Channel Awesome: #ChangetheChannel

I’ve probably talked about being a fan of several contributors on Channel Awesome, formerly known as That Guy With the Glasses. After all, I started my Nostalgia Nook posts because there was media I knew the Nostalgia Chick would never cover and I wanted to discuss them.

(And I know I dropped the ball and didn’t review Halloweentown IV this past Halloween. I forgot but I will do it this year, especially as I’ve come to some realizations about it).

Anyway, I was introduced to That Guy With the Glasses when a friend sent me a link to Lindsay Ellis’ Nostalgia Chick review of Labyrinth. I loved it and watched her other videos before starting to explore the site’s other contributors, including the Nostalgia Critic. I remember watching Kickassia, eager for each part to be released each day, and discovering new people to watch (like Linkara) from it.

Then came To Boldly Flee, which featured the end of the Nostalgia Critic as Doug Walker (the man behind the glasses) wanted to focus on new, more original productions. While I was sad and knew I would miss the Nostalgia Critic, I wished him well. I even gave one of his new shows, Demo Reel, a chance—but soon found that it just didn’t hold my attention or strike me as particularly funny. There also ended up being long stretches between videos and while I understood that it was a more complex production than Nostalgia Critic, the long stretches were definitely more of a turn off. However, I was still watching other contributors on the site and kept going there almost every day.

Barely a year after To Boldly Flee ended the Nostalgia Critic, the last episode of Demo Reel brought the character back. I expressed my concern to some friends on a message board who also followed the site because I didn’t know if Doug was bringing the character back because he truly missed it or because they were losing viewers over Demo Reel, so they were just giving people what they wanted. I was concerned that he wouldn’t have the same passion as he had before. I’m not sure that didn’t happen—while I watched some of the new Nostalgia Critic videos, he started to do a lot more recent stuff that I had no interest in and eventually, I stopped watching his videos.

I did keep watching other contributors, particularly Lindsay, Linkara and Paw Dugan (also occasionally Todd in the Shadows) . So I was still going to the site almost daily.

Web Series: Submissions Only

One day, actors Andrew Keenan-Bolger and Kate Wetherhead had an idea. They wanted to keep working together and thought to venture out into the growing world of web series. And what better place to get their inspiration than from their experience as actors?

Now casting: SPOILERS!

Web Series: Emma Approved

Pemberley Digital was not one to rest on their laurels. After the success of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries and Welcome to Sanditon, they introduced another modern take on a Jane Austen classic. And this time, it was Emma Approved!

I am AB and this entry will be SPOILER approved!

*Wink*

Web Series: Welcome to Sanditon

Pemberley Digital is on a roll. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries are an internet sensation. Fans everywhere love your work. Time to put out another video series!

So, which Austen novel to mind next? Sanditon, of course! You know, the novel Jane Austen never finished. In some ways, it was a good choice. But more on that later.

Web Series: The Lizzie Bennet Diaries

“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.”

Most of you probably recognize that as the first line to Jane Austen’s immortal “Pride and Prejudice.” In the first episode of “The Lizzie Bennet Diaries” (LBD), Lizzie (Ashley Clements) shows us that her mother had it put on a t-shirt she gave to each of her daughters. She explains her mother’s obsession with seeing her daughters married off while Lizzie eschews such an old-fashion notion. It’s not that she doesn’t want to get married, she just believes it isn’t the be-all end-all for her as a woman. And she discusses this on camera in a vlog style as part of her classes for her masters in communications, namely in new media, with the help of her best friend Charlotte Lu (Julia Cho).

My New Obsession: Web Series

I love web series. And I’ve discovered my share in the past year and a half.

Starting with The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. I discovered this show on tumblr and was shocked to learn it existed. I’m an Austenite—you’d think I’d know about a Pride and Prejudice adaptation! So I went to YouTube and binge-watched all the available episodes. And then I continued watching each episode. Even the ones that were released in between, filling in gaps in the story. Like Lydia’s heartbreaking videos or Gigi’s heartbreaking videos. Yeah, these videos could take you on an emotional and angst-filled rollercoaster sometimes.