In case you’re scratching the itch to follow teenage wizards in action but don’t want to shell out for the new Harry Potter game (or the increasingly terrible spin-off movies), you can always watch a bunch of nerds play harry potter and the d20. Adapted from Dimension 20’s Dungeons and Dragons role-playing series Misfits and Magic, this new take on the story follows a group of American kids sent to Gawpenny Academy, a magical school in Scotland that bears more than a few similarities to Hogwarts. The players, like the characters they embody, are very aware of Rowling’s world and call BS on a lot of its tropes. In the course of their dnd sessions, they mock the Sorting Hat ceremony, question whether it’s really worth it to send a homeless kid to Gryffindor house, and chastise Evan Kelmp for being a potential He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
While it’s no HP and the Sacred Stones, harry potter and the d20 is still a fun, fast-paced show that makes excellent use of its meta elements. It’s also, as you might expect, often hilarious: the players’ attempts to order a McRib from the magical British kitchen are a treat for the eyes, and the “common fucking sense die,” which rewards the kids with gameplay boosts for subverting fantasy narratives with real-world wisdom, is an inspired touch.