The 'is Phan real?' question comes up whenever there's a lull in their content. I'm not complaining, because I find it interesting to hear other (sane, non-phangirly) people's perspectives, but it does say something about their content that this is what we always circle back to.
Personally, I find it hard not to see them as a couple. I've definitely had sceptical moments (mostly bc of the shitload of fake 'proof' and the level of reaching some Phannies go to) and do go back and forwards sometimes, but I just can't bring myself to ignore that:
- They've lived together for god knows how many years, and never seemed interested in living alone or with a partner/family. How typical is it for 30 year old men who are as financially stable as they are to still live with the same platonic roommate for this long?
- Neither of them have ever legitimately been caught on a date with anybody else, or making out with a rando at a club, etc. (to my knowledge anyway)
- Neither of them have ever mentioned any exes apart from pre-Youtube, and they don't ever talk about their dating lives either (i don't expect them to go into detail, but there's been no casual mention of seeing people, going on dates, having any kind of relationship or anything like that, in 10 years on YT? Granted, tho, maybe that's bc of the way the Phandom is)
- I just find it difficult to believe that either a) neither of them has dated or had any kind of relationship in the past 10 years, or b) every relationship has been so carefully guarded and everyone they've come into contact with romantically/sexually has signed an NDA and kept their mouths shut?
Either way, it must be so miserable and exhausting for them to have to keep everything so private all of the time. Keeping relationships (either with each other or with anyone else) a secret must take a lot of hard work, and I know I'd be fed up of it by now if I were them. If they're a couple, they can't go out and act coupley or someone might snap a pic and expose them. If they're not, they still have to keep everything a secret and it must put a strain on any actual relationships they have/had. I really don't know how or why they've kept this mystery up for so long. Yeah, it's good for the brand and for their bank accounts, but aren't they tired of it by now? Sure, there'd be an initial shitstorm if the truth came out, but surely they'd be happier once they don't have to face constant speculation and try so hard to hide their lives every day and can just go about their lives normally?
I find it fascinating how culture has developed. I remember Dan writing an old tumblr post about how he was part of the first generation of internet kids, who lacked the awareness we have now. I'm a couple years younger than Dan, and I remember people used to treat the internet like some kind of secret place, where nobody from real life except for your friends would find anything you posted. Obviously, we now know that anything you post can come back to haunt you and it's never really hidden or deleted. D&P were part of the first generation of vloggers putting their whole lives and personalities online, and they didn't necessarily understand or consider the long-term implications of that. They couldn't have predicted the hardcore obsessing, stalking and shipping that would follow them for years (though, they definitely haven't done much to help themselves escape that over the years). I'd love to hear them talk candidly and honestly about how their online personas and the extreme phandom culture has impacted the way they live their real lives. I'd be especially interested to hear Dan discuss his 2012 aggressive Phan denial phase, what his thought process was at the time, and how he went from that point to the level of Phan-baiting they've put out since. Maybe in the future, once their career is all dried up (even moreso than it already is), they'll open up about that kind of thing and we'll find out the truth behind the big 'Phan' mystery... but I doubt it. Anyway, I doubt any of this is groundbreaking thinking, but thanks for coming to my TedTalk