The Guild: Seasons One & Two

The Guild isn't a TV series but rather a cult Internet comedy show made up of three-to eight-minute episodes about the eccentric and socially ill-equipped members of an online gaming community. Created by and starring Felicia Day (whose credentials include the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the Internet musical Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog), it's a dead-on satire of obsessive gamers and online junkies who spend so much time communicating through virtual interaction and webcams that they falter when it comes to actual social contact. Each season adds up to a 40-minute story, much of it photographed like a video chat until forces beyond their control bring the characters face to face. In the 10 episodes of season one, that force is the oblivious infatuation of Zaboo (Sandeep Parikh), a sheltered mama's boy and young-adult gamer, with Day's neurotic-obsessive Cyd Sherman, a.k.a. Codex (yes, they use the names of their online identities in real life). In season two's 12 episodes, Zaboo moves in with unemployed, middle-aged guild leader Vork (Jeff Lewis), and Codex and her friends have a night out, which is always challenging with such social misfits. Word of mouth has made The Guild an online phenomenon among gamers, young comedy fans, and tech nerds of all stripes. Compiling all 22 episodes from the first two seasons (2007-09), DVD extras include audio commentaries, cast and crew interviews, audition footage, gag reels, and script PDF files. Recommended. (S. Axmaker)