Markiplier - Part 11

[femme_Finale]

Hey guys, long time lurker, yah dah yah dah. Mad love from the peanut gallery

This is a very trivial thing to comment on but I'd like to get a few other opinions on this. So, the Markiplier Tumblr tag is filled with all these Instagram pictures from Amy's birthday of the two of them renting a house (if I understood correctly) and relaxing by the beach. Right on. Good for them. However, does anyone else find it weird that they would take so many pictures to post online while on a romantic little holiday? Maybe I'm just being cynical but I'd think that the main focus of such an outing would be to take a break from their online lives and enjoy their time together. I'm aware that this generation is quick to relate any event in their lives to how it will look on social media, whether it be for the sole purpose of showing off or... I can't think of another reason. It makes something personal seem so artificial and almost staged. Yes, take a few nice pictures. Hell, take a load of pictures to keep for memories, but why post so many on Instagram? Do you take a lot of pictures and go through them later to selectively post or do you take a picture thinking, "This will look so good with the _____ filter! Really fits my _____ aesthetic!"

Also, did anyone else see Mark's shirtless picture with the novelette description of how he's transcended into super douchey dude? I'm sure it's meant to be funny (you know, because he's so swol) but it reads like he's throwing shade at those who dare to comment on how he markets himself. There's a fine line between parodying your sexual appeal and pandering with it. Mark seems to like taking the sobriety test on that line after blowing a point two.

On the topic of the rabid fandom, I'm sorry to anyone and everyone who's has to deal with cyberbullying from those who can't handle a contrarian opinion of their favorite e-celebrities. The mentality of these fans makes no sense, especially in fandoms where their idols have openly expressed their feelings on bullying. It reminds me of a Futurama quote: "You will smoke 'em peace pipe, and you will do it peacefully or we'll kill you!" Do they think it makes them look more favourable in the eyes of grown adults who have been on the internet long enough to know that not everyone is going to like them? A handful of critics, I'm sure, mean nothing to Mark. He has millions of subscribers, makes the big bucks, knows how to stay relevant with the young people and lives in a good part of Los Angeles. It'll take more than a few haters and ex-fans to change that.

[eggo]

Welp from Mark's latest video having everyone giving her a shout out for her birthday, reeeeaaallly douchy fucking move there asshole!!!!!!
" Oh no.. really it's ok guys don't say anything it's fine"!...FU Amy!!!!!
But everybody's gonna do it anyway... makes me sick!

[cosmix]

Yeah...people these days practically live on social media. There was a thing in my neighborhood the other day and there's people talking and kids playing and all that and the only thing this group of people my age were doing was going around taking pictures and posting them to instagram. And then there's me...petting a bunny and eating a shaved ice...it was a good time (I love bunnies too much). Anyways...it came off a bit weird to me as well. Granted they were cool pictures and maybe she just wanted to post them, but it's at least not my style. Nonetheless, I hope she had a good birthday.

And I think all of this talk of the fandom which seems to have a mass case of bipolar in situations like this comes down to the fact that this is what happens when you give a bunch of kids the world and ability to communicate with it at their fingertips. And I'd say that goes for the social media thing as well. There's obviously pros and cons to it, but this is definitely one of the cons.

[eggo]

No really guys...I had to leave all of my social media because if that! I'm seriously pissed about what he's done! It's one thing to give a shout-out to Jess, but now Amy! GONE WAY TO FAR! He needs to let her be herself an not promote in this way of she'll never learn to be on her own. It was really cringy to see him do that! No..sorry I'm DONE!

[M0nkeeButt2590]

Kinda funny how Amy gets this much for a birthday shout-out, but Jess' birthday was recent too and he said nothing about it. Not even after the promotion when she wasn't a dirty little secret anymore. Rather disrespectful to not just a former girlfriend, but as someone whom he claims he's still on friendly terms with.

Also does anyone on here know why Amy took saying talented as a bad thing on Twitter? Is it suddenly a big no no in SJW land to say someone has talent? And I thought the whole campaign against the word "bossy" was ridiculous.

Welcome to the group Femme_Finale, it's always nice to see new faces.

I actually was questioning the same thing about that trip. Especially since the two (particularly Amy) weren't subtle about where they were and even tagged the location on some of the photos. It's like she wants people to find where she is. And it does come off as rather fake or conceited to be posting so many photos of your little vacation like that, especially if it's supposed to be a romantic getaway. Wouldn't you rather keep that for yourself instead of brandishing it all over the internet to millions of strangers? It's just screams "give me praise and attention because we're sooooooo in love."

And I don't deny that Mark was probably taking a dig at people who point out how he objectifies himself to tween girls. He's got a habit of being passive-aggressive and douchey when questioned despite his claims that he wants to improve and is open to criticism. Honestly with the memes, the rather goofy sketches and his behavior towards "haters" and his fashion sense lately, it's like he's going through an early mid-life crisis where he's trying to act and appear much younger than he really is. Like have you noticed how he's taken to mostly wearing contacts these days instead of his glasses? Or that he's been shaving more, which he always quotes as making him look younger? And the whole "skating" scene in his newest Googleplier video, which most people equate to a hobby for younger people? Not to mention how often he dates girls quite a few years younger than him, particularly fresh out of college? How long before he gets a motorcycle and goes off on monthly road trips to escape his problems?

[femme_Finale]

Yeah...people these days practically live on social media. There was a thing in my neighborhood the other day and there's people talking and kids playing and all that and the only thing this group of people my age were doing was going around taking pictures and posting them to instagram. And then there's me...petting a bunny and eating a shaved ice...it was a good time (I love bunnies too much). Anyways...it came off a bit weird to me as well. Granted they were cool pictures and maybe she just wanted to post them, but it's at least not my style. Nonetheless, I hope she had a good birthday.

Aww, bunnies!

You make a good point, though. Thinking about it a little more it's not like sharing the hell out of pictures is anything new, it's just a lot easier. Back in the day showing boring slides from vacations was a Friday night in itself. I guess the idea of spending time with a significant other with a phone constantly in hand is foreign to me. Not saying that in a holier-than-thou way, just from the perspective of a young adult that lost touch with technological modernity. Hell, I wouldn't have given it a second thought if the tag wasn't packed solid with reposts of their Instagram pictures (I scroll through the tag on Tumblr once in a while out of habit).

And I think all of this talk of the fandom which seems to have a mass case of bipolar in situations like this comes down to the fact that this is what happens when you give a bunch of kids the world and ability to communicate with it at their fingertips. And I'd say that goes for the social media thing as well. There's obviously pros and cons to it, but this is definitely one of the cons.

That is definitely a con to mass communication. These kids find like-minded people and that's awesome. It's not so awesome when they use that like-minded group as a hug box or a bubble and they forget that other opinions exist, which seems like the norm now. They see anything against their beliefs as a personal attack. Since the art of debate is dead, there is no agreement reaching or letting bygones be bygones. One side has to back down, and the other side has to be victorious.
I'm saying "kids" hoping that the vast majority of these fierce Markiplites haven't finished puberty yet.

[eggo]

Like the whole taking off his shirt thing! Really Mark??!? C'mon man! Are you really wanting that whole "post nude for 20m that bad!

[femme_Finale]

And I don't deny that Mark was probably taking a dig at people who point out how he objectifies himself to tween girls. He's got a habit of being passive-aggressive and douchey when questioned despite his claims that he wants to improve and is open to criticism. Honestly with the memes, the rather goofy sketches and his behavior towards "haters" and his fashion sense lately, it's like he's going through an early mid-life crisis where he's trying to act and appear much younger than he really is. Like have you noticed how he's taken to mostly wearing contacts these days instead of his glasses? Or that he's been shaving more, which he always quotes as making him look younger? And the whole "skating" scene in his newest Googleplier video, which most people equate to a hobby for younger people? Not to mention how often he dates girls quite a few years younger than him, particularly fresh out of college? How long before he gets a motorcycle and goes off on monthly road trips to escape his problems?

From what little I've been following Mark these days I have noticed a change in his appearance and his behaviour. I kind of equated it to him dating Fresh Outta Hipsterville Amy but your life crisis theory does make sense. It's almost like he can't figure out if he's relating to the younger demographic ironically (the passive-aggressive "sass master" shtick) or unironically. It's no secret that his fanbase did not grow with him. He's popular with tweens and I'd wager a guess that he's accepted that, albeit begrudgingly. Then again, I can't exactly get out my violin for the guy. His channel and content may not be what he had planned for when he started to gain popularity but last I've seen of his videos he's fallen into the clickbait clique pretty well.

As for him and Amy, I just don't know. I know people's feelings and opinions change and maybe that's what happened with the whole Amyplier vs Mark & Jess thing; he learned from his mistakes, realised that he wants his girlfriend to be part of his world and not a dirty little secret... but COME ON! He goes from hiding her to having her on a damn pedestal while the crowd screams, "Cutest couple evar! Hashtag goals! Slaaay Queen!" It was like night and day. First, no one could question Mark's relationship status then suddenly they're a package deal? I wasn't around GG to see Jess on here but I can definitely see where she would be a wee bit bitter.

[cosmix]

Yeah, Amy's a total hipster but then again so am I (it just kind of happened). Not to the same degree but I'm not really one to talk on that. I'll say that in my defense I don't TRY, but I'll admit it's kind of true and I'll make/take a joke about it. Anyways... XD
As far as Mark going through that kind of life crisis, I wouldn't doubt it. Plus it would explain the clothes and memes, the younger girlfriend/friends (with the exception of Tyler, they're all 20-23), etc. Although with the younger gf, I will laugh so hard if they started getting the same jokes shoe and skeptic get (like why she makes so many videos with her dad XD). Similarly, if Blaire White said something about it since she apparently has the magical power to jokingly tell someone to delete their accounts and them actually to do it or to morph people trying to act younger into, well...their own age. Just saying...hint hint wink wink. XD
And with the girlfriend thing, he went from one extreme to the other and I don't think he gets that neither extreme is good. Find a middle ground. But I'll also bet it has to do with the rabid fangirls up her ass asking for her to appear more and shit so it's like "oh, well they asked so here!" i don't agree with the logic but I can understand it.

Also, since it came up yes, bunnies are great. I might move soon so fingers crossed. It'll be a spoiled little floof. XD

[cosmix]

Also (on an off topic but funny note), femme, I ship our two profile pictures. XD

[M0nkeeButt2590]

From what little I've been following Mark these days I have noticed a change in his appearance and his behaviour. I kind of equated it to him dating Fresh Outta Hipsterville Amy but your life crisis theory does make sense. It's almost like he can't figure out if he's relating to the younger demographic ironically (the passive-aggressive "sass master" shtick) or unironically. It's no secret that his fanbase did not grow with him. He's popular with tweens and I'd wager a guess that he's accepted that, albeit begrudgingly. Then again, I can't exactly get out my violin for the guy. His channel and content may not be what he had planned for when he started to gain popularity but last I've seen of his videos he's fallen into the clickbait clique pretty well.

As for him and Amy, I just don't know. I know people's feelings and opinions change and maybe that's what happened with the whole Amyplier vs Mark & Jess thing; he learned from his mistakes, realised that he wants his girlfriend to be part of his world and not a dirty little secret... but COME ON! He goes from hiding her to having her on a damn pedestal while the crowd screams, "Cutest couple evar! Hashtag goals! Slaaay Queen!" It was like night and day. First, no one could question Mark's relationship status then suddenly they're a package deal? I wasn't around GG to see Jess on here but I can definitely see where she would be a wee bit bitter.

Oh his content definitely has fallen into the clickbait category. Especially with the adpocalypse on YouTube these days. Probably why he's been doing more random livestreams with super comments enabled. Wouldn't be surprised if he's partially struggling financially between this and his LA lifestyle as well as having 4 hired help with their own separate apartments and an office. Not to mention his upcoming tour with hired dancing girls. None of that is cheap.

Hell even his sketches are just to cater to his younger audience since it's focused on his various "alter egos" that he did alongside Cyndago and Matthias, usually with a bunch of memes and dumbed down lingo (possibly inspired by Amy since she likes to say stuff like garbo and is way too into memes) and are about 10 minutes tops which is the usual time length the "experts" on YouTube expect videos to be due to poor audience retention. But you're right, Mark's audience hasn't aged with him. If anything all the older people left because they couldn't handle the thirsty tweens anymore and it just looks like he doesn't care to actually grow up, only stagnate.

As for Amy, the thing is Mark wasn't originally going to reveal Amy either. He would've repeated the same mistakes of hiding his girlfriend in plain sight if both one smaller youtuber blew their cover at Vidcon and if Amy hadn't decided to speak up and make herself right at home during a charity livestream where she treated him like dirt the whole time. It wasn't until she bought Mark's least favorite type of pizza and almost gloated at the fact that he was "outvoted" that suddenly he started pushing the relationship super hard, kissing her butt every step of the way, and making everything about her. Part of it I think is to appeal to the fangirls who are obsessed with shipping and think a romance like this is super adorable, but compared to Jess who was literally shoved away at cons, it's a massive extreme in the other direction that can only end up badly in the long run. Especially if she's getting more screen time on his channel than her own and is always credited 2nd in the description of his videos.

Also maybe I'm seeing too much into this stuff, but I don't think Amy respects Mark all that much. Not just because of her behavior on that stream, but even with the photos she's constantly sharing with Mark, her face is always focused on the camera. Mark is usually looking at her or acting like he's trying to get her attention. Like he's always looking for her approval. And even recently Amy drew some crude animal drawings that she shared on Snapchat that represented the "family" as it were. For Mark, he was classified as a flamingo, whereas Tyler was drawn as a horse. A horse is usually seen as something powerful, fast and gracious. Not to mention the idea that guys who are good in bed are called stallions. Whereas flamingos are seen as vain and feeble. And that's what she sees her boyfriend as? Some lanky pink bird? Probably reading too much into that, but thought it interesting nonetheless.

[cosmix]

Eh, with the over analyzing thing, it's something that was quite public and it's all for the sake of the speculation and banter. And their dynamic is definitely weird to say the least. And what you were describing in the pictures was similar to the picture he posted of him kissing her on the cheek where she's just smirking and looking away. It's just weird. I don't really know what to make of it at this point but I definitely see what you're saying, if not agree with you/. :/
And I wouldn't be surprised if Mark was struggling to some degree with the tour, living in LA, paying 4 people who together have 3 places also in LA, etc. Especially if he's got really big plans for the show. And I'm not one to judge the superchat stuff or clickbait (to some degree). I get it. As long as he isn't doing it to an extreme...*raises eyebrows*
But it's honestly a bit sad that his audience hasn't grown with him as it leads to stuff like the obvious annoying pandering and dumbed down content. I think that he genuinely has a certain level of skill or talent at what he was doing before this. It's where he shines so it's a shame to not really see that anymore.

[Coffee_Rayne]

Reformed Lurker turned Active Poster here Formalities, formalities, etc., etc.
I fully agree that the dynamic between the two is strange at the very least. Watching the two interact- for lack of a better word- often times to me seems almost 'forcibly' romantic. Like there's something to be proven to anyone who decides to spectate on it? Or as if he's making up for or something- possibly to himself, possibly to subscribers. I can't say the thoughts are definite, as it could be some type of long-drawn honeymoon phase that should have dissipated a while ago, but. It's hard to phrase into words, but the definitions and opinions given are extremely agreeable.
And for the animal symbolism that was pulled, it's entirely possible that the parallels were subconsciously drawn. When you think of someone bad, you won't think of an animal that's inherently good. When you think of a dictator, for example, you don't draw a parallel to deer- unless, by chance, they owned a deer, but that explores the levels of conscious relation, rather than subconscious association. The theory may not be entirely solid, but it is definitely plausible.
Side note: As the days draw closer to Mark's actual tour, I find myself getting more anxious. Mostly because I don't know if he's fully capable. It was discussed in the Markiplier thread prior, but every time I see the drop-down menu below his videos that display tour dates, I come here to see if anyone's brought it up again. He's come far from quoting the Game Grumps every video, but far enough? His humor has greatly improved, but live? Without jumpcuts? Without intrusive editing? It's a different world out there. I'm also anxious because, and I know we've all witnessed it, Mark can be very flaky with promises and goals. New year, new Mark. That is, until he falls back. Until the solidified schedule of videos falls on its face, and there's a video around 9:00 pm, CST if he really wants to get that second video out. No rudeness intended, of course- every time I mention his name I have to fight the urge to delete this entire post- but. I don't know. He can't fall back with the tour now, of course, but he still has the chance to put less than 100% effort in. I guess it's a question of whether he's fully reached the pique potential to move ahead with something so big? I feel so awfully negative right now, lol.

[Guest]

Yeah...people these days practically live on social media. There was a thing in my neighborhood the other day and there's people talking and kids playing and all that and the only thing this group of people my age were doing was going around taking pictures and posting them to instagram. And then there's me...petting a bunny and eating a shaved ice...it was a good time (I love bunnies too much). Anyways...it came off a bit weird to me as well. Granted they were cool pictures and maybe she just wanted to post them, but it's at least not my style. Nonetheless, I hope she had a good birthday.

And I think all of this talk of the fandom which seems to have a mass case of bipolar in situations like this comes down to the fact that this is what happens when you give a bunch of kids the world and ability to communicate with it at their fingertips. And I'd say that goes for the social media thing as well. There's obviously pros and cons to it, but this is definitely one of the cons.

I care about what my friends post on social media when it's related to their artwork, their career, or personal matters. Otherwise, when it comes to what food they are eating, selfies, and all that other mindless crap, I care exactly 0%. I suppose with this Amy birthday thing, we're all expected to go "AW! So cute! Mark is such a good boyfriend!!!1!11!!!1!", but, I just don't care about her birthday. It means nothing to me.

[eggo]

I just don't know why we even bother with him anymore....I just had to stop watching him now. I just couldn't stand the whole..."Look at me, i"m Mark's gf, I'm going to be better than Jess will ever be. I'm going to take better care of him than she did"....just Bullshit Crap!!!!!!!! I just didn't think it would get this far for him to turn out to have a big ego.

But this is how I think of him...

Here’s how I see mark with Amy...I think that Mark is trying to get Amy to start her yt career like him when he started at the age of 23 when he first started his channel. And I think that is what Amy wants to do because of that,she’s copying off of him to get just as famous as he did. But I know that’s not the way you do things. When Mark started, he had literally nothing to start him off, it was his brother who helped get him rolling. He’s said this numerous times in videos, & it’s that mentality that I think Amy is looking for to start her video’s with Mark. And I said this in my ranting ,that Amy needs to continue doing her own thing... by...her ...self!!!!!!!!! She’s not going to get anywhere if mark directs her. Jack’s gf didn’t ask Jack to promote here when she started, she just plain out said it herself that she used Jack to promote her channel, so why should mark?? The shout-out was really douchey to me & that’ why I started ranted on that vid in the comments about it.

EDIT: Looks like he posted Amy's Birthday Album to his Facebook page...now how narcissistic can you get!

[cosmix]

dear mark: I don't need the references to you and amy's sex life in my life. thank you very much. (in reference to the latest golf with friends video).

also, as far as that instagram caption goes, yes mark, you do come off as a douchebag sometimes. sorry. -_-

[Coffee_Rayne]

So, I don't really know how the basics of GG work after being a Lurker for so long and literally registering yesterday, but I posted something coming on 22 hours ago, and I don't know whether it was eaten, or this is just the average time for a post to go live, but. I'll try to reiterate things as close as possible- if the last post I made goes up, then that'll suck, but. Better late than never, I guess. I don't want too many subjects to pass and be left in the dirt.

Reformed Lurker turned Active Poster here.
Branching off of that brief topic of Amy's depiction of Mark and Tyler separately, the analysis that you- M0nkee- is plausible in itself. The human brain works in strange ways, and we draw subconscious representations of things in everyday life, and it's a pretty general algorithm for most of those connections. You don't think of a dictator and relate them to that of a beautiful gazelle, now do you? Rather, you'd picture something more aggressive, destructive, and with a killer's instinct. It goes into that whole psychological concept of seeing red, orange, yellow or green and being hungry in response, where our brains respond cognitively or physically to a stimulus, even if you're not fully aware of the link between the two. It is plausible that Amy could just be subconsciously making those connections and putting them out onto paper, not really recognizing the symbolism actively, but digesting it in the subconscious. (Also, this is the second time I've seen someone bring up this Amy/Tyler topic, and it's a curious discussion.)
Side Note: With every day that we excel towards June 7th, I get increasingly more anxious, and I must bring this up due to that drop-down menu under every Markiplier video that advertises for ticket sales. I suppose I'm anxious because I don't know if he himself is capable without readily available tools such as jump cuts and other edits that add situational humor to his videos. He's come a long way from regurgitating a Game Grumps joke every other episode, yeah, but has he come far enough? And, yeah, he'll have his friends, but can they keep him afloat for at least five different showtimes in a couple different cities? I don't really think they can. At least they can do a little piggy-back humor where they all play off of the same topic or mimic what someone said before them? It can be funny if situationally appropriate, I guess. And even beyond that, he has all of these grandiose plans in store for the tour, but there are very few times where Mark actually adheres to his word. He's flaky, let's be entirely honest. There are days where his upload schedule is just terribly off, sometimes there's just one video,- and there may be a 10 PM CST video uploaded if he's really committed to getting out the second video- and similar circumstances with his promises. He just can't seem to keep them. He can't really put off the tour now, of course, but he can still put less than 100% in, but I'm really hoping that he does well in it. I can feel the cringe if it just all folded in on itself and was a failure. It's strange how JackSepticEye can manage such a tight-knit 11 and 2 CST schedule, despite the recent move. It's a job for them, but he's one of the one's that adhere to that timeframe and takes no sick days, whereas the lax life of an LA Youtuber still permits late uploads. I dunno.


And I'm pretty sure that that was the gist of everything I had to say. I tried to use the exact same language, but my memory isn't that advanced :/
Hope I didn't come off rude and overbearing, lol. It'll be nice to finally talk more after lurking on this website for an entire year and a half .

[cosmix]

Yeah, I get the feeling of seeming too negative. It feels like other people having fun with it (maybe a bit too much fun in the case of crazy fans) and then I'm just brooding in the background like "BUT..." But I guess it happens and if there's negative opinions then there's going to be negative opinions even if they're mine.

[Coffee_Rayne]

I guess it's just the knowledge that crucial criticisms are considered deplorable on the Internet :/ It's always a good conversation to have, though, and to understand that other people feel similarly.

[cosmix]

Yeah, that's why I joined. I can be pretty opinionated sometimes so it's nice having a place to talk about that sort of stuff.
Plus just making observations and stuff about things like this is just kind of what I do. It replaces friends...and social interaction...that's a joke, I do have friends despite what it might seem like. XD