2025 has already been a big year for Critical Role when it comes to television, tabletop games, and books like the spicy Tusk Love and the Vox Machina - Stories Untold short story compilation. Now, another book is about to hit shelves, but it’s definitely not a romance novel aimed at adults. Sam Riegel, known for voicing Scanlan in The Legend of Vox Machina, Nott in the upcoming 2025 TV schedule release of The Mighty Nein, and a decade’s worth of streamed Dungeons & Dragons episodes, wrote an illustrated advice book called Smiley Day! about one of his many characters.
When opening up about the book, he also shared some advice for fans who are excited about all of the upcoming projects. Smiley Day, which releases on September 30, centers on the advice-dispensing empathetic robot known as Fresh Cut Grass and his efforts to help the members of Bells Hells, his chaotic group of friends. Illustrated by Thorn L. Knight, FCG may not have the best advice to apply to real life, but an important message to impart by the end. According to Riegel, he was “really excited” to get to “write something that's maybe more accessible to kids and families.”
The book comes out just days before Critical Role’s Campaign 4 kicks off, less than two months before The Mighty Nein premieres for viewers with a Prime Video subscription, and with The Legend of Vox Machina Season 4 set for 2026. When I spoke with Sam Riegel, he shared whether Smiley Day is meant just for existing fans or can be read by newcomers:
Smiley Day is definitely for Critters and non-Critters alike. It is a fun story with fun characters that could exist if you have never heard of Critical Role, have never picked up a pair of dice and rolled, have never watched a campaign. If you have consumed our content before and know who these characters are, it probably adds a level of of fun and interest to it, but I very much intended this book to be enjoyed by anyone perusing the aisles of their bookstore, their local bookstore, anyone who likes the art, anyone who likes the story to share with their kids. I hope that a bunch of people pick it up who have no idea what it is.
I can vouch that the book is full of bright colors and fun art, although I won’t drop spoilers for the advice that FCG dispenses to his friends over the course of Smiley Day, which hails from Random House. Those friends do make appearances, and the story containing advice certainly doesn't mean that this is a cover-to-cover self-help book.
While Smiley Day is the most imminent release coming out of Critical Role, the company has a lot more on the way in the not-too-distant future as well. So, I had to ask the author what advice he would give as himself rather than as FCG for fans who are also waiting for The Mighty Nein, Vox Machina Season 4, and more. Not one to drop massive spoilers, he nevertheless shared:
I can dispense aphorisms like 'the best matzo ball soup comes to those who wait,' which is what my grandma used to say. [laughs] We have a lot of stuff cooking in the kitchen, so to speak, and I can only tell the fans – the Critters, the people waiting for Campaign 4, the people waiting for Mighty Nein to debut, the people waiting for the Legend of Vox Machina Season 4 and 5 – I can only say that we, the people who create this stuff, are possibly even more excited than than you are, the people who receive it, to get it out in the world.
If it seems like an undersell that the company has a lot on the way, the fourth tabletop campaign arrives on October 2, The Mighty Nein premieres on Prime Video on November 19, and The Legend of Vox Machina is already guaranteed to return for Season 4 and Season 5. Riegel went on:
We're so excited for everybody to see Campaign 4. We have a text thread going with everyone who's in the campaign, sharing stuff that we're finding online about our character reveals and about our trailer that just came out. We, the cast, are incredibly excited, and we can't wait either. Just know that that sense of anticipation is mutual, and it's coming sooner than you think, all these great shows and debuts, and it's going to be a big celebration when all of it hits.
As for Smiley Day! A Good Advice Book From Your Favorite Robot Therapist, the book will be released on Tuesday, September 30. You’ll be able to find the story on shelves in a hardback print copy via retailers like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Target, as well as an ebook edition. As for Sam Riegel’s other two main Critical Role characters, you can find the first three seasons of The Legend of Vox Machina and the trailer for The Mighty Nein streaming now.
