Dimension 20 Brings WWE Superstars Out Of The Ring And To A D&D Table
Professional wrestling and new media often find themselves united on the same frontiers. Pro wrestling programming helped sustain cable television for many years. The Rock'n'Roll Wrestling blitz of the early 80's made WWE Superstars like Hulk Hogan and 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper into MTV personalities with artists like Cyndi Lauper.
This pioneering tag team reforms with Titan Takedown, the latest Side Quest from Dimension 20. This miniseries brings four WWE Superstars into the D&D world: Xavier Woods (aka Austin Creed), Kofi Kingston, Bayley and Chelsea Green. Creed, creator of the popular UpUpDownDown gaming content channel, was the key to getting this crew together.
'The process started in a way a lot of our Side Quests have,' said Brennan Lee Mulligan, Dungeon Master for Titan Takedown. 'Conversations just started bubbling up amongst the cast and crew of the show. These four wrestlers have so many fans among Dropout staff and Dimension 20 crew. Talking about the mini seasons we have to do for the year. Austin [Creed]
The plotline of mashes up mythological figures with Wrestlemania flair. The heroes have come to ancient Athens to battle in a fighting tournament to entertain the Gods of Olympus. It soon becomes evident that each player character has their own agenda for joining the tournament, be it sibling rivalry, atonement or vengeance.
One of Mulligan's great strengths as a performer is his ability to effortlessly shift from drama to comedy and back again. The first episode is full of dramatic backstories but also plenty of off the cuff moments thrown back at him by the players. Both sides of the screen are talented in the art of improvisation which was a key selling point in deciding who would star in this series.
'Reaching out to people in the Dimension 20 orbit we started asking around,' said Mulligan. 'There are a lot of people who might be interested in potentially working with us. Here are some names we've gotten. Are there people here that we should focus on? We don't want to invite everybody and say no to a bunch of people. We want to be thoughtful about who we invite. It came back to Bayley and Chelsea. They've got the chops, they're incredible performers, comedically they are right in the pocket where you want them to be. From there it was delightful. Absolutely delightful.'
As actual plays grow larger, the shows and their fans are often accused of not playing 'real D&D.' They often attract the same critics on-line who love to try and deflate wrestling fans by talking about the pre-scripted nature of the event. While it may be a different experience than playing the game with friends at a dining room table, the passion for the game remains an important element.
'The amount of work,' said Mulligan, 'it would take to fake this is so outlandish. It's like the people who say they faked the moon landing and they describe a series of [events] of what would have had to happen. Then you say ' that's way harder than going to the moon, man' The idea that we would write scripts for these two and a half hour shows, memorize them and then perform them…why would we leave so many pauses? The proof is in the pudding. You are either entertained by what is happening or you are not.'
While fans of Dimension 20 were excited by the initial trailer, many of them wondered wher Brian 'Murphy' Murphy, an avowed wrestling fan and cast member, was during these proceedings. As a slight spoiler, he does make his mark on the show in an after credits segment. Mulligan took the opportunity to show his love for Murph in the most wrestling way possble: by cutting a promo on him.
'The idea that I'm Heismanning Murph away is so insulting,' said Mulligan. 'I live in a tent outside of Murph's house. Every morning I wake up and I bang on the door. 'Please, Murph, please! Won't you come do something with me?' Murph, in a cloud of darkness, feverishly working on NADDpod, working so hard to make more content for you. He hears the door slam and he just says 'Leave me. Leave me to my dark work.' That happens every day. This idea that I'm not blowing up Murph's phone all day every day is outrageous. I've had it!''
Titan Takeover begins on April 2nd, 2025 on Dropout and airs every Wednesday thereafter. The WWE Superstars head into Wrestlemania season this month.
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