T w e n t y S i d e d

We need to talk about Thomas the Tank Engine.

No, we don’t actually. But ever since I watched Thomas “TomSka” Ridgewell’s video about Thomas the Tank Engine, that opening line has been stuck in my head. Tom mentions having a, what he believes is quite conventional, relationship to the British children’s show. That is, when he was a child, he watched it. When he wasn’t a child, he didn’t watch it anymore. That seems reasonable. As is, or was anyway, common in England; television programs tended to be produced one series (what Americans would call a “season”) at a time rather than under an open-ended contract. So while the first two series/seasons appeared in the early 80’s, the third didn’t run until several years later. The show picked up…steam…and probably hit peak popularity in the mid-to-late 1990’s. This was when Thomas big-screen movies started to appear. And while the average person, especially us American GenX’ers who only had early exposure to Thomas through the PBS children’s show Shining Time Station; could be forgiven for thinking Thomas probably disappeared sometime early in the new millennium….well, you are wrong. As I have discovered, Thomas…chugged…steadily along until Mattel(!) bought the franchise, and made some decisions that have ONLY RECENTLY left the show in somewhat questionable circumstances.

Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Scattered Thoughts on Hobbies, SWTOR, and WoW”

Paige Francis He/him

I have been determined to not lose control of the story THIS TIME while playing World of Warcraft. And I must tell you, it has still been a challenge. And I’m still learning. Step one was to follow the default storyline prompts for the current iteration of WoW. That means after the starting area (recommended choice: Exile’s Reach) you will be directed to start the Battle for Azeroth expansion. I discussed last week how two quests/quest chains actually happen before Battle for Azeroth properly begins, and both are still available in the game. I DID just learn why the Heart of Azeroth beginning isn’t included in the start of the BfA story: even though NARRATIVELY it takes place before anything else you will be doing, the Heart of Azeroth mechanic WILL NOT be used until you start the War Campaign quests. These don’t became available until around level 35 or 40. I ALSO just found out that SOME of the War Campaign quests are designed to be done interchangeably with the storyline quests. My previous belief that the War Campaign had needlessly distracted me from the story was incorrect.

HOWEVER…the game does a TERRIBLE job of explaining any of this. As in, it DOES NOT explain anything. These options just become available. I will explain how I’ve reached my current state in the game.

Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Beating it With a Hammer: Making WoW Work For Me”

Paige Francis He/him