Dimension 20: Fantasy High Junior Year picked up with the Bad Kids defeating the Night Yorb before they are faced with their most difficult academic year yet. Struggling to balance challenging course loads, emotional changes in their personal lives, and antagonistic peers, the Bad Kids stumble upon another mystery that threatens not only them but the school and Spyre at large. When they discover the true villains are not only their rivals, the Rat Grinders, but trusted faculty members, they will once again have a showdown with powerful evil in the Aguefort gymnasium to decide the fate of the world.

Fantasy High is the season that launched Dimension 20 and has the most lore with three seasons of Fantasy High, The Seven, and Pirates of Leviathan expanding the world of Spyre. The Intrepid Heroes, Ally Beardsley, Siobhan Thompson, Zac Oyama, Lou Wilson, Emily Avfor, and Brian “Murph” Murphy, once again return to the dome with Brennan Lee Mulligan serving as Game Master. Fantasy High Junior Year culminated in a narrative that Mulligan has woven from the first season that paid off six years later.

Screen Rant interviewed Ally Beardsley about Kristen’s arc in Dimension 20: Fantasy High Junior Year. They explained how Kristen has evolved and how their own life influenced interactions with characters including Buddy Dawn and Kipperlilly Copperkettle. Beardsley discussed the relationship between Tracker and Kristen as well as the hilarious K2.

Ally Beardsley Explains Why They Wanted To Explore “The Cost Of Chaos” This Season

Fantasy High was the first season of Dimension 20 and the Intrepid Heroes have grown as players over the last six years. This became extremely evident for Beardsley when returning to Kristen Applebees. They shared how they had to fight the temptation to change their approach to playing Kristen in order to stay true not only to the character, but the high school setting.

Ally Beardsley: I’ve been saying this a bunch to other people, but it’s been funny to pick up a character that I made when I didn’t know how to play and still honor that level of ineptitude.

I definitely had that thought when you were looking at your character sheet a couple of times early on, you’re like, “I didn’t know what I was doing when I built this.” Can you talk to me about Kristen’s evolution, from when you first played to who she has become now?

Ally Beardsley: I fought every impulse tooth and nail to not radically change her because I was like, with specifically being able to do things right, I was like, “That’s not what happens in high school. You don’t just all of a sudden become a fully functioning adult.”

I think when I first started, she was kind of isolated, lonely, that was the found family story of the first season. It’s been fun to give her confidence in creating the gods that she wants, but also still being kind of chaotic. I think I said this in the trailer, but it was the cost of chaos we wanted to explore.

No, I loved how we saw that. You said, “We’re seeing chaos that’s not cute,” which I thought was a very, very cool thing. We’ve seen Kristen really on this journey to find herself, who she is and where she fits in this world, after saying she didn’t like the church that she grew up in, how has it been to see her fully accept Ankarna and Cassandra as her gods versus every other season where she’s been like, “No, I don’t like this one. I need to find a new one?”

Ally Beardsley: Brennan did a great job. I never know what he’s going to do in the season, and so I’m kind of sharing with him being like, “Oh yeah, I’m going to kind want to look at the cost of chaos among a friend group.” He definitely took it to the board of just being like, “Oh, and also any little lukewarm moment you have with your God, she’s going to take extremely personally and she’s going to be in grave danger.” It’s just like, “Oh, this is perfect. Yeah.”

You kind of take your eye off the goal for a second and things can really go south. I think it’s kind of that feeling of you don’t realize how much you cared about something until it’s taken away. She’s really having to fight for the specific God when her previous gods seemed very disposable and rough draft feeling. I think it’s been fun for her to interact with truly the perfect God for her, but she’s not the perfect follower for the God. That’s where the disconnect is.

“[Kipperlilly] Might Be Riz’s Nemesis, But No, This Is My Nemesis”

The Rat Grinders were introduced as a mirror image of the Bad Kids, but Beardsley had an immediate visceral reaction to the introduction of Kipperlilly Copperkettle which prompted an iconic line from Kristen Applebees. Beardsley explained why Kipperlilly hit such a nerve and became her nemesis instead of Buddy Dawn who was likely intended to be Kristen’s main Rat Grinder antagonist.

Ally Beardsley: It’s so funny because I haven’t asked Brennan this, actually, I’m very curious, but it seems almost like each of the Rat Grinders was made to be one specific person’s foil. So you would imagine that she was Riz’s and that Riz would run for president, but her energy was just so specifically the type A person who does not understand my ADHD, my entire life and was kind of like, “You’re lazy. You’re not pulling your weight.” The type of person who would make me feel miserable.

When we met her, I was just like, “It’s on.” I was like, “No, she might be Riz’s nemesis, but no, this is my nemesis and Buddy is old news.” When we met Buddy Dawn, I was like, “Definitely we are opposed to each other,” and he’s definitely someone I would want to keep my eye on as Kristen, but Kipperlilly struck an emotional cord.

It was so great. Just every moment of being like, “I have to poke at her. That is my goal in life.” It was interesting because Buddy and Bobby Dawn, it almost seemed like it was that sense of, “I’ve already moved past this. This is not an issue for me.” You almost had a level of empathy for them that I wasn’t expecting. What was that thought process for you to show more empathy for the people from the church that she used to be a part of?

Ally Beardsley: That was a really fun thing that I just found in bringing my own personal point of view to the table because I think when I first lost my religion or felt very I didn’t fit into the church anymore, being queer, being trans, I had a lot of, “Oh, get that away from me,” a lot of animosity. I think it’s just a testament to what freedom can feel like, that I just have a lot of joy in my life and there isn’t a part of me that feels like I need to put those people down.

I just kind of see it as a really earnest searching that maybe got kind of corrupted, but it still feels very human and very cool to be like, “Oh, you’re really earnestly trying for this thing.” It’s kind of conservative. It’s kind of telling a lot of people that they’re wrong and you are right. It almost just feels like interacting with a child who still has black and white thinking or really extreme thoughts and no nuance or middle ground. I think that the empathy truly came in just from my own experience.

It’s interesting you talk a little bit about corruption because one of the things I found very intriguing about the Rat Grinders, is the more we learned about them, it felt like these are a bunch of kids that were corrupted by one person, but they just took that step too far over the line when they killed their friend. What were your thoughts as you learned more about the lore of the Rat Grinders and that they’ve been here envious of you guys the entire time?

Ally Beardsley: I think that was just such a brilliant idea from Brennan because it wasn’t just like body snatchers took over them or something. There was a lot of personal agency, and when you have an axe to grind, then very scary corrupting power can come in and be like, “Oh, well, do you want the power to be able to enact your anger?” We’re not meeting a bunch of people who were really peaceful and then taken over.

I can sing Brennan’s praises literally all day because I’m just like, I love that story of specifically anger and being a teenager. That’s such a part of your emotional landscape. It was really fun. Yeah, it’s hard because at the end we’re kind of like, “Do we hate these people? Do we save them? Do we feel bad for them?” Maybe it’s a mix of all three.

Especially with how many of them come back at the end. That was my thought with it too. Because some of them do remember. I was like, “What does that mean? How is that going to go?” They remember all the bad stuff they did.

Ally Beardsley: I’m like, “Yeah, there’s some unfinished business there.” Maybe in Senior Year or something, we’ll have to figure out what to do with them if they’re still around.

I Don’t Really Know If [Tracker And Kristen] Get Back Together”

Many of the relationships that were a major part of Fantasy High: Sophomore Year had changed drastically in the time between Sophomore and Junior Year. The split between Tracker and Kristen left fans devastated, especially when learning Tracker had moved on and was seeing someone else. Beardsley shared how the break-up fit into Kristen’s growth this season and whether they will reunite after the finale.

Ally Beardsley: I don’t really know if they get back together. I think that’s going to be fun to think about. I think when you’re really young and you go through a breakup, it can feel kind of like world ending. I was just talking to a friend about this also because I think there’s kind of a belonging or inspiration. There’s something kind of in your heart that you don’t think you can feel without love or a relationship, and that’s not just young. I have people my age who are literally working through that right now.

For Kristen, I think it’ll just be that kind of journey of getting away from identifying yourself with romantic love only and having that be the most important thing to you, but she’s not there yet. I think the breakup with Tracker and seeing that [Tracker] already has a new person in her life, is just totally gutting and adding to the chaos of Junior Year.

Kristen’s unhinged behavior as she learns things is one of my favorite things ever. I love that we see it mirrored at the end with Gertie being like, “You’re my nemesis now,” and Kristen just like, “What is happening?”

Ally Beardsley: A taste of her own medicine.

Ally Beardsley On The Hilarity Of “Making Brennan Have To Make Sense” Of K2

K2, a straight British simulacrum of Kristen, became one of the funniest bits at the end of Fantasy High Junior Year with two natural 20s causing Mulligan to walk away from the table. Beardsley explained what inspired K2 to be straight and British. They also shared how the fast-paced decision-making led to these hilarious moments and the joy of watching Mulligan scramble to deal with these natural 20s.

Ally Beardsley: I think, okay, so K2 clearly was just totally organic. It was a one-off joke where I was like, Siobhan, the player, not even in this world, gave me the ability to be copied. I’m like, “Oh, LOL, what if this person was British?” Then she became straight. I think that’s so funny. I have friends who were twins where one person is queer and the other person is straight, and it makes me laugh. This was an homage to them.

Yeah, her casting Divine Intervention, there’s just something that happens at the table. You have to make so many choices, rapid fire. I think had we gotten a second to all take a break, we would’ve had K2 roll her Divine Intervention first because she doesn’t know what the f-ck she’s doing and it’s really personal to Kristen. If that didn’t work, Kristen would do it.

But no, I rolled Kristen’s role first. Definitely did get it. There’s a delirium that takes over the entire table. It happens with the orange hat. It’s a giggle, it’s a disbelief. That is so powerful that I think that’s why I was able to roll the Divine Intervention with Brennan shaking his head, “No, please God, no,” and then making him honor that. I don’t know, there’s just so much.

It was definitely very, very funny out of game just as me, Brennan, me the player making Brennan have to make sense of this. I think it was very funny that he brought her back because we’re definitely not done with her. Now she has no spells. She can only cast it once. Now she’s just a girl and she’s going to Hudol, and I’m really proud of her.

What were you guys thinking when it was revealed that Fig had been right the entire time and Porter is evil?

Ally Beardsley: Incredible. It’s incredible. I think Emily also just as a player, has a great way of sniffing out things, but it was really interesting because Brennan never forces our hand and in character as Porter was like, “No, don’t become a Paladin.”

Emily definitely, we clocked that and we were like, “Weird, usually NPCs aren’t like, no, you can’t do [something], they’re not extreme like that.” I think we all thought nothing of it. Then coming back and being like, “Oh my gosh, that was the big bad and you becoming a Paladin would’ve been a big [deal]” Yeah, very, very funny.

It was such a great reveal. You’ve had the biggest impact on the lore of Spyre by building out these Gods. Is that something you want to explore further? Are you looking to expand the Pantheon, or are you looking to create more God gossip going on?

Ally Beardsley: I think Kristen’s whole arc of this season was about getting out of, she kind of identifies with being chaotic and that can be a cop out. I think it was her having to kind of realize the cost of that chaos and so her making these kind of disposable gods and being like, “Oh, what about this,” first draft kind of gods, and realizing how unsatisfying that is and that she just actually has to care about something.

She’s found this perfect God for her, that I think future Kristen stories will definitely be about Cassandra, about Ankarna. That is the perfect God for her. I don’t see her necessarily window shopping like she has been. I also think that speaks…it’s really true how that feels going from being so indoctrinated, so all about one specific religion.

There was a tweet that was like, “Whenever someone is talking about astrology, all I hear them saying is I miss religion.” I was like, “Yeah, you hop from one thing to another.” I got really into astrology. I made all these new versions of a church until I let go and found mystery. I think Ankarna/Cassandra is very much an insert of what I find to be true. I don’t see something after that.

About Dimension 20: Fantasy High Junior Year

Fantasy High Junior Year continues the adventures of the Aguefort Adventuring Academy Bad Kids. Following their successful defeat of the dragon Kalvaxus and the Nightmare King, they will face something even scarier…their future. The Bad Kids will begin to question their path after high school as they continue to find themselves, go on adventures, and get into trouble.

Check out our other Fantasy High Junior Year interviews:

• Siobhan Thompson
• Zac Oyama
• Carlos Luna
• Brennan Lee Mulligan

Source: Screen Rant Plus