Relics & Rarities is a weekly Dungeons & Dragons based web series, created by Deborah Ann Woll and hosted by Geek & Sundry note and Nerdist on their shared platform "Project Alpha". Set in the titular curio shop, the show revolves around four adventurers recruited by the shop into a brigade of the same name, as they set out on adventures and try to save the realm. Each week, they are joined by a special guest, also recruited by the R&R brigade to assist them on their missions.
First airing in February of 2019, Relics & Rarities was met with acclaim from viewers, with many comparing the first episode to Scooby-Doo, with its usage of puzzles and riddles providing many twists and turns for the players. The show has also been praised for its set design, which changes every week and features many strange items for the players to utilize in their ventures.
The main cast consists of the following:
- Deborah Ann Woll as the storyteller and Professor Roundland
- Tommy Walker as Veros, a human fighter
- Jasmine Bhuller as Beryl, a half-orc barbarian
- Julia Dennis as Annabella, a human bard
- Xander Jeanneret as Rikki Huxter, a gnome druid
Guests include:
- Matthew Lillard as Allister Goldfang, a dragonborn sorcerer
- Sam Richardson as Ionis Leatherfoot, a gnomish ranger (and his panther companion, Mr. Fluffy)
- Charlie Cox as Seamus O'Flanagan, a half-elven rogue
- Janina Gavankar as Mumeé, a half-elven rogue
- Kevin Smith as Sam Haynne, a tiefling warlock
- Simone Missick as Zora Ujasiri, a human paladin
Episodes are streamed on Project Alpha
each Monday, beginning at 6 PM (EST); Cast viewings are frequent, and members will often join the chat to talk with viewers and answer questions.
Tropes for this series include:
- Alliterative Title: Relics and Rarities.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Though generally polite and cheery, Professor Roundland is not one to be crossed.
- Big Damn Hero: Veros carrying Beryl to safety and then grabbing Annabelle's body because of his refusal to leave anyone behind with the witch when it seemed like the party was doomed.
- Four-Temperament Ensemble: Veros (Sanguine), Beryl (Choleric), Rikki (Melancholic), Annabella (Phlegmetic)
- Gaslamp Fantasy: Played with. The atmosphere is this in general and episodes three and four are very much this but the players are straight out of central medieval fantasy.
- Haunted House: Benthem Manor is haunted, having been the site of many tragedies in the past.
- Haunted House Historian: Mrs. Powell is one, having been the groundskeeper of Benthem Manor for years.
- Off with His Head!: Executed by Beryl and Annabella in episode 3, using the latter's invisible thread.
- Omniscient Council of Vagueness: Relics and Rarities seems to be the front for one of these. Whether Professor Roundland is the head of it or just an agent is unclear.
- 20 Minutes into the Past: The general aesthetic and tone of the series appears to hint at this.
- Under the Sea: Episode three takes place almost entirely underwater.
