Markiplier's Relationships - Part 6

[DaylightAmy]

With regards to Arizona, we already know they still refer to each other as friends, so it could be as simple as he couldn't find a place to volunteer in California and Arizona was the closest option where he also knew people he could stay with (or perhaps Jess already knew people from this volunteer place so it was a quicker deal). There are exes that are genuinely friends, and I don't feel I'm in a place to judge whether that's the case here or not.

It personally wouldn't necessarily bother me even if they were a thing again and he was going to Arizona for her. Even though humans can be thoroughly rotten, I deeply enjoy giving them the benefit of the doubt, also for myself, and especially other women (not that I don't like men, I just relate to other women in a different way). I'd personally like to think the best of Jess (human at worst) until something really kicks me out of that opinion.

That said I am always really troubled by fan-idol relationships and I have my reasons for that, I have seen things first and second hand that have led me to honestly believe it has a very high risk of producing very unhealthy relationships (intentionally or unintentionally). If anything I'd think less of him for it, not of her. But opinions differ and I respect the way you all express yours!

[moran]

I know this is TOTALLY Off Topic, bud did you see the Cyndago ASMR video? Now, that's how you do it!

[fishnchippychips]

Hasn't he said before that he would never do meet ups in California because he doesn't want people to follow him home? That could be why he's going a state over, he's done so much travelling this year to places way further and he could be work out from it so he doesn't want to take the flight say to Ohio but Arizona wouldn't be as much of a bother. And also those people finding out where he lived and knocking on his door would probably make him even more firm in his decision not to do this in California.
But I could be talking out my ass here since I haven't actually watched the unboxing video yet and don't know what he actually said, so I'll go do that now

[M0nkeeButt2590]

I know this is TOTALLY Off Topic, bud did you see the Cyndago ASMR video? Now, that's how you do it!

SAW THAT! Even with it being under 2 minutes and the twist at the end, THAT was a way better ASMR video! I bet they don't even have a fancy ASMR microphone!

[kei]

I don't wish to summon Jess for the fact that she'll lie and she'll crash our server.

Saying that we'll summon her makes her sound like a Pokemon.

But anyways...I get that her and Mark had a secret relationship (because I read a lot of the first 2 GG pages on Mark), but why do people seem so negative about the thought of them getting back together? May someone PM me that, if they do not wish to accidentally summon Jess to the GG page?

Kind of offtopic, Discreetsushi, but your avatar makes me smile.

Anyway. (Warning: wall of text ahead!) I think you'll get a few different responses to this, so I won't pretend I speak for everyone. But one of the main factors with the whole situation is that people simply don't trust what that relationship entailed, because he went so far out of his way to hide it to the point he purposely misled them even when saying nothing was much more prudent. And when he did say something, he dismissed evidence as "rumors" and made it sound like he actually blamed his own fans for making him tell the truth. It was unlike anything anyone had seen from him before, and it disappointed a lot of us. Keep in mind he finally admitted he's been struggling with the explosive popularity of his channel, so some of his defensive reaction is understandable, though not entirely excusable given that it was the catalyst for...well, everything that came after. Point is he's trying to make up for it now and that's what matters.

But. Making a post like what I just described where he also tacked on a plug for her channel when most of his fans didn't know who she was, and used language that could only be described as manipulative, solidified this sour opinion of their previous relationship for many of us. He spent most of his career hiding this, and when he did say something he was so defensive he lashed out at those supporting him.

Also remember that this was a topic of controversy for a very, very long time, and people had been bullied just as badly before the "big reveal" for daring to even ask if he had a gf. A normal, everyday question new fans might ask if they didn't see any information about it. The vocal minority took it upon themselves to chastise, silence, and in many cases run those people out of the fandom. So when people's suspicions were confirmed, the bullying turned on a dime from "how dare you ask if he has a gf you have no right!" to "how dare you not immediately support this woman whose existence we've been denying for almost two years!" And when even they understood just how angry and manipulative that post was, it switched again to "he's allowed to make mistakes how dare you express disappointment!" And until that public catharsis at PAX on Sunday, he'd never said a word about the bullying. He didn't have to, but he needed to. That's the difference.

Now add her history of being passively antagonistic towards her fellow fans when she's been one of his biggest fangirls herself: the latest tweet that served no constructive purpose other than to share a private convo (which suggests the only reason she did it was because she could), her photos at his apartment and the trollish tumblr replies. Fast forward to sometime in the future, where after this abrasive "here's my ex, go subscribe to her" post, after the bullying, after people being told to go kill themselves for being disappointed in these events, and suddenly we see a post where he says "oh hey guys we're back to together haha isn't that funny?" Imagine that scenario for a second.

Exactly.

I'm treading carefully on this subject right now, because we're just relieved he finally took note of the disaster zone his fandom became for a while. Again, he's legit trying to fix this and regain lost footing, so that's why the board's been quiet lately. Major props to him. But we're also wary of what could occur if they decide to move beyond the friend zone again, especially when one of them appears (emphasizing appears) to be desparate. From what I can tell, most of us don't give a damn who either of them date. Myself included, ironically. He's just not my type. But history has proven the entire situation surrounding them is filled with unnatural silence and a strange type of toxicity that make us worried for both of them and the fandom in general.

[M0nkeeButt2590]

Kind of offtopic, Discreetsushi, but your avatar makes me smile.

Anyway. (Warning: wall of text ahead!) I think you'll get a few different responses to this, so I won't pretend I speak for everyone. But one of the main factors with the whole situation is that people simply don't trust what that relationship entailed, because he went so far out of his way to hide it to the point he purposely misled them even when saying nothing was much more prudent. And when he did say something, he dismissed evidence as "rumors" and made it sound like he actually blamed his own fans for making him tell the truth. It was unlike anything anyone had seen from him before, and it disappointed a lot of us. Keep in mind he finally admitted he's been struggling with the explosive popularity of his channel, so some of his defensive reaction is understandable, though not entirely excusable given that it was the catalyst for...well, everything that came after. Point is he's trying to make up for it now and that's what matters.

But. Making a post like what I just described where he also tacked on a plug for her channel when most of his fans didn't know who she was, and used language that could only be described as manipulative, solidified this sour opinion of their previous relationship for many of us. He spent most of his career hiding this, and when he did say something he was so defensive he lashed out at those supporting him.

Also remember that this was a topic of controversy for a very, very long time, and people had been bullied just as badly before the "big reveal" for daring to even ask if he had a gf. A normal, everyday question new fans might ask if they didn't see any information about it. The vocal minority took it upon themselves to chastise, silence, and in many cases run those people out of the fandom. So when people's suspicions were confirmed, the bullying turned on a dime from "how dare you ask if he has a gf you have no right!" to "how dare you not immediately support this woman whose existence we've been denying for almost two years!" And when even they understood just how angry and manipulative that post was, it switched again to "he's allowed to make mistakes how dare you express disappointment!" And until that public catharsis at PAX on Sunday, he'd never said a word about the bullying. He didn't have to, but he needed to. That's the difference.

Now add her history of being passively antagonistic towards her fellow fans when she's been one of his biggest fangirls herself: the latest tweet that served no constructive purpose other than to share a private convo (which suggests the only reason she did it was because she could), her photos at his apartment and the trollish tumblr replies. Fast forward to sometime in the future, where after this abrasive "here's my ex, go subscribe to her" post, after the bullying, after people being told to go kill themselves for being disappointed in these events, and suddenly we see a post where he says "oh hey guys we're back to together haha isn't that funny?" Imagine that scenario for a second.

Exactly.

I'm treading carefully on this subject right now, because we're just relieved he finally took note of the disaster zone his fandom became for a while. Again, he's legit trying to fix this and regain lost footing, so that's why the board's been quiet lately. Major props to him. But we're also wary of what could occur if they decide to move beyond the friend zone again, especially when one of them appears (emphasizing appears) to be desparate. From what I can tell, most of us don't give a damn who either of them date. Myself included, ironically. He's just not my type. But history has proven the entire situation surrounding them is filled with unnatural silence and a strange type of toxicity that make us worried for both of them and the fandom in general.

Kei you always have a way with words and summarizing what many of us feel.

To add to that, she has proven in the past to not be what she claims. When she first came to GG she made it clear she was there for her own thread and her professional work, not her personal ties with Mark... Then she proceeded on here to do the exact opposite of what she said: talk about her personal ties with Mark. She exclaimed that she would allow us to ask any questions and she'd answer... but what transpired was mostly her derailing legitimate questions all while trying to guilt us about talking about her, blaming us for her newest video's dislikes, blaming us for spreading rumors, and not taking well to actual constructive criticism of her work despite arguing differently.

She did eventually provide us some answers, but mainly it was just an uncomfortable situation. Then when she returned the next day one of her supporters came on to white knight and suffice it to say the result was less than pleasant because a mod mistakenly thought that supporter was Jess with 2 accounts and she was self promoting herself. Luckily other mods put that to rest, but it still did a lot of damage to everyone involved.

Jess eventually left after a long post answering some questions/concerns we had, but all throughout her time here she kept being somewhat antagonistic despite everyone's efforts to be polite, she kept trying to make us jealous by going on about how she'll be in Mark's life for a very long time, and kept saying that she doesn't want to be known as Mark' ex, that she wants to be known by her own merits... Few days later Mark puts up The Post promoting her, she gets thousands of subs, and now she's not seen as anything but Mark's ex. Does she say anything pertaining to wanting to be her own person? Nope, radio silence. Instead we see her showing off a text convo with Mark which basically screams "notice me fangirls because senpai does" and basically wasting Mark's promotion of her.

She has also in the past been the driving force behind the disbandment of Mark's Twitch mods because Mark let her have free reign and she abused her powers. So yeah, we have reasons to distrust her in more ways than one.

[Enough_Already]

I don't want to assume, but I can't help but feel with the Arizona thing like:

Hey guys. Do any of you watch Matt Shea? If not, check him out He's a Canadian Let's Player on YouTube and I believe he's also signed with Polaris. I recently started watching him and he's really growing on me! Anyway, I just noticed he put out a LP of "The Static Speaks My Name" on August 30, two days ago. I'm sure some of you have seen the Markiplier LP of this game. Spoiler warning added not only for video spoiler but also for sensitive subject matter.

It was a short simulator where the character you play ultimately commits suicide.

At the end of the game Matt took time to sincerely (I felt) give suggestions for people who are feeling down and talked about how he understands a lot of people deal with that kind of thing.

The timing may just be coincidence but I believe this this was his attempt to reach out to people who were suffering in the fandom without butting his nose in anyone elses business. Either way, I think he's a great guy

Forgive me if I seem pointed, but I don't know if he has any relation to Mark. I'm not saying he's not a bad guy, but this plug seems.....not related to Mark, so.....um?

Ya, you're right. I just scrolled past my post while catching up today and it does seem a little butt-plug-ie That wasn't my intent. It just stuck out to me when I noticed the choice of game and message at the end and timing. I don't think the game was popular when it came out which was a while ago and the only reason I know of it is because Mark played it so in my opinion, I don't think this guy put it out there because it was highly requested. I think he made the video to speak to people who were upset at the time. And when I looked into Matt I found out he's also partnered with Polaris I thought it may be relevant here.

[DiscreetSushi]

Ah, thank you guys for explaining that to me!
You'd think dating your own fan would obviously be a bad idea, but whatever. He'll do what he want.

I finally caught up on his PAX panels. I don't think I finished the one with Bob, Wade, and Jack. But anywho, I also don't remember him addressing the crazier side to his fandom, except maybe ever so vaguely.

In one of his last videos, Mark said he'd be more interactive with his fans. I can't wait to see that.

[kei]

Ah, thank you guys for explaining that to me!
You'd think dating your own fan would be a bad idea, but whateves.

I finally caught up on his PAX panels. I don't think I finished the one with Bob, Wade, and Jack. But anywho, I also don't remember him addressing the crazier side to his fandom, except maybe ever so vaguely.

In one of his last videos, Mark said he'd be more interactive with his fans. I can't wait to see that.

I agree with you, although Jack and Wiishu seem to be doing quite well, so I guess that's proof it can be done right with effort. Then again, she's never struck me as desparate. Like, ever. She's sweet, respects his fanbase, and hasn't ever made trollish comments. That's why the majority on GG have a lot of respect for them.

If you missed the end of the panel, that's actually where the speech happened. I'm at work and can't turn on audio or I'll get fired, otherwise I would make the cut more precise. But I tried to cut it as best as I remember where the speech started, so it may actually be a little before or a little after it. It's about 8 minutes overall.

http://www.tubechop.com/watch/6800657

I'm still a little surprised to see the sheer relief on his face when he told the bullies "you do not belong in this community." It doesn't change or negate the hurt of people who were bullied, but it does apply a good amount of salve to an otherwise gaping wound. It sounded like the healing started with the unboxing video, and hopefully it'll keep going in the right direction.

[teamnotverified]

Arizona actually makes sense to me, because if he decided to hold the charity event in LA or his home town Cincinnati then fangirls legit would have followed him home, so I think it's good that he chose neither of those places. I don't want him to be forced to move again because of creepy fangirls and it's a sad truth that it could totally happen. And since CA and OH are out of the question for that reason, Arizona looks like a good fit because he obviously knows the area, has a friend (or maybe more) living there, and it's only one state over from CA, which is obviously easier when it comes to travelling and organizing events than it would be for a state much further away like OH. Events like the kind he wants to do require a lot of planning so having the event close by, but not directly in his state, is a wise choice to me. (I know it's a bit silly calling one state "close" to another when it can still take hours to get from one state to another but I mean like, the difference between Mark getting from his home in LA to Cincinnati is a lot more of a trek than LA to Arizona.)

Edit: Sorry, just realised someone else basically made this exact same point on the latest page

[Kiss-shot]

Jess eventually left after a long post answering some questions/concerns we had, but all throughout her time here she kept being somewhat antagonistic despite everyone's efforts to be polite, she kept trying to make us jealous by going on about how she'll be in Mark's life for a very long time, and kept saying that she doesn't want to be known as Mark' ex, that she wants to be known by her own merits... Few days later Mark puts up The Post promoting her, she gets thousands of subs, and now she's not seen as anything but Mark's ex. Does she say anything pertaining to wanting to be her own person? Nope, radio silence. Instead we see her showing off a text convo with Mark which basically screams "notice me fangirls because senpai does" and basically wasting Mark's promotion of her.

Kei and Monkey you both are SLAYING me with your great perspectives! I couldn't have put it better myself. Now this, I found very on point and basically spoke my mind. What I found most annoying was when she came in here to give non-answers to perfectly reasonable questions, she treated us like the rabid fanbase by extension, she emphasized multiple times that 'she'll always be a part of Mark's life' as if to tell us 'back off fangirls stop being so jealous'. She saw us as jealous and treated us like the fanbase that she hated, she said things to us that she probably wanted to say to the fanbase when she was dating Mark but couldn't because she would have been seen as a bitch.
And that text convo just made me:

[EternalSunshine]

If you look back in Marks archive you see a vompletely different man.

I understand that back then he didn't have all the connections and work he has now, but he was so much more interactive.
The fans knew when he was scrolling the tag, they'd get a response.

But because of all his work and those horrible accusations, I feel he was slowly disconnecting.

Mark needs someone to read over his tweets and his fans messages. He needs someone to do that because one more Hannah and April sized drama will collapse him. Not just his fans but him.

That's why im fearing that he's still to nervous to put his foot down. With a bigger community and people who already hate him, I can see someone accusing him of something and Polaris firing him for it.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sorry to bring up something from so many posts back, but who are Hannah and April?

[DeeZeenuts]

Hello everyone. Be prepared for a long post! Sorry for it's length.

Everything I say is purely my own opinion, feelings or random observation that may or may not be true.

You know I actually have been lurking for awhile (like 6 days). I don't typically condone gossip because it really breeds some bad karma.

But I have been following Mark and watching his videos since the end of 2014. Through that time, his videos got me through my dad being diagnosed with cancer and then passing away in July this year.

But I have started to notice through the past couple months, maybe since 6 million subscribers, his content and personality seem to be changing. I don't know if that's just in my imagination or not. But then when I saw him make that post about promoting Jess, it kind of confused me. I mean it's really sweet of him to help a struggling friend, but why even say that it's his ex? Realistically he has no responsibility to any of us, it's his life. But he could have easily just said his friend and if people asked him about it he could have later confirmed about it. The way it was handled seemed so sudden and random since I had no idea he even had been dating someone before all of that or that there were even rumors about it going around at all.

What really made me want to reply/post here was someone earlier in this thread saying how in his pictures at PAX 2015, he seemed out of it, like he didn't want to be there. I was at PAX. I went to his panel, and in the front VIP section I saw Jess. What has me a little confused is, why is Jess, Mark's ex and her friend in the VIP section? If they are just "friends" shouldn't she just have any seat like anyone else? I was in the front few rows of the panel Sunday so that's how I saw her. It was out of the corner of my eye. I am seriously not trying to cause rumors or whatever, to be honest, I just want Mark to be happy. What bothers me is the level of secrecy. I know he literally has no responsibility to us as I said, but even a "Yeah, we are together but it's not anyone's business but ours." would suffice. Idk, maybe that's silly to even think. Either way, the whole thing of her even being there seems kinda odd to me...:/

Now, I met Mark on the 31st, it was kinda early afternoon. and he did seem kind of out of it. He seemed like he didn't want to be there. I was telling him about feeling so lost since I lost my dad, and that I was really happy to get to meet him. I couldn't tell if he was just sleepy, or uninterested in what I said. But he made me feel a little like he wasn't interested in what I was saying or paying attention to me by literally pointing out all the other people waiting to talk to him because I was talking to him for so long... I didn't process all of this until yesterday, and it made me cry. I don't want to think that he has changed or that he is different than what I expected him to be, but I cannot help but feel like that. I felt rushed to finish talking to him so other people could get through the line. I mean... I know lots of people wanted to talk to him, but it made me feel lousy in the moment.

When I talked to Jack, I blabbered for a good while but he didn't make me feel unwelcome, below him, or make me feel unimportant or rush me....

Now don't get me wrong, I still like Mark, but I am still kinda hurt by this. I even took the time to write him a letter that I put my heart into, but with his recent video about his gifts from Indy Pop Con, he didn't hardly mention PAX, and even outwardly admitted he won't even try to read ANY of these letters he gets, and that just breaks my heart. How many other people like me have written letters where they poured their heart out into that don't get read? I talked to Bob, and Wade too at PAX, and Bob told me he thinks Mark reads his letters, but with Mark saying that, it's a contradiction and like... I don't care if he does reply or not, but just knowing he actually took the time to read these letters or at least tried to read them would mean a lot to me and anyone else that wrote a letter. I know he now has a ton of subscribers now so he can't get through all of the letters, but his apology on his video felt so fake to me.

Ugh okay, I'm just kind of venting because I'm still so hurt over all this. I mean I am still really happy that I got to meet Mark, but it was so discouraging to feel like he didn't care. I could easily just be imagining it, but I have a video of me talking to him and he seemed so distracted, like he wanted to leave.

[Gorillaz1236]

If you look back in Marks archive you see a vompletely different man.

I understand that back then he didn't have all the connections and work he has now, but he was so much more interactive.
The fans knew when he was scrolling the tag, they'd get a response.

But because of all his work and those horrible accusations, I feel he was slowly disconnecting.

Mark needs someone to read over his tweets and his fans messages. He needs someone to do that because one more Hannah and April sized drama will collapse him. Not just his fans but him.

That's why im fearing that he's still to nervous to put his foot down. With a bigger community and people who already hate him, I can see someone accusing him of something and Polaris firing him for it.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sorry to bring up something from so many posts back, but who are Hannah and April?

Hannah is the lying snapchat harpee who said Mark **raped and sexually abused her for asking for consented nudez

April was that whole transphobia crap that Of-Another-Broken-Heart made worse.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Kierans]

Now, I met Mark on the 31st, it was kinda early afternoon. and he did seem kind of out of it. He seemed like he didn't want to be there. I was telling him about feeling so lost since I lost my dad, and that I was really happy to get to meet him. I couldn't tell if he was just sleepy, or uninterested in what I said. But he made me feel a little like he wasn't interested in what I was saying or paying attention to me by literally pointing out all the other people waiting to talk to him because I was talking to him for so long... I didn't process all of this until yesterday, and it made me cry. I don't want to think that he has changed or that he is different than what I expected him to be, but I cannot help but feel like that. I felt rushed to finish talking to him so other people could get through the line. I mean... I know lots of people wanted to talk to him, but it made me feel lousy in the moment.

When I talked to Jack, I blabbered for a good while but he didn't make me feel unwelcome, below him, or make me feel unimportant or rush me....

Now don't get me wrong, I still like Mark, but I am still kinda hurt by this. I even took the time to write him a letter that I put my heart into, but with his recent video about his gifts from Indy Pop Con, he didn't hardly mention PAX, and even outwardly admitted he won't even try to read ANY of these letters he gets, and that just breaks my heart. How many other people like me have written letters where they poured their heart out into that don't get read? I talked to Bob, and Wade too at PAX, and Bob told me he thinks Mark reads his letters, but with Mark saying that, it's a contradiction and like... I don't care if he does reply or not, but just knowing he actually took the time to read these letters or at least tried to read them would mean a lot to me and anyone else that wrote a letter. I know he now has a ton of subscribers now so he can't get through all of the letters, but his apology on his video felt so fake to me.

Hello! Don't feel too bad about it, DeeZee. (hugs) I only got to meet Mark for a few moments to get a couple of signatures on Monday, too. I didn't try to say much, because there was a long line, of course. He's probably still adjusting to how to behave towards so many fans after his "wake-up call" this weekend, and gets stressed knowing the sheer number of people who want to meet him. (shrugs) He might have to start doing a quick signature/picture combo with everyone in line the way Felicia Day did. I don't mean to sound callous...but if you think about it from his perspective, he probably gets thousands of letters and thousands of fans who want to share some of their life stories, and it's literally impossible for him to give each the attention they need. It's not your fault or anything, just a reality that comes with being part of a large fandom. But I do agree, talking to Jack was way more laid back.

[kei]

Hello everyone. Be prepared for a long post! Sorry for it's length.

Everything I say is purely my own opinion, feelings or random observation that may or may not be true.

You know I actually have been lurking for awhile (like 6 days). I don't typically condone gossip because it really breeds some bad karma.

But I have been following Mark and watching his videos since the end of 2014. Through that time, his videos got me through my dad being diagnosed with cancer and then passing away in July this year.

But I have started to notice through the past couple months, maybe since 6 million subscribers, his content and personality seem to be changing. I don't know if that's just in my imagination or not. But then when I saw him make that post about promoting Jess, it kind of confused me. I mean it's really sweet of him to help a struggling friend, but why even say that it's his ex? Realistically he has no responsibility to any of us, it's his life. But he could have easily just said his friend and if people asked him about it he could have later confirmed about it. The way it was handled seemed so sudden and random since I had no idea he even had been dating someone before all of that or that there were even rumors about it going around at all.

What really made me want to reply/post here was someone earlier in this thread saying how in his pictures at PAX 2015, he seemed out of it, like he didn't want to be there. I was at PAX. I went to his panel, and in the front VIP section I saw Jess. What has me a little confused is, why is Jess, Mark's ex and her friend in the VIP section? If they are just "friends" shouldn't she just have any seat like anyone else? I was in the front few rows of the panel Sunday so that's how I saw her. It was out of the corner of my eye. I am seriously not trying to cause rumors or whatever, to be honest, I just want Mark to be happy. What bothers me is the level of secrecy. I know he literally has no responsibility to us as I said, but even a "Yeah, we are together but it's not anyone's business but ours." would suffice. Idk, maybe that's silly to even think. Either way, the whole thing of her even being there seems kinda odd to me...:/

Now, I met Mark on the 31st, it was kinda early afternoon. and he did seem kind of out of it. He seemed like he didn't want to be there. I was telling him about feeling so lost since I lost my dad, and that I was really happy to get to meet him. I couldn't tell if he was just sleepy, or uninterested in what I said. But he made me feel a little like he wasn't interested in what I was saying or paying attention to me by literally pointing out all the other people waiting to talk to him because I was talking to him for so long... I didn't process all of this until yesterday, and it made me cry. I don't want to think that he has changed or that he is different than what I expected him to be, but I cannot help but feel like that. I felt rushed to finish talking to him so other people could get through the line. I mean... I know lots of people wanted to talk to him, but it made me feel lousy in the moment.

When I talked to Jack, I blabbered for a good while but he didn't make me feel unwelcome, below him, or make me feel unimportant or rush me....

Now don't get me wrong, I still like Mark, but I am still kinda hurt by this. I even took the time to write him a letter that I put my heart into, but with his recent video about his gifts from Indy Pop Con, he didn't hardly mention PAX, and even outwardly admitted he won't even try to read ANY of these letters he gets, and that just breaks my heart. How many other people like me have written letters where they poured their heart out into that don't get read? I talked to Bob, and Wade too at PAX, and Bob told me he thinks Mark reads his letters, but with Mark saying that, it's a contradiction and like... I don't care if he does reply or not, but just knowing he actually took the time to read these letters or at least tried to read them would mean a lot to me and anyone else that wrote a letter. I know he now has a ton of subscribers now so he can't get through all of the letters, but his apology on his video felt so fake to me.

Ugh okay, I'm just kind of venting because I'm still so hurt over all this. I mean I am still really happy that I got to meet Mark, but it was so discouraging to feel like he didn't care. I could easily just be imagining it, but I have a video of me talking to him and he seemed so distracted, like he wanted to leave.

I don't really know where to start, DeeZee, so let's go with a big "welcome to GG". ::waves::

I'm really sorry to hear about your father. I've lost family members the same way. It doesn't matter how long you have to prepare for the worst, you never are. Really, legit feel for you there. Here's a hug. (Only if you like hugs, otherwise ignore it. )

I'm also sorry you felt that way after meeting Mark. This is exactly what I meant when I said earlier that the pain people felt from the backlash in all this hasn't disappeared, and some of it may never heal. I think part of him knows that, which is why he's struggling to stem the flow of blood from those wounds now. He's the leader of a 9 million member community when he never expected to be the leader of anything, and has obviously felt the pressure of being his group's fearless leader/coordinator at conventions. It may explain some of the outright obnoxious assholish behavior we've witnessed at the signings.

He also broke Indy Popcon and had his line shut down at SDCC, all because there are now thousands of people coming to see him instead of hundreds or dozens. From your experiences (and sadly similar ones at PAX) it sounds like he was concentrating so hard on seeing everyone he forgot to actually be mentally present for anyone. That also ties in with his admittance of pulling away from 9 million people because he just didn't know what to do anymore. He still doesn't I suspect, but he's reaching out to try and find that connection again. He may find it, but I think everyone knows it'll be different from here on out.

The not reading letters thing was sad. But in a way, I suppose he figured being truthful about that was more important than lying and saying he would read them? That's the impression I'm getting so far, that he's trying to regain the transparency he once had, which is why he'd mention that in the first place. But that also ties directly in with Jess, who it would seem spent almost every moment with him...at cosplays, at the panels, and in all of the after-parties. I still think he's just trying to be friends, but the evidence is tipping to an overwhelming degree that she wants more and I'm not sure which is worse: stringing her along, or actually getting back together after splitting his own fandom in half over it...especially if he tries yet again to hide it. If it's the latter, she's already proven she can't keep things low-key.

Anyway, I'm legit sorry for your experience, DeeZee, and I hope you find answers here. Or at least other people who understand your pain.

[M0nkeeButt2590]

Hello Deez! Always nice to have a new member!

Don't worry, we all have made novels on here. Comes with the territory.

Sorry your con experience wasn't that good, but I think everyone above me summarized it pretty well that Mark's still struggling with some things and doesn't really know how to balance things out between keeping the line moving and catering to each individual's fans' needs.

As for having Jess in the VIP seating, that's not a surprise to me. Not only is she friends with Mark but she's also close to Wade and Molly, so she'd get special seats by association just like all their friends. There was a pretty big group of friends with Mark and the guys at Pax and usually the guest speaker's friends and loved ones get a front row pass.

Definitely disappointed in the letter thing, but I wonder if he partially reads through them in his spare time or something. It might just mean he doesn't read them on camera. But who knows. What matters is he's trying to get back his community and I can't help but commend him for that.

[M0nkeeButt2590]

Now this is a quick little side note, but it might explain something.

In Mark's recent Hunnie Pop video, Lola asked Mark how long his longest relationship was. Mark's personal answer was a year and 9 months.

Now actually calculating it out, that timeline fits perfectly into how long his relationship with Jess was since they started dating March 2013.

So probably part of the reason he still allows Jess to stick around despite the breakup is because at this point in his life, their relationship was the longest he ever had.

[Immabatman]

Hello everyone. Be prepared for a long post! Sorry for it's length.

Everything I say is purely my own opinion, feelings or random observation that may or may not be true.

You know I actually have been lurking for awhile (like 6 days). I don't typically condone gossip because it really breeds some bad karma.

But I have been following Mark and watching his videos since the end of 2014. Through that time, his videos got me through my dad being diagnosed with cancer and then passing away in July this year.

But I have started to notice through the past couple months, maybe since 6 million subscribers, his content and personality seem to be changing. I don't know if that's just in my imagination or not. But then when I saw him make that post about promoting Jess, it kind of confused me. I mean it's really sweet of him to help a struggling friend, but why even say that it's his ex? Realistically he has no responsibility to any of us, it's his life. But he could have easily just said his friend and if people asked him about it he could have later confirmed about it. The way it was handled seemed so sudden and random since I had no idea he even had been dating someone before all of that or that there were even rumors about it going around at all.

What really made me want to reply/post here was someone earlier in this thread saying how in his pictures at PAX 2015, he seemed out of it, like he didn't want to be there. I was at PAX. I went to his panel, and in the front VIP section I saw Jess. What has me a little confused is, why is Jess, Mark's ex and her friend in the VIP section? If they are just "friends" shouldn't she just have any seat like anyone else? I was in the front few rows of the panel Sunday so that's how I saw her. It was out of the corner of my eye. I am seriously not trying to cause rumors or whatever, to be honest, I just want Mark to be happy. What bothers me is the level of secrecy. I know he literally has no responsibility to us as I said, but even a "Yeah, we are together but it's not anyone's business but ours." would suffice. Idk, maybe that's silly to even think. Either way, the whole thing of her even being there seems kinda odd to me...:/

Now, I met Mark on the 31st, it was kinda early afternoon. and he did seem kind of out of it. He seemed like he didn't want to be there. I was telling him about feeling so lost since I lost my dad, and that I was really happy to get to meet him. I couldn't tell if he was just sleepy, or uninterested in what I said. But he made me feel a little like he wasn't interested in what I was saying or paying attention to me by literally pointing out all the other people waiting to talk to him because I was talking to him for so long... I didn't process all of this until yesterday, and it made me cry. I don't want to think that he has changed or that he is different than what I expected him to be, but I cannot help but feel like that. I felt rushed to finish talking to him so other people could get through the line. I mean... I know lots of people wanted to talk to him, but it made me feel lousy in the moment.

When I talked to Jack, I blabbered for a good while but he didn't make me feel unwelcome, below him, or make me feel unimportant or rush me....

Now don't get me wrong, I still like Mark, but I am still kinda hurt by this. I even took the time to write him a letter that I put my heart into, but with his recent video about his gifts from Indy Pop Con, he didn't hardly mention PAX, and even outwardly admitted he won't even try to read ANY of these letters he gets, and that just breaks my heart. How many other people like me have written letters where they poured their heart out into that don't get read? I talked to Bob, and Wade too at PAX, and Bob told me he thinks Mark reads his letters, but with Mark saying that, it's a contradiction and like... I don't care if he does reply or not, but just knowing he actually took the time to read these letters or at least tried to read them would mean a lot to me and anyone else that wrote a letter. I know he now has a ton of subscribers now so he can't get through all of the letters, but his apology on his video felt so fake to me.

Ugh okay, I'm just kind of venting because I'm still so hurt over all this. I mean I am still really happy that I got to meet Mark, but it was so discouraging to feel like he didn't care. I could easily just be imagining it, but I have a video of me talking to him and he seemed so distracted, like he wanted to leave.

Hello my dear, welcome to GG. Don't worried about this forum, is just the title that makes the wrong impression of us ( and we don't care very much ). I am sorry about your father. I lost some members of my family in many ways, and really hurts. If you want to talk anything, my om is always open for all

And yes! I notice that Mark change little by little in his videos. We know that he isn't having the best moment of his life with many bad things happening around him.Fame can change people for better or worse, and Mark is walking in two lines. Making good choices and bad choices. This is normal, but have to take a moment for him to decide, and that's what he's doing at the moment. In my humble opinion, he could avoid many mistakes he made and confront things that could have been interrupted. I understand that he wants to be good, but he has to know at the same time be severe and take action. Jack is a great example of this.

And about Jess, I really don't care. Seriously, don't care if she will come back or not for him. But it would be wrong from her pretend friendship and then return with him to say it was a crisis. No. Just no. I do not know how the relationship works in your country , but when it's something serious and it was over, it's over. You can be friends, but you want to give a great time to not end up like an accordion: comes and goes. I really believe that they are friends.

I am sorry about your experience of Pax Prime, and I also hope that you found all the answers you need *hugs*

Offtopic: Also, I have something to show all, but on pm. It's about Pax.

[Kiss-shot]

So probably part of the reason he still allows Jess to stick around despite the breakup is because at this point in his life, their relationship was the longest he ever had.

On the contrary, I think being so long with someone and then having to shift gear into being 'just friends' would be hard, ESPECIALLY when they're hanging around with you at cons and every other event. How do you try to dissociate your past feelings for someone when they're with you all the time? I don't know what happened in between them breaking up and then going to AX, I don't know if that's enough time for them to get over eachother but hey, I could be wrong. It's different for everyone. But personally, it never ends well when you actually do TRY the whole 'let's just be friends thing'.

And I'm so sorry to hear about your experience, DeeZee. Please don't try to take it too personally and keep your chin up, you're in a safe place to vent your frustrations and write novels lol. And welcome!