AFK: The Webseries

AFK takes some time to breathe as the first couple of episodes were difficult to understand given there is very little background given, but if you have played any fantasy MMOs you'll find yourself quickly sucked in.

The acting and special effects aren't going to win any awards, but the costumes and production seem more professional than many of the B movies you see on the syfy channel.

I find myself enjoying most of the female characters and their arcs, particularly Q who leads the non-joining heroes and Amy the only character who seems to understand and able to use her characters traits/abilities from the get go.

I came across AFK on Amazon Prime over the weekend due to watching Journey Quest and having it pop up in the recommendations.

AFK takes the same basic Idea of telling a story that came from role playing games and although it is funny in places it is much darker without going full CW.

AFK Opens with Q (Mia Pistorius) An elf if the ears are any indication coming to groggy awareness on the ground with a couple other folks nearby. One of which immediately kills the other and turning there sites on Q Only to be killed in turn and suddenly everyone is running away.

Apparently gamers at their computers are suddenly in real life, inhabiting flesh and blood versions of their in game avatars in some version of World of Warcraft. And just as quickly these people with nothing to stop them start acting like people, being as shitty to each other as possible for the most part..

Q who is a pretty high ranked player immediately sizes up the situation and runs to the forest to avoid all the murderous other players. She gathers around her a band of supporting players including a Wizard (IRL a 15 YO gamer) Hot young Warrior woman in improbable bikini chain mail (IRL some bro who is a low level newb who became a woman for kicks), A self absorbed Rogue and a Gnome (Cosplaying 24 YO woman). They manage to survive the night in the forest and spend the rest of the series trying to figure out how to return to the real world.

I am trying to avoid spoilers here so I won't go too much more into story. Suffice it to say we have a clever antagonist who is building up his own army and the world itself appears to be in the process of the game rebooting as other aspects of online role playing fantasy games come back on line. magic, Non Player Characters and Quests for example.

What I found most compelling was the high production values, the quality of all the performances, and the writing.

My only negative is that these are produced as Web series and as such paced to run 10 minutes or so per episode. Which works to gain attention but I would think that something of this quality would garner enough attention to get the kind of funding from Amazon to create 30 minute episodes.

EDIT: Fixed some grammatical and spelling errors

This movie appears as low-budget but comes off as a joy to watch. I saw a lot of actors loving what they're doing. Hilariously good fun. What film making should be about, not just making $ millions.

Kind of terrible, but pretty much awesome.

If you have been an MMORPG player, AFK has the pop-culture moments and jokes to enjoy while you fall I'm love with the characters. If you haven't, AFK has characters you will fall in love with, while you experience a pop-culture that millions of gamers love.

In the first series, the actors and crew are still finding their feet, but the small production is beautiful, when compared with similar-scale shows like Pure Pwnage and The Guild. And is filmed in the same setting as middle earth, and the four lands. Season 2 takes it to a whole new level.

The relatively unknown cast have a depth of character, and many talents that are put on full display. They become fierce, nuanced and beautiful leading women; complex, loveable villains; sympathetic, growing protagonists, and a diverse and self-aware set of players - all achieved within the confines of a mini series.

Each creative contributor to the show deserves acclaim.

"AFK" doesn't make much sense, but it is entertaining nonetheless, elevated by the characters' arcs and relationships, which give the show its heart.

The story is simple as follows: real people wake up in an online game, their minds in the bodies of their characters. We don't get much in way of explanation, characters' motives, world building or anything. Basically we are thrown with the characters into the world, and the first episodes suffer a little bit from this, because the viewer won't really understand much of what is going on (not that much is going on, but it makes no sense whatsoever).

Funnily enough, with the episodes going by, even if the story is flimsy as they come (non-existent), we get to know the characters and enjoy their company. And that is what makes "AFK" worth checking: the characters. The acting won't get them any awards soon, but the actors embody their roles in an engaging and caring manner.

That helps overcome all the shortcomings: plot, direction, action moments that barely cut the mustard... Put in some nice homages to role-playing games (NPC, the music that comes out of nowhere when you enter a tavern...) and you have a really fun show.