Daniel & Phil Part 44: This isn't a forever home

[coffeepenguin]

Re: cultural appropriation discussion, it's in the moments like this when I wish Deppy read the forum because I am constantly amazed by how diverse the opinions are on here and contrary to tumblr, you can look at all the different points expressed in the thread and not the selected fews that the person is reblogging / aswering to. And that's what I want to comment on, it's ok to feel lost a bit, because the topic of racism is extremely complex and even if we operated under the same definition (which we apparently don't and people on here speak English on different levels on top of that), the circumstances in different countries and the unique experience of our individual lives would make it very hard to accept that the situation might be different somewhere and/or for some people, because everything is so intense when we're talking about discrimination. But that's the beauty of the Internet!

I especially want to thank RiriPandaHeart2 for their post which, I think, offers a great personal perspective, thank you very much for typing all this, it was very interesting to read

- and spider for having pinned down another important difference in perspective which is between living in a white or a non white majority countriy (and another one, I think, is between historic/indigenous minorities and minorities formed due to immigration which explains some difference of opinions on here, not all PoC have the same perspective, neither one is "right", they are all valid, just different):

capybantsa you have a different experience living in a non white majority country. Non white people in white majority countries are treated like outsiders and we are affected by some racist things that you are not. For example Japanese people in Japan did not care as much about Scarlett Johansson being in the Ghost in the Shell movie but Japanese people in white countries were angry about white washing. It was a big Hollywood movie taking something from their culture and getting rid of their representation in a culture that already is as white as a blank wall. So Deppy putting ダントフィル on products is good for Japan and spreading Cool Japan popular culture but not for Japanese people in England.

(also, I'm very surprised to hear that people don't think language is a part of the culture, especially /fɪl lɛstɚ/, if I remember correctly, you're doing linguistics, I suggest you check out Edward Sapir if you haven't heard of him, he was one of the first to study the link between them and he's really great. And sorry if I got a bit preachy, as usual haha, I haven't talked to people in a while about topics that aren't strictly work related and I'm going a bit mad being at home alone all week)

[autumnhearth]

- Here we go with the screaming again. Dan is already pissing off the new neighbors.

but I thought they said they have no neighbours to worry about on that side "and there is no neighbour through the walls sleeping so we won't have that sudden realisation of thinking that we were screaming at people trying to sleep for 4 years" (14:27 ls)
(but yes, less screaming please)

I think they were talking specifically about there being no neighbors on the other side of that wall of the snug/slounge, because on the other side of that wall is the gaming room

Dan’s hair is the best it’s ever been (I say this every time but dammit it’s true!).

Favorite bits:
[0:06] Homely does not mean what you think it means, Phil

Can I assume that you are American (like me) and think that "homely" just means ugly, like the opposite of comely? I thought this too, until very recently when I was beta reading a fic for a British friend and she laughed at me and informed me that over there it just means home-like or cozy (we might say homey). So Phil is using it correctly!

Re: Dan's opinion of the ladybird selfie (which is of course gorgeous) I think Dan was not really reacting to how Phil looked in the photo, but to the photo angle and it's use as something that he might be embarrassed by if he tried because it is trying to hard or linked to a specific time/culture (myspace). Hence the discussion of captioning it ironically. And yet it was the only photo of Phil that Dan loved when the changes were added (smiling and young). Like he was really taken with it. So I think he actually finds it beautiful, he's just too conscious about societal photo trends (ugh). I do however appreciate that Dan does not like fem or manly Phil. He likes his Phil just like he is (unique and otherworldly).

Also thank you for weighing in with your perspective capybantsa

[cherrybomb3]

cultural appropriation wouldnt be nearly as serious if not for capitalism transforming authentic cultures into brands to be advertised and purchased, manufacturing candy floss superficial cultural experiences at £30 a jumper. regardless of the subculture, consumer capitalist hegemony will invariably commodify it into a neat and sterile hollow version that can be adopted by the privileged without any of the judgement that the less privileged members of the original subculture would have to endure in their lives


i mean lol phils ladybird pic young filter made him cute af

[Catallena]

I'll try to keep things brief as possible, but here are my thoughts as a long time resident of Japan:
(And I hate that I probably need to say this, but I'm not white)

First: Japan is not weak and Japanese people are not oppressed minorities. Japan is a powerful nation that has been well respected on a global scale for a long time. Other countries in Asia envy, hate, and even fear Japan because of its history of domination, and Japan has a strong cultural and economic impact globally. Japan has a higher overall GDP than the UK and a similar GDP per capita, so if anything, two Japanese boys are MORE powerful than two English boys. Besides, do you think D&P have done nothing for Japan's economy? They spend a lot of money on Japanese goods, they advertise Japanese things to their audience, I think D&P have contributed plenty to the Japanese economy to deserve returning the favor. Plus these products only serve to advertise Japan EVEN MORE, so it's mutually beneficial.

Second: Racism=discrimination+power? Okay, according to YOUR definition, white people experience racism in Japan. There is institutional discrimination based on race (did you know you can be arrested for not carrying ID while looking too foreign? Fun times in Japan!), and there is social discrimination, including treating white people like exotic birds (beautiful and make great accessories, but you wouldn't want one to move in next door). Maybe you're thinking "it's not really racism because they can just go home to their country", but that's exactly what Japanese racists think. "Just go home to your country, because obviously you're not Japanese if you look like that".

Fun fact: There is no literal Japanese word for "racism". There is only 人種差別, which means "race discrimination". The semantic you're arguing about literally does not even exist in Japanese or the Japanese mind, whee!

Third: The concept of "cultural appropriation" does not exist here either. Not only do Japanese people not understand it, but when you try to explain it to them they think it's dumb (though they won't usually say that because it's rude) and they get confused or annoyed that foreigners like you try to prevent the spread of Japanese culture. Japanese people LIKE the spread of Japanese culture, so much that they don't even care if you do it wrong (yes that includes weeaboos). Instead of being "wrong Japanese culture", it becomes a new culture inspired by Japanese culture. Sometimes they even import it back to Japan, like California roll, which isn't "wrong sushi", it's "American sushi".

Sorry to rant, but really if you knew ANYTHING about Japan you would know that this "cultural appropriation" argument is so horribly misguided in every single way. Dan and Phil are behaving exactly how Japanese people and Japanese government want them to. They could not be better to Japan if they tried.

capybantsa you have a different experience living in a non white majority country. Non white people in white majority countries are treated like outsiders and we are affected by some racist things that you are not. For example Japanese people in Japan did not care as much about Scarlett Johansson being in the Ghost in the Shell movie but Japanese people in white countries were angry about white washing. It was a big Hollywood movie taking something from their culture and getting rid of their representation in a culture that already is as white as a blank wall. So Deppy putting ダントフィル on products is good for Japan and spreading Cool Japan popular culture but not for Japanese people in England.

I said I was gonna sit this one out but spider your entire post is amazing (I love the way you explained cultural apprpriation using spiders omg) and this part is so important.

Lately with controversies around the whitewashing of Ghost In The Shell or Death Note I constantly see people disregarding the opinions of people of Japanese descent in Western countries while using the perspective of Japanese people in Japan who have never experienced the struggles of being a minority in another country to prove their point and it's really upsetting to see. Stating that Japanese people aren't a minority is simply a deeply ignorant statement to make. Almost nobody is a minority in their own country but Japanese people live in other countries. They count. Their opinions are valid. By prioritizing the opinions of people who will barely be affected by whitewashing and cultural appropriation over those of people that will be affected, you're basically saying that Japanese minorities aren't Japanese enough. It's an extremely harmful way of thinking.

[jaej]

Hi guys, casual fan here. I've been debating making an account for a while, but seeing people speaking about my home has sparked me into it. Sorry if this sounds angry, but dammit I am angry


I'll try to keep things brief as possible, but here are my thoughts as a long time resident of Japan:
(And I hate that I probably need to say this, but I'm not white)

First: Japan is not weak and Japanese people are not oppressed minorities. Japan is a powerful nation that has been well respected on a global scale for a long time. Other countries in Asia envy, hate, and even fear Japan because of its history of domination, and Japan has a strong cultural and economic impact globally. Japan has a higher overall GDP than the UK and a similar GDP per capita, so if anything, two Japanese boys are MORE powerful than two English boys. Besides, do you think D&P have done nothing for Japan's economy? They spend a lot of money on Japanese goods, they advertise Japanese things to their audience, I think D&P have contributed plenty to the Japanese economy to deserve returning the favor. Plus these products only serve to advertise Japan EVEN MORE, so it's mutually beneficial.

Second: Racism=discrimination+power? Okay, according to YOUR definition, white people experience racism in Japan. There is institutional discrimination based on race (did you know you can be arrested for not carrying ID while looking too foreign? Fun times in Japan!), and there is social discrimination, including treating white people like exotic birds (beautiful and make great accessories, but you wouldn't want one to move in next door). Maybe you're thinking "it's not really racism because they can just go home to their country", but that's exactly what Japanese racists think. "Just go home to your country, because obviously you're not Japanese if you look like that".

Fun fact: There is no literal Japanese word for "racism". There is only 人種差別, which means "race discrimination". The semantic you're arguing about literally does not even exist in Japanese or the Japanese mind, whee!

Third: The concept of "cultural appropriation" does not exist here either. Not only do Japanese people not understand it, but when you try to explain it to them they think it's dumb (though they won't usually say that because it's rude) and they get confused or annoyed that foreigners like you try to prevent the spread of Japanese culture. Japanese people LIKE the spread of Japanese culture, so much that they don't even care if you do it wrong (yes that includes weeaboos). Instead of being "wrong Japanese culture", it becomes a new culture inspired by Japanese culture. Sometimes they even import it back to Japan, like California roll, which isn't "wrong sushi", it's "American sushi".

Sorry to rant, but really if you knew ANYTHING about Japan you would know that this "cultural appropriation" argument is so horribly misguided in every single way. Dan and Phil are behaving exactly how Japanese people and Japanese government want them to. They could not be better to Japan if they tried.


Now, I'm off to watch the new video and reintroduce some joy into my life! And I think I will buy a ダンとフィル shirt because I think they look cool and it will make a good addition to my random-language-covered-crap collection that I've gotten from shopping locally lol (so far I have English, Korean, and French, oh my)

i am japanese this is not how i want them to act
there is a difference between d+p buying japanese products (which would be approved of) and selling products. people find it weird at best. as well as this, i think people have already pointed out, there is a difference between japanese people living in japan and japanese people living elsewhere like in the uk, and these are the people effected. post-ww2 representations of japanese people hung around for a LONG time and this stuff made it clear that us and our culture weren't wanted. then it became like "well we like sushi and we like craaaaaazy pop videos and we like your fun cartoons even though they're soooooo weird so we'll keep these" and now those marketable parts of japanese are cool and sold by white dudes but the rest of us are still subject to discrimination against east asians.

japanese people living in japan can just find this a bit cringey but those of us in western countries have to deal with the "your country is so weird did you hear about this thing that happened here? lol but i LOVE anime lol senpai xD do you prefer kpop or jpop" that makes us seem like a little trait to add on to your product and not a country with a long, complicated past in relation to the rest of the world

[thephandommenace]

[offtopic]

my name is jaejmine masters and i have something to say. dan and phil have fucked up japan.

I'm sorry
this isn't a meaningful contribution on my part at all
but oh em baby jesus [/offtopic]

[lishachi]

Not going to jump into the cultural appropriation/reverse racism discussion because I'm very white (almost translucent even, like Phil). It's interesting to read all your perspectives, especially those from actual non-white people. But even poc don't always agree on what's cultural appropriation, so I feel a bit lost tbh. I'd really like to know what really is okay and what is not but apparently there's no general answer to that

I feel the same. I also am not educated enough on the topic to make any comments or provide more discussion on the matter, so I will say nothing. BUT, I am very interested and have learnt alot from reading all of the opinions and posts regarding culture/language/cultural appropriation, and will be eduacting myself further on it. (I apologise If I seem ignorant for not knowing much about it all, but I am going to look into it as it is something that interests me.)

Also keywords I use alot here is 'relevance' or 'relevant' I apologise in advance, I couldn't think of any different words. Here is my little ramble:

One thing I did think about last night, which I was going to post but felt bad about posting and edited out of my post, was about the relevance of the merch. I just don't understand it, it doesn't make sense to me. I slept on it and still feel the same as last night when it dropped. I just feel that they are re-hashing a design that was popular and relevant at a time when Japhan was a thing, at a time where it is no longer relevant and they are using the exact same design and japanese writing just in different placements. I get that it's pastel themed and ties in with their pastel video, but to me that seems like they just want to make bank out of a design that did well at a certain time, so they're bringing it back, in slightly different colours. (It is very beautiful, though, and credit to the artist)

I am not judging them for wanting to make money. Their income from their books and tours must of been immense, and for that to all go away must of been weird, but they still have their channels, the gaming channel and obviously the merch store. It is completely up to them how they decide to design/what they choose to sell in the store. As a consumer, I would of preferred something a little more minimalistic and different to a previous design that has been formatted differently. It just seems like it's been done more for the money, even in the video last night Dan said that it was 'in honour of the cherry blossom season' then stated that was an excuse. Just felt off to me when I saw it last night. I am not shaming them for wanting to make money, just personally it felt a bit weird and quite irrelevant to release merch that has no real association with them as people, more just selling the brand of 'dan and phil' in new coloured shirts. Obviously, nobody is forced to buy the merch, either. I just find the situation odd.

This probably didnt make sense, all in all I just don't really understand what the fuck it was all about. It's not my thing, other people are obviously allowed to disagree/find the merch nice, whatever you like. I just think it was a bit pointless, irrelevant and a slight change of a popular design to make more money. If you disagree, please let me know! I am not very articulate and ramble, I hope I didn't offend anybody. I don't have much to comment on the use of Japanese language/writing/culture, like I said I'm not educated enough on the matter, but reading all of your posts is very interesting.

Don't wanna read that? I get it, it's long. In a post, it's basically these :

[mysterylovescompany]

*sees six new pages on idb*


...On a related note, I am really looking forwards to seeing what the last dinof video filmed in the old flat will be. Hopefully it's uploaded soon. He said Monday, right?

The domestic bants in the new video were cute. I probably wouldn't buy the new merch, but Cornelia is a great model (nice to see the clothes on someone who has boobs and isn't over six feet tall). For the person who asked, the Japanese text just says "Dan and Phil".

[lilMango]

I just came to say: Dan and Phil who? I stan Cornelia now.

[malday]

japanese people living in japan can just find this a bit cringey but those of us in western countries have to deal with the "your country is so weird did you hear about this thing that happened here? lol but i LOVE anime lol senpai xD do you prefer kpop or jpop" that makes us seem like a little trait to add on to your product and not a country with a long, complicated past in relation to the rest of the world

yikes the oppression! i can't think of any worse stereotype than one's country being called weird by some uncultured weeaboos.

[jaej]

japanese people living in japan can just find this a bit cringey but those of us in western countries have to deal with the "your country is so weird did you hear about this thing that happened here? lol but i LOVE anime lol senpai xD do you prefer kpop or jpop" that makes us seem like a little trait to add on to your product and not a country with a long, complicated past in relation to the rest of the world

yikes the oppression! i can't think of any worse stereotype than one's country being called weird by some uncultured weeaboos.

...the stereotypes arent just ~weird~ though and they do have an effect, the hypersexualisation of a whole country (particularly young girls) that comes from "omg weird anime!" and outdated laws that people in japan already criticise being the main one. japanese artists arent taken seriously, people get treated like a fetish because you're seen as an extension of something odd that happens where youre from and in general youre made fun of for things that are normal to you
spolier because its not that relevant to d+p this time despite the constant desire to "loL hentai!!"

[lishachi]

Forgot to say: The face app video was so weird, like it was funny but seeing them with 'perfect' teeth and square jawlines and whatever, just makes you think how wonderful people's quirks are and imperfections really give people character. Particularly with Phil, he has really interesting features and personally I like that.

[malday]

japanese people living in japan can just find this a bit cringey but those of us in western countries have to deal with the "your country is so weird did you hear about this thing that happened here? lol but i LOVE anime lol senpai xD do you prefer kpop or jpop" that makes us seem like a little trait to add on to your product and not a country with a long, complicated past in relation to the rest of the world

yikes the oppression! i can't think of any worse stereotype than one's country being called weird by some uncultured weeaboos.

...the stereotypes arent just ~weird~ though and they do have an effect, the hypersexualisation of a whole country (particularly young girls) that comes from "omg weird anime!" and outdated laws that people in japan already criticise being the main one. japanese artists arent taken seriously, people get treated like a fetish because you're seen as an extension of something odd that happens where youre from and in general youre made fun of for things that are normal to you
spolier because its not that relevant to d+p this time despite the constant desire to "loL hentai!!"

That, i can understand. Thanks for the more detailed explanation.

[rizzo]

Honestly? Japhan is 2 years old. If Dan and Phil want to feature their trips in new merch, give me 2 koalas with fringes.

There's also an entire world of DanandPhilCrafts merch they probably haven't even considered. Like, shit, I'd buy a "Pro-tip!" t-shirt. And this pastel merch could easily have done something with "Soft and Neat" (though I'm aware it was planned beforehand). That's how you feature what you do in more understated ways, imho.

There's a whole gaming channel worth of quotes and ridiculous nonsense that could also be merch-ified. Perhaps an update to the fringe graphic with curls on one? What about socks? Literally, socks are part of Phil's brand.

Frankly, I'm stunned by their lack of creativity.

[captainspacecoat]

Wow I've been away for 24+ hours and this has been such an interesting discussion to come home to! I don't have anything of worth to add as I'm literally whiter than Phil aside from: reverse racism will never be a thing and there is a huge difference between people of a culture choosing to share that culture and people outside of a culture assuming that said culture is theirs to share. I don't think dnp's intention was malicious but that doesn't mean they weren't ignorant.
Also really not here for people shutting down opposing arguments as 'trolling'.

Other than that I have no strong opinions about the originality of their merch as I'd probably never buy it anyway tbh, but they'd do well to look to Nathan Zed's merch as it's very understated + stylish and if they ever released something like that I may even be tempted to buy it.

Re: face app video - I really enjoyed it! I don't mind that it was a low effort/creativity video as I doubt they have the time or energy right now to make a proper gaming video what with moving. I thought they were both giggly and sweet, I thoroughly enjoyed how soft Phil was in response to all of Dan's pictures (especially calling Dan as an old man 'cute' ), and I love that the pics in Phil's camera rolls are interspersed with photos of Dan. I also appreciated their less-than-enthusiastic reactions to the ridiculousness of separate, distinct 'female' and 'male' filters, and how adamantly anti-'female'-Phil Dan was lmao. Also I really love the look of the new gaming room, it looks very modern and clean and open. I'm interested to see what the finished product will look like once they've finished decorating it!

[melon lord]

saying "racism is this" from your coordinates on the planet earth does not mean racism is the same thing to other people in different coordinates

by limiting and hogging one definition of racism based on one geographical location, you are diluting and erasing the experiences and history of other nations, because it doesn't fit your own little explanation. in other countries, you didn't need to be non-white to be killed, to be assaulted, to be moved around like baggage, to be oppressed. you just needed to be different to the majority, skin tone be damned.

managing to wipe away european and eastern history of blood and violence just because your idea of what racism is, is the "correct" one, is frankly so narrow minded i can't wrap my head around it.

it exhibits a lack of empathy and understanding that during all of humanity's history, people found reasons to discriminate and hate against others. it didn't need to be skin tone. it could be your name, your hair colour, your facial structure, your accent, your birthplace, your culture, your habits, even the food you eat or the clothes you wear. humans always found excuses and leaders always found reasons to wage wars and catastrophe on others.

this obsession with the definition of racism is just blinkers to avoid dealing with the actual flaw in current society. because you cannot open your eyes to the fact that "white people" have in fact experienced horrible things, but oh no it will never reach the level of "racism" you know of

and by doing so one becomes blind to the fact that racism is in its core, discrimination based on a predefined idea of normality, and what is "normality"? that's the local culture. if you act, speak or look different to the major culture, that's considered socially abnormal and therefore you are singled out. and that is why it's important to educate, empathise and extend the tolerance between ourselves over what is "normal". because "normal" is just an illusion bred through ignorance.

nationalism and ethnocentrism are toxin to the core of a global society because it enhances these differences in the most negative way. it doesn't celebrate and open its arms to what is beyond our own culture but instead it's smoke and mirrors, trying to make you feel defending of your normality against the Abnormals, the Others. and at first sure, the Others are people who look drastically different than you. It's not seen a lot, it's rare, it's... different. Sooner or later that definition starts to get broader and broader until one day the tiniest detail in someone that you disagree with is a valid reason for aggravating acts. One day it's "the non whites", next it's "the goths" and then you get people like Sophie Lancaster who despite her British origins, despite her fit into UK society and culture, the mere difference in her external appearance was reason enough to brutally murder her.

it's so easy to argue about what racism is, what is racist and what isn't, meanwhile we ignore that as we progress through the years we become lax and lenient about the actual reason people do this, and it's because they are raised to hate what doesn't look or talk like them. and instead of fighting that in any way, shape or form it manifests in, whether you're in europe and you discriminate against your polish neighbour or you spit at "russian prostitutes", or you're in america and women and trans people and poc get killed with alarming patterns, petty squabbles over a loose and vague term is really what will get us in the end and before we know it, we'll be so paranoid over finding minute differences to hate someone over we'll be beyond rescuing

[missemma]

Honestly? Japhan is 2 years old. If Dan and Phil want to feature their trips in new merch, give me 2 koalas with fringes.

There's also an entire world of DanandPhilCrafts merch they probably haven't even considered. Like, shit, I'd buy a "Pro-tip!" t-shirt. And this pastel merch could easily have done something with "Soft and Neat" (though I'm aware it was planned beforehand). That's how you feature what you do in more understated ways, imho.

There's a whole gaming channel worth of quotes and ridiculous nonsense that could also be merch-ified. Perhaps an update to the fringe graphic with curls on one? What about socks? Literally, socks are part of Phil's brand.

Frankly, I'm stunned by their lack of creativity.

Same here rizzo. I really can't believe they just churned out old merch in 3 different colours. I think socks is such a good idea (I saw someone design them some on twitter or tumblr ages ago but can't find the image but they were so good) and would sell really well.

Let's face it though, deppy could release toilet paper with their faces on and people would lap that shit up, they could put up a tshirt that was plain black with a D&P label with the sizing on for £40 and people would still pay those ridiculous prices. They're lucky the phandom will buy any old crap.

[alittledizzy]

Honestly? Japhan is 2 years old. If Dan and Phil want to feature their trips in new merch, give me 2 koalas with fringes.

There's also an entire world of DanandPhilCrafts merch they probably haven't even considered. Like, shit, I'd buy a "Pro-tip!" t-shirt. And this pastel merch could easily have done something with "Soft and Neat" (though I'm aware it was planned beforehand). That's how you feature what you do in more understated ways, imho.

There's a whole gaming channel worth of quotes and ridiculous nonsense that could also be merch-ified. Perhaps an update to the fringe graphic with curls on one? What about socks? Literally, socks are part of Phil's brand.

Frankly, I'm stunned by their lack of creativity.

Same here rizzo. I really can't believe they just churned out old merch in 3 different colours. I think socks is such a good idea (I saw someone design them some on twitter or tumblr ages ago but can't find the image but they were so good) and would sell really well.

Let's face it though, deppy could release toilet paper with their faces on and people would lap that shit up, they could put up a tshirt that was plain black with a D&P label with the sizing on for £40 and people would still pay those ridiculous prices. They're lucky the phandom will buy any old crap.

I'm kind of surprised they aren't trying to rep the gaming channel more with merch. They had their pixel people thing, but the gaming channel is most of their content - surely they come come up with something related to it?

Other than that I have no strong opinions about the originality of their merch as I'd probably never buy it anyway tbh, but they'd do well to look to Nathan Zed's merch as it's very understated + stylish and if they ever released something like that I may even be tempted to buy it.

This x100. We know Dan crushes on follows Nathan, can he please pick up some of those vibes? It could be subtle enough to make Dan not cringe but still have elements of Phil.

I actually wish Dan and Phil would come out with some solo merch again, because I'd love to see what they consider their current styles independent of each other. But I think Dan feels like he needs to hide behind the duo level to not feel like he's entirely ~selling out.

[lishachi]

Honestly? Japhan is 2 years old. If Dan and Phil want to feature their trips in new merch, give me 2 koalas with fringes.

There's also an entire world of DanandPhilCrafts merch they probably haven't even considered. Like, shit, I'd buy a "Pro-tip!" t-shirt. And this pastel merch could easily have done something with "Soft and Neat" (though I'm aware it was planned beforehand). That's how you feature what you do in more understated ways, imho.

There's a whole gaming channel worth of quotes and ridiculous nonsense that could also be merch-ified. Perhaps an update to the fringe graphic with curls on one? What about socks? Literally, socks are part of Phil's brand.

Frankly, I'm stunned by their lack of creativity.

Same here rizzo. I really can't believe they just churned out old merch in 3 different colours. I think socks is such a good idea (I saw someone design them some on twitter or tumblr ages ago but can't find the image but they were so good) and would sell really well.

Let's face it though, deppy could release toilet paper with their faces on and people would lap that shit up, they could put up a tshirt that was plain black with a D&P label with the sizing on for £40 and people would still pay those ridiculous prices. They're lucky the phandom will buy any old crap.

Ok this is what I wanted to say In my post which you did without rambling. (Bolded parts I agree with - basically all of it but I shortened it down lol)

They should sell socks! Honestly I'm surprised they haven't come out with sock designs. I think that the younger part of the Phandom would definitely buy pretty much anything, which is sad really because deppy are very creative people and yet this release of merch didn't do anything to prove that. It's also weird, because they must know that a big part of the phandom will buy these products, like for £20 odd I wouldn't pay for a slightly different design to the one they released 2 years ago (that was actually relevant) Also the posters, were they £20-25? I know they were signed but... Shit, I feel guilty buying posters at HMV for £3.99

Also gaming channel merch or like little understated quotes or minimalistic designs or something would be awesome. Not the same thing churned out 2 years later with a slight difference.

[DatCog]

Considering they often mention how long the creative process is to get the merch developed, I was really surprised that it was just a re-hash of the Japhan design from 2 years ago. I really like the pastel colours and feel this was a big missed opportunity to do something more relevant to their more recent content. As missemma says, the phandom will lap up anything they release for whatever price they want to charge. I don't know how many they signed but those special posters for £25 were sold out within an hour or two.

BTW I need D&P socks in my life!!

[shoe]

I have been keeping out of the merch/racism/cultural appropriation conversation because as a white person who is still far too ignorant on these topics I don't feel it would be helpful for me to share my underinformed opinions. However, I would like to thank jaej and capybantsa and spider for sharing their perspectives.

[DatCog]

Aww they've got a balcony again, this makes me happy

[missemma]

Aww they've got a balcony again, this makes me happy

They literally must have a palace of an apartment. The list of things that point to somewhere extremely modern and overpriced is growing.

I have been keeping out of the merch/racism/cultural appropriation conversation because as a white person who is still far too ignorant on these topics I don't feel it would be helpful for me to share my underinformed opinions.

Exactly the same.

Also the posters, were they £20-25? I know they were signed but... Shit, I feel guilty buying posters at HMV for £3.99

The posters are so overpriced. Their non signed posters are just under £10, so you're paying £15 for their autographs. That works out at just over £2 a letter, yeah no thanks guys. I paid the same amount for a tatinof ticket, so £25 is just ridiculous imo. Not sure how they can justify charging that much, do they think their fans are rich (like them ahem).

[DatCog]

Aww they've got a balcony again, this makes me happy

They literally must have a palace of an apartment. The list of things that point to somewhere extremely modern and overpriced is growing.

I've got a feeling they might have gone for one of those shiny riverside apartment complexes, perhaps a bit further east than they were. I know the more central ones are extortionately expensive....£20k+ a month

[onetruetrash]

Also the posters, were they £20-25? I know they were signed but... Shit, I feel guilty buying posters at HMV for £3.99

The posters are so overpriced. Their non signed posters are just under £10, so you're paying £15 for their autographs. That works out at just over £2 a letter, yeah no thanks guys. I paid the same amount for a tatinof ticket, so £25 is just ridiculous imo. Not sure how they can justify charging that much, do they think their fans are rich (like them ahem).

Yeah, Dan said he never was able to go to concerts, buy merch, etc. when he was younger because his family didn't have much money, so he should know better than to sell overpriced merch.