T w e n t y S i d e d
Despite my unwitting appearance on Attack of the Show, I’m not a huge fan of G4tv. I see clips of it once in a while on YouTube, and the hosts always seem like they need to cut way, way back on the caffeine. Having said that, once in a while I see something that really captures my interest. Here is a good example:
I found this while searching for Half-Life 2 gameplay videos. (Which I’ve been watching for reasons I can’t even begin to explain.) It’s Hal Robins and Merle Dandridge, who play Dr. Kliener and Alyx Vance from Half-Life 2. (Merle phones into the show so you can’t see her, but if you want to see what she looks like you can do so at her official website. You can see her in an interview relating to her Broadway work here.) As the hosts point out, it’s really strange hearing these familiar voices coming from unfamiliar faces.
I was also surprised at how much Hal Robins looked like Jerry Holkins of Penny Arcade.
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So what is up with that guys outfit. Is he eccentric? was he just at a dress rehearsal for some play? or is he a Victorian time travel stuck in our time?
This is G4 from a few years ago, when the hosts were slightly more tolerable. Don’t get me wrong G4 has always sucked(TechTV, god rest its soul, was so much better) but at least the old hosts actually came off like they might have played a game. Now they just have a bunch of eye candy reading cue cards.
Morgan Webb terrifies me.
Hmm. Kliener’s voice actor does look eccentric, which really breaks character in comparison to his Dr. Kliener avatar who is very modest and humble. Still an interesting video though!
I miss the ScreenSavers.
Jack the Ripper?
G4 still has some good stuff, like ninja warrior which has nothing to do with technology and I still like watching x-play cause I think their reviews are usually pretty good. These guys you can tell are just trying way too hard to be cool to the kids.
I haven’t watched in a while, but I used to because they provided me with a Star Trek:TNG fix and I hadn’t seen any episodes in a while. Their video gaming shows were awful though. I always got the impression that they were just trying too hard to be wacky and zany. Bleh.
“So what is up with that guys outfit. Is he eccentric? was he just at a dress rehearsal for some play? or is he a Victorian time travel stuck in our time?”
I’m assuming the third.
But wait — what if we’re the time travellers stuck in HIS time?!?
I’ve always been fascinated by voice actors, because they seem to be so completely different than live actors. The best (most popular) actors are those who rely on their recognizability. Jack Nicholson is a great example of that. It’s hard to watch Jack in a movie and think of him as the character rather than just Jack. But a voice actor is the opposite. The best voice actors are the ones you don’t identify independently. Looking up voice actors on imdb.com can be an unusual experience because so many have covered so many different roles. For a classic example, check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjfNZub6LjU
I also like how voice acting is something you can do on the side. Being a fan of the Metal Gear Solid series, I knew the name David Hayter as the voice of Solid Snake. I was blown away when I saw his come up in the credits for X-Men and X2 — as the scriptwriter.
Arggghhhh, nothing bugs me more than interviewers cutting off interviewees and that seems to happen a lot in this video. D:
Hey now, if you have cable you have to support your only tech station! They are a little over the top but, eh. X-play is humorous and mildly informative, mildly mind you. More for actually seeing the game be played more than anything. The jokes mad on that show during reviews can excavate a chortle almost every time. Their “night time talk show” is a little much but actually cover some decent tech and geek-centric stuff when they are not stroking popular fads for all they are worth. And the imported “Ninja Warrior” (Sasuke for those that are pure) is the most riveting television in a long time. It gets me so excited I have noticed my daughter has picked up on it, when its on she just keeps going “Oh, oh, oh, OH NO!”
Hal Robbins or Dr. Hal is a big performer here in the underground circuit. Those are everyday clothes for him, and he is always quite stylish. He does a show semi-reguarly called “Ask Dr. Hal” that if you are every in SF you should catch.
oh, and he was known as Dr. Hal LONG before he became Dr. Kliener.
What’s up with his outfit? You missed the fourth and most likely option: bottled awesome. It would be a far cooler world if more people were wandering around dressed like that.
I’m with Allen De Smet. I wouldn’t mind wearing a suit so much (not that I do so very often) if I could get away with dressing like that.
Pocket watches, wire-rimmed glasses, and hats for men.
The past had so much style.
“What's up with his outfit? You missed the fourth and most likely option: bottled awesome. It would be a far cooler world if more people were wandering around dressed like that.”
No one missed anything, that’s just so obvious there was no need mentioning it.
Actually, I was surprised not too long ago to find out I had already seen Merle Dandridge before. Being a Buffy/Angel fan, she shows up in the Season Finale of Season 4, as the lady who escorts Gunn around Wolfram and Hart. She doesn’t even SOUND anything like Alyx.