User:Xtinct25



Hullo. My name is Lilly (aka Glitch) and I really love the animation community on YouTube, Indie/horror style video games, comics, music, and writing stories. I'll try my best to be good to this Wiki!

My favorite pages

 * Jaiden Animations
 * Tofu
 * Ari
 * SomeThingElseYT
 * theodd1sout

I know a couple of you were curious about an essay I had written on Jaiden Animations, and why I think Jaiden herself is better than Ari (mostly why I think Ari is overrated). So, I decided to copy it down here (without my or my school's personal information). :) Enjoy!

3/4/20

Why It Isn’t Called “Ari Animations” “Ari, something is telling me people like you more than me,” Jaiden said into her microphone at midnight. This was (and still is) normal business for her, being her own boss and a full-time animation-storytime YouTuber, but she was still growing a little drowsy while recording her audio. This was her seventh try after all, and she only messed up twice, the real distraction is her little lovable feather ball, Ari, her bird. The little brat just kept on screeching! Even though she was cramped up in her closet, his yearning for food or attention was ruining audio, but so far, this one was working out. “Maybe I’m being irrational,” she continues, keeping the sleepiness from affecting her voice… and that’s when Ari starts to scream as if he was always ignored. “ARI!” Jaiden whisper-yells lightly at her bird, she was not going to wake her roommate up again in the middle of a recording session (not again)! She stumbles out of the closet and can’t help but laugh when she sees the utterly dumbfounded look on her bird's face. It practically screamed (almost louder than his vocal cords do) “Why do you yell at me, friend? I haven't gotten any fruit for almost an hour now!” Jaiden rolls her eyes playfully and picks him up, taking him with her to her closet. “Ok, Ari,” she said cautiously placing Ari in front of the mic, “now you can screech.” Don’t get me wrong, I like Ari! “He’s cute, he’s funny, and he flings strawberry seeds all over the place.” I just think it’s

sad how 59% of 31,861 voters preferred Ari to Jaiden. Personally, I think that’s absurd, and frankly, who knows what information like that could do to a person with anxiety. Jaiden loves Ari, and we all love Jaiden and her videos, Ari included, but didn’t we see Ari after we’ve seen some of Jaiden? Even if you were introduced to her by theodd1sout, TonyVtoons, Drawfee, TimTom,  or SomethingElseYT, you still saw Jaiden before Ari. So I’m going to shift the spotlight to the real star here, Jaiden!

Jaiden yawned with a weary smile, she was ALMOST done with her next video! All she needed was a couple more scenes, and then she could review it all with her editor in the morning… well, technically it was morning. 4:38 am to be exact. Yup, this was one of her all-nighters all right. These nights were one of the only times that she was thankful for Ari’s screams and shrieks, he kept her awake more than her coffee ever could. So, she shook her head, snapping her out of her lethargic thoughts, took a sip of coffee, and went back to lip-syncing her script.

“To Weeaboo (senpai) Misaki, From Jaiden, Jaiden Animation, Jaiden Animations, Maiden Animations, Jaiden Animation, Jaiden Animates, Jaiden Draws.”  Long story short, Jaiden animates her videos. That should’ve been obvious already. Jaiden is a self-taught animator. She started by looking up “how to animate” on YouTube, and she’s progressed from there. And though a ton of work and practice, Jaiden eventually taught herself how to animate, and from the beginning, she was great at it! She used to animate for her favorite YouTuber at the time, IHasCupQuake. Cupquake had decided to hire a sixteen-year-old Jaiden because of the fanart that she had sent into her and her husband, Red. After being hired, Jaiden created her own YouTube channel on February 16, 2014,  titled “Jaiden Animations”, but put it on hold to work for Cupquake. Once she got the swing of things, she made her first video, “Jaiden Animations Intro.”  It was on August 3, 2016, she first revealed Ari in one of her videos, claiming he (or she, Ari’s gender is actually unknown) was a German Shepard. That’s more than two years (and many videos) later! Even before she got Ari, she has had tons of work to do, and it doesn't help that she’s her own boss (and she’s kind of a workaholic, thanks to self-inflicted pressure). And when she got Ari…  well, that’s the definition of more work. For years, she has worked SO HARD and put her soul, heart, and body into all of these prodigious animations, and she’s still golden; trying to radically improve her work and quality on a video-by-video basis. Jaiden is extremely talented in her works, but another thing she’s outstandingly good at? Taking care of the dog we call Ari. “AAAARRRIII!” Jaiden called. Where was he? This was a rare situation, mind you, but every time she got the chills.

She knew for certain he was in the house, she hadn’t gone out of it for days (because of normal life, not law-induced social distancing). “ARI!” She sighed dramatically, she knew she had to get back to work, and she bet he did too. He was just being a brat… as always. As she was grabbing a couple of seed balls to lure her child out of hiding, she faintly heard a muffled screech coming from her bedroom. Jaiden tensed immediately and tiptoed back to her bedroom. Did I mention that this was taking place at two a.m.? “Ari!” Jaiden said, slowly shutting the door behind her. “C’mon, and stop screeching! It’s rather annoying. C’mon, come out.” Jaiden rolled her eyes at Ari’s theatrical silence and went to her recording studio, also known as her closet. “There you are,” she said looking up to find her dog haphazardly perched on the pole that her hangers poise on. “IEEE?” the bird screeched in reply, cocking his head at Jaiden as if saying “I was here the whole time! What have I done wrong?” Jaiden laughed at her confused bird, took him off of his realm of perching, and let him/her trot along her hand. “Here,” she said, holding out the seed balls, “I got these for you, now eat up.”

Do Jaiden fans remember when she made that shoddy recording of herself building Ari’s new birdcage mansion? Or when on his first birthday, she made him snacks? Or on all of his birthdays, she’s thrown a HUGE birdy party for him? Even just the little things she does for her bird, like cleaning up his extensive messes, or takes time to scratch his feathers each day, or even cleaning up his poop. Jaiden obviously loves and deeply cares for her doggo (/bird). That’s why she is a much better bird owner than many others, she did all of the necessary research before buying her (and her fans’)  happiness. She gave him all of the necessities, good food, good drink, good people, and a great shelter. And he supplied her with some necessities too, good play, and lots of laughter. We all know that Ari is good for Jaiden and her mental state, he’s almost like an unofficial support animal. Though, Jaiden is still the true caretaker of Ari. In reality, Ari is just a pet bird that gets high praise because he’s cute, and on the Internet with tons of adoring fans of this “dynamic duo.” Jaiden works hard to balance a good workday and taking care of the brat, while of course not getting too overboard with her work and trying not to burn herself out. Though Ari seems to be a very well-kempt and healthy bird, and he clearly adds to her joy. Even though sometimes he seems to get more attention than she does (anyone with an animal can relate), she still loves him and shows him off to their venerating fans. But of course, we all glaringly love Ari, and it’s obvious that Jaiden is a very good caretaker of the little bird. Though does anyone remember what happened a couple months before she got Ari? Vidcon 2016. The VidCon that changed Jaiden’s life.

The date was June 23, 2016, and Jaiden was on her way out to her first day at VidCon as a featured creator, and she was more nervous than ever. She tapped her fingers against the hotel counter as she got her yellow badge and slipped it on. Her stomach yearned for attention, and for one of the first time in many many months, she listened to it. She had tortured herself enough, and she knew it. She was feeling horrible and ashamed of her own self-harm, but this is what she deserved, and she knew it. So she went to the cabinet and grabbed two slices of seeded bread. She could hear the deadly voice of her explicit discomfort, depression, and everything else that got her into this mess in the first place echoed like a scream in the Grand Canyon in her head. She tensed, yelled at her own stress, and slammed her head on the counter. What has she done? Why wasn’t she better yet? Why did she ever give in? Why did she have to be this way? Why was she even alive? She stopped crying for a second to think about the last one. Why was sh- she quickly shook her head and slapped her face a couple of times with the palm of her hand. NO ONE could see her in public like this. She went to the small mirror hanging on the wall to shake herself off. “Just put on a fake face, a mask,” she told herself. “Everyone does it once and awhile.” She shrugged to herself, symbolizing it was no big deal, even though she knew that was a definite lie. So she shook her whole body out of her stress… sluggishly. That’s when she heard the banging on her door. She looked up, startled but unsurprised. “JAAAAAIIIIDEEEN!” a familiar voice yelled through the door. Jaiden laughed to herself, she knew it was him, but the jumpscares get her every time. “JAIDEN! IT’S TIME TO GOOO!” her animator friend, James (also known as theOdd1sOut) kept pounding on the door. “One second!” Jaiden called. She could hear James make a high-pitched squeal-like noise as a reply. Their other friend, Tony (aka, TonyVToons), laughed as they continued their conversation. “That’s why I’m still alive,” she thought as she put her mask on. “My fans and friends need me, and all I have to do is act.” So she headed out the door with a smile on her face… and only one piece of bread.

“ ‘I can help you. Trust me. You’re ready.’  It seemed dangerous, but it said to have faith in it. ‘The secret is to just be empty.’  Didn’t know if it was wise to listen but… What could it hurt to try?” Those are a couple of lines from the song “Empty” by Jaiden Animations and Boyinaband. The song is about Jaiden suffering from the eating disorders anorexia and bulimia, and what it does to not only the body but to your mind as well. In the behind the scenes video of the creation of that song, Jaiden explains how the hell of it all wasn’t actually in the eating disorder itself, it was escaping its grasps. And Ari? He just sits there, squealing for more food, not less. Like every human being, Jaiden has had many formidable traumas in her lifetime, and those were the main two. She got through it mostly on her own (but later on, she has gotten a therapist), which is very impressive. Though, she has always had some minor (yet major) difficulties in her life, such as depression and social anxiety. And, admirably, she’s never been afraid to show it, and because of it, the static that flooded her head has faded. Ari… well, he doesn’t have any admirable traits about him (except his persistence to push things off of the counter), he just screams. One who is reading this, you may be a Jaiden fan that isn’t fond of the deep stuff, and that’s okay… but I’m still going to prove that Jaiden is better than Ari (this is my sense of determination I guess).

Jaiden didn’t know what to do for her next video, but she knew she wanted it to have to do with Ari, so she put up a poll on Twitter. “Who’s better? Ari or Jaiden?” She tapped her fingers on her desk, now bored. Maybe she would just put up random footage of Ari and animate an intro, but for now, she was going to wait for the poll to close. She tippity-tapped her fingers against the desk again and started to make a short beat. When she stopped, she looked at the poll again, and about 3,000 people had ardently answered, the “Maybe Yes Men” she liked to call them. She then closed her light lavender laptop and realized that if there was more of a percentage that liked Ari,  she could just make a video on what it’s like to have him with a better intro than if a larger percentage enjoyed her. Perfect! Though for now, this was going to be the first ritzy day off that she’s had in a LONG time.

Jaiden ended up getting fewer votes than Ari did (evidently, otherwise I wouldn’t be writing on this topic), and I personally don’t understand why (and neither do my comrades, apparently). But, I still tried to develop some counter-arguments to my topic. “Ari’s funnier than Jaiden,” some might say. Okay, I’ll admit it, cute animal videos blew up on the Internet for a reason, they’re cute! Though there is one thing that all of those animals have in common, they have no clue what they’re doing. So one can’t necessarily say that that animal “is funny.” What they’re doing may be humorous, but they in themselves do not have a sense of humor. Jaiden/most humans, on the other hand, do have a definite sense of humor. Ari may be funnier, but he’s not “funnier” because he has a nix idea of what he is doing, or how he is funny. “But Ari is so cute! How could you not love the little fluff of azure feathers?”  “What kind of argument was that?” That’s an opinion, a popular one, mind you, but still an opinion. I do think Ari is cute, but there’s no reason that should put him a tier over Jaiden. To some (mainly male fans I have found in comment sections), Jaiden is very cute as well. “Well,” one of you may attest, “ I like them both, but Ari is just so much easier to draw!” Let me explain this one while using a personal example. In my opinion, the easiest thing to draw that is living is a cat, and a human (even an animated one) is one of the hardest. Most of the artists in my life seem to think similarly, the animal the only thing varying. You see, animals are just so much easier to draw than people; and with Jaiden, her character, though simplified, is still much more humanoid than some of the other animation-storytime artists. And I’ve heard from Jaiden herself that her fans that produced fanart complain about the impossible to draw hair that she genuinely draws on her character (“The History of My Hair”). That’s why it’s fun for one to challenge themselves by drawing both Jaiden’s avatar and Ari together in a creative atmosphere. So as you can see, “You can’t stand [Jaiden] up like that! At least give some sort of reason!”

In conclusion, Jaiden is superior. It’s okay to still love Ari, but just remember that a human is a human, and we all need support. Jaiden is shy and seems to be somewhat of a skeptic, and she seems marginally embarrassed about that fact. *Ahem* So, my appurtenant friends and acquaintances, watch Jaiden and her bird sidekick, and give her all of your support! Hard-working people like her need it every chance they can get! I believe in you! Jaiden is superior to Ari!

This essay is 2,667 words long, and 7 pages long.

Bibliography:

Fandom.com/JaidenAnimationsWiki: Jaiden and Ari’s pages

Fandom.com/Wikitubpidia: Jaiden Animation’s page and quotes

YouTube.com/Jaiden Animations: All information

Musixmatch: “Empty” by Boyinaband feat. Jaiden Animations Lyric

VidCon.com: VidCon 2016 dates

YouTube.com/Boyinaband: Behind the scenes video of  “Empty”

Google: All other information, photos, and fanart (and distractions)

Photo guide:

First photo: Jaiden Animation’s current profile photo

Second photo: An animated Ari

Third photo: Jaiden in real life

Fourth photo: Ari in real life

Fifth photo: fanart consisting of how Jaiden used to draw herself (with a toaster), and how she draws herself currently (with Ari)

Sixth photo: A classic piece of art to Jaiden fans, symbolizing her distinct awkward antics

Seventh photo: A screenshot from Jaiden’s video “Why I Don’t Have a Face Reveal.” This picture is symbolizing how she wasn’t even herself when she put on a joyful “fake face” at VidCon 2016.

Eighth photo : An exercise Jaiden’s therapist let her do. Jaiden had to cut off the amount of string she thought went around each corresponding body part without measuring. They then measured the real amount of string that was needed. Jaiden then laid it out on her desk like “a weird art project.” The screenshot was taken from Boyinaband’s video titled, “Making the Song About Jaiden’s Anorexia (Empty- BTS).”

Ninth photo: A fan comic called “Eat and Scream” by Angie.

Tenth photo: Fanart made for Jaiden’s “Why I Don’t Have A Face Reveal.”

Eleventh photo: Jaiden holding the Pokemon, Rowlet.

Twelfth photo : Fanart of Jaiden.

Final photo: A photo Jaiden drew for her channel.

All of this stuff was in the original essay, by the way, I have only taken out my personal information and made it right for a Wiki. If you are curious what my grade was on this project, I ended up getting a 100% (yay!).

Fun fact: this essay was really the first time I ever had gotten invested in any of the Fandom Wikipedias, besides looking at a couple UnderTale related pages once and a while. So, thanks for that! I don't regret falling into this rabit hole. XD And now I'm an admin! This has all been so weird, yet fun. :)

Thanks for reading if you did! :)