This was supposed to be episode 209, with some game analysis, an idiot box recommendation and some isights into music and community. I didn't like the results. It didn't really feel of any value to do things as I would have when Punching Cardboard was in it's prime. After re-recording several times I realized there was no getting around the fact that the show as it existed was finished. 

Hence, here we are, in the Whiskey for the end of  . . .  format that I adopted at the beginning of the dark times. This feels more genuine, and after 208 episodes, it seems like the best way to end the original show.

Adieu.

One. Two Three. Four.

We front load this episode with four games discussed in detail, included are forays into adjacent concepts in gaming. After two hours of that nonsense we delve into some music and television that's enlightening our minds and enriching our lives.

Please enjoy.

VIEWING SCHEDULE:

00:04:25 -- Alma Mater
00:48:57 -- Worker Placement: Offensive???
00:55:55 -- Babylonia
01:14:45 -- Marvel Champions with a Side of Legendary
01:42:11 -- Let's Pour Another Round: Midsummer's Night Dram and Festbier
01:47:50 -- Spirit Island
02:11:57 -- Big Music Discussion (Pineapple Thief, Pattern Seeking Animals, Airbag, Drive-by Truckers)
02:43:43 -- Don't Forget the Driver: TV Off the Beaten Path

It's been a hard couple of weeks here, so for those of you tuning in, we thank you. It really does mean something to us.

This is a solo effort as Joe is off burying his mother and attending to all that accompanies a person's passing. Our broken hearts are with him.

And we are all devastated by the murder of George Floyd as well as the continued beatdown we're all taking from the Coronavirus pandemic. Hard times come again no more indeed.

So I muse on all of the above and close with discussion of 3 Playstation titles that are keeping me out of my own head late at night. No wisdom, just ramblings.

Take care. Be kind. Love. Peace. Understanding.

Black Lives Matter!

Wasting no time, we dive into the main game we played the past few weeks. A handful of games follow.

Still, all the content you expect, just in a different order.

Enjoy.

THE SCRIPT:

00:01:24 -- Hansa Teutonica (in-depth, session)
00:45:29 -- The Albums of 1975
00:57:54 -- Memory Failure: Did We Already Discuss the family Hellas Session?
00:59:18 -- Triumph & Tragedy (session)
01:15:25 -- Santa Maria (first take)
01:35:50 -- Captains of Industry (session)
01:56:00 -- Books, the Surreal Life and Other Miseries

Join us as we enter week two of the lockdown. We desperately want to keep in touch with our listeners. Hopefully we can keep each other sane as we navigate this brave new world. Included are some tips on gaming with your partner while on lockdown.

In part 2 of our limited series we get Joe setup with a recording rig at home. We talk a little more about the current predicament and then migrate our book discussion over and take a look at Lydia Fitzpatrick's Lights All Night Long.

Hey all.

The Punching Cardboard team is in Isolation. Isolation sucks. It's lonely. It's unnerving. It's stopping us from playing games and talking about them.

But we still have voices, and we think just maybe you'd like our voices to visit the wilderness of your own isolation. You know, to counteract the ones in your brain urging you to scream and never stop.

So, for now, while this disruption lasts, we're gonna send you this series. Our way of talking through the absurdity that is life, especially now that it's truly absurd. These episodes will be shorter and much more frequent (because what the hell else do we have to do) and probably much more free of form and topical, not like we do the PCP any other way.

We hope you dig it.

The boys are back in town and doing well, and all is right with the world. In this episode, the BGG CON experience and a smattering of games, both old and new.

Enjoy.

SCHEDULE:

00:09:20 -- Another Year?
00:12:06 -- December's Book Selection
00:22:26 -- The BGG CON Experience
00:31:25 -- Crayon Rails (Martian Rails, Iron Dragon)
00:43:15 -- Lowenherz
00:48:02 -- Web of Power
01:05:01 -- Random Shout-outs
01:08:47 -- The Mayor of Eurotown
01:14:13 -- Hockey Game Hijinks
01:29:19 -- Underwater Cities
01:47:02 -- Blackout: Hong Kong

Welcome to a lively episode. In this one we dip our toes back into the Eurogame-o-sphere, and we are fairly excited about the waters.

Also, the first installment of the Punching Cardboard Book Club, which results in a heady and exhilarating discussion. As they say in sportsball, we left it all on the field in this one.

CHAPTERS:

00:18:52 -- Wilderness War
00:30:55 -- Francis Drake
01:04:12 -- The Estates
01:19:45 -- Westward American Single Malt
01:30:07 -- TV Diversions: Daredevil Season 3, Patriot
01:36:10 -- Coimbra
01:59:39 -- Book Club #1: Transatlantic, by Colum McCann

It's that time, and we roll the dice and lay out the games that have caught our attention in this year's Essen preview show.

First we cover 10 games nominated by our guild using a complex and patented formula. Then we each take a shot at adding five games of our own discovery. Throw in some expansion discussion, and you have a show of partially educated guessing that is sure to wow even the most cynical gamer.

SPOILERS:

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00:14:49 -- The Guild 10 plus
00:16:03 -- Tramways Workbook
00:17:58 -- Barrage
00:2303 -- 18Lilliput
0026:37 -- SpaceCorp
00:30:45 -- City of the Big Shoulders
00:34:20 -- Reykholt
00:37:43 -- Pipeline
00:44:06 -- Teotihuacan
00:49:05 -- Captains of the Gulf
00:56:20 -- Pax Emancipation
01:03:42 -- Blackout: Hong Kong
01:12:30 -- Our Fives
01:15:05 -- Architects of the West Kingdom (Jim #5)
01:18:56 -- Ancient Civilizations of the Inner Sea (Jim #4)
01:20:20 -- Underwater Cities (Jim #3)
01:22:04 -- Europa Universalis (Joe #5)
01:24:09 -- Pandoria (Joe#4)
01:25:22 -- Dominant Species: Marine (Joe #3)
01:28:06 -- Imaginarium (Joe #2)
01:30:37 -- Expedition Zetta (Jim #2)
01:34:02 -- War Room (Jim #1)
01:37:20 -- Newton (Joe #1)
01:44:11 -- Expansions and Other Riff Raff