UW-Eau Claire’s Forum series of lectures is in season 82. Established by president W.R. Davies in 1942, it presents an average of five people a year, who usually speak and are interviewed for an hour, then answer audience questions.
This week, The Forum hosted Matthew Mercer, who is known for his work in voice acting and as the host of the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) podcast “Critical Role.”
His voice credits include Levi Ackerman in “Attack on Titan,” Chrom in Fire Emblem: Awakening and Super Smash Bros, Jotaro Kujo in “Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure” and Vincent Valentine in Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, just to name a few.
“The Legend of Vox Machina,” an animated show based on “Critical Role,” was just renewed for its fourth season.
Doors to the event opened at 7 p.m., but attendees began lining up as early as 6 p.m. One student, first-year Henry Lemke, expressed excitement at seeing Mercer.
“I’ve been watching ‘Critical Role’ and playing D&D since I was in middle school, so he’s a huge inspiration,” Lemke said. “I’m a big fan of characters he’s done like Cassidy from Overwatch and Ganondorf from The Legend of Zelda. The ability he has to create a story that is expansive and how detailed he can be is amazing.”
The Forum hosted a full house in Schofield Auditorium and hosts asked audience members to move in toward empty seats so more attendees could fit in the auditorium.
After an introduction from the captain of the League of Legends team of the Blugolds Esports team, Mercer came out to answer prepared questions from an interviewer, ranging from roles he has played to Dungeons & Dragons worldbuilding.
Mercer talked about actors who inspired him to voice-act, including Mel Blanc and Steve Blum. When asked about a favorite character he has voiced, Mercer mentioned “Attack on Titan.” This triggered enthusiastic applause, a frequent occurrence for the night.
“I think, just because of how involved I’ve gotten with the show and the community, I think I’d have to say Levi Ackerman,” Mercer said.
Other highlights of the interview included Mercer admitting that “One Piece” may be the greatest story ever written, calling Laura Bailey’s “Critical Role” character Jester her “true self” and Mercer beginning to tear up while expressing gratitude to his fans.
After the planned interview, the floor was opened for audience questions. They ranged from asking about worldbuilding to running better games. When asked about networking and getting into his line of work, Mercer had the following to say:
“Don’t be an a——,” Mercer said. “People remember who they work with. There are a lot of talented people out there. If someone has to pick between working with a talented, nice person and a talented a——, they’re going to choose the nice person.”
This was the last question of the night. After concluding the audience Q&A and saying thank yous and goodbyes, The Forum wrapped up at about 9 p.m.
One student, fourth-year psychology student Lilly, spoke fondly of Mercer and the event afterward.
“I have been listening to the actual plays since early middle school,” Lilly said. “I don’t know many games he’s been in, but I went into it with an open mind. My knowledge of him is from D&D and worldbuilding. I like that a lot of aspects overlap with the acting and voice acting.”
Tolbert can be contacted at [email protected].
