Grog: the Brains of the Group PART 2 (episodes 60-75)

Part 2 of Grog showing off his intelligence.
Please tag spoilers in your comments!
All clips belong to Critical Role: / @criticalrole

[@dude11579]

TO ANYONE COMING TO COMMENTS TO COMPLAIN ABOUT A "LAUGH TRACK": There is no laugh track. The clip at the beginning of the video is from one of their live shows, where they were on a stage at a convention playing in front of a live audience. There is no canned laughter involved. They have done several episodes on stage in front of an audience, including I think 3(?) Of their one-shots and a couple main series episodes.

[@BriannaZumbro]

Thank you!

[@dude11579]

@@BriannaZumbro Haha no problem. I'm sure it's been frustrating. My comment probably isn't going to do anything but I figured it's worth throwing it out there to maybe detract SOME people from being obnoxious.

[@BriannaZumbro]

It is absolutely worth it.

[@damienamarty]

Oh dang, thanks for that context! I was about to make a comment on what I had (erroneously) assumed had been an added laugh track

[@ivanivan744]

"Why did you put a laugh track?! I couldn't hear anything" "I didn't. those are genuine laughs from a genuine audience. It's almost like they're funny"

[@WexMajor82]

Guys, guys, he knows what he's doing. His intelligence is 6.

[@half_chub]

that was a quote from like episode 6 and one of my favorite things hes ever said, especially since he said it to vax

[@reggyjohnson9083]

Average fallout player- Hello fellow genius

[@maxlever6802]

Grog: Of the dragons? A legit question given the context.

[@SKy_the_Thunder]

It's a great question in that moment because it shows that Grog isn't straight up cartoonishly stupid. He understands everything (as long as he knows what the words mean) but can lose track of details or context. His mind was still on the dragons, and as those were the last "they" that were mentioned, that's how he understood the question. Brilliantly played by Travis.

[@zombie5017]

@@SKy_the_Thunder that is how i answer in real life, i know what the context that the question was asked in but i cant help myself.

[@Solnoric]

Grog is a fantastic representation of how damn smart Travis is - you gotta be pretty smart to play dumb that brilliantly.

[@helplmchoking]

Yeah I know he found it really frustrating being that limited (and that's what happens when a random one off character with 6 int runs for years) but holy shit does it take some big brain acting to figure out how to be as dumb as possible at all times

[@deathninja16]

That's my favorite character type. My half orc Barbarian can be distracted with jingling keys at this point in my friends campaign. ​@@helplmchoking

[@DarkAngelCookie]

Travis set an example on how to play a low intelligence character. No speaking from himself in third person, no utter bullshit that cinematography would sell as "oh, haha, look at him, he's dumb!"- Just a perfectly acted out character with low intelligence. Travis is just gold.

[@delmerputnam1679]

Taking away everything he learns once the potion wears off is hilarious, but damn it’s so cruel

[@phinehashunter-eldridge8711]

And then doesn’t even give him his full name on a 12 intelligence check just giving him the first 2 letters also kinda cruel I definitely got the sense that that whole scene while very funny was a big reason Grog tried to learn and get smarter every time they had time off

[@EdsonR13]

Did you learn the whole alphabet in one night

[@delmerputnam1679]

@@EdsonR13 no, but to take away EVERYTHING? Damn, like maybe at least let him keep 10% of what he learned. Again, still funny just really cruel. But honestly, that’s one of the reasons it’s funny

[@EdsonR13]

@@delmerputnam1679 I dont think it was literally everything, but saying it was is a good way to see how serious grog was about learning and he ended up sticking with it. Besides I dont think Pike was really the best of teachers

[@deathwrow9652]

@@delmerputnam1679 The reason is because in the previous version, barbarians have a feature that literally stops them from being capable of reading. And Matts knows this, and even though nothing in 5e does this, he still had that character feature from a previous edition.

[@ZachSing]

Scanlan: H-Hey..... you....you spice? Grog: ARE YOU BUYING DRUGS?

[@joshbowman9481]

“Grog you can draw pictures for us” Grog continues to give the most thoughtful expression he’s ever given in his life

[@rimurutempest4945]

I love the headcanon of Matt being a voice in Grog’s head, considering he answers everything Matt says in Grog’s voice.

[@theimperviousfirecracker7934]

It's interesting how such a vanilla character concept can be made so interesting and entertaining.

[@A2Ztigers]

Just goes to show, it's not the character, it's how you play it

[@owenwatkins9490]

Tropes exist because they are enjoyable and interesting. However, its easy to take a trope and turn it into a patronizing stereotype. Its a very fine line.

[@liamwelsh4665]

@@A2Ztigers human fighters unite

[@holyyoghurtman1952]

@@liamwelsh4665 point me at a human and i will fight them

[@codyjohnson5047]

Proof that a vanilla human fighter or Goliath barbarian can be just as interesting as some crazy combo of class and race. Its all about how you play and develop them

[@thetntraider]

The first clip.. and thus Grog completely changed the Critter greeting forever

[@MilanousMedia]

They included "biday" in the series

[@_Harvestman_]

"Flowers for Grogernon" is such an underrated joke

[@theomcinturff1213]

Grog learning the Alphabet is easily some of the absolute best roleplay I've ever seen. Grog is not a complex character, but to have everyone else at the table fucking dying takes some serious cleverness and good acting.

[@Reven619]

Man, no wonder Matt said that Travis was cruising with Grog all of c1. Grog had to make no major plans

[@Noon3rs]

Grog COULDN’T make any major plans!

[@cjmarion6350]

@@Noon3rs i mean he gets at least an idea a day but thats it haha

[@Ducaso]

@@cjmarion6350 But damn he takes the one idea allowance and makes it comedy.

[@Jabooduable]

Okay but like, after seeing stuff like this from campaign 1 and jester's crazy antics in campaign 2 I want nothing more than to see Grog and Jester go out on adventures and shit together. They would perfectly fit the whole "2 halves of the same braincell" trope and I would fucking love it.

[@ElizabethMm315855]

Grog trying to count one of Jester's messages is the height of chaotic gremlin energy

[@retrowave69]

you want them to shit together? Weird

[@imkabochan]

Jester, grog and fearne doing whatever they want While caleb, percy and imogen do damage control after them

[@paulscott2037]

Grog, Jester, Chetney and Fearne... Pure lovable chaos.

[@rhokesh4391]

Make that a one-shot. Please 🤣

[@FredMcCheese1]

NGTL: I would love a short series of Pike teaching Grog how to spell and how to read.

[@LyleBoy2]

That's by far my favorite scene from Campaign 1. It makes me so happy.

[@FlowersForVax]

I was JUST thinking that! they could do it as a team up with 826LA too :D

[@dseray9494]

Pike would have a good future in educational children's TV IRL

[@tylershelton9334]

11:54 The way he so confidently says "G" is hilarious

[@codygarton7177]

i love how Matt was going to warn them about how the alphabet would not translate to giant, but then realized the comical value of what was happening and let it play out

[@mewzombieful]

percy and grog make for best conversations.

[@kaitlynwickham6237]

Two opposite ends of the intelligence spectrum that can't meet in the middle is comedy gold.

[@Thebrooky12]

“Prove that it’s you.” “…No.” “It’s you.”

[@SKy_the_Thunder]

I think Tal played a bit into Percy's "burden of knowledge" and had him delight in the simple way in which Grog sees the world. The "oh to be a child again" angle.

[@samuelstensgaard4828]

Percy cranks up his condescending asshole traits to 11 whenever he's talking to Grog. Yet another reason why he's my favorite character.

[@rebeccadittman6350]

I love the way everyone in the cast smile/laughs at grog’s “dragons can fly” because it’s a great dumb line… and then each one kinda gets this fond expression like “yep, that’s OUR idiot… and we love him”

[@lunacyandpirates]

Travis is severely underrated as a comic

[@lawrenceethan1675]

The comments complaining about the "laugh track" really prove that Grog is the brains

[@ThePluralApostrophe]

No, laugh tracks are just obnoxious. Makes this entire thing unwatchable.

[@sonan333]

@@ThePluralApostrophe I can't tell if you are joking, or if you walked away 10 seconds in.

[@ThePluralApostrophe]

@@sonan333 I did, because laugh track.

[@sonan333]

@@ThePluralApostrophe Well, then you should know that it isn't a laugh track. That was a clip from one of their live shows, which to be fair, when watching it I also thought it was a laugh track, and it really should have been put a bit later in the video. But yeah, it's there for like 30 seconds.

[@darkyatom]

@@ThePluralApostrophe wow you really are slow

[@MrPlee01]

Travis Willingham's performance of Grog is a masterclass of 'Playing Dumb' in DnD

[@adamr6621]

Watching everyone nearly beg Matt to let Grog spell his own name was so sweet it made me tear up a little lol.

[@MilanousMedia]

I love how you can hear Matt's voice crack as he has to tell them about potion fading

[@zeddwulfen7737]

Yeah he didn't wanna do that buuut... yeah.

[@Darksilver740]

8:16 I love how the DM is the only person to laugh at Grog's joke there

[@Andy-iq6rk]

Now I kinda want Grog to come back in something like either showing up in a campaign or a one-shot a few years after the end of campaign one with an intelligence of 8, reading and writing like a child, slowly and painfully mouthing the letters before finally actually reading it.

[@seanob8001]

8:44 Everyone in Vox Machina misses it, but when Grog counts out "10" platinum that's really only six, Travis accidentally counts 7 numbers (1, 3, 7, 8, 9, 40, 10).

[@Solnoric]

'accidentally'

[@joeljude9180]

Lol are they supposed to point it out?

[@xtratic]

Which makes it so much funnier

[@itskentros]

I FINALLY UNDERSTAND WHY PEOPLE SAY BIDET FROM _______ IN THE LIVESTREAMS!

[@omfgitsfat]

The first campaign is amazing, I recommend watching or listening to it (the birth of the metagaming pigeon was also in campaign 1)

[@matthewparsons4597]

In my head cannon, Pike taught Grog how to spell his own name. He gets pretty confident with it, and learns to spell Pike's name as well. They were having a real friendship moment, and then the potion starts to wear out. Grog can feel himself becoming slower, duller, and he panics a little bit. He's worried that he's going to lose a part of himself. He snatches the pen and keeps writing his name over and over again, but the more he does it the slower he scribes. On his final attempt, he spells out 'Gr' and then his hand trails off, incapable of going any further. He slumps back on his chair, disappointed, and sheds a few tears in self-pity. Pike comes to him to try to comfort him, and at her touch he remembers where he is. He hides his sadness, makes a completely hair-brained excuse to leave, and returns to his room to rest and let himself feel vulnerable. The thing that really disappointed him is that he forgot how to spell Pike before he forgot how to spell Grog. 'Grog' was the only word he knew, a lonely word on a lonely sheet of paper

[@karrazaki89]

Its like the ending of Flowers for Algernon.

[@thedyingmeme6]

_s a a a a a a a a a a a a a d_

[@lizzmartins125]

Why would you hurt me like this?

[@bradleybrown8428]

Why are you such an evil bastard? Why would you do this to me?

[@lpfan678]

Fuck, Pike trying to teach Grog to read was so, so good.

[@goodbrows]

everyone else: "be pleased" grog: "...bleep bleep"

[@dunkleham]

"Your mind is a grandfather clock, you know that? It's correct at least twice a day"

[@mcmann2243]

I think it’s incredible that grog’s intelligence is almost on level of animals and is one point away from having the same intelligence as MIMICS.

[@bwhit7919]

“Flowers for Grogernon” lmao

[@robgraham5320]

Travis Willingham is secretly the funniest man in the room.

[@Celticshade]

liam with that prediction. holy shit. thats exactly what happened even the time jump of a year.

[@iDongu]

Grog is the cutest and I will forever be in love with him

[@scottshaw8864]

Fun fact, for all that Grog's low int is played up, Tiberius had a lower wisdom (4) than Grog's intelligence (6)

[@deffdefying4803]

Dont worry it showed

[@lauravturner]

That makes a lot of sense.

[@samuelstensgaard4828]

That makes sense, considering all the low insight checks he rolled when the cast was pissed at him

[@johnrodgers8457]

It was kind if a shame they had a falling out. When they got along he was a great addition to the cast.

[@Tbm998]

@@johnrodgers8457 honestly, agreed. Tiberius is a big “what if” character… what we could have had, how the campaign could have changed…

[@ryadinstormblessed8308]

"You have 4 letters in your name." "4?" "But 2 of them are the same, so you have 3 letters in your name." "3?" "3" "I'm not so great with the numbers either." I laughed so freaking hard!

[@ladydjiv]

I am SO EXCITED for all the Grog moments in Legends of Vox Machina; ESPECIALLY THE PORT A POTTY CRAVEN EDGE CONVO

[@reesearterberry7380]

No one: All of Campaign 2: 9:27

[@isaacschmitt4803]

So, I had never seen grog learning to write before, nor had I heard about it. Probably three or four years ago now, I was running an Orc named Thok. Thok had six intelligence. I had a self-imposed rule that Thok took 1d6 of damage for using a word above two syllables, he didn't know how to read or write, and he was weirdly a lot like Grog in a lot of ways, even though I had never even heard of Critical Role at that point. We ended up more or less settling in a town, and I had managed to come to own a tavern in a rougher part of town. My idea was basically, "Thok own tavern, Thok drink for free." In the course of me becoming a small local business owner, a NPC that was part of our party taught me how to read. The DM had me make a series of intelligence checks to see how I did over the course of a week. I did pretty good until I rolled a nat 1. The learning hurt Thok's brain to the point he went on a blind rampage. Outside his tavern. In the shady part of town. Thok ended up accidentally chasing out all the local thugs and inadvertently gentrified the neighborhood. That NPC disappeared shortly thereafter, having learned she was an heir to the kingdom we were now living in, though her claim was rejected by the steward (a la LOTR). Well one day, she returned. With an army at her heels. Thok heard she was coming back and made a giant (mostly spelled correctly) banner that said "welcome back teacher!" While everyone was preparing for battle, I unfurled it over the gate. No one inside could see what it said and just assumed it was a banner for the keep. The DM laughed his ass off when I handed him the note of what it actually said. Oh, at some point, kobolds attacked the city. Thok and the party killed them all, but Thok killed the last one by. . . Mushroom-stamping him. He had the body stuffed and preserved, and became a statue that stood just inside the door of the tavern, a nice, long concave dent ending in a bulb on his forehead. We hired a mage to cast Magic Mouth on it so it welcomed people into the tavern. That was a pretty wild campaign. . .

[@hawksleysmith565]

I love how even when you completely botch your attempt at a sentence, if you play someone as mentally scarce as Grog, it always works out

[@DB-bz9lv]

Imagine if Grog had Beau’s circlet from C2… who would that person be?

[@GioFireheart]

Hulk from endgame? 😂

[@AnatoDragonshard]

I see him losing his shit and throwing it away like a baseball.

[@beardlessdragon]

5:33 My favorite part of moments like this is you can see how hard Travis has to try to dumb himself down to Grog's level and it is absolutely hilarious every time 12:33 The way Ashley says this sends me laughing every single time. It's SO GOOD

[@Hellscrap3r]

"Aaaaaahhhh-hiii. Heeeeee-eeeeey~!" My favourite part by far.

[@calacestar]

03:01 I just LOVE how giggly Marisha is throughout this entire bit that Travis does

[@orangetripwire5443]

6:29 god I love Travis

[@OHaaaiden]

- Make an intelligence check: famous last words at any excuse ever.

[@wingzero7X]

Grog is the barbarian but the most WHOLESOME CHARACTER OF ALL

[@violetofviolence]

This is why I love Grog. He's utterly adorable i n his mishaps which makes him even more adorable.

[@marth5936]

I have no clue what is going on or who these people are, but I love this guy

[@BriannaZumbro]

It’s from a Dungeons & Dragons streaming show called Critical Role and it’s amazing! They’ve done two full campaigns and the episodes are all on KZbin. These clips are of the character Grog from the first campaign. If you’re interested in trying the show but overwhelmed by the amount of episodes, they’re actually in the middle of a mini campaign right now called Exandria Unlimited that’s only going to be 8 episodes. The first 4 episodes are up on KZbin and they stream every Thursday at 7pm pacific. Here’s their channel in case you’re interested: kzbin.info

[@ivegotbadtaste9181]

Big grog energy in this comment

[@Ocelot56]

Yo Grog learning the alphabet is probably the most wholesome and one of my most favorite moments from campaign 1! :3

[@Clownbunnycosplay]

''You recognize giant YOU CAN NOT READ'' that hurts to laugh at

[@_indigo_inked]

Soooo many people in this comments section just,, don’t know about the live shows?? This video seems to be a very strange wormhole to a Grog-like alternate timeline...

[@TheOneWhoReportsForDuty]

I wish for if we ever run into him again he is suddenly a scholar with 20 intelligence.

[@jamesdelaneywhelan9255]

Honestly same I hope we come across him and end up getting a favour from him or something and he just goes oh come in to my office I’ll write yous a letter and successfully does so

[@TheMadGrin912]

I died at "Already groggy" No pun intended!

[@nicolebragg1171]

Ashley & Travis breaking the entire table with that alphabet scene is one of my favourite moments, tears of laughter every time

[@LednacekZ]

8:44 Laura looks amazing

[@user-te4wj7xr8t]

“Of the dragons?” is the best

[@Shadowkey392]

“Grand Poobah DeDoink of Thisandthat” ROFL

[@TaitRo1018]

Bidet, folks!

[@harryguidotti3815]

Flowers for Grogernon. That's hilarious, but terribly tragic.

[@martinsweeney7633]

What would Vex do? Grog offers more stuff for the potion. Laura loses her shit saying "you're such a dick". Great couple vibe!!

[@Comicsluvr]

I think Travis is the most wonderful actor ever.

[@lauravturner]

"The Countess... of Febreze."

[@ashfuller3480]

I miss Grog

[@sharkomaniac5345]

I really need part 3!

[@BriannaZumbro]

I need to watch a bunch more episodes still for that, but I’m working on it!

[@kingduckie9135]

Gr, courtess of febreeze, grand poobar of this and that and keeper of shinies. Forever our favourite Goliath

[@masterendrancevr]

Liam gets so excited and I love it. I love his energy so much.

[@kassandrajeffery7035]

"Is this my daybirth?" lol

[@author19creator]

I have a halfling barbarian with a 7 intelligence. She saw a skeleton and decided to poke it. My personal favorite was when the other barbarian threw her through a door and she was too short to reach the handle. I tried to channel Grog.

[@ninnusridhar]

It takes a very smart man to act a moron. I'm continuously blown away by travis

[@andrewarrigo4476]

I would pay to have the Grog version of see spot run

[@johannahellmich4908]

I love these videos of yours, I always know where to go when I feel down and I just need some amazing Critical Role to cheer me up 😊 And just bc I am seeing it rn, would you consoder making a Taryon learns VM names one?

[@BriannaZumbro]

Thank you so much, I’m so glad they cheer you up! And yes, I will add that to my list of videos to work on. Thanks for the suggestion!

[@MaddysinLeigh]

I’m surprised the “the trees talk” wasn’t followed “and they sound like Scanlan.”

[@bandgeekster]

Flowers for Grogernon such an underrated joke

[@tonyshaw7420]

Pikes "and we can keep going"

[@zammismartines1032]

OMG it broke my heart! Almost honestly cry but still laughing 🤣🤣😭

[@russellthompson8414]

He played that so well.

[@Lichbane1]

Travis is so perfect playing dumb.

[@cjmarion6350]

fuckin is officially the first letter of my alphabet from now on

[@Javan606]

I'm so fucking glad I know what "Flowers for Grogernon" means now holy shit

[@MadPuma066]

that potion waring off KILLED me lol

[@okamiseele8614]

I take it your their leader. Of the dragons? 😂😂

[@AlexMatata112]

We need more

[@mcmann2243]

I need to see grog with the band of intelligence beau got, it would be a completely different character

[@askthepizzaguy]

Comment section showing off their intelligence score. You do have to scroll to the bottom but it's like 30 comments talking about a laugh track that doesn't exist for the clips that came from the live shows with real audiences really laughing.

[@oliverer3]

Flowers for Grogernon 🥺🐁

[@wolfroninxd4226]

I need a animated episode of Pike and grog learning the alphabet immediately

[@Shelma32Reactions]

It takes a smart & talented man to play a low intelligence character & make him so loveable.

[@swatkat2]

Bidet! Great work on the compliation! 10 out 10! Loved your work with the laugh track, too. Employing all those people to attend a recording at the "studio" and laugh without years of experience and training was top notch. beep beep

[@ladaboy3507]

That episode was recorded in front of the crew of the show, it isn’t a laugh track

[@swatkat2]

@@ladaboy3507 No one tell them

[@spacegremlin9972]

5:47 I'm impressed he knows what production means

[@rosereggie5901]

Please do another one of theses

[@BriannaZumbro]

That’s the plan! I’m actively taking notes as I watch the campaign, so once I have enough moments there will definitely be a part 3!

[@MilanousMedia]

THIS BETTER BE IN THE ANIMATED SERIES

[@DarknessHasFallen666]

Hi this made me laugh so fucking much 🤣🤣🤣

[@makotobro6410]

This really makes me miss grog. He wasn't as complex as fjord, or as unique as chutney. But he was absolutely the funniest character Travis had

[@franktheninja2]

We don’t deserve this man.

[@dismissedend4276]

what episode was it they were trying to teach Grog what 'cower' means?