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Re: Not-at-all condescending “gym for nerds” opens in Los Angeles

David Nett — Thu, 03 Sep 2015 20:44:20 -0000

...alsopleasedontmurderpeople

Re: Not-at-all condescending “gym for nerds” opens in Los Angeles

David Nett — Thu, 03 Sep 2015 20:40:35 -0000

That's a solid marketing message, though I feel like the asterisks and disclaimers after encouraging people to be Feyd would break the interwebs.

Re: Not-at-all condescending “gym for nerds” opens in Los Angeles

David Nett — Thu, 03 Sep 2015 20:11:33 -0000

The hard thing is, the reality of it doesn't really matter. If you suffer from low self-esteem, body dysmorphia, or simple nerd PTSD (which is often how I describe my reaction to traditional gyms), it doesn't matter if anyone's actually looking at you or judging you. The problem is, you *feel* like they are, because you are judging yourself, which amounts to the same thing emotionally.

It's a lot of why our gym exists - we've tried to create a place where, because of its nature, no one feels like they're being judged, and everyone works together to help each other feel better about themselves and get strong and fit.

Re: Not-at-all condescending “gym for nerds” opens in Los Angeles

David Nett — Thu, 03 Sep 2015 20:03:44 -0000

Roswulf - These stories are WAY over-playing the theming aspect. It's the part the media grab onto, because they need a gimmick to understand what we do. We don't work out in costume. We don't pander or condescend. What we are, in truth, is a gym that caters to people for whom traditional fitness offering are uncomfortable places. I was/am one of those people.

We do weekly themed workouts, because it is fun. But, make no mistake, it's a serious gym (HIIT, Gymnastics, and Weightlifting), every class staffed with a high ratio of coaches to clients for a very hands-on feel, built inside an environment that we find more welcoming and helpful than the traditional gym.

Re: Not-at-all condescending “gym for nerds” opens in Los Angeles

David Nett — Thu, 03 Sep 2015 19:52:56 -0000

Thanks, Velocirapstar. Also, please tell me you are making an album under that name ;-)

Re: Not-at-all condescending “gym for nerds” opens in Los Angeles

David Nett — Thu, 03 Sep 2015 19:36:48 -0000

@sambarsanti - I’m one of the partners at Nerdstrong Gym. I’d love to talk to you about what we really do here, and have been doing for almost 2 and a half years. IGN’s reportage wasn’t very thorough; your re-reportage is even less so. I'd be happy to talk about how the gym came to exist (sort of accidentally), why we're not "condescending" or "pandering," and what it means, for a child of the 70s and 80s, to be able to embrace the term "nerd" (which I spent most of my youth running from), and turn it into a tool to help people, instead of a tool to hurt. Let me know if you're interested in learning about this thing. Same for anyone else wanting more info. david@nerdstronggym.com

-David, an Onion & AVClub fan since it was a physical humor newspaper I bought at a bookstore in Minneapolis 100 years ago

Re: What’s something you know now you wish you had known at 22?

David Nett — Tue, 11 Nov 2014 14:14:14 -0000

Wow. Not sure how or why that was deleted - I certainly didn't do it. I wish I could, but it was long and I don't remember it verbatim. Maybe a moderator can figure out why it was deleted?

Re: What’s something you know now you wish you had known at 22?

David Nett — Fri, 07 Nov 2014 14:25:51 -0000

Robin - I think the fact you are aware of the potential pitfalls speaks volumes about you being ready for them. You're a fair sight further along than I was, at any rate. Just, pay attention. Give each moment its due. Work hard at the things that matter to you, even when everything seems fine, and let the things that don't matter go. I wish I'd done that.

Re: What’s something you know now you wish you had known at 22?

David Nett — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 13:55:44 -0000

Well, I don't regret falling in love young or marrying that woman - she was/is an amazing human being and we had 13 wonderful years together. I just wish I'd paid more attention, that I'd understood love itself was not enough, that attentiveness and hard work and constant gardening of that relationship was necessary, even when everything seems stable, even after a dozen years or more. I don't feel I was blinded by love, I just feel that I didn't understand that love itself is not enough. That misunderstanding bit me in the butt in my first relationship after the divorce as well.

Re: What’s something you know now you wish you had known at 22?

David Nett — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 13:52:30 -0000

Oh, gosh. I dunno. Maybe? Are you all wearing a Star Wars t-shirt right now?

Re: What’s something you know now you wish you had known at 22?

David Nett — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 13:45:14 -0000

Good on you for learning that lesson at only 19. It's one a still struggle with at twice your age. You're ahead of the curve on that one, I think, and it will serve you well in life. Congrats!

Re: What’s something you know now you wish you had known at 22?

David Nett — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 13:33:30 -0000

I'm honestly not sure. In my case, I think it might have been helpful if my parents had pushed me into supplemental college courses or something when I was in HS - I went to a small public school where I (and my nerdy friends) pretty much set the curve. Being challenged more academically might have forced me to learn those good habits. But maybe not.

I did have some adversity - I and my friends were often bullied (nerdy kids often were - it was the 1980s - probably still are to some extent). But dealing with that seemed somehow easier - I knew that was a product of my environment, and that while the Homecoming King pouring a shake over my head in the lunchroom seemed terrible in grade 10, that shit would not fly post-HS. That adversity shaped me, sure, but not in the way I probably needed it to do.

The thing about privilege is that it's sort of impossible to grok until you're brain is mature enough to really feel true empathy. I didn't feel privileged - my family wasn't rich, I wasn't cool, etc. I couldn't understand how good I had it. But I think empathy can be nurtured - volunteerism is a good tool. Community service. Helping those less fortunate. Working at food banks, soup kitchens, with the elderly in hospice - that's something I do now (still not as much as I should) that I think would have greatly aided me as a young man.

I don't want it to seem like I am/was a monster or a bad person, or that I've lived a useless life thus far. Those things are very far from true - I've had a wonderful, lucky life. But I know I'd be closer to where I'd hoped with better habits, and I know my marriage would not have fallen apart if I'd put in the work it needed.

Re: What’s something you know now you wish you had known at 22?

David Nett — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 11:53:08 -0000

I don't put this one on my parents, actually - they weren't overly effusive with their praise, and they encouraged me to work hard. I just didn't encounter any truly serious challenges until adulthood - the things that were asked of me as a young man (school chief among them) were simply not challenging in a way that forced me to learn good habits. I was lucky: born a white male with an aptitude for academics in the 1970s in a lower-middle-class rural family, grew up in a very small pond, met a wonderful woman at nineteen. I just didn't understand how to *do* anything with those advantages.

Re: Game of Thrones Recap & Review Podcast: S4 E7: Mockingbird

David Nett — Mon, 19 May 2014 17:41:52 -0000

Yeah - the new Gregor Clegane is huge, but I agree that he doesn't look scary in this incarnation to me. Is it too much to ask to find an utterly amazing actor who also happens to be 7' of terrifying muscle? ;-)

Re: Star Wars Week! – The Admiral’s Vendetta

David Nett — Wed, 12 Mar 2014 16:49:02 -0000

I'm team "It's your gorram site, Carson - do what you want." Frankly, I feel like I benefit most from discussions of what works in really great scripts, and what doesn't in scripts that *almost* cut the mustard. As much as I love Star Wars (and, oh, I do), if the scripts aren't worth discussing, they're not worth discussing. Just let us know that, and let's move on.

As far as people saying "I worked really hard and you owe me," let this be an entertainment industry lesson to them: how hard you worked isn't at issue. What came out the other end, mixed with chance and changing circumstances, is what matters.

Re: GOLD Blog: The GOLD Guide to Competitive Gaming

David Nett — Mon, 06 May 2013 15:00:38 -0000

I hope so. FWFG was recently purchased by Purple Duck Games, and they now own all the rights to the book-in-progress. Publishing, especially for small indie publishers, is a delicate balance of ROI. I'm hopeful PDG will decide to go forward with it.

Re: GOLD - an RPG series: Night of the Zombie KIng

David Nett — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 16:49:53 -0000

Thanks so much, Jason. So glad people are still discovering and loving this story after two years. Spread the word - we've more GOLD stories to tell, and it's the nice comments from folks like you that make us yearn to tell them.

Re: The Cost of a Webseries

David Nett — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 13:33:13 -0000

So amazing. Thank you for this breakdown. People need to understand what low budget means, and that, in order to make indie sustainable with quality end product, money needs to be spent.

Re: Game Of Thrones Recap: The Old Gods and the New

David Nett — Mon, 07 May 2012 19:37:52 -0000

I had forgotten that. Good call.

Re: Game Of Thrones Recap: The Old Gods and the New

David Nett — Mon, 07 May 2012 15:28:19 -0000

My take on the changes, which I mostly like. My take, without giving too much away:

MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD

Ser Rodrik Cassel wasn’t slain by Theon. Instead, Theon executed the kennelmaster of Winterfell. Rodrik was someone we know and respect though, so I understand the decision.

-- Ditto that. There are just too many characters for us to care about new ones. This does create a complication for later, I think, but a minor one in a place where I expect a LOT of plot compression.

The scenes with Robb and Lady Talisa are entirely new, as the character of Talisa doesn’t exist in the books.

-- This is important, IMO. When Robb makes his disastrous decision in the books, it happens entirely off-"screen" in a way that just won't play on TV. Here we get to see the foundations of that decision, and get to enjoy the tension it creates

Littlefinger never personally met with Tywin nor crossed paths with Arya at Harrenhal. He keeps showing up all over the map, and though he’s revealing tidbits of helpful information, I’m not positive about the purpose of his wanderings.

-- In the books, we get the sense that Littlefinger's constantly figuring things out and maneuvering little wedges against everyone, but always through his network of informers, which is a hard thing to show on TV. Also, in the early books, you don't really get a sense of how important Littlefinger's gonna be - for the TV show we just need to see more of that, and see that he's willing to play all sides against each other. We also get to see these fabulous Tywin/Arya scenes, which show us that Tywin's a human being (which I love) and that Arya, so like & unlike Sansa, is capable of doing what needs to be done to survive & move slowly toward her ends.

The riot in King’s Landing started by Joffrey trying to be charitable at the urging of Sansa. I mean, that small action wouldn’t redeem Joffrey at this point, but it’s a small something. Sansa was not nearly raped either. She was just almost pulled off her horse when the Hound rescued her in the book.

-- This removes one of my favorite plot tools, Lollys. Ah, Lollys. But given the small amount of screentime you get with each plot point, it seeded to be Sansa to up the stakes. And I don't think there's any point in wasting screentime tryig to humanize Joffrey at this point ;-)

Jon Snow tells Ygritte to go instead of her running away. It’s a small difference, but it says a lot about Jon’s character. It’s a small defiance against the Night’s Watch. And for pity’s sake, why didn’t she say, “You know nothing, Jon Snow.” I bet I wasn’t the only one waiting for it! There was also a lot of Jon and Ygritte interaction cut out (not that kind of interaction), but they could add it to a different episode.

-- Yeah - this is the most disturbing change for me, though I think it'll turn out good, as it will allow the change in Jon's character (from spoiled & rigid to more considered and thoughtful) to be more visible influenced by Ygritte, rather than largely internal, which just plays better onscreen. And ditto the lack of "You know nothing, Jon Snow."

There was no dragon-napping in Qarth, no killed guards, and Dany’s handmaiden wasn’t murdered either. I have no idea why they’re changing around this story line as much as they are.

-- To me, this is clearly a simpler way to motivate Dany to her encounters with the sorcerers and forward beyond Qarth. Even though I've read the books multiple times, I still have a hard time remembering without prompting the evolution of and reasoning behind Dany's activities in the Qarth period. The kidnapping creates a clear, simple object on which to hang whatever needs to occur. The handmaiden death is puzzling, but, again, onscreen Dany needs some clearer motivation here - book Dany drifted too long "finding herself" - the show can't afford that.

Re: GOLD - an RPG series: Night of the Zombie KIng

David Nett — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 20:41:30 -0000

Ha. Hard to do anything in our space without acknowledging the edition wars. The good news is A) Hicks is a grognard, but a lovable grognard and B) our audience has been very good-natured about the joke - at our screenings at GenCon, etc., it got big laughs, even from the folks who worked on 4e.

Trivia: Rick Robinson, who actually wrote that joke, is our 4e Dm in residence on the team ;-)

Re: Denny’s Proves Web Series Work

David Nett — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 12:46:32 -0000

I actually don't have any issue with the idea of celebrity in indie web television. In fact, I think it's great. I just disagree with Joshua's conclusions about what this particular show's success (or lack thereof, to @ChadMedia's point) means for all of us.

I think one of the brilliant things about the web space is that it affords us non-celebs an opportunity to be seen in the same marketplaces and through the same distribution as already established celebs and their content. That's a new phenomenon. Again, I'm just not sure that the fact that this particular show is good means web series in general "work."

Re: Denny’s Proves Web Series Work

David Nett — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 15:14:44 -0000

That's an interesting question. I don't really know how to answer, except to cover by saying that I don't believe a single success or failure can be extrapolated to an entire emerging medium. I think a good follow-up on this article might be an examination of 5-10 series that "work," 5-10 that "don't work," and the commonalities (and differences) between them.

But I take your point. This is a web series, and its success helps reinforce the idea that web series *can* work for brands. But I think the "can" and "for brands" are key, and the execution here (celebrity-centric) shouldn't be overlooked. I do agree that it is good news for all of us when web series can show significant success. Can this particular brand of success translate for narrative projects? Non-celeb projects? And what angle on this are the brands seeing? I don't know the answer to any of these.

Re: Denny’s Proves Web Series Work

David Nett — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 13:07:36 -0000

I think we have to be careful about saying that Denny's success with this show proves that Webseries work. It's certainly good news, but is that really what's being proven here?

Obviously I'm not advocating *against* webseries (since for the past three years I've been cleaning out my savings account making them), but I think it's likely more accurate (in this case) to say that Denny's show confirms the idea that if you you can get a handful of already established celebrities who are popular with a particular demographic to discuss (or at least be associated with) a brand, that raises brand awareness in that demographic. That's not rocket science. It's particularly effective when it is not in a traditional commercial/sales-push format, but rather in a more appealing "show" format, where viewers choose to watch instead of being forced to watch. (From a brand standpoint, it also doesn't hurt that, despite the large number of celebrities involved here, the cost of this show is likely much, much lower than it would have been had Denny's booked each of these actors/comedians to shoot traditional national commercials. I have no hard data to back that up, but given the difference between SAG & AFTRA contracts for traditional commercial and New Media formats, I think that is a safe assumption.)

The good news here is that these are enjoyable to watch; much moreso than a typical celebrity-driven TV commercial. And in that, we all win. But I think it is a mistake to assume that success on the part of celebrity-driven content is success overall for the webseries format. In the end, this is still a brand working through an agency to buy a (new kind of) commercial starring celebrities (from a company run by celebrities) in order to increase awareness. That's not a bad thing, but it's also not a radically new thing, outside of the format.

I actually enjoy this show - I'm a fan of Koechner and of all of his guests. I also like stuffing waffles in my gaping maw. So the show is a win for me. I just think we shouldn't get too excited about "what this means for webseries." What it means, to me, is that audiences are tired of traditional commercials, and that celebrities are a good way to access the demos in which they are popular. We already knew both of those things.

Re: ‘GOLD’ Launches Guide to Competitive Gaming

David Nett — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 19:22:06 -0000

Wow! Thanks so much for helping get the word out. We're honored to be working with so many RPG luminaries. You can see a full contributor list on our blog. It's mind-boggling*:

http://www.goldtheseries.co...

*for RPG nerds, anyway ;-)