Let's get this out there now: I love explosions. Like any 80s kid, it originated with cartoons - although I'm sure each of us has our own story, going back to a specific movie or show. For me, it was the original Danger Mouse , which premiered in the UK the year Andy and I were both born: 1981. By the mid-80s, it was on Nickelodeon here in the states, and required viewing for my father, my sister, and myself. The opening is a frenetic, yet oddly sparse, mess of energy, serving as a great lead-in to the show itself, with the titular Danger Mouse and his hamster assistant Penfold running from a number of old-fashioned  bombs, each punctuated with an onscreen "BANG" or "BOOM." With each of these "blow-ups," as I called them, my father would lift me and my sister into the air and we'd go into the episode energized and giggling. Blow-ups were not only moments of excitement, but familial joy. Before long, I'd be exposed to the ur-text of cinemat

Orange gourds and their kin are popping up all over. Halloween decorations are starting to dot the North American landscape. “Basic" people (we're told) are rushing to the shops to get themed lattes. The smell of the fall season is in the air, and the time has come to bring that fall feeling into our tabletop games. And I’m not just talking about the Risus Pumpkin Spice Edition ... no, this week we’re talking about the pumpkins themselves! From the smallest squashes to the greatest of orange fruits (yes, pumpkins are a fruit, not a vegetable!) pumpkins dominate the fall season. And what better way to bring all that autumn-ness into our games than by incorporating this old favorite. And just how will we do that? Grab yourself a slice of pumpkin pie or bread (or maybe some pumpkin soup? Roasted pumpkin? You pick!) and join Never Say Dice as we do a little picking at our pumpkin patches. - A Flavored Text The quickest and easiest way to get fall, and pumpkins, into your game is t

Back in olden times (okay, it was just the '80s, but that seems forever ago), when there was such a thing as Saturday morning cartoons, every show seemed to have a message. The show’s message for that week might have been teamwork, safety, honesty or whatever important thing they wanted to jam into our skulls while they brainwashed us into demanding toys. Besides serving as the legally mandated "educational" content to keep these shows from technically being commercials , these messages might have given them some credibility with parents or allowed shows to run mildly violent content as long as the message played well with the censors. No matter the reason, you'll see examples throughout those cartoon televisions blocks, from Jem and The Holograms and G.I. Joe to The Adventures of the Gummi Bears and Snorks . Some were more obvious about it (I’m looking at you Chief Warrant Officer Flint!) while others may have weaved it more into the story. What if we took that sa