WebVideo Tribe Twelve - Worth Watching
There's not much I can say about this series apart from what others have said, but to hell with it, Tribe Twelve is fantastic! The first few videos are rocky and awkward so you may find yourself dragging through them. Beyond that it's actually very satisfying to watch; the acting gets progressively better, it's story evolves well and plot points are tied together very well. It's also pretty straight-forward, unlike a few other series I could name *cough*Everyman HYBRID*cough* and it's nice to actually get answers for things unlike certain other series *cough*Marble Hornets*
I often see this series compared to MH as a sort of expy, and while I can see similarities, mostly in Tribe Twelve's beginning, it's my opinion, Tribe Twelve is actually a better series. It's better constructed as a story and characters actually develop as the series goes on, Tribe Twelve has a more interesting, and easier to grasp, antagonist in the form of The Observer and The Collective...Bah, enough comparisons, lets get to the meat of this.
I honestly can't nit pick it too much, Tribe Twelve knows it's strengths and plays to them, having a likeable main protagonist who's emotions and plights feel real, you actually feel for Noah. Another strength of the series is the stylised effects, with The Observer videos being very artsy, very creepy and very well done; maybe it's just my flair for the macabre. The effects in the series itself are also fantastic, honestly Tribe Twelve's Slendy is the only one in any series to consistently freak me out.
As I mentioned there isn't much else to be said that hasn't already been, but if you're reading this and wondering "should I watch this?" My answer is yes, even if you're not a Slenderseries fan, it's actually a very well done web series with an interesting plot, some good humour, great visuals and developed Characters.
So watch it. Go. You'll thank me.
Webvideo My Favorite Slenderverse Series!
While this series starts of somewhat slowly, with the first few entries seeming like a copycat of Marble Hornets—wow, does it ever turn into a fantastic webseries! Really, it's worth it to hang in there on this one, past the first few entries because once Tribetwelve gets rolling, it becomes its own beast.
I started watching this series after watching Marble Hornets and Everymanhybrid after hearing mixed reviews, but boy was I glad I gave it a chance, as now it's my favorite out of all three.
The proxies/Collective in Tribetwelve are really good Nightmare Fuel, and Slenderman himself is illustrated creatively, with great special effects. The plots twists make sense, but aren't easily predictable—in fact I think this series seems really well-written. I get great pleasure out of seeing a big plot twist and then being able to go back to really early on in the series and being able to see foreshadowing for that plot twist really early on. It tells me that the writer knows what he's doing with the series, and has a endgame in mind.
Pacing also seems really well done, and there aren't many entries where nothing of importance happens. Noah, the main character, is likeable and sympathetic, and I feel like his acting is done quite well (though there were some weak points early on in the series, keep watching- it gets better!). In fact, most aspects of this series continue to improve as the creator improves. I really do think this series has the best special effects out the Big 5 slenderseries. Also, most intriguing use of time travel that I remember encountering in pretty much anything!
In conclusion, Tribetwelve is a great series that is totally worth watching if you're interested in horror/slenderverse! 5/5
WebVideo Shaky start, but it's worth the effort
To be perfectly honest, I find the beginning of Tribe Twelve to be not as bad as people make it out to be. Yes, the numerous Marble Hornets references are a bit annoying and the acting is unconvincing, but the latter is not as tedious as people make it out to be, and there are far worse examples of acting in the Mythos. What many reviews leave out is several rather impressive moments in the beginning, especially in Submissions 3 and 5.
And there is a lot to love. The editing is easily the best of the entire mythos, the plot is multi-faceted and interesting and the characters are dynamic, especially Noah. It's by no means perfect, but after its amateurish start, Tribe Twelve truly shines as a great example of Internet horror. Give it a shot.
Webvideo Conflicted —edit
Okay, so I came to this after watching Marble Hornets, and really what you watch first does affect your opinion of latter things. First, I had high expectations for this, given its fanbase on Deviantart, but I was pretty disappointed.
True, it did START as a MH clone, but that's okay, truly, I have no problem with that, I have problems with everything after it. It did develop into a distinct series, but it wasn't good.
The acting, is TERRIBLE to watch, nearly painful. For me, it didn't even cross into a "so bad it's good" territory. It was just bad.
Noah is a jerk. On the same vein as Alex from Marble Hornets, but I seriously wanted to gag over how he spoke to everyone in this series. Plus his swearing was hitting "Blair Witch Project" levels of annoyance.
The plot also leave something to be desired. I love complicated series, I really do, but I could barely follow what happened within the episode. Granted, this could just be me, but after extensive reading of the wiki, all I could think was "What?". I appreciate them wanting to pair up with other slender man mythos series, but I don't want to watch two or more other series (which I have also read aren't good), in order to fully understand this one.
All in all, it had an alright concept. The visual effects as others have mentioned are good, but it wasn't worth the hours I spent trying to get into it. I don't recommend it to anyone, just read the wiki, the transcripts are detailed enough. For an interesting (and non painful to watch) slender 'vlog', I highly recommend Marble Hornets. The acting is good, the plot is solid, and it is well executed.
- Edit*** I may not have mentioned this, but.. this series IS strangely addicting, and despite it's problems, I do find myself conflicted. I think it's tolerable in smaller doses, but I still don't like having to read a whole bunch of different sources to understand it. But, I'll give it another shot. *****
WebVideo Trying to Hard
Don't get me wrong this series has its moments but that is all they are. This does not leave you with lingering fear as other series have done, and while the sotry and effects are great it just falls short. It starts off as a COMPLETE expy of Marble Hornets, though it quickly developes a life of its own, and yet it always feels like to much effort has been put into this. There are crossovers with other Slenderman stories trying to show that it all exists in a larger world but this backfires when the characters in other shows are going through something completely unrelated, and tries to show that this exists in a larger world but in the end it somehow ends up feeling smaller. Still a good series, just not the best.
WebVideo Warning: Fanboy butthurt incoming
Having watched all of the "Big Three," and reading Can You See The Words + Just Another Fool, I have to ask: What is with the Marble Hornets comparisons? Because this is definitely one of the higher quality SM series. It's certainly better MH, which is good, but can be quite conceited at times (certainly more so than Tribe Twelve), particularly with regard to the acting, and its FX could easily give both Everyman HYBRID & MH a run for their money. The plot of TT (like EMH) is also more interesting than MH, IMO, investing heavily in backstory that is both intriguing and surprising, whereas MH is kind of just random shit happening.
Whilst it obviously borrows from MH in places, what SM vlog doesn't? Many of MH's originally unique contributions are now just standard parts of the mythos; public domain. Calling it an MH copy simply because of this would therefore be unfair, especially when you consider that it adds its own twists, and emphasises elements of the mythos that are very much lacking in the other two vlogs (the tentacles, a different symbol, the connection to water*, the collective, the order etc.).
Overall, I think TT is a brilliant but underrated series. Next to EMH, this is my favourite of all the SM vlogs, and I feel its membership as one of the Big Three is well-deserved. Sure, MH was a trailblazer in the early days, but now ... less so. Get over it.
(*'Course, I suppose you could argue that Can You See The Words counts as EMH's contribution to this aspect, but that's up to personal opinion, since it's not present in the main vlog.)
WebVideo One of the weakest Slendy projects
When discussing "core" Slender Man Mythos projects, this tends to get mentioned alongside such stories as Marble Hornets, Everyman HYBRID, and Just Another Fool. Tribe Twelve is easily the worst of these.
The first few videos feature a never-ending assault of Operator symbols and Slendy cameos. Unlike the subtle rising creepiness of Marble Hornets or the bait and switch of Everyman HYBRID's "parody gone wrong", Tribe Twelve plays hard and fast with the Mythos' calling cards, hitting notes that even a casual Slender Man fan will find familiar. The early videos feature weak plots easily destroyed through Fridge Logic and extremely poor acting and writing.
Especially at the beginning, Tribe Twelve apes on Marble Hornets unabashedly. The series opens with Noah uploading an Apocalyptic Log a few years old, like MH. Noah is drawn into the story through his efforts to uncover what happened to another character, mirroring Jay's pursuit of Alex. Even later on in the series, when the writers grow bold and introduce their own elements, clear parallels can be seen: Night Recording's Nothing Is Scarier vibe echoes the infamous Entry #16, the Abandoned Playground from the video Noah gets is similar to Entry #4, and totheark has received yet another Expy in the form of the Observer.
I won't say this series doesn't have great effects. It deserves the Visual Effects Of Awesome moniker. Slender Man looks great, and the series isn't afraid to indulge in close-ups of fantastic shots. The Observer's videos are pure black and white, and they're oppressive, sinister, and probably the best part of the series. However, as any film buff will tell you, all the effects in the world don't mean a thing if your actors can't hold their part.
The acting is Tribe Twelve's greatest weakness. In the early videos Milo and Noah engage in dull, unconvincing activities and dialogue. I recall one early moment when Milo runs for his life...at a rather leisurely jog. Noah's actor improves as time goes on, but his Cluster F Bombs remain, unfortunately. That may be a legitimate reaction in real life, but Realistic Diction Is Unrealistic and the constant swearing is jarring and drags the viewer out of the experience.
Tribe Twelve starts weak and slowly improves, but it's Follow The Leader tendencies and poor acting leave it trailing at the end of the Slender Man pack.
WebVideo Tribe Twelve: from MH Lite to a series with bite.
Tribe Twelve is a Slender Man video-based ARG, similar to Marble Hornets. In fact, it begins a bit too closely to Marble Hornets. The "I found old videos, I'll post them up" opening premise seems a little stale and the dialogue is a bit Narmful. However, the series starts improving after the "Tape Analysis" video. New and different elements give it its own unique tone and flavor, and the Nightmare Fuel is ramped up considerably after Noah records himself sleeping one night. At this point, a new variable is introduced and things start hitting way closer to home than Noah ever expected, resulting in a week-long takeover by the unnerving Observer character.
The characterization is a bit more noticeable than in MH; Noah's Formspring and Twitter showcase his snarkiness, which he admits is a coping mechanism of his. Milo is fairly interesting but nothing special. On the other hand, the Observer is one of the most intriguing parts of the series, especially during his/its takeover of Noah's accounts. His Formspring answers to viewers' inquiries bring up several new questions with each one answered, and we get to see a dark and bone-dry sense of humor that serves to make this character even more alien.
The series also has spectacular effects for the Slender Man himself; the waving tentacles are given just enough screen time to stake out a place in viewers' nightmares. The ultra-contrasted A Scanner Darkly-esque Observer videos are a terribly beautiful feast for the eyes and imply a more assertive threat than MH's comparatively cryptic and almost Riddler-like To The Ark videos.
However, the series has its lower points. Firstly, the opening does lack subtlety, essentially shouting YEP IT'S SLENDY TIME from the first video. Secondly, the acting is So Bad It's Good, with Noah being relatively the best. So Bad It's Good is not what you want in this sort of series. However, the series has enough goodness to make up for it.
All in all, this series is a great addition to the Slender Man mythos and deserves consideration.
WebVideo Tribe Twelve
Tribe Twelve is a horror series on You Tube based off The Slender Man Mythos. The plot is as follows: Noah and Milo are good friends and cousins. Milo visits Noah, and Noah decides to record Milo's visit. However, Milo starts acting very strange at times, leaving Noah very confused. Eventually, Milo goes back home. After a while, Noah recieves word the Milo has been found dead. Noah decides to take a You Tube page of his that was for a canceled class project on the Twelve Tribes of Israel (hence the title), and turn it into a dedication page for Milo. He starts uploading footage of them from Milo's previous visit onto the page. However, while examining the footage, Noah discovers a certain faceless bussiness man was stalking Milo. Eventually, Noah finds himself targeted by Slender Man and other malevolent forces.
Tribe Twelve is very similar in plot and style to Marble Hornets. It can come off at times as a mere imitation of the horror classic. But don't dismiss for being too similar to Marble Hornets. It has quite a few terrifying moments. As for the acting, Noah could be better. His lines come off as narm sometimes. But on the flip side, the less than spectacular acting can actually come off as pretty realistic. Now as for the effects, I have three words: They. Are. Amazing. It features a very well done tentacled Slendy, along with your necessary audio/visual distortions. In addition, there are also the videos of "The Observer" (Not sure if that is his name. I remember reading it somewhere). "HELLOTHERE" and "Ultimatum" are done very well.
All in all, this series isn't without flaws, but it still can provide some good Nightmare Fuel. Check it out.
WebVideo In retrospect, not that great.
Tribe Twelve was a webseries that at the time of watching, I thought was one of the best Slender-series out of all the Big 3. It didn't have much Continuity Lockout, the visual effects were nothing short of spectacular, and the lore regarding the interpretation of Slender Man was really fascinating.
Looking at this series years after it was cancelled though...there's a lot of problems with this show. A lot.
Let's start with the main character. Noah Maxwell is probably one of the worst protagonists in the entire Slender Man Mythos. He's intentionally written to be a flip-flopping asshole who can't decide whether he wants to fight Slender Man and his cohorts, or cowers in fear of them while lamenting how much his life sucks while doing nothing about it. Supposedly this was done in an attempt to make the character seem "realistic", but all it does is make him more pathetic and bitchy. Say what you will about the protagonists of other Slender-series, but at least they balance each other out by being supportive of one another and having other characters to bounce off of other than the main threat at large.
The series also reeks with subtle misogyny as well. It's well known that series creator Adam Rosner is a sexual predator and disgusting human being, and watching this series with that in mind, you can see a lot of alarm bells with how this show treats women. Namely, they tend to be Disposable Love Interests or Out of Focus family members that Noah barely seems to care about while Mary Asher is intentionally written to have zero sympathetic traits whatsoever.
The series is also notorious for teasing a bunch of shit that either never happens, or is increasingly underwhelming. Oh look, there's this spooky, creepy group of people who work for Slender Man who want to kill you! And you never see any of them onscreen outside of "Collective videos". Hey look, there's this spooky journal that reveals all this information! Let's just slowly upload entries that tell us shit we already know, or isn't relevant to the main story.
The effects for this show are seen as a series highlight, and its true that no other Slender Man-related piece of media comes close to matching it. But the problem is that the overarching story doesn't justify its existence. Yeah, it looks cool when you have Noah teleport into various areas or see horrific shit on the Boardwalk, but what's the fucking point of it if it doesn't lead up to anything? You can only pull so many magic tricks before the audience gets tired.
Overall, getting into TribeTwelve feels like watching the Slenderverse equivalent of a bad Marvel movie: it coasts entirely on spectacle and VFX, while everything else is underdeveloped slush that teases the next entry to justify your investment while offering nothing substantial for the current episode. There's some stand-out moments, but overall, the series is just a frustrating disappointment.