Two Years!

Many Realms is celebrating our two year anniversary this month!

In May 2019, we released our first ever episode, the first session of our Tallow campaign. Even though we had a lot to learn about audio and pacing (and transcribing, and marketing, and editing, and graphics, and composing music, and Patreon, and...) we think we've come a very long way in a short time! 

With 50+ episodes under our belt across three campaigns and over ten one-shots, we thought it would be fun to ask our cast to tell us about their favourite episodes across the entire history of the show. 

So, without further ado, Realmers, here are the canonical picks of each cast member's favourite Many Realms episode!

After running multiple campaigns and one-shots, it's very difficult for me to choose a favourite episode! Some are so funny, some have really emotional stories, or standout performances from our cast. But one that's near and dear to my heart is Lakeshore 04: Too Darn Hot. In Lakeshore, I tried to shift from a very linear campaign like Tallow (and the campaigns I was more experienced with as a GM before the show) to something that was more open and flexible. For the first few episodes, I wasn't sure how we were going to connect all these disparate characters and tell a coherent, engaging story, but this episode showed me all the potential Lakeshore had. 

With fun noir tropes like besuited enforcers and a swanky jazz club, this episode sings as all of the story threads smash together. Roman and Kitty reunite, setting up a defining arc for both of them; we first learn about Rex Lemaire as Nox gets the snot beat out of him; Susan gets to play the cocky, assured hunter and save a few lives along the way, and to show this is a different, darker, campaign, one of the PCs gets a stomach full of hot lead. How fun!

I'm sure we're all going to say something like this, but picking a favourite episode is really tough! I think I'm going to go with Toad's Hollow - Part One, but know there were a lot of contenders! 

In my day job as a commercial editor, I felt that sound mixing and design were weaknesses of mine. So, beyond the obvious draw of telling cool and interesting stories with my friends, I thought of this project as a means to really hone in on that skill. The horror genre and loose, dreamlike structure of Sleepaway allowed for an interesting and eerie soundscape, making Toad's Hollow a great opportunity to experiment with the sfx, music and software that I had available. I think it also opened the doors to the more interesting decisions we've made design-wise in Lakeshore and Recount.  This episode is a bit of a landmark for me, personally, in terms of my confidence as a sound editor, designer and engineer.

Jorie's right! It is really hard to just pick one. I have a favourite episode from every season (Tallow 12, Lakeshore 04, Recount 05) and a few favourite one-shots. But for this, I'll pick the Glitter Hearts one-shot! I think this episode showcases my strengths as a GM, and the cast's strength of genre fiction. I love stories with room for silliness and the trope of "the magic of friendship". The cast really leaned into all the beautiful magical girl tropes; the episode "wrote" itself. And to top it off, the music slaps. Jorie and I found the perfect score for the highs and lows, and that just really makes my heart sing when I listen back!

My favourite episode probably has to actually be Bluebeard's Bride! I am quite partial to darker toned pieces, frankly, and I found that we managed to encapsulate the atmosphere very well without it getting melodramatic or uninteresting. It was a somber piece that felt like was really punctuated in our library of often semi-serious campaigns that typically have moments of levity. It may be a bit much for some listeners, but for me it was right up my alley.

Hey, it's Eli! My favourite episode would have to be Cat's Eye. We had a smaller cast that episode, and it was still early days for the podcast. Jillian and Jesse both thought that I should take on the pilot, and I was so nervous. I had no idea how to shape a narrative with other people (see: the cast teasing me because the first thing I chose to do as the pilot was go back to sleep). But I felt like the final result was perfect. The beats, the chemistry, it all fell into place. Plus, I'm such a sucker for bitter sweet endings!

(PS. Honourable mention: Maharlika. The system was so much to take in at first, but it was SO worth it!)

So there you have it! These are our favourite episodes of the show. Maybe it's worth revisiting some of these classics with a new perspective in mind.

And of course, we would be remiss if we didn't say thank you to our Patrons for supporting us on this journey. Your support has made this show possible, and we're always on the lookout for more behind-the-scenes posts and other tidbits to share with you here, especially as we look to grow toward goals like being able to pay for transcription, editing, or professional art.

So from all of us at Many Realms: thank you, and happy anniversary!