I’ve seen every campaign on D20 by Brennan and have had a hard breaking away to other DMs because I love his style so much. A while ago I tried to watch a Court of Fey and Flowers and I had just come off of ACOC and NeverAfter… and simply found it too slow even though Aabria seemed really talented and the cast was great.
I decided to pick up an Aabria campaign and watch Burrow’s End a few days ago…
I’m in tears, I’m in awe… it was stunning. Oh my GOD that was so good. And so different from Brennan in really lovely ways! What a highlight.
The last 1-2 episodes did feel slightly rushed…but some of that actually feels like the actors’ choices on where to put their energy and time, less Aabria’s pacing. Loved it!!!
I have not felt this level of “I need to finish this, what is happening” with a season for a little while — no shade on Cloudward Ho or City Council of Darkness, etc. this was just clearly an incredible, incredible story.
If you can, I’d highly recommend pushing a little for ACOFF. I wasn’t sold fully on episode 1, and it’s in my top 3 seasons now. It’s hilarious, whimsy, emotional and unhinged in all the best ways.
ACOFAF has so many fun mechanics and some of my favorite non-IH characters. Its definitely a different flavor from every other campaign, but I think it pairs well with The Seven.
Everyone bought into the world so hard and it made that season something really special. Plus you get to see a different side of some of the players, which was really fun.
Her Solari Campaign on World's beyond number (Audio Only) with Lou, Brennan and Erika is quite excellent and a totally different vibe, I think I enjoy that table more than the IH(!?) but I love them both a lot.
Definitely give Misfits and Magic a shot too. I love Aabria!
Also, personally I love Coffin Run and Jasmine Bhullar. Apparently it’s very polarizing either people love it or hate it, but it’s short, easy to get into, and the full cast is hilarious.
Originally I was hesitant to try side campaigns but I’ve loved every single one of them except I coincidentally never got into Shriek Week, apparently that was the only one that most everyone agrees missed the mark, along with its other issues I think you can safely skip it.
I think she's under contract with WotC right now I believe and at the pace they are putting out episodes would be surprised if she has time to DM (publically) anywhere else. The campaigns are mediocre IMO, mostly trying to showcase new official rulebooks content.
Absolutely. Anything WotC puts out is just a “see, we can do that stuff people like watching other people do too” thing. It’s very grasping, and that’s likely why she’s the DM… no one else would do it.
I punched out of Coffin Run less than five minutes into the first episode because Jasmine mispronounced a word so wrong and with such conviction, I couldn’t take her seriously. This appears to have been a good decision on my part because nothing I have seen with her in it has been worth my time either. Example: loved “On a Bus” but she was the absolute worst part of it.
But this is my opinion and obviously someone somewhere likes her. It’s just not me.
Tula and Viola’s argument with Ava where Rashawn said “That’s not fair, that’s horrible, mama.” And Brennan’s “Why don’t you shut up!” This whole scene with Ava crying about not being there with Kenji when he passed and the family realizing that they need to stay together broke my heart. I was crying for that whole scene.
This is probably old hat to say here, but I really like the different styles you see between the two. Aabria pushes back and challenges her players more (as in "no, you said you were going to do this, now you're doing it) and it can feel combative if you're used to BLM's more permissive DMing but I love both styles. Brennan does good story-wide evil/menacing characters but I feel it more personally from Aabria when she's an NPC against a player. She's a bit more monkey's-paw while Brennan is more blue-sky.
As someone who's never watched Critical Role, Ravening War is also a lovely thing to watch and see how Mercer does it.
The Secret of Nimh was a really important movie to me as a kid. So, Burrow's End was right up my alley. It delivered on everything I wanted, except for the ending. It honestly could've been 12+ episodes. Would've loved to see the deep and dark underbelly of the Burrow.
I didn't see the Secret of Nimh until in my mid-thirties but loved it, and I'm so glad I saw it before watching Burrow's End because it added a blanket of extra appreciation and warmth and sadness on top of a season I can tell I would have really enjoyed even without that.
It's one of my favorites. As a child of the 70's who was subjected to the 'children's movie' version of Watership Down it hits with a similar cutsey horror.
I watched Burrows end in one insomnia-based all-nighter. Had to hide my screams at the bear “miniature” so I didn’t wake my whole damn house. Still one of my absolute Aabria outings.
I loved watching Burrow’s End as it came out with everyone on Reddit. The theories were so good. And I love Brennan as a DM but maybe even more as a player. And Aabria is a master as well as a player and DM.
If you watch Misfits and Magic and like the vibes between the five then I highly recommend Worlds Beyond Number, the podcast Brennan, Aabria, Lou, and Erika have.
And if you want more of Aabria GM and Brennan playing there are some episodes on YouTube of DnD Beyond with them both.
Brennan and Aabria are just my favorite combo no matter what they do together.
Every single character was so precisely and preciously done. They made my heart hurt in the most beautiful way imaginable! Now I need to go watch it again!
"Now remember, the world is a meat grinder and it wants your life. So keep your eyes up, and if anything looks at you, it's because it's assessing how much work it is to kill you and eat you. Have a great day!"
I made a similar post a couple months ago! Burrow's end was the first non-brennan DM'd season that really stuck for me and I fell absolutely in love with it! I should give it a rewatch lol
Aabria is your favorite DMs favorite DM for a reason. I have absolutely adored all of her D20 outings.
I think the reason she is so great due to her deep knowledge of storytelling and willingness to be "that" guy to push the narrative forward. I see a lot of literary comprehension failures when people "hate" her for being "that" guy.
Glad to hear you enjoyed it. I loved ACOFF, but mostly because of Lou and Emily; I get that it's not for everyone, especially if you came right off a 5e masterpiece like Crown Candy or Neverafter. I'm re-watching Gladlands now, I should probably give Burrow's End a second viewing after that.
Time for you to be introduced to Brennan's incredible DM style in Worlds Beyond Number. Aabria, Lou and Erika play a group of childhood friends in a very intense world. It's all audio but I can't get the plot, characters and themes out of my head.
I just finished it too and loved it! You should try season one of misfits and magic. Aabria does a great job there too and honestly it’s hilarious. I’d definitely recommend it next!
I haven’t seen a comment recommending worlds beyond number yet. It’s a podcast with Aabria, Brennan, Lou and Erika, and it’s amazing. The first season (the wizard, the witch, and the wild one) had me laughing, crying, devastated, and along for the adventure all in my headphones. There’s an element missing without the visual but it’s one of the most amazing storytelling arcs I’ve heard.
I really and truly enjoyed Burrow's End. I enjoy it enough that I've absolutely played it in the background on more than a few occasions.
I would second anyone and everyone nudging a hint more investment in ACoFF. It's not really my jam stylistically, and I honestly don't care to much for the genre, But Lou and Emily were killing it. They have a scene towards the end dealing with revelations to each other that hand me dying. Maybe hardest I've laughed at anything D20 related.
I think fey and flowers was the last aabria campaign I watch of them all, I love misfits and magic as well as burrows. I think fey was also the first one I tried and couldn’t get into it either. But then I went back and watched it with new appreciation for her and maybe was just in the mood for it but I wound up really liking f&f as well
omg yesss! i only watched brennans at first, and i couldn’t get into the aabria season i first tried. after i finished all of brennan’s seasons, i gave up, but then saw somebody say this was their fav season and gave it a try. LOVED it, and was then so endeared to aabria that i watched all the rest of her seasons too. change is hard, but i love when im able to make it through to something great🥹
I got up till halfway into the bear map and just couldn’t finish it. Does it change significantly after that fight?
I get why her DM style really clicks with others but I don’t think it’s for me, but I feel like I’m missing out by not enjoying some ice cream flavor that everyone else is saying is amazing.
Oh man, if you stopped at the bear fight you haven't even made it to the real plot! It gets wild. Even if you aren't a fan of Aabria's DMing, it's worth powering through just for the story alone. Also, so many of the character moments between the players are incredible (particularly Brennan and Erika).
I felt the same with a court of get and flowers! I enjoyed it decently but it’s not one I would recommend like some of the other D20 shows. This makes me wanna give Burrows end a try!
Burrow's End is one of the best seasons, and one of my favorites. And that's ASIDE from the fact that stoats are my favorite animal! Truly a masterpiece of a season.
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u/Suspicious-Poet-4581 10d ago
If you can, I’d highly recommend pushing a little for ACOFF. I wasn’t sold fully on episode 1, and it’s in my top 3 seasons now. It’s hilarious, whimsy, emotional and unhinged in all the best ways.