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October 11, 2024 - Goofing off with John (a Vlogbrothers Video)

2024-10-11 · collab / interview · Hank, John · 4:45 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Nerdfighteria · mode: Curiosity & trivia · tags: guest or collab, community lore

Together on camera, Hank quizzes John on whether ten titles are real Vlogbrothers videos or made up (quotes by William Cowper, Steven Wright and Alexander Pope, and a Cinnamon Challenge swapped for the 2007 Horseradish Challenge); John recalls old videos such as his unzipped-zipper talk and Eyelash Malaria, and the brothers say they don't want to become a nostalgia act but value their 18 years of history.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — Greeting hug, roughhousing, and the setup of the real-or-fake Vlogbrothers title game

  • ★ John: Opening with a hug, John jokes that the brothers used to roughhouse much more when they were in their tens. (playful) — 00:00:00
  • ★★ Hank says he knows for a fact that he has forgotten some of the things he has made over their years of YouTube videos. — 00:00:00 · YouTube
  • ★★ Hank sets a game: he reads a video title and John says whether it is a real Vlogbrothers video or something Hank made up; John expects to get all of them right. — 00:00:00 · Vlogbrothers

00:00:29 — Titles one to seven: Don't Suck on That Bone, the unzipped zipper story, Cowper and Steven Wright fakes, Peanut Butter Face, I Am a Nerd, Cinnamon vs Horseradish Challenge

  • ★ John correctly identifies 'Don't Suck on That Bone' as a real Vlogbrothers title. — 00:00:29 · Vlogbrothers
  • ★★ John: Recognizing 'The Unzipped Zipper', John retells giving a talk he thought he crushed; of some 300 raised hands, the first person asked whether his fly was down, and after zipping up no one had questions. — 00:00:29
  • ★★ Hank reveals 'Right by Chance' is a fake title taken from a William Cowper quote about a fool being right by chance. — 00:00:58
  • ★★ Hank reveals 'Another Word for Thesaurus' is not a Vlogbrothers title but a Steven Wright joke; John likes it as a title. — 00:01:27
  • ★★ Hank says 'Peanut Butter Face While Discussing Ukraine' is a trick: not real, but John did do Peanut Butter Face while discussing the Georgia-Russia war. — 00:01:48 · Peanut Butter Face
  • ★★ John disbelieves he ever did Peanut Butter Face on the Georgia-Russia war, saying it shows there are eras on the internet, before accepting it. (playful) — 00:01:48 · Peanut Butter Face
  • ★★ John identifies 'My Name Is John Green and I Am a Nerd' as a real Vlogbrothers video, keeping his perfect score. — 00:01:48 · John Green
  • ★★ After John says they never did the Cinnamon Challenge, Hank reveals the title is modified: the real February 27, 2007 video was the Horseradish Challenge, dated as their early titles were. — 00:02:18

00:02:47 — Early challenge videos and every genre, Eyelash Malaria on the iSight, the Pope fake, Superior Fish Beings

  • ★★ John says he does not remember doing a horseradish challenge. — 00:02:47
  • ★★ John finds it a little embarrassing that they were ever into challenges; early on they would do anything they could. (playful) — 00:02:47
  • ★★ both: The brothers say they have at least touched every YouTube genre, including a makeup tutorial and a prank video. (hedged) — 00:02:47 · YouTube
  • ★★ John recalls Eyelash Malaria, about a malaria drug that also lengthens eyelashes, which he made on his computer because his camera was broken. (hedged) — 00:03:14 · malaria
  • ★ Hank adds that John made it on the iSight camera and was very mad about it. (playful) — 00:03:14
  • ★★ Hank reveals 'A Little Learning Is a Dangerous Thing' is an Alexander Pope quote, not a Vlogbrothers title. — 00:03:44
  • ★★ Hank admits all the real titles were John's own videos, which made the game easier without John knowing. — 00:03:44
  • ★★ John explains 'Superior Fish Beings' was his reply title: Hank had made a video about the childhood prediction but didn't title it that, and John loved the idea. — 00:03:44

00:04:13 — Not wanting to be a nostalgia act, 18 years of history together, sign-off

  • ★★★ both: The brothers say they don't want to spend too much time looking backward, because it makes them feel finished, like a nostalgia act. — 00:04:13
  • ★★ both: John adds that eventually you become a nostalgia act anyway, and Hank that it is just another YouTube genre. (playful) — 00:04:13 · YouTube
  • ★★★ John says there is lots to look forward to on Vlogbrothers, but their 18 years of history together is not for nothing. — 00:04:13 · Vlogbrothers

In the description and comments

  • ★★ The description thanks everyone who backed the Book of Good Times Kickstarter: over 14,000 people got a book. — video description · Kickstarter

Humor (significant)

  • Hank exaggerates how long the brothers have been making YouTube videos. — 00:00:00

    “Some people say thousands.”

  • John recalls finishing a talk he thought he crushed, only to be told his fly was down. — 00:00:58

    “are there any other questions? Silence.”

  • Told he really did Peanut Butter Face over the Georgia-Russia war, John says it shows the internet has eras. — 00:01:48

    “This, this just goes to show you that there are eras on the”

  • Learning the fake title is a line by Alexander Pope, John praises the poet. — 00:03:44

    “Alexander Pope knew how to clickbait on YouTube.”

Threads in this video

Where the stories that moved here went next

Mentioned

People: Alexander Pope · Steven Wright · William Cowper

Organizations: YouTube

Terms: Peanut Butter Face

Concepts: Internet challenge · malaria · nostalgia

Places: Ukraine

Events: Cinnamon challenge · Russo-Georgian War

Products: iSight

Only in the description or credits: Kickstarter · The Book of Good Times

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