Best Bad Table Manners Podcasts (2025)

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Omnibus Questions Epsilon Aleph 1:18:12

Play Pause

1d ago1:18:12

1:18:12

While Mark is perhaps disappointed at the typical tragic dearth of questions related to Macross and Terry Bogard, and Walker secretly yearns to be granted naming rights to a listener's offspring (protip: don't let him), SVWAG answers all* of your questions! *by which we mean some. 01:21 AYURIS: Cascadero (Reiner Knizia, Bitewing Games, 2024) Games …

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Episode 3: The Fine Line on Funny Business 59:56

4d ago59:56

59:56

In this episode of Mannered, host Sean Rhoads sits down with comedian, actor, producer, and ad-industry creative Andy Juett to explore the hilarious, and sometimes hazardous, world where comedy meets manners. From boardrooms to comedy stages, Andy has mastered the art of laughs and business, and today he shares how he balances big laughs with good …

1
Wonderland's War 1:29:07

4h ago1:29:07

1:29:07

In our effort to answer all of your Omnibus Questions, sadly we cannot enlist the assistance of notable Canadian Keanu Reeves. In an interview with Stephen Colbert--as a joke after Keanu said something profound--he was asked, "What do you think happens when we die, Keanu Reeves?" After a pause, and the audience's laughter, Keanu said, "I know that …

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Episode 2: Aisle Etiquette (with John Rotherham) 26:45

3d ago26:45

26:45

In this episode of Mannered, host Sean Rhoads grabs a basket and heads down the most unpredictable aisle of them all, the grocery store. Joining him is John Rotherham, whose family has owned grocery stores for generations and who now runs Nature’s Herbs and Wellness. Together, they unpack the dos, don’ts, and downright disasters of shopping etiquet…

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Listener Hot Takes 1:34:15

2d ago1:34:15

1:34:15

We deliver this episode despite the officially mandated period of public mourning due to Toronto's setbacks in basesball. In Canada, public mourning is characterized by donning black jean jackets and swapping our Tragically Hip for the more down-tempo Blue Rodeo, to say nothing of abstaining from boardgaming. Please don't turn us in for violating f…

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Luthier 1:28:55

15d ago1:28:55

1:28:55

"'Frederick Chopin was a Polish composer in the Romantic style who wrote primarily for the piano.' I guess this is sort of interesting, as most facts are. But history has shown us that *facts are not what most humans believe.* They are not that which motivates most men and women to love to or to crime. Now COMPARE this statement: 'Frederick Chopin …

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Rulebooks 1:17:48

16d ago1:17:48

1:17:48

As ever, we do not acknowledge one of the most pernicious false dichotomies in the rulebook space; whether rules should be strictly permissive (you can only do what the rules say you can) or strictly restrictive (you can do anything unless the rules say otherwise). I have never seen a rulebook forbid me from choking an opponent, nor have I see a ru…

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Episode 1: Check Please (with Seth Rankin) 35:50

1M ago35:50

35:50

In the debut episode of Mannered, host Sean Rhoads sits down with Seth Rankin, a Performance Coaching, Consulting Specialist, and hospitality veteran who spent nearly two decades with OpenTable. Together, they dive fork-first into the wild world of dining etiquette, tipping trends, and those unforgettable “oops” moments that happen when good manner…

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Samurai 1:14:37

23d ago1:14:37

1:14:37

"Wiarton Willie is the name given to a Canadian groundhog who lives in the community of Wiarton in Bruce County, Ontario. Every February 2, on Groundhog Day, Willie takes part in the local Wiarton Willie Festival. His role is to predict whether there will be an early spring. Although the original Wiarton Willie died in 1999, the Wiarton Groundhog D…

1
Tile-Laying Games 1:22:55

1M ago1:22:55

1:22:55

Rest assured that every topic we address here at SVWAG will be utterly comprehensive and final, unless and until we decide to address it again. Thus, when we discuss tile-laying games, we perforce will cover all of them, each and and every one, and failure to specifically mention any title means it does not exist and must be scrubbed from all recor…

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Ayar: Children of the Sun 1:05:19

2M ago1:05:19

1:05:19

"A quipu usually consists of cotton or camelid fiber cords, and contains categorized information based on dimensions like color, order and number. The Inca, in particular, used knots tied in a decimal positional system to store numbers and other values in quipu cords. Depending on its use and the amount of information it stored, a given quipu may h…

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Why Is This Game So Long? 1:15:29

2M ago1:15:29

1:15:29

We are staunchly body positive here at SVWAG, but we do prefer our bears fat. "Let me have about me bears that are fat," said Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, or he would have, had he known about the glory that is Fat Bear Week. I guess Caesar wouldn't have been totally down with the democratic aspect of the whole voting thing, but whatever! Exercise y…

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Star Wars: Battle of Hoth 1:11:44

2M ago1:11:44

1:11:44

We tempt fate and refer to a number of third rails in the hobby community. For one, we acknowledge a loss in Regicide Legacy, which reliably summons the chattering mobs. Further, we mention both Star Trek and Star Wars, so undoubtedly we get a detail "wrong" that will "justify" a detailed response. Look, we're experts here. We completed the Kobayas…

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Nostalgia 1:17:17

2M ago1:17:17

1:17:17

"Well, that was your mother And that was your father Before you was born dude When life was great You are the burden of my generation I sure do love you But let’s get that straight" -Paul Simon, "That Was Your Mother" 01:34 AYURIS: Nucleum (Simone Luciani & Dávid Turczi, Board&Dice, 2023) Games Played Last Week: 04:04 -SILOS (Reiner Knizia, Bitewin…

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Light Speed: Arena 1:05:29

3M ago1:05:29

1:05:29

On this day of Labour, we offer our solidarity to you. We also offer our labour, because we don't take many days off. No union for us in the opinion mines! I'd complain to my manager, but since that's me, I guess I'd be inclined to ignore it. Classic conflict on interest. The gibbons only complicate the org chart in unhelpful ways. Games Played Las…

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Trick-Taking Games Redux 1:08:56

3M ago1:08:56

1:08:56

I've always chafed at the conventional wisdom that young goats are good at trick-taking games. Or, at least, ones where you are not incentivized to go null. Do they hold their cards in their cloven hooves? Do their dead eyes come to life when contemplating the vagaries of trump suits? It must be true, though, because I have it on good authority fro…

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Bread Is Life: Kashmir’s Sacred Flame - Whetstone Audio Dispatch 24:20

2M ago24:20

24:20

What if a simple loaf of bread could tell the story of an entire place, its resilience, its politics and poetry? In this episode of Whetstone Audio Dispatch, host Meher Varma takes us deep into the heart of Srinagar, Kashmir, where the unmistakable aroma of freshly baked tchot leads her to the neighborhood kandur, a traditional bakery that’s far mo…

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The Lord of the Rings: The Fate of the Fellowship 1:07:25

3M ago1:07:25

1:07:25

Losing a component is rough. Knowing that one of your games is incomplete is like having a permanent absence in your soul. It's one thing to eschew that one added expansion--that's a triumph of restraint. But that missing block in Viking See-Saw will taunt you forever, a blight on your consciousness that can never be healed. Maybe I'm exaggerating.…

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Gardening on Water: The Dal’s Ancient Floating Gardens 29:41

3M ago29:41

29:41

Gardening on Water: The Dal’s Ancient Floating Gardens For thousands of years, Kashmir has been called jannat (heaven) by Urdu poets, travelers, and tourists. The Dal Lake in Srinagar is a jewel in its crown. Flamingo pink lotuses carpet the waters, and shikaras —small wooden boats— row upon it, making the destination a favorite for Instagram-lovin…

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Starting Over Your Collection 1:18:57

3M ago1:18:57

1:18:57

Inigo: I am waiting for you, Vizzini. You told me to go back to the beginning. So I have. This is where I am, and this is where I’ll stay. I will not be moved. Brute: But the Prince gave orders — Inigo: — So did Vizzini — when a job went wrong, you went back to the beginning. And this is where we got the job. So it’s the beginning, and I’m staying …

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Vantage 1:11:40

4M ago1:11:40

1:11:40

"We don’t ask that you stop loving your fantasy world. We ask you stop paying money for the privilege to dream of it. If you want to read the [Harry Potter] books or watch the movies, consider buying second-hand or renting them from a library. Small changes can make sure you never put your hard-earned money into JKR’s hands." -Blacklist CGE zine Ga…

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SVWAG Con Report 1:08:04

4M ago1:08:04

1:08:04

A chief misgiving Mark has about the con is that he is a terrible playtester. He was able to play two unpublished games, and while the designers were gracious he is seldom able to offer anything of much substance. "This game," he might say, "has cards. And other things." Past that, for some reason, when confronted with a prototype his faculties oft…

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#369: Take That 1:19:08

4M ago1:19:08

1:19:08

The purest juxtaposition that reveals the absurdity of "take that" effects can be found in many of your heavier games and some consims with cards. You gather the resources, marshal your forces, laboriously haul those troops hither and yon, and then sometimes have to manage some activation tokens or whatnot to finally get it on. And then your oppone…

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#368: Shackleton Base 1:20:35

4M ago1:20:35

1:20:35

"Dear friend, if you wanna feel better Don't let the devil make you toss this letter If you've been crossed up by hoodoo voodoo A wizard or the lizard You got family trouble, man trouble, woman trouble No light through the tunnel If you're lookin' for a true friend, or a true lover Or if you've been livin' undercover Well, I'm comin' to your town t…

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#367: Set Up and Tear Down 1:24:54

4M ago1:24:54

1:24:54

It is remarkable to reflect on how much hobbies can demand of us, and certainly board gaming is no different. Setting aside the administrative, economic, and social burdens; we then have to spend so much time teaching, setting up, and tearing down. Alas! 23-step processes for general set up prior to the 12-step individual player board set up. It wa…

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#366: 7 Empires 1:13:23

5M ago1:13:23

1:13:23

Apparently the American custom of the "push present" can trace its roots to the Anglo-Indian tradition of the "baby bauble", although in the latter case jewellery is the more standard gift (instead of, say, boardgames). Can we acknowledge that baby bauble is a much less crude term? Let's try to be classy here, people. There is already enough about …

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#365: Small Box, Big Game 1:13:55

5M ago1:13:55

1:13:55

Walker's approach to parenting eschews what he sees as the coddling endemic in other families. He believes in competition above all else, where newbs must be pwned and even babies must git gud. "L2P" is his family motto. Some appalled anthropologists tried making a documentary about the Walker household, but they were forced to tone it down and rel…

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#364: Pulling Levers 1:14:27

5M ago1:14:27

1:14:27

"Because of the long-standing mutual enmity between Meany and Brown, Meany was named among the suspects in The Case Of Encyclopedia Brown’s Mangled Corpse. Meany denied the allegations. 'It’s true that Detective Brown and I didn’t see eye to eye, but I would never do something so downright dirty rotten as murder him,' Meany said. 'Besides, it’s a m…

1
#363: The Social Contract 1:15:35

5M ago1:15:35

1:15:35

We generally frown on ad hominem here at SVWAG, ensconced as we are in our glass houses. In the case of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (known affectionately as "Ja-Jay" by no one), though, who wrote extensively about proper methods of childhood education, we shall report that he confessed to rather callously sandbagging his lover into abandoning their child…

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#362: Rumble Nation 1:08:59

6M ago1:08:59

1:08:59

I've read several different accounts of the battle of Sekigahara, and I swear there's no mention of Kevin Bacon or anyone bleaching their hair. How am I to know if Pony Boy stayed golden? Games Played Last Week: 01:42 -MicroMacro: Kids--Crazy City Park (Johannes Sich, Edition Spielwiese, 2025) 04:20 -Good Puppers (Chris Cieslik, Asmadi Games, 2021)…

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#361: What Makes Longer Games Worth It 59:32

6M ago59:32

59:32

Walker and Mark almost come to blows over Flip 7 this week. Their disagreements over the merits of the product (Game? Experience? Way of Life? Sub "Roll a 6, Win a Cookie" distraction?) have long simmered, but the fundamental schism can no longer be ignored or papered over. They finally have it out. 02:27 AYURIS: Knarr (Thomas Dupont, Bombyx, 2023)…

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#360: Hot Streak 1:14:06

6M ago1:14:06

1:14:06

"Observers brought attention to [Gritty's] appearance, which could be construed as frightening, while The Guardian described him as an "acid trip of a mascot." Response to Gritty's introduction was immediate and sharply mixed, with many fans on social media expressing bewilderment and some fright at his appearance. Public perception of Gritty becam…

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#359: Gibberers 1:14:11

6M ago1:14:11

1:14:11

"gibber--intransitive verb :to speak rapidly, inarticulately, and often foolishly" -Merriam-Webster "gibberer--noun :the hosts of SVWAG" Games Played Last Week: 01:17 -Sausage Sizzle (Inka and Marcus Brand, 25th Century Games, 2012) 05:22 -Landmarks (Rodrigo Rego & Danilo Valente, Floodgate Games, 2024) 09:11 -Skara Brae (Shem Phillips, Garphill Ga…

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#358: Tricky Edge Cases 1:00:15

7M ago1:00:15

1:00:15

Chaka Khan, let me rock you Let me rock you, Chaka Khan Let me rock you, that's all I wanna do Chaka Khan, let me rock you Let me rock you, Chaka Khan Let me rock you, 'cause I feel for you -Chaka Khan, "I Feel for You" 01:26 AYURIS: Barcelona (Dani Garcia, Board&Dice, 2023) Games Played Last Week: 03:10 -Snap Ships Tactics: Swarm Box (Josh Derksen…

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#357: Post-Easter Update 1:11:41

7M ago1:11:41

1:11:41

While we pride ourselves in playing more games in a week than many play in a month, when we take a week away from the SVWAG studio we often face a truly herculean backlog of games to discuss. This two-week period is no exception. Rest assured, we would never leave our dear listeners in the lurch, so we will keep you updated so you need not miss a t…

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#356: Endgame Scoring 1:13:57

7M ago1:13:57

1:13:57

Tiebreakers are arguably a kind of endgame scoring. I respect the fact that they are invariably necessary (I mean, if for no other reason than if they're omitted some smartass like me will complain). That said, clearly if the scoreboard goes to 200+ I don't imagine we'll be hauling out the second tiebreaker condition all that much. Frequently the e…

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#355: Rise & Fall 1:16:22

8M ago1:16:22

1:16:22

When is a thing like another thing? Is Albedo like Core Worlds? Is Cat Blues like Rummy? Is Through the Desert like Go? Is a nudge as good as a wink to blind bat? Are all Roll & Writes inferior to Roll a 6, Win a Cookie? Is Christophe Boelinger France's Vlaada Chvátil? Probably, because it's all just like Mage Knight in the end. Games Played Last W…

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#354: 20th Century Games 1:19:42

8M ago1:19:42

1:19:42

People have favourably described our physical appearances as "borderline tolerable" and "just short of hideous", and that was just our mothers. In light of this, we put ourselves forward as candidates for all manner of game show. Mark is quite fond of Rice-a-Roni and thus would be more than happy to just have a consolation prize, and Walker just wa…

1
#353: Rebirth 59:40

8M ago59:40

59:40

In logic, conditionals are always true if the antecedent is false. You can't falsify the conditional if the conditions aren't met. For example, if Mark can bench 500 pounds, then vinegar tastes like cotton candy. Rest assured that I ain't benching that much, so don't worry about it; the conditional is true. Similarly, I can invite pretty much whoev…

1
#352: Ascending Empires: Zenith Edition 1:17:27

8M ago1:17:27

1:17:27

I was donating blood while wearing my Transformers Converse shoes, and two different phlebotomists commented positively about them. "We have won the cultural argument," I said, deliberately burying the lede that demographic destiny is probably the chief cause. I suspect that the same forces explain increased societal acceptance of toys, and board g…

1
#351: Flexing New Muscles 1:13:49

8M ago1:13:49

1:13:49

As is readily apparent from the show's subject matter and our general presentation, we here at SVWAG are stone-cold jocks who excel at the sports and are thoroughly ripped. We trust the launcher and never ever skip leg day. 00:57 AYURIS: Expeditions (Jamey Stegmaier, Stonemaier Games, 2023) Games Played Last Week: 03:04 -Coloretto (Michael Schacht,…

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#350: Beyond the Horizon 1:03:21

9M ago1:03:21

1:03:21

Despite the welcome relative absence of anthropomorphic animals this week--aside from some sundry ducks in Lorcana--we see a lot of animals and various critters this week. We eschew sacrifices to a dodgy snake in Imperium, we fling sheep with abandon, we throw down with some wrestling bugs, and that's on top of comparatively mundane animal husbandr…

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#349: A Plowful of Games 1:06:58

9M ago1:06:58

1:06:58

While we hate to confirm your most reductive of preconceived notions, snow removal in Canadian cities is no joke. The fleet of vehicles required to allow for daily life in even a small Canadian city after major snowfall is impressive. The balletic dance of some of their formations while in operation calls to mind the precise of mid-air refuelling. …

1
#348: SETI 1:05:45

9M ago1:05:45

1:05:45

Colour nouns are essentially arbitrary; how one decides to chop up the visible spectrum of light is a matter of contingent taxonomy. Some languages have one noun for both blue and green, for example. English has a word for light red (pink) where other languages don't. Russian similarly has a word for light blue. And then there's magenta, which we c…

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#347: How Expansions Can Fail 1:09:26

10M ago1:09:26

1:09:26

Our upcoming convention, July 25th-27th 2025, is in its planning stages! We have a venue but nothing much else yet. Not even a name! Suggestions welcome. Mark quite likes So Very Wrong About Games Fun Times Good Vibes Only Trans Rights Are Human Rights Boardgame Jamboree, but he worries that it might be too pithy. Few things are off the table! Spec…

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#346: 2024 Year in Review 1:37:44

10M ago1:37:44

1:37:44

If you can choose to be the regular version or the spicy version, you obviously choose the spicy version. I mean, sure, the capsaicin may sting, but one assumes that the canonical version is caliente. Put another way, would you prefer "SVWAG" or "SVWAG en fuego?" The choice is clear. It is a corollary of sorts to Winston Zeddemore axiom that when s…

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#345: Thunder Road: Vendetta 1:09:15

10M ago1:09:15

1:09:15

"Robert! This here is velvet--not velveteen. A gentleman must learn the difference." -Gilbert Fontaine de la Tour D'Haute Rive Games Played Last Week: 01:53 -Fishing (Friedemann Friese, 2F-Spiele, 2024) 08:04 -Revive (Helge Meissner, Eilif Svensson, Anna Wermlund, and Kristian Amundsen Østby, Aporta Games, 2022) 10:46 -SCOUT (Kei Kajino, Oink Games…

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#344: Only at Certain Player Counts 1:07:31

10M ago1:07:31

1:07:31

The editorial department of So Very Wrong About Games has several sub-divisions, and admittedly the orgchart gets a bit baroque at this point. The rules errors office is technically a sub-branch of the fact checking desk, but it is funded out of the game design sub-budget. This muddies the line of accountability, and as anyone who works with gibbon…

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#343: Fromage 1:10:07

11M ago1:10:07

1:10:07

It has come to our attention that there has been a great deficiency in SVWAG through the years, namely our shameful neglect of the French language. The sheer Gaul! Games Played Last Week: 01:34 -The Isle of Cats Duel (Frank West, The City of Games, 2024) 04:28 -Res Arcana: Lux et Tenebrae (Thomas Lehman, Sand Castle Games, 2019) 08:00 -Worldspanner…

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#342: Sheep in Wolves' Clothing 56:15

11M ago56:15

56:15

Trust the launcher. 01:28 AYURIS: Darwin’s Journey (Simone Luciani and Nestore Mangone, ThunderGryph Games, 2023) Games Played Last Week: 03:49 -Iron Forest (Brian Gomez, Brain Games, 2024) 10:22 -Slide Quest (Nicolas Bourgoin & Jean-François Rochas, Blue Orange, 2019) 14:00 -The Gang (John Cooper and Kory Heath, KOSMOS, 2024) 17:08 -Harmonies (Joh…