Take a quick look at episode 4 of the web serial, Blankslate, which Veronica Heffernan of the New York Times called “the greatest online video thriller on the Internet.” The series also won 2008 Webby award and a 2007 Emmy for Outstanding Broadband Series.
It’s terrible, right? The premise — a guy wakes up with no memory and no idea where he is — isn’t bad, although not terrible original as evidenced by the comments on my last post about the other Blank Slate web serial. But I hate the acting. And with so little time in each episode, too much time wasted on a guy walking down the street and peering in windows. Could we just get to the story please? Another time waster that you see in web series after web series is the title sequence. Do we need to devote a precious few seconds of every episode to opening and closing sequences? Really? At least Blankslate doesn’t have credits every episode. That drives me crazy.
And how about that dialogue? “I am you and you are me. Isn’t that how the story goes?” Ooo, deep.
Worse yet, if you watch it on the “It’s All In Your Hands” website, the controls are incredibly clumsy. You select an episode to watch, finish it in a couple of minutes, then you have to back up two screens to find the next episode in order. Why doesn’t the next episode automatically launch? Or at the very least, they list of episodes should be right there for you to choose from.
I’m sorry, I don’t really like to attack people’s work, especially when it feels like shooting fish in a barrel. But I feel that it’s necessary to point out every now and then that there’s a reason web series aren’t getting much traction yet. Even the best just aren’t very good.
Carlo
It’s probably the western style dialogue that they give to the young female that granted the show those awards.
lol
“you got no reason to trust me, my friend”
Shove it?
wcdixon
Not to beat this horse any deader than we already have, but I think the awards and accolades touted on the website are for the company’s previous endeavor: “Satacracy 88”, as opposed to ‘Blankslate’.
Or maybe I’ve just lost my mind…
admin
Maybe you’re right Will. It’s confusing since the award run down the side of the page, but hopefully they are for Satacracy.
Bill Cunningham
I just finished watching the first episode and I’m more confused than ever. Hopefully the TNT BLANK SLATE won’t be this bad.
With this dialogue, one gets the impression this is an actors’ class getting together to do a project. It has the feel of a character exercise with these ethereal characters popping out of nowhere and speaking what’s going on in this main character’s mind — theater, not film or TV. The blood on his hands telegraphing what happens in ep. 4 with the newspaper headline — yuck (which would never happen. He couldn’t kill the President from close enough to get blood on his hands).
admin
I find it overwhelmingly depressing to watch things like this. But then I remember that a lot of novels, television shows, movies and pop songs totally suck. It’s Sturgeon’s Law: 90% of everything is crap. Finding the 10% that’s good is tough, but worthwhile. And so, the hunt continues.
Bill Cunningham
Yes – 90% of everything is crap…but at least some folks have the sense to wrap it up in plastic and label it “fertilizer.”
Can’t wait to see the “real” BLANK SLATE. (no offense to Dix)
admin
That made me laugh out loud. Thank you Bill.
Kazza
I thought it was a parody.