Bottom Line: While the rest of the series (everything but the first episode) is now only available on DVD, Girl Number 9 is easily one of my favorite web Thrillers in recent history, and well worth a purchase.

Gareth David-Lloyd (Torchwood), Joe Absolom (Doc Martin, Personal Affairs) and Tracy-Ann Oberman (Doctor Who, Eastenders).

Producers Martin Baker and Pete Coogan are proud to announce Girl Number 9, a dark thriller created exclusively for the internet, in six 5-minute episodes premiering on October 30 2009 at 9pm.

The series stars Gareth David-Lloyd (Torchwood), Joe Absolom (Doc Martin, Personal Affairs) and Tracy-Ann Oberman (Doctor Who, Eastenders), and is written by James Moran (Doctor Who, Torchwood, Spooks, Severance). Episodes 1, 2 and 3 are directed by award-winning feature director Dan Turner, while James Moran makes his directorial debut on episodes 4, 5 and 6.

Vincent Boylan (Joe Absolom) has just been arrested, suspected of being behind the brutal murder of seven girls, but the team only have a limited time to get a confession. If they can’t make him talk, he could slip through their fingers. Detective Matheson (Gareth David-Lloyd), who is leading the investigation, is sent in to try and get some answers. But things soon take a horrifying turn for the worse, as Matheson and his boss Lyndon (Tracy-Ann Oberman) find out that all is not as it seems.

The mystery deepens as everyone is drawn into Boylan’s sick mind games, and each twist-packed episode ends on a tantalising cliffhanger, making every instalment a must-see.

Details

Cast: Vincent Boylan, Gareth David-Lloyd, Tracy-Ann Oberman
Website: Girl Number 9

Twitter: Follow Them On Twitter
Facebook: Join Them On Facebook
Vote For It: Girl Number 9

Ratings

Style 4

The only thing I can say about pacing is that I wish the episodes were longer. I mean that in the best possible way. If you watch the DVD version of this you might not see it, but the way the cliff hangers were setup was phenomenal. (Pacing 4)

Storytelling 5

Polish 4.5

This is a dark, moody interrogation serial that will leave you begging for each new episode. While they aren’t paving any new ground with this series, they have managed to take viewers on an extraordinarily entertaining ride. (Watchability 5)

Novelty 3.5

Overall Rating: 4.33 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: It was hard to decide which of the 57,000 or so vampire-related web series to review but what struck me about this one (like all shows on Take 180) is how interactive it is.

On the surface it tracks the story of two girls, a vampire and what happens when you get a little too caught up in your obsessions but more pointedly it is a platform for people who love everything about vampires to finally put themselves into the story. There are challenges, confessions and a whole host of interactive content pieces which make what might otherwise be another Ann Rice re-imagining and turns it into something fun and downright entertaining.

Details

Cast: Sarah Butler, Eric McIntire, Adam Chambers, Josh Nuncio, Erin Way, Cherilyn Wilson, Martha Hackett
Website: I Heart Vampires

Ratings

Strong interactive elements drive this story and put it several cuts above the rest. (Style 5)

Pacing 3.5

Storytelling 3.5

Polish 4

It is still a teen-centric Vampire serial, if that isn’t your particular cup of tea then you might not like this one, but if you were choosing among teen-centric vampire serials, this is easily the most interesting. (Watchability 3.5)

Novelty 5

Overall Rating: 4.08 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: They need to make more episodes of this one. I know that Brett is doing a series of experiments and that it wasn’t necessarily designed for an extended run, but this is sharp, entertaining and has just the right amount of mystery to keep the plot from being overrun by camp.

It’s a web series about a mysterious set of cards and a group of people trying to uncover their, er, mystery.

Details

Cast: Katy Stoll, Brett Register, Craig Frank, Haley Mancini, Nellie Barnett
Blip.tv Channel: Absolute Disaster
Website: Brett Register
Support the Show: Watch The New Season Of The Crew At Babelgum

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Feed: Feed
Twitter Page Brett Register

Ratings

Style 3.5

This is another show from Absolute Disaster, the people who brought us Craig: The Werewolf Roommate. Unlike Craig, this one is a lot easier to follow and because they use the same device — the cards — in every episode, they manage to drum up some suspense with their comedy. Overall, this show is really well paced for having videos that come in at under 3 minutes. (Pacing 4)

J.J. Abrams says that when he’s designing a show he always tries to set it up with mystery boxes, which is to say, he wants to leave unanswered questions in the minds of his audience to keep them coming back. Lost and Found is not Lost, but as a series that takes more than a few nods from Mr. Abrams, it manages to hold true to the idea. It’s short, punchy and leaves you hoping that they develop the series further. (Storytelling 4)

Polish 4

Watchability 4

Novelty 4

Overall Rating: 3.91 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: If you own or have ever owned an NES this is one of the best things you’ll ever watch. I always knew the mushroom kingdom had some skeletons in its closet.

“There Will Be Brawl” is a non-profit web series designed as a dark, dramatic parody of the popular Super Smash Bros. Brawl video game for the Nintendo Wii. The Creators of the project are avid fans of Nintendo, and this series has been developed as an homage to the colorful characters of SSBB that we all know and love. Through the hard work of a talented cast and crew, and the support of our fans, we hope to continue to produce a story you will all enjoy.

Details

Creators: Matthew Mercer, Zach Grafton
Escapist Magazine Channel: There Will Be Brawl
Website: There Will Be Brawl
Support the Show: Watch The Episodes At Escapist Magazine

Subscribe

Forum: Forum
Facebook Page There Will Be Brawl

Ratings

I never thought I’d be calling an NES parody “darkly stylish,” but this one is. Between Luigi’s gritty monologues, the strip clubs and the violence this is about as dramatic as the Nintendo universe has ever been. (Style 5)

Pacing 4

Storytelling 4.5

Great costumes, great script, great direction I couldn’t ask for more. (Polish 5)

Insidery isn’t the half of it. This is a series designed for people who know enough about video games to be dangerous. If you don’t, most of the jokes will make no sense and really all you are left with are a bunch of people running around in weird costumes occasionally hitting each other. If you understand the source material this is a dark, edgy parody of the worlds we all grew up with. Each episode is about 10 minutes so save this for when you have a little time to enjoy it. (Watchability 4)

Novelty 4

Overall Rating: 4.41 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: Cafe Insomniac is a thinking man’s machinima. The visuals are well crafted but the real beauty of this story is trying to unravel what’s real and what’s a delusion.

Machinima is animated film-making within a real-time virtual 3-D environment. It uses the technology developed by computer gaming and transfers it to film-making.

Machinima has been around in a primitive form since the 1990’s, but it’s only been in the last year that the technology has existed to produce quality content.

Recently Warner Brother’s became the first film studio to release a machinima series – ‘Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series’.

Details

Creators: Hardy Capo
Vimeo Channel: Cafe Insomniac
Website: Callous Productions
Support the Show: Hire Callous Productions For Machinima

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Feed: Cafe Insomniac
Twitter Feed Hardy Capo

Ratings

Style 4

Pacing 4

This has just about everything you could ask for out of a Machinima. The story is one twist after another, the camera work and animation is brilliantly done and the voice work is excellent. Not only that but each episode feels complete, which is the most common problem web series face, they are usually just under 10 minutes long and by the end you feel like the plot has actually moved somewhere. (Storytelling 4)

Machinima is pretty hit or miss. The trick is to make it feel like you’re not just watching a cleverly edited video game with voice overs. Cafe Insomnia does the job. The editing is crisp, the voices fit the action and the world manages to breath. We can only hope that as the series continues, some of the open questions are answered the the writing continues to be as good as the first three episodes. (Polish 4.5)

Watchability 4

Novelty 4.5

Overall Rating: 4.16 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: Four If By Space is a great spin on the buddy comedy motif.

Four If By Space, a web series created by Richard Lovejoy, Kent Meister, and Brad Raimondo. This sci-fi / comedy / road movie / adventure / sex farce centers around a pair of twin brothers. Each meets an alien. One alien is on the run from his own species. The other has his eyes on invasion…

The story alternates back and forth between illiterate novelist Quentin Elijah, who has befriended an evil alien General; and Evan Elijah, a shallow, well-to-do hipster who teaches the alien Guiradon about life on Earth. As Quentin and the General race across the country, Evan and Guiradon enjoy a fast paced hedonistic lifestyle in New York City.

You’ll scream as a ruthless alien General tries to impose Somnacracy on humanity! You’ll laugh as Quentin Elijah attempts to be the world’s first illiterate novelist! You’ll smile knowingly as Evan Elijah tries to educate the alien Guiradon about human social interactions. You’ll gasp as characters you care about die suddenly, violently! You’ll shudder as the alien fleet grows closer to earth! You’ll titter nervously as details about the alien anatomy are revealed!

Four If By Space has it all! Action! Comedy! Romance! Suspense! Thinly veiled allegories to the plight of America! Alien sex! Diaologue that borders on coherency! Alien Sex! And at least four or five other things!

Details

Cast: Kent Meister, Richard Lovejoy, Morgan Anne Zipf, Molly Pope, Ian Schoen, Laura O’Brien, Ricardo Perez, Max Seide, Jeremy Sumpman, Brad Raimondo
YouTube Channel: Four If By Space
Website: Four If by Space
Support the Show: Vote For The Show On Funny Or Die

Subscribe

Feed: Feed
Facebook Page Four If By Space

Ratings

Great Z-movie grade special effects add to the overall shlockiness of this entertaining alien comedy. (Style 4)

Pacing 3.5

“Is there anything more American than an illiterate man writing a novel?” This is a story of two aliens and two idiots and how their lives intersect. While it plays off of pretty much every comedy involving super-powered alien creatures, it has enough of that buddy-movie feel to it to make it stand out on its own. (Storytelling 3.5)

Polish 3

It reminds me of Mork and Mindy in the best possible way. (Watchability 4)

Novelty 3.5

Overall Rating: 3.58 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line: Sometimes this is almost too good a parody, IKEA has never seemed so angsty. The fact that they managed to film all of this in the store while people were busy shopping makes it all the more amazing.

This is worth watching if only for the sheer level of creativity that went into something up the shoot.

Ikea Heights is a melodrama shot entirely in the Burbank California Ikea Store without the store knowing.

Details

Creators: Dave Seger, Paul Bartunek, Delbert Shoopman, Spencer Strauss, Tom Kauffman
YouTube Channel: Ikea Heights
Website: Ikea Heights
Support the Show: Watch Their Show On Channel 101

Subscribe

Feed: Feed
Vimeo Channel Ikea Heights

Ratings

Style 3.5

Pacing 4

Storytelling 3.5

Polish 3

If you hate even thinking about watching a soap opera then this isn’t for you. It has amnesia, murder, infidelity, gritty detective work and all sorts of other day time television tropes. The parody is spot on though, so if you love to hate soaps start watching this now. (Watchability 4)

This show is filmed inside a real IKEA store with real customers shopping during the shoot. Add to that fact that it’s a brilliantly creative parody of over-dramatic soap operas and you have a recipe for a show that deserves at least one viewing. (Novelty 5)

Overall Rating: 3.66 out of 5 stars

A man who suffers from terrible dreams wakes up to find himself unsure of who he is, what his real purpose is and how to escape. This takes a page from a lot of other secret agent, amnesia, “I kill people but don’t know about it” films like the Bourne series but the difference is that this entire movie would fit into Bourne’s first act.

While I really liked some of the concepts, I spent a lot of time feeling like I’ve seen this movie before. It took so many nods and used so many genre tropes that it ironed out a lot of the qualities that make it unique.

It is a fun movie to watch and the film work is solid but Jacob Ares just feels like it could have been a lot better if more time was taken to put a unique spin on what is becoming a tired premise.

Creator’s Description

Jacob Ares is a man with a sinister past. A past that shines light on a very dark soul.

Details

Cast: Phoenix Romero, Reagan Pfifer, Ja Elam
Openfilm Channel: Jacob Ares
Website: Ralf Bremer

Ratings

Style 3.5

Pacing 4

As a homage to the genre it works well, but as an independent film it feels like they could have done more with the script. (Storytelling 3)

I found myself straining to hear it. Some extra work could have been done to polish up the sound. (Polish 3)

Watchability 3.5

Novelty 2.5

Overall Rating: 3.25 out of 5 stars