This week I thought a lot about Andy Williams after his death. He was an important part of what made me fall in love with wrestling when I started watching AEW, but reflecting on other aspects of his life this week was enriching.
This week I thought a lot about Andy Williams after his death. He was an important part of what made me fall in love with wrestling when I started watching AEW, but reflecting on other aspects of his life this week was enriching. Aside from that, I found time to share about games, time with family, anime, and a few lovely things that crosses my timeline.
This video from a woman who discovered solo journaling RPGs from the journaling side is heartwarming. It’s great to see people find their way into games and fall in love with the experience. I grew up steeped in games and speculative fiction, so getting the perspectives of people who aren’t born into these hobbies is rewarding.
I put together a solo gaming tin to carry in my bag. Playing cards, tarot cards, dice, and pencils will be staples. I’ll add in whatever other things are needed for any particular game I decide to play.
Celestine asked to play HeroQuest, so we played through all of New Beginnings, a bonus quest that acts as a prelude to the core quests. It was tough, but she stuck it out until the end and our heroes left with some key equipment and artifacts.
I hadn’t listened to Andy Williams’ Atomic Rule band before his death, but their Conan-inspired tracks hit a particular intersection of interests for me.
Yesterday I visited York Redoubt, at the entrance to Halifax Harbour, with Celestine, my father, my sister, and my niece. The sprawling fortification has an uncanny blend of preservation and decay. We encountered deer, graffiti, blackberries, apples, squirrels, and an EV charging station amid the structures.
I watched the first episode of Time Bokan. When I was a kid I watched Time Fighters, which chopped up and pasted together Time Bokan into a pair of movies, countless times.
It’s a decidedly goofy anime, but the environments are lovingly detailed, the character designs are inspired, and Time Bokan is the absolute best mech design of all time.
Tanpei and Junko have the most wonderful flight suits.
Marjo, Grocky, and Walsa are wonderful scenery-chewing heels.
Time Mechabuton is such a cool mech. The rhinoceros beetle form is burned into my memory, and the Ladybug-Drone it has is unforgettable.
The windup robot Chorobo is a silly sidekick but I appreciate that he sticks to the insect theme of the show.
There are things to pull into a game of Neon Odyssey, particularly the drone as a personal ship for a character and a fun companion template for a Machinist.
And that line, “But then, mechs are my friends,” is perfect!
The villains in Time Bokan have strange new mechs each episode, and this time it looked mostly like a gorilla.
A snake-like device was a sinister kidnapper that has potential as an adversary in a game of Neon Odyssey.
The best thing about the villains’ mechs is definitely their stylish skull button.
Andy Williams was interviewed on The Todd Christopher Podcast a couple weeks before his death. Hearing him talk about wrestling, music, and life was a little window into what a thoughtful, honest and sweet person everyone who knew him has been attesting to.
Last night’s episode of AEW Dynamite was another beautiful example of how to produce a tribute episode of a wrestling show. Heartfelt moments discussing the death of Andy Williams and the showcase of Rebel and her life with ALS were handled so well. Having Rebel perform in a way that accommodated her abilities and celebrated what made her presence in the early days of AEW so wonderful was perfect.
