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Castles & Cauldrons, I

Album: Gold Audio 08: Beyond Expectations

Episode: 122

Lesson/Theme: The dangers of fantasy role-playing games; Satan worship; the occult.

Bible Verse: Deuteronomy 18:10b-12a

Characters: Donna, George, Jimmy, Connie, Whit

Writer: Paul McCusker

Sound Designer: Bob Luttrell

Original Air Date: August 4, 1990

Last Air Date: June 19, 2008

Description:
The Barclays have a visitor for the summer: Len, George's nephew. Jimmy is excited to have his cousin stay with them, especially when Len shows Jimmy a new game called Castles & Cauldrons-- it's even better than Zapazoids. Castles & Cauldrons (C & C) is a fantasy role-playing game. The players become medieval characters who use battle skills and other means to conquer their enemies. Len is "Luthor the Magician," and he names Jimmy "Jondel the Apprentice." Jimmy thinks the game is harmless-until Len takes it a step further, and imagination starts becoming reality. Plastic swords ring with the sound of steel; epic battles are fought against the forces of darkness and won. Jimmy is amazed by these things, but Len wants him to go further still, into incantations, spells, and conjuring-which sounds suspiciously like black magic. What's worse, Len swears Jimmy to silence. He's not to tell anybody about the game, especially his parents or Whit, because "they won't understand." The story continues in part II...

Questions:
Are all role-playing games bad? Why is it a bad idea to play games like Castles & Cauldrons? What should Jimmy have done when Len stopped Jimmy from telling his dad and Whit about the game? Why do you think Whit "felt" something was wrong in Odyssey?