Say “finally”, Intrepid Heroes! It’s been nearly three years and 16 seasons of Dimension 20 since Aguefort Academy’s most notorious adventuring party, The Bad Kids, last graced viewers’ screens. After ample speculation as to whether or not there would even be a junior year, Dropout has finally given fans their first taste of the third installment in the ongoing adventures of The Bad Kids.
Not only does the trailer offer hints as to the plot of the season, but it’s also full of a few key reveals—including new character art, an original song written for the season, and (of course) a release date.
Who’s in Fantasy High: Junior Year?
Following on the heels of the original Fantasy High and Dimension 20: Live! (colloquially known as Fantasy High: Sophomore Year), Junior Year will once again follow the adventures of The Bad Kids, a misfit group of heroes attending the Aguefort Adventuring Academy.
The group is comprised of Adaine Abernant (Siobhan Thompson), a wizard and the elven oracle, Riz Gukgak (Brian Murphy) a goblin private eye, Kristen Applebees (Ally Beardsley) a human cleric, and Fabian Seacaster (Lou Wilson) an elven battlemaster/swords bard. The group is rounded out by the soft-spoken half-orc barbarian Gorgug Thistlespring (Zac Oyama) and fearless tiefling rocker Fig Faeth (Emily Axford). As usual, Brennan Lee Mulligan will return to serve as Junior Year‘s dungeon master, bringing to life beloved NPCs like Ayda Aguefort and Gilear Faeth.
In addition to bringing their characters to life at the table, the Intrepid Heroes and Mulligan will remain in the dome for another full, 20-episode season of Adventuring Party, a Dimension 20 talkback series that drops the day after each respective episode airs on Dropout.
What is Fantasy High: Junior Year about?
Beyond what we gleaned from the end of last season, the trailer for Junior Year does hold a surprising amount of clues towards some of the plot lines explored this season: the most detailed of which involve Kristen and Riz. The trailer features guidance counselor Jawbone reluctantly informing the Bad Kids that despite saving the world, their absence has resulted in a number of failed classes that puts the group in danger of flunking out entirely. The Bad Kids’ attempts to rescue their academic careers looks to be no small part in Junior Year, especially for Riz Gukgak, who previously has taken immense pride in his intellect and excellent grades.
While the failing-all-your-classes-because-you-were-off-saving-the-world storyline epitomizes the more down-to-earth coming of age side of Fantasy High, the Junior Year trailer also teases a more supernatural arc: yet another crisis of faith on the part of Kristen Applebees. After resurrecting herself in season 1 and creating her own deity in season two, it looks like Kristen’s newly-minted god Cassandra may have died.
Though the details of what happened to Cassandra are anyone’s guess, the character art (via new season artist Cait May) and mini for Kristen Applebees seem to point towards a possible multiclass or reclass for Kristen: the character can be seen flexing some new muscles and donning distinctly sporty tracksuits. It’s a far cry from the gangly, uncoordinated, Birkenstock-loving Kristen we met in season 1—but whether or not Kristen’s new look is indicative of a mechanical change (ie: multi classing or a full-on class switch) is still a total question mark.
When and where will Fantasy High: Junior Year be released?
As with the first two seasons, Fantasy High: Junior Year will stream exclusively on Dropout, a subscription-based streaming service. New episodes will air every Wednesday at 7PM ET, starting with the season premiere on January 10. Though the season won’t be available in its entirety on YouTube, Dropout has also shared that Junior Year‘s season premiere will stream for free on YouTube on January 17, a week after the initial release.
In addition to streaming Junior Year when it releases, Dropout has another treat to stream for fans: an original song. Featured in the trailer, “Teenage Rebellion” is a new song from pop-rocker Sarah Barrios, and listeners can presave the track now ahead of the music video’s release, which coincides with the season premiere.
(featured image: Dropout)
