Yes, video reviews.

I’m seriously considering my first-ever video review. Would any of you be interested in that, or would I be playing to an entirely different audience?

My thinking in general is that if I started doing video reviews, they would be more scripted than a lot of what’s currently out there. Perhaps even – and I’m just daydreaming out loud right now – a sort of MST3K-style puppet-and-host show.

Thoughts?

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25 Comments

  1. If I were you I'd stay away from video reviews.

    Even the most well executed/produced video reviews often come across as amateurish and weird. I like the textual reviews, which I can read at my own pace.

  2. ero

    I don't want videos, I want old-school Poe reviews.

  3. Mysterious Stranger

    This is just my opinion but I think video reviews are lazy. I can read through a written review and look at all the images in less time than it takes to watch someone unpackage a figure in a video. Even the most well edited and produced videos go on way too long for my tastes.

    If you are going to script your video anyway, just go ahead and write up the review, snap a few pictures and post it like usual. If you feel the need to shoot a video to show off an action feature that's cool. But keep it short and to the point.

    I don't watch video reviews any more. I've seen more than enough to let myself know that they aren't for me. I'd give yours a shot just to show some support but I can almost guarantee after the first couple I'd start skipping right by them and move on to the written/pictorial reviews.

  4. Monte

    I never watch video reviews. I much prefer text and photos.

    But then, I'm a cranky old Luddite.

  5. pemberto82

    I'd try anything you're interested in producing, Poe. The things you do are always well thought-out, and I don't have any special prejudice against video reviews.

  6. Not a Fan of Video Reviews, But...

    Not a fan of video reviews, but if they really make a difference in revenue then you should try them!

    Some things to consider from a viewer’s perspective:

    1. Focus on the toy, not you.
    2. Edit, edit, edit.
    3. Keep it short – 2 minutes max.
    4. Use still shots, not turnarounds.
    5. Use high-contrast backgrounds.

    Basically, do the video review like you would a text/pictorial. Because there is nothing worse than finding a review of a newly released toy and then having to wade through a plodding, slow-motion take-down of a it by some mouth breathing, self-absorbed goober who can’t be bothered to spend five minutes planning or editing their 15 minute stream of consciousness.

    Hell isn’t other people. Hell is other people on YouTube.

  7. Dark Angel

    I despise video reviews, and I genuinely enjoy reading your articles and reviews. However, you need to do whatever you think you need to do.

  8. Zach S.

    I'll hardly ever watch video reviews…I don't like watching videos of things like news, reviews, etc. I just prefer reading.

  9. The_Fun_has_been_Doubled

    Try it out, if it works, then go at it if not then keep on writing… OR you could do the review as always, but complement it with a small video (like a detailed look at the Articulation.)

  10. ridureyu

    It all depends on your voice! Try to record how you sound, listen to it, and ask if you really want that.

  11. I'm really not a fan of video reviews. I have a few friends who want me to do some, but that's just not how I want to get the information I want from an action figure review when I'm browsing. Honestly, Dan's MOTUC reviews are pretty much the only ones I watch because A. they're typically previews and B. the guy is so darn entertaining. I'd be open to a video review for a product that felt like it warranted one. Otherwise, written reviews are so much more convenient, concise, and helpful.

  12. Thommy (Uki)

    Your written reviews are some of my favorite things on the internet, and I love your photography. That said, I would enjoy the additional video once in awhile!

  13. dayraven

    depends, how thick is your accent? for some of your readers, especially the internationals, it might be easy to discern, but others might have a very hard time with it if you're rolling a "southie." so are you matt damon or will hunting?

    i have no particular prejudice against video reviews, just an observance that not all reviewers are created equal. there's a gent, crazyjaco of powet.tv that started doing reviews at roughly the same time the much maligned pixel dan did… dan got popular, crazy did not, even though where i sat, crazy's video and audio work was of much higher quality. he too went with a scripted delivery (i might be wrong there, but it sure seemed like he did) the only thing holding him back was comfort in front of the camera… and a complete disinterest in shilling for the sake of shilling. hence, he wasn't getting samples figs and had to shop within a budget.

    is it dan's fault that he rolled over and showed his anus the first time mattel came sniffing for a hump hole? maybe, maybe not, but it did effect his access and exposure, and he's rolling strong while powet gets a lot less traffic… so maybe by selling his soul to the corporate satan, dan has found a way to profit, even if his cheap sales tactics must make it hard to sleep at night, and must constantly remind his loved ones that for a free toy, he would gladly skin them and wear their flesh as a costume at the next dress up day at matty's SDCC booth. just saying, there's a thing out there called integrity and not every video reviewer has it… but that's not a fault of the video medium, that's a fault in the character of the reviewer. poe lacks that particular fault, so we should all relax and expect the same kind of diligence and quality from a video review by poe as the text reviews we are all hooked on. 🙂 lighten up folks.

    • I appreciate your candor and thank you for the compliments, but please try and keep your comments about Dan a bit less…colorful. He's a very nice guy in my one-on-one experience, and while you're certainly entitled to your opinion about how he conducts his business, I'd really appreciate it if you could do so with a bit less hyperbole.

      Oh, and while I'm from Massachusetts, I don't really have an accent at all. Certainly no Boston accent, except maybe a slight twinge of it when I'm drunk. I do say "wicked" on occasion.

      That said, I do have a tendency to mumble, so I'd have to be careful about that.

    • ridureyu

      I really like Dan's reviews, but he also has a radio voice, good diction, he knows how to read on-air, and he's good with general video presentation/and-or cinematography.

    • Harrig

      Whatever your viewpoint on Dan, I'd appreciate a heads up on the status of the source of the review sample at the start rather than the end of the review. As Dan himself has pointed out, the whole flavour of his reviews is influenced by that, and that can seem disingenuous. I tend to view them as showcases rather than reviews, and looking at them like that, they are done very well.

    • dayraven

      fair 'nuff. i'll ease up on dan… a little. but you can't begrudge a brother a little poetry can you? i try to craft each dig and barb carefully, artisanally (yes, i just used artisanal as an adverb… that's craftsmanship right there!) for maximum impact yet with panache, that digs, even as it balms the soul with schadenfreudful wordsmanship. we can't all be roger ebert, but i'm trying to lay out a legacy of digs so severe that future generations come along and study them as gregorian meditations. i get it, it's your site, if you don't want that legacy spent here, that's completely within your domain to say so…

      but think of the line of future pilgrims you're turning away… 🙂

      i think you can slip in a "wicked" from time to time without getting too much flak… but a "wicked pissed" might just unsell your audience. either way, i'll tune in and peep whatever you do.

  14. Misterbigbo

    I say give it a whack, but I still appreciate your written review style. It sets my teeth on edge whenever I watch a You Tuber reviewsturbate, so it will be nice to see one produced by someone who can actually think in complete sentences.

    For some reason Pixel Dan catches shit online for his reviews, but they are quite good. They are well filmed, but more importantly, that dude is clear and concise.

    • Honestly, I prefer writing reviews, but evidently the real money is in videos. I know for a fact that some sites make more from a three-year-old Youtube video in a month than this site does for me in a year.

      And one nice thing about it is that Youtube, unlike my sponsors here on the site (or any company that offers free samples), have no stake in whether or not I make a purchase recommendation. They just pay per view.

      All that said, the videos seem like they would require a lot of time, money and labor, and I'm really not sure that's something I'm ready/willing/able to invest right now.

  15. TerminusTypeR

    A video review here and there would be cool. Always worth a shot, yeah?

  16. Jenn Blade

    Written reviews all the way.

    I don´t know, watching a video review is something I almost never do. Somehow it feels like a chore.

  17. Russ

    Please don't. This is one site I'm still fond of coming to, and a large part of that is due to the way you currently do reviews. I'd rather see great pictures and commentary versus having to fast forward through a video to see a particular shot of the figure.

  18. Mario

    I'm down.

  19. josh

    no no, a thousand times no. i rarely if ever check out video reviews. pictorials are so much better suited for a proper toy review.

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