Line #40 WebVideo/Etika


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/etika.jpg]]
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3	->''[[Music/WizKhalifa HOL]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvT0l6o9vX0 UP]]''
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5	Desmond Daniel Amofah (May 12, 1990 – c. June 19, 2019), better known as Etika[[note]]derived from a modification of the "[=EkiTa=]" cheat code in ''VideoGame/SonicBattle'' that Amofah made when he was 12[[/note]], was an American Platform/{{YouTube}}r and livestreamer known for his [[ReactionVideo reactions]] to various Creator/{{Nintendo}} games and products.
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7	A son of UsefulNotes/{{Ghana}}ian politician [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owuraku_Amofah Owuraku Amofah]], Etika worked in several occupations before transitioning to [=YouTube=], most notably as a model and rapper (going under the name Iceman Etika for the latter, although he was [[OldShame famously humiliated by his musical work in later years]]). He rose to prominence through his channel [=EWNetwork=][[note]]short for "Etika World Network"[[/note]], which was originally meant to be a collaborative effort between multiple users, although in the end, only he ended up using the channel.
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9	Etika first grew popular during the rise of ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros [[VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U]]'', often discussing elements and new developments regarding the game. His channel consisted largely of stream material, namely playthroughs of recently released games (a RunningGag of them being his low probability of finishing games he started) and [[LargeHam over-the-top]] reactions to trailers, ''Smash'' character reveals, and Nintendo Direct presentations, alongside additional edited videos. His fanbase, which is known for being ''very'' enthusiastic, is collectively referred to as the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch JOYCON]][[FanCommunityNickname BOYZ]] (and on rarer occasion, the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buqGwBnfCMU JOYCONMEN]]).
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11	In late 2018 and early-to-mid-2019, several periods of Etika exhibiting erratic online behavior took place, including the deliberate termination of both main channels he used during the time and a vast number of cryptic messages. Statements from an ex-girlfriend of his and mass speculation pointed towards the behavior being triggered by several (hypo)manic episodes in line with bipolar disorder. (A general rundown of the events can be found on [[Trivia/{{Etika}} his Trivia page]].) This culminated in him disappearing on June 20, 2019. His body was found in the East River of NYC on June 24 and confirmed dead at the point of recovery the following day, with the cause of death being [[https://abcnews.go.com/US/youtube-gaming-personality-desmond-etika-amofah-found-dead/story?id=63936521 determined by the coroner's office]] on June 26 to be suicide by drowning after jumping from the Manhattan Bridge.
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13	Following the news, an online outpouring of shock, grief and respect for Etika's memory ensued among friends, fans, media outlets and influential members of the [=YouTube=] community -- as well as public discussion regarding how his signs of illness could've gone without meaningful intervention for so long. Among the numerous reasons brought up, many referred to problems with the mental health care system in America (as Etika was hospitalized but released shortly after several times) alongside fundamental problems with how viewers react and respond to online creators' mental health struggles (as some of his fans continuously took his instances of concerning behavior for jokes, or used them to ridicule him). What most everyone agrees on, however, is this: Etika was a personality unlike any other that was gone far too soon, [[UsefulNotes/{{Suicide}} and he will be missed]].
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15	Etika's only currently existing [=YouTube=] platform is the side channel [[https://www.youtube.com/user/TR1Iceman TR1 Iceman]], which was dedicated to more chilled-out, improvised streams. Uploads of his old videos and stream highlights can be found on the channel [[https://www.youtube.com/user/lulzorify/ RoseKami]], alongside several others run by fans.
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17	His former Platform/{{Twitter}} and Instagram accounts can be found [[https://twitter.com/Etika here]] and [[https://instagram.com/etika here,]] and his still-active [[Website/{{Reddit}} subreddit]] is [[https://reddit.com/r/etikaredditnetwork here.]]
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20	!!JOYCONTROPEZ:
21	* BadassCreed: The JOYCONBOYZ have one that, while comical, is still taken [[SeriousBusiness very seriously]]:
22	-->''"No bitch nggas. No snitch nggas. No Twitch nggas. No fake Switch nggas."''
23	* BerserkButton:
24	** [[invoked]] Invoking any OldShame was this for him; mentioning 12-inch Subway sandwiches,[[note]]Etika's channel was briefly news-oriented, and a now-infamous video of that era featured him reporting on a widespread concern that Subway's 12-inch sandwiches were shorter than 12 inches.[[/note]] ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'',[[note]]He had an extensive LetsPlay of the game in the early times of his channel, and has since stated that he passionately dislikes the game.[[/note]] or his old rap career as Iceman Etika are some examples.
25	** Trying to mess with his channel's monetary flow. [[https://youtu.be/_TVlJ3WUeuE On one occasion,]] someone donated money during one of Etika's livestreams, only to try and take it back (Etika believing that the donor only wanted a shout-out for his channel and nothing else). Etika eventually went through [=PayPal=] to legally force the donor to honor the donation.
26	** Accusing him of just wanting money from his viewers.
27	* BigNo: When watching a Direct for ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'', Etika already had decided that Min Min was the best character. Upon seeing Twintelle in the Direct (who seemed [[AuthorAppeal to have hit more checkmarks for him]]), he immediately let out one of these, followed by a BigWhy or two.
28	* BigOMG: In one of his most famous (and {{memetic\|Mutation}}) reactions, he let out a slew of these when it was revealed that ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' [[VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate was coming to the Switch]].
29	* BigWhat: His reaction to seeing "''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' X ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII''" shortly before the reveal of Cloud Strife in ''Smash''. Due to its being used as a $100 donation alert for an extended period of time on his streams, it gained some memetic legend.
30	* BlackAndNerdy: Was a big fan of video games, memes, and anime. He was one of the first prominent black streamers.
31	* BrokenPedestal: He hoped to defy this with himself; though he was flattered by such comments, Etika warned viewers that maybe he ''isn't'' as cool or nice as he seems when he's not on camera, acknowledging that Internet personalities, celebrities, and other strangers have a tendency to be "fake", especially online. He warned his fans to avoid setting their expectations of him too high to avoid his true self being a disappointment.
32	* CatchPhrase:
33	** '''"NANI?!"'''
34	** "What's going on, guys? Etika ''from'' the Etika World Network here."
35	* CaughtWithYourPantsDown:
36	** His autofill for "F" became "faptitans.com", which turned out to be a ''VideoGame/CookieClicker''-esque type game with scantily-clad anime women fighting monsters in a fantasy world. Also, one of the other autofill options was a hentai site.
37	** He accidentally showed his Switch photo gallery, which was full of NSFW in-game photos of [[VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2 Mythra]].
38	* ChekhovsGunman: [=BobJones=] became a sponsor when Etika fights [[VideoGame/{{Undertale}} Sans]] for the first time. [=BobJones=] was later partly responsible for Etika watching a "questionable ''Minecraft'' video".
39	* ChewingTheScenery: He was well-known for his reactions to trailers, especially for ''Super Smash Bros.''
40	** Taken to ridiculous levels with the ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' section of the [[UsefulNotes/ElectronicEntertainmentExpo E3]] 2018 edition of WebVideo/NintendoDirect, where he broke his shelf during his reaction to [[VideoGame/MetalGear Snake]]'s return to the series. When Ridley was revealed in the same Direct, Etika picked up a piece of the shelf he had broken and destroyed the rest of the shelf with it.
41	* DisappearedDad: Downplayed. Etika's father had his hands full with his political work in Ghana, so his mother primarily raised Etika and his siblings. However, Etika said that his father was a good dad and a good role model whenever he ''was'' around.
42	* DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength: [[https://youtu.be/JCYdsBB4EK4?t=125 While Etika was reacting to another reaction video.]] In said video, [=AfroSenjuXL=] ripped his shirt in excitement upon seeing that Joker from ''VideoGame/Persona5'' would be DLC for ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate''. Etika tried to do the same thing on the [=ZeRo=] shirt he was wearing, and easily ripped it open despite being perfectly calm. Etika even said "Oh my God, I'm so strong now!" after it happened, as if he wasn't expecting it to be that easy.
43	* DownerEnding: [[GoodbyeCruelWorld "I'm Sorry"]], in which Etika talks about his struggles with mental health and how he doesn't expect to live much longer. Sure enough, a few days after the video was posted, his body was found, with the coroners confirming his cause of death was suicide by drowning.
44	* EpicFail: At the end of his first stream of [[VideoGame/{{Minecraft}} the 2b2t server]], after spending the whole play struggling to find a way out of spawn and to meet up with [=FitMC=], [[MissedHimByThatMuch he dies and Fit was less than five minutes away from reaching him.]] Cause of death? [[TooDumbToLive AFK when he thought he was safe.]]
45	* EverybodyHasStandards:
46	** He was not happy when people asked for refunds after donating, as it feels rude/disingenuous and shows lack of frugality. In one case, Etika suspected that a donor that wanted a refund was only doing it to advertise their own channel, so Etika went through [=PayPal=] to legally force the donor to honor the donation.
47	** After watching a video of [[DomesticAbuse a Twitch streamer beating his pregnant wife in front of their kids while streaming]], he said that joking about this sort of thing wouldn't be funny.
48	** He was appalled and infuriated about the swatting incident that got an unrelated man killed and that the person who called for the swatting [[NeverMyFault deflected responsibility]]. It made him so mad that he stopped watching the dude's interview with Keemstar mid-video and ended the stream right then and there.
49	** While reacting to [=6ix9ine=]'s arrest (which involved gangs and unnecessary violence, and he was going to be charged at a minimum of 25 years or possibly get sentenced for life), he warned his viewers to stay out of gang business for exactly these kinds of reasons.
50	* ExplainExplainOhCrap: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2_7B-Bn7-s When explaining the situation of his apartment elevator being out of order for six months]], he noted that he would only be staying for 12 more days before moving and mentioned coming across and sympathizing for a man who had a lot of stuff to move by himself and would have to do so up and down flights of stairs in 90-degree weather. He then eventually read a comment asking how he himself would move with no elevator, at which point he realized that [[OhCrap he would be following in the other man's path]].
51	* GenreSavvy: Two minutes into ''Manga/ThePromisedNeverland'', he initially dismissed it as an anime aimed towards children due to the lighthearted moments among the kids at the beginning, but then immediately retracted that statement, suspecting that the light tone was to catch viewers off-guard with {{Surprisingly Creepy Moment}}s at [[FirstEpisodeTwist the end of the episode]] or at least soon, since that was how ''Literature/GoblinSlayer'' started.
52	* GratuitousJapanese: Etika sometimes peppered his speech with Japanese, owing to his anime and video game fandom. When he meshed this with his usual [[LargeHam hammy manner of speech]], the dissonance heightened the comedy.
53	* HamAndCheese: [[invoked]]His live reaction videos tended to include screaming and exaggerated movements, including destroying things around him when his excitement got too intense.
54	** When Cloud was announced as DLC for ''Smash 4'', Etika grabbed long strips of stuffing paper on the ground while throwing them around his room. He even lampshaded how loud he was being, saying, "I'm getting kicked out today!"
55	** While reacting to the E3 2018 ''Super Smash Bros.'' Direct, Etika ended up fiercely hitting one of his shelves so many times that it broke apart into pieces. When Ridley was announced at the end of the Direct, Etika broke what was left of the shelf with another part of the shelf.
56	** When Isabelle was announced for ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', he threw bottles of lotion to the ground, which smashed across his floor.
57	* HellYesMoment: When he beat [[VideoGame/{{Undertale}} the Genocide run]].
58	-->'''Etika:''' '''''[[LargeHam UNGGHHHHHH!! DETERMINATIONNNNNNNNN!!]]'''''
59	* HypocriticalHumor: One of the pillars of the JOYCONBOYZ creed was "no Twitch niggas". Guess where he started streaming after being kicked off [=YouTube=]?
60	* IHatePastMe: A lot of his past endeavors fell under OldShame for him, ''especially'' his time as a battle rapper named Iceman Etika.
61	* JumpScare: Humorous variant.
62	** One of his former donation alert sound effects was a ''really'' loud soundbite of his initial reaction to VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}} being confirmed for ''Smash'', and it popping up out of ''nowhere'' during his streams startled him on multiple occasions.
63	** Etika lampshaded this during a playthrough of ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub''. As things start to [[DisguisedHorrorStory take a turn in the story]], one of his donation sounds pops up, prompting Etika to remark how his donation sound effect is way too loud.
64	* LargeHam: Even in videos that weren't live reactions, he tended to be quite loud, quite vocal, and quite intense in defending what be believed in.
65	* LovableSexManiac: He openly enjoyed sexualization of female characters in video games. He talked about receiving footjobs from [[VideoGame/FireEmblemFates Kamui/Corrin]] (calling her his "barefoot waifu"), and was [[CaughtWithYourPantsDown caught accidentally revealing his Switch folder full of NSFW artwork]]. [[MoodSwing And then it stopped being so lovable]] when he starting spamming his Twitter and [=YouTube=] with porn during a mental breakdown.
66	* MoodWhiplash:
67	** The tone of his videos would rapidly shift from upload to upload. For example, these three videos released consecutively: [[VerySpecialEpisode "Nintendo Visits a Bed Ridden fan and Brings him Smash Ultimate!"]], [[HeadTurningBeauty "BOWSETTE IS TAKING OVER THE INTERNET. (Princess Peach + Bowser)"]], [[ToAbsentFriends "Rest in peace to our brother, Chris Taylor, aka @SpookyWoobler"]].
68	** The ending of his famous chargeback rage video:
69	--->"Thank you for tuning in. Just a small message. Take care of yourselves, have a good one, and '''''[[SuddenlyShouting SUCK MY DICK]]'''''."
70	* NWordPrivileges: Discussed. Etika (who was African-American) has frequently dropped the N-word (Mainly the "Nigga" variant) in videos and made jokes about giving or revoking N-word permission cards from his viewers, even if they were not black.
71	** At one point, in November 2018, he was suspended by Twitter, and demonetized by [=YouTube=] and Twitch for using the N-word, leading to a CreatorBreakdown.[[invoked]]
72	* RageQuit:
73	** After receiving a donator's message about how his mother had recently passed away, Etika (who was drunk) went on a fifteen minute-long tangent expressing condolences to the donator and talking to his viewers about appreciating their mothers. [[FailedASpotCheck He didn't read the whole message]], in which the donator followed up the news of his mother's passing with a joke about her sentiments on Subway footlongs (the MoodWhiplash made it seem like he was lying about his mother's passing). [[RunningGag After missing a couple of follow-up donation messages from the chat telling him to read the rest of the message]], Etika eventually realized this, and [[TranquilFury silently smashed his table, stood up and faced away from the camera in anger]] (as his own mother had also passed away in his youth) for several minutes before ending the stream.
74	** After feeling like his NWordPrivileges were being taken away, Etika got his own [=YouTube=] channel banned by uploading porn until [=YouTube=] flagged his channel as toxic.
75	* ReactionVideo: He was very well-known for his live reactions to Nintendo game announcements, to the point that other live reactors on [=YouTube=] and Twitch wondered about his responses in particular and would go see archives of his reactions when their own livestreams were done.
76	* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: The "eviscerations" he partakes in elevate this to an art form, and always result in the victim of said evisceration having their public image irreversibly ravaged. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAtwCvUO4cY&t=30s See this as an example.]]
77	* RunningGag: His habit of stalling during streams due to being easily sidetracked.
78	* SanitySlippage: From when he got demonetized for saying the N-Word in 2018. It got increasingly worse in early 2019, and sometime after the Keemstar interview, [[DespairEventHorizon it had evolved into sheer hopelessness]].
79	* SayMyName: One of his most famous reactions involved him repeatedly shouting "Mewtwo!" when the Pokémon was announced to be returning to ''Smash'' as DLC for ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU''.
80	* SchmuckBait: While playing in [[VideoGame/{{Minecraft}} the 2b2t server]], Etika was advised by the chat to find a Nether portal, but the chat only told him later that Nether portals closer to spawn tend to be traps. When Etika found his first Nether portal, the chat warned him that it was definitely a trap. Etika heeded their advice, but panicked and went in anyways when he saw a [[TheDreaded diamond-armored player]] approaching him. Needless to say, it turned out to be a trap (as in, the Nether portal in the Nether is blocked off, making the player unable to step out of the portal), but fortunately for him, some friendly players pushed him out and freed him soon after.
81	* SigningOffCatchphrase: Often signed out with, "I'll talk to you in the next one. Take care of yourself. And of course, as usual, please have yourself a damn good one."
82	* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Subverted. Initially, he felt mixed about [[MsFanservice Mythra's]] TamerAndChaster redesign in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' as a Spirit. He later changed his mind and said that he preferred Mythra's updated design to her original one.
83	* TrademarkFavoriteFood: His was Twizzlers. After his death, fans memorialized him with packs of Twizzlers.
84	* TrashTheSet: At his [[LargeHam hammiest]], he had an affinity for destroying any nearby shelves or items. The reveal of the roster in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' saw this at its most intense -- as more fighters were revealed, Etika pounded on his shelf so much that the shelf eventually broke. When Ridley was revealed as the first new fighter at the end of the presentation, Etika promptly smashed what was left of his shelf with a broken part of the same shelf.
85	* WeirdCrossover: Upon learning of the [=2b2t=] anarchy server on ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'', he looked up [=FitMC=]'s channel, a well known [=2b2t=] player, and sought out his help while trying out [=2b2t=] for the first time. Considering Etika [[TheComicallySerious (un)seriously]] tried to distance himself from ''Minecraft'' out of [[OldShame embarrassment]] and tried to deny still liking it, this "crossover" between him and the [=2b2t=] server and [=FitMC=] was unexpected.
86	* YouHaveGotToBeKiddingMe: He was incredulous at the end of an ''Undertale'' Genocide Run when he saw the first attack from the SNKBoss, saying "that's not the fight!" over and over. It ended up taking Etika several hours to win.
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Context WebVideo / Etika