After a CW sized break, Webisode Clack is back, and will now resume its weekly editions. I thought I would start the new year off with something big, and The Bannen Way certainly qualifies. There are a lot of interesting angles to the show. First, and foremost, it’s just a really cool story. It also has a great cast, and is beautifully made. But before any of us saw any of those things, the story behind the show is almost as good. And really, could probably make a pretty interesting show on its own.
Rumblings about The Bannen Way go back to early 2008. And those rumblings were soon followed by a whole lot of waiting. At least, for those of us eager to see the end result. Behind the scenes, creators Jesse Warren and Mark Gantt were working away securing deals that ultimately led to a partnership with Sony and the show appearing on Crackle.com. There is a great rundown of that, and the Streamy’s kerfuffle that followed, on Taryn O’Neill’s website if you want to know more.
Getting to the show itself… They absolutely had me with the opening line:
I got a little riddle for you. Who is 6’2″… smokes like a chimney… likes to steal, … and is currently… totally… fucked? You guessed it. Me. Neal Bannen.
That’s how we meet Neal Bannen, and it kicks off a roller-coaster of events as Neal explains to us just how fucked he is, and we watch him try to set things right. I hesitate to compare the show to those things that might be more familiar, because The Bannen Way certainly has its own style. To give you an idea though, let’s just say that it would sit comfortably on your DVD shelf next to something like Out Of Sight, or Snatch. Charming con-men, mobster hijinks, and never taking itself too seriously.
I give a lot of the credit for all of that to Mark Gantt in the Neal role. It’s a tough gig, because the show really does sink or swim on his shoulders more than anything else. Fortunately, Gantt’s Neal, while being a thief and all around bad guy, quickly wins you over. We’ve seen these ‘one last score’ stories many times before, but by the time you’re a quarter of the way into it, you find yourself rooting for Neal, and loving the ride.
That’s a good thing, because Neal Bannen really needs someone to root for him. The amount of trouble stacked up before him is incredible. And it’s great fun watching it all play out. The mob boss, the femme fatale pick-pocket, the local law, a gang leader, a trio of assassins… Neal has a lot of work to do. That’s also where the all-star cast comes in. Gantt is joined by the likes of Robert Forster, Michael Ironside, Vanessa Marcil, Autumn Reeser, and Michael Lerner. That’s not your typical web series cast.
It’s all very fun, and definitely worth a look. The first episode is embedded below, and you can see all 16 of them for free on Crackle.com for the next couple weeks. The show is also available as a movie download on iTunes.
In other web series news and notes, the Indie Soap Awards were held earlier this week. I make note of it for a couple reasons. First, their list of nominees offers a nice selection of shows to check out if you haven’t seen them yet. And second, I was so happy to see wins for Seeking Simone‘s Renee Olbert, and Compulsions‘ Craig Frank and Taryn O’Neill. Renee said she felt just like Sally Field when she won her Oscar… but gayer… and more Canadian. (How do you not love Renee Olbert?) Also new this week, Riese is back with chapter 2.
And finally, it’s really not a web series, but you have to get a look at the trailer for Gary King’s Death Of The Dead, starring Christina Rose. It’s like I sat on Santa’s lap and told him what movie I wanted for 2010, and here it is.
Seriously… Ninja Zombies!
Clacked by Brett Love 
on Feb 03, 2010 @ 09:03 EST5EDT
