Vote Nerd

The Symbol of the National Nerd Political Party or 2N2P.

If you are like me than maybe you are a little fed up with politics. It seems like there are never any good candidates to choose from and the decisions that Congress actually make we usually do not care about, while the decisions we would like to see never wind up happening (Like a national holiday for the Monday after Superbowl.) Speaking from experience (I worked in politics for almost two years), the political arena is nothing more than the biggest reality show that America has ever produced. Except instead of getting drunk and harmlessly puking on a creature called Snooki, our politicians spend so much time infighting and adhering to radical extremist values that nothing ever really gets accomplished. Ultimately the only ones who ever seem to benefit from politics is politicians. Now let me clarify one thing before I continue, Democracy is not a perfect system, but it is the best we have. Also, it is unfair to lump all politicians together. Some of them are actually very good at their job and do care about the greater good, but more and more it feels like they are sometimes the exception and not the rule.

Reasonably, (unless you are an extremist radical hippie or a right-wing Christian evangelist,) you probably do not agree with every single decision, belief, or idea that either party spouts, even if you associate yourself as a Republican or Democrat. According to USA Today, between 2008 and 2012 registration in the Democratic Party has dropped by 800,000 people and Republican registration has dropped by 350,000 while Independents have increased their membership by 325,000 people. Most Americans have always associated with more of a Centrist rather than a true Right or Left view of government, but the unfortunate thing is that those centrist rarely get everything they want. The sad fact of politics is that the more parties become galvanized the further away from those reasonable centrist views they move. So most independents and non-declared citizens ultimately end up voting not for a candidate they want but against a candidate that they see as the greater of two evils.

Ultimately this results in voter apathy, low turn outs, and a feeling of helplessness. We feel like nothing will ever change because (unless you are one of the hardcore political believers) you feel like your beliefs and ideas are never truly represented... and you are right. Really what this means is that we should not be looking to reform the electoral process or the inner workings of the government so much as we should be looking to reform the political system and the politicians who are a part of it.

So forget Democrats and Republicans, the answer to our prayers has been under our noses the whole time, Nerds. As the National Nerd Political Party (2N2P from this point on) we can find a better way to run a political party that will put forth viable and exciting candidates. After all, the motto of the 2N2P is We just don't represent our party, we represent America. The 2N2P encourages its candidates to think about every decision as part of the larger picture, not based upon the political interests of the party, because the party has no political interests. As a Centrist Party we believe that extreme beliefs are usually wrong. Too much ice cream can be just as bad as too much nuclear war.

A lot of the problems in American politics is ego. Think about whenever you watch any argument made in Congress (Because we have all been bored and flipped on CSPAN for a few hours) it usually is more akin to a squabble between two 8 year olds fighting over who gets to ride a bike next as opposed to any  intellectual or fair-minded debate between professionals. That is because members of political parties tend to be more concerned with playing there part as a good Democrat or a good Republican than listening to any reasonable argument. Thus, regardless of the sense of a suggestion made by the opposing party, most politicians would rather blindly stick their heels in the sandbox and call the other one a poo-poo head. Congress (like a website forum) becomes a place where people fight for the sake of fighting, because they would rather the other person be wrong, even if they are not right themselves. (AND I am talking about BOTH parties.)

Maybe that is because the only way politicians can keep their "jobs" is by keeping their party happy (not the voters.) It is the party that ultimately decides who gets put up for what position, who advances and who falls into obscurity. Mostly that means the person with the biggest wallet or sometimes even the person who is the most extreme. Both parties are so marred down in their own internal party politics that if a person is not considered "viable" in their own party, they will never see the light of day as a candidate. I mean, think about it, being an elected official is the only job you do not need any qualifications for. You do not need prior experience, intern training, or even a college degree. As long as you can convince enough people to vote for you, the job is yours.  



A sampling of the questions on the written exam.

However, in the 2N2P our candidates will not be picked based upon their blind adherence to doctrine or dogma, in fact we encourage our candidates to be free thinkers and find creative solutions to problems. Instead, we pick our candidates based upon a series of tests that we conduct. Applying to be a candidate will be like applying for a job. You must submit a letter of interest and a resume. There will then be an interview process followed by a written exam which will quiz our potential candidates on general knowledge, leadership potential, moral and ethical standards, pop culture, and possible psychic potential. If the candidates score well on the written exam and during the interview process then they will move on to the physical challenge, where they will be tested for strength, mental acuity, leadership abilities, endurance, speed, comedic performances, hand eye-coordination, and martial arts abilities. (You never know when the President may have to retake a hijacked airplane.) 

Once candidates have passed the internal party tests they will be placed into the race with the full support and backing of the party. From that point on their only mandate is do what is best for the country as a whole, and not for the party, or even strictly for those that voted them. After all, being a member of Congress or even the President does not simply mean you are making decisions for just Democrats or just Republicans, but for everybody. A fair and open-minded approach to political arguments and decisions is not only refreshing but is arguably the most reasonable approach to any situation. Some people may say we are a party tha believes in nothing, but actually we are a party that believes in what works.

Moreover, the 2N2P will reserve the right to recall candidates in any subsequent elections if they are not living up to these standards. That means, even if a candidate is likely to win but if they breach their own promises, betray their own beliefs, or even begin taking money from special interest groups for their campaign, the 2N2P Supreme Council may remove them from the running as a 2N2P candidate and select a replacement to run in their stead. This also reinforces the idea that being an elected official is not a job, it is a civic service.

I like them all, except maybe for that old-man at the end.
He seems like he's up to something... I got my eye on you
Ron Paul

A candidate is not elected so that they can do whatever it takes to remain in office for the next thirty years and collect a pension. That is not how the Greeks, the Romans, or even our own founding fathers envisioned how a democratic republic works. If you are making decisions based upon what will get you reelected you are not doing your job. All 2N2P candidate will understand that they could very well be one-term officials, because as a Congressman, Senator, President, etc you are elected to be a leader, and sometimes leaders have to make hard and unpopular decisions. Just because they are hard or unpopular does not make them wrong. No child wants to be told to go to bed or that they shouldn't put a fork in an electrical socket, but if parent don't enforce these rules that child will ultimately regret their decisions in the long run. Elected officials are not meant to be our "cool hey-I-am-your-pal parental figures." Elected officials are meant to make the vital and tough decisions no one else has the guts to make. Unfortunately, those type of politicians are as rare as unobtanium (and almost as fictional.)

That is why we need to change the quality of our candidates, not just the process by which they are elected. After all, it doesn't matter how many regulations, laws, or restrictions we put on the system, as long as we do not have people with solid morals and governmental ethics they will always find loopholes in any system. That's why despite shutting down Napster, Metallica still loses millions of dollars to online piracy every year. People will always find a way to work around a system if they do not have the convictions to believe that what they are doing is wrong.

Thus, we come back to only true solution to the problem, the 2N2P, because if you really think about it nerds are perfect for this position. Most are already considered outcasts, free thinkers, and are stereotypically above average in intelligence. These kind of traits already give many nerds a head start on being qualified to run for office under the 2N2P banner. However, once selected as a candidate all 2N2P candidates will also attend a 6 week training course that will teach them effective leadership strategies, creative problem solving, and fair-minded decision making. There will also be a talent show held annually at the closing of each candidate school.

Since this entry is running longer than a campaign promise I will end it with this. We need people in office who will not think about what is best for them. We need people who will think about what is best for everyone. We need a centrist party to help restore sanity to Washington, because as Americans we all tend to fall somewhere is the middle and right now that means we all tend to fall through the cracks.

President's Day

In honor of President's Day I thought it would be best if we remember some of the greatest presidents that never existed.

Honorable Mentions: President Linberg; President Dave Kovic; President James Dale; President Stewart Gilligan Griffin; President David Palmer; and unnamed President from Heroes played by Michael Dorn (I will call him President Worf)

10. President John Quincy Adding Machine (Futurama)

Achievements: The First Robot President of Earth. He won by only one vote on the strength of his campaign promise to not to go on a killing spree.

Failures: Like most politicians, he promised more than he could deliver.

Memorable Quotes: "00110101101011"

9. President Kang (Simpsons)

Achievements: Oversaw the construction of the great 1996 Ray Gun.

Failures: Enslaved the human race and put an end to the third party vote.

Memorable Quotes:  "My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball; but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward; upward, not forward; and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"

8. President Lex Luthor (DC Comics)

Achievements: Luthor helped America lessen its dependency on fossil fuels through smart and forward thinking policies; rebuilt Gotham City after the devastating Earthquake that nearly destroyed it; coordinated the efforts of the US Armed Forces, allied nations, Earth's Superheroes, and other alien forces to repel the invasion of Imperiex.

Failures: Luthor was eventually impeached, following only three years in office; was revealed that he was responsible for the Gotham Earthquake, and for luring a Kryptonite Asteroid to Earth in an attempt to blame the incident on Superman; was the only president to have a rouge faction of the Justice League invade the White House in an attempt to unseat him from office.

Memorable Quotes:  "You can't touch me. We're on American soil now. And I am the president."

7. President Laura Roslin (Battlestar Galactica)

Achievements: Reestablished the Colonial Government after the 12 Colonies were destroyed by the Cylons; had visions and prophecies about the direction of the fleet; successfully led a coup of the (then) established military regime directed by Colonel Tigh; regained the presidency from Gaius Baltar after the occupation of New Caprica; fell in love with William Adama (I guess that is a pro or con depending on how you stand); intergrated  rebel Cyclons into the Colonial Fleet; successfully led the Colonial Fleet to Earth.

Failures: Had failing health due to breast cancer; Elected Gaius Baltar as Vice President; authorized the use of torture against Baltar and Cyclon prisoners; failed to end black market trading in the fleet; made abortion illegal in the Colonial Fleet (I guess that is a pro or con depending on how you stand); failed to convict Gaius Baltar of his crimes

Memorable Quotes:  "Today is a new beginning for all of us. We share a unique destiny, but our future is ours to shape and our past cannot be forgotten."

6. President Richard Nixon (Futurama, Watchmen, Marvel Comics, etc...)

Achievements: Nixon was responsible for winning the Vietnam Conflict; abolished term limits; enacted the Keene Act; was the original Gerber Baby; had his image on the $1000 and $300 bill; oversaw the creation of the Farnsworth Gravity Pump; staged the moon landing on Venus; fought zombies with Kennedy and Castro; was possibly the head of a criminal organization called the Secret Empire who attempted to take over the United States and discredit Captain America; and opened relations with China.

Failures: Impeached from Office during the Watergate Scandal of 1973.

Memorable Quotes:  "Harooo."

5. President Chuck Norris (Internet)

Achievements: Round-house kicked the National Debt so hard China now owes us $2.73; established the national system of Kicks and Balances (either you do what President Norris wants or he balances on one foot while kicking you in the face); saved the country millions by disbanding the secret service; sent Iran a signed picture of himself (they have since closed down their nuclear program and are readily complying with all UN sanctions,) graduated from the Electoral College; and personally collected every US penny in circulation and melted them down to create a scaled replica of his beard.

Failures: None

Memorable Quotes:  "A lot of people give up just before they're about to make it. You never know when that next obstacle is going to be the last one, and for most people I am their last obstacle."

4. President Josiah "Jed" Bartlett (West Wing)

Achievements: Granted amnesty to illegal immigrants from the Americas; appointed the first Hispanic supreme court justice; appointed the first female chief justice; negotiated a peace settlement between Israel and Palestine; created over a million new jobs; provided strong support for alternative energy; and orchestrated a revolutionary reform plan to the US Social Security system. He was considered the most successful and beloved Democratic President in recent US history, (and I mean in real life.)

Failures: Considered weak on military issues; suffered from multiple sclerosis; was shot; resigned the presidency for a brief time during the kidnapping crisis of his daughter; considered bad with names; and (his biggest failing according to the audience) is that he was fictional.

Memorable Quotes:  "'We hold these truths to be self-evident,' they said, 'that all men are created equal.' Strange as it may seem, that was the first time in history that anyone had ever bothered to write that down.... Decisions are made by those who show up."

3. President Thomas J. Whitmore (Independence Day)

Achievements: Nuked Houston; saved the Earth from alien invasion; personally led the assault from the cockpit of a fighter jet; and gave one of the best damn speeches in presidential history.

Failures: Allowed most of the United States' major cities to get destroyed; was considered a weak "Bill Pullman-esque" president before the invasion; and ultimately he failed to secede the presidency to Will Smith.

Memorable Quotes:  "In less than an hour, aircraft from here will join others from around the world, and you will be launching the largest aerial battle in the history of mankind. Mankind, that word should have new meaning for all of us today. We can't be consumed by our petty differences any more. We will be united in our common interest. Perhaps it's fate that today is the 4th of July, and you will once again be fighting for our freedom. Not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution, but from annihilation. We're fighting for our right to live, to exist and should we win the day, the 4th of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day when the world declared in one voice, 'We will not go quietly into the night! We will not vanish without a fight! We're going to live on, we're going to survive.' Today we celebrate our independence day!"

2. President James Marshall (Air Force One)

Achievements: Strong on terrorism; had the first female Vice President; kicked major terrorist a$$ with nothing but his fists; and made the Kessel Run in under 12 parsecs.

Failures: Failed to intervene sooner in the terrorist regime of General Ivan Radek of Kazakhstan; failed to escape Air Force One after it was taken over by Radek loyalists, (because as the President of the United States it is usually not a good decision to stay aboard a hijacked airplane); chose Glen Close as his Vice President.

Memorable Quotes:  "Real peace is not just the absence of conflict, it is the presence of justice."

1. President Tom Beck (Deep Impact)

Achievements: The first African American president; entered into an agreement with Russia to construct the Messiah spacecraft; authorized the construction of a large underground bunker complex below Missouri; declared martial law to keep the peace; and is Morgan Freeman.

Failures: Beck failed to stop the comet which he could have at any moment, since he is also God. (Morgan Freeman works in mysterious ways.)

Memorable Quotes:

Happy President's Day.

Lawful Evil

So recently, I was hanging out  in Southern New Jersey (as I am sometimes known to do,) when my friend got a random invite from one of our old college friends to come see his band play in Philly. This was shocking news to us, (mostly because we did not realize that he had a band, but also) because he could only describe the music as Nerdcore Rap. As you can probably guess, at the mere mention of the word Nerd, this very quickly became a show I had to see. (Also Philly is a great place to satiate my unending craving for meat and cheese sandwiched together on a roll.)

That was how myself and my two friends found ourselves in a bar on South Street called The Legendary Dobbs with four dollar Miller Lites in hand and being crowded by a group of neo-punks who seemed to have a more than a small liking for Bad Religion. Soon enough though the show began and first to stage was the band we had come to see, Lawful Evil, featuring the vocal talents of 50 GP, DJ KB, KingCrit, and Click Clack Kaboom.

Now, we did not fully know what to expect. I had a feeling that being a nerd through and through, I was going to enjoy myself regardless of the quality of the music. However, I am glad to report that Lawful Evil in their debut performance did not fail to disappoint either my musical or nerdy sense of taste. Their sound was reminiscent of MC Chris (Have fun on the Robot Reservations suckers! Were not gonna honor those bogus treaties!), their beats were catchy, and most importantly their lyrics were clever. You can't hate a band that so enthusiastically raps about being super-villains, playing D&D, or loving everything that was ever good that came out of Japan. More to the point, you can't hate a band with the passion to combine a love of all things nerdy with hardcore rap. It is a combo that seems almost so contradictory that it has to work, (like vodka and Red Bull.)

Though Lawful Evil has only had one show and is still to release any albums, I predict that if they continue to keep up their hard work and the quality of sound and lyricism that I witnessed last week in a crowded Philly bar, they will find success, at least in the nerd world (which usually means playing at comic cons around the country, and having a couple thousand Facebook stalkers.) Overall, the show was a lot of fun and crackled with the energy of a band who was enjoying themselves as much as their audience was. Lawful Evil is definately worth checking out, and a band we should all keep a close Beholders-like watch over in the coming future.

*Warning lyrics can be explicit

You can check Lawful Evil out at:

ReverbNation: http://www.reverbnation.com/#!/lawfulevil

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Lawful-Evil/145075055563024?sk=info

Groundhog Day after Tomorrow

Tomorrow we are looking at a 60% chance of nuclear fallout,
but does the weekend look brighter? Jim will have the
7-Day Forecast for you  up next.

Lately I have become convinced that the world is actually coming to end. It's not so much that I believe in the Mayan calendar or even because the seventh seal of the biblical apocalypse was broken when the Giants beat the Patriots in the Superbowl. (And God pointed his mighty foam finger and from it came a cone of fire and in that fire I beheld a giant whose head did not fit-eth into his helmet of war. Hence, this soft-headed giant did make war with a nation of patriots and thus was that nation embarrassed when their captain was called for intentional grounding in their own end zone. So the seventh seal lay broken and the Lord proclaimed, in a raucous and mighty voice, "Tebow would not have made that mistake?" [Revelations 2:5-7]) What really has been freaking me out lately about the coming end times is, the weather.

As I write this it is currently 50 degree Fahrenheit outside (that's about 10 degree Celsius for my foreign friends,) and it's February. For the New York metropolitan area the average temperature in January was 35.1 degree Fahrenheit, which is four degrees above the average for the past thirty years for January. Some days have even topped out at 60 degrees. Add to this a freak snow storm in October that dumped almost 19 inches in some places, a previous summer filled with hurricanes, earthquakes, and flooding, and we very well could be looking at the beginning of Armageddon. Soon enough the icecaps will melt, sea waters will rise, and our streets will fall prey to wild gangs of roving furry creatures. Moose, mountain lions, and Robin Williams will start invading our towns as their natural habitats are slowly consumed by flood water and disaster films. You think it is a joke now, but wait till you wake up one day and find a polar bear in your kitchen drinking your Coca Cola, (and that stuff is like crack to them.)

Probably what's most disappointing about the coming weather-related apocalypse is that it will be boring. I mean we always knew the world was going to have to end, but seriously weather? I was really hoping for a good old fashioned World War III or some kind of asteroid, but no. Instead, we get to be killed off by errant jet streams and warm fronts. Having your planet destroyed by weather is like getting killed by a papercut from a Robert Frost poem. There are so many cooler ways to go, demon hordes, super-viruses, solar flares, black holes, and of course the ever-popular zombie apocalypse.

However, (as I know many of you do) I have a dream scenario for the end of our world, extraterrestrial invasion. I am not even sure why that has always appealed to me, but maybe it is the thought of the human race coming together as one people to repel foreign invaders from the stars. (Also, I may or may not receive superpowers in this scenario, but that's a discussion for another day.) The best thing about an alien invasion is that in all my research I have yet to see the human race lose to the outer space invaders. With people like Jeff Goldblum, Will Smith, and Mel Gibson on our side how could we not. All we have to do is decipher the invader's incomprehensible computer code language (because how hard could that be) to implant a virus in their mothership, throw a few glasses of water on them, and then hit them with a baseball bat, and voila... Good-bye space invaders. True, our cities and civilizations will be destroyed and lay in ruin, but as a bonus once we defeat our temporary alien overlords we will have complete access to their technology and a firmer belief in the human spirit. We could rebuild our civilizations and make them stronger and more technologically advanced. Eventually, we too would be able to stretch our reach out to the stars united as a race of people with one goal in mind, conquering planetary civilaztions weaker than ours (How could we lose).

There is no way this winter is ever going to end, as long

 as this groundhog keeps seeing his shadow. I don't

see any other way out. He's got to be stopped. And I

have to stop him. -Bill Murry

Unfortunately, those are just pipe dreams, because how do you really combat the weather? We can't shoot guns at it, it doesn't respond to our witty one-liners, and going to a nuclear solution just seems silly. I mean if Al Gore had told us that demonic hordes or man-bear-pigs would soon be rising from the underworld to take over the planet, maybe I could have found more reasons to care. After all, at least that promises the excitement of possibly getting to unload a firearm or two at a potential menace.

Yet, for those of us that believe death by weather is too boring, I offer a single strand of hope, and it all stems from one little groundhog. You see Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter last week, and through research I have come to find that old Punxy has an accuracy rating of 80% and is over 120 years old. Phil is also constantly surrounded by a troupe of top-hatted men called the inner-circle, and speaks Ground-hoggese, which only the president of that circle understands. This has led to my newest theory that Phil is not predicting the weather, but controlling he weather. They say the devil can take many forms, but who would actually suspect the groundhog? And if you don't believe in Phil's power don't forget what he did to Bill Murray.

I know satanic groundhogs sounds like a crackpot theory, but let's not forget that everyone said the same thing to Al Gore about Global Warming. If my theory proves true, and Punxsutawney Phil is the Anti-Christ than I predict six more weeks of winter, followed by snow in June, hellfire-rain in October, and the Sun should be the color of sackcloth and the moon the color of blood, by December.

Reviews No One Will Read: Level Up

Above Dante, Lyle, and Wyatt reacting to the news
that WoW is going Free-to-Play

If you have read anything else on this blog you know that I am a nerd and a gamer. Yet, despite those self-proclaimed labels I still found myself hesitant to check out Cartoon Network's live-action movie/series Level Up. To be perfectly clear, I am very much a fan and frequent watcher of both Cartoon Network and its after hours' programing Adult Swim. It has always amazed me that people believe that just because you become an adult you should stop watching cartoons, because quite frankly watching cartoons as an adult (and actually getting all the jokes being referenced) brings the experience to a whole new level.

I am digressing... The set-up of Level Up is almost exactly what you would expect it to be. It is about three teenage gamers who play an MMORPG called Conqueror of All Worlds. Wyatt (Gaelan Connell), Dante (Connor del Rio) and Lyle (Jessie T. Usher) spend their nights playing the game as their avatars, Black Death, Sir Bickle, and Wizza (respectively,) while unbeknownst to the trio a malfunction in the game allows them to create a hole from the game world to the real world. All of this eventually climaxes into the escape of the game's main villain, Maldark. Our young heroes are then forced to bring their skills and in-game weapons to bear IRL (in real life) against the game's enemies (and other assorted Internet related humor) as these threats leak into their quiet town of Daventry Hills.

Now, Cartoon Network has tried the live-action genre before and come tantalizingly close to success, but not really. Add to this mix that the concept of video-game-to-real-life has been around since Disney put a neon bike helmet on Jeff Bridges, and maybe you can understand why I put off checking out Level Up. Eventually though (as it so often does) my curiosity out-weighed my hesitance, and so (with low expectations) I finally checked out this newest attempt by Cartoon Network to bridge the gap of cartoon and reality, and I am glad I did. 

As I stated before, the plot and story progression is fairly predictable, but if we did away with all movies and TV shows that had predictable plot lines than we'd probably be left with... well not much. (I mean even Inception was stolen from a Donald Duck comic.) Yet, what this show lacks in originality it more than makes up for in pure fun. Level Up really shines in its tongue-in-cheek humor, especially if you are a gamer. The show prominently features MMO humor, used both casually; such as when Dante refers to the group's fourth and unofficial member (and non-gamer) Angie (Aimee Carrero) as an NPC, and overtly; such as when after vanquishing their first real-life monster, Dante attempts to loot the creature and comes back with a few gold coins and an old leather glove.

Three things every show needs: weapons, nerds,
and a cute yet attainable-looking girl.

A lot this appeal comes from the fact that Level Up makes sure never to take itself too seriously. After all,  it is a show about teenagers battling computer generated monsters, while their small town remains almost heavenly oblivious. The flippant and sometimes facetious humor extends also to the gaming world, where even the fictional MMO Conqueror of All Worlds, is really nothing more than a parody of actual MMO's. The game (which you can also play for free on CartoonNetwork.com) uses absurd weapons which include a giant orange and yellow nerf-gun called a Blast-a-Ton, a blue and orange baseball bat called Skull Cracker, and other items such as a shield that looks like a man-hole cover, and a giant metallic fist weapon called the Fist of Schoolage. Other absurdities include enemies such as Holiday Orcs, or Black Death's personal (and annoying Monty Python-esque) Bard.

Lastly, though some of the characters at times can be two-dimensional, I appreciate the nod the movie and its subsequent show gives to the gaming and nerd community in general. Each of our three heroes are different types of nerds. Wyatt is the most typical nerd who will openly talk about his love of video games, card games, quiz bowl trivia, etc, and  is always picked on, and often times beaten up because of it. Dante is a skateboarder and a rebel. He is not academically gifted, and he spends most of his time trying to get others to notice him, which often leads him into conflict with his strict mother. Lyle is the closet-nerd. He is the high school quarterback, the most popular kid in school, his father is mayor, and he actually has a girlfriend. Lyle, however, is forced to hide who he truly is in order to fit into the rigid social structure of high school. All of this is a welcome change on the perspective of gamers and nerds the media has so often given us. Whereas in the past, nerds have been portrayed as a homogenized glasses-wearing race of awkward beings, such as those in Revenge of the Nerds, or more recently the Big Bang Theory, (but don't get me wrong I love the BBT,) here we see that gamers can be as diverse as anyone else. It is a welcome change of perception and I hope the show does not attempt to minimize these distinctions as it goes forward in the coming months and years. One of the reasons for this new look at gamers and nerds may be because the production companies of Cartoon Network Studios and Alive & Kicking Productions brought in my favorite team of Internet aficionados, Rooster Teeth as consultants on the movie.

Detractors will no doubt say that the show lacks depth and only finds its humor in pop culture and video game references, but to those critics I could only say, "lighten up." Its a movie/show aimed at young adults and when all is said and done it fullfills its main goal. Level Up is both humorous and entertaining. Not everything on TV needs to be Shakespeare or Battlestar Galacitca. (Besides most of what I write lacks depth and is pop-culture related too). Yet, with witty dialogue, gamer-related humor, and okay CGI (I mean for a cable network television show marketed to younger viewers), Level Up has the potential to finally be the live-action success that Cartoon Network has been hoping for. I will certainly continue to watch, and I recommend that you do too.

"Level Up" is presented with a knowing sense of pop culture pitched beyond just prepubescent kids. - Variety

There is an underlying theme of the importance of friendship and loyalty and teamwork, and the true heroism and bravery that all gamers carry in their souls. -SciFi Mafia