After an extended beta period, Strike.TV launches big today with 10 series that showcase the channel’s promise to offer quality content from Hollywood creators. The site’s extended beta period has enabled them to secure some sweet deals (including distribution on YouTube and Joost), as well as an impressive lineup of content. Forty shows are currently listed on the main site, with 10 presented at today’s launch — but how does each show rate?
Anyone could tell you in prose format. I decided to write haiku.
Global Warming
Kristin Wiig flirts online
With tech guy in India
But then he shows up!
Great acting but not
Well-paced; jokes not as funny
As the show’s cast.
House Poor With Mindy Kaling
Mindy can’t afford
Furniture for her new house
Cue baby shower
Great concept for show
Kaling funny, perfect lead
Wish it were longer
5 or Die
Snuff vid goes viral
Because you die if it doesn’t
You know, like The Ring
Don’t buy the concept
13 mins, feels longer
Cheap horror rip-off
Daryl from OnCar
Car navigation
System gets life of its own
It ruins man’s world
Dark humor plays well
Vignette structure means fast pace
Very clever short
The Challenge
Bob Newhart opens
A DVD case. That is,
He tries to do so.
A comic legend
Bob unleashed for six minutes
Is pure bliss for me
Greenville General/Life in General
Fake hospital show
By real soap opera writer
‘hind-the-scenes drama
Not quite comedy
Kind of a clever concept
But makes me miss Soap
Joe & Kate
A real-life couple
Discussing real-life issues
Like her vagina
One-minute moments
Perfectly acted, written
Great deadpan humor
Unknown Sender
“Found footage” reveals
Hitchcock-esque marital woes
Drama gets deadly
Dalton and Whalley
Are fantastic on the screen
But where does it go?
Side Effects
A pharmacist bonds
With a suicidal man
Revealing her love
A bit long for web
But a well-written short film
Great acting, as well
While there’s some serious acting talent involved here, for me the relatively unknown Joe Kelly and Kate Purdy of Joe and Kate are the big stand-outs. (Though Mindy Kaling, both in House Poor and her Global Warming cameo, is a treat.) Compared to other launches, Strike.TV is a lot more even in quality, but while some of the short films are well-done, the best content is that which seems more tailored to web audiences.
That doesn’t just mean keeping things short, though — pace is the big issue. Side Effects and Daryl from OnCar are approximately the same length, but Daryl’s short choppy scenes make it move a lot faster than Side Effects, which is essentially a one-act play. And of course, a short film doesn’t build an audience the way an ongoing series might — treats like Joe and Kate are definitely what will keep viewers returning.
What Strike.TV ultimately proves is that there are definitely some Hollywood refugees who get how this format works — and some that don’t. The faster that the rest catch up, the better the site’s ongoing chances.
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