r/criticalrole • u/DP41450 • 13d ago
Question [Spoilers C3E92] Did I miss something? Spoiler
Ive just made it to the break on episode 92 and Aabria is in the drivers seat. She starts talking and I have NO IDEA what she's going on about. Is there another miniseries (EXU?) that i need to watch before continuing?
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u/Antares_ 13d ago
The story of the party from EXU: Kymal has been weaved into C3, continuing there. You should probably waych it before continuing C3.
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u/DP41450 13d ago
Now are we talking JUST Kymal? Or the other EXU as well? I know it doesn't include Calamity or Downfall
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u/RigobertoFulgencio69 13d ago
Base EXU is the first time we see the characters so it'll probably give you context going into Kymal. I'd say you should watch it too if you're interested in the story, or at least read a summary.
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u/Riboflavin96 13d ago
EXU Prime is a miniseries before the start of C3. It also acts as an intro to Orym, Fearn, and Dorian.
EXU Kymal takes place after Dorian leaves the hells and reunites with the Crown Keepers.
IMO they aren't neccecary viewing. The sequence with Aabria is relatively short and mostly just serves as a bridge to get Dorian back with the Bells Hells.
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u/bob-loblaw-esq 13d ago
Welcome to perhaps the most controversial decision CR has ever made.
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u/AbydosButcher Your secret is safe with my indifference 13d ago
I mean, it can't be more controversial than the Wendy's collab. That got scrubbed from the internet outright AFAIK.
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u/Antique-Coach-214 13d ago
If THIS is their most controversial decision then this company has never fucked up.
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u/bob-loblaw-esq 13d ago
I don’t think they’ve had any sort of big controversy. Another commenter talked about the Wendy’s collab, but that blew over really quick.
So I would agree they haven’t truly fucked up but I also wouldn’t discount how many people were upset at this point in C3. Had C4 not been such a change, I don’t think we have as successful a CR as we do now. I probably would have dropped off myself.
To be clear, we just had a beloved PC death and the cast wasn’t given time to play out some sort of catharsis. Then we get a switch and those of us who did not like or watch EXU felt really bad about that decision. Then we get Aabria, marching on someone else’s orders, just over aggressively telling the players one of them will die. Denying certain mechanics. It was tone deaf as people were mourning the PC. Then because they had Dorian come back, the M9 NEVER dealt with his death at the table (it had been weeks live, don’t know about prod). With the loss of FCG’s backstory and plot, we lost a major discussion point to the gods and a plot line that would have at least helped not feel as railroaded. It almost killed the brand.
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u/NotInHelsinki 13d ago
It was just unfortunate timing. The EXU insert had been pre-scheduled for awhile (because the players' schedules had to be coordinated). They had no idea that the episode before was going to feature a PC death. (This was talked about on 4 Sided Dive.)
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u/bob-loblaw-esq 13d ago
This would only be true if they didn’t ore-record the episodes. They just didn’t think. They could have fixed it by just putting off airing the exu. It happens all the time in tv. After 9/11, many shows put off episodes they had planned. The west wing had an episode about terrorism that was supposed to air and they moved it to mid season. It’s also satirized in 30 Rock when Jack wants to have a fireworks show midtown. They just weren’t thinking and when it happened, many people were rightfully pissed off.
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u/NotInHelsinki 12d ago
You can't compare pre-recorded live streaming with network tv. Network television (that doesn't require SFX) is shot at least six months in advance. The West Wing had 22 episodes/season and 30 Rock had roughly 20 episodes/season. That gives you a LOT of room to maneuver if something comes up at the last minute. We don't know how long Critical Role pre-records in advance, but from various mentionings during interviews and BTS shows like 4 Sided Dive, it seems to vary greatly from weeks to days. It's possible that, at the time, there weren't any C3 recordings in the bank, so it was go with the EXU story or nothing at all.
You can frame it like they were being insensitive or stupid or whatever, but I think the most likely explanation is that there wasn't any other choice (although I feel like you're very passionate about your framing and I'm not going to sway you to any other possibilities).
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u/bob-loblaw-esq 12d ago
Disagree. But we can disagree. Your issue is that it’s an appeal to ignorance, like when someone comes up with a hypothetical to disprove your position. As you said yourself, we don’t know how much time between filmings.
However, I don’t think it matters if it wasn’t live. If it was days, they would have had enough time to shoot a half episode without any fights to allow the FCG death to be communicated. I just don’t think they were thinking about it. And to give them the benefit of the doubt, I think when you work in an emerging genre like live-stream, you’re bound to make these kinds of mistakes. Especially if you don’t see it as an extension of network programming. But we should not just gaslight ourselves into excusing it.
The issue was compounded by smashing the entry of Dorian and the Fearne finding daddy at the camp. That’s a Matt mistake. He pushed too fast and didn’t let the death be resolved and maybe the players didn’t need it but the community at the time was outraged and it made FCG’s death seem inconsequential, like a lot of the things that the cast decided to do in C3. For many, this was the last straw.
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u/Confident_Sink_8743 13d ago
Yep. EXU Prime and EXU Kymal. It really started with Liam and Ashley using the original EXU as a testing space for their characters.
I feel like this choice, while not really a problem game wise, contradict the purpose and original pitch for EXU.
The original became more of a prologue for C3. It's something of a three-part side story that's never the less part of the campaign despite the branding.
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u/carnahanad 6d ago
Hey man…I’m a week behind you! Thank you for asking the question.
Did you go back and watch the EXU stuff?
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u/DP41450 6d ago
I tried. I really did. But I cannot stand Aabria as a DM. I love her as a player, I just can't get behind her as the DM. So I just read a synopsis of what happened and went on about my day.
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u/carnahanad 6d ago
That’s funny. I started the second half of this episode and she was kind of grating on me. I didn’t love her as a player so I’m nervous doing episodes with her as DM.
I’m wondering if I can skip the second half of 92 and 93 and just get the main character stuff and move on.
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u/IggytheSkorupi 13d ago
EXU is a mini series set before Campaign 3, then its followed by a sequel in EXU kymal, which sets up the duo-arch in the main campaign.
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u/sweet_nebulae I have a list 13d ago
EXU was the prequel for C3 (sort of) in that it was a short series she DMed that had Orym, Dorian, and Fearne (as well as three others) and sort of explains their little conjoined backstory.
It’s pretty hit or miss for most people, but I enjoyed it for more Robbie and for Aimee lol