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posted on April 23rd, 2008 in Community, Conventions, Dumbrella, Flash, Homestar Runner, JibJab, Live Action, Machinima, News, Penny Arcade, Rooster Teeth, Series, Web Comics 

ROFLCon kicks off Tomorrow

Jef

The guest list really is a who’s who of Internet fame and/or ignominy. Amplifier’s own Joel Bush will be there to hopefully document the event. We gave him a great video camera so honestly, he’s without excuse!

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posted on April 3rd, 2008 in Content, Machinima, Merchandise, Monetizing, Rooster Teeth, Series 

Rooster Teeth’s New “Red vs. Blue” Boxed Set

Jef

Red Vs Blue Boxed Set

You can say many things about the gang at Rooster Teeth. They own their medium. They’re funny. They’re continuously experimenting with new forms and permutations (Grifball!) And many more.

But they’re also just overkillers in the best way. They invest their DVDs not only with the classic Red vs Blue content, but with so much of the unrelenting absurdity that is their signature. So when they release the DVD BOXED SET of ALL 5 Seasons of RVB on 5 DVDs at $69, you’re already getting an enormous value. (The DVDs individually retail for $20) And each of those DVDs were packed with all the outtakes, missing scenes, bonus foo and so on.

But with this new boxed set they’ve now created 2 MORE hours of behind the scenes material, “making of” documentaries and all sorts of other stuff. So six DVDs for seventy bucks, it’s like $50 off. Plus you get the awesome black/blue and red all over double-box to carry them in.

We hope to have a more extensive writeup soon.  (we still have to watch through all this stuff!)

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posted on March 6th, 2008 in Achewood, Content, Music, News, Penny Arcade, Rooster Teeth, Undies, Web Comics, undependence 

Undies Remember Gary Gygax (1938-2008)

mike

The death of Dungeons & Dragons creator Gary Gygax earlier this week wasn’t just a loss for gamers and fantasy fans, but for creative types and undependents all over the world. Some of the web’s best and brightest undependents have been remembering the role-playing game titan as only they can.

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posted on February 19th, 2008 in Content, Merch, Music, Web Comics, undependence 

Webcomics: Nerd Day Rising!

mike

According to some highly-regarded scholars of the intersection of music and popular culture (by which I mean, whoever wrote the first entry that came up after my hasty Google search), David Lee Roth once said that the reason most music critics love Elvis Costello is because most music critics look like Elvis Costello. (For those who have never really gotten over the nerd vs. jock tensions in high school — Hi! I’m Mike! — it should be pointed out that Costello later got nominated for an Oscar and commissioned by the Danish Royal Opera, while Roth is now doing this.)

The point is — or should be — the relative acceptability of nerdiness is a somewhat recent phenomenon, and the Internet is helping the bespectacled and pallid among us finally convince the world that knowledge is actually pretty cool. There’s a whole slew of webcomics out there celebrating, and not apologizing for, their creators’ love of periodic tables, quadratic equations, obscure art history, and all other kinds of fancy-pants book-learnin’. Here’s two of them:

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posted on February 1st, 2008 in Achewood, Content, Merch, News, Web Comics 

Time: Achewood Is The Best Graphic Novel of 2007

mike

achewood.gif

Time Magazine’s Lev Grossman calls webcomic Achewood (which is, perhaps, the best comic strip in American history) the best graphic novel of the year, noting “(i)t’s not a graphic novel in every, or maybe any, traditional sense, since its primary venue is the Web, but Achewood is so profoundly genius it would be a crime to put it anywhere but on this list, and at the top of it.” (more…)

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posted on January 26th, 2008 in Best Practices, Commerce, Merchandise, Monetizing, Podcast, Tiki Bar TV 

Tiki Bar TV introduces ‘The Drinkbot Decanter’

Jef

drinkbotdecanter.jpg

Previously in Undependent…

  • We profiled Tiki Bar TV’s Lala Pinup Calendar and praised it for:
    • Its direct function as a wall calendar
    • Its value as a shibboleth for Tiki Bar TV fans…
    • Its deepening of the Tiki Bar TV brand thanks in part to its perfectly executed Vargas-style retro aesthetic

So now we’re introducing to Undependent readers Tiki Bar TV’s new “Drinkbot Decanter.”

Again, Tiki Bar has produced a genuinely original product here. Like the Lala Calendar and the Charooba Mug before it, Drinkbot Decanter scores a direct hit for true fans. But we at Undependent, presuming as we do to be experts, also have to praise Tiki Bar TV particularly their manufacturer Tiki Farm for a tiny detail which serves as the crowning achievement of this product. As this will factor into future merchandise profiles, we’ll call it the “You’ve Got to be Kidding Me” factor.

Drinkbot Decanter’s capstone is the tiny, detailed lampshade included with the order. If you haven’t done so already, watch the classic Drinkbot episode for this perfect bit of prop comedy. Being confident comedians, they don’t stop everything to ensure viewers see the lampshade on Drinkbot’s head. It’s just another example of theinspired lunacy that is the signature of Tiki Bar TV.

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So, if you were making an expensive, completely custom mug, would you go to the trouble and add more cost to it for this small joke? Of course you wouldn’t. That’s why we’re not writing about you, we’re writing about someone who really gets how tangible the little intangibles ARE. Cheers and mahalo to Tiki Bar and Tiki Farm for really going the extra mile for a joke.

Now that you think about it, you agree, right? Buy a Drinkbot Decanter to say so!

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posted on January 13th, 2008 in Content, Information Design, Music 

The World’s First Album Cover - Alex Steinweiss’ Greatest Hit

Jef

firstalbum.jpg

While there is no shortage of interest in the album cover medium, there’s no obvious web page out dedicated to the world’s first record cover. I’m apparently I’m not the only one looking for it (See: “Anyone have a scan?) I’ve seen scattered images from articles about Steinweiss but I’ve not found anything resembling a Shrine.

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posted on January 6th, 2008 in Perry Bible Fellowship, Web Comics 

more praise for Perry Bible Fellowship

Joel

Perry Bible Fellowship’s success continues, which is just as it should be.  Check out these wonderful figures on your way to reading the whole profile:

Records Broken By the Perry Bible Fellowship? - 10 Zen Monkeys
25-year-old cartoonist Nicholas Gurewitch watched as the pre-order sales climbed past $300,000 for The Trial of Colonel Sweeto and Other Stories. Close to 27,000 copies were sold even before the collection of comic strips had its official release in November and crashed into Amazon’s top 250. “It bounces off and on Amazon’s best-seller lists all the time,” Gurewitch told me, jokingly searching for an explanation. “Nifty cover? I’m not sure.”

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posted on January 5th, 2008 in Angry Alien, Flash 

Angry Alien announces 30-Second Bunnies Theatre for 2008

Jef

If you haven’t visited Angry Alien, know that upon visiting, you’re likely to send it to dozens of others. It’s just one of those things. It’s a Flash-based series of parodies of popular and classic films enacted by cartoon bunnies in 30 seconds. Jennifer Shiman, the creative force behind 30 Second Bunnies theater, has announced some of her forthcoming titles. (Goodfellas!)

angryalien.jpg

Angry Alien Productions: 30-Second Bunnies Theatre and other cartoons.
Happy New Year, Everyone! The new 2008 Bunny Titles are in!
For 2008, we present thus far:

Goodfellas
Jurassic Park
Sixteen Candles
SuperBad
GrindHouse
30 Days of Night

Meanwhile, the bunnies are finishing Pirates of the Bunibbean 3, which will premiere on the Starz online player.

Also, we missed this interview with Jennifer and Texas Public Radio the first time around.  Get up in this.

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posted on January 4th, 2008 in PVP, Perry Bible Fellowship, Web Comics 

PvP, Perry Bible Fellowship, and PhD get WashPost props

Joel

5 Web Comics That Will Make You Ditch Your Newspaper - washingtonpost.com
That’s why comics connoisseurs have been turning to the Internet, where artists can create and publish works that are a little edgier, a little quirkier, and much, much funnier. Here are five favorites.

Click through above for the full reviews.

Click below to support the creators by buying loads of their stuff for your own enjoyment:

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