Nathan and Eppy talk about S5E15: Guilt. The woman that Jim almost married calls him out of the blue - someone is trying to kill her! Jim has to handle not only the puzzle of her mysterious assailant, but also how Valerie uses their past relationship to get what she wants out of him. The title of the episode is indeed the main emotional theme, and we find it to be a well-told but, in some ways, difficult story. It does have perhaps the most spectacular vehicle chase we've seen so far, though!

We now have a second, patron-exclusive, podcast - Plus Expenses. Covering our non-Rockford media, games and life chatter, Plus Expenses is available via our Patreon at ALL levels of support.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by game and narrative designers Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. In each episode we pick an episode of The Rockford Files, recap and review it as fans of the show, and tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Support Two Hundred A Day

This is our latest Plus Expenses episode, the show we release to our patrons over at our Patreon. Plus Expenses is our pre-show chatter, where we catch up with each other and talk about other media we've been into and what's going on in our lives as self-employed game designers. In this episode, we talk about: Amazon and capitalism, pricing games, Youtube radicalization, the Star Wars Minute podcast, Godzilla, meat shields vs jobbers, pro wrestling in Japan, a book of essays on David Chase, the cultural influence of television, location as character, place in RPGs, psychogeography, the World of Darkness "By Night" books, "I lived in New York for 5 years" stories, Mill Creek DVD collections, and of course the value of public libraries.

We now have a second, patron-exclusive, podcast - Plus Expenses. Covering our non-Rockford media, games and life chatter, Plus Expenses is available via our Patreon at ALL levels of support.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by game and narrative designers Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. In each episode we pick an episode of The Rockford Files, recap and review it as fans of the show, and tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Support Two Hundred A Day

Nathan and Eppy take a look at the first two-part episode from the first season, Profit and Loss (E12 and 13). Starring Ned Beatty as the villainous CEO of a fraudulent investment firm, this two-parter is very much one linear story through both episodes. Though it features a number of wonderful Jim Rockford moments, and gives us a lot of good Rocky material, we can't help but feel like the big climax is a bit of a let-down given the extensive buildup. On the other hand, it does have perhaps the greatest 3-minute hot-dog related scene in all of the Rockford Files!

We now have a second, patron-exclusive, podcast - Plus Expenses. Covering our non-Rockford media, games and life chatter, Plus Expenses is available via our Patreon at ALL levels of support.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by game and narrative designers Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. In each episode we pick an episode of The Rockford Files, recap and review it as fans of the show, and tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Support Two Hundred A Day

Nathan and Eppy are super excited to welcome Gigi Garner, daughter of James Garner and animal rescuer, to the show! We talk to Gigi about the James Garner Animal Rescue Fund she recently launched, get some of her reflections on the Rockford Files and her father's legacy, and hear some great stories! We then answer questions from our patrons and listeners, including the monumental task of picking a favorite episode!

• Make a donation to JGARF.org

We now have a second, patron-exclusive, podcast - Plus Expenses. Covering our non-Rockford media, games and life chatter, Plus Expenses is available via our Patreon at ALL levels of support.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by game and narrative designers Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. In each episode we pick an episode of The Rockford Files, recap and review it as fans of the show, and tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Special Guest: Gigi Garner.

Support Two Hundred A Day

Nathan and Eppy talk about S2E12 The Reincarnation of Angie. Jim gets a call from the panicked Angie, concerned about a mysterious call from her now-missing brother Tom. Things escalate after they find half a million in cash in Tom's wall safe, and Jim calls in a friend from the FBI to help track down what happened to Tom, and why someone is now after Angie. A curious episode that showcases Jim's tradecraft, we found that it has a bit of a mismatch between the emotional beats and the narrative, both of which are very strong on their own.

We now have a second, patron-exclusive, podcast - Plus Expenses. Covering our non-Rockford media, games and life chatter, Plus Expenses is available via our Patreon at ALL levels of support.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by game and narrative designers Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. In each episode we pick an episode of The Rockford Files, recap and review it as fans of the show, and tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Support Two Hundred A Day

Nathan and Eppy talk about the first appearance of Rita Moreno on The Rockford Files in S4E16 The Paper Palace. When a pair of French-speaking tough guys assault Moreno's character, Rita Capkovic, the police don't seem very interested in helping out a known prostitute. While Dennis is a friend, she ends up hiring Jim to find out why anyone would want to hurt her - and when one of her only other friends, an elderly woman, is killed, it ups the stakes of the mystery. This episode shines as a nuanced portrait of a woman who lives her life unapologetically in the face of judgement, and the character work throughout is fantastic - overall, one of the great episodes of the show!

In this episode, we mention Rita Moreno's Emmy acceptance speech, and a Variety piece where she talks about it in more detail.

We now have a second, patron-exclusive, podcast - Plus Expenses. Covering our non-Rockford media, games and life chatter, Plus Expenses is available via our Patreon at ALL levels of support.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by game and narrative designers Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. In each episode we pick an episode of The Rockford Files, recap and review it as fans of the show, and tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Support Two Hundred A Day

Nathan and Eppy discuss S3E5 Drought at Indianhead River. Jim gets a tip that Angel's life is in danger, but "Angelo" is too high on his newfound success in real estate to take the threat seriously. Determined to save Angel despite himself, Jim drags him along as he fends off both the mob and the cops to try and figure out why his friend is on a hit list. A wonderful showcase of the Angel-Rockford relationship, focusing on just how much Jim can take, we really like this one! It has some unexamined plot devices and uses institutionalization for comedic effect, which aren't our favorite elements, but in terms of watching Jim and Angel at their best, it's hard to top!

We now have a second, patron-exclusive, podcast - Plus Expenses. Covering our non-Rockford media, games and life chatter, Plus Expenses is available via our Patreon at ALL levels of support.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by game and narrative designers Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. In each episode we pick an episode of The Rockford Files, recap and review it as fans of the show, and tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Support Two Hundred A Day

To celebrate our 50th episode, Nathan and Eppy discuss the third 90s Rockford Files TV movie: If The Frame Fits... This feels like the first true reunion movie, as it features not only Angel and Dennis, but Chapman, Diehl and, triumphantly, a returning Beth Davenport! Jim has been framed for the murder of another PI, and this movie hums right along just like the best of the 70s shows as he figures out what's going on while on the run from the law. Our favorite so far!

While the story and script are snappy and have all the hallmarks we love from the 70s era, the real joy of this movie is that the character work and chemistry on screen is as strong as ever. It even winds in an in-character tribute to the passing of Noah Beery, deftly serving the story as well as us as audience members by integrating the fact that Rocky is gone into Jim's emotional journey.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. We are exploring the intensely weird and interesting world of the 70s TV detective show The Rockford Files. Half celebration and half analysis, we break down episodes of the show and then analyze how and why they work as great pieces of narrative and character-building. In each episode of Two Hundred a Day, we watch an episode, recap and review it as fans of the show, and then tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Support Two Hundred A Day

Nathan and Eppy discuss S4E4 Second Chance. Following up on our last episode (The Hammer of C Block), we visit the final Gandalf Fitch episode to see how the character has been handled since that debut. Gandy seems to have found a niche for himself bouncing at nightclubs, but when he decides to manage the career of a promising lounge singer (played by Dionne Warwick), he ends up hit on the head and chasing down ghosts from the past - and, of course, turns to Jim for help. Also featuring a complicating Angel appearance, this episode is both action-packed and very funny, paying little attention to Gandy's tragic origin story and leading us to the conclusion that the show essentially treats Gandy as a different character in the subsequent episodes, not a continuous one. This one gave us a lot to talk about, and we really enjoyed watching it!

The joy of this one is in the endlessly watchable chemisty between not only Jim and Gandy, but Gandy and Theta (the Dionne Warwick character), Jim and Theta, and the explosive combination of Jim, Gandy and Angel. With memorable goons and a couple of strong character moments, we use our discussion to dive into the complications that arise from how gender and race are used as character and plot traits, along with our meta-discussion about how to square the "different Gandys" that we see across Isaac Haye's three appearances on the show.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. We are exploring the intensely weird and interesting world of the 70s TV detective show The Rockford Files. Half celebration and half analysis, we break down episodes of the show and then analyze how and why they work as great pieces of narrative and character-building. In each episode of Two Hundred a Day, we watch an episode, recap and review it as fans of the show, and then tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Support Two Hundred A Day

Nathan and Eppy discuss the first appearance of Isaac Hayes as Gandolf Fitch in Season Two's The Hammer of C Block. Gandy has been in prison for 20 years for a murder he swears he didn't commit, and since Jim owes him money from their time together in the slammer, his first stop is Rockfish's trailer. The plot of this one revolves around discovering the truth behind the murder of Lila, Gandy's ex-girlfriend; but what we struggled with as we watched is how Gandy is, at root, the actual villain of the piece. Content warning! This episode (and thus our discussion) include direct focus on emotional and physical abuse, and suicide. It's an engaging, effective episode that isn't reducible down to a clear "yes, watch it" or "no, don't."

As you'll hear in our discussion, the picture in our heads of Gandy from our first encounter (our Episode 6, Just Another Polish Wedding) was of a character who seems to be seperated from this dark backstory. What is the responsibility of a show to maintain character continuity, especially for characters who are problematic but presented as sympathetic? We tackle this, and end up deciding that we'll have to watch the final Gandy episode next to see what happens in that one to really get a handle on the topic.

Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!

Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:

Thanks to:

Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. We are exploring the intensely weird and interesting world of the 70s TV detective show The Rockford Files. Half celebration and half analysis, we break down episodes of the show and then analyze how and why they work as great pieces of narrative and character-building. In each episode of Two Hundred a Day, we watch an episode, recap and review it as fans of the show, and then tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.

Support Two Hundred A Day