There are only a few moments during Season 1 & 2 that shuffle a little

too close to what I call "ridiculousnesses" but most of what happens and is said during the course of the shows is believable and it's those parts that are most funny.  The characters are very quickly introduced but because they are so vivid and memorable, it's very easy to understand what motivates each character, well, except for the main character, Felicia Day's "Codex" who remains slightly enigmatic throughout.  The interactions between the characters (as they are) can be really funny and the laughs seem spread out between the characters so no one steals the spotlight, but the best interactions are between the Ebeneezer Scrooge-like, "Vork", and the lovestruck "Zaboo."

At a point in Season 2, they share living space in one of those classic Odd Couple pairings.  Vork has a lot of rules for Zaboo, and since Zaboo has the intellect of an optimistic 8-year old he takes all the rules, including sleeping in an aviary, to heart and just accepts them or is simply blind to them. When he coats himself with cooking oil and works out by lifting jugs of mustard, you know he has no idea how ridiculous he looks or how uncomfortable he makes Vork when he asks to "bump chests." The fact the actors can pull this kind of thing off without tumbling into hysterics is a wonder.

Also of wonder to me, is how much entertainment The Guild manages to pump into each 5-minute episode.  It just goes to show that the combination of good editing and smart dialogue can work wonders even with such a compressed time frame.

Zaboo's love/lust for Codex is another of his defining features, which blinds him to the fact Codex isn't emotionally into him beyond the level of a lost puppy. It is the initial issue that pushes the series forward and is the main source of conflict throughout Season 1 and 2 and actually looks like it sets it up conflict for Season 3 as well (which is available online now at www.watchtheguild.com).

As a heavy gamer but one that has avoided, for the most part, MMO's I had no problem following the lingo but what made The Guild a lock for me in terms of stating very flatly that this is something that everyone can and should watch, is the fact my wife, the very definition of a non-gamer, actually stayed awake for the entirety of Season 2. This is like Roger Ebert growing three extra thumbs, all of them pointing up. Then she had positive things to say about it afterward, which would be akin to Roger Ebert turning into a giant thumb and climbing to the top of Burj Dubai. Okay, that's overstating it slightly but I was still surprised she liked it.

Season 1 and 2 are still widely available online but having them on a couple of discs, complete with extra content and audio commentary fills out the package like the Internet can't. At $14.99, it's a worthwhile purchase for, I can't believe I'm going to fall into this horrible reviewer cliche, fans of the MMO genre and for those that like smartly written comedy and want to support independent filmmakers.

- Aaron Simmer

(October 15, 2009)