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A copious and perhaps uncharitable critique of the Castlevania show's villains.
Mar 30, 2026
13m 24s
Rant for "13th Warrior".
Mar 16, 2026
9m 52s
Rant For "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms"
Mar 2, 2026
9m 17s
Why I love The Old Republic!
Feb 23, 2026
10m 25s
Review of "The Temple" by H.P. Lovecraft.
Feb 16, 2026
4m 39s
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| Date | Episode | Topics | Guests | Brands | Places | Keywords | Sponsor | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/30/26 |  A copious and perhaps uncharitable critique of the Castlevania show's villains.✨ | Castlevaniavillains+4 | CarmillaSaint Germain | — | — | Castlevaniavillains+5 | — | 13m 24s | |
| 3/16/26 |  Rant for "13th Warrior". | Note: Below is the un-corrected script for the audio of the podcast. I highly recommend you listen to the audio rather as this is a podcast, rather than a traditional “article”.Archimedes: Welcome my noble audience, I am Archimedes Lichelord of Cyrenica, and today we embark on a grand and mythic adventure!Snot 1 and 2: Oh boy! I love magical adventures!Archie: No, there’s no magic in this.Snot 2: No magic?Archie: No demons or dragons either.Snot 1 and 2: What?!Archie: It’s human beings and everyday beasts in this story.Snot 1: How can it be an adventure if there’s no magic?Archie: Because we’re going to focus on mortal yet extraordinary fellows accomplishing great deeds against impossible odds.Snot 2: You said it was a mythic adventure. How can it be mythic if there’s no magic or dragons or monsters?Archie: It’s more about how a great story evolves on myths and then grows into or inspires legends. And how those inspire people to live out still more heroic tales.Snot 1: Why would they do that if there’s no magic?Snot 2: Yeah, who wants a story about real life. We live real life everyday.Archie: There’s lots of sword fights, and mystery. Also character growth and acknowledging the strengths of different cultures and what they bring to the human struggle. It’s also an excellent display of how men sometimes fight for the strangest of reasons, but can also form the strongest of bonds despite supposedly insurmountable odds. It’s a good story.Snot 2: Was any of that in the original?Archie: What?Snot 1: These days everything is based on something else. So, we’re asking: is any of the stuff you’re talking about in the original.Archie: I mean, according to every exact detail no…Snot 2: I knew it.Archie: “Listen you little shits! I’m going to talk about 13th warrior, it’s great adventure movie with great characters in an interesting setting. And you twits are gonna sit down, shut and learn something about storytelling. Got that?Snots: (Crying) “Why are you so mean”, “It was just a joke bro, “You’re so cruel”, What did we do you anyway?”Archie: Ffffffuuuuu-Welcome to Retrospective Rants, with me, Joey Huff as your host. Today I’m going to talk about an adventure movie from the 90s, that The 13th Warrior, starring Antonio Banderas. Let’s get into it. Oh yeah, spoiler warning.In ages past, our protagonist, Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan played by Antonio Banderas, is ejected from his comfortable role in the court of the great Caliph, and made ambassador to a country far to the North of the world. But his journey is interrupted, for as his caravan flees a group of bandits, they happen upon a group of Vikings who have come here to hold a funeral for their deceased king. As Ahmed does his awkward best to communicate, and well, be an ambassador, word comes to the camp that the lands of King Hrothgar are under attack by an unknown and unspeakable terror. The Vikings have a wise woman do her seer thing of consulting bones, as one does. And she says that 13 warriors must go forth to save the besieged land, no more, and no less. But the 13th warrior cannot be a Northman, and thus Ahmed is singled out as this 13th warrior. And that’s our set up.This movie is based on the legend of Beowulf, but not directly. No-no. It is in fact based on a book written by Michael Crichton (Of Jurassic Park fame). And that book is half based on Beowulf and half based on an now dubious account of an Arabian man’s encounter with Vikings. There’s a whole other story there. But Crichton’s book, Eaters of the Dead was written as a way to combat critics of the original poem of Beowulf who say the original classic is uninteresting. This means that the movie 13th warrior is an adaptation of a book that is a narrative focused defense of a classic old English poem. Huh…Despite this strange adaptational road, 13th Warrior is a fun and efficient adventure with a lot of heart. There’s as much of a focus on Ahmed’s attempts to ingratiate himself with his new company, as there is on the actual conflict with the mysterious monsters. There are quite a few differences between the Ahmed’s Medieval Arabic culture and culture of his Viking companions. The northmen are rougher and bigger and they don’t waste much time on niceties. Sometimes it’s a little gross. There’s a whole scene where they pass around a single bowl of water which is used for washing hair, hands, mouths and whatever else. They rinse their teeth and then spit water back into the bowl so it can be used by the next person. It’s fascinating in a gross way.Ahmed is from the court of Arabic nobility where pageantry and well, courtly protocol and are present in excess. Added to that, Ahmed is a poet. He comes across as, and kind of is, softer and more pampered than his current fellows. He’s also the stranger to this motley crew, and his fellows, most of them anyway, don’t expect much from him. Even teasing him. But Ahmed is no pushover. He uses his talent for languages and words to quickly pick up on what the others are saying, impressing them all with his wits. When Vikings mock his smaller horse, Ahmed shows off both his riding skills and the agility of his steed. Again, impressing them. And when the first attack from the monsters arrives, he stands his ground and even manages to kill one of the marauders.Ahmed is never painted as a victim, or even really an underdog. He’s the new guy that the boys have some preconceptions about and breaks through with his actions and attitude. This makes way for a strong bond to be formed between him and the Vikings. It’s especially strong with Herger, the roguish veteran with quick wits and Buliwyf, the leader of the company who, in my opinion, is a worthy competitor to Aragorn in terms of adventure story kings and leaders. These relationships are, in my opinion, the heartful half of this movie.The actual conflict of the story, fighting the monsters or “wendol” is the other half. This is where we get into spoilers, and a few of my nitpicks with the movie. The wendol are not actually monsters, they’re cave men who try to imitate bears. Their “mother”, taking the place of Grendel’s mother, is witch who crafts poisons, and they have more horses than Genghis Khan. Seriously, these bear cosplayers who live in bone tents and caves have an obscene amount of war horses. Yes the wendol are very savage and unraveling their nature is part of the story, but they’re also a bit silly.I’d be lying if the wendol were particularly memorable bad guys. They kill more and more of our heroes as the story progresses, showing that they are at least dangerous. But we only spend so much time with the full company of thirteen, and the ones that die early are ones we don’t spend a lot of time with. And we don’t get any particular members of the wendol tribe who are villainous or memorable. We get the mother of the wendol, and the war chief, but they’re more akin to upgraded or elite enemy variants in a video game rather than full characters.The only other opposing force is the prince, or son of King Hrothgar. He is the typical spoiled and cowardly nobleman and works to undermine Buliwyf out of jealousy and fear for his own position. And while his plans are dealt with in an effective though quick scene, he remains and doesn’t do anything noteworthy for the rest of the movie.You might ask: then what makes the conflict interesting? Well, our heroes. They put in quite a bit of legwork to figure out how the wendol function and how best to dispatch them. There’s also a lot of character work to be shown in their interactions with the people of the besieged village, and how both parties unite and work together against their common foe.For some technical notes: The costuming is excellent, if a bit, dare I say, fantastical. The company of Vikings all have their own unique gear, probably to indicate where they have sailed and what loot they have taken. It’s cool, but also eye catching in a way that makes the historical puritans laugh. Trust me, I checked. The villagers all look like medieval frontier settlers, used to living in rough places and the wendol look like evil cavemen. Not much else to say.I don’t have much to say about the camerawork, but the locations are quite excellent. The ships and the settlement all seem like lived in places rather than simple sets. Like wise the scenes where the Vikings hunt the Wendol mother in their cave network is intense and the closeness of the environment adds to that. The action is also excellent; it is a John McTiernan film after all.All that being said, The 13th Warrior is a fun and engaging adventure film with some minor problems of conflict that, in my opinion, are edged out by excellent character work for our main protagonists. I highly recommend you watch it.That’s all for today then. Thank you so much for listening to this Retrospective Rant and have a good one! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 9m 52s | ||||||
| 3/2/26 |  Rant For "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" | IMPORTANT! Below is the raw uncorrected script for the episode. It’s meant as an aid, not a substitute for the full product. You have been warned! Me doing a bad impression of the GOT Theme, which is then interrupted by “farting” noises. “Ewww, that’s foul.”“Yes but it’s gross with purpose.”“What?”“It’s distinguishing itself from the other shows in the franchise in a decisive visual manner.”“No, it’s clearly a jab at House of The Dragon for not coming up with their own opening sequence.”Gary: “You fool, the themes of the opening shit run far deeper than that. It’s obviously a deconstruction of audience and performer social dynamics via shock imagery.”Wimpy: “I think it’s a post trans feminist statement on the Marxian position on material distribution.Parody of that silly intro for the episode where Daenerys goes crazy, then interruption by gunshot leading into the episode proper.Welcome to Retrospective Rants, with me, Joey Huff, as your host. Better late than never, but I’m gonna talk about “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms”, the latest of TV’s westeros offerings. Let’s get to it. There will be spoilers.I’m gonna get this out of the way. I am but a casual Westeros. What does that mean? It means I watch the shows and then I watch other people talk about the original books and lore. Also, I play the Game of Thrones mod for Crusader Kings 3, but that’s different subject. Point being, I like but am not in love with George RR Martins world. Yet even I am not deaf to the adoration many fans have for the Knight of the Seven Kingdoms novellas.These stories take place about 90 years before the grand intrigues of the core story, and about 80 years after the um…epic conflict of House of the Dragon. Both the novellas and this show look away from the struggles for the Iron Throne, Bloodraven notwithstanding, and focuses on the struggles of the average folk. Our hero in these stories is: Dunk. An orphan who grew up from the worst slums of the capital of Kings Landing and now wears the name of Ser Duncan the Tall. He is but a humble wandering hedge knight, accompanied by Egg his young squire. Together they explore westeros and get into a lot of trouble. And the 1st season of this show focuses on how these two met, and Dunk hoped to enter his first joust only to end up fighting a trial by combat for his very life. His supposed crime? Saving an innocent woman from the wrath of a vain and cruel prince. It’s your classic under dog story but set in a fantasy kingdom. And it’s awesome.Even if you’re a new comer to the Song of Fire and Ice, I imagined you’d have to go out of your way not to be swept up in the adventure of A Knight of a Seven kingdoms. Our Heroes and villains, the world they live in, and the choices they make are so compelling and so human. The action of the final battle is lethal and engrossing and the humor, though sometimes juvenile, is always true to the characters and often adds to the humanity of each moment.And speaking of the characters, they are the show’s greatest strength. We’ve an ensemble of some of the best supporting cast in any story ever. Baelor the truly noble Heir to the Throne, Steely Pate the brusque but good hearted smith, Raymond Fossaway our constant if also socially challenged comrade who goes on a massive Alex Jones Rant about the Targaryens. Lionel Baratheon the Mad and Madly Charismatic Laughing Storm. Every character is acted to perfection, not a single moment is wasted, and everyone feels real. And of course they are all built around our dynamic though fantastic duo: Dunk and Egg. Young Egg is a every bit the prodigious, though still innocent child. Filled with wonder at the wide world and the possibilities within it. He is wise beyond his years and has the confidence to act on it, but he’s still a child in need and in search of guidance in this confusing feudal world. And of course he gets it from our hero, Dunk, or Duncan the Tall.Dunk is no great strategist or thinker. He’s actually a bit slow at times. Nor is he a supreme prodigy of combat. But he is possessed of earnest conviction and belief in the promise of True Knighthood, and both his spirt and frame are big enough to take all the punishment this cruel world can dish out. Like his squire egg, Dunk is still trying to find his purpose in this feudal hellscape of Westeros. And though his beliefs and the dreams burn bright, his faith his in ability to live up to them run low. Our Hero suffers from anxiety and a fair bit of imposter syndrome, and struggles to beat that as much as he struggles to navigate the nuances of westerosi politics. Yet when the time comes, and the hypocrites and corrupt nobles of the land try to crush the ideas of chivalry and justice beneath their selfish ambitions, Dunk gets up and fights for whats right. He’s earnest, lovable, and heroic. A true knight.And our cast is augmented by some of the finest set, costume, and sound design you’ll ever find. Westeros, at least since season 2 of game of Thrones, has long suffered from a desaturation problem. Not so much here, where the beautiful locale and vibrance of the tourney ground are a feast for the eyes. Until a suitable dramatic moment arrives, then the atmosphere becomes tense, gloomy, and set for pure action. Everyone is also clothed as they should be. Nobles look nobles, thieves look grimy, and those trying to climb the ranks where their rugged gear proudly. Point being that nothing looks overtly clean or sterile, the costumes look as worn or as well kept as they ought to be. And the oh my the sound. Somone had a lot of fun. The pounding of horsehoofs, the impact of weaponry, and orchestra of wilderness, everything sounds gorgeous. And the music is bit of a departure from other westeros shows as well. The Iconic Theme does make an appearance, when the time is right. But most of time we get folksy sounding themes and at one point smooth jazz in place of orchestral grandeur. Except for one time and that’s for comedic effect.That’s one thing I suppose could be considered a “flaw” with the show. Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is much funnier than the other shows. A lot of the humor though, is crude humor. And some people think it undercuts the drama. All I can say is: it isn’t marvel. The drama or tension is never diminished by a joke, if anything some of those jokes are meant to highlight the dire state of what’s happening or being talked about.This is also an HBO show based on works from George RR Martin. Violence and other graphic content are aplenty here. If you watched the other stuff, you know the stories with mass murder, sexual violence, and children getting shanked, then you really have no place to complain about anything happening in this show. However, I will say that, barring the martial violence, this may be the least gratuitous and perverse of the shows so far. There are some moments but they’re more for shock comedy than anything else. But still, you can’t show this to your kids.In summation, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a heroic tale with a very human and grounded cast and superb presentation. I loved it and so did a lot of people. We can only hope that the next season is as good as this first one.And that’s all I’ve got for the day. Thank you so much, I hope you enjoyed this Retrospective Rant, and have a good one! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 9m 17s | ||||||
| 2/23/26 |  Why I love The Old Republic! | Why the Old Republic is my Favorite Star Wars era.Long ago, I Joseph Huff, autistic master of star wars lore, devoured all content from the galaxy far far away. Then an arrogant mouse wielding immense cash stepped forth to mangle what millions already enjoyed. After many decisive blows had been struck, I tore myself from the current star wars media, I mean, besides Andor and The Jedi Fallen Order games. Those are pretty cool. But besides that, I have flung myself into past star wars content, where Nostalgia and my eventual crash out is law. Now I plumb the depths of old content, foolishly hoping to change the present that is THE MOUSE.Cough-cough. Welcome to Retrospective Rants, with me, Joey Huff as your host. If you haven’t figured it out, I’m going to talk about Star Wars. Specifically the Old Republic Era of Star Wars. The best Star Wars. Yes, including the mmo. Darth Marr is THE MAN. But there are few reasons for my love of The Old Republic era, which takes place many thousands of years before the movies. And I figured I’d talk about my top 5 right here. Let’s go!1st reason: It’s the most Space Fantasy era of this space fantasy. The Jedi and the Sith are all out in force instead of just being figures obscurity and rumors. They’re treated like the heroes in Trojan War. An uncommon sight, but a very real and dangerous one. And while that does wonders for the action in our stories, it also lets us have many wonderful opportunities to explore The Force itself. What it can do as a source of power, what it’s wielders go through as they interact with all the other facets of the galaxy (and each other) and of course the nature of the force itself. Some of the stories, Knights of the Old Republic 2, all praise Chris Avellone, take a philosophical look at the force, but that’s for another episode. And with the force and it’s wielders getting more of a focus, the normie characters are pressed to use every trick they must suppress or even surpass force users. Crazy droids, personal shields, mutant monsters, and more are present in spades. And they’re all made with loyalty to the Star Wars aesthetic and mythos. The Old Republic really drives up both the fantasy and sci-fi elements and that’s always wonderful for the eye to see and the mind to wonder at.2nd reason: The Aesthetics of the Old Republic. The Star Wars aesthetic is preserved and enhanced throughout the Old Republic era. You can look at what key figures are wearing, even if the outfit is crazy, and instantly recognize them as Jedi or Sith. You can see space ships and guess at the faction while enjoying the scale and role of each craft. There’s also a distinction between the ancient vs the developing/evolving technologies. In comics depicting events a thousand years even before the video games ships look kinda boxy and some lightsabers require battery packs depicting the origin of popular star wars facets and how they develop or stall. Soldiers and weapons from aliens that are forgotten or diminished by the time of the original trilogy are varied and unnerving. Giving a visual confirmation on why they were so feared and why the powers that be within the movies wanted these out worlders were vanquished. And frankly, everything is just cooler. Battle armors for soldiers both conventional and force driven are refined because this is a time of war and strife. Everything is familiar, but also amped up to keep up with the theme of epic conflict and exotic scenery. Our Heroes and Villains are out to kill and look damn good while doing it. Which leads me to my third reason for loving the old republic.3rd reason: The old republic is a perfect marriage between the Prequels and Classics. The scale of the prequels is paired perfectly with the adventure of the original movies. All the cultures that were cased or at least hinted at in the Prequels are present and because they are developing and even fighting against one another, well times are quite eventful. New factions are rising and falling, worlds are being discovered, colonized or perhaps just stripped. And as reader of the novels and comics or protagonist in the games we get thrown into the frontlines of both frontier exploration and state intrigue of every level. Stories might focus on a group of families trying to settle on an outer rim world, reminiscent of the old west. Archaeologists might un-earth ancient technology from a lost civilization that bent the force to it’s will. And of course a group of misfits might fly across the galaxy in hopes of defying uncovering the Sith’s latest grand plans. Mysteries and Adventure of every scale can be found in the time of the old republic.4th reason: My 4th reason for liking the Old Republic era is simple: It was unapologetically for nerds. Video games, comics, some table top, and books were the main mediums of the Old Republic. And the only people who delved into those, really delved into them, were people with a passion for science fiction, fantasy, and love for adventurous stories and epic lore. I won’t say there wasn’t pandering, people want to make money after all. But there was a focus on who they were catering to. The old republic embraced new markets by catering to fans of all nerdy genres and interests. Gamers, comic nerd, and book junkies could all transport themselves to the Galaxy Far Far away through whatever immersive way they liked. And these stories brought new characters, mysterious worlds, and terrifying force powers. Yes, we ate well. But there was never a need to twist Star Wars in order to cater to a demographic that never liked it in the first place. There was never a need to simplify the lore bend into something unrecognizable so that they could snag an audience that never liked Star Wars to begin with. Which I suppose brings me to my final reason for Loving the Old Republic.5th reason: So what is it? The Old Republic era actually expanded on Star Wars. And What I mean by that, is it gave us more original star wars content without simply dredging up a mangled version of old ideas and without trying to twist Star Wars into something it isn’t. That isn’t to say that there aren’t some crazy stories in the old republic. The Sith create all kinds of mutant abominations, The Republic Senate proves that they’ve always been allergic to success, The Qel-Dromas need to calm down, and droids are used in many ways that horrible and not safe for work. And yet it’s all done with respect for the Star Wars identity. The Old Republic stories and it’s continuity were all made with a respect for the original movies and the core story and narrative elements that made Star Wars what it once was. For a long time, we got more star wars content, without the need to just build off old stories and certainly no need to diminish old stories in order to make new ones. “Are you saying all of the Old Republic stories were good?” Amidst decades worth of content, from many different writers and mediums across a whole bunch of cultural upheavals happening all at once? Yeah there will be some bad stories. And people admitted those stories were bad instead of trying to force them on us like they were something good. And since the stories that were awesome were the ones that stuck around and got further expanded upon, the fans had a good time and the mythos was enriched. It was Star Wars, pure and simple.And those are my reasons for Loving The Old Republic, and the stories it brought to Star Wars. I hope you enjoyed my ramblings. Thank you so much for listening to this Retrospective Rants, and have a good one. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 10m 25s | ||||||
| 2/16/26 |  Review of "The Temple" by H.P. Lovecraft. | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 4m 39s | ||||||
| 12/24/25 |  The Dark Lord's Christmas Carol (4/4) | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 14m 11s | ||||||
| 12/24/25 |  The Dark Lord's Christmas Carol (3/4) | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 15m 05s | ||||||
| 12/24/25 |  The Dark Lord's Christmas Carol (2/4) | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 12m 31s | ||||||
| 12/24/25 |  The Dark Lord's Christmas Carol (1/4) | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 15m 49s | ||||||
| 11/7/25 |  Rant on Superior Beings in Fiction. | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 11m 59s | ||||||
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| 10/31/25 |  A reading of "Now That I'm Gone." | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 6m 36s | ||||||
| 10/13/25 |  Reading of "The Book", by H.P. Lovecraft. | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 8m 52s | ||||||
| 10/9/25 |  Rant on Working Out! | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 10m 04s | ||||||
| 10/6/25 |  Reading of "Nyarlathotep". | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 13m 16s | ||||||
| 9/30/25 |  Rant on Why people like Kingdom Hearts | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 11m 54s | ||||||
| 9/26/25 |  Rant on Dark and Brooding Heroes | All credit goes to respective creators for their characters, settings, and images. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 12m 16s | ||||||
| 9/19/25 |  Rant for KPop Demon Hunters | All credit goes to original creators of their respective works. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 12m 56s | ||||||
| 9/1/25 |  Rant for Love of Metal! | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 10m 31s | ||||||
| 8/31/25 |  Rant on "Sex in Media" | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 10m 10s | ||||||
| 8/26/25 |  Brief Rant on the Horror Genre. | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 10m 54s | ||||||
| 8/22/25 |  Rant in Defense of Gaming. | (00:00:03):Hello, hello, and welcome to Retrospective Rants, with me, Joey Huff, as your host.(00:00:11):This episode, I must bring to your attention a matter most nerdy.(00:00:17):I must defend tabletop gaming.(00:00:21):But you already talked about anime, I know.(00:00:25):And you talk about movies and video games all the time.(00:00:29):I know,(00:00:30):but...(00:00:30):And you already do silly comedy sketches and voiceovers,(00:00:34):so how is tabletop any nerdier?(00:00:37):It's not!(00:00:38):Fine, it's not.(00:00:40):But...(00:00:41):tabletop gaming has been associated with classic nerd culture for longer than most(00:00:47):of the other things I've talked about.(00:00:50):At least over in the West.(00:00:52):And now, I must defend its honor against strawman arguments...(00:00:57):and preconceptions that most reasonable people don't care for anyway.(00:01:02):So, let's get to it, and we'll start with a personal story.(00:01:07):I was introduced to tabletop gaming through two avenues.(00:01:12):First was through school.(00:01:15):Lord of the Rings was very popular at the time due to the movies,(00:01:19):and so were the Games Workshop minis that were made for their battle game using the(00:01:24):Lord of the Rings license.(00:01:26):The minis, even at that point, were extremely expensive.(00:01:32):So I never got an army going.(00:01:35):I just saved up my money and bought a group of 10 Easterlings because their armor(00:01:42):was really cool.(00:01:43):It was like a samurai Saracen look and gold and red is really cool.(00:01:50):But some of my more well-to-do friends were very familiar with the rulesets for(00:01:55):both the Lord of the Rings game and also the Warhammer games,(00:01:59):which the Lord of the Rings game is based on.(00:02:02):And they'd often pontificate on why my tiny band of very,(00:02:07):very poorly painted models had no chance against their much larger armies.(00:02:13):Yes, I was bullied by the Warhammer and Lord of the Rings nerds, so you just...(00:02:20):Just get your shots in now.(00:02:21):Now the other avenue where that I was introduced to tabletop gaming through was my(00:02:27):beloved uncle Ninoy.(00:02:29):He was a gamer and a nerd par excellence and often asked my parents if we as a(00:02:35):family could join in his gaming sessions,(00:02:38):but he respected my parents' wishes to the contrary.(00:02:43):They didn't want,(00:02:43):it's not that they didn't want me to game for ethical or moral reasons,(00:02:48):they didn't think Dungeons & Dragons was bad,(00:02:50):but...(00:02:53):I was little,(00:02:54):and I was an undiagnosed and unmedicated autistic kid,(00:02:58):and they knew if my character died,(00:03:00):which can happen in any RPG,(00:03:03):that I would most likely take it personally.(00:03:07):And, hell, I still take it personally, even in the(00:03:12):even in baby 5th edition games.(00:03:14):But as I grew and attempted to mature,(00:03:18):I got models just to paint,(00:03:20):still not a whole lot of them,(00:03:22):and I played with my uncle and cousins using one of the older,(00:03:26):but still less lethal Star Wars RPG systems.(00:03:31):I was even able to be the dungeon master for a couple of the games we played,(00:03:35):and since then,(00:03:37):I've played in college with my friends,(00:03:39):and afterwards,(00:03:41):also after we all graduated,(00:03:42):and I was even able to bring new people into the hobby of sitting around a table or(00:03:48):a space with friends,(00:03:50):throwing dice,(00:03:51):and hoping for the best result.(00:03:54):All while we try and live our best adventurous life in miniature,(00:03:58):away from the grind of everyday life.(00:04:02):We've had to do it via chat apps for a while now, a couple of years now, but(00:04:08):We make the best of it that we can.(00:04:11):There's no match for being there in person, but we still have fun.(00:04:16):Anyway, you might ask, what's the point of this personal story?(00:04:19):First off, to show and admit that I cannot be objective in any analysis of tabletop gaming.(00:04:29):Playing at the table with friends and family may not be my entire identity,(00:04:33):but it's a big part of it.(00:04:36):and yet I still don't believe it disqualifies me from providing an objective(00:04:41):defense of the hobby,(00:04:43):because my personal experience and its relationship with others' personal(00:04:48):experiences runs counter to several of the stereotypes surrounding the gaming(00:04:54):scene,(00:04:55):which I'll now list and debunk.(00:04:58):Stereotype number one!(00:05:00):There's a notion that gaming is for people with bad family lives(00:05:06):or who need an escape from their families,(00:05:10):I was introduced to gaming through my family,(00:05:13):via my uncle.(00:05:15):I was able to spend more time with my family, with my cousins, through gaming as well.(00:05:22):Even as kids,(00:05:23):we made some stories that we still repeat on phone conversations or at family(00:05:28):gatherings,(00:05:29):and they bring back fond memories of good times we shared.(00:05:33):I already admitted to some bias,(00:05:35):but if anything,(00:05:37):quite a few of my family ties were strengthened because of the leisure time we(00:05:42):spent together gaming.(00:05:44):I can't speak for every person,(00:05:46):but tabletop gaming,(00:05:48):be it role-playing or strategy,(00:05:51):requires more than just one player,(00:05:54):and often requires cooperation.(00:05:57):In that way, it is also the dynamic avenue of social engagement(00:06:02):and occupies more of a neutral and utility-based position in family bonding rather(00:06:09):than any negative or positive position.(00:06:11):It all depends on who you play with.(00:06:15):Second, gaming is supposedly reserved for socially disabled people.(00:06:21):Eh,(00:06:22):I admit gaming does seem to attract a crowd of socially awkward folks,(00:06:27):but,(00:06:28):you know,(00:06:29):anti-social people or(00:06:31):people with antisocial personalities?(00:06:33):I mean, you spend time together, you interact socially.(00:06:38):I've already shown that's the case.(00:06:40):So,(00:06:42):I don't believe that the idea that gaming rewards or encourages social regression(00:06:49):has any merit.(00:06:50):Third stereotype.(00:06:52):Gaming distracts from more important issues in life.(00:06:58):Alright, well, I would suggest that(00:07:00):It doesn't distract from good work any more than any other leisure activity might.(00:07:06):People who play basketball on the weekends with their friends are also taking time(00:07:12):away from work.(00:07:13):Parents who need to have a date night and leave their kids with the grandparents or(00:07:18):a babysitter are also taking time for themselves.(00:07:23):And sometimes you might be too tired to work out(00:07:28):then sometimes you might have a big argument with your paramour and you both need some space.(00:07:34):But you're also not quite in an antisocial enough mood where you want to just hide(00:07:42):and curl up with a book on your own.(00:07:45):So you might as well just game with some friends.(00:07:49):Take some time to engage in pretend adventures away from pressure alongside people(00:07:55):who want the same.(00:07:57):We all need a break from pressing matters so that we can get back to them with renewed energy.(00:08:03):And gaming is just another way to do that.(00:08:07):A fourth stereotype, or slander.(00:08:11):Gaming is the refuge for people with extremist and dangerous beliefs.(00:08:17):Again, I can't speak for every gamer, but...(00:08:24):for maybe 95% of gamers, we're not the most politically extreme people.(00:08:32):I mean,(00:08:34):we like gaming because it lets us have a way to live,(00:08:39):well,(00:08:40):it gives us an avenue away from the ugly extremes of life.(00:08:46):Sure,(00:08:46):we might have a political joke slip in,(00:08:49):and other times we're under a lot of pressure from our real lives and(00:08:54):We might just need to talk about it with friends.(00:08:58):But we're also there as friends with either an unconscious or sometimes stated(00:09:04):agreement that we want to get away from all of the nonsense.(00:09:08):Now,(00:09:09):the gaming table is usually nothing as pretentious as a safe space,(00:09:18):but it does encompass a few moments where all present can agree(00:09:23):that whatever our separate opinions,(00:09:26):we are there to have fun and to enjoy some structured silliness.(00:09:32):We're here to play a game.(00:09:34):It's not like Holy Ground and Highlander,(00:09:37):but it's meant to be a time where your personal hang-ups are left at the door and(00:09:41):you and yours can just be young again.(00:09:44):It's where adventure and comedy are the priority,(00:09:48):and that's a good thing,(00:09:50):and certainly not a part of any extremist mindset.(00:09:56):Alright, fifth slander and the final slander for this episode.(00:10:01):Fifth and final slander for the day.(00:10:04):Gamers themselves do not contribute anything to society because they waste their(00:10:10):time on a silly game instead of something important.(00:10:14):You might even take that slander further and say gaming corrupts society and all(00:10:20):the other stuff.(00:10:22):In my opinion,(00:10:23):trying to address this slander at all is a trap,(00:10:26):because even if a gamer has a family,(00:10:30):a well-paying job,(00:10:31):the people criticizing them will still find a way to say that the gamer is not(00:10:36):doing enough.(00:10:38):If a famous and successful person,(00:10:41):or maybe several famous and successful people,(00:10:45):are gamers,(00:10:46):for example Henry Cavill and the late Robin Williams,(00:10:50):people will needle at them and say that those folks are just the exception to rules(00:10:56):that they themselves have set up.(00:10:58):And of course,(00:10:58):if you point towards the money that's been made in the gaming industry via not only(00:11:03):the core products of those games,(00:11:05):but also the streaming of those games,(00:11:08):movie tie-ins,(00:11:09):and even literary inspiration,(00:11:11):the hyper-moral critics will whine about how all of those are just corruptions of(00:11:17):the culture(00:11:18):instead of expansions or contributions to the cultural space.(00:11:22):It's a never-ending spiral,(00:11:25):because no matter what truth I bring to bear,(00:11:27):or whatever concessions I make in advancing the truth,(00:11:33):plenty of people will never be satisfied,(00:11:35):and as such,(00:11:36):I make a final plea.(00:11:39):Not to critics of gaming, but to gamers.(00:11:42):Just be you.(00:11:45):If people give you crap for your interests,(00:11:48):as long as they're above board,(00:11:50):just live your life.(00:11:52):Defend yourself against slander, but then take a break.(00:11:57):Because the anti-gamer crowd aren't looking for truth.(00:12:00):Seriously, they aren't.(00:12:02):They're looking for something to fight.(00:12:04):So, fight on, like you do with everything else in life.(00:12:09):But also, remember to leave some time to play.(00:12:13):It's the best way to live.(00:12:16):And that's another retrospective rant over and done with.(00:12:20):I hope you enjoyed.(00:12:22):Thank you so much for listening, and have a good one. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 12m 42s | ||||||
| 7/28/25 |  Rant for Love of Anime | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 27m 27s | ||||||
| 7/24/25 |  Rant on Law | This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 9m 20s | ||||||
| 7/21/25 |  MY Favorite Tropes | Give a Listen to this! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 21m 40s | ||||||
| 7/21/25 |  Rant on my Favorite Tropes | To restore balance to the internet I've made a video about my favorite tropes to follow up the one about my least favorites, and in a new format! Give it a listen! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joeyh1996.substack.com | 21m 40s | ||||||
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