Well Read Reviews (LIVE) - Earth Worm Jim 1 & 2 "Intergalactic Barnyard"
After the spectacular unofficial Oz Show reunion episode (albeit without Oz himself) summarized by
Mister Dongs here, one would not be wrong for thinking that lightning couldn't possibly strike twice. Fortune favored the review team at
F Off Well Read a second time as the inept host
Well Read User1 and his two cohost's; monotone
Moonshine and other drunk Australian (Not Ryzie Lee)
Smug Pug sat down to review Doug TenNapel's
Earthworm Jim: Launch the Cow and
Earthworm Jim 2: Fight the Fish.
The review portion of the stream, the first hour or so, was largely uneventful as the two co-hosts disagreed on which book they felt was the inferior piece of literature while a meandering Well Read User struggled to find the energy to care enough about a book series dedicated to a mutated worm in a space suit designed to entertain apathetic mid 90s children whose parents parked them in front of their television sets. The reviewers gave their opinions, both agreeing that for the $25 price tag, it would be hard to be disappointed in the books that Doug TenNapel produces. The streamyards link would then be dropped in the chat for the viewers to
come on and give their opinions argue among themselves. The first guests to take Well Read User1 up on the offer were
Dark Gift Comics,
Big Daddy Doc Blalock, and
Street Champion Roadwarrior Drake creator
Alazmat Films, who unfortunately offered very little in the way of sating the audience's lust for blood.
It wasn't until the [
1:51:25] mark that Well Read User interrupted Doc Blalock to inform the audience that
"Trouble" had just entered the backstage of the stream, before quickly introducing Earthworm Jim creator and perpetual dirt worm
Doug TenNapel to the stream.
The surprise visit begins cordially enough with Well Read User welcoming him to the stream, Blalock informing Doug he was the same individual to offer Doug advice on dialogue for Earthworm Jim 2 and compliments on the production quality of his books. The stream continues with the guests asking Doug questions on the books and his style of story telling until he's asked to clarify
a recent tweet in which he said he would be pulling back on international destinations in future campaigns at the [
1:56:14] mark.
Doug extrapolates on the tweet by answering that he has no problems with the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia but admits that outside the Anglosphere the problems outweigh the benefit of shipping to those locations. Alazmat Films quickly empathizes with Doug's plight as a fellow creator but still stands committed to shipping to international backers, while Doug counters that the majority of his complaints come from international orders. Complaints of international shipping being too expensive, complaints about being ripped off, negative reviews and of false claims of not receiving their books to later demand extra copies that then end up on eBay for resale all appear to be exclusively international issues as Doug informs the audience that if he gets rid of international shipping, he will get rid of 90% of the problems he experiences on his campaigns. When asked about PDFs, international local printing or drop ships Doug states that he's not interested in any of these work arounds and will just focus on US distribution with select international locations in future.
At the [
2:03:49] mark Well Read User highlights a question from the chat asking for Doug to answer what happened to the presumably unfulfilled
Bigfoot Bill 1 stretch goals; a commentary video and BFB1 video game demo.
Doug goes on to explain that he can't remember if he did the commentary however the programmer of the video game went through a divorce and suffered a heart aneurysm from stress. Doug concedes that this experience shaped his future campaign stretch goals to rely only on what he could produce and not from what he would depend on others to produce. The interview would then shift back into Dougs inspiration for the Earthworm Jim books, the video game series, the television series and his involvement in each medium. At the [
2:06:54] mark Doug is asked about his involvement with the upcoming exclusive Earthworm Jim game on the Intellivision Amico gaming system from former
Shiny Entertainment colleague
Tommy Tallarico, threads on the Amico can be found
here and
here. Doug goes on to say that he doesn't have any involvement with the upcoming game but he is looking forward to seeing it and supports the Amico gaming console.
After Doug's internet freezes Well Read User steers the conversation back towards comics at the [
2:16:34] mark by asking Doug if the independent comic scene is similar to video games in that the indies are having trouble finding their audience. Doug goes on to answer he doesn't blame the mainstream for what's happening to comics but rather he blames the audience for allowing it to happen and indie's have always struggled to find their audience but their are always break outs. Well Read User would then highlight a chat from Micah Curtis troll
Alien Xenomorph asking about
Engelwood 2's current lackluster performance.
View attachment 2382620
Perfect organism. It's structural perfection is matched only by its hostility to Micah Curtis.
Well Read User seizes on the comment after the
previous stream involving Micah Curtis and FROG and asks Doug if Micah Curtis is failing to find his own audience. Doug ruminates that everyone struggles to find their own audience but Micah should naturally have an audience given his social media presence and they get the audience they deserve. Doug offers advice to Micah that
"you pick yourself back up, try something else and you put it out there and sell it." Seemingly unsatisfied with Doug's answer Well Read brings up the previous stream and counters that Micah appears to be trying to make amends with FROG in order to ingratiate himself once again with FROG's audience and asks Doug if Micah is making a mistake doing so. Doug answers that Micah probably is making a mistake since allowing yourself to depend on FROG is giving the Caesar of Comicsgate too much power and he would much rather that all creators
"do their own thing" and further offers advice to Micah that
"if your business is going to fail because Ethan doesn't support it, then you don't have much of a business." Doug further goes on to declare he never wants to put his success in another person's hands, while Well Read User counters that if FROG can get Micah funded, isn't that a good thing? Doug answers with a resounding
"no" and brings up the various campaigns that have been funded in Comicsgate that have produced no books, late books or bad books. The win for Doug isn't that books get funded but rather that books are enjoyed by the audience and they come back for the second installment and that
"if they don't want your book, take the hint." Alazmat then interrupts the conversation to inform Doug that he is only going to bed because a chat member offered to purchase his book if he did so.
Well Read User would then seize upon another comment from the chat to bring up the topic of Richard Meyer to Doug and get his thoughts on the original messiah of Comicsgate and whether or not Zack would have the support he did if it wasn't for the Comicsgate audience.
Doug answers that Zack is basically the OG who started the phenomena of marketing books via Youtube but admits
"what he has going is a huge success, but it does not make his books good. I don't think he'd be selling $400,000 worth of books if it was just about the book." Doug goes on to elaborate that being Youtube stars often results in a false-positive on the creator's book and that it makes the art and story look more successful than it is. This train of thought on Zack and the quality of his books is quickly interrupted by Blalock who then attempts to shill his fine art to Doug.
Steering the conversation away from shilling Smug Pug asks Doug if he was aware of
the recent video by The Patriot Hut implying that FROG was responsible for Doug TenNapel's multiple channels being flagged at the [
2:24:47] mark and asks if he believes FROG or someone in Comicsgate is responsible. Doug answers that
"he wouldn't put it past any Comicsgater, but I don't suspect that was what was behind it. The Hut's a friend of mine and I told him I didn't think it was Ethan, I think he (Hut) was just jabbing at him on a video." Well Read User counters Doug's statement by informing him that there are several Comicsgater's on the panel with Doug right now and if he truly believed that Comicsgater's could be responsible to which Doug answers
"oh absolutely, 100%." Doug would further go on to explain he's seen CG people in his chat and overall CG people are not good people. Doug is quickly then asked if he misses
The Oz Show, which he admits he does and is told that since that show is now defunct he is welcome to make F Off Well Read his new Oz Show. This shared sense of nostalgia for the Oz Show is quickly broke as Well Read User asks Doug why he has such a low opinion of CG people, to which Doug answers
"because I've interacted with them." This statement is countered by Well Read User that there is a difference between being something and believing in it's ideals and asks whether it's fair to broad brush an entire group of people based on individual actions. Doug then goes into the typical diatribe of internet fandoms, cult of personalities, attacking campaigns, refund campaigns, targeted harassment, meritocracy and that Comicsgate is ultimately SJW in nature. Doug cites
Liam Gray as a recent example of what happens to creators who fall out of FROG's favor, but Well Read (correctly) asks Doug if Liam Gray's actions aren't ultimately responsible for what's currently happening to him.
At the [
2:32:14] mark of the stream Well Read User is informed he has other guests waiting to get on the show in the back room, however Well Read quickly asks Doug whether or not he recognizes the success stories in CG namely
Clint Stoker and
Narwhal. Doug does concede this point and admits he likes what both Narwhal and Clint Stoker are doing, especially Narwhal who he compares to Mobius and Trencher. This concession comes with a caveat that for every success story in CG, there's a tragic story and cites the examples of
Tim Lim and
Doug Ernst. At this point Moonshine and Big Daddy Doc Blalock take their leave of the show to allow the awaiting guests to enter but not before it is brought up that despite F Off Well Read being a Comicsgate channel both
Tim Lim and
Doug Ersnt have appeared on Well Read's review show for interviews previously and their books were some of the highest rated on the show. As this point three new guests appear on the show
AA also known as
Andy, Oz Show refugee
Amit Raina and
Micah Curtis - the latter of which is quickly revealed to be a troll impersonator as he requests everyone in the chat type
"Alex is a stupid nigger" and is subsequently removed from the show.
Well Read User continues probing Doug asking if a movement is more categorized by it's successes rather than it's failures, pointing out that CG is responsible for many first time creators finding their audience and getting their books published. Doug answers that he doesn't judge everything by all positives or negatives and it's important to look at both when making an informed opinion. Doug however ultimately feels that CG fails on quality and fulfillment when it comes to creating books but if the fandom enjoys it "
just have fun." After roughly forty minutes of silence Dark Gift Comics asks Doug if he's seen any of the new blood coming up, mentioning several creators as examples to which Doug replies he has not. Well Read begins to make the case that ultimately CG is a good thing because it offers conservatives a place to create without being cancelled, which Doug quickly rebukes claiming that Comicsgate has cancelled creators before. Doug is then asked if he's noticed since Warcampaign has left CG that the movement has been relatively stable, Doug denies this saying that everything cannot be blamed on Warcampaign and the CG audience supported Warcampaign's actions for years when it was convenient to do so. Doug then goes into his own rant about his cancellation from Comicsgate for opposing gay marriage and the tone of the interview gets more heated.
Dark Gift Comics disagrees with Doug's assertions at the [
2:41:09] mark, claiming that CG wasn't upset at Doug for his stance on gay marriage but rather his own behavior. Doug disagree's with Dark Gift claiming that since CG started calling him a homophobe that it was his beliefs that got him targeted and cancelled from the movement and calls Dark Gift (and Comicsgate) a bunch of apologists and SJWs. Doug then claims that the cancellation he received from Comicsgate was more severe than from the SJW companies in the mainstream, an assertion
Mister Dongs quickly calls out.
Doug is asked if their are any Comicsgate creators he is still on good terms with, which he admits there are few, before being asked if he still keeps in touch with
Nerkish, which he admits he does. It's at this point multiple arguments begin to erupt in chat with
Edwin Boyette / Middle Earth Storytime comparing Comicsgate to cultists with
Vielned disagreeing and calling him bitter Edwin, while fellow Oz Show refugee
SpiritScar starts taking on
NYOBI COMICS / REBEL COMICS Larry Higgins and our very own
Mister Dongs questioning
Mike S Miller's agreement that Comicsgate's cancellation is worse than the SJW mainstream.
While the various debates rage in the chat Doug continues demonizing Comicsgate while being asked if he can accept his generalized statements about Comicsgate are wrong but he counters his statements are in general and can only be countered by general statements and he stands by his statements on CG. Dark Gift then asks for a comment from Edwin Boyette to be highlighted and Doug is asked if Edwin, Doug and Mike are guilty of the same thing when talking about Comicsgate.
Doug missing the point goes on to answer that none of his audience knows he is currently on the show, so therefore Dark Gifts point is moot since their has been no call for a brigade on Well Read's channel. Well Read then backs up his guest by confirming that it does sound like Doug is making generalized statements and ignoring individual actions, Dark Gift then uses his own relationship with Mike S Miller as an example of a Comicsgater who still likes Mike. Doug is asked if he believes the majority of Comicsgate are tribal and he answers that they do enjoy drama. Doug is then asked what about the Comicsgater's who do back FROG, Tim Lim, Mike S Miller, Doug Ernst and others and if he understands his blanket comments on Comicsgate could be why he's so despised and if it's possible to be both a Comicsgater and his customer. Doug answers simple
"yes if they like good books." To highlight the previous point, Well Read highlights a comment from Vielned in an attempt to get Doug to understand what the point they are trying to make, that perhaps more of Comicsgate would still be customers of Doug and Mike if they weren't so abrasive to CG simply for their interactions with FROG or individual Comicsgater's.
Doug is asked if he understands that the broad-brushing of CG is discouraging people like Vielned from supporting Doug, when they would probably like to. Doug answers that he buys books for the books and even buys from people who don't like him and that every backer has a standard. Dark Gift then asks Doug, what changed since he espoused
"the customer first" rule himself when he first joined Comicsgate. Doug gives a non-answer of dealing with fandoms and creating a book are two separate things. Doug is asked if he is outside of the culture war now and he answers that it is because it has already been lost and Comicsgate was never an effective fighting force in it.
At the [
2:54:08] mark Doug is asked to expand upon his previous point about the effectiveness of Comicsgate in the culture war and is asked what reforms he thinks Comicsgate would need to be effective. Doug answers that Comicsgate never had a set of uniting principles or a leader like Jordan Peterson who is effective at combatting Marxism or valued free speech, which were weaknesses in his eyes. He also insists that the quality of the art and stories would need to be increased and that fulfilling the books in a timely manner would be a high priority, which is something absent in Comisgate. Furthermore the random cancellations of guys like
George Alexopolous would have to end and creative freedom be a paramount virtue.
It's shortly after this conversation that the million dollar question is asked after Doug mentioned
"free speech" and he is asked if he is aware of
Preston Poulter's lawsuit against
FROG,
DA Talks and
VikkiVerse and if he has any thoughts and opinions on it. Doug is aware of the lawsuit and says
"that it is Preston's right and business to do, but he himself (Doug) would never do that." Despite not doing it himself Doug say's he supports Preston in his decision as a friend and brings up that Preston is justified in doing so due to his past treatment. Smug Pug then brings up DA Talks, another co-defendant in the case, whom Doug had previous cordial relations with after praising his TUG expose video and asks if their was a deterioration of their friendship. Doug answers rather dishonestly that he has divorced himself from all Comicsgate and Anti-Comicsgate Youtube material, despite obviously still appearing on Preston's youtube channel and keeping in touch with The Comic Book Hut.
The remaining half an hour of Doug's appearance gets more heated as Well Read User and Dark Gift press back harder on Doug's claims of cancellation and generalizations. Doug begins to condescend his co-panelists asking
"why are you defending your fanboy movement... do you have families... where were you when we needed you?" To which Well Read answers he does have a family, which is why it's important to participate and fight the culture war to provide alternatives for his children, while both he and Dark Gift inform Doug that they both stood up for him and Mike during the
#PrideIsASin saga which resulted in both getting shit from others within Comicsgate, which reinforces their argument of the generalization's Doug makes about Comicsgater's being wrong. The conversation gets more heated with both groups largely talking in circles until Doug is thanked for joining them and leaves the stream at the [
3:34:13] mark.
The stream would continue for several more hours with guests
Saggy Melonz, Mecha McCheese, DA Talks, Big Daddy Doc, Amit Raina, TESTEFY-HD, Ryzie Lee and
Mr Crescent joining/rejoining the stream at various intervals. There was a brief bloodsports dispute between Saggy Melonz and Mecha McCheese at the [
4:04:04] mark and Ryzie Lee ending his previous boycott of Well Read's show appearing to bury the hatchet at the [
4:45:14] mark.
Notable people in the chat
COMICSGATER'S | NEUTRALS | CRITICS | KIWIS |
FROG | DA Talks | Mike S Miller | Mister Dongs |
Vielned | Saggy Melonz | Nyobi Comics | Mecha |
Spiritscar | | Edwin Boyette | TESTEFY-HD |
| | | VikkiVerse |
While the Oz Show becomes a distant memory in the hearts and minds of Comicsgate and kiwis alike, a seed has begun to sprout in the most unlikely of places. If Well Read User can learn to control the mic-munching of useless guests like Andy and reign in the drunks talking over his more interesting guests, there might be hope for his channel yet. Doug TenNapel remains as spiteful towards Comicsgate as ever and showed a lack of understanding of why is especially hated, even when compared to fellow Christian outcast Mike S Miller. His support for Preston Poulter and his current lawsuit against FROG should come to no surprise, despite the fact the lawsuit is in contradiction to his core beliefs of free speech.
This rare sighting of Doug after so long removed from any Comicsgate related channel, other than Preston's, shows that despite being cast off Youtube in-Exile
the evil remains ever present and undefeated.
Fell at the last hurdle.
