Just Add Dragons

It's graduation time! We're looking back on season one and everything we've watched so far in an attempt to give out some coveted end of year awards and to reflect on the highs and lows of the high school genre, both with and without added dragons. 

Never grow up! Or else your heart will die according to The Breakfast Club, or you’ll be one of the bad ones according to Fantasy High. Either way, Kate and Houmi will talk about you. There’s quite a lot of useless and a few useful adults in our source material, and we wanna talk about them all! Or as many as we can fit into one episode. We definitely mention Gilear at least once. 

Content warning: this episode contains discussions about abuse

Girl power! We all know who run the world, but do they run it better when there’s dragons? Join Kate and Houmi as they overanalyse the women of Fantasy High and the classic high school movie.

Content warning: this episode contains discussions about abuse

Boys don’t cry! But they should. If they need to. Or just want to. Kate and Houmi take a look at how toxic masculinity rears its ugly head in Fantasy High and in classic high school movies, covering topics such as the male gaze, father-son relationships and whether or not all pirates are inherently flawed. 

Love is in the air! With all those teenage hormones flying around sex, sexuality and romance play a huge role in high school movies and in Fantasy High. Kate and Houmi talk all about it and try to avoid becoming part of a cliche love triangle.

Kate and Houmi navigate the twists and turns of how mental health is depicted in high school movies and Fantasy High. From panic attack rolling mechanisms, to not so sensitive nicknames, to the 1950’s teenage delinquent, join us as we over-analyse (no couches involved) the changing landscape of mental health in teen movies (and D&D actualplay!).

Who am I?! The theme of identity may crop up once or twice in Fantasy High and in high school movies. It's almost as if teenaged characters have a lot of figuring out to do. Who knew? Bonus points if you spot the two secret subtitles of this episode!

Get your geek on! What happens to the high school nerd when you Just Add Dragons? Kate and Houmi take a deep dive into the nerd archetype as seen in Dimension 20’s Fantasy High and teen movies such as Weird Science and The Breakfast Club. 

Rebel rebel! What happens to the teenage rebel when you Just Add Dragons? Kate and Houmi (over)analyse the classic trope in movies such as Rebel Without A Cause and The Breakfast Club and take a close look at Fig in Fantasy High to see how adding (dungeons &) dragons changes things up.

Join Kate and Houmi as they discuss new beginnings: specifically what starting high school is like if you go to the Aguefort Adventuring Academy or Shermer High School... sort of. Just Add Dragons compares and contrasts the worlds of Dimension 20's Fantasy High with those of high school movies like John Hughes' The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, Sixteen Candles, Ferris Bueller's Day Off and many, many more. So, is the classic high school movie better when you Just Add Dragons? Join us to find out!