Etika Appreciation Thread

[PublicEnemy1]

Whether you loved or hated him, you can't deny that Etika, AKA Iceman, was a part of us. He was a funny and excellent streamer who was taken from us way too soon. May he rest in piece. 

Joycon Boyz for life.

[tailsBOOM!]

Indeed.  He put his all into everything he did, and you could see the energy and enthusiasm he put into his community in every new video.  He'll be greatly missed by his friends and many fans.  RIP Iceman.

[Kevin]

Here’s his profile if anyone wanted to leave some thoughts. I’m really heartbroken by his death. He was a fun person to interact with on here and it’s a shame he wasn’t able to get the help he needed on time. 

[KHCast]

It really is comforting to see so many high profile people in the Smash community leave the kind words they are about him. From guys like BillyB0 and PapaGenos, to Alpharad, Sherwood, and Introspective, all the way to the competitive scene guys like ZeRo.

It hurts knowing he thought he’d be forgotten...he’s a loved individual. Just look at all the people that weren’t even close to him express their respect for him. the people bullying him online, compounded with his mental health and lack of care given regarding it by both the system, and the people, really did a number on him, and I hope the people memeing and “clowning” him feel ashamed. It wasn’t a joke that he was going through actual mental illness, anyone paying attention could see that. Even though he pulled shitty pranks, they were obviously signs of a problem, and don’t justify making fun of him in mass, even while he was missing. The system failed him, he deserved much better. Hopefully this issue becomes more real to people within these communities and going forward we do better to help people that are going through issues of depression, mental health, etc. instead of ridicule, and make fun of them for attention. RIP Etika. I may not have watched much of your content, but you certainly made your place in the community you loved.

[tailsBOOM!]

2 minutes ago, KHCast said:

It really is comforting to see so many high profile people in the Smash community leave the kind words they are about him. From guys like BillyB0 and PapaGenos, to Alpharad, Sherwood, and Introspective, all the way to the competitive scene guys like ZeRo.

It hurts knowing he thought he’d be forgotten...he’s a loved individual. Just look at all the people that weren’t even close to him express their respect for him. the people bullying him online, compounded with his mental health and lack of care given regarding it by both the system, and the people, really did a number on him, and I hope the people memeing and “clowning” him feel ashamed. It wasn’t a joke that he was going through actual mental illness, anyone paying attention could see that. Even though he pulled shitty pranks, they were obviously signs of a problem, and don’t justify making fun of him in mass, even while he was missing. The system failed him, he deserved much better. Hopefully this issue becomes more real to people within these communities and going forward we do better to help people that are going through issues of depression, mental health, etc. instead of ridicule, and make fun of them for attention.

People like D1 and Nairo knew him personally, and he's heavily entangeled in many of the communities I'm in so, so there's a very heavy atmosphere in all those places.  They all love him and will miss him dearly.  My favorite commemorative tweet was of D1, Nairo, Etika and some others:

I'll miss Etika's very cheery personality on his streams and the smiles he'd bring his friends  

[PublicEnemy1]

Even big, BIG Youtubers like JackSepticEye an Pewds are paying their respects.

[Strong Bad]

I've been super mega gone from the Sonic scene for so long, but Etika is someone I kept up with through the years. From humble beginnings as a SegaSonic Radio DJ to being a famous YouTuber, his passion as an entertainer was obvious from day 1. He wanted to bring smiles to the faces of others, and he did that better than anyone I have ever known.

He and I would talk on MSN as early as 2006, and bonded over the fact that we had the same birthdate (may 12th!). Later in 2015 we finally got to meet up. He was always so excited about any progression or good parts of my life, encouraging me and helping me. I met up with him at various events and again in 2017 as I hung at his apartment in NYC. He just... he wouldn't let me pay for my own food.... or anything like that. I was his guest of honor, I suppose, that's just how kind he truly was. Infinite kindness. Infinite patience. Infinite smiles. I knew he was hurting, and I reached out to him, but I hadn't got a reply since October... I'm so sorry it came to this, Desmond, and I'm sorry I couldn't help you. I'm in tears over your passing and I'm sorry you were suffering this much. I will never forget you no matter how much time passes.

I don't much like putting my face on the internet these days, but I'll make an exception.

Here's to you, Desmond. I love you and miss you so much. Everything hurts, but I can only imagine this is a fraction of the pain you must have felt. I would do anything to hear some Cold Hard Facts from you just one more time.  

[Zaysho]

I kept going in and out of this thread all day because I wanted to collect my thoughts on the matter, and write something honest. I'll probably even embarrass myself but I don't really care. I don't feel right eulogizing the man, either. Truth be told I got fed up after his second breakdown and the way he seemed to just embrace the negative attention and bucked at the idea of getting help. He came across as antagonistic and it made me uncomfortable. I... couldn't deal with, nor could I stand to watch his "supporters" clown on him. I wasn't--I'm not--anybody but a guy who enjoyed his videos so I kind of just moved on. I'd check out the latest highlights and was subscribed to his TR1iceman channel, but I chose to not engage him closely anymore.

Maybe walking away and ignoring him at his lowest makes me part of the problem. I dunno. His apology video shortly before his disappearance gave me a mix of emotions I don't think I should have felt for someone I only knew as a persona online. It's incredibly sad listening to his reasoning. I didn't even want to believe it at first, wanted to write it off until more info came in, but the more I checked the sub-reddit (and sussed through the conspiratorial nonsense) the more I just realized he probably wasn't coming back this time. Seeing the news this morning hit harder than I expected it to.

I've been a fan of Etika's since about 2016. In fact, this is the first video of his I recall seeing that randomly popped up in my YouTube recommendations. His over the top reactions amused me so I kept checking out his stuff, saw things like him talking about Xenoblade X or his regular reactions to the Pokémon Sun and Moon news (this was still prior to the Nintendo Switch's initial announcement). I got hooked and subscribed to him. 2016 was a pretty rough year for me for reasons I'm not gonna go into, but channels like his really brightened my day near the end of that year when things were pretty bad. His streams were often a highlight for me on the late nights I'm up drawing. The guy had charisma, and his enthusiasm was infectious, it's not too hard to understand why he maintained the following he had even when his channels got purged. Fortunately there are archivists out there. I'm glad most of his Xenoblade 2 streams are preserved. I tuned in eagerly when he started chapter 7 and as he went through the final chapters. His reactions mirrored mine and it brought a smile to my face seeing someone who loved that game like I did and got excited over the late game reveals.

I didn't know him personally, but his presence will be missed. I don't know if this will serve as a cautionary tale and people will be more receptive and see the signs of people hurting--it's certainly opened my eyes--or if this will be another news story that will come and go and we'll be back to square one. I'm not optimistic but at least there are some real ones doing what they can right now to spread awareness and celebrate their friendship with him. Rest in peace, Etika, and condolences to his close friends and family. I'm sorry. To everyone else, please take care of yourselves. And in the words of Etika, have yourselves a damn good one.

(P.S. do me a solid and please don't like this post. I don't feel right receiving reactions for this. Instead go do something nice.)

[HelenBaby]

I made a shout out on here to see if anyone wanted to hang out after SoS 2010. He was the only one still about who got back IIRC (the thread's probably still about somewhere hehe)

So he, myself and my friend Max went to karaoke and to the Chinese restaurant Wong Kei. He was really funny, charming and handsome. Afterwards I watched Rory's interview with him and laughed so much. I'm pleased I got a chance to meet him. 

Was gutted when I found out he passed away. RIP dude

[BlueFlare]

His Sonic Mania streams were gold. I did recently rewatch them and they still make me laugh my ass off. Such energy.

[Zaysho]

I wanted to update about this earlier but due to working on other things I hadn't had time, but I've been following a tribute zine for Etika that recently got its print run funded. It's called JoyConBoyz Forever, and it's a hardcover limited run filled with tribute art and writings with most of the proceeds going to NAMI, a mental health awareness organization (the initial funding goal was to fund the physical book being printed). The pre-order window will be closing after tomorrow so if you were interested in a copy and wanted to give something to charity in Etika's name maybe someone here would like to check it out.

 

[Big Panda]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-51635241

This is sweet.

[Zaysho]

The zine from last year I mentioned is now available as a free PDF on Gumroad. If you couldn't get a copy before, and just want something to flip through celebrating Etika's career you can grab it here.