Dropout hits five years
If you liked CollegeHumor, know the fun isn’t over yet
Do you remember being a kid and watching CollegeHumor videos? Feeling like you’re definitely too young to be watching comedy skits aimed at college age kids, but enjoying them anyways? Popular videos like “The Six Girls You’ll Date in College,” “If Google Was a Guy,” or “The Problem With Jeggings.” Those videos were all made over a decade ago, but CollegeHumor isn’t gone, they’ve just changed.
They’ve dropped out of college. And now they’re Dropout.
Dropout celebrated its fifth anniversary on September 26 in a momentous move for the brand. Dropout launched as a streaming service in 2018, and they’ve been providing original content ever since. It’s my only must-have streaming service. But, I can tell you about the brand, or I can tell you about their content.
Dimension 20 is probably Dropout’s most popular show. Any fans of Dungeons & Dragons’ actual play shows have at least heard of Dimension 20. They currently have 18 seasons of Dimension 20, which equals to hours and hours of content. Brennan Lee Mulligan, who DMs most seasons, is an incredible dungeon master (DM). He’s a brilliant storyteller and worldbuilder. He’s the DM I most aspire to be like when I run games, and it’s not hard to tell why.
Most people start off with “Fantasy High” because it’s the first season they did. But, my favorite is the Seven, which is a spin-off of “Fantasy High.” I also adore “Misfits and Magic,” run by Aabria Iyengar, for just how fun it is, and the theme of found family. They just finished a season called “Mentopolis,” which is like Inside Out, but in a TTRPG, and they’re currently airing a season called “Burrow’s End,” run by Iyengar, about a family of stoats.
The Dropout show you’ve probably seen the most clips of is Game Changer, because it goes viral on TikTok often enough. It’s hard to describe Game Changer, because the game changes every time. With a rotating cast of players, and Sam Reich as the host, there’s never a dull moment. Every episode brings something new and fun to the table and is worth watching. But, binge a few TikTok clips to get an idea of what you’re getting into.
They’ve made several spin-off shows based on episodes of Game Changer. My favorite is Make Some Noise. It’s an improv extravaganza where players are given a basic idea of a scene, and they just have to make it work to get a certain number of points. It’s silly, it’s light-hearted, and it’ll make you laugh. Sometimes, when what I need is something fun and just to laugh for a while, my go-to is Game Changer.
Another spin-off is Play It By Ear, from the “Official Cast Recording” episode. It’s all completely improvised musicals. They get a small task, music they’ve never heard, and they just have to figure it out. The original “Official Cast Recording” is available on Spotify and it was in my top 10 in my Spotify Wrapped last year which should give you an idea of just how talented Zach and Jess (who are in every episode) are.
One show that only had one season and I miss dearly is Where in the Eff is Sarah Cincinatti? It’s inspired by Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? but with more of a boozy party girl twist. It’s one that I’ve watched over and over again, and will continue to watch over and over again because they haven’t announced more episodes.
Although CollegeHumor has largely become known as Dropout, two other branches of the original company, Dorkly and Drawfee, continue to exist separately from Dropout. Drawfee even celebrated it’s own third anniversary of independence back in July.
If you feel tired of the streaming services you have, or like you have nothing to watch, Dropout is there for you, with the same laughs as CollegeHumor 10 years ago. Its fifth anniversary is a great opportunity to check out the streaming platform and see if there’s anything you like.
