Use the Falchion

This summer so far I've finished (either with my friend or with my parents, or both at separate times): Young Sherlock (technically this was back in like, April, but still) Watson Season 2 Spider-Noir Maul: Shadow Lord

Finished All of the Skills 6 earlier this week, and now I'm waiting on Songs of the Dead. After that, Unbound 12 (the finale!) on June 24, Quest Academy 6 on June 26, and nothing really until August. I started Nicoli Gonnella's (author of Unbound series) new book Sovereign Sight on Royal Road. I'm not sure how much I want to read before the full book comes out, but it's pretty interesting so far! My top read of this year is still Elydes on Royal Road. I read it a few years ago, then reread the series when Book 3 came out on Kindle, then read Book 4 and all the author had out of Book 5 on RR. Since then, I've kept up with the weekly chapters, and I can't wait to see how Book 5 ends.

Rune Dice demo some, and I brought out Fire Emblem Engage after seeing the new Fortune's Weave trailer. Honestly though, unless I get Pokemon Legends Z-A before I get Fortune's Weave, I'm just stalling until FW comes out. However, my list of games for this year and next year is looking REALLY nice! Full of several JRPGs and other big budget games, along with a few Indies to sweeten the deal.

I'll die on the hill that The Last Jedi is one of the few modern pieces of Star Wars media that actually gets Star Wars. It's far from perfect, and I have some fundamental issues with it, but overall I think it's a phenomenal movie that works on a narrative level, on a meta/speaking to and about the audience level, and on a meta-narrative "what was the creator doing/what does this do to the story" level. To me, the problems in TLJ don't actually stem from TLJ, but from The Force Awakens and The Rise of Skywalker. Anyways, my worst movies...hmm...I've seen some bad ones, but I usually try to purge those from my mind. The ones that stuck around: The Last Airbender (2010) - This is the first movie that emotionally hurt me. Percy Jackson & the Sea of Monsters (2013) - Before this, I don't think I saw a movie and went "this was a complete and utter waste of time in my life I'll never get back." Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018) and Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S -I'm combining these into one category because they have nigh-identical problems IMO. Much like Pacific Rim: Uprising (there is no Pacific Rim sequel in Ba Sing Se), it sidelined the great human cast from the previous film (including the amazing female protagonist) for a boring new cast, with nothing to bring other than more lore that wasn't necessary and felt confusing when added to the story. Watch the first of both, then move on. The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies (2014) - I'm not a bit LOTR fan, and this movie was the terrible ending to end all endings. I can't remember a single detail about it other than Smaug's thing at the very beginning of the film. Honorable Mentions: Wreck-It Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks the Internet & The Incredibles 2 - These aren't bad movies, but they weren't worth the wait between movies and undermine the purpose and ending of the first movie, IMO. Fan4stic (2015) - I love the cast and the premise actually wasn't too bad! I loved that Sue was the adopted one. I even liked Doom's walk through the hallway and the music during that scene. It was just...everything else. Logan (2018) - This one is a personal thing, as this is the one and only movie that triggers me. Objectively it's a good movie, but I fundamentally DESPISE the premise of "a cynical man learns to cherish what he already has at the end of his life" trope with the burning passion, and this movie didn't help. (That's not why it's triggering, but the reason why is personal.) I hope to never rewatch it again, and I loathe that I have to put it on recommended MCU movie lists due to how the X-Men are now connected. I love how Deadpool & Wolverine desecrated the movie. Fantastic Beasts movies - These aren't as bad as other things on the list, but they have no idea who they're catering to, and it shows.

"Hold Them Down" has Penelope's viola during...that part. As if she's reacting to the horror. You can also hear Odysseus join in the final rousing moment of the song, the "here and now" parts. Obviously, we have the "Different Beast" echoes in the second half of "600 Strike," right before the best part of the song. Poseidon also calls Ody a "monster" to the same rhythm that the chorus echoes "monster" in "Monster."

"Christened" by STIM is so good!

With the release of the new crowdfunding campaign coming in two days, I can't help but think that Sanderson still has one more card up his sleeve, and that's going to be another Secret Project. (Because even Brandon would be amused by a 6-7 pun.) I can't say if it's the Cairn thing we've speculated about here, but I do believe it'll happen...well, either here or for Oathbringer 10th anniversary. (Once again, I'd prefer Sanderson save these Secret Projects up for a big campaign with 7-10 books, but I'll also take 2 SPs for this Kickstarter, 1 for Oathbringer, and then 4-6 for a big campaign down the line.)

Get that collection quickly! It's going away very soon.

Maphra's cover of "Doomed" by Bring Me the Horizon is heavenly, and it'll probably be my cover of the year.

I was imagining a Progression Fantasy-esque series for Valor. (Rather than the Progression Fantasy-adjacent that Stormlight falls into.) Invention could totally get a LitRPG series, where they grant Investiture based on the ingenuity of the person involved. That being said, I like the ideas here! There could be a fun dynamic between the ideas of valor being seen as putting oneself in risky situations in order to "help one's family" vs valor being "duels of honor."

Not in the sense I think you're talking about, since if I take a break for air I probably won't come back to the series. If I'm getting burnout, I usually push through. However, if I'm reading a series and a book by an author I love comes out, and I'm more excited about the new book than the book I'm reading, I'll pick up the new book in a heartbeat. But I usually recommend breaks or palate cleansers for other readers just in case they're the type of reader to get burnout before finishing.

Almost a year since my last update! I haven't made anything too fancy (I did make some well-received brown butter mashed potatoes tho), nor have I cooked any of the revised things discussed here yet, but I do have some upcoming things I'm excited about! First up is the smallest item: Bacon Jam - For some reason, the idea of a bacon and kimchi grilled cheese on Asiago bread has been haunting me for the past few weeks, so I really want to make it. But then I decided that bacon jam may work even better, and I'm dedicated to this now. (I'm holding back on doing one of those viral mashed potato grilled cheese thingies because I want this part to work first.) Next up we have two straight-up items and one hybrid item: Butter Chicken Mac and Cheese - I saw a video on YouTube with this recipe, and I think it'd be a cool thing to add to the Thanksgiving menu when my sister is visiting her in-laws. (She usually does the Mac & Cheese, and my mom has her own classic recipe, but I need a new Mac & Cheese recipe, and I feel like this could be fun.) I imagine this will be a fun experiment and nothing more, but I want to try it all the same. Bourbon Buttermilk Cornbread - I love using bourbon in recipes, and I think this could be a smash hit. Like the above recipe, I want to add it to the Thanksgiving menu, but I need to test it out on a few subjects first and then run it by my mom. (As of 2024, I'm in charge of the turkey, but she still holds the keys to the full menu.) Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls - I plan on using this as a base recipe but doing some minor changes from other recipes. I'll do a Tangzhong from my favorite milk bread cinnamon rolls recipe, add buttermilk powder and brown butter to the sugar mixture (from this buttermilk brown butter cinnamon roll recipe), and drench the whole thing in heavy cream before cooking. (From multiple sources.) I don't expect this to be THAT much better, but I'm excited to try it out. I hope to make these before the end of February, but we'll see what happens. On Valentines Day, I plan on treating myself! I'm talking: Breakfast - Roast Duck and Pork Belly Eggs Benedict with a miso brown butter hollandaise sauce and creme anglaise French Toast. I plan on using the base recipes here and adding in a tablespoon or two of bourbon from this recipe I tried a few years ago. I'm toying with adding in some simple cheesy scrambled eggs and candied bacon, and then inviting my friend and his kids to breakfast, but it'll depend on how motivated I am. (Of course I'll invite his wife (aka my childhood friend/older sister in all but blood), but I assume she'll either be working or resting, so it'll be nice to be away from the kids.) Dinner - Wine-poached pear salad, Beef Wellington (served with a bourbon, red wine, and coffee sauce), Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes, and Pomme Paves. If I could poach some mussels in white wine and serve with a white wine butter sauce, then I'd be in heaven. Yes, this is a lot of carbs, but it's a food coma I'm willing to enter. Dessert - Linda's Fudge Cake from Cheesecake Factory, because it was either that or make a souffle cheesecake, and the advice I was given was "go all out but you're already doing too much; make dessert easy." We'll see how much I actually do. Finally, during Spring Break, I'll attempt to make the Dessert Arancini again. Can confirm that this was NOT my next cooking adventure lol! But I still want to try this! Maybe during Spring Break I could do a 2-Day thingy. On Day 1, I make this and smoke the rice pudding for the Dessert Arancini before freezing it. Day 2 I make the Frankenstein and serve it with the Dessert Arancini. We'll see.

Someone get the telephone because I CALLED IT! (Well, I speculated and rated Apple favorably.)

When you look back at your Entertainment 2025 Theory list, and it turns out that you actually anticipated Sanderson writing a Secret Project! Well, releasing a Secret Project, as you ALWAYS speculate that he's writing another one. I got the project wrong, however. I theorized that he'd write and release Mulholland's Homebrew's Sinister Shop of Secret Pets as the book to go with the Hoid Storybook Collection. Clearly I was wrong! As a small aside, I do hope Sanderson considers Mulholland as an in-house graphic novel someday, or maybe a collaboration with the artist of the graphic novel Hooky. ...and while he's at it, he can make sure the Dark One graphic novels actually get made...

I look forward to this thread every year! Thanks for keeping up the tradition. SCOOOP!!! Ready to Rock and Sion were my favorites from that album From Egoist's final EP, right? My iTunes calls it Touzisya, but I know that's a sort of regional difference at time. ("z" vs "j" and the other things.) That EP was the main part of my Yumi & the Nightmare Painter playlist. ("All Alone With You" remix plays during the final moments of the book, while "Namae No Nai Kaibutsu" remix plays during the epilogue with Hoid.) As an aside, Egoist was one of my favorite J-Pop/J-Rock/J-Electronic groups. I'm sad they split ways, but I hope Reche is popular. (I haven't listened to as much of her stuff as I probably should.) In terms of my music list: Retro 2024 Winners “Classical Dragon” by Marcin and Tim Henson - I didn’t appreciate it back in 2024, but I’ve been listening to it nearly every day in early January and February. “Empty Out Your Pockets” by Juice Wrld - It feels like it’s a Spider-Man: SpiderVerse song, specifically Miles G Morales’ theme song. I love it for that. Album of the Year - “Lo-files” by Bring Me the Horizon A lofi album of many of BMTH’s most popular (and most recent) hits over the years. It’s a fun project that I wish more bands would consider. Top Songs: “canyoufeelmy<3.tmpx,” “sL33pwalking.idl,” and “Throne.GOD” Runner-up Albums “Hope EP” by Yukata Hirasaka - A great Mathrock J-Rock album! “Bright” is easily my favorite song on the EP, so much so that I’m mentioning it here and in the singles list! “Scooop!” by Band-Maid - It feels more akin to Unseen World than Epic Narratives, which is nice. Slightly more variety. Top Songs: “Ready to Rock,” and “SION” (this song’s opening riffs remind me of “Page” from their album CONQUERER) “From Zero (Deluxe Edition)” by Linkin Park - This one’s a bit of a cheat since there are only three new songs, but it’s TECHNICALLY still a new album! (The three songs do change the flow of the album some, since now the album doesn’t circle back to the beginning.) Top Retro Buys: A Charlie Brown Christmas by Vince Guaraldi Trio - I listen to it every year, and it’s one of my favorite albums to listen to every year. My family owns it on cassette AND CD. It’s a mystery why I hadn't bought it myself yet. A.I. Music - I have a slightly complex relationship with A.I. music. I don't hate it, yet it isn't the same as art to me. It's entertainment and enjoyable at times, but I'd always prefer to have some human band create and perform the same thing instead of A.I. A.I. Art - Funkin Park (it sounds more boy-band than Funk) by Conhuir Ecclesiastes in Blues by Holy Groove Classical versions of “Timeless” and “Chihiro” by This Isn’t Real Secular Music Fast Singles - My church had a fast from secular music this summer. I didn't always succeed, but I did find some new songs I really enjoy. “Lifted Me (Live) [feat. Ashlee Young & Sean Dodson]” by Anthem Night Music & BrvndonP “Impossible? Nothing At All” by Transformation Worship. (My Choir Rec of the year) “STILL HOLY” by indie tribe, nobigdyl “IN THE ROOM” by nobigdyl “Liar” by Jon Keith “Sinful” by Aha Gazelle “Rendezvous” by Social Club Misfits Singles “Faker” and “ESC” by Thai McGrath - Anime-inspired Rock “Thanatos (End of Us),” “Cut the Cord,” “Library of Alexandra,” and “The Maze” by Janani K. Jha - Greek Mythology-inspired Pop “Sanctuary” “Honored” and “grow” by STIM - Prog Rock/Pop “I Don’t Write About Girls" by Marcin and Ichika Nito - Prog Rock “Imposter Syndrome” by Lew Sid “Don’t Save Her,” “Trailer Park Alien,” and “Throw It Back” by Brandon Jamar Scott - Rap “Run It Up” by Hanumankind - Rap “Timeless” by The Weeknd - Rap “Nihilist Blues (ft. Grimes) by Bring Me the Horizon (The Cover by Annisokay is here too.) - Rock “Why you gotta kick me when I’m down?” by Bring Me the Horizon - Rock “SLEEPWALKER” by Aries & brakence - Prog Pop “Drum Show,” and “City Walls” by Twenty One Pilots “Bright” by Yukata Hirasaka - One of my top singles of the year. - Mathrock “Folded” and “(un)Folded” by Kehlani - Pop/R&B “Mmm Good” by Scootie Wop - Rap “Lord of Ashes,” “Elegy of the End,” and “Counter-Blade” by Lappy - J-Rock “You Got Me!” by Able2change - Rap “War” by Elaya Amen - R&B “Red + Green” by Alex Jean - Rap “Delightful” by Refeeld - Lofi “Fractures” by Scro - DnB/Breakcore/Mathrock/Screamo “Somewhere I Belong” and “Crawling” (Midwest Emo covers) by Loner Youth - Midwest Emo “I was only temporary” by my head is empty - Yes, sometimes I like Tiktok songs “Confess your love (ft. Ola.wav)” - Yes, sometimes I like the Tiktok songs

Oh good points! EDIT: I'm not sure that Hoid's Travails is a trilogy, however. I thought it was just a subseries for these specific Secret Projects. If you have a source to prove me wrong, please go ahead! I personally feel another Secret Project is likely because: A) Current Era (2020-Current Time) Brandon seems incapable of being able to stop writing them; B. There are several small lines and hints in the SotS that present that vibe to me. Toward the beginning of the SotS, Brandon says "there's always another secret. And another story." He didn't need to add that last part, but the fact he felt like it was necessary to include sparked the idea of another Secret Project. Later on, Dan talks about the Council of Wizards meeting three times. Even if two of those books were Dan's books (which itself isn't a given*), Fires of December was finished last year and Mistborn 8 hadn't been finished yet, so I'm not entirely sure these would have been counted among the three. Thus, we're left with an open slot for the story/project that the Council of Wizards could have been to discuss, and a Secret Project would fit there quite well! 4. (Or rather 3A.) Brandon did this deliberately to see if he could drop a teaser and have people pick up on it. *Dan talks about three projects. Two are in revision, and one is most likely Dark One, as it's been in revisions for years at this point. That leaves one other project, one of the Cosmere projects. If this one finished up and was part of the reason the Council of Wizards met, then that's one book accounted for.

I completely agree that his writing speed will grind to a halt, but I don't think it'll be the entire time. I think Brandon would be busiest in preproduction, helping with scripts, casting, and the like. Once production starts, he'd just be there some of the time to give feedback. It also won't be all at once and it won't be all year. This also depends on the network. If Brandon's able to pitch something like Skyward to a service where all of the episodes are filmed before the first one airs, then it'll be relatively easier overall.

I went back and relistened due to your prompting and I heard it too! I have no idea what it's about, but since I'm almost positive Brandon wrote YET ANOTHER Secret Project this year (either as an add-along to either Arcanum Unbounded's* eventual Leatherbound or Oathbringer's Leatherbound in 2027 or as something else), I'm pretty sure we'll hear about it by the end of 2026. As an aside, I'd honestly rather Brandon's next Secret Project novel be Arcanum Unbounded 2. If it's not that, I'd prefer it even more if Sanderson saved most of his Secret Projects for another big SP Crowdfunding Campaign like the 2022 one. Having books release with smaller crowdfunding efforts does increase how much those smaller efforts raise overall, but that first Secret Project Kickstarter was magical...

When you talk with your dad about when a movie adaptation for Sanderson's work is going to come out, and then you start theorizing about which major film/tv production studios Brandon has been talking to, which would fit best for him, and what reasons they'd want the Cosmere and all associated projects. (As an aside, I think these companies are MASSIVELY underselling the potential appeal of the Hoid's Travails stories as animated feature films.) For Brandon, I think the best fits are: Universal Studios - This is mostly for merchandising, as Universal can be VERY good at that at times, like with Harry Potter.* Universal needs another franchise, since Illumination is focusing on Mario and Despicable Me stuff, Fast & Furious is coming to an end (with a whimper, not a bang), and Jurassic Park is once again in the middle of a soft reboot. A Cosmere section of Universal would be a grand addition to Universal Studios, and I think having a new location in Utah, while not the most appealing location, right next to Sanderson's own Dragonsteel Plaza, could be a very fun thing.** Paramount Studios - Paramount has a LOT of things going for them IMO, but a popular movie series that branches off into a franchise/shared universe isn't one of those right now. (Star Trek SHOULD be that, but it's not.) They could use the Cosmere, and Paramount Plus could treat Skyward well, since there's no way that'd air on CBS.*** (Legion or Snapshot on the other hand...) I think this could also help them combat Netflix (now that they own WB) and Disney. (Well, to a degree anyways.) Sony Pictures - Sony is in a weird place. On one hand, their animation studio has made a small name for themselves with the Hotel Transylvania movies, Spider-Man Spider-Verse movies, and now the global phenomenon of K-Pop Demon Hunters; this would be the single best studio for the Hoid's Travails stories, since I think they'd be one of the few studios ambitious enough to give each story its own animation style AND pull it off well. On the other hand, Sony cannot make a franchise to save their lives anymore. Brandon could be an absolute win for them...if they can handle the Cosmere well. Apple - I'm not entirely sure how well they'd do with Brandon, but I think they offer some interesting possibilities. I think things like Skyward, Perfect State, Snapshot, and even Moment Zero would thrive here. For Brandon, I think the worst fits are: Disney - Disney in theory should be the best fit, as it has the money and is currently the company with the most knowledge on how to maximize profits for a franchise. Despite what the previous few years would have you believe, Disney morphed the MCU from a burgeoning concept into one of the most profitable franchises on the planet. It's a franchise where singular movies can make billions, something unheard of at the time. You'd either have a billion-dollar franchise (if you're lucky) or a billion-dollar movie (if you're James Cameron), not both. They also bought Star Wars for several billions and saw an amazing ROI in practically no time at all.**** Disney is also a soulless husk of a company that would rather disgrace the creators of its content for more money than treat the product with any respect outside of what makes good PR. I love a lot of Disney's products and their theme parks, and that would be an amazing benefit to Sanderson.***** I also have absolutely zero trust in them when it comes to treating Sanderson fairly, and only a modicum more on whether they'd actually care enough to treat the Cosmere as it should be treated in the long-term. Just look at Tron.****** Netflix - Netflix is worse than Disney, because if the first product isn't a smash hit, they'd never make a sequel or a second season. Amazon - Amazon has all the money in the world, but they still struggle to consistently make good adaptations. I don't even hate The Wheel of Time - I quite like it, actually - but even then, I can understand some of vitriol it received. (Even if it was aimed at the wrong people.) Amazon would be worse than Disney, because they'd create a product with no intention of creating a franchise. Why these studios should want Brandon: Disney - Disney wants a monopoly on franchises and entertainment. The Cosmere could give them another franchise to milk. Disney needs something to distract audiences from Star Wars being cursed in many ways.******* Skyward may give that to them. Tress of the Emerald Sea and the other two Hoid's Travails stories could actually be GREAT ways to supplement the Disney Princess (and general female protagonist) stories. (And NGL, seeing a Cosmere-themed section at Disney World would make that place a nigh-annual trip for me.) Paramount and Sony - The Cosmere could be a great weapon against Disney, and Hoid's Travails as animated movies could be a potential way to counter the Disney Princess (and general female protagonist) stories. Universal Studios - The Cosmere is RIPE with potential merchandising products. Mistcloaks, Shardblades, Skyward Flight jackets, etc. We've all imagined the potential amusement park rides and things that could be done if the movies are successful. Universal is one of the few studios that has the capability to bring those ideas to life. Warner Bros - WB is in a weird place. On one hand, they did VERY well at the 2025 box office with A Minecraft Movie (which admittedly was more of Legendary Pictures), Sinners, F1, Superman, and Weapons. On the other hand, they sold themselves to Discovery not too long ago, and now just sold themselves to Netflix. Paramount would have been bad but understandable, Netflix is far, FAR worse. Had they still been under Discovery or even under Paramount, I'd probably put them on the recommended list. But as things stand now, I'd rather wait and see what they do with the DCU before making any decisions. TL;DR - Brandon should look at Paramount for franchising, Universal for merchandising, Sony for animation, and maybe Apple TV for prestige and financing. Brandon should stay away from Disney because they'll burn him and burn the future of his franchise for a quick buck if they don't know what to do with it (again, see Tron), Netflix because they'll never give it a fair chance, and Amazon because they don't know what they're doing yet. (They also probably burned him with the Kindle controversies and WoT.) All studios should want the Cosmere, and all studios should be eyeing the Hoid's Travails stories as a way to either supplement the Disney Princess Musical movies (if you're Disney) or counter the Disney Princess Musical movies. (If you're any other studio.) As an aside - WB would have been the perfect studio to pick up the Cradle animation as well. They're not afraid of darker animated shows like Young Justice. And these studios definitely need to be looking at Cradle, Dungeon Crawler Carl (I don't care for it, but this is going to get an adaptation eventually, and you want to be the one to spearhead the LitRPG-to-adaptation road), and Epic the Musical. Greek mythology is popular right now again, and you can counter Disney's musical movie reign with this. AND DISNEY PLEASE BRING BACK FILMORE! (Also, Disney if you're looking at this, a sequel to Treasure Planet based off of the old pirate book On Stranger Tides could be really cool.) *They don't own HP, Warner Bros does. But Warner Bros is about to go to Netflix, and that's a studio that, as you can see, Brandon should NOT SIGN TO UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE. **That being said, Utah's weather doesn't really lend itself to theme parks...I'm positive theme parks have a way to keep the snow out and things running well, but it's probably far more upkeep than it's worth. ***Hilariously, two and a half years ago, I wrote a post that mentioned Skyward getting an adaptation from a Paramount competitor to keep Paramount from succeeding at any Top Gun spinoffs. Clearly that didn't happen, but I also don't see a lot of Top Gun spinoffs as of yet. ****This doesn't fix that Lucasfilm left a LOT of money on the table in not having an overarching design for the Sequel Trilogy, but the mess doesn't start or end there. Nor does that erase the billions they've made. *****Merchandising and books within the theme parks would see Sanderson sell dozens, if not hundreds of copies each day. Then again, I didn't see any Star Wars at Disney World this summer, so who knows. I think I saw that Kingdom Keepers book series in the airport bookstore, but I can't remember if the series was in the amusement park proper. Hmm...the fact that Disney World doesn't have a bookshop called Belle's Bookshop is a crime. Does Disneyland have that? They could even have a little amusement park ride or some sort of ARG story that creates a short story about how the bookshop came to be. (The Prince is cursed into being a Beast again, and to rectify this he must gain the love of his people. He does so by turning his castle into a bookstore and sharing the stories he has to everyone. Maybe every couple of hours, the Beast could come out and read a story like how Universal has "How the Grinch Stole Christmas.") ******Tron honestly didn't need too much overall. It had a solid television show, just give it another show based on the digital world and the light-cycles and maybe a mobile game or at least more exposure in the games Disney has a good presence in. (EDIT: The show could even take inspiration from the French cartoon Code Lyoko, in that it could be about teenage hackers and their digital avatars...and then bring in the light cycles or something like that.) From there, you can turn it into a movie. Tron: Ares wasn't a bad movie, and in many ways it's more of sequel to the original Tron than Tron: Legacy was, but it's not the movie the franchise needed at this time. Maybe a movie was the cheaper of the two options overall, but I also feel like it was the path of least resistance and, as you can see, the path with the least potential for growth. ******Between controversial actors, poor release timing for movies and incredibly expensive reshoots, so many dropped projects, and video games that don't ever come out or perform as well as they should, Lucasfilm is all but cursed. Seriously, this feels like it goes beyond poor management. (Which YMMV on as well.) Star Wars is still a phenomenal money-maker for Disney in terms of merchandising - lightsabers are still pretty popular, and the sheer number of "Baby Yoda" things I've seen at the schools I've worked at over the years is INSANE. Heck, I showed my current students a small clip of Yoda and Luke training, and their first reactions were "Is that Baby Yoda?" and "Is that Baby Yoda's dad?" They didn't know who Yoda was by himself, only who he was in relation to Grogu aka "Baby Yoda." But Star Wars should be more than that. I feel like Star Wars wasn't just a character growing up, it was a world of imagination. I don't feel like Disney has shepherded that idea very well overall. They've done a decent job, but...well...maybe I'm just a curmudgeonly old man now.

I read it a few years ago, around 2021 I think. I liked it but didn't love it.

Great episode! I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks Brandon has yet another Secret Project lined up for 2027 lol.* In terms of the series that have gone in-and-out of the Cosmere over the years, I can think of about four to five off the top of my head: Skyward - Started as Cosmere, ended as its own shared universe. (There is speculation that Starling is who Spensa was based off of, but no confirmation yet.) Rithmatist - Started as Cosmere, ended as its own book series. Dark One - Started as its own thing, moved to the Cosmere, and back and forth until it ended as its own multimedia project that really hasn't had much movement. (A first volume of a graphic novel with no promise or updates on Volume 2 since around 2022/2023, an audio-novella, and a book that's been in revisions for 4-5 years now. (More on that later.) Adamant - Like Dark One, started as its own thing, then moved into the Cosmere and out again IIRC. This is what I thought y'all were referring to. Moonbreaker aka Soulburner/Starburner - I don't remember this being Cosmere, but y'all do, so go for it! (And one of the very few times I've gotten speculation correct - it WAS a videogame! ...just not the videogame I thought it was...) Speaking of Dark One, wouldn't the non-Cosmere, in-revision book Dan mentions be Dark One? It's weird to me that he didn't mention it by name. Dan's now and innovative book is going to be a wild ride, and I can't wait to see what his series is! *I would much rather than Brandon's next Secret Project either be Arcanum Unbounded 2, and the things he's been writing be short stories and novellas for that, or he saves all of his Secret Projects for a big Crowdfunding thing in 4-6 years. Surprise novels are great and help the crowdfunding campaigns they're part of, but it's the first 4 Secret Projects that propelled Brandon to his latest stage of fame. I think doing that again but with 4-5 years' worth of books could be awesome to see. (If that did happen, I think 4-6 books is likely, with a goal of 8 books being the dream. My personal hope would be for 11-12 books, but that's a fantasy and I know it.)

I read a lot of non-Cosmere things! I've been in a LitRPG rut for the past few years, so I haven't read a lot of Epic Fantasy outside of Brandon, but I still read a lot of other authors.

Interesting! I saw a YouTube video (I think it was by Lightcallers, but I can't remember) that basically asserted that each of the Knights Radiant (or maybe it was the main forms of Investiture) also related to a Shard, with some of the missing Shards being stand-ins for either potential combinations or maybe Surges from Ashyn. It was a really cool theory!

And a fun time was had by all! I really enjoyed the convention this year. It wasn't perfect, but problems from last year were addressed, and the convention game was a lot of fun! I really hope that they keep letting players feel like they're part of the Cosmere (or Cytoverse, or whichever universe they choose to do in the future) in the future. Highlights: I asked Sanderson a question during the Spoiler Q&A and didn't get a RAFO!* (It was the question about Jezrien and Kaladin. I can provide slight proof, but I didn't record it this time.) I got a book signed by Will Wight, alongside a picture. This was big because I didn't know he even HAD a signing or was coming to Dragonsteel until it was too late. I got a signed hardcover copy of Book 1 of my favorite book from this year. (Iron Prince aka Warformed: Stormweaver Book 1 by Bryce O'Connor.) Next year I'll get Fire & Song! (And hopefully Book 3 if it's out.) SECRET PROJECT 6!!! Amusing Moments: Seeing Chaos and Argent and others who I assume are either Arcanists and/or Beta/Gamma readers hanging out alongside Peter Ahlstrom and Isaac Steward in the Hyatt Saturday night as I return from getting food...only to see them still there as I check out at 3 AM. Y'all are some serious night owls! The parts of Intentionally Blank I saw. I didn't know what to expect of Tomi's personality beforehand, but I may just buy her books based on sheer vibes from now on. Tomi's hilarious, and I have several friends who are almost exactly like her, so I felt like I knew her. Also, Dan was so out of his element it was hilarious. (In a good way, for me in the audience at least!) The Downsides: The convention game DID take up a lot of time, which meant I'd miss either parts of panels or entire panels I wanted to check out because I was waiting in line to get a sticker. I don't regret it, and I love the effort the game possessed, but I do wish there was a way to shorten the lines. (To be fair Dragonsteel tried! It just didn't fully work well.) My Hopes for Next Year: Newly released books by some of my favorite authors, so I can have them signed (Brian McClellan's new Godglass book; Peter Orullian's anthology alongside Songs of the Dead; Will Wight's LitRPG Isekai and hopefully my leatherbound version of Wintersteel will have arrived; Warformed Book 3 by Bryce O'Connor) Will Wight (and by proxy, Brent Weeks) gets his own booth. He had a signing and was on panels but didn't have a booth. I find that kinda weird, to be honest. I think now that his books are in Barnes & Noble, having a booth will really help sales and publicity. Either a new Inter-realmatic Cosmere-based convention game, or a Frugal Wizard convention game. (Brandon, Dan, if y'all aren't ever going to write Frugal Wizard's Handbook to Surviving the Titanic, then at least let us play it! Or make it the Worldhoppers Ball adventure!) I can finally convince some of my friends to come with me to Dragonsteel Nexus!

Ay! I didn't expect the shoutout! It was awesome getting that WoB, and here's to many more!