Weeaboo. A term that has been thrown around the Internet since the dawn of time. Well, almost anyway. Sometimes I wonder if the prevalence of the term is falling out. I mean, I can’t remember the last time someone actually used the word weeb online or in conversation apart from Twitch chat screaming “WEEBS OUT”. Regardless, I’m not here today to talk about the relevance of the term but rather it’s meaning.
To my knowledge, calling someone who likes anime a weeb was at the height of popularity around 2015. And man did people love that term. You like Naruto? Weeb. You stay up late to watch Bleach on Toonami? Weeb. You accidentally saw three seconds of Zatch Bell! once while scrolling around TV? Weeb. Oh and how can I forget that if you dare use an anime profile picture on YouTube you’re a weeb. This shit was being used like wildfire, and it absolutely hit its peak when Filthy Frank uploaded his own video titled “WEEABOOS”. At a staggering 31 million views it was a huge fuck you to anime fans across the globe. Well, kinda. You see, the whole video is somewhat about shitting on people who like anime, but really it’s more targeted on those with no social skills who obsess over anime and make that passion incredibly annoying to those around them. At the end of the video, Frank points out that being incredibly passionate about ANY hobby and shoving it in everyone’s face is gonna put them off whether that be sports, music, whatever.
A true classic.
Unfortunately Frank built himself a proud audience of retards by this point and they paid no attention to that last part whatsoever. For the rest of the year Weeaboo was being used to describe absolutely anyone who liked anime in any fashion. In my opinion this utterly ruined this word as an insult. You see I have to say that Frank was right on the money. A weeaboo is more about an annoying fuck than it is the fact that they like anime. Dare I say the formula is as follows: Weeaboo = Likes Anime + Socially Inept. You know the type. Some loner who has never gained social skills in life. They have no idea how to hold a conversation so they just relate everything to anime such as “Oh, have you seen Elfen Lied? It made me sad, so I can probably understand how you’d be sad since your mom died Joanne”. Basic hygiene is out of the question. You’re too afraid to ask them anything like “What did you think about Demon Slayer?” because you know they’ll end up talking about it for two fucking hours rather than just providing a succinct 30 second summary that you can then bounce off of.
See this is the kinda shit I'm talking about...
I love anime, but I never feel easy seeking out a friendship in someone else who does cause I’m scared they’re gonna be a weeaboo. A TRUE weeaboo. But the problem is that’s just a logical fallacy. True weeaboos are in every hobby. Every community. Watch this. Epic Gamer = Likes Games + Socially Inept. Annoying Sportsfan = Likes Sports + Socially Inept. The socially inept part of the equation will always be the problem, and that’s not something you can escape by avoiding one community or the other so you may as well just meet whoever despite their hobbies (apart from murder) and save the judgment of their social abilities for an individual case by case basis.
What is a weeaboo to you? Have you ever been called a weeaboo? Toss your waifu pillows in the trash, take a shower, and leave a comment below!
