History WebVideo / WelcomeToTheBasement

''Welcome to the Basement'' (stylized as ''Welcome To The Basement'' in the video titles and playlists) is a VideoReviewShow released under [[http://www.blamesociety.net/ Blame Society Productions]], created by co-founder Matt Sloan. The series stars Sloan as the preponderant host, with close friend and ''ChadVader'' alum Craig Johnson as his SecondBanana, the former's wife - Tona Williams - as the unseen camera operator, and a plethora of thespians and other entertainment industry veterans - both living, dead, B-rated and otherwise. Oh, and Matt's cat.

As the page quote outlines, the premise of the series is Sloan and Johnson watching a diverse selection of films from the cinematic past – from the Hollywood mainstream to the quirkiest cult classics — and having a thoughtful discussion thereafter. Craig never knows what the movies are ahead of time, so it’s always as much a surprise to him as it is the audience. On occasion, the two have switched roles, and Matt has also twice employed a third party to curate an episode by picking a film from his "secret list", allowing them to replace the empty slot left behind with whichever movie they so desire (as long as it adheres to the rule of having gone unseen by his eyes).

''Welcome to the Basement'' (stylized as ''Welcome To The Basement'' in the video titles and playlists) is a VideoReviewShow released under [[http://www.blamesociety.net/ Blame Society Productions]], created by co-founder Matt Sloan. The series stars Sloan as the preponderant host, with close friend and ''ChadVader'' alum Craig Johnson as his SecondBanana, the former's wife, Tona Williams, as the unseen camera operator, and a plethora of thespians and other entertainment industry veterans - both living, dead, B-rated and otherwise. Oh, and Matt's cat.

* [[FanBoy Fan Boy(s)]]: Craig often times displays an adoration [[{{Armageddon}} the size of Texas]] for [[BobDylan the Voice of a Generation]] is one of his most defining traits, and the pair's overt "acting crush" on frequently mentioned and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Son,_My_Son,_What_Have_Ye_Done%3F one-time basement cinema guest]], MichaelShannon, is well-documented. Case in point:

* [[FanBoy Fan Boy(s)]]: According to Matt (and as corroborated through his co-host's behavior whenever he becomes the subject of conversation), Craig's adoration of [[BobDylan the Voice of a Generation]] is one of his most defining traits, and the pair's proud "acting crush" on frequently mentioned and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Son,_My_Son,_What_Have_Ye_Done%3F one-time basement cinema guest]], MichaelShannon, is well-documented. Case in point:

* TheStinger: Episode four onwards ends with a shot of [[DeathGlare the gaze]] of Tona and Matt's pet cat, Ernesto, directly striking the audience, with subsequent ones applying an audio clip from the episode's film.
* WhatCouldHaveBeen: Matt reveals in the [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miaAxqNZFGo Season 1 live broadcast wrap party]] that the original concept behind the series was to invite a different friend each week to his [[ExpoSpeak eponymous ground-level house story]], where they would pick a movie from his existing collection, after which they would share their reactions and views on it; if another friend picked the same film, he would have had to re-watch it and find new points of discussion to bring to the table.

* [[FanBoy Fan Boy(s)]]: According to Matt (and as corroborated through his co-host's behavior throughout the series), Craig's adoration of [[BobDylan the Voice of a Generation]] is one of his most defining traits, and both have a proudly blatant "acting crush" on frequently mentioned and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Son,_My_Son,_What_Have_Ye_Done%3F one-time basement cinema guest]], MichaelShannon. Case in point:

* [[FanBoy Fan Boy(s)]]: Craig is quite the one towards [[BobDylan the Voice of a Generation]], and both have a proudly blatant "acting crush" on frequently mentioned and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Son,_My_Son,_What_Have_Ye_Done%3F one-time basement cinema guest]], MichaelShannon.

* PutneySwopePanic (Sloan coined)

* [[FanBoy Fan Boy(s)]]: Craig is quite the one towards [[BobDylan the Voice of a Generation]], and both have a blatant "acting crush" on [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Son,_My_Son,_What_Have_Ye_Done%3F basement cinema guest]], MichaelShannon.

''Welcome to the Basement'' (stylized as ''Welcome To The Basement'' in the video titles and playlists) is a VideoReviewShow released under [[http://www.blamesociety.net/ Blame Society Productions]], created by co-founder Matt Sloan. The series stars Sloan as the preponderant host, with close friend and fellow ''ChadVader'' alum Craig Johnson as his SecondBanana, the former's wife, Tona Williams, as the unseen camera operator, and a plethora of thespians and other entertainment industry veterans - both living, dead, B-rated and otherwise. Oh, and Matt's cat.

* PutneySwopePanic (coined by Sloan)

* TheStinger: Episode four onwards ends with a shot of [[DeathGlare the gaze]] of Tona and Matt's pet cat, Ernesto, directly striking the audience, with subsequent ones applying an audio clip from the episode's film.

* SophisticatedAsHell: The hosts are somewhat of an inversion of this, as while they do show shades of this, they are anything but stuffy, and their riffs are more than anything just common man's humor.

* TheStinger: Episode four onwards ends with a shot of [[DeathGlare the gaze]] of Tona and Matt's pet cat, Ernesto, directly striking the audience, with subsequent ones applying an audio clip from the episode's film plays.

->''"I've gotta bunch of movies that I've never seen before. You don't know what they are. Each episode I'm gonna spring one on you; we'll watch it, and talk about it. [[TitleDrop Welcome to the basement]]."''

* TheStinger: Each episode ends with a shot of [[DeathGlare the gaze]] of Tona and Matt's pet cat, Ernesto, directly striking the audience as an audio clip from the episode's film plays.

As the page quote outlines, the premise of the series is Sloan and Johnson watching a diverse selection of films from the cinematic past – from the Hollywood mainstream to the quirkiest cult classics — and having a thoughtful discussion thereafter. Craig never knows what the movies are ahead of time, so it’s always as much a surprise to him as it is the audience. On occasion, the two have switched roles, and Matt has also twice employed a third party to curate an episode by picking a film from his "secret master list", allowing them to replace the empty slot left behind with whichever movie they so desire (as long as it adheres to the rule of having gone unseen by his eyes).

As the page quote outlines, the premise of the series is Sloan and Johnson watching a diverse selection of films from the cinematic past – from the Hollywood mainstream to the quirkiest cult classics — and having a thoughtful discussion thereafter. Craig never knows what the movies are ahead of time, so it’s always as much a surprise to him as it is the audience. On occasion, the two have switched roles, and Matt has also twice employed a third party to curate an episode by picking a film from his "secret master list", allowing them to replace the empty slot left with whichever movie they so desire (as long as it applies to the guidlines of having gone unseen by his eyes).

As the page quote outlines, the premise of the series is Sloan and Johnson watching a diverse selection of films from the cinematic past – from the Hollywood mainstream to the quirkiest cult classics — and having a thoughtful discussion thereafter. Craig never knows what the movies are ahead of time, so it’s always as much a surprise to him as it is the audience.

* TheStinger: Each episode ends with a shot of [[DeathGlare the gaze]] of Tona and Matt's pet cat, Ernesto, directly striking the audience as an audio clip of the episode's film plays.

* TheStinger: Each episode ends with a shot of Tona and Matt's pet cat, Ernesto, staring into the camera as an audio clip of the episode's film plays.

* TalentBomb (Johnson)

''Welcome to the Basement'' (stylized as ''Welcome To The Basement'' in the video titles and playlists) is a VideoReviewShow released under [[http://www.blamesociety.net/ Blame Society Productions]], created by co-founder Matt Sloan. The series stars Sloan as the preponderant host, with close friend and fellow ''ChadVader'' alum Craig Johnson as his SecondBanana, the former's wife, Tona Williams, as the unseen camera operator, and a plethora of thespians and other entertainment industry veterans - both living, dead, B-rated and otherwise. Oh, and Sloan's cat.

As the page quote outlines, the premise of the series is Sloan and Johnson watching a diverse selection of films from the cinematic past – from the Hollywood mainstream to the quirkiest cult classics — and discuss them. Craig never knows what the movies are ahead of time, so it’s always as much a surprise to him as it is the audience.

* PutneySwopePanic (Sloan)

* PutneySwopePanic
* TalentBomb

''Welcome to the Basement'' (stylized as ''Welcome To The Basement'' in the video titles and playlists) is a VideoReviewShow released under [[http://www.blamesociety.net/ Blame Society Productions]], created by co-founder Matt Sloan. The series stars Sloan as the preponderant host, with close friend and fellow ''ChadVader'' alum Craig Johnson as his SecondBanana, the former's wife, Tona Williams, as the unseen camera operator, and a plethora of thespians and other entertainment industry veterans - both living, dead, B-rated and of every other category. Oh, and Sloan's pet cat.

''Welcome to the Basement'' (stylized as ''Welcome To The Basement'' in the video titles and playlists) is a VideoReviewShow released under [[http://www.blamesociety.net/ Blame Society Productions]], created by co-founder Matt Sloan. The series stars Sloan as the preponderant host, with close friend and ''ChadVader'' alum Craig Johnson as his SecondBanana, the former's wife, Tona Williams, as the unseen camera operator, and a plethora of thespians and other entertainment industry veterans - both living, dead, B-rated and of every other category. Oh, and Sloan's pet cat.

''Welcome to the Basement'' (stylized as ''Welcome To The Basement'' in the video titles) is a VideoReviewShow released under [[http://www.blamesociety.net/ Blame Society Productions]], created by co-founder Matt Sloan. The series stars Sloan as the preponderant host, with close friend and ''ChadVader'' alum Craig Johnson as his SecondBanana, the former's wife, Tona Williams, as the unseen camera operator, and a plethora of thespians and other entertainment industry veterans - both living, dead, B-rated and of every other category. Oh, and Sloan's pet cat.