‘Critical Role’ 3×59: “Somewhere Out There” recap

‘Critical Role’ recap: Campaign 3, Episode 59 “Somewhere Out There” Aired May 18, 2023

History Project

Before we dive into “Somewhere Out There” let’s take a brief sojourn into the (slightly disgusting) past and wrap up the Uthodurn Arc. As you may recall, Imogen, Fearne, Chetney, FCG and their new friends FRIDA and Deanna quested into the corrupted and very horrific city of Molaesmyr to try and dig up the dirt on Ludinu’s past. I’ll spare you the gory details for the highlights of what they learned:

Ludinus has been on this path for a very, very long time. Since before the city fell, he’s been tracking the shifting power of the leylines, and searching almost obsessively for the true name of the Matron of Ravens. Ruidus was also a focus of his research. He caught on early that there was something about the moon which frightened the temples. No friend of the gods, Ludinus decided to investigate and learned all about Predathos. Communication was initially beyond him, so he made preparations for the upcoming Apogee Solsitce to rectify that.

Using the ancient well of power beneath the city, Ludinus contacted Predathos. At the expense of the entire city. And Daleth still wanted to free Predathos…. Just give me a second to scream in incoherent rage. Turns out the rest of the gods are screaming with me. The Changebringer and the Dawnfather reached out to FCG and Deanna, demanding that they do all they can to stop Predathos from waking. The red end stirs in its slumber – do not let it wake.

The bright spot in this very dark camping trip is that they find the Staff of Dark Odyessey which will let them teleport. Setting the destination to Jrusar in the hopes of finding the rest of their friends, they take off… But if they land safely is anyone’s guess.

Somewhere Out There

Presumably at the same moment as the other half of the Bells Hells awoke outside of Uthodurn (3×52) Orym, Ashton and Laudna awaken in a different part of Exandria, inconveniently trapped half way up a geothermally active gorge. They can still see a red beam of energy tethering Ruidus to the excavation site, but it’s so far south they can’t be sure they’re even on Marquet anymore.

Seeing no option but bad ones, they decide to go up, making a perilous climb to the top of the gorge. Half way up, they come across a very annoyed dwarven woman who is trapped the same way. Suspicious of them, she refuses to give them her name, but tells them to call her Mona. (As soon as guest star Aimee Carrero opened her mouth I was screaming with glee over the appearance of Deni$e, the character she played on a very memorable episode of Narrative Telephone.)

Mona tells them that an hour ago she was on the continent of Tal’Dorei hunting down her good-for-nothing ex-fiancé when she suddenly heard a male voice in her head, like someone giving a speech. Then there was a loud crack, and here she was. The Bells Hells think that she was hearing Ludiuns during the ceremony – though how that is possible is a mystery that will be untangled later. 

Lighting Bolts and Reindeers

Climbing to the top of the gorge doesn’t provide many clues as to where they are. The forest around them gives way to more than one very imposing mountain ranges, and a grassland leading to the sea. There is civilization in the distance – or at least a fant glimmer of lights they hope is a town, so they head into the forest in that direction. It isn’t long before they see a reindeer-drawn cart and a slim-looking half-elf huddled by a small fire. They creep closer, hoping to make camp with the traveller, but end up scaring the young male so badly he lets off a Lightning Bolt at Mona.

Mona and Laudna are ready to go in for the kill, but Orym calms the situation down and wrangles everyone to the fire. The young half-elf is a farmer called Bor’Dor (played by Uktarsh Ambudkar) and an hour ago he was tending to his sheep on his mountain in Wildmount. He heard the same voice as Mona did before there was a loud crack that transported him here. Wherever here is. 

Oh, and the lightning is new. He’s never been able to conjure magic before… so, that’s fun. 

Would you like to take a survey?

As the new group tries to sort out some food (and clean the corpses out of the portable hole) another figure cautiously approaches them from the darkness. A young shadow elf with a serious goth vibe (albeit dressed as a mage’s apprentice) steps forward and asks if they’d like to take a survey on their experience this Solstice. She introduces herself as Prism Grimpoppy of the Cobalt Soul (played by Emily Axford) and is obviously excited to be out on her own in the world– an excitement her magical book companion Dynios does NOT share. Unfortunately in talking to Dynios, Mona freaks out, thinking she heard Prims say her real name: Deni$e. The misunderstanding is easily rectified, but the cat’s now firmly out of the bag. 

Prism explains that she was supposed to be collecting data on the solstice for the Cobalt Soul, a kind of library. She gets sick when she teleports, so the Soul was going to let her get shunted (whatever that means… Did the Cobalt Soul know that people were going to get thrown all over the world?). But even that went wrong, as she wasn’t supposed to be sent to the wilderness. 

And one that isn’t happy to see them.

Mounds and flowers

Without warning, the forest floor comes to life and two shambling mounds attack the group. While Bor’Dor panics and Prism turns herself invisible, Ashton stumbles backward and accidentally awakening a corpse flower which also attacks. Luckily the plant-monsters aren’t all that hard to hit and the group – disorganized though it is, is able to dispatch the creatures. Prism in particular shows off some really cool magical abilities, and Deni$e is no slouch with her whip either. 

Setting up a watch for the night, the group is able to get a rest with their new friends. In the morning, with the sunlight illuminating the land around them, they realize they’re on the continent of Issylra. With nothing to do but keep moving, they head for a township in the distance – a town ominously lit with the aurora-like threads of a ley line nexus.

But what they find will have to wait for the next Critical Role! 

Watch Critical Role Thursdays at 7pm PST on Twitch and YouTube! Check out last week’s Critical Role recap here, or watch me talk about all the highlights and theories here!

Critical Role Episode 59 Highlights

• Fearne, Deanna and Chetney. That’s all I’m saying. Go watch the episode. Hehehe
• The Uthodurn Bells Hells also found this crazy looking harness that Ludinus apparently used to steal magic (and life?) from Fey creatures to extend his life… so apparently he’s always been a super stand up guy.
• I was not expecting FRIDA and Deanna to come along to Jrusar. Very excited to see how that pans out.
• I can’t tell you how psyched I am for the current roster of guest stars. They are so freaking fun to watch!
• Deni$e and Orym figure out that they both know her ex-fiancé, Dariax which is just… *chef’s kiss

0

0