/vt/ - Virtual Youtubers

>>5879415
>Let's talk for a sec about parasocial relationships

>>5879415
Find your oshis address and sent threatening letters to her

>>5879415
Write a lengthy self-insert fan fic about you and her and then @ her on Twitter with the link

My oshi spent a while talking about how he and his fans would never be friends, so I'm happy just cheering him on from afar

>>5879536
>he
Faggot

>>5879415
great blogpost my friend, like and suscribed

>>5879536
who is he?

>>5879415
>In parasocial circus clown world
>Oshi has parasocial relations with you!

>>5879415
>Am I the only one feeling like this in this shithole?
No you tard, just start a folder of pictures of ryan gosling like the rest of us.

>I found myself one day thinking about how fucking nice it would be if I could be friends with my oshi
>Since then I have started to feel pretty bad about myself
My oshi actually pulled me out of a really bad 5-year rutt I've been in. I haven't been romantically interested in anyone for a long time, but discovering my oshi changed that. Frankly, it still hurts when I think about the fact that I'll never meet her, and all of the daydreams I have about her are just that. But I think the infinitesimally small chance that I do meet her encourages me to change things about myself and my outlook on life. Because I want to be the best version of me I could possibly be for her.
I have made more progress since I started my membership than I have in those prior 5 years. By which I mean I have made a non-zero amount of progress, compared to the years of regression and relapse.
My oshi has proven to me that I can love. Whether its her, someone like her, or someone completely different; I want to be good enough for them when it happens.
Emotions are powerful. Don't let them take over you. Channel them into something positive.

TL;DR take your meds, do your reps

>>5879717
Astel

>>5879961
good taste brother

muh parasocial relationships are caused by ecelebs who sell the whole girlfriend/boyfriend experience.

>>5879809
Good for you, anon.

>>5879809
This is true for me. I was totally uninterested in relationships before I found my oshi, now I dream about her. She's my only motivation to do my reps.

>>5879415
You think that's bad? I don't even fucking watch vtubers anymore but this board somehow made me get into a parasocial relationship with fucking Polka
I dont even watch her streams I just post in her general
What the fuck is wrong with me

>>5880906
kek based

>>5879809
Your ability to love was never a real problem. Your lack of potential as a mate is.

>>5879809

Oh man. Kind of a similar deal where Hololive helped me out of a really bad period when I first got into it.

I was pretty close to killing myself in January. I’d never send a superchat to my Oshi going: ‘haha thanks for stopping me from shooting myself in the head’ because I’m not that kind of retard, I just feel more comfortable saying it here than anywhere else. I’m not even sure I’d be around today if it weren’t for Mori and Pekora.

I don’t exactly have the money to send supers and I don’t think I can ever be noticed because of that, so all I can do is watch for afar and try not to get sucked into a parasocial relationship. But it’s hard when I find myself dropping whatever I have at the time to watch my Oshi because I can’t get enough of her.

>>5879785
So nene and watame.

>>5881957
The way you describe it, you are already way into such a relationship. Are there no people around you worthy of such attention at all?

>>5881957
She did nothing to stop you from doing anything. Would you thank a pencil and paper for providing you entertainment if you were suicidal and trying to distract yourself with drawing?

>>5879415

There a lot of streamers that bank on that reality to bait and hook viewers. Just another rabbit hole best avoided on the voyage of life.

Wish I could say I never fell in, but pobody's nerfect.

>>5882248

Yes. That’s what people do, isn’t it? Describing that getting into X hobby or community helped them out of a rough patch.

>>5882151

Nope. Not at the moment. I have close friends who I still spend time with, but it just feels different. Maybe you’re right though, and I should try and cut back on things. Probably a really bad habit to sacrifice time with real connections just to watch my Oshi live. Those vods aren’t going anywhere.

>>5879415
Is there a name for this kind of fans?

>>5880906
>>>/jp/24992240

>>5879809
>My oshi has proven to me that I can love. Whether its her, someone like her, or someone completely different; I want to be good enough for them when it happens.
I didn't know how to put it into words before seeing this, but that's exactly how I would describe my strain of gosling. Thanks anon

>>5882498
But you're placing the entirety of your improvement (at least not being as suicidal) on these vtubers. You're leaving little room to reflect on how you pulled yourself out of that space. Vtubers are just distraction and entertainment. It's not like Mori or Pekora held your hand and said it's going to be okay. They talked and played video games.

>>5882519
faggots and schizos

Whenever you feel bad about parasocial relationships remember there's an entire strata of people who are convinced that their biological robot - a dog, cat or otherwise - loves them and has actual emotions and thoughts beyond instinct. They confuse basic input-output of a dogs instinct as "love" for instance. The dog OS (instinct) is what rules it, it can't act against it.

Pity those people. With oshis, there's at least an actual human being involved.

>>5882649

I think it stemmed from a sort of passive appreciation of them. I remember thinking that if I wasn’t alive, I wouldn’t get to see these anime girls acting cute as fuck on YouTube.

But yeah. Like the other guy, I think you’re right. Ultimately, I did have to pull myself out of this rut by being the one to decide not to off myself, and realizing that there was plenty more things in the world that I hadn’t experienced yet. They didn’t directly rescue me from it either, they just showed me that that was the case. I think if I ever got the money to send supas, I’d just tell them: ‘Thanks for being around’ and leave it at that.

Thanks dude, may not seem like much, but you and the other anon really helped me tonight.

I'm just here to say

>tfw no Ina friend to show her my art, show her cool artists or tutorials, and show her my gachashit pulls

Why even live

>>5882942
This is exactly it. Only those willing to be saved in the first place can be saved.
You've saved yourself, and vtubers were just there in the background making funny noises.

>>5882853
I would completely agree if you were talking about lizards, but mammals have quite a lot above basic BIOS cortex in their heads, including genuine affection.

>>5882974
But anon, there is a veritable shitload of artsy-fartsy gurls around you. Just look in the right places.

>>5882942
This board may be shit but don't feel like everyone's a black hearted jaded fuck. Keep on living for your own tangible reasons.

>>5882519
>[deleted]
Must've been enlightening actually, enough that it had to be deleted to preserve the current narrative.

Parasocial relationships can be healthy, but you have to recognize and cultivate the healthy ones.

Reminder that a study found thinking about your waifu literally protects you from self esteem damage in hard times.

>>5888315
Anon chama sama, if it was a deleted post it would have a red trashcan next to it.

>>5879415
If you want free parasoical dopamine find a sub 100 viewer indie that suits your taste and talk often in their chat, there you go.

>>5879536
Wow, what an asshole.

>>5879415

>>5892896
It's an asshole move to insinuate otherwise.

>>5892790
Just like religion.
If it turns a fucking mess of a person into a stable & happy person, then it's worth the insanity.
If it turns you into a obsessed cultist who might throw all their money away, then you're doing it wrong.

>>5892933

>>5893032
Exactly. You could even make the argument that religions are parasocial relationships, e.g. with god, allah, or the buddha.

>>5892790
I guess there are more hazardous forms of copium.

>>5879415
>Am I the only one feeling like this in this shithole?
No but there are a handful of us who can enjoy our oshis with no strings attached and it’s a blissful feeling

>>5879415
>parasocial relationships
I've only ever seen this word used in faggy video essays on YouTube. I pass it off as some reddit pseudoscience as a consequence. It's only human to idolize and gain strength from something.

>>5893189
It was popularized by faggy video essays but the term is much older. It was originally used to describe the strange relationship viewers felt they had with media personalities in the wake of mass communication. The big difference in presentation was that the hosts would often talk straight into the camera, usually on a couch, and viewers would feel as though the host was a friend of theirs that was literally in their home. Today really personal communication styles in media are ubiquitous because it's just so effective. The illusion that they're talking to you specifically is possible in a way that it just wasn't in the ye olde days of newspapers and public speaking events being the sole forms of mass communication.

It's a worthy distinction I think because no matter how you feel about an entertainer, they don't know you. They're not actually your friend. So long as you're ok with that you're in no danger of being delusional. Actual no shit goslings are pretty rare I think. Vtubers and streamers alike are just comfort spaces for their fans.

>>5893189
>It's only human to idolize and gain strength from something.

Doesn't make it good.
In any case, there is a distinction to be made between reciprocal social relationships and nonreciprocal ones; if you don't approach them differently you'll suffer unnecessarily. Putting a name to the phenomenon helps you be mindful of it.

>>5879415
If you go into it accepting it's just entertainment it goes down better. At least that's what I tell myself. Lulu graduating still fucked me up.

>>5893515
>they don't know you. They're not actually your friend
I can understand why this might be a problem for someone who thinks otherwise, but pretty much everyone knows this, don't they? Being a gosling is more than just thinking that you're going to be her boyfriend in the literal sense in the same way that being pious is more than believing that Christ actually rose from the dead. That's not the point. Just see posts like >>5879809 for example.

>>5879415
Don’t overthink it, anon. “Parasocial” is a buzzword, and you’re doing fine talking about your feelings without buzzwords.

It’s understandable that you’re lonely, because who isn’t these days? Just because you think you might be getting a little too attached doesn’t mean you have to do something drastic like never watching them again.

Just have a clear-eyed view of where you stand. You’re empathizing with a someone who is, at the end of the day, a fictional character. They might be heavily based on the streamer’s real life and personality, but you shouldn’t fool yourself into thinking that this means you actually know the streamer. What you’re looking for is that character’s acknowledgment, and you’re never going to get that on more than a surface level.

But there’s nothing wrong with interacting with people on a surface level! I work in a public-facing job and I have to maintain dozens of relationships on that level with my “regulars”. It can even be fulfilling—knowing that you’ve just made their day a little easier, happier, or less stressful is a great feeling. But it’s best for both myself and them if we keep it on that level. Knowing what a total fuckup I am would just ruin their image of me, and I know they’re probably as loaded down with weird shit in their own lives. Maintaining these kinds of polite fictions is what keeps everything ticking along.

tl;dr if your oshi let you into their private life they wouldn’t be your oshi anymore, it’d be a totally different kind of relationship and probably not what you think you’d actually get.

>>5879415
>suddenly I found myself one day thinking about how fucking nice it would be if I could be friends with my oshi
This is pretty much my metric as well -- when you start to feel the desire to turn a parasocial relationship into a real one, you're too invested and need to change something.

>>5893898
You'd think so, but there's supposedly evidence that audiences go through the honest-to-god stages of grief upon the conclusion of a story/series. And if I recall correctly, intimate knowledge of fictional characters counts against Dunbar's number. Your brain can't even tell the difference between relationships with real people and wholly fictional people, to say nothing of personae engineered to take your money. The only way to manage it is mindfulness and constant value reassessment, or abstinence.

>>5893515
The term is technically inaccurate when applied to streamers like the ones in Hololive, because they read chat, youtube comments, and twitter messages from their fans almost every day, instead of being completely detached from them like a movie star.
A streamer is more like a teacher with an overcrowded classroom, who's struggling to learn the names of their students and provide them with some personal attention.
The relationship is much more real, but it's still not a close, personal one by any measure.

>>5893927
It's a little abstract. I think the train of thought "I know amelia watson and we're friends in some fashion" isn't really the definition here. It's that your feelings towards her are more typical of someone in a typical social relationship rather than strictly an entertainer. If you like a jazz saxophonist you wouldn't describe yourself as in love with the person, or devoted to them, or under the impression that the entertainer has some kind of shared understanding of you and everyone that likes them. Yet those kind of feelings are pretty common with k-pop, onlyfans models, and more traditional celebrities. Look at the way celebrity forums and kpop fandoms behave online and you can see that there's something more than just merely enjoying the product going on there.

The reality is that the performers are only vaguely aware of you and the idea that there is any two-way understanding between the two of you is an illusion or cynical marketing ploy. Rushia is the most blatant about trying to encourage that kind of relationship with her fans. Watson has this reputation for reasons I don't quite get because I don't watch her. The post you linked is kind of interesting because again, that guy thinks he understands Watson in a personal way and wants to not let her down. Which is a bit apart from reality. He's never going to meet her! He's a big fan of her streams but the "love" that should be involved here is the same way that I "love" steak. Having a genuine, unrequited crush on Watson is probably a sign that you're taking this all too seriously. Although if that guy isn't lying about improving his life because of it then I guess there are worse ways to cope, like drugs.

>>5894493
It wasn't out of the question to interact with a public speaker or an actor in a theatre. In fact a lot of plays and musicals still feature audience interaction. It's just that that sort of interaction is part of the show. It's not even a very light social interaction, it pretty much doesn't count. If you can't talk to a streamer totally off the books, outside of all public channels, just the two of you shooting the shit. You don't have a real relationship with them. It's part of the act.

>>5894636
Polka...

>>5879415
Let's see. Faggots on this board are literally simping over a virtual shark, who is probably a 30-40 year old female. Does this sound normal or rational to you?

I'm eternally grateful that my oshi is as invested in her fanbase as I am in her.

>>5894926
she wouldn't be there if superchats didn't exist.

>>5894948
With Polka I'm fully convinced she doesn't have healthy relationships in her normal life. So in that respect she's at least similar to her fans.

>>5892933

people that use vtubers as a girlfriend substitute are mentally ill. I will never see Pekora this way, just as an entertainer.

>>5894527
Of course they're real human emotions that aren't being reciprocated, and I do agree with you that getting into it is a bit of a vice, but I have a hard time vilifying the whole thing (which is the impression I get whenever people talk about "parasocial relationships") in my head when so many people these days are completely alienated and disillusioned from naturally engaging in these human experiences. I've seen a lot of posts on here of anons talking about how their oshi helped them quit being a misogynist or how they've helped them start improving themselves in varying metrics. With this in mind it just seems needlessly cruel and borderline conspiratorial to try and take this away from them by stigmatizing the behavior when there really are no "bad symptoms" other than improving your situation and self-esteem.

she doesn't love you. even if you akasupa. you are just text on a screen. that is all.

>>5894948
She doesn't do regular superchat readings. If her goal was to make money, that's a hell of a lot easier.

>>5895157
In the cases you're talking about, I agree. And given everyone's increasing atomization these days I also concur that it's an understandable and not necessarily shameful thing to fall into. But, there are "bad symptoms" in some cases. Deranged k-pop headcases who dedicate dozens of hours per week feuding with people online who voice mild criticism of their "oshi", onlyfans and camwhore simps who sink hundreds of dollars into facsimiles of affection, and I'm assuming some of the hololive gachikoi can fall into degenerate behavior patterns and use consumption of their gachi's merch and superchat exchanges as surrogate affection. These groups have an unhealthy coping mechanism, and need to contend with the fact that what they really desire can't be provided by an entertainer over the internet.

>>5879415
I've accepted what feelings I've have and that they'll never be reciprocated. I just enjoy them as occasional idle fantasies the same way I would fantasize about being a billionaire or exploring space.

>>5895157
I can't believe I'm paraphrasing /lgbt/ of all places, but some people can't stand people not being miserable like them, so they try to drag everyone down to their level.

>>5894911
Based Hololive giving everyone a hag fetish

>>5882942
>>5881957

I'm glad you didn't kill yourself, bro. It's maybe morbid I guess but it's always reassuring to see other people going through the same stuff at the same time and see that they're doing better now than they were. We're all gonna make it.

Would you say there's a difference between a guy who's into GFE with their oshi, and a guy who loyally follows somebody like Ina because she rekindled/jumpstarted their passion for art?

Eh, everyone here will probably transition from vTuber waifu -> AI waifu -> AI wife
It'll take 20+ years, but most of us here have ~50 years left anyway.

>>5894636
You have a real relationship with teachers, classmates, and coworkers, even if you don't advance them to a more intimate one where you chat outside of work/school.
The criteria of chatting privately doesn't make much sense, anyway, because you do that with a ton of strangers throughout life.

>>5895923
A teacher knows your name anon, we call these sorts of people acquaintances. A streamer is less than that. And a passing word with a stranger isn't a social relationship either.

>>5883821
what are the right places

>>5882519
Gachikoi

>>5880906
Saddest post in the thread.

>>5896002
Acquaintance is literally an interpersonal relationship. And that was the point, talking to someone privately isn't a good criteria for a real relationship.

>>5896336
Yes, an acquaintance is a relationship. It's a very low one on the totem pole though and my claim is that streamers don't even count as that.

And you're being pedantic. Obviously by "shooting the shit" I meant having an actual conversation. The easiest way to come off as an insane person is to try doing that to a total stranger. A passing word or very brief interaction on the bus or something is like sub-acquaintance territory too. But at least that person is actually looking you in the eyes and acknowledging you in person as another human being. To streamers, your superchat is interpreted as a point of data. The level of social interaction is so abstract it almost doesn't register in your brain as one. Would you consider all the bullshit arguments you get into on 4chan to be "socializing"? I don't, I barely perceive all of you as people.

what even is the difference
your teacher is just acting out their role to as a teacher
your workmate just talks to you about work and just acting out their role as friend at best
your family either disowns you or doesn't fucking care
it's all the same shallow shit, everyone are fucking actor online and offline

i have fucking more meaningful conversation here with text than with actual people dancing through hoops trying not to be offensive

>>5881624
Nope

>PARASOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS
>GFE
>GACHIKOI
>GOSLING
I can't take this anymore. I'm going insane.

>>5896505
>Would you consider all the bullshit arguments you get into on 4chan to be "socializing"? I don't, I barely perceive all of you as people.
Not him but yes. On some level, shitposting is socializing.

>>5896820
For me, at my absolute loneliest shitposting didn't make me feel anymore connected to other people. It's about as intimate as writing on the bathroom wall.

>>5896745
>everyone are fucking actor online and offline
the difference is, the most worthwhile "actors" are the ones on your contact list which can "act" for you when you need it

>>5897091
based post

>>5897091
yeah, thank you guys for always being there whenever I want to be toxic, i guess
always nice seeing people falls for obvious bait

>>5879536

>>5895558
With Ina terms were clear from the start, so there is clear difference. She is an art streamer with a cutesy avatar.

>>5898237
You are a very obvious seanigger though, so not a person in the first place.

>>5898679
exactly
imagine seeking connection when everyone around you ain't even a person

>>5879961
Astel saying this somehow does not surprise me in the slightest.

>>5879415
>Let's talk for a sec about parasocial relationships
Faggot

>>5899178
Weak cope, try again.

>>5879536
Based Astel

>>5899091
Despite being the most menhera among the stars, he has a surprisingly good sense of boundaries towards his fans.

Remember you are only on level 1 with your oshi and its very unlikely that it'll ever progress more than that

>>5880906
This is...
Incredibly sad and disturbing.

Is it parasocial to worry over a chuuba even though they don't know I exist? All my favorites have had down moments around the time of Coco's graduation announcement, breaks, emergencies, etc, and I always feel like I'm going to wake up to one of them deciding to quit forever, it happened with Lulu. I don't know what the limit of worry is. Sometimes my heart races over it.

>>5882853
I think they confirmed it only took literally just an organism of a clump of cells just to form a conscious back in 2020 as a biological discovery. Your info is outdated old man.

>>5879415
I often drink sake with my Lamy daki

>>5899792
Not even that. Text on a screen.

>>5879536
>he
based faggot

>>5879536
He also said the relationship between streamer and fan is like that of lovers in the same breath. I understand what he meant though.

Here's the clip if anyone's interested:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wn5SvedXRA

>>5896820
I'm sure just needed a few more

>>5900402
Nice

>>5892933
Why are so many of the gosling memes directly related to her? Is it really just because of the bladerunner watch along?

>>5900402
He does love his fans. He cried when he thought he dissapointed them when his project fell through.

>>5900038
Never change Yukimin
Lamy loves you

newfag parasocial post #854,268

Lonely people die earlier.
Can loneliness be mitigated with an oshi?

YES.
Hololive is saving lives.

>>5882853
Now this is edgy

>>5882853
Imagine thinking a human's love is purer than a dog's

>>5901493
Yes, because god didn’t give them a soul. Only atheists and fools (same thing really) would think an animal can feel anything. Only Man was made “in god’s image”

>>5901525
You're saying that as if people doesn't reincarnate into animal to purify their sins.

>>5901586
No. That theory make any sense because animals can’t feel anything. Couldn’t suffer for your sins as a robot

>>5901635
>animals can’t feel anything
Sounds like suffering to me.

>>5901677
Only sounds like suffering from the perspective of you, a creature with a soul. Basically proves what I’m saying about the difference between humans and animals

>>5901525
Man's soul is corrupt. All your feelings are tainted with sin.

>>5901709
That doesn’t have anything to do with the fact that it’s nearly mentally ill to “love” a dog. It’s the same as loving a tapeworm

>>5901768
Yes it does. It's mentally ill to love anything with an unpure heart as you do.

>>5901698
Gee anon, have you ever asked the soul trapped in those unfeeling body whether they're suffering?

>>5900402
For all the 3-kisei's reputation Marine has also said similar thing. Contrast with what Rushia's doing. https://youtu.be/EIRcUI-arkY

>>5901779
Still, parasocial relationships > parasitical relationships

>>5901782
I told you they can’t. Even if you kick a dog it doesn’t feel any actual pain, it reacts solely based on the mechanical system of instincts. So it’s really stupid to think a mechanical system can result in feeling anything, even if the system is biological. They don’t even have consciousness

>>5892790
>>5893032
The difference with religion is that your oshi can graduate.
Mine graduated yesterday and I've been feeling dead inside since.

>>5902127
Exactly what I'm saying, anon.
The true suffering is putting what once a feeling soul into a body perfectly incapable of feeling anything.

>>5880906
I struggle to understand this post if I'm being honest

Man you people are faggots im just tryna track down my oshi and fuck her
Why do you always overcomplicate this shit like god damn

>>5902276
retard

>>5900977
>when his project fell through
What project did he try to do?

>>5882649
I mean I've literally sent SCs to my oshi saying "aishiteru. I had a rough day at work, could you comfort me?" and she's given me virtual headpats and said I did a good job and that I'm good boy with her "iko iko" so I'm starting to think you retards have forgotten the whole reason these women STREAM INSTEAD OF UPLOAD VIDEOS, YOU WEAK NON-PARTICAPATORY FUCKS HAHAHAHAHAHA

>>5902370

>>5902324
Never confirmed. rrats say it's music but he shits out music like nobody's business.

>>5895274
If her goal was to make money she'd be chasing corporate cash.

>>5902370
Having a rough day at work and being called a good boy is different than thinking your oshi saved you from the brink of suicide.

i am not interested in watching streams, i only want to coom

>>5894527
>The post you linked is kind of interesting because again, that guy thinks he understands Watson in a personal way and wants to not let her down.
I am that anon and, no. Setting aside that Watson isn't my oshi, I see gosling as a oshi-neutral term, when I say "I want to be the best version of me I could possibly be for her." I mean that in the sense of being presentable, just more so. If hypothetically, by random chance I run into my oshi's roommate and a conversation occurs, I don't want to be the one who makes her walk away from that conversation thinking "Oh so *that's* the kind of person who's a fan of me. Ew." The metric for 'best person' isn't entirely relative to her tastes, or my assumptions of her tastes either. It's based on what makes me like me.
It's my goal and its for me, even if she is a source of motivation. I just need to do mental gymnastics to make something seem necessary because I lack personal drive.

>>5902127
>if you kick a dog it doesn’t feel any actual pain
Excuse me? Pain reflex is just the same in dog and in you. Now, mental pain of betrayal is a different thing.

>>5879536 Samefag
I got an occasion to talk one-on-one with Astel back in February after participating in an event, and he was extremely professional in the way he acted. He's an alright guy