13 Comments / Aug 24.09 / Etcetera, Originals / by Casanova Ruffin

WORDS BY OWEN JAVELLANA

As an actress/writer/producer/geek icon, Felicia Day is quickly accumulating more slashes than a sorority girl in a horror film. In an epic one-two punch to end all one-two punches, she starred in last year’s acclaimed web series, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog while simultaneously writing, producing, and starring in a second internet hit, The Guild. But the success just keeps on growing, like rolling snowballs in cartoons, or the long, pixelly snakes on Nokia phones circa 2002. With a huge following on Twitter and an ever-expanding presence on the web, it’s worth dissecting to see just why Felicia Day is made of epic internet win.

1. She loves WoW.

The common misconception of “World of Warcraft fans” calls to mind the image of socially challenged recluses clicking away in their mom’s basement (or that one South Park episode… which, to be fair, was hilarious). What not many people grasp is that the fandom of this online game is a diverse, worldwide network of millions, and a market demographic just ripe for the picking. Few have capitalized on this like Felicia Day. Her web series, The Guild, is written by a gamer for gamers. And while you don’t have to be a level 80 death knight to enjoy the show, fellow Warcrafters are drawn to the abundance of Azerothean inside jokes, ensuring a built-in web audience of millions.

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2. She’s a Whedonverse Alum.

Boy howdy is this girl in good company. With a starring role in Joss Whedon’s Dr. Horrible and guest roles in his TV series Buffy and Dollhouse, Felicia Day has linked herself to a television icon with a cult following so big it can’t rightfully be called “cult” anymore. And any actor who graces the screen of Whedon’s body of work (lovingly dubbed the “Whedonverse” by faithful “Whedonites”) instantly captures the eye of a very vocal, very web-savvy network of fans. Established fansites like whedonesque.com and whedonopolis.com (I’m not kidding) are eager and ready to track, report, and publicize Day’s every move.

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3. She Tweets.

And when she tweets, people listen. Over 1,170,000 people. That’s like the population of two Wyoming’s tuning in to hear what @feliciaday is working on, what stars she’s rubbing elbows with, what video games she’s playing, and occasionally, pictures of what she’s having for lunch (a staple of Twitter). I say with no exaggeration: She can post a link in her tweets and make the site crash from the surge of traffic. I say with some exaggeration: She can post a link in her tweets, then go outside and listen to the sound of a million people clicking (or at least that’s what I would do if I had that kind of power).

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4. She’s Everywhere.

In a savvy display of savvy, Day has made all the right deals to spread her web series to countless outlets all over the interwebs, like so much butter on crusty worldwide toast. Sponsorship from Sprint has brought her web series back to YouTube for free, and backing from Microsoft means The Guild will be distributed via Xbox Live, so that gamers can enjoy it without ever signing off their green machines. And did I mention her Guild-themed music video, “Do You Wanna Date My Avatar,” is #1 on iTunes? Cuz it is.

5. She’s a Nerd.

I’m not talking about Olivia Munn “commercial nerdy,” where you dress like Chun-Li and give the nerd audience what they want. I mean full-on fangirl, 20-sided dice, reaching-the-WoW-level-cap, nerdcore. It’s apparent from her tweets about her favorite sci-fi novels and Dungeons & Dragons characters that Felicia doesn’t just sell nerd culture, she lives it. Proudly. And if there’s anything the legions of internet nerds can rally behind, it’s one of their own.

If nothing else, Day has shown what’s possible when creativity meets new media. And with all of this web buzz, two things are clear: Felicia Day loves the internet…and the internet loves her right back.

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Comments ( 13 )

She is my all-time favourite girl crush right now. I can’t get “Date My Avatar” out of my head. I almost crashed the server at work by watching the vid non-stop. My office manager came out and yelled at me. HAHAHAHA. Thank God he isn’t my boss.

THE GUILD IS SO FRAKKING FUNNY.

You also forgot to mention that she is a violin prodigy and plays her instrument in The Guild with skill and finesse.

I just noticed this, but her staff in her WoW character matches that ring on her right ring finger that she ALWAYS wears. GEEEEEEK. Loves it, I do. I could go off on her for forever.

Maeko added these pithy words on Aug 24 09 at 12:49 pm

i never noticed the ring thing!
that is pretty nerdy.
…which is why it’s cool.

Owen Javellana added these pithy words on Aug 24 09 at 8:44 pm

I just wanna say, Comedy Central’s twitter pointed out to us Reason #6, she sings.

casanovaruffin added these pithy words on Aug 25 09 at 9:39 am

Felicia is so intriging and attractive… Can she be in Fame? Broadway Musicals? How about “The Big Bang Theory”? She would be so awesome in that show.

James King added these pithy words on Sep 01 09 at 12:12 pm

Nice article for one of the nicest actresses out there. She proves time and again that you can be successful and still be real, though it does take a special blend of personality traits — which she clearly possesses.

Nicely done.

Steven K. Mariner added these pithy words on Sep 29 09 at 11:56 pm

To bad you didn’t have the real picture of here Gnome warlock next to her real picture.

Someone added these pithy words on Oct 11 09 at 1:52 am

And, she is the actress who did that hot who-me look in the Cheetos Commercial after her character loaded the cheezy delights in the dryer.

Matteo added these pithy words on Dec 05 09 at 6:35 pm

She’s my favorite

celine added these pithy words on Jan 15 10 at 6:07 pm

She does have a way with the internet.

casanovaruffin added these pithy words on Jan 17 10 at 1:52 pm

Well, Miss Felicia is most certainly a pro in front of the camera. She was most responsive to direction and she likes the camera as well as the camera surely likes her. A real treat to photograph.

Ron P Jaffe added these pithy words on Feb 19 10 at 3:11 pm

Ron P Jaffe, I’m jealous of you and your camera for getting to capture so much talent.

casanovaruffin added these pithy words on Feb 19 10 at 3:17 pm

Well, Miss Felicia is most certainly a pro in front of the camera. She was most responsive to direction and she likes the camera as well as the camera surely likes her. A real treat to photograph.

http://vblblog.com/ added these pithy words on Apr 23 10 at 5:19 pm

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