4 Swirlies

www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFiOsu0Siw4

“To us it’s a mattress that hasn’t been used. Except by us.”

The season finale of this fun little series (for reals this time, I thought an earlier episode was the end) has some fun moments and some nice comedy, but it certainly doesn’t feel like a finale.
It kinda feels like the start. Maybe that’s the point?

This is a branded web series, sponsored by Verticoil Mattresses. (I think I have that right.) I feel like this episode is the “ad” episode, even though there has been mention of Verticoil through out. We also finally get to know what the title means.

This series started at almost the same time I resumed doing this blog full time. They were one of the best at reaching out to people using twitter. I really wanted to like it… and it was charming and well acted, but I didn’t think the earliest episodes captured the potential of the show. I’d say it really hit its stride around episode 5, and from then it kept getting better. I felt that they figured out what they were about, and what stories would be best told.

And like I’ve said many time,s the actress playing Grace is a stand out. I hope to see her again in something soon.

Congrats on the series, guys. Hope you’re doing season two.

From YouTube Description:

The Virgin Mattress is born and appears to be a great success, however, Malcolm’s father, Henry Sr., has some misgivings. Will The Virgin Mattress campaign be enough to save the store?

To learn more about the series check out these links:
http://www.thevirginmattress.com
http://www.twitter.com/tvmseries
http://www.facebook.com/tvmseries‪‬‪‬‪

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More from the web series The Virgin Mattress

Back to The Watch List’s Main Page

The Virgin Mattress Ep.8 “Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems” | A Web Series Review on The Watch List

To learn more about the series check out these links:
http://www.thevirginmattress.com
http://www.twitter.com/tvmseries
http://www.facebook.com/tvmseries

4 Swirlies

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3e1OiUaP_Y

”It is extremely fertile. All of Henry’s family was conceived on it.”

I think that the lead actress who plays Grace, Vanessa Severo,  is hilarious. And this episode is all her.

And we finally discover the meaning behind Virgin Mattress.  To say more would be to ruin it for you.

I feel like this web series is really finding its legs with the last couple of episodes. The one before this was very strong, and is this one - as short as it is. And I know I made a mistake and said the previous episode was the last one, but from a very intense research session (I Googled their website) it appears that the next episode, episode 8, is the last. It’s a pity, I feel like they’re just getting  going.

Anyway, this is a great episode even if you haven’t been watching the series all along.

The Virgin Mattress Ep.7 “…and They Have a Plan” | A Web Series on the Watch List

To learn more about the series check out these links:
‪http://www.thevirginmattress.com‬
‪http://www.twitter.com/tvmseries‬
‪http://www.facebook.com/tvmseries

4 Swirlies

Click here to view the embedded video.

“He didn’t even tie it down.”

This last episode in Season 1 of The Mattress Virgin is pretty frickin’ funny.

Stealing a mattress at gun point is hilarious. And what happens with the stolen mattress is pretty funny.

I also like how they used this as an excuse to bring out the tension between the characters (sure, it’s the first time it has ever been done, but it works here). As a last episode in the season (I hope there’s more!) it’s a pretty good one.

I also like that this was a branded series, but it doesn’t hit you over the head with it. The guys behind this did a very good job. What’s next for them? Maybe they’ll leave a comment and let us know!

UPDATE: Whoops! For some reason it is the last episode I could find on YouTube, but NOT the last episode of their season 1. Check out their webpage for correct information.

The Virgin Mattress Ep.6 “On a Rope”

3 Swirlies

“Do you think the mattress bugs have a king?”

Mel and Grace are having a hard time making ends meet at the Mattress shop, and Mal comes clean about his feelings for Grace’s ambiance.

As I’ve mentioned before, this strength of this show rests on the charm and chemistry of its cast. The cold open is strong as Gary (the shop geek) deals with a germaphobe.

The Virgin Mattress Ep.5 “One Crazy Slumber”

To learn more about the series check out these links:
http://www.thevirginmattress.com
http://www.twitter.com/tvmseries
http://www.facebook.com/tvmseries

2 Swirlies

“Mattresses so cheap, they won’t bust a cap in your wallet!”

I still like the structure of the show – a sketch-like cold open and then the episode after the titles. The actual fake commercial that starts the episode is the best part, and I like how it creates a context for the rest of the episode.

I’m a bit lost as this one picks up, I’m not sure who these characters are. Granted, I haven’t seen the series in a little while, but I don’t remember if we have met either of these guys yet.

In this episode, they take the ‘we’re going undercover’ gag too far. But then it seems they are still going somewhere in a ‘season arc’ kind of way, bringing back in the 80′s movie type rivalry between the two mattress shops. But this episode lacks the charm of the main characters from the mattress shop. I’m sorry to say it seems like a bit of misstep from the last two, which I thought were pretty strong.

The Virgin Mattress Ep. 4 “Man with the Golden Spring”

To learn more about the series check out these links:
http://www.thevirginmattress.com
http://www.twitter.com/tvmseries
http://www.facebook.com/tvmseries

3 Swirlies

“That, Malcolm McGee, is the smell of ambiance.”

Nice, short teaser cold open gag.

This third episode picks up on the strengths of the second episode – one nice premise that tells a little story and then we’re out. This episode starts off promising, but then gets a little strained as it tries to pay off the set up. It would have been nice to see something a little more unexpected.

The Virgin Mattress Ep. 3 “Ambiance to Remember”

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I hope you enjoy!

I’m still working out the kinks (more on that below) so be careful you don’t watch Episode 4 of Untitled Fiction Project before Episode 3.

As anyone who has glanced at the header can tell, getting these Friday Playlists up and running has been a goal of The Watch List from the beginning.

The philosophy behind The Friday Playlist is to give people a way to watch a selection of the best web series (whether new or just new to us) with very little trouble.

Number one, we’ve already found them. Number two, you can lean forward and browse through. Number three, you can hit play and lean back and be entertained for half an hour or so. Get it up on the big screen, dim the lights, settle back on the couch and hit play.

You know, eventually. Right now, they’re being presented backwards. So later episodes of something on the playlist would autoplay before earlier ones. Like watching a series on DVD but backwards. Sucks.

Friday Playlist – November 5

To learn more about the series check out these links:
‪http://www.thevirginmattress.com‬
‪http://www.twitter.com/tvmseries‬
‪http://www.facebook.com/tvmseries

4 Swirlies

“I hear it has the best bounce per ounce of them all. Trust me honey, you’ll like it over springs.”

Now that’s more like it!

When I brought you, my dear Watch Listers, the first episode, I mentioned that it felt more like a prologue than an actual episode.

Well, this one fixes that problem nicely.

It’s nice that it is a stand alone episode. These guys aren’t going for any kind of unfolding storyline, they just want to make you laugh. And they do.

The cold open teaser before the credits is very nicely done, Essentially its one nice gag (I don’t want to spoil it by describing it) featuring Vanessa Severo as Grace. I think she’s a real talent, with an attitude that is at once very natural and sharp. My quick glance at their website didn’t reveal the names of the writers, so I can’t share any of the credit with them directly. But I’m glad they went for moments instead of plot. Which can be very difficult.

The main body of the episode is also just one (longer) nice character moment, as Mary Catherine (played by Sharon Wright) sells an about-to-be-married couple a mattress based on the bounce factor. The best part is the husband caught between the attractive, flirty sales woman and his increasingly jealous wife.

Worth diving in. I hope the rest of the episodes are like this!

The Virgin Mattress Ep 2 “Heart of Gold”

3 Swirlies

“Gary, have we ever wanted any mead?”

I’ve been meaning to check out the first episode of The Virgin Mattress for a while now. They’ve done a great job using twitter to promote not only their show but the web series community in general.

There’s some very funny lines, and the key cast has some great chemistry, but I kinda felt like this was more of a prologue than a full episode. Hey, I’ll be the first to admit that first episodes are hard – you have to explain everything and tell an interesting story in a very short time. It is just as hard in an hour long drama as it is in a short form work, like here. I was a little disappointed that we only spent time in the mattress store in the teaser cold open.

But I do think they are going somewhere, and a mattress store has endless story possibilities. It’s kinda like what John Cleese said about Fawlty Towers, they wanted a setting where anyone could show up in an episode and you wouldn’t have to explain what they’re doing there. In Fawlty Towers, they were staying at the hotel, in The Virgin Mattress they’ll be shopping for mattresses and hilarity ensues. It’s pretty brilliant, and it’s also a setting that we haven’t seen used a lot.

As I mentioned, it is the chemistry shown by the key cast that makes this work – and worth watching. They’re already up to three episodes, with more going up all the time, so you’ll be seeing more of them in these pages.

Good luck, guys! And sorry for the delay in getting you Watch Listed!

The Mattress Virgin – Ep. 1 “So I Married A Bed Retailer”