Mythic Quest has been slowly making waves on Apple TV Plus. The series, created by It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Charlie Day and Rob McElhenney, has evolved from being a simple workplace comedy about a fictional video game studio into something more, and the new season – the show's third – is ready to unleash a new rivalry and cause plenty of chaos.
The show began with the studio wanting to make an expansion pack to their popular game, Mythic Quest. The follow-up season then saw co-creative director Ian Grimm (played by McElhenney) and Poppy (Charlotte Nicdao) making the decision to leave and form their own indie studio, GrimPop. The new third season twists things a little as the awkward leader David (David Hornsby) settles into his new role as the boss of Mythic Quest (where he truly finds himself in charge for the first time), the feisty Jo (Jessie Ennis) return as his assistant, and HR manager Carol (Naomi Ekperigin) attempt to figure out where she truly fits in.
"We have Ian and Poppy break off and start their own company, which leaves David alone," Hornsby, who previously portrayed 'Rickety Cricket' on It's Always Sunny and is an executive producer on Mythic Quest, tells Total Film over Zoom. "We talked about – are we gonna explore a Game of Thrones-type situation? David takes the throne, but the question is: will he fly or fall?
"David is a capable producer who has always had his wings clipped a little bit by Ian Poppy. There's a certain type of person that can walk the line and be a bridge builder for, let's say, the crazy creatives. I think that's where he thrives. When he's alone, [his biggest challenge] is making sure he gets out of his own way and we see him get in his own way several times during the season."
Similar to the second season's breakout episode 'Backstory', told entirely through flashback and chronicling head writer Carl Longbottom's (F. Murray Abraham) journey to becoming a prolific sci-fi writer, Hornsby says that fans will have a chance to see Ian and Poppy as youngsters in season 3, so we can see "what shaped them and made them who they are today."
Meanwhile, Ashly Burch's Rachel is in "an existential crisis" this season. We last saw her and coworker-turned-romantic-partner Dana (Imani Hakim) quitting Mythic Quest, confident that the latter will get accepted to Berkley. However, in a twist that would knock anyone for six, Dana gets rejected – and then hired again by Ian and Poppy with the promise of putting her through school for free
"Rachel's done something that she's never done before, which is to make a choice for herself and her life, and quickly realizes it's not the right choice and is soul searching and a path opens up for her," says Burch, who has a long history with video games, having had voice roles in Horizon Zero Dawn, The Last of Us Part II, and the Borderlands franchise.
"I really love this storyline for Rachel because it's pretty relatable and it's an aspect of the creative process that I don't think we've really explored that much with any of our characters yet, which is sort of the aimless, not really knowing where you fit in thing, thinking that you are meant for something, and then realizing that you're not."
Ennis (who you will recognize as second-year associate Erin Brill from Better Call Saul) says her character Jo isn't entirely psyched to be working for the least powerful man in the hierarchy, but she's still bringing her drive and determination – and same level of chaos – to even the most menial of tasks.
"She's trying hard not to be swayed by the power," she says. "There's an episode where we start working on a movie, a Myth Quest movie for Hollywood, and Jo’s immediately very turned off. She doesn't wanna be involved in the industry at all. And then we see pretty quickly how happy she is to gain the title of assistant producer [laughs]."
The ensemble's also kitted out with former Community actor Danny Pudi, who plays Brad, the head of Mythic Quest's monetization department and, frankly, a sociopath who doesn't care what anyone thinks of him, as long as he can gain something from it. Having conquered both micro and macro transactions – and successfully improved his 'street cred' by completing a prison stint – he's got a whole new set of goals for this season.
"Brad is always looking to put himself into a corner and figure out how to get out of it. Brad is a survivalist," Pudi says. "He is actually really skilled at looking at things from a macro level. And there's this playful, chaotic spirit within Brad that I love. He loves watching things unravel and seeing how he can find his way through it all. So [this season] he chooses chaos.
"He's not afraid. He's not afraid of the mess. Cause he'll get in there and, and, and he'll rise through it. That's what was exciting about season three: seeing Brad come out of jail, start at the bottom, and then figure out who he's gonna manipulate, and how he's gonna get to the top [laughs]."
In other words, expect another season of Mythic Quest that's as fun and as true to the spirit of the real-life gaming industry as any sitcom. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll have an existential crisis.
The first two episodes of Mythic Quest season 3 are out now on Apple TV Plus, with new episodes coming weekly. For more, check out our list of the best new TV shows coming your way in 2022 and beyond.
