Critical Role
4x08 Fanged Revenge [2nd hour]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Tuesday, 16 December 2025
TV
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
Before I installed Skyrim almost on a whim (more about that here), I was putting proper effort into trying to decide which many-hour RPG to start playing. My recent Steam Deck and 3DS acquisitions, and acquiring tonnes of games for each, have meant I've ended up with a raft of options in my backlog, and the fact RPGs are some of the most praised games around nowadays (Disco Elysium and Baldur's Gate 3 have between them topped PC Gamer's Top 100 for years; Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has already scooped several major Game of the Year awards for 2025) means they're close to the forefront of my mind.
Anyway, the reason I was putting so much thought into it is because they're so long. Obviously how long varies based on how much time and effort you invest (that's why HowLongToBeat has multiple types of playthrough and shows ranges for each), but many suggest 50+ hours just to do the main story (Persona 5 Royal averages 100+ for that). Those numbers boggled my mind — my main frame of reference is point-and-click adventure games, which typically last 6–8 hours (The Longest Journey's forecast 18 hours used to sound epic to me). The upper estimates for RPGs (where people have spent 400+ hours on just one of these games) I figured came from multiple playthroughs and the like, so they didn't bother me so much; but the length of 12 or more adventure games for just the main story? When this is a genre that has a rep for diverting you with side quests? Jeez!
Well, my perspective has changed now, because here I am passing 100 hours in Skyrim, still not having properly started the main story (no dragons in my game yet!), still not having progressed most of the major secondary stories, and still not even having visited many major locations (I'd been intending to go to Falkreath almost since the start, when I got invited there (at the time it felt I'd been playing for a while, but with hindsight it feels like it was near the start!), and I've only made it there in the past few hours...)
Who knows when I'll finish. I guess I will someday. But I think it will have two effects on future RPG choices. Firstly, the times won't feel as daunting, because I know what it's like now; that it can be done, that I can do it; that 100 hours can still feel like you're barely getting started. But secondly, that I will take those lengths seriously, because if the game promises playthroughs of several hundred hours, there's a chance that will happen to me.
Or maybe there's nothing else quite like Skyrim and I won't spend this much time on one game ever again. We'll see!
(It also crossed my mind to use the 100-hour mark as a point to take a break, to play some other games (I have hundreds awaiting, and several I was already in the middle of), but I'm in the middle of stuff and don't want to! Maybe sometime soon. Or not, who knows.)
Before I installed Skyrim almost on a whim (more about that here), I was putting proper effort into trying to decide which many-hour RPG to start playing. My recent Steam Deck and 3DS acquisitions, and acquiring tonnes of games for each, have meant I've ended up with a raft of options in my backlog, and the fact RPGs are some of the most praised games around nowadays (Disco Elysium and Baldur's Gate 3 have between them topped PC Gamer's Top 100 for years; Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has already scooped several major Game of the Year awards for 2025) means they're close to the forefront of my mind.
Anyway, the reason I was putting so much thought into it is because they're so long. Obviously how long varies based on how much time and effort you invest (that's why HowLongToBeat has multiple types of playthrough and shows ranges for each), but many suggest 50+ hours just to do the main story (Persona 5 Royal averages 100+ for that). Those numbers boggled my mind — my main frame of reference is point-and-click adventure games, which typically last 6–8 hours (The Longest Journey's forecast 18 hours used to sound epic to me). The upper estimates for RPGs (where people have spent 400+ hours on just one of these games) I figured came from multiple playthroughs and the like, so they didn't bother me so much; but the length of 12 or more adventure games for just the main story? When this is a genre that has a rep for diverting you with side quests? Jeez!
Well, my perspective has changed now, because here I am passing 100 hours in Skyrim, still not having properly started the main story (no dragons in my game yet!), still not having progressed most of the major secondary stories, and still not even having visited many major locations (I'd been intending to go to Falkreath almost since the start, when I got invited there (at the time it felt I'd been playing for a while, but with hindsight it feels like it was near the start!), and I've only made it there in the past few hours...)
Who knows when I'll finish. I guess I will someday. But I think it will have two effects on future RPG choices. Firstly, the times won't feel as daunting, because I know what it's like now; that it can be done, that I can do it; that 100 hours can still feel like you're barely getting started. But secondly, that I will take those lengths seriously, because if the game promises playthroughs of several hundred hours, there's a chance that will happen to me.
Or maybe there's nothing else quite like Skyrim and I won't spend this much time on one game ever again. We'll see!
(It also crossed my mind to use the 100-hour mark as a point to take a break, to play some other games (I have hundreds awaiting, and several I was already in the middle of), but I'm in the middle of stuff and don't want to! Maybe sometime soon. Or not, who knows.)
Monday, 15 December 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x08 Fanged Revenge [1st half]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Fiction
Doctor Who: Ten Days of Christmas by Steve Cole
1. Under Control
This short story collection was released to tie-in with the 60th anniversary two years ago. I bought it then and didn't read it, obviously, and then didn't get round to it last year either, so this is third time lucky, I guess. It's not quite as advent-calendar-y as the previous Christmas-themed collections (which I read both of in 2021 (I never would've gussed it had been so long!), because with 25 stories between them they made an advent calendar), with only ten stories (because it marked the return of David Tennant... let's just overlook the fact he was actually the 14th Doctor at the time), so I don't feel as beholden to reading one a day. Hopefully that'll help me actually finish it in time...
1. Under Control
This short story collection was released to tie-in with the 60th anniversary two years ago. I bought it then and didn't read it, obviously, and then didn't get round to it last year either, so this is third time lucky, I guess. It's not quite as advent-calendar-y as the previous Christmas-themed collections (which I read both of in 2021 (I never would've gussed it had been so long!), because with 25 stories between them they made an advent calendar), with only ten stories (because it marked the return of David Tennant... let's just overlook the fact he was actually the 14th Doctor at the time), so I don't feel as beholden to reading one a day. Hopefully that'll help me actually finish it in time...
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
After days away from Skyrim, I could have played for hours and hours and hours — especially as I'd just arrived in a whole new area, replete with new things to do — but I cut myself off at 4½ hours, having done a few (but by no means all) of those new things, including buying my first piece of land and beginning to build a house of it. Along with all the crafting and smithing stuff, I seem to be enjoying that side of things more than I thought I would. Despite the endless praise it receives, I always thought I'd find Stardew Valley boring and/or like work, but maybe I should try it after all...
For those keeping track ('future me' only, I suspect), said new 'area' is the city of Falkreath, the third city I've visited out of ten cities in the game. It isn't as big as Whiterun or Markarth,* but I still kicked off a good few quests as soon as I arrived and spoke to everyone.
* I keep saying the game has ten cities, but they're really split into two types: major cities (when you enter them, the game loads it as a separate area) and other/small cities (effectively big towns/villages, which you can just walk into as part of the overall open world of the game). There are five of each (one was added by an expansion, but the Special Edition includes all expansions), with Whiterun and Markarth being examples of the former and Falkreath the latter.
After days away from Skyrim, I could have played for hours and hours and hours — especially as I'd just arrived in a whole new area, replete with new things to do — but I cut myself off at 4½ hours, having done a few (but by no means all) of those new things, including buying my first piece of land and beginning to build a house of it. Along with all the crafting and smithing stuff, I seem to be enjoying that side of things more than I thought I would. Despite the endless praise it receives, I always thought I'd find Stardew Valley boring and/or like work, but maybe I should try it after all...
For those keeping track ('future me' only, I suspect), said new 'area' is the city of Falkreath, the third city I've visited out of ten cities in the game. It isn't as big as Whiterun or Markarth,* but I still kicked off a good few quests as soon as I arrived and spoke to everyone.
* I keep saying the game has ten cities, but they're really split into two types: major cities (when you enter them, the game loads it as a separate area) and other/small cities (effectively big towns/villages, which you can just walk into as part of the overall open world of the game). There are five of each (one was added by an expansion, but the Special Edition includes all expansions), with Whiterun and Markarth being examples of the former and Falkreath the latter.
Tabletop Games
EXIT: The Game Advent Calendar:
The Silent Storm
December 13th–15th
I haven't abandoned this, it just wasn't important enough to make time for over a busy weekend. Shame. Anyway, onwards!
The Silent Storm
December 13th–15th
I haven't abandoned this, it just wasn't important enough to make time for over a busy weekend. Shame. Anyway, onwards!
Sunday, 14 December 2025
Films
The Boss (1973)
[#97 in The 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2025]
I actually started this on Friday, but paused it less than half-an-hour in and promptly fell asleep! No fault of the film, I was just more tired than I realised. (I guess I could/should have logged the beginning then, but here we are.)
[#97 in The 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2025]
I actually started this on Friday, but paused it less than half-an-hour in and promptly fell asleep! No fault of the film, I was just more tired than I realised. (I guess I could/should have logged the beginning then, but here we are.)
Fiction
The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
2 The Adventure of the Norwood Builder
4 The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist
For some reason, my copy has Solitary Cyclist before The Adventure of the Dancing Men, though every other source puts the latter first, hence why I seem to have skipped a story here.
2 The Adventure of the Norwood Builder
4 The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist
For some reason, my copy has Solitary Cyclist before The Adventure of the Dancing Men, though every other source puts the latter first, hence why I seem to have skipped a story here.
Saturday, 13 December 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x07 On the Scent [final hour]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Critical Role Cooldown
Campaign 4, Episode 7
[Watch it (again) on Beacon.]
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Three additions this week, all new 4K releases of older films.
Number of titles in collection: 3,648 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 979 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,669 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 491 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 8,767 [up 7]
Number of films: 4,680 [up 3]
Number of additional cuts: 478 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,280 [no change]
It feels like Christmas is imminent, but there's actually another 'regular' week to go before my Christmas haul comes in. I say "Christmas haul" — for years now, any given regular week has the potential to be much, much bigger than the trifling few titles I can persuade people to buy me as presents. Ah well. Not long after that, it'll be time for the end-of-year totals, and that's always fun.
See you over the next few weeks for all of that, faithful reader.
Three additions this week, all new 4K releases of older films.
Number of titles in collection: 3,648 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 979 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,669 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 491 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 8,767 [up 7]
Number of films: 4,680 [up 3]
Number of additional cuts: 478 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,280 [no change]
It feels like Christmas is imminent, but there's actually another 'regular' week to go before my Christmas haul comes in. I say "Christmas haul" — for years now, any given regular week has the potential to be much, much bigger than the trifling few titles I can persuade people to buy me as presents. Ah well. Not long after that, it'll be time for the end-of-year totals, and that's always fun.
See you over the next few weeks for all of that, faithful reader.
Friday, 12 December 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x07 On the Scent [middle hours]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
The Game Awards 2025
I wasn't planning on watching this, although I was aware it was happening, I guess because I'm into games now or whatever; but I happened to notice it was about to start a few minutes before it began and so thought, hey, why not? Especially as I didn't have to be up in the morning (a good thing, as it went on past 4:00am my time). It was... interesting. The whole awards bit seemed kinda arbitrary, when they rushed through whole clumps of seemingly-major awards without even giving a statuette to the winners, and instead invested tonnes of time to adverts and announcements. Very different to... every other awards show I've ever watched. Equally, maybe the Oscars could learn something from this. If they had trailers/reveals/etc for major upcoming films sprinkled throughout the show as exclusives, maybe they'd attract lapsed/new viewers?
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
Comics
2000 AD
Prog 2456
I may not have read any for almost three weeks, but I'm still aiming to get caught up on 2000 AD by the end of the year, so here begins the final push.
Prog 2456
I may not have read any for almost three weeks, but I'm still aiming to get caught up on 2000 AD by the end of the year, so here begins the final push.
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
Ended today's 3¾ hours of play by arriving in Falkreath, a place I was invited to... wow, so long ago I can't even remember; but it's been a loooong time, in terms of how many hours I've spent in this game. So, that's city 3 of 10 I'll be venturing into next time. Busy weekend ahead for me, so that might actually not be until Monday — gasp!
Ended today's 3¾ hours of play by arriving in Falkreath, a place I was invited to... wow, so long ago I can't even remember; but it's been a loooong time, in terms of how many hours I've spent in this game. So, that's city 3 of 10 I'll be venturing into next time. Busy weekend ahead for me, so that might actually not be until Monday — gasp!
Thursday, 11 December 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x07 On the Scent [1st hour]
I've got tomorrow off work, and when I booked that however-long-ago I thought, "hey, maybe I'll stay up and watch the new episode of Critical Role when it goes out!" Well, tonight is Episode 9, so... yeah, you can see how that's going. Maybe I'll manage to use said day off to finish this one more quickly than I did the last one, at least.
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
Started today with over an hour spent on various smithing activities. It's harder to achieve anything significant than with alchemy — at least at the moment, when I don't own any houses (where you can build equipment and storage), so I have to store stuff where I can and then move it around to places I can use. So, ingredients are very light and therefore easy to transport, but metals and leathers are heavier, and it's better to use them to improve weapons and armour you've already got, so you have to lug those around too. Plus, it's all well and good making expensive items, but then you can only sell a few of them because of merchants' limited gold.
So, actually, I spent a lot of time getting almost nowhere. Sure, I made some money and got shot of some bulk, but I've still got tonnes of loot just lying around. I either waste real-world time lugging it about slowly, and maybe waste in-game time using the 'wait' function to stand around until merchants' gold refills; or I keep sitting on it, improving and selling it gradually. As I noted yesterday, though, I really think it's time for me to stop picking up everything I can and only retain high-value stuff. And once I hit the 100,000 gold mark and gain that achievement, maybe I'll stop caring so much.
Started today with over an hour spent on various smithing activities. It's harder to achieve anything significant than with alchemy — at least at the moment, when I don't own any houses (where you can build equipment and storage), so I have to store stuff where I can and then move it around to places I can use. So, ingredients are very light and therefore easy to transport, but metals and leathers are heavier, and it's better to use them to improve weapons and armour you've already got, so you have to lug those around too. Plus, it's all well and good making expensive items, but then you can only sell a few of them because of merchants' limited gold.
So, actually, I spent a lot of time getting almost nowhere. Sure, I made some money and got shot of some bulk, but I've still got tonnes of loot just lying around. I either waste real-world time lugging it about slowly, and maybe waste in-game time using the 'wait' function to stand around until merchants' gold refills; or I keep sitting on it, improving and selling it gradually. As I noted yesterday, though, I really think it's time for me to stop picking up everything I can and only retain high-value stuff. And once I hit the 100,000 gold mark and gain that achievement, maybe I'll stop caring so much.
Wednesday, 10 December 2025
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
I can’t quite decide what I want to do next (I’ve mainly been focused on quests from and around Markath for a long time now, but should I finish off the few that are still outstanding? Or do I head back to Whiterun and resume the Companions quest line that I paused partway? Or do I pick up one of the threads I’ve had waiting for hours and hours and hours that would lead me to Falkreath or Riften or Windhelm or Solitude? Or, heck, I could do something else entirely (even the main quest!), but those seem like more than enough broad, lengthy options).
Rather than make a choice today, I dove into the pile of ingredients I’ve been saving up for yonks (it's over 60 hours of playtime since the last time I spent a whole session on this) and crafted a shedload of potions. I spent over 2 hours doing that in the end, with my Alchemy stat surging up multiple levels while I did it. I then sold a few of them, but all the merchants I already know aren’t rich enough between them to touch the sides of what I have to sell. I’ve got the same issue with tonnes of weapons (and raw materials to improve them) stashed away. Maybe they’ll be my focus tomorrow… It wouldn't be so ridiculous if I could break the habit of looting every little thing I see in dungeons, etc, but... well, we already know I’m a hoarder by nature.
I can’t quite decide what I want to do next (I’ve mainly been focused on quests from and around Markath for a long time now, but should I finish off the few that are still outstanding? Or do I head back to Whiterun and resume the Companions quest line that I paused partway? Or do I pick up one of the threads I’ve had waiting for hours and hours and hours that would lead me to Falkreath or Riften or Windhelm or Solitude? Or, heck, I could do something else entirely (even the main quest!), but those seem like more than enough broad, lengthy options).
Rather than make a choice today, I dove into the pile of ingredients I’ve been saving up for yonks (it's over 60 hours of playtime since the last time I spent a whole session on this) and crafted a shedload of potions. I spent over 2 hours doing that in the end, with my Alchemy stat surging up multiple levels while I did it. I then sold a few of them, but all the merchants I already know aren’t rich enough between them to touch the sides of what I have to sell. I’ve got the same issue with tonnes of weapons (and raw materials to improve them) stashed away. Maybe they’ll be my focus tomorrow… It wouldn't be so ridiculous if I could break the habit of looting every little thing I see in dungeons, etc, but... well, we already know I’m a hoarder by nature.
Tabletop Games
EXIT: The Game Advent Calendar:
The Silent Storm
December 9th—10th
I was rather looking forward to this — as someone who enjoys puzzles or riddles, especially when narratively connected (like point-and-click adventure games), I thought it would be a bit of fun every day — but I'm finding it increasingly frustrating and therefore disappointing. Perhaps it's a skill issue (maybe I'm just not as good at puzzles as I thought), but I do think it's at least partly weakness of design. Day 2 was, at best, overambitious; at worst, poor; and I think that left a sour taste that future days haven't been ingenious enough to overcome. Day 9 is another example where execution doesn't seem to match intention.
It leaves me resorting to the hint guide, which I don't like to do. It offers two hints and then just the solution — I keep finding the first two hints are the 'obvious' bit I've already worked out, so I have to go straight to the solution, rather than getting a 'final step' hint for the point I've got stuck at. More frustration.
I've started so I'll finish (especially as, y'know, I've paid for it), but it's all-round a shame.
The Silent Storm
December 9th—10th
I was rather looking forward to this — as someone who enjoys puzzles or riddles, especially when narratively connected (like point-and-click adventure games), I thought it would be a bit of fun every day — but I'm finding it increasingly frustrating and therefore disappointing. Perhaps it's a skill issue (maybe I'm just not as good at puzzles as I thought), but I do think it's at least partly weakness of design. Day 2 was, at best, overambitious; at worst, poor; and I think that left a sour taste that future days haven't been ingenious enough to overcome. Day 9 is another example where execution doesn't seem to match intention.
It leaves me resorting to the hint guide, which I don't like to do. It offers two hints and then just the solution — I keep finding the first two hints are the 'obvious' bit I've already worked out, so I have to go straight to the solution, rather than getting a 'final step' hint for the point I've got stuck at. More frustration.
I've started so I'll finish (especially as, y'know, I've paid for it), but it's all-round a shame.
Monday, 8 December 2025
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
I've got to be up relatively early for a long day tomorrow, so I knew I wouldn't be watching a film or much TV or anything like that this evening. I still jumped on Skyrim, of course... for 5¼ hours (to be precise). Part of that was making the mistake of going "yeah, I'll just do this quest" and then spending over 2 hours completing it. That's just how they go sometimes (others seem to only take minutes).
I've got to be up relatively early for a long day tomorrow, so I knew I wouldn't be watching a film or much TV or anything like that this evening. I still jumped on Skyrim, of course... for 5¼ hours (to be precise). Part of that was making the mistake of going "yeah, I'll just do this quest" and then spending over 2 hours completing it. That's just how they go sometimes (others seem to only take minutes).
Tabletop Games
Daggerheart:
Dragon Heist in the City of Splendors
&
Curse of Strahd
I forgot to mention these last Monday, not because they stopped, but because I'm still playing them both every day and so sometimes forget to log them just once a week. (Listing them every day feels like clutter, especially as some days it's only a couple of minutes' interaction.)
EXIT: The Game Advent Calendar:
The Silent Storm
December 8th
Dragon Heist in the City of Splendors
&
Curse of Strahd
I forgot to mention these last Monday, not because they stopped, but because I'm still playing them both every day and so sometimes forget to log them just once a week. (Listing them every day feels like clutter, especially as some days it's only a couple of minutes' interaction.)
EXIT: The Game Advent Calendar:
The Silent Storm
December 8th
Sunday, 7 December 2025
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
"I guess it wouldn't hurt to pop on Skyrim for a bit, do a couple of things..."
2 hours later, I'm forcing myself to put it down. Do that a couple of times each day and, well, that's how I spent over 6 hours playing it today. I did consider doing something else, like watching a film or some TV (the new Doctor Who spinoff started today!), but I decided I'd just rather play Skyrim.
"I guess it wouldn't hurt to pop on Skyrim for a bit, do a couple of things..."
2 hours later, I'm forcing myself to put it down. Do that a couple of times each day and, well, that's how I spent over 6 hours playing it today. I did consider doing something else, like watching a film or some TV (the new Doctor Who spinoff started today!), but I decided I'd just rather play Skyrim.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
This week month on 100Films.co.uk, it was time for the final monthly review of the year (sure, there's another 2025 monthly review to come, but it'll be published in January).
And with it, as always, a whole host of failures...
More... someday.
And with it, as always, a whole host of failures...
More... someday.
Saturday, 6 December 2025
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
A few new titles this week, including a 4K upgrade for Criterion's Barry Lyndon, a DVD-to-4K leap for Hammer's Scars of Dracula (although the former is in a box set so goes nowhere), a trio of '60s Fantomas films from Eureka, and an early arrival for Indicator's 7th Columbia Noir set.
And all that just in time for the penultimate running time update of 2025. Yes, in a month's time we'll find out the (no doubt crazy) figures my collection has increased by this year.
Number of titles in collection: 3,645 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 979 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,666 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 488 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 8,760 [up 9]
Number of films: 4,677 [up 10]
Number of additional cuts: 476 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,280 [up 2]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
613 days, 9 hours, and 43 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 17 hours, and 53 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
A few new titles this week, including a 4K upgrade for Criterion's Barry Lyndon, a DVD-to-4K leap for Hammer's Scars of Dracula (although the former is in a box set so goes nowhere), a trio of '60s Fantomas films from Eureka, and an early arrival for Indicator's 7th Columbia Noir set.
And all that just in time for the penultimate running time update of 2025. Yes, in a month's time we'll find out the (no doubt crazy) figures my collection has increased by this year.
Number of titles in collection: 3,645 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 979 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,666 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 488 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 8,760 [up 9]
Number of films: 4,677 [up 10]
Number of additional cuts: 476 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,280 [up 2]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
613 days, 9 hours, and 43 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 17 hours, and 53 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 5 December 2025
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
"I ought to go to bed... but I could just play a little Skyrim first..."
An hour-and-a-half later: another "oopsie".
That was last night, so obviously I went back later and played even more. I'm now past 73 hours total, and my quest stats look like this:
For perspective, there are 270–350 named quests in Skyrim (estimates vary due to some being repeatable), and I've completed just 10. Sure, you can't complete them all in a single playthrough (there are instances where choosing a side locks out the other side's quests), but that only affects a handful. Also of note, I've done a lot of "miscellaneous quests", i.e. unnamed ones — that's why my "Misc Objectives" total is so much higher. Nonetheless, either I knuckle down to more questin' or it might be 2,500+ hours before I 'complete' this thing...
"I ought to go to bed... but I could just play a little Skyrim first..."
An hour-and-a-half later: another "oopsie".
That was last night, so obviously I went back later and played even more. I'm now past 73 hours total, and my quest stats look like this:
For perspective, there are 270–350 named quests in Skyrim (estimates vary due to some being repeatable), and I've completed just 10. Sure, you can't complete them all in a single playthrough (there are instances where choosing a side locks out the other side's quests), but that only affects a handful. Also of note, I've done a lot of "miscellaneous quests", i.e. unnamed ones — that's why my "Misc Objectives" total is so much higher. Nonetheless, either I knuckle down to more questin' or it might be 2,500+ hours before I 'complete' this thing...
Thursday, 4 December 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x06 Knives and Thorns [final half-hour]
Not that I didn't enjoy the episode, but getting through it by breaking it down into five parts has felt like a bit of a slog. Spreading those over two weeks won't have helped, either. I guess I need to go back to dedicating longer single periods to watching it (damn you, Skyrim!)
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Critical Role Cooldown
Campaign 4, Episode 6
[Watch it (again) on Beacon.]
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
"I haven't been playing that long, I guess I can do one more dungeon..."
"Now I'll just travel to my next destination..."
"Well, the last dungeon was quite short, so maybe just one more..."
"One more" turned out to be a really long one. I even ended up stopping somewhere in the middle of it (possibly near the end, but there's a whole new location to open next) because by that point I'd played for 4½ hours today. Oopsie.
"I haven't been playing that long, I guess I can do one more dungeon..."
"Now I'll just travel to my next destination..."
"Well, the last dungeon was quite short, so maybe just one more..."
"One more" turned out to be a really long one. I even ended up stopping somewhere in the middle of it (possibly near the end, but there's a whole new location to open next) because by that point I'd played for 4½ hours today. Oopsie.
Wednesday, 3 December 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x06 Knives and Thorns [4th hour]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
4x06 Knives and Thorns [4th hour]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
After about 30 hours of play, I woke up in Markarth — only the second city I'd visited in the game — and immediately got waylaid by a bunch of stuff. After several hours there, I set out into the world to complete those freshly-started quests, intending to further several at once before returning to the city to finish them all off together. Well, over 30 more hours later — and with no new cities visited in that time, mind — I'm finally back! Who knows how many more hours before I leave again. Who knows how many hours to visit all the places I haven't yet.
I know I write a version of that a lot, but it's because it continues to amaze me just how much there is in this game. Obviously it can all be done a lot quicker (I'm avoiding fast travel for immersion purposes, and also because that way you stumble across more stuff — and that stumbling makes the game take even longer again, of course), but even still, it's incredible. I know this isn't the only game like this... and, frankly, that's exciting: even when (if) I finish with Skyrim, I can head off into the world of The Witcher 3, say. Maybe I'll get bored of fantasy-world questing in open worlds before then, but, right now, that feels unlikely.
After about 30 hours of play, I woke up in Markarth — only the second city I'd visited in the game — and immediately got waylaid by a bunch of stuff. After several hours there, I set out into the world to complete those freshly-started quests, intending to further several at once before returning to the city to finish them all off together. Well, over 30 more hours later — and with no new cities visited in that time, mind — I'm finally back! Who knows how many more hours before I leave again. Who knows how many hours to visit all the places I haven't yet.
I know I write a version of that a lot, but it's because it continues to amaze me just how much there is in this game. Obviously it can all be done a lot quicker (I'm avoiding fast travel for immersion purposes, and also because that way you stumble across more stuff — and that stumbling makes the game take even longer again, of course), but even still, it's incredible. I know this isn't the only game like this... and, frankly, that's exciting: even when (if) I finish with Skyrim, I can head off into the world of The Witcher 3, say. Maybe I'll get bored of fantasy-world questing in open worlds before then, but, right now, that feels unlikely.
Tuesday, 2 December 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x06 Knives and Thorns [3rd hour]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
4x06 Knives and Thorns [3rd hour]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
I've been setting out to complete some very specific things... and along the way I keep finding more distractions! I've ended today's session finally reaching the place I've been aiming to go "next" for a good few days — hours of playtime spent aiming there but coming across something else to do first. And this isn't a complaint!
I've been setting out to complete some very specific things... and along the way I keep finding more distractions! I've ended today's session finally reaching the place I've been aiming to go "next" for a good few days — hours of playtime spent aiming there but coming across something else to do first. And this isn't a complaint!
Tabletop Games
EXIT: The Game Advent Calendar:
The Silent Storm
December 2nd
A complete damp squib today. The puzzle involves moving and shaking the box to release a part… except in my copy it had already shaken loose (I actually found it yesterday and guessed it was a future puzzle gone wrong, so at least I didn’t have to wait long for the answer). I’m sure it seemed like a very clever idea at the concept stage, but including such a puzzle in a product that’s inevitably going to be shaken around while being transported, delivered, examined, etc, is just inherently ill-conceived. Hopefully the game doesn’t try such things too often or it’s going to wind up a very disappointing month.
The Silent Storm
December 2nd
A complete damp squib today. The puzzle involves moving and shaking the box to release a part… except in my copy it had already shaken loose (I actually found it yesterday and guessed it was a future puzzle gone wrong, so at least I didn’t have to wait long for the answer). I’m sure it seemed like a very clever idea at the concept stage, but including such a puzzle in a product that’s inevitably going to be shaken around while being transported, delivered, examined, etc, is just inherently ill-conceived. Hopefully the game doesn’t try such things too often or it’s going to wind up a very disappointing month.
Monday, 1 December 2025
Tabletop Games
EXIT: The Game Advent Calendar:
The Silent Storm
December 1st
I don't log 'toys' here, so I don't think I've ever mentioned that, for a few years now, I've been getting a LEGO advent calendar each year (maybe I should log building LEGO...) I haven't stopped that tradition this year, but I have also got this: an "escape room in a box"-style advent calendar. It's got a story book that guides you through each day, then each compartment you open has little bits for a daily puzzle, the solution to which tells you which compartment to open tomorrow (only Day 1 is actually numbered).
Today required a bit of a set up (reading rules, reading the intro to the narrative, cutting up and putting back together a 'decoder table' to use each day going forward) as well as the first puzzle, but it still only took 20 minutes or so. Should be a good bit of fun every day until Christmas, I think.
The Silent Storm
December 1st
I don't log 'toys' here, so I don't think I've ever mentioned that, for a few years now, I've been getting a LEGO advent calendar each year (maybe I should log building LEGO...) I haven't stopped that tradition this year, but I have also got this: an "escape room in a box"-style advent calendar. It's got a story book that guides you through each day, then each compartment you open has little bits for a daily puzzle, the solution to which tells you which compartment to open tomorrow (only Day 1 is actually numbered).
Today required a bit of a set up (reading rules, reading the intro to the narrative, cutting up and putting back together a 'decoder table' to use each day going forward) as well as the first puzzle, but it still only took 20 minutes or so. Should be a good bit of fun every day until Christmas, I think.
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
Crossed the 60-hour mark today. That puts me only a few hours off the halfway mark of "all play styles", but I still haven't done most of the things I mentioned at the 50-hour mark. Guess I'm going to be one of those multi-hundred-hour players. Unless I get bored before then. It's not looking likely right now, but you never know.
Crossed the 60-hour mark today. That puts me only a few hours off the halfway mark of "all play styles", but I still haven't done most of the things I mentioned at the 50-hour mark. Guess I'm going to be one of those multi-hundred-hour players. Unless I get bored before then. It's not looking likely right now, but you never know.
Sunday, 30 November 2025
TV
Friends
10x15 The One Where Estelle Dies [6th or so watch]
Richard Osman's House of Games
8x65 Week 13: Friday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
10x15 The One Where Estelle Dies [6th or so watch]
Richard Osman's House of Games
8x65 Week 13: Friday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
I was intending to finally finish Critical Role Campaign 4 Episode 6 tonight... but hey, why do anything else when you can play another three hours of Skyrim?
I was intending to finally finish Critical Role Campaign 4 Episode 6 tonight... but hey, why do anything else when you can play another three hours of Skyrim?
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Five new additions this week, including Arrow's first title in their very exciting deal to release Golden Princess films — later, this is going to bring us the likes of Peking Opera Blues, Hard Boiled, and A Better Tomorrow in 4K.
Number of titles in collection: 3,642 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 979 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,663 [up 5]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 486 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 8,751 [up 5]
Number of films: 4,667 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 476 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,278 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Five new additions this week, including Arrow's first title in their very exciting deal to release Golden Princess films — later, this is going to bring us the likes of Peking Opera Blues, Hard Boiled, and A Better Tomorrow in 4K.
Number of titles in collection: 3,642 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 979 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,663 [up 5]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 486 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 8,751 [up 5]
Number of films: 4,667 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 476 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,278 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Saturday, 29 November 2025
TV
Friends
10x14 The One with Princess Consuela [6th or so watch]
Richard Osman's House of Games
8x63 Week 13: Wednesday
8x64 Week 13: Thursday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Watson
1x09 Take a Family History
10x14 The One with Princess Consuela [6th or so watch]
Richard Osman's House of Games
8x63 Week 13: Wednesday
8x64 Week 13: Thursday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Watson
1x09 Take a Family History
Tabletop Games
Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle
Game 7 (of 7)
Just played the final game again. I have now bought one of the expansions, but we decided to save it to begin an entire new playthrough over Christmas.
Game 7 (of 7)
Just played the final game again. I have now bought one of the expansions, but we decided to save it to begin an entire new playthrough over Christmas.
Friday, 28 November 2025
TV
Friends
10x12 The One with Phoebe's Wedding [6th or so watch]
10x13 The One Where Joey Speaks French [6th or so watch]
Richard Osman's House of Games
8x61 Week 13: Monday
8x62 Week 13: Tuesday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
10x12 The One with Phoebe's Wedding [6th or so watch]
10x13 The One Where Joey Speaks French [6th or so watch]
Richard Osman's House of Games
8x61 Week 13: Monday
8x62 Week 13: Tuesday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Thursday, 27 November 2025
Wednesday, 26 November 2025
Tabletop Games
Daggerheart: Curse of Strahd
My second game has begun! Strahd is, of course, one of the more famous Dungeons & Dragons adventures, which is probably why I've seen plenty of people adapting it into Daggerheart — and now I'm in one of those games.
My second game has begun! Strahd is, of course, one of the more famous Dungeons & Dragons adventures, which is probably why I've seen plenty of people adapting it into Daggerheart — and now I'm in one of those games.
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
I'm not sure I should really log this — literally all I did was boot it up, see what quests I currently had in my journal, realise I wasn't sure which I wanted to pursue next, and quit — but, hey, that took long enough for Steam to register it as 4 minutes of playtime, so... technically I did play it today, I guess... technically.
I'm not sure I should really log this — literally all I did was boot it up, see what quests I currently had in my journal, realise I wasn't sure which I wanted to pursue next, and quit — but, hey, that took long enough for Steam to register it as 4 minutes of playtime, so... technically I did play it today, I guess... technically.
Tuesday, 25 November 2025
Monday, 24 November 2025
TV
The Mighty Nein
1x01 Mote of Possibility [2nd watch]
1x02 Who Will You Be?
1x01 Mote of Possibility [2nd watch]
1x02 Who Will You Be?
Can't believe it's well over a week since I watched the first episode on its YouTube preview — feels like it's been just a few days. Time, eh? Anyway, it's probably for the best I've wound up spreading out the other opening episodes (they released the first three all at once, excepting that preview) because from here on out it's one per week. And it's so good, I want to savour it — hence why I rewatched episode one in better quality and didn't go straight on to episode three.
[Watch it (again) on Prime Video.]Tabletop Games
Daggerheart: Dragon Heist in the City of Splendors
Week 7 begins.
The second game I mentioned last week is about to begin... but hasn't yet, so I guess I'll be properly listing it next week.
Week 7 begins.
The second game I mentioned last week is about to begin... but hasn't yet, so I guess I'll be properly listing it next week.
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
Sailed past the 50-hour mark today. Still haven't been to eight out of the ten cities; still haven't started the main quest; still haven't started the... secondary main quest, I guess it is?*
Part of me feels like I should dive in to some of those sometime soon — either actually continue the plot(s), or head off to sightsee. But knowing how much stuff was unlocked when I ended up in one major city (and I need to go back and finish off a bunch of things I started there), I feel like even hitting a single new city will kick off who-knows-how-many more hours of Things To Do, never mind eight of them** (though only three others are classed as "major", plus five smaller ones... but if we're doing that, I need to start thinking about the eight towns, nineteen settlements, four orc strongholds, and dozens of farms, mills, caves, mines, ruins, forts, towers, camps... Yeah, it's a big game.)
This is not a complaint, by-the-way. If I was bored of what I was doing, I could absolutely ditch it and go to those areas. I could do it anyway and just end up with a massive list of active quests. Maybe I will.
Amazing game.
* It seems to me that the civil war is Skyrim's secondary major storyline. It kicks off in the opening/tutorial sequence, just the same as the main quest does, and from what I've read (while finding info but also trying to avoid too many spoilers), it eventually leads to significant world-changing set pieces and intersects majorly with the main storyline in several ways. But my go-to resource, the Unofficial Elder Scrolls Pages wiki, list it as 2 of 6 possible Faction Quests (though it does also have a dedicated Quest page), so I dunno.
** And if we do count the civil war as one of a list of 'secondary major quests', there are three more of those I haven't started (and one other I'm in the middle of) and could/would kick off if I explored certain places.
Sailed past the 50-hour mark today. Still haven't been to eight out of the ten cities; still haven't started the main quest; still haven't started the... secondary main quest, I guess it is?*
Part of me feels like I should dive in to some of those sometime soon — either actually continue the plot(s), or head off to sightsee. But knowing how much stuff was unlocked when I ended up in one major city (and I need to go back and finish off a bunch of things I started there), I feel like even hitting a single new city will kick off who-knows-how-many more hours of Things To Do, never mind eight of them** (though only three others are classed as "major", plus five smaller ones... but if we're doing that, I need to start thinking about the eight towns, nineteen settlements, four orc strongholds, and dozens of farms, mills, caves, mines, ruins, forts, towers, camps... Yeah, it's a big game.)
This is not a complaint, by-the-way. If I was bored of what I was doing, I could absolutely ditch it and go to those areas. I could do it anyway and just end up with a massive list of active quests. Maybe I will.
Amazing game.
* It seems to me that the civil war is Skyrim's secondary major storyline. It kicks off in the opening/tutorial sequence, just the same as the main quest does, and from what I've read (while finding info but also trying to avoid too many spoilers), it eventually leads to significant world-changing set pieces and intersects majorly with the main storyline in several ways. But my go-to resource, the Unofficial Elder Scrolls Pages wiki, list it as 2 of 6 possible Faction Quests (though it does also have a dedicated Quest page), so I dunno.
** And if we do count the civil war as one of a list of 'secondary major quests', there are three more of those I haven't started (and one other I'm in the middle of) and could/would kick off if I explored certain places.
Sunday, 23 November 2025
Films
Le Samouraï (1967)
[#93 in The 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2025]
"What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...?" 2025 #11
[#93 in The 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2025]
"What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...?" 2025 #11
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
According to HowLongToBeat, a "leisurely" playthrough of Skyrim's main story takes just over 44½ hours. Well, today I passed that mark (I'm actually at 48½ hours, with over 2 hours of the time today being "oh, I'll just pop on and quickly do that... oops") and have barely even started said main story. But that's been a deliberate choice on my part, spending my time on all kinds of other quests... and, frankly, an awful lot of travelling, crafting, and trading. It's easy to see how the "All Play Styles" average is almost 130 hours, while Completionist times average well over 200 hours. Will I hit those kinds of numbers, or will I finish / move on before then? Time will tell...
According to HowLongToBeat, a "leisurely" playthrough of Skyrim's main story takes just over 44½ hours. Well, today I passed that mark (I'm actually at 48½ hours, with over 2 hours of the time today being "oh, I'll just pop on and quickly do that... oops") and have barely even started said main story. But that's been a deliberate choice on my part, spending my time on all kinds of other quests... and, frankly, an awful lot of travelling, crafting, and trading. It's easy to see how the "All Play Styles" average is almost 130 hours, while Completionist times average well over 200 hours. Will I hit those kinds of numbers, or will I finish / move on before then? Time will tell...
Saturday, 22 November 2025
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
When I casually accepted a drinking contest, I didn't expect it to kickstart a quest that I wouldn't complete for another 13 or 14 hours of playtime. Heck, I assumed it would be a couple of minutes of a stamina test or something! Even when it turned out to be A Quest, I assumed it would be a fairly swift and minor one. But no! It's been 'what I'm trying to complete' for almost a third of my total playtime so far.
I've got other quests that have been sat there since, well, the start (so almost 45 hours at this point), but some of those I've been actively putting off and others just ignoring. This was one I was focused on — or trying to focus on! Obviously a good amount of that time came from distractions. Also from my insistance on actually traversing the world rather than teleporting around with fast travel.* But, all in, it feels like it was an epic undertaking. What I assumed was one of the game's many, many minor optional asides (and, I guess, it is) feels, at this point, like the most major storyline I've fully participated in (so far).
* I do allow myself to use it to whoosh to & from storage locations, for the sake of collecting as much loot as possible, and sometimes for trading in that loot; but when progressing 'the story', trekking around it is!
When I casually accepted a drinking contest, I didn't expect it to kickstart a quest that I wouldn't complete for another 13 or 14 hours of playtime. Heck, I assumed it would be a couple of minutes of a stamina test or something! Even when it turned out to be A Quest, I assumed it would be a fairly swift and minor one. But no! It's been 'what I'm trying to complete' for almost a third of my total playtime so far.
I've got other quests that have been sat there since, well, the start (so almost 45 hours at this point), but some of those I've been actively putting off and others just ignoring. This was one I was focused on — or trying to focus on! Obviously a good amount of that time came from distractions. Also from my insistance on actually traversing the world rather than teleporting around with fast travel.* But, all in, it feels like it was an epic undertaking. What I assumed was one of the game's many, many minor optional asides (and, I guess, it is) feels, at this point, like the most major storyline I've fully participated in (so far).
* I do allow myself to use it to whoosh to & from storage locations, for the sake of collecting as much loot as possible, and sometimes for trading in that loot; but when progressing 'the story', trekking around it is!
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Despite Black Friday sales being in motion, everything this week is a new release, some of them turning up a week or two early. (Of course, I have ordered Black Friday stuff, and that should be here next week.) The tally includes two additions to the Masters of Cinema range, one in 4K; a new 4K from Hammer; a BD-to-4K upgrade from Arrow; and, also from Arrow, their latest Shawscope box set — hence why the discs and films count jumps up so much from just five new purchases.
Number of titles in collection: 3,638 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 980 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,658 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 483 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 8,746 [up 15]
Number of films: 4,661 [up 20]
Number of additional cuts: 476 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,278 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Despite Black Friday sales being in motion, everything this week is a new release, some of them turning up a week or two early. (Of course, I have ordered Black Friday stuff, and that should be here next week.) The tally includes two additions to the Masters of Cinema range, one in 4K; a new 4K from Hammer; a BD-to-4K upgrade from Arrow; and, also from Arrow, their latest Shawscope box set — hence why the discs and films count jumps up so much from just five new purchases.
Number of titles in collection: 3,638 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 980 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,658 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 483 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 8,746 [up 15]
Number of films: 4,661 [up 20]
Number of additional cuts: 476 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,278 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 21 November 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x06 Knives and Thorns [2nd hour]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
4x06 Knives and Thorns [2nd hour]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Thursday, 20 November 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x06 Knives and Thorns [1st hour]
Almost a whole hour longer than the last episode. I suspect I'll end up breaking this down into smaller bites than "halves", then — gotta make sure I'm setting aside loads of time for Skyrim, after all.
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
4x06 Knives and Thorns [1st hour]
Almost a whole hour longer than the last episode. I suspect I'll end up breaking this down into smaller bites than "halves", then — gotta make sure I'm setting aside loads of time for Skyrim, after all.
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Wednesday, 19 November 2025
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
Started today's session finding out the next point I needed to hit on my current 'main' quest, so headed straight there. 2¼ hours later, I finally reached that destination and decided it was a good point to put the game down for the day. As ever: so many distractions! But they're a bit part of the fun. I've just crossed the 40-hour mark, meaning it's 10 hours — a quater of my playtime — since I started this specific quest, but it doesn't feel like that at all. Great game.
Started today's session finding out the next point I needed to hit on my current 'main' quest, so headed straight there. 2¼ hours later, I finally reached that destination and decided it was a good point to put the game down for the day. As ever: so many distractions! But they're a bit part of the fun. I've just crossed the 40-hour mark, meaning it's 10 hours — a quater of my playtime — since I started this specific quest, but it doesn't feel like that at all. Great game.
Tuesday, 18 November 2025
Comics
2000 AD
Prog 2450
As I mentioned, a whole new slate of strips start this issue; and it's a bumper-length one, so there are six!
...except one's a text story, which is fine, but, I dunno, I never really feel these 'are' 2000 AD. And one's the first half of a story that concludes in the Megazine, which I don't buy, so I'm not going to read that. And one of them is a new series of Void Runners, which I seem to remember thinking was pretty shit last time (whether I stuck with it or it's one of those rarities that I abandoned partway, I can't remember). So that's... underwhelming.
Prog 2450
As I mentioned, a whole new slate of strips start this issue; and it's a bumper-length one, so there are six!
...except one's a text story, which is fine, but, I dunno, I never really feel these 'are' 2000 AD. And one's the first half of a story that concludes in the Megazine, which I don't buy, so I'm not going to read that. And one of them is a new series of Void Runners, which I seem to remember thinking was pretty shit last time (whether I stuck with it or it's one of those rarities that I abandoned partway, I can't remember). So that's... underwhelming.
Monday, 17 November 2025
TV
Critical Role
4x05 Branching Paths [2nd half]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
4x05 Branching Paths [2nd half]
[Watch it (again) for free on YouTube, or for subscribers on Beacon or Twitch.]
Tabletop Games
Daggerheart: Dragon Heist in the City of Splendors
Heading into Week 6.
Last week I mentioned I was considering signing up for a second game. I now have. It hasn't properly started yet (there's a full complement of players, but we're creating characters still), but I guess I'll start mentioning that once per week too.
Heading into Week 6.
Last week I mentioned I was considering signing up for a second game. I now have. It hasn't properly started yet (there's a full complement of players, but we're creating characters still), but I guess I'll start mentioning that once per week too.
Sunday, 16 November 2025
Video Games
Dispatch
Episode 1 Pivot
Yep, I finally started it! And it's really good... as a TV show. It's funny, it's emotional, it's exciting; the characters are likeable, the performances are great; it's all really well made — it feels like watching a 'proper' animation, not a video game approximation of one. But as a game...
Well, being able to choose dialogue options is fun, though I don't think they have any meaningful impact. This is no Bandersnatch, where I actually felt like my choices were changing things. Here, it's just some divergent dialogue before things slot back on their preordained path. I get why that is (it seems nightmarish enough having to create all the different eventualities for a finite film, something designed to run about two hours, so imagine having to do it for an eight-episode TV series), but consequently there's an element of "why?" about it. Even if it affected dialogue later on, that would be something, but (based on replaying some parts) I think once you get past the initial variant, it just clicks back to the same path.
Even worse are the QTEs — I see now why there's an option to just have them be 'cinematic' (i.e. no interaction), because I don't think whether I managed to hit a button in time or not actually changed a single thing. Why rush to participate if the fight's going to play out the same way anyway? Eventually there's some actual gameplay in the dispatching minigame... though, again, I'm not sure if your performance actually changes anything (maybe in future episodes? Though I have heard complaints that what you do doesn't affect the story, so...) Also, to be honest, that dispatching is not my kind of game. I muddled through it, and I did ok, but if Dispatch was 100% that, I'm not sure I'd choose to play it.
I'll definitely be continuing though, because — like I said — this is a really good slightly-interactive TV show... even if, on the evidence of the first episode, it wouldn't have lost much by being just a TV show.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
When I started up Skyrim today, I had a specific plan: head straight out of the city to investigate the missing 24 hours. On the way, stuff happened... and then more stuff... and then other distractions... Two hours of playtime later, I still hadn't left the city, but I had completed a couple of minor quests, had several instances of combat, and was midway through various other storylines. Whoopsie!
But I set those storylines aside for the time being (partly because I became aware that finishing one would lead to a whole other one that I'd have to play immediately) and set off out of the city for the next location in the aforementioned investigation... and, of course, immediately encounted more stuff. Another 2¼ hours later, I put the game down again, this time outside a dungeon I'll tackle next time — but I'm still not close to the next stop in my search! Maybe I will get there next time I play. Maybe there'll be more distractions.
In short: damn, there's a lot of content in this game! I am going to have to seriously think about consciously making time to play other stuff alongside it, otherwise it'll be nothing but Skyrim, Skyrim, Skyrim for... months? Years? The rest of my life?
Episode 1 Pivot
Yep, I finally started it! And it's really good... as a TV show. It's funny, it's emotional, it's exciting; the characters are likeable, the performances are great; it's all really well made — it feels like watching a 'proper' animation, not a video game approximation of one. But as a game...
Well, being able to choose dialogue options is fun, though I don't think they have any meaningful impact. This is no Bandersnatch, where I actually felt like my choices were changing things. Here, it's just some divergent dialogue before things slot back on their preordained path. I get why that is (it seems nightmarish enough having to create all the different eventualities for a finite film, something designed to run about two hours, so imagine having to do it for an eight-episode TV series), but consequently there's an element of "why?" about it. Even if it affected dialogue later on, that would be something, but (based on replaying some parts) I think once you get past the initial variant, it just clicks back to the same path.
Even worse are the QTEs — I see now why there's an option to just have them be 'cinematic' (i.e. no interaction), because I don't think whether I managed to hit a button in time or not actually changed a single thing. Why rush to participate if the fight's going to play out the same way anyway? Eventually there's some actual gameplay in the dispatching minigame... though, again, I'm not sure if your performance actually changes anything (maybe in future episodes? Though I have heard complaints that what you do doesn't affect the story, so...) Also, to be honest, that dispatching is not my kind of game. I muddled through it, and I did ok, but if Dispatch was 100% that, I'm not sure I'd choose to play it.
I'll definitely be continuing though, because — like I said — this is a really good slightly-interactive TV show... even if, on the evidence of the first episode, it wouldn't have lost much by being just a TV show.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
When I started up Skyrim today, I had a specific plan: head straight out of the city to investigate the missing 24 hours. On the way, stuff happened... and then more stuff... and then other distractions... Two hours of playtime later, I still hadn't left the city, but I had completed a couple of minor quests, had several instances of combat, and was midway through various other storylines. Whoopsie!
But I set those storylines aside for the time being (partly because I became aware that finishing one would lead to a whole other one that I'd have to play immediately) and set off out of the city for the next location in the aforementioned investigation... and, of course, immediately encounted more stuff. Another 2¼ hours later, I put the game down again, this time outside a dungeon I'll tackle next time — but I'm still not close to the next stop in my search! Maybe I will get there next time I play. Maybe there'll be more distractions.
In short: damn, there's a lot of content in this game! I am going to have to seriously think about consciously making time to play other stuff alongside it, otherwise it'll be nothing but Skyrim, Skyrim, Skyrim for... months? Years? The rest of my life?
Saturday, 15 November 2025
Films
Street Law (1974)
[#91 in The 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2025]
I was considering watching How to Train Your Dragon 2 this evening (as I’ve been intending to since May), but after playing four hours of Skyrim and reading a Fafhrd-focused Lankhmar story, I decided it was probably a good idea to get some variety from viking-themed fantasy.
[#91 in The 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2025]
I was considering watching How to Train Your Dragon 2 this evening (as I’ve been intending to since May), but after playing four hours of Skyrim and reading a Fafhrd-focused Lankhmar story, I decided it was probably a good idea to get some variety from viking-themed fantasy.
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
Inevitably.
I sat down this afternoon intending to finally start Dispatch. If you don't know, it's structured like a TV series with eight episodes, so my plan is to treat it like one: play a whole episode, then either do the whole next one or aim to spread them out, paced like how I watch TV TV. But instead of finally diving into episode one, I 'accidentally' loaded Skyrim instead. Oopsie.
Today was good, though. I've spent my 30 hours so far all in the same locale: the first town and city the game leads you to, and their surrounding environs. I keep meaning to venture out (there's a lot more world to see) but get distracted by local quests (or other business like looting, crafting, potion making...) Well, today I got into a drinking contest in the tavern... and woke up a whole 24 hours later in an unfamiliar temple, which turned out to be in a city on the other side of the continent. That's one way to do it!
In terms of how the game is programmed, this is a quest that can trigger in any tavern anywhere after you reach a certain level — I could have explored every single place on the map before starting it. But I think the way it's happened for me is the best, frankly. Walking out of the temple into, not only an unfamiliar city, but one that looks completely different to anywhere else I've seen so far, was a fantastic experience. It made what has happened narratively hit home in a way I don't think it would have if this were somewhere familiar — it feels like I've been on a black-out-drunk adventure and have no idea how I got here or why, rather than just "oh, I'm in this place again". And now I have to not only work out what happened, but also make my way 'home' across half the world that I've not seen before.
Yep, I'm certainly not stopping sinking time into Skyrim now!
Inevitably.
I sat down this afternoon intending to finally start Dispatch. If you don't know, it's structured like a TV series with eight episodes, so my plan is to treat it like one: play a whole episode, then either do the whole next one or aim to spread them out, paced like how I watch TV TV. But instead of finally diving into episode one, I 'accidentally' loaded Skyrim instead. Oopsie.
Today was good, though. I've spent my 30 hours so far all in the same locale: the first town and city the game leads you to, and their surrounding environs. I keep meaning to venture out (there's a lot more world to see) but get distracted by local quests (or other business like looting, crafting, potion making...) Well, today I got into a drinking contest in the tavern... and woke up a whole 24 hours later in an unfamiliar temple, which turned out to be in a city on the other side of the continent. That's one way to do it!
In terms of how the game is programmed, this is a quest that can trigger in any tavern anywhere after you reach a certain level — I could have explored every single place on the map before starting it. But I think the way it's happened for me is the best, frankly. Walking out of the temple into, not only an unfamiliar city, but one that looks completely different to anywhere else I've seen so far, was a fantastic experience. It made what has happened narratively hit home in a way I don't think it would have if this were somewhere familiar — it feels like I've been on a black-out-drunk adventure and have no idea how I got here or why, rather than just "oh, I'm in this place again". And now I have to not only work out what happened, but also make my way 'home' across half the world that I've not seen before.
Yep, I'm certainly not stopping sinking time into Skyrim now!
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
This week, a bunch more pickups from recent offers (a couple of Criterions from the ongoing UK sale, for example), and a couple of new releases — including a DVD-to-BD upgrade, continuing to gradually chip away at that old format's tally. I certainly don't think it will ever get to 0 (not even close), but... well, it is what it is.
Number of titles in collection: 3,634 [up 5]
Of which DVDs: 980 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,654 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 480 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 8,731 [up 9]
Number of films: 4,641 [up 8]
Number of additional cuts: 473 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,278 [up 7]
See you next week, faithful reader.
This week, a bunch more pickups from recent offers (a couple of Criterions from the ongoing UK sale, for example), and a couple of new releases — including a DVD-to-BD upgrade, continuing to gradually chip away at that old format's tally. I certainly don't think it will ever get to 0 (not even close), but... well, it is what it is.
Number of titles in collection: 3,634 [up 5]
Of which DVDs: 980 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,654 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 480 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 8,731 [up 9]
Number of films: 4,641 [up 8]
Number of additional cuts: 473 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,188 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,278 [up 7]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 14 November 2025
TV
The Mighty Nein
1x01 Mote of Possibility
Surprise! Episode 1 is streaming free on YouTube this weekend only, ahead of episodes 1–3 releasing on Prime Video (as originally announced) from Wednesday 19th. And it's really good! Phew.
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
1x01 Mote of Possibility
Surprise! Episode 1 is streaming free on YouTube this weekend only, ahead of episodes 1–3 releasing on Prime Video (as originally announced) from Wednesday 19th. And it's really good! Phew.
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
Over two hours today, but almost all of it admin — collecting stuff, selling stuff, going back to collect more stuff, selling more stuff...
It's my own fault — the game isn't making me do that — but it feels wasteful to leave all that coin-generating loot behind when I could get, y'know, the coin. But it also means I'm spending way too much time on, as I say, admin. Need to break the habit, I think — advance some storylines; fight through some more dungeons. Of course, that will just generate more loot...
Over two hours today, but almost all of it admin — collecting stuff, selling stuff, going back to collect more stuff, selling more stuff...
It's my own fault — the game isn't making me do that — but it feels wasteful to leave all that coin-generating loot behind when I could get, y'know, the coin. But it also means I'm spending way too much time on, as I say, admin. Need to break the habit, I think — advance some storylines; fight through some more dungeons. Of course, that will just generate more loot...
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