Bottom Line: A great little tale about power, money and fantasy football.

This fall, Ben Porter finds himself at the beginning of a new season in life. He’s having his first child while launching a new fantasy football team.

But what he doesn’t know is the stakes are about to get much higher than that. The deception and manipulation go as deep as the real world of professional football. How he gets in, gets trapped, and gets out while be his journey this season in: The League.

Details

Website: Watch The League (iTunes)

YouTube: Watch Them On YouTube
Twitter: Follow Them On Twitter
Facebook: Follow Them On Facebook

Ratings

Style 3

Despite having a complex setup, the story moves quickly and every episode hands you another piece of the puzzle. (Pacing 4)

The League is a fantastically entertaining look at money, power and fantasy football. I can only hope that they keep making more episodes. (Storytelling 5)

Polish 4

Watchability 5

It’s a story about a fantasy football league that manages to avoid having to be entirely about a fantasy football league. The real fun starts at episode four. (Novelty 4.5)

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: In a world where everyone is a super hero, what is a normal guy to do? Defenders of Stan is a quirky exploration of what it would be like to try to live a normal life in a world where everyone can lift cars with their minds and fly faster than the speed of sound.

Stan is frustrated with being an everyman in a world full of supermen.

Details

Cast: Austin Bragg, Meredith Bragg, Hunter Christy
Website: The Defender of Stan (RSS)

YouTube: Watch Them On YouTube
Channel 101: Watch Them On Channel 101
Vote For It: The Defenders of Stan

Ratings

The super power effects are a treat to watch. They manage to be silly enough to match the theme without being so silly that they become unbelievable. (Style 5)

This is a very well edited show. At 5 minutes there isn’t a second the passes that feels wasted. (Pacing 4.5)

Defenders of Stan is funny, smart and maybe even a little bit deeper than it might first appear. It’s an entertaining look at dating, sibling rivalry, and how we deal with our insecurities. (Storytelling 4)

Polish 3.5

Watchability 4.5

Novelty 4.5

Overall Rating: 4.33 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: If you remember the mid-90s television show Eerie Indiana then you have a pretty good idea of what you can expect from Normally This Weird. It’s a quirky story of what happens to an average, geeky couple who move into a town where the neighbors are even stranger than they are.

When two newlyweds, Simon and Vanessa, both in their mid-twenties and essentially grown up kids, decide start their lives together in a brand new town, little do they realize just how weird their neighbors are. The Smiths secretly practice dark magic, the Archevils (pronounced Ark-uh-vuhl) experiment with dangerous super-science for insidious ends, the enigmatic and eye-patched Swivey Dinkle lives his own brand of suburban adventure, all while FBI Agent Danford covertly monitors everything

“Normally This Weird” is a comedy web series that explores the humor and drama of normal people dealing with very strange problems … and strange people dealing with incredibly normal problems.

Details

Cast: Michael Peterson, Lauren Henschen, Grace Steinbach, Liam Thibeault, Norian Lenz, James Hoenscheidt, Adam Marshall Rini, Noah Klinge, Jared Washburn
Website: Normally This Weird

Store: Shop At Their Store
Twitter: Follow Them On Twitter
Facebook: Join Them On Facebook
Vote For It: Normally This Weird

Ratings

While we still haven’t seen them used extensively, the shows effects are strong, adding to the overall campiness of the presentation. (Style 4)

The show is shot more like a television show than a web series, which leads to slower pacing and less “joke density” than you might expect. That being the case, it leaves them time to explore characters in more detail than you might be able to on a shorter show. (Pacing 3.5)

Storytelling 3.5

Polish 4

Watchability 3.5

The most impression part of this show is the characters, Simon and Vanessa’s neighbors are a screwball assortment of just about every science fiction trope you can imagine, and they play their parts impeccably. The only question that remains is whether future episodes will be able to make good use of this cast of crazies. (Novelty 5)

Overall Rating: 3.91 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: Corporate Assassin combines two great joys of working class culture, assassination dramas and watching annoying office workers bite the big one in creative and unnecessarily violent ways. If you have ever worked in a cube, or maybe you just know someone who has this is probably for you.

From the mind of Independent filmmaker, Andy Coon, comes a unique web series that intrudes into Corporate America.

The Corporate Assassin is hired to clean the filth that is content with taking advantage of their surroundings. Such as gossip mongers, rude and aggressive co-workers, intimidating bullies, sexual harassers, using company resources for personal use and stealing from the company.

These are your cubicle neighbors that you are forced to sit next to unless you or they get a promotion, fired or a fatal accident in the workplace. Most likely the latter.

The Assassin doesn’t use traditional weapons to take his assignments down. Instead he uses office supplies, something familiar with his target so he can get close to them.

We encourage you, the viewer to participate in the madness. Call us @ 302-361-5667. Tell us who (NO LAST NAMES) is bothering you and what they are doing that annoys you and how you would like to see them assassinated. The best message will be used as an intro for a future episode. That means your voice will be part of the episode.

Details

Creator: Andy B Coon, Blake Faucette
Website: Corporate Assassin

YouTube: Watch Them On YouTube
Ning: Join Their Community
Blip.tv: Watch Them On Blip.tv
Facebook: Join Them On Facebook
Vote For It: Corporate Assassin

Ratings

Style 4

Corporate Assassin is a strong show that occasionally suffers from drawing out the setups to the kills. By minute 3 or 4 we almost always understand why someone should get a paperclip buried in his brainpan but usually we need to sit through another 3-4 minutes of exposition before it happens. (Pacing 3.5)

The Corporate Assassin himself is a fantastic character and I only wish they took more time each episode to explore his motivations. The two flashback episodes are great, but giving us a better look into his head would make the episodes a lot more compelling. (Storytelling 4)

Polish 4

Watchability 3.5

Novelty 4.5

Overall Rating: 3.91 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: This is easily the best roommate comedy I have ever screened, My Pal Satan is hilarious from start to finish; I only wish there were a lot more episodes.

MY PAL, SATAN answers that age-old biblical question: “what would Satan be like as a roommate?” DONNA, a typical twenty-something is going to find out after she posts an ad for a roommate in order to make ends meet. She literally finds herself stuck with the “Roommate From Hell” in the form of SATAN. Their conflicts as roommates, and their unlikely affection for each other are a reminder that not only do opposites attract, but good and evil actually need each other in order to exist.

Details

Cast: Jefferson Brown, Rachel Wilson
Website: My Pal Satan

YouTube: Watch Them On YouTube
Facebook: Join Them On Facebook
Vote For It: My Pal Satan

Ratings

The smoke and makeup effects are great, and the voice effect for Satan is even better. While none of the special effects are over the top, they are all really well done and fit in perfectly with the show concept. (Style 4.5)

Pacing 4.5

Storytelling 4

Polish 5

I could probably watch twelve more of these episodes. The interplay with Donna and Satan and the creativity of the situations that the writers come up with mesh to create one of the most fun to watch roommate comedies I’ve seen in web series land. (Watchability 5)

Yes, this is still a roommate comedy but it pushes the concept so far off the tracks that you might not even notice. (Novelty 4.5)

Overall Rating: 4.58 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: You know what we haven’t seen a lot of this round? Zombies. Last time we spent at least three reviews looking at some fantastic zombie-centric web series, and this time we have looked at exactly none. Since I really enjoy Zombies more than any grown man should admit, I decided to sit down with American Heart HD.

The episodes themselves are pretty long, weighing in at just under 10 minutes but the pacing is good and only a few scenes seem to drag. All in all American Heart is a good show for anyone searching for their Zombie fix.

Details

Website: American Heart HD

Ratings

Style 3.5
Pacing 3.5
Storytelling 3
Polish 4
Watchability 3.5
Novelty 3

Overall Rating: 3.41 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: The Internet is filled with sketch comedy, some of it good, most of it pretty painful, but rarely do you see a show that hearkens back to the best of Flying Circus while still managing to stay relevant. Invention with Brian Forbes is a dry, acid-tongued sketch web series that will leave you laughing from minute one.

British chat-show host, Brian Forbes (Dave Beeler), is driven to distraction by his repeat guest, the eccentric inventor, Sir Reginald Bo-Hey No (Tom Konkle).

David Beeler – Brian Forbes
Tom Konkle – Sir Reginald Bo-Hey No

Details

Cast: David Beeler, Tom Konkle
Website: Invention With Brian Forbes

YouTube: Watch Them On YouTube
Twitter: Follow Them On Twitter
Facebook: Join Them On Facebook
Vote For It: Invention With Brian Forbes

Ratings

Style 3.5

Great writing, awkward pauses and strong acting ties Invention together making it a treat to watch. (Pacing 4.5)

Storytelling 3.5

Polish 3.5

Watchability 4

Novelty 4

Overall Rating: 3.83 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: Because of their short form, web sitcoms risk suffering from weak characterization and even weaker plot development — Meet the Mayfarers manages to overcome these challenges and provides a ruckus look at love, family and the lengths people will go to for lots and lots of money.

“Meet the Mayfarers” is the story of an estranged, dysfunctional family who is forced to live together for one year in order to get their grandfather’s massive inheritance. Trying to hide their hatred for each other to pretend to be the perfect family is going to be an impossible task for this group.

Details

Cast: John Depew, Candace Hopkins, Jenna Paone, Jessica Erin Sylvia, Michael Avellar, Jeffrey Gitelle, Bob Jodka, Paul Patrick Murphy, Jessica Webb,
Website: Meet The Mayfarers (RSS)

YouTube: Watch Them On YouTube
Blip.tv: Watch Them On Blip.tv
Twitter: Follow Them On Twitter
Facebook: Join Them On Facebook
Vote For It: Meet The Mayfarers

Ratings

Style 3

The episodes are really tightly written, surprisingly so in fact. Even though they are short, clocking in at under four minutes, you never feel short changed. (Pacing 4.5)

Storytelling 4

Polish 4

After a very short time you start to get attached to the characters, once that happens you really only have yourself to blame when you can’t stop watching. (Watchability 4)

Novelty 3

Overall Rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: Psycho Babble is a sketch series about a group therapy session. If you are in the mood for neurotic comedy and wacky character archetypes this is your one stop shop.

The camera can be a little shaky and the sound could use some work, but once you get settled in you’ll find yourself watching episode after episode and looking forward to seeing how the characters develop.

Details

Cast: Rebecca Roy, MFT., Steve Brewster, Scott MacDonell, Kristin Cummins, Deidre Miller-Cohen, Charles Horn, Jim Staahl, Chris Valenti, Kasey Wilson
Website: Psycho Babble

Ratings

Style 3

Pacing 4

Storytelling 4

The video and sound quality could use a bit of work, but overall the show is strong. (Polish 3)

Watchability 4.5

Novelty 3.5

Overall Rating: 3.66 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: Yes, I know, another dating show but it’s worth giving D Don’t Date a second look. Rosie Tisch takes the neuroses and site gags that defines these shows and breaths new life into them as D.

D’s having a problem with dating. She sucks at it. Bad. But with her best friend Kate to push her, her guy friend Benj to mock her and her neighbor Creepy Richard to stalk her, she’s going to venture back into the dating cesspool that is LA.

Don’t worry. Her love life sucks worse than yours.

Details

Cast: Rosie Tisch, Chris Fontakis, Marlene Martinez, Michael Beardsley
Website: D Don’t Date

YouTube: Watch Them On YouTube
Twitter: Follow Them On Twitter
Facebook: Join Them On Facebook
Vote For It: D Don’t Date

Ratings

Style 2.5

The scenarios that D ends up in are well thought out, and each story is self contained enough for you to hop into the middle of the series without feeling like you’ve missed anything. It has a sitcom feel to it, and it uses it really well. (Pacing 3.5)

Storytelling 3.5

It’s well shot and well edited but the sound quality can use some work. You get a lot of scratchiness and echo, especially when characters are yelling. (Polish 3)

The absolute best part of this show is Rosie Tisch’s D, I measure my dating procedural by the level of neurosis of the main character and D is a cut above the rest. Add to that a talented supporting cast and you have a markedly entertaining ride. (Watchability 4)

Novelty 2.5

Overall Rating: 3.16 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: Raunchy, wacky and filled up to the brim with one-liners, Safety Geeks SVI is an object lesson in High Camp and a real must-watch for anyone who likes their comedy with a great, big dollop of outrageousness.

Safety Geeks: SVI starring Dave, Tom, Brittney Powell, Benton Jennings & Mary Cseh, chronicles a CSI-like team which investigates safety accidents, leaving a swath of comedic chaos and destruction in their wake.

The P.O.S.H. (Professional Occupational Safety Hazard) team investigates safety violations and accidents, ineptly causing more damage as a result. P.O.S.H. provides an obscure, well-meaning service’ unfortunately, they are a bunch of idiots. The world of P.O.S.H. is very unsafe, largely due to them.

Details

Cast: David Beeler, Tom Konkle, Brittney Powell, Benton Jennings, Mary Cseh
Website: Safety Geeks SVI

Koldcast: See Them On Koldcast
Twitter: Follow Them On Twitter
Facebook: Join Their Page

Ratings

Safety Geeks SVI has some of the best special effects I’ve seen in a web series. It’s right up there with Condition:Human on my list of masterfully done graphics. Sure, all of them are a little corny but it just adds to the overall camp of the show. They understood what they were trying to achieve and executed it. (Style 4.5)

The show moves a little too quickly in places. It feels like the type of series that squeezed 10-12 minutes of content into 7 or 8. With such fun characters on stage, you really wish they had taken more time to flesh out their plots from episode to episode. (Pacing 3)

Storytelling 4

Polish 4.5

This is not a show for everyone, few shows are. People with weak stomachs, a distaste for fart jokes and a particularl sensitivity to sexualized humor will not enjoy Safety Geeks, however, that makes it funnier for those without those particular predilections. All in all, this is a show that deserves your attention. It’s timing, sense of humor and overall feel put it on the list of top tier web comedies. (Watchability 3.5)

Novelty 4

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: In the exhausting world of husband and wife comedies, sometimes you’re looking for something a little weird. Drama Kings manages to throw some really unique story premises over a tired genre, and combine an age old story with some really funny moments.

The story of a married couple, one is planning to retire wealthy the other is adjusting to life at home.

Details

Creators: James Tucker, Greg Travis
Website: Drama Kings

YouTube: See Them On YouTube
Facebook: Join Their Page
Vote For It: Drama Kings

Ratings

Style 3

What’s great about this show is how often they throw you for a loop. Whether it’s the Russian plumber sexcapade or the adopted “child” of episode 5, every episode brings something new and interesting to their relationship. (Pacing 4)

Storytelling 3

Some of the camera work is a little shaky but overall it is well shot and well edited. (Polish 4)

Watchability 3.5

It’s a husband and wife comedy, there really are only so many different ways you can write one. That being the case, especially in the later episodes, it does have a quirkiness that makes it an incredibly enjoyable watch. (Novelty 3)

Overall Rating: 3.41 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: It feels a little like a low budget version of Dr. Horrible, which is about the best compliment I can give a show. It’s still way to early in the series to even give it a complete review, but so far it has been an enjoyable ride.

Imagine we live in a world where ordinary people strive to leave their mundane lives and accomplish extraordinary things. And within that world are six bumbling, wannabe superheroes who have no idea what they’re getting themselves into. This is our story. This is The Junior League of Superheroes.

Details

Cast: Teresa Reilly, Justin Davidson, Foster Wilson, Justin Fair, Julie Gearheard, Brian Leahy
YouTube Channel: Junior League Of Superheroes
Website: Junior League Of Super Heroes
Support the Show: Get Involved

Subscribe

Twitter Feed: Feed
Facebook Page Junior League Of Superheroes

Ratings

Style 3.5

Pacing 3.5

Storytelling 4

Polish 3.5

Watchability 4

Novelty 4

Overall Rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: While the comic timing could use some work, overall the show is an extraordinarily competently done roommate comedy.

A web series for the slacker in all of us, THE WORLD OF CORY AND SID follows the lives of two best friends, sharing an apartment and living the life. Somewhat an odd couple, Sid (Pearce Akpata) and Cory (David Sharp) are both strangers in a strange land…a world where they’re considered adults.

When Cory, the Brit in our midst, is savagely cut off by his parents, unlike most saps without ingenuity, Cory decides to make his own way…by opening a restaurant in his living room, renting out random portions of his apartment, and various other schemes to put Zach Morris to shame. Cory can scheme his way out of almost anything until it’s revealed that he hasn’t paid his share of rent in months and that he and his roommates will soon be kicked out of their townhouse.

Caught up in the mix is Cory’s best mate, Sid, a Canadian far too levelheaded to risk eviction. Unlike his pal, Sid did his time in the higher educational system and he’s ready to take on the world of business…if only he could wake up before 11:00 AM. It’s often left up to Sid, “the responsible one,” to get them out of the troubles Cory lands them in.

Rounding out the slacker duo is their ragtag group of friends: Cheddar (Stefon Benson) the third roommate, an athlete obsessed with his girlfriend and getting ripped; Devon (Leigh Jonte), a preppy collegiate who wants nothing more than for her boyfriend to move out; and Semaj (Marissa Merrill), a guy’s girl always down for whatever mayhem the boys are looking to create.

Details

Cast: Pearce Akpata, David Sharp, Stefon Benson, Leigh Jonte, Marissa Merrill
Blip.tv Channel: Cory and Sid
Website: Cory and Sid
Support the Show: Join Their Twitter Page

Subscribe

Feed: Feed
Facebook Page The World of Cory and Sid

Ratings

Style 3

The jokes move too quickly to be laugh outloud funny. This keeps the story moving along nicely, but I started to wish they would stop jumping around and stick to a theme. The concepts are all good but the entire thing is just too abrupt. (Pacing 3)

This one reminded me a little bit of Stella, you have roommates getting into wacky situations while trying to make rent. Like Stella, it works about 70% of the time. It’s another of those shows that would work better with another 5 minutes tacked onto each episode. That being said, you don’t see too many roommate web series so this is a refreshing and entertaining watch. (Storytelling 3.5)

The video and script are solid but the sound needs some work. A lot of time the musical track drowns out the dialogue. (Polish 3)

Watchability 3.5

Novelty 3.5

Overall Rating: 3.25 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: By the time you finish reading this review you could have probably gotten through the entire season. That being said, Brett Register and Craig Frank are such a good comedic duo that even if you can’t completely follow the plot you should sit through this for the funny.

This is the story of what happens when you come home to find out that your new roommate is a werewolf.

Details

Cast: Brett Register, Craig Frank
Blip.tv Channel: Absolute Disaster
Website: Brett Register
Support the Show: Watch Other Absolute Disaster Projects

Subscribe

Twitter Feed: Feed

Ratings

Style 3.5

The first thing you might notice if you watch as many web series as I do is that this one has Brett Register and Craig Frank from one of my favorite shows, The Crew. That’s completely irrelevant to the rest of this review.

Usually I’d cover at least a few of my ratings but for this series I’m changing it up a little. You see, I really think I like this show but it went by so fast I couldn’t tell. Each episode is under 2 minutes and that just isn’t enough time to explore the fact that Craig just found out that his roommate is a werewolf. I mean, when that is your major plot element, you need to leave yourself some onscreen time to help the audience make sense of it.

Add to that fact that Craig’s girlfriend is a vampire and what you have is a comedy version of Underworld on a three week caffeine bender.

That being said, I wish there were about a dozen more episodes because I think with some fleshing out this series could be even more fun. (Pacing 3)

Storytelling 3.5

Polish 4.5

Watchability 3.5

Novelty 3.5

Overall Rating: 3.58 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: It’s like Clueless meets Felicity, a young woman is trying to make it on her own and find herself with only her pluck, wit and an unimaginable fortune to protect her.

Moxie Spendlove just turned twenty five and found out she’s the sole heiress to her family fortune. Not only is she set for life financially, she’s also the new president of her grandfather’s gag gift franchise, Whoopsee-Doozy Enterprises. What’s a girl to do? Only one thing: set out on a mission to find something that makes her happy.

Moxie was raised by her nanny, Nanny Fong, after her mother passed away and her father vanished. She’s lived a life of privilege, and her two best friends Aurora and Andromeda are always by her side, helping her spend her money.

She’s the girl every other girl wants to be – she’s fun, fabulous, and fresh!

And now that she’s on a mission, there’s no telling what crazy idea she’ll come up with next

Details

Cast: Shelly Frappier, Amanda Garley, Andy Rebollar, Jeremy Scheffee, Kate Schneider, Marissa Mecir, Andi Grandy, Stephen Evans, Rob Frappier, Irene Brown, Jason Biggers, Dave Wanlass
Vimeo Channel: Moxie Spendlove
Website: Moxie Spendlove
Support the Show: Visit The Moxie Spendlove Store

Ratings

Style 3

Pacing 4

It’s like a coming of age story but it takes place at 25. The characters in Moxie are what sell the series, between her two greedy, bumbling friends and her “life coach” that looks like someone out of the Adams Family you have enough plot drivers to keep the story moving pretty briskly. (Storytelling 3.5)

Polish 4.5

This one isn’t for everyone but what show is? It is heavy on the “spoiled little rich kid” chuckles and shopping jokes. It’s a great series for anyone who liked Clueless because of Alicia Silverstone instead of in spite of her. (Watchability 3.5)

Novelty 3

Overall Rating: 3.58 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: It’s quirky, clever and about sperm. Saying more than that would just ruin the experience. Do yourself a favor and watch an episode or two.

I always wanted to voice an animated show and use all the crazy voices in my head, so I created “It’s a Sperm’s World.”

Armed with Adobe After Effects and a boat load of Lynda.com training videos, I proceeded to learn how to animate (professional animators: your joke here) my show.

Originally, I tried to voice both Gary and Skippy. I got out my microphone and my multiple personalities and started recording. I listened back and low and behold… it was terrible. Something was missing. More than just my sanity.

I had always had great comedic rapport with my good friend, Shane Blades, and thought he would be an excellent addition to the show. With nothing better to do, he said, “Yes.” The rest is history.

Details

Cast: Jeff Lapensee, Shane Blades
YouTube Channel: It’s A Sperm’s World
Website: It’s A Sperm’s World
Support the Show: Make A Donation

Subscribe

Twitter Feed: Feed
Facebook Page It’s A Sperm’s World

Ratings

Style 4

Pacing 4

Storytelling 3.5

Polish 3.5

Watchability 4

It’s a show about…well, ok, before I start, when was the last time you saw an animated sitcom about a sperm named Skippy? Every other part of this show is so overshadowed by its concept that it’s not really worth talking about. It is funny. It is easy to watch episode to episode but the most important part by far is that it is about sperm. Give it a shot, if only because then you’ll be able to say you’ve seen everything the Internet has to offer. (Novelty 5)

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: This show needs more episodes. It’s a brilliantly executed parody of every bad ghost hunters show you’ve ever seen and even some you haven’t.

Losers by day – ghost hunters by night. From the garage of his disapproving grandmother’s home, soldier of all that is good, Ken Livingston, leads a team of supernatural investigators in a search for truth, justice and poltergeists.

In each episode, our heroes confront para-abnormalities that no other team would dare — busting ghosts caught on sex tapes, braving motel rooms that kill (and have no cable or turndown service), and seducing succubi.

Details

Cast: Ken Livingston, Alexander “Bunky” Hunt, Joe Schmidt, Tony Kryczeskiwicz and Wendy.
YouTube Channel: Paraabnormal
Website: Paraabnormal
Support the Show: Join Paraabnormal’s Facebook Fan Page

Subscribe

Facebook Page Paraabnormal

Ratings

As parodies go this works perfectly, it’s structured just like television Ghost Hunter shows, from the black and white to the ultra-tight camera angles to the quirky assortment of “scientific” gadgets. You couldn’t ask for more. (Style 4.5)

Pacing 4

Clear characterization. When dealing with web series far too often you end up with generic characters that would be completely interchangeable if they got a little Nicholas Cage style Face/Off treatment. Especially when you’re dealing with an ensemble cast good characterization is critical to give the series flow. Even though it’s still really early in the series, if ParaAbnormal keeps this up they’ll have something really entertaining on their hands. (Storytelling 4.5)

Polish 3.5

Watchability 4

I always thought that the Ghost Hunter show on Discovery Channel was a parody, but ParaAbnormal has proved me wrong. You can’t go wrong with Ghost Sex Tapes. (Novelty 4)

Overall Rating: 4.08 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: This is sketch comedy at its geekiest, because of the ensemble cast you’ll need to get through the first few episodes before you really understand the characters.

A web series about the creators of a web series… Wait, what?

In the harshly competitive world of internet video, one team of sketch comedians tries to make a difference.

In this case however, the difference is somehow getting paid for doing what they do. The Crew of LoadingReadyRun.com has been making the funny for over five years, but the time has come to buckle up, knuckle down and roll out. Can this group of friends overcome the challenges of self-funding, online competition and not killing each other? Well… two-out-of-three isn’t bad.

Details

Cast: Graham Stark, Paul Saunders, Jeremy Petter, James Turner, Bill Watt, Matt Wiggins, Morgan vanHumbeck, Kathleen De Vere
Blip.tv Channel: Chronicles of Humanity
Website: Chronicles of Humanity
Support the Show: Watch LoadingReadyRun’s Other Films

Subscribe

Feed: Feed
Facebook Page Commodore Hustle

Ratings

Style 3

Pacing 3

It’s Geeky sketch comedy. Sometimes it’s awkward, sometimes it’s hamfisted but in truth it feels a lot like what would happen if you sat a bunch of the buddies you used to play Counter Strike with in a room and asked them to act. That is not a bad thing. (Storytelling 3)

Good directing, solid transitions and some nice effects make this an above average comedy web series in terms of polish. (Polish 4)

Here is the problem with having an ensemble cast as large as you do in Commodore Hustle, you have to write everyone into the script which means that for the audience you never really feel attached to any particular person. Especially when every episode comes in at over 10 minutes, things would go a lot more smoothly if they focused on a handful of characters per show instead of trying to get everyone on screen regardless of whether they add to the plot. This is one of those shows that you’ll start to dig about three episodes in when you finally see enough of each character to start understanding their quirks. (Watchability 3)

Novelty 3

Overall Rating: 3.08 out of 5 stars

Oh how I love films about neurosis. This movie follows the story of a young woman plagued by her mother’s fears of just about everything. Clad in knee-pads, gloves, a helmet stuffed with sponges and with the sort of manic, rambling line delivery that makes you chuckle even when nothing particularly funny is happening, the main character pulls off her role beautifully.

The writing had some awkward moments and it was a little hard to tell whether they were put in deliberately or not but otherwise this is great look at phobias, obsessions and learning to “get over it.”

Creator’s Description

Plagued by the rules and warnings of her obsessive mother, a young woman leads a life in fear of virtually everything surrounding her.

Details

Creator: Michael Barnett Brettler
Deviant Art Channel: Levin: Maladies of Death
Website: IMDB

Ratings

I love the main character’s costume in this (Style 4)

Pacing 4

The neurosis and visual humor keeps the pace high and your attention on screen. (Storytelling 3.5)

Polish 4

Watchability 4

Novelty 4.5

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: It’s still early in the series and it feels like the writers are looking for their groove, but with a gleefully neurotic main character and a great eye for awkward date setups it’s on the path to being great.

Seeking Simone is a new lesbian web series about online dating. Follow the adventures of Simone Selkin as she dates her way through gay Toronto!

“What’s so great about meeting ‘in real life’ first anyway? That’s how Ava Braun met Hitler and look how that turned out.”

Simone Selkin is single and in no way ready to mingle. Her excuses? Well, she’s new to Toronto, she’s trying to make the most of her big break on CSIS:ForensicSWAT and, if she’s honest, she’s still getting over her ex, Rebecca, who was a total skank. But back in Vancouver, Simone’s best friend Audrey has a plan to get Simone back on the horse. And that plan is “online dating”.

Don’t fret, hets – Seeking Simone is not just for homos. It’s a comedy for anyone who’s ever dared to date – and lived to cringe forever over the tale.

Details

Cast: Renee Olbert, Anna Chatterton, Michelle Girouard, Liz Pounsett, David Bronfman, Kiran Friesen, Zoie Palmer, Jennifer Brown, Eli Mcilveen Julian Sark
Blip.tv Channel: Seeking Simone
Website: Seeking Simone
Support the Show: Write A Review About Seeking Simone

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Facebook Page Seeking Simone

Ratings

Style 3.5

It’s a dating story which means that a lot of episodes revolve around Simone on dates and the wacky, interesting, embarrassing stuff that evolves from it. For the most part, the setup is gold but sometimes the awkward moments are dragged out a little too long. You might be saying, “Well, that’s what makes them awkward,” but I found myself waiting for the joke in places. It’s still early in the series and they seem to be feeling it out but a faster buildup might really help to push the story along. (Pacing 3)

Storytelling 3.5

Polish 3

This is really, really fun to watch. They have managed to set Simone up on wildly different dates from episode to episode and it’s a pleasure to see what comes next. If you watch one lesbian dating series that takes place in Canada this season, this should be it. (Watchability 4.5)

Much of the action of the story is told second hand via webcam. This is a fun premise and adds a touch of reality to the series. If there is any complaint at all it is that Simone is sometimes too honest, a little embellishment for comic effect might be entertaining. (Novelty 3.5)

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: If you have been longing for a gum shoe series with a dash of comedy, this is what you’ve been looking for.

Created and produced by Regan Latimer and Bee Charmer Productions, B.J. Fletcher: Private Eye is an exciting new web series which has just finished posting it’s second season. Season One has already received a fantastic response having won the 2008 AfterEllen.com Web Series Contest in the United States. With an all Canadian cast and crew, featuring Lindy Zucker and Dana Puddicombe in the leading roles, B.J. Fletcher: Private Eye is a distinctly new and unique production bringing to life strong female characters with the right balance of action, comedy, and diversity.

Details

Cast: Regan Latimer, Lindy Zucker, Dana Puddicombe
Daily Motion Channel: B.J. Fletcher Private Eye
Website: B.J. Fletcher Private Eye
Support the Show: Visit The B.J. Fletcher Store

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Twitter Page B.J. Fletcher

Ratings

This show is quirky in the best possible way, between B.J.’s audio diary and the well scripted physical comedy you get a sense that as much effort went into the details of direction as did into scripting the dialogue. (Style 4.5)

The ‘cases’ move quickly, the dialogue is punchy and the length which comes in under ten minutes is appropriate. In all, the stories keep you satisfied. (Pacing 4)

The most fun part of this story is the interplay between B.J. and George. The two actresses play off of each other beautifully, bumbling their way through case after case so authentically that you almost feel like they were meant for the P.I. game. (Storytelling 4)

Polish 4

Watchability 4.5

Novelty 3

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: A great series for comic book fans, with enough laughs to keep more mainstream viewers coming back. It feels like the characters are growing into their roles and I’m looking forward to seeing how this develops.

Hi. My name’s Joe Cucinotti.

Formerly a radio DJ in Dallas/Fort Worth and a host of the short-lived (but soon to rise again like a phoenix from the ashes) podcast JOE VS KEN that I produced with long time friend Ken Lowery.

In early 2009 Ken and I were approached by Richard Neal – the Eisner award winning owner and operator of Zeus Comics in Dallas TX. (4411 Lemmon Ave… come visit!) He expressed a desire to develop a web series that would appeal to fans of something like Felicia Day’s THE GUILD but fused with the comic/dramatic style that you might see in something like THE OFFICE or 30 ROCK.

[[Visit blog to check out this spoiler]]

Details

Creators: Joe Cucinotti, Ken Lowery, Richard Neal
YouTube Channel: The Variants
Website: The Variants
Support the Show: Visit The Variant’s Store

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Facebook Page The Variants

Ratings

It’s shot inside of a real comic book store with real comic books, that alone will earn you a few credibility points. (Style 3.5)

Pacing 3

This show is the show about what it’s like to be inside of a comic book shop. If you listen closely you will be treated to the dulcet tones of people waxing poetic about all manner of geekery. For people like me, this is great but like French films and John Malkovich movies a lot of people will feel like there is a distinct lack of forward momentum in some of the plots. (Storytelling 3.5)

Polish 4

For better or for worse it feels like you’re watching Clerks, the animated series, not the movie. You are treated to obscure pop culture reference after obscure pop culture reference, and unless you are deeply infatuated with film and comic culture it can be a little too “insidery” (Watchability 3)

Novelty 3

Overall Rating: 3.33 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: I feel like this is a great series begging for longer episodes.

Emergency 411 is a short series of animations put together by Tim Heiderich. He guides us through surviving all of life’s problems whether it’s having a baby or being trapped in the cold embrace of outer space.

I enjoyed every second of these shorts, the only problem I had was that there were so few seconds to enjoy. I appreciate the fact that this is the web and things need to be snappy, but a lot of these concepts were incredibly cool and having an extra 30 seconds might have given Tim more time to flesh things out.

Then again, there is a rule to comedy that you should always leave them wanting more. In this case, I think the judge is still out.

Details

Creator: Tim Heiderich
Openfilm Channel: Emergency 411
Website: Tim Toon
Support the Show: See Tim’s Projects At Weak Nights

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YouTube Feed: Weak Nights

Ratings

Style 4

I only wish these were longer. There are a lot of really good ideas here but after you cut out the intro and the credits some of them clock in at under 30 seconds. This is one of those times where another minute of exposition could have really helped. (Pacing 2.5)

Storytelling 3.5

I love the animation style, it reminds me a little of 1950s commercial parody. Everything about the way this is arranged is well done. (Polish 4)

The episode end too abruptly at times, just as you’re getting into the joke the credits start to roll. The “how to’s” themselves are all great concepts though, so I found myself forgiving the length over and over again. (Watchability 3)

Novelty 3

Overall Rating: 3.33 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: Considering how interesting the main character is I found myself wishing that I could see him in a more dynamic role. Even so, if you watch a few episodes you will find that Zerk’s gripes and moans will grow on you.

Three time fragments ago, Captain Zerks Ganymedewski, and his ship the Venturi 553, disappeared without a trace. What happened to Zerks and his ship? No one knew until the recent discovery of the Venturi’s log capsule – its “black box”. As the League of Outstanding Planets begins reviewing the evidence from the log, the truth will be revealed.

Captain Fantastic? Well, Zerks certainly thinks so! However, the reality is perhaps just a bit different! Watch and find out for yourself as Zerks Log is revealed in this 18 episode sci-fi comedy web series.

Details

Cast: Ben Alpi, Rob King, Beth Smith, Sarah Babb, Dave Condon
Blip.tv Channel: Zerk’s Log
Website: Storyforge
Support the Show: Read The Web Comic

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iTunes Feed: Zerk’s Log

Ratings

Great use of green screen, great costumes, and an interesting visual style add to the overall appeal of this show. (Style 4)

At times it’s a little meandering and it makes you wish there was more meta-story to stitch it all together (Pacing 2.5)

This is a “slice of life” series. There isn’t too much overarching plot, but in a lot of ways that works for it because it gives them more opportunity to come up with interesting things for Zerk to gripe about. The meta plot does begin to develop later in the series and you should definitely stick around to see that. (Storytelling 3.5)

Polish 4

Watchability 3.5

It’s a vlog aboard an alien space ship. You should be watching this right now for that alone. (Novelty 4)

Overall Rating: 3.58 out of 5 stars

Cart is a Jesse Rosten film which at 10:00 is more or less feature length for the Internet. It tells the story of a shopping cart and it’s journey to return a little boy’s sweater.

This is solid storytelling.

Even without a single word of dialogue, you start to feel for the cart. It reminded me a lot of why I liked Wall-E, every bump and shake as it travels across town makes the cart feel less like steel and plastic and more like a living, breathing creature. In a lot of ways the cart feels more real, more sympathetic than the human characters.

The musical score by Peter Lance is also great, while it doesn’t do anything spectacular, it helps the story keep pace and it adds a much needed sense of drama.

Without spoiling too much, I would say my least favorite part of this film was the ending. It’s exactly because the characterization of the cart is so well done that I think the ending falls flat. You want to see the cart rewarded for its hard work (how often do shopping carts travel across town on cloths retrieval missions?) instead what you get is a rather dark, abrupt climax that leaves a lot of questions that you want answered out in the open.

That small criticism aside, this is an utterly fantastic film that is a must see for anyone who likes children stories or has a soft spot in their heart for shopping carts.

Details

Creator: Jesse Rosten
Vimeo Channel: Cart – The Film
Website: Jesse Rosten

Ratings

The Cart animation is seamless and the visual storytelling is utterly engaging. (Style 4)

It feels much shorter than 10 minutes (Pacing 4)

I have personal issues with the ending, but that doesn’t stop this from being an amazingly well done story. (Storytelling 4.5)

Polish 4

Watchability 4

Really unique protagonist in an otherwise familiar story (Novelty 3.5)

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Heui Won Jeong and Justin Murphy give us an incredibly stylish “eco-animation” in JumpTrumpRumpBump. They combined rich, vibrant illustrations with enough atmosphere to avoid making you feel like you’re sitting through a flipbook.

The story is slow, very slow in fact. If you look at the comments on the Vimeo page you’ll see that this was deliberate but for some people it might be off-putting. The story follows a little girl and her family who are hiding a group of animals who for whatever reason are convicts. I think they might have something against Koala’s playing Jazz. They manage to put the police of the scent using what is possibly the greatest distraction in recent animation history (start the video at 3:15 to see) and eventually the little girl finds herself in the forest laying down some tasty tunes with her woodland friends.

The creators seemed to be trying to draw a parallel between the development of natural habitats and the cultural losses we accept when we do so, however, considering it is almost 8 minutes long (7:54) it is just a little difficult to parse exactly what they were going for.

Overall this is an absolutely gorgeous piece of animation that is fun to watch, even though 8 minutes is an eternity in Internet time you’ll find yourself wishing there were more. While I do wish the story was a little tighter, they manage to get across their basic premise on the importance of conservation.

If you like animals, jazz or animation take some time to look at this.

Details

Creators: Heui Won Jeong, Justin Murphy
Vimeo Channel: JumpTrumpRumpBump
Image Gallery: Flickr

Ratings

Style 4

Pacing 3

You quickly get the message but you do feel like you’re ‘missing something’ (Storytelling 3)

Polish 5

About 50% of you will find it a little too long (Watchability 3.5)

It has a really unique visual style (Novelty 4.5)

Overall Rating: 3.33 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: A lot of great things have been said about the Guild, but so few people point out just how well written it is. The acting is great, the directing and pacing are well thought out but what really shines about this series is one of the mostly tightly written and entertaining scripts in web TV land. In case you need more encouragement, go watch a few episodes now.

The Guild is a independent sitcom web series about a group of online gamers. The show started in the late summer of 2007, and for the first season was financed solely by Paypal donations from LOYAL FANS. Since season 2, The Guild has been distributed by Xbox Live and Microsoft and sponsored by Sprint.

Episodes vary from 3-8 minutes in length, and follow the Guild members’ lives online and offline.

“The Guild” has won numerous awards, including the SXSW, YouTube and Yahoo Web Series Awards in 2008, and 3 Streamy Awards in 2009: Best Comedy Web Series, Best Ensemble, and Best Actress for Felicia Day.

Details

Cast: Felicia Day, Amy Okuda, Jeff Lewis, Robin Thorsen, Sandeep Parikh, Vincent Caso
MSN Channel: The Guild
Website: The Guild
Support the Show: Buy The Season Two DVD

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Latest Episodes: Watch Season Three

Ratings

It’s a solid, straightforward story without a huge number of distracting bells and whistles. Even so, it takes itself just seriously enough to make it hard not to love. (Style 4)

Pacing 4

The word entertaining doesn’t do this show justice, it’s a pleasure to watch the story unfold. Fantastic writing, great premise, superb execution. (Storytelling 5)

Polish 4.5

Watchability 5

There are a lot of different ways you could have done a show about MMOs, but focusing on the players lives — or lack thereof — put this in a territory all its own. (Novelty 4.5)

Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars