Critical Role interview: Dungeons and Dragons as a new genre of TV
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 ธ.ค. 2019
- Matt Mercer, Marisha Ray, and Travis Willingham of Critical Role tell us how their show defied traditional TV ideas about what people would watch.
- วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
As a critter who's been around since the first 10-20 episodes of campaign 1, hearing the their voices mixed with bad audio is just pure nostalgia for me.
Amen lol
It wasn't *that* bad.
Ohh the ear-rapes back then....
Right! It's an inside joke, lol.
Grimmer it really was just the first two episodes before they pretty much ironed out the issues. Like man, that first episode was ROUGH lol.
Matt Mercer has it right. The actual D&D game works as a show because it isn't a 3-4 hour show. It's more just like being in the room with friends having a good time. People might complain about a movie or a baseball game being too long. Nobody complains about spending 3-4 hours at a party with real people. It doesn't seem that long, because it seems more like a social thing than a TV show or whatever. As long a they still like being with each other as friends, and still enjoy playing the game, it will seem different than a TV show.
I still remember the first episode I watched. I had NO IDEA who they were or what was happening, but I immediately was right there crying with them
Miliamer Corales I mean every time new episode comes out any time what feels like a cliff hanger starts to come up I check the time code thinking “it can’t be over already”.
@@quinnsinclair7028 right there with you!
People do, indeed, complain about spending 3-4 hours at a party with real people.
Guys, there is nothing wrong with the audio, the echo is Marisha's eldritch powers reaching the limit of her mortal form. Taliesin taught her well, it seems...
I mean they better achieve eternal life or CR would have to end some point in the future.
no no not the edge of her mortality, just the edge of this body; taliesin is bonding a new one as we speak its why hes absent she'll be back to normal by thursday after the transfer of her phylactery
@@thunderborn3231 The echo is bearable, the fact that all 4 people play back at different volumes is whats annoying.
thunderborn 32 sadly CR is gone till january
She's a cyborg.
Whenever I think about Travis being the CEO I imagine Grog in a conference room
Its more like Fjord in a conference room, otherwise they would not have managed to achieve so much :)
@@i-am-your-conscience Fjord is the voice, Grog technically has the authority but thinks that being good at business is remaining quiet and nodding at random intervals while Fjord makes points.
@@Verillionmiles as long as Grog isn't playing with the DoMT again
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this! Lol
This quarter we have managed to achieve many shinys
We can also purchase much ale
The plan foe the rest of rhe year is more shinys and also ale
Super glad Marisha gets that people who'd love Critical Role need alternatives to digest and get into it; my ADHD wouldn't let me keep up with a live stream, but VOD uploads let me watch it at my own pace and even skip around if I get distracted or gotta do other stuff!
tomisabum well good to know I’m not the only one.
Yeah would've sucked if they left in twitch, and not uploaded to other platforms.
Ya, I found it through TH-cam. And, I still generally enjoy watching it in chunks throughout the week instead of all in one night.
@@theriverspath I'm in episode 13 right now
I always download it in podcast form and listen to it while I drive, which is usually minimum an hour a day.
I also listen to it at the gym and when I can I watch it when I paint minis or do mundane tasks.
Its sooo much better to watch it but man, listening to it while I drive is way better than listening to the radio.
To those of you put off by the MarishaBot, the reason for it is that Marisha Ray is a creative director and when CNET showed up she suddenly collapsed due to overwork, so they got Industrial Light & Magic to throw together a lifelike MerishaBot so that they could still do the interview. Sadly, because it was so last minute there were a few bugs in the voice modulator, but I have heard that Marisha has since recovered and she only had to fight the MarishaBot once in a steel mill when it kidnapped Matt after the interview and forced him to do the Gilmore voice for hours. Thankfully Matt's hair is so perfect that he made an amazing damsel in distress and the MarishaBot was destroyed... Or was it? (Dun Dun DUUUUUUNNN!)
.....what was the initiative order?
Marishabot......CANON
Do to the vital employee clause they all have back ups in case something happened. Marisha just burned through so many clones already and they decided android was a cheaper option.
I want this animated...
I need this to be a one shot
Genuinly, if they were to set up a touring ren-fair-like edition of Mollymauk's circus like they joked about on end-of-year video it would somehow be insanely successful. Not entirely sure how but mark my words it would DEFINITELY work.
You have No Idea just How Much I would LOVE to see that be a Success.💕 Heck, I'd go as far as buying a Gypsy wagon and living there; and just have that be my new way of life form then on.
..think we can pitch to burning man organizers to have the circus as a camp there?
One of my many ridiculous childhood dreams was to run an old-fashioned, horse-drawn traveling gypsy performance troupe that would travel between towns in New England over the course of the summer. My great-grandmother was a Czech Romani gypsy, so the idea of going back to those roots always super appealed to me....still does on some level. I feel like it's something that could probably be decently successful in today's world (particularly if we had some sort of film deal like those BBC shows about people who live like Victorian farmers for a year or whatever), but the logistics of such a thing would be insane to try and set up and manage. Just securing safe routes to travel by horse-drawn wagon these days would be a nightmare lol, and it would likely require "I have more money than I know what to do with and this sounded fun" amounts of money to get started.
@@thelizardofodd hey, I mean, there are definitely people in the community with that though! On the kick starter the tiers costing 10's of thousands of dollars all sold out if I remember correctly.
Yeah, this was the right group of people to disprove the stigmas of DnD at the right time in the culture for it to be recognized and to open the door for others to reveal themselves or otherwise get recognized in the space.
What on Earth are you rambling about?
I'd heard about Critical Role for a couple of years, but never had the time to devote to the broadcast shows. Then I finally got a cell phone with unlimited data, and could stream the TH-cam videos whenever I had a spare moment. Listening to the show while I was at work, or as I did chores at home, became my favorite thing to listen to every day. It's taken almost a year to catch up, but having the freedom to casually devour each episode as my schedule allowed made all the difference in whether I would ever jump into this media or not. It helped that Matt's world building and the cast's excellent personification of each character kept me hooked from day one.
I've been listening to the Second Campaign in Podcast form and catching up while doing other bits and pieces.
Lol, 500 hours, you underestimate yourselves Marisha. The main series is over *676 HOURS* now. 787 hours if you include one shots. You could watch the entirety of The Simpsons *3 TIMES OVER* and still not be done with the core episodes. It's crazy how long the runtime is now. Been happy to see every single hour! 😃
its insane when you put in it perspective like that because it makes me realize just how much i've wasted my life with the 1500+ hours ive put into skyrim and not counting other games with hundreds of hours played and the 787 hours i've watched critical role
2 years later....
And this, dear children, is why you check the frequencies of the beltpacks twice, before you start a recording.
Technical explanation for Marishabot: There were two receivers on her frequency and none for the host. Then they switched one to the host and the Marishabot was gone.
The crunching and popping sounds are possibly a lose connection at one of the beltpacks, probably the host, as they switch his mic off when he's not alking, trying to reduce the impact.
The rustling is from Matt's mic, because it is in the fold of the west and get's rubbed on when he moves. Maybe the shirt would have been a better position.
The cut-outs are from the sound-tech trying to figure all of that out on the fly. They need to take more time to prepare and check ahead of the interview...
Sound guy you ready...
Rolls a natural one...
Umm no idea 😂
Always wear the mic on the collar. Got that drilled into me in university
Or at least close. Higher the better
Maybe one boom-mic would have been enough for the whole thing. These four are reasonably close together and if everybody else in the room can keep their mouths shut, you should get decent audio.
Personally, i like headset-mics more then clip-mics unless the speaker is heavily bearded...
That was surprisingly informative! I'm often curious about the technical production of various media projects*, but don't set enough time to actually research it. The impromptu mic setup explanation is much appreciated
*Especially sound, which is such a make it or break it aspect to whether an audience can enjoy something, but something I think we collectively know so little about
So refreshing to see intelligent enquiring questions that doesn't make either party seem incompetent
One more question. Guys, what is it like to be married to Laura Bailey?
Great Gary Sinise impression.
Did not know Travis was the CEO.
Yep. Big Man is The Boss. :D And if you watch their End of The Year 2019 Video, you'll see why. Spoiler: He's the Mathematician of the group.
Same but when you think what a CEO actually does it makes sense. Most CEOs are very tall.
@@strikerrey6016 - HaHa!!
Based on his intimidation rolls, of course he is.
I've only seen it mentioned in articles when they were breaking records with their Kickstarter.
Let me tell you I consume a lot of audio content in my daily job. I am a truck driver and having 500 hours of a great audio story has been a god send. I didn't know Jack about DND before I watched CR which I didn't start till campaign 2 was 10 episodes in. Now I've played a few campaigns and dived into dozens of the books from 5e and previous editions. CR is a phenomenon and the whole gang deserves every ounce of praise and way more. They definitely get it from me for years of content, enjoyment and a fantastic new hobby. They enflamed my appreciation for voice work (which has always been pretty damn high) but they made me appreciate their roles and the hundreds of other voice actors by showing the other side of what we hear. Which is a nerdy ass person who generally loves what they do. Thanks CR team you guys are the best, can't wait to get my new round of merch.
Hell yeah!
Honestly, the audio isn't that bad, and this conversation is interesting enough that I would listen no matter what. Props for asking different questions, creating a different conversation!
I can agree with it being interesting no matter what, but the audio is garbage, theres no reason to deny that.
The sound problems are such a good reminder that production is HARD, it takes the time and talents of many people despite the proliferation of 'one-man-band' Twitch operations that are out there; mistakes still happen. We watch anyway because CR feels like good friends we care about no matter what. It's a testament to their fundamentally good character; that can't be faked.
I see critical role I click.
I love watching all CR’s interviews - Heads up Their mics keep going in and out
I also love the people asking them to fix the audio. You know this video was edited and compiled with full knowledge of the editors that the audio is borked. It cannot be fixed because the source file is that audio. I'm sure they cleaned it up as best they could.
@@averydennie728 *ill informed
You had me genuinley interested in the interview when they weren't introduced as cast members.
Poor Marisha must had rolled a natural 1 on the sound check
When I saw this thumbnail , was like : " Holy shit, these re-uploads are showing me some underground editions of Talks."...Then I realized...
Staple to the critical role theme park: Gilmore's Glorious Goods and The Invulnerable Vagrant
Slayer's Cake!
The Tal'Dorei council. It's a maze where you try and reach the council chambers to find out who is on it.
The twist is none of the paths lead to the chamber.
@@cryofpaine or it's the Matt Mercer experience: people from all angles keep asking who is on the Tal'Dorei council
Special musical guests: Taryon and the Daring Tones!
Not a D&D player, but love the show. For me, its a dynamic story, an audio book that is constantly evolving, with different voices for different characters. You've got a fan for life. Critical Role
"different voices for different characters" graphic audio
Since I haven’t seen anyone mention this yet, I just want to this was an amazing job by the interviewer. Asking non-generic but still good questions and giving enough time to answer is something you don’t see often in these sort of interviews, unless you’re a famous movie star or something
500 hours....I never realised just how much I've watched I've watched all of campaign one and up to date with campaign two, each episode just flies by and feels so short😅
Time flies when you're having fun
Time well spent :)
@@griffinjam Very true
It’s weird hearing them be introduced with official office sounding titles. Just weird. The star of “Travis Willingham’s Yeehaw Game Ranch” is a CEO.
Hahahaha it never gets old
Yeeeeee' Haaaawwww!!!
Matt's "yay" at the end is why I love these guys
I've watched every episode of CR since the beginning. Thank you CR Team! Sidebar: That one dislike clearly must have been an accident.
I found them around the time G&S made titans grave. Couldnt hook me but I cam back in november of 2016 and cought up right after raishan.
Marisha is a better voice actor than I thought, that echo effect is really realistic.
I can see it now; Critical role the movie, starring Dwayne Johnson as Grog and Kevin Hart as Scanlan.
It would be distracting. Kevin's not tall enough to be Scanlan!
I remember hearing somewhere that The Rock loves playing D&D, so I can totally imagine him playing a barbarian (if not Grog himself) in a Critical Role movie. Though, it would be totally dope to see him play Kevdak instead, and Travis be Grog.
I'm a new viewer to Critical Roll and I'm totally obsessed with campaign one. I'm looking forward to all the many hours of amazing story and unpredictability of D&D and the dice. I want to catch it live too! I'm also SUPER excited about the animated show.
Omg it's sooo good! Glad you are having a good time!!
For me what listening to/watching Critical Role is very nostalgic because it reminds me of the radio plays that my Grandparents listened to until the day they died. I have been playing D&D for close to 31 years now and I love that I can now listen to people play D&D while I work and between sessions in my own campaign.
Awesome interview. As a critter i didnt give a shit about the audio issues or the like.
same tho, I was like awe it's just like the first episodes of S1
Marisha Doesn’t have bad audio quality, she is currently working on her robot voice for her voice acting career, it could potentially be she is becoming an arcane goblin, with the help from Sam of course.
The Chair took control of Marisha!
Man i was there since episode 1, and this just brings me audio dreams back... fun times
Marisha has been spending a lot of time with Taliesin it seems
This interview really hits on some questions I've really wanted explored with the group.
17:56 Critical Role Land confirmed!!
Finally people are treating D&D as a theatrical medium.
it alwats has been. there tons of video games out using DnD lore and was a movie out but it didnt do well.
Azazura Azura It has been, but the media seems to be warming up to the idea of D&D being part of people’s lives, people producing super high-quality shows, it even being on live television and such. Recently more seem to have adopted that view, rather than a game only geeks and nerds could enjoy.
@@afriendlyinternetcat4984 - largely yes, but within the last 10 years or so, it's all been mind-numbingly boring depression/grim dark fests instead of good story, acting & action.
So, a new Dungeons & Dragons cartoon? I'm getting flashbacks to 1983!
Yeah but this time it will be good.
Their $75k Kickstarter grossed $11 million and then Amazon came in and paid for a second season! So a one-episode spécial turned into a season turned into 2! It’s exciting!
Avatar: The Last Airbender is more or less a D&D story the rules for magic are different sure but still has very much a D&D flavor to it.
Thank you all at Critical Role. The remembrance of this is needed.
Lovely interview, I've always deeply believed in the importance of storytelling and enjoy learning from others who share that belief. I also really loved the insights about what it means to be good friends and role players at the table - it's one of the coolest things I've learned from CR over the years. It took me a long time, and definitely I'm far from perfect, but it makes a huge difference in how I enjoy playing in my games now. Knowing it's okay to just sit cool and patient and let others at the table have the spotlight, and trying to be a more active audience member for them in those moments, to hopefully make it more fun for them. I really appreciate seeing this in action in CR's games - it's all so very wholesome.
Also, to CNET, thank you for asking some very interesting questions, and for ending this interview with the cast, rather than cutting to the usual YT 'subscribe if you like' elements. It was...very refreshing. :)
Yeah! I also think I grew as a player watching CR. Now sitting back and eating up another player's moment is one of my highlights
I've been watching since around the time the 10th episode of S2 was released after watching Matt DM the celebrity campaign for Force Grey. I had no idea I was watching the second Campaign of Critical Role, and picked up the first Campaign about half way through this campaign when I had caught up and couldn't wait for the next week's episode.
I now listen to the show on my way to and from work in the car, and when I have listed to the whole of the current week s episode, I skip back to campaign one.
Dropping in where and when you want is easy because it's so accessable.
In comparison to how long critical roll has been around and how long I have been playing DND I haven't been watching long but from the first episode of campaign 2 I went back and started watching you and then watched a few episodes of campaign 1 and have been watching all the other videos yall put together and seeing the camaraderie, fun and excitement that comes with finding out what is going to happen next keeps me on the edge of my seat and I love you guys and I hope the group of players that I have end up like y'all playing to get her for years to come.
I don't know about anyone else, but I'd love a Critical Role video game
I mean... they're voice actors. It's only a matter of time right?
still dreaming of an 8 bit fighting game
Check out the Critical Role DLC for "Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire".
Taliesin's laugh in the background is great.
Love the part about characters having a tender moment and the other players having to just sit there but remain focused. I think we all know just how much Travis hates it when the other players go shopping.
He seems to enjoy shopping at the Pumats.
Awesome hearing the crew interview always. Wasn’t aware that Travis was CEO kuddos to him
The audio is bad but this is awesome
I'm pretty sure my USB mic is better quality.
It's the mixing: sound guy didn't do checks before the interview
"If the players are having a good time, the audience will have a good time" - so true Matt. Don't worry about the audience. I agree. Keeping it real. :)
DM: Roll a D20.
Players: Why?
DM: Just roll, thanks...
Players: *Cowering in fear.*
Ahhh... glad to know Matt loves to put the fear of God(s) into his players as well.
Great questions shame about the audio. It's easy to have a problem with and very very distracting even with great quality video.
Audio, if you get it right nobody notices if you get it wrong you never here the end of it.
Unproven original IP... I’m extra glad that their kickstarter caught such fire then.
I’ve been mildly obsessed since half way through the first campaign
Wonderful interview!
CNET's Sound Mixing
Yeah Holy Crap was that bad.
Ah you sweet summer child... go watch episode 1 again
@@JanKenk Yeah, but we're kinda comparing CNet circa 2019 and CR circa 2019 (not 2015) here
Everybody has a bad day and the comment doesn't mention dates at all :D
@@JanKenk mention them then.
Stereo desync is painful, ouch.
no kidding
CNET needs better audio people.
honest to god as soon as marisha made that quip i realized i'd have to skip this entire interview. i just can't deal with that.
@@chastermief839 It gets fixed about a third of the way in, but then her mic gets super compressed about two thirds of the way in, so. Up to you xD
Yes, all good. Thanks for sharing your ideas of what this show is that also brings me in each week.
I luv the podcast form on spotify because I drive for most of the day for my job, and I went through 40 episodes in a month ish because of this! I never would have gotten that far had I been watching. Plus d and d is a natural podcast choice because of all the word pictures!
hahahaha... "what's next, where is this going?" 🤔🤔🤔
"Theme park"... 😈😈😈
Matt's long dreamed of Crit role land
First, TravelerCon with a temporary theme park :D
Great job on the sound normalization CNET. Cutting edge of tech and news right here. The whispering interviewer, the talking through a tunnel then bring right up on the mic travis, the sort of okay Matt and the dual robot marissa. Thumbs up.
So I recently started watching critical role maybe three months ago after hearing it mentioned on a podcast. And my honest opinion of it is that it's great. I've probably consumed between 100 and 120 hours of it in the last 3 months. I like to put it on whenever I have to edit. It makes it not feel like work. 10 out of 10 I would recommend
It's easy to get lost in, and the hours add up!!
They are laughing now, but just wait a few more years. Critical Role Land will come :D
Not gonna lie, it was overwhelming seeing how much I had to catch up on from season one, but the only way to catch up is to start!
You can do it!! It's so worthwhile and rewarding!
Subtitles and two times speed will save your life
I am very happy that Critical Role grew into such a large successful company, but I do miss the feeling of how raw it used to be. I know it wasn't perfect but I started watching them on Twitch only about 15 episodes in and in those times, in my opinion, were the best representation of themselves and the game. They started off as friends and people who I could relate to; sitting around a table playing an entertaining game of D&D. Now I feel like it turned into something very produced, which is kinda understandable given the success and talent of the show. In any case, there are now plenty of smaller groups streaming and available if I want to revisit those previous feelings of authenticity. Regardless, it has been a treasure for myself, friends and family. They have taught us a lot on how to get more enjoyment out of each other both playing the game and not, and helped reinforce our friendships that were dwindling in my life. So thank you!
I'm living for the nod to CR Land and just their pure friend energy even in the interview.
CNET should hire some audio people.
Leave Robo-Marisha alone!
@@ashenwuss1651 bruv you can't hear the interviewer without travis screaming down your ear
@@GarethTheGreat325 I was just kidding. It really was annoying to me, too
Talking about the whole catching up made me laugh. I am trying to catch up, on the 93rd episode of the first campaign and... 13th on the second? I am unsure cause I stopped bouncing back and forth to focus on the first lol
It’s a big mood. I’m caught up on second and on episode 17 of the first
You can do it!!! Both of you can and it's so rewarding! Omggggg
@@Sparrow141420 well now on the 95th. Bit by bit lol
Marisha: "people go oh, this is 500 hours I'm supposed to catch up on?"
me: "Oh, girl, I absolutely will."
started C1 when they started C2. almost caught up by now.
One of THE best series of ANYTHING ever made.
CNET: Let's put the newest interns on this. Oh we don't have audio interns? Well, the guy who gets coffee can figure it out.
I knew she was a robot!
Or maybe that is what real humand sound like and everyone else has been thr robot all along?
Personally, I like that everyone was allowed to choose their own individual audio level. You really know who is who that way.
Matt's death stare at the start kills me
Great sound guys! 👍
I see beautiful people, I upvote.
Came here to ask about Marisha's audio.... Saw the hilarious comments about it. Very pleased.
They are all amazing, love Critical Role!
Matt is the producer, the dice are the director, the players are the writing staff
With the time frame thing, when with friends half the time you don't even realize how much time has passed because you're with friends and yes you're role playing but you're also having fun, even if a member of your party always manages to set a forest on fire when you're in a bloody tree. Also you might be playing a character that you made up in your head but that character in some ways is a part of you and it's not just a character if that makes sense which again makes it all the more fun!
Good interview.
Critters come through!!🙌🙏
The bad sounds is to emulate the season 1start feeling
When you heard Travis was CEO and thought it was a joke, but now you realize it is real
If everything goes well, perhaps AD&D Adventures will be the next big thing in major motion pictures after superheros. We have had some horrible D&D movies, and some decent D&D-like movies like Mythica, but nothing official that is good. This could be a golden time for this type of film (fingers crossed)
Great questions, shame about the audio.
Sounds like there is a laptop suspended above Marisha, recording her.
I’m ready for the robotic future Mecha Marisha is bringing.
The power of friendship 😂 Matt Mercer, that was very sweet
Marisha Raybot CONFIRMED
I watch multiple hrs each week and I am years behind. They are brilliant.
That's actually something my group struggles with. Staying focused on what's happening. Between the guy lookint at memes, my brother looking at the news, me reading. The only two constantly on focus is the person who's recording everything and the guy playing a wizard
@@whattheflyingfuck... You say that...the Dm is an absolute murder Hobo, his goal when we play is a TPK
what is your name? D&D group of horrors? **jk**
@@whattheflyingfuck... I mean. We've fought multiple dragons and giants. The fighter got the titanstone knuckles at level 4. The Dm gives us awesome weapons and items in compensation for all the crap we get put through
@@whattheflyingfuck... Sounds a bit like our DM, we faced a young red dragon when we were a group of five level 4 players, somehow we managed to kill it without any casualties. The session after we were ambushed by a lair of spiders, with an ethereal spider in the midst. Cr13, managed to take that one down as well, my healer bard almost died though.
Travis: You are the CEO? I did not know that! Great for you!
At 15:20 when Matt says "Timer," and makes a motion as if he put out that timer, I am reminded of the instances in the games where he puts out an hourglass, and everyone else at the table panics. I almost had that sense of dread when he made that motion and I was like, "Wait, wh- Oh, wait, interview. It's ok... it's fine..." XD
CNET, great video!😍
OMG! Dungeons & Dragons - Critical Role theme park! I want it so bad!
I like that this video is mostly positive (I can't trust CNET's reporting on anything), but I would have liked to know how they dealt with characters being hated and if that changed how they portrayed them.
The audio was contently tryna commit scooter ankle while everyone else was tryna convince it that it had a purpose
Friendship is magic