship it?

Sam Riegel made me care way too much about his D&D character.

What are your favorite things about the ship?

tbh there was no way I was ever going to not get pulled into widobrave hell. it runs on the exact level of half-platonic, half-romantic starcrossed soulmates bullshit that a person is attracted to when she spends too much of her formative years listening to depressing 90s-00s indie music and believing that "truly loving someone who loves you back but not ending up together" is peak romance. this whole ship is a callout post for my particular brand of teen angst bullshit.

but that part aside, there's still so much levity. it's the early game magic lessons and pulling one of their old cons and getting kicked out of a library in Uthodurn and Caleb who doesn't really touch anybody enthusiastically asking Veth to dance at TravelerCon. that scene recently where Caleb and Veth are scoping out the tunnel into Aeor and Caleb sends Veth a message over the wire despite the fact that she's literally pressed up right against him had such adorable best friend sleepover vibes. they can be both so heavy and light around each other without missing a beat and it's really fantastic.

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

[insert a thirty page meta of unfiltered shipping discourse and Veth stan salt here]

#asks #ask games #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

veth: I bet there's a me room! :)

beau: wow, I bet doors five and six are like super fucked up.

#two types of friends #i figured out captions on twitch and now im just screwing around #cr spoilers #empire kids #empire twins #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

"I want to be with you ... all." I HEARD THAT PAUSE MR. RIEGEL.

#cr spoilers #cr liveblog #LEAVE ME ALONE I AM BACK ON MY WB BULLSHIT #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

not to w/b on main but if Brian doesn't bring up that dome conversation, I'm gonna steal his fiancé.

#joke tag #ive been back on my bullshit for weeks and they cannot give me this without saying something #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

something something Veth rides Caleb enough in normal circumstances something

it's on the list.

#cr spoilers #cr liveblog #joke tag #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

lately more than ever i'm sensing veth and caleb walking on the edge of... going for it? am i crazy? not like just sexual tension, but a kind of vulnerability + "ohfuckmaybetheywillkiss4real". i'm not really into that, but this isolation and place is making people get together. do you see something happening there? would you like something happening there?

dude I don't even KNOW with these two. on one hand, I'm like realistically, Sam is not gonna roleplay a D&Divorce ... like he wouldn't? I mean if anyone would, it's Sam because he's an incredibly extra human being. but no, he's not gonna do that? but on the other hand, every single time those two talk, I'm like 👀👀. no joke, the second Caleb said "I can't concentrate and I think it's because I'm feeling guilty" I almost made a joke about how it had "I think I have a problem." F/J vibes. like idk I'm quick to remind people that "Veth still has feelings for Caleb" is canon and Liam's done a lot to make me think Caleb reciprocates but doesn't want to because marriage so I do think there is something being played intentionally out there even if it doesn't lead to them getting together.

as for would I want it to happen? I do ship widobrave but I am very firmly in the camp of "as much as I love Yeza, Veth and Yeza married when they were very young and Veth has changed a lot from the person she was when they got married, possibly irreconcilably, and divorce isn't a moral failing, yes, even when the other person is nice. I think Yeza and Veth have enough love and understanding for each other that they could still make it work, but if her heart's truly not in it anymore, she's not doing either of them any favors by staying in the marriage out of a misguided sense of obligation" and that opinion exists independent of any other Veth ships I may or may not have. I want Veth to do what's right for her and I'm trusting Sam to play his character true to her heart.

#of course while i doubt they'll go that route im totally down for poly Veth #i get brenattos and widobrave (and all my 8 other veth ships) so it's win/win #that's the veth endgame that exists in my head and nobody can take it from me #cr spoilers #asks #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

brenatto's (complimentary)

widogast's (derogatory)

#joke tag #rumblecusp rewatch #brenatto's biggest con

[redjennies]

i'm still too soft over this.

bonus:

#rumblecusp rewatch #brenatto's biggest con #fluffernutter