What is The Guild? Only one of the funniest, smartest, and most charming web series on the Internet today. Created by, written by, and starring Felicia Day (Penny in Dr. Horrible; she’s also had guest stints on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Dollhouse–can you tell Joss Whedon likes her?), The Guild centers around a group of socially awkward online gamers who are thrown together in real life after one player, Zaboo (Sandeep Parikh), develops an in-game crush on Codex (Felicia Day) and lands on her doorstep to level up their “relationship.” It’s kind of like The Office, except it (lovingly) skewers World of Warcraft instead of corporate hijinks.
I had vaguely heard of The Guild, but it wasn’t until I was clued in to their panel at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con that I had any idea of the fervor behind this series. First off: the line was intimidatingly long (thank you, inside connection, for getting me in) and all of the attendees were completely and utterly enthusiastic about the series, the cast, and geek culture in general. Second off: they showed me this:
“Do You Wanna Date My Avatar,” written by Felicia Day and directed by Jed Whedon, has since become an Internet phenomenon. What I didn’t realize at the time is what a gift this video truly was to fans–the cast is dressed as their avatars from the show for the first time. Finally, we could see how Codex, Zaboo, Bladezz, Clara, Tink, and Vork see themselves when they’re in the game. Well, maybe with a little more singing and dancing.
Cheat Sheet: Top 10 Things to Know About The Guild
- The Guild first started airing in 2007 and had such a tiny budget, viewers actually donated funds to keep the series alive.
- Microsoft stepped in as a distributor in 2008, which means episodes can also be viewed on Xbox 360, Zune, and MSN (usually four weeks earlier than on the official website).
- The characters represent many different types of gamers. Instead of just the guy who plays alone in his basement, there’s a wife and mother (Clara), an entitled princess (Tink), a high schooler who considers himself a ladies man (Bladezz), and a musical prodigy (Codex).
- Seasons 1 and 2 are now available on DVD, and you can catch the first three episodes of Season 3 here.
- Dude. Special guest star for Season 3: Wil Wheaton. Wesley Crusher in the house! He’s the bad-boy leader of Axis of Anarchy, a rival guild.
- Each episode is three to seven minutes long–perfect for sneaking during work. What!?!
- If what I experienced in San Diego was any indication, The Guild is about to go from, let’s say, a fame level of Incognito (respected but still somewhat a niche comic) to Buffy Season 8 (millions of devoted fans, general pandemonium).
- Dark Horse Comics has announced a comics miniseries of The Guild, written by Felicia Day with art by Jim Rugg (Street Angel).
- Felicia Day is going places. She’s smart, she’s cute, she’s actually a gamer in real life–she’s the poster girl for geek babes everywhere. Girls want to hang out with her, guys want to impress her with their debuff spell casts. Your mom might want to feed her.
- Oh yeah, we’ve got The Guild Seasons 1 and 2 as a two-DVD set (complete with all kinds of bonus material, including audition tapes, gag reels, and more) for 20% off!
In all seriousness, check this series out–even if you aren’t into gamer culture, The Guild is hilarious, well-acted, and pretty simple to fit into your weekly viewing schedule.
Any fans out there? Post your favorite moments below. Did I miss anything? Let us know!
