”Dimension 20: On a Bus” is unlike anything the Actual Play and Improv industry has seen. I was left baffled, bewildered, and blithe. Katie Marovitch’s breakthrough season will inspire a new generation of Dragon Masters to believe in themselves and not fully think things through. Katie flaunts her off-the-cuff, no-prep DM style to a table of “oops all DMs,” featuring Brennan Lee Mulligan, Aabria Iyengar, Jasmine Bhullar, and Mark Mercer.
With no trailer preceding the premiere, this season was an enigma to Dimension 20 fans until the sudden birth of the first episode. Any and all questions remain unanswered. How does the air connect to their emotional journey? What are they battling? We are left to ponder. What we do know is our players have a mission to venture from North Hollywood to LAX, and they have a bus. (Or an Uber?)
Katie is so dedicated to the art of Dragon Mastering that she introduces her own rules system and brings her own miniatures into the dome. Allegedly, Rick Perry had nothing to do with this season. That’s the way of the true Dragon Master. The bus in question? Hot pink. A clear allegory for the feminine energy that is the driving force of the entire season.
The Party (Bus)
Brennan Lee Mulligan as Hat (not Orange).
Aabria Iyengar as Blue M&M, the calm and unbothered one.
Jasmin Bhullar as Little Army Man, the powerhouse of the group, using rage on and above the table.
Mark Mercer as Piece of Lint, with a natural affinity to the land.
A Battle
Before characters are even chosen, they are thrust into battle. There is no time for plans or strategy. Not even their expertise can help them, as the rules of the game are fabricated before their very eyes.
Aabria breaks the record for the fastest character death on Dimension 20. Blue M&M falls victim to kuchisabishii. Blue M&M fans are sure to be all over Reddit. It’s not clear if Aabria will be returning in the next episode with a new character, but chatter online suggests a sour Skittles subclass.
Hat attempts to roll initiative (attack) first and completely buffs it, rolling a 5. A failure that sends Brennan spiraling, nay, crashing out completely. From beyond the digestive tract, Blue M&M attempts its own attack but appears to be out of gas, only rolling a 2. Next is the true gamer at the table. Jasmine managed to roll a six one time in a row and took the final blow on the very vehicle they needed to achieve their goal. Could this mean the greatest obstacle stopping these players is themselves?
Mark, aka Daddy’s favorite, completely buys into the narrative. Despite its discarded nature, Lint is the most supportive player at the table.
Is the party now stranded on the road? We will find out, next episode?
Dimension 20: On a Bus aired on 7/14/2025 as a part of a Game Changer Episode on dropout.tv.
Images via Dimension 20
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