Web Video / That Dude in the Suede

"Anime may still be classed in the 'niche' market these days, but it has such variety, such potential, that I'm sure it will make it into the mainstream one day."

— That Dude in the Suede, 2008

William DuFresne is That Dude in the Suede, a laidback, sardonic otaku in a leather jacket who hails from Christchurch, New Zealand and reviews anime and anime-related things. He was one of the first people to join Channel Awesome, as well as that site's first anime critic. He was also the first to leave the site, disappearing in 2009 to go on a mission with his church, and returning mid-2011 in the midst of the site's third anniversary special.

He got his start as an AMV-maker before turning to anime reviews in blatant emulation of The Nostalgia Critic, whom he defended on his YouTube channel after Doug Walker lost his. He was swiftly added to the site when Doug found his knowledge of anime was minimal compared to that of the fans demanding anime reviews.

During his initial run, he (like most reviewers) had a distinctive set and uniform, a brown suede jacket worn at his kitchen table, backed by pink drapes. Since his return, his set has been swapped to a living room armchair and his old jacket replaced by a full black suede suit.

He hosts a variety of shows, which are as follows:

• Animenia, where he reviews specific anime and provides informative Top Ten Lists.
• AMV Heaven, where he showcases anime Fan Vids in the style of Masterpiece Theatre.
• Suede Played, which he describes as being somewhere between a straight-up review and a Let's Play of his favourite (yet silly) games. It's currently covering Ninja Gaiden Sigma.
• Fandom Stranger, formerly Anime Weirdness, where he discusses Japanese Media Tropes and related cultural phenomena.
• Suede's Stream of Consciousness, V-log esque videos where he asks the viewers about various topics, talks about progress on projects, responds to their comments, and even does a few top lists every now and again. Since renamed to Suede XS.
• Suede's Pokémon Journey, reviews of every episode of Pokémon: The Series. Episodes come out weekly, and included looks at each part of Pokémon Origins. ^note However, it's taken an unfortunately complicated hiatus due to legal troubles with the owners of the anime, ShoPro. As such it has been partially rebooted using paper cutouts.

You can see his reviews on his official blog, Days Of Suede, and find his AMVs on multiple YouTube channels as well as at this site here. You can follow him on Twitter, deviantART, blogTV, and his own website as well.

As of March 2018, Suede has left Channel Awesome again.

Due to his troubles with ShoPro (see Suede's Pokémon Journey for more details), he's since been experimenting with different types of content, including an "Hour by Hour" style of reviewing content, starting with Pokémon Scarlet and Violet in 2023.^note Hour by Hour reviews essentially blends a combination of Let's Plays and Reviews by playing a game hour by hour, and then reviewing the time he played like an episode of a show. This was done since Suede finds it difficult to either review, Let's Play, or stream an entire game, and he finds it exhausting to do commentary live, since he'd eventually burn himself out. Given his difficulties with content creation, only time will tell if this sticks for episodes beyond the Pokemon games.

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Suede's shows provide examples of:

• Arch-Enemy: Benzaie.
• Art Evolution: The art of Linkara, Suede and Jesuotaku for the Pokémon reviews was updated during 4Ever.
• All Men Are Perverts: Averted, unlike most of his co-workers, specially his rival Benzaie.
• Catchphrase: Uses some kind of variation of "Hi, I'm That Dude in the Suede".
  • He also frequently says, "Anime, man! It messes with you!"
• Double Vision: Shows up in his Top 10 Anime Openings review, his AMV episode of Animenia, his Trigun review (with 3 of him) the third episode of AMV Heaven, his recent Atop the Fourth Wall cameo (see below) and his Top 11 American Anime (twice). Unlike other uses of this trope on TGWTG, he doesn't use this to play different characters, just to show him talking to himself or illustrate gags.
• Dual Wielding / Katanas Are Just Better: In Suburban Knights (the katana used was actually real and he had to be careful not to accidentally cut anyone with it, though he hit Rob Walker in the forehead and left him with a scar) and his cameo in the Previously on… of Atop the Fourth Wall: "Rise of Arsenal #3-#4". In the latter, he's dueling a better-dressed version of himself, who also falls into both these tropes.
• Gosh Dangit To Heck: Downplayed. He just avoids swears more taboo than "crap". Unlike Linkara who doesn't use them to prove that you can be funny without using colourful words, Suede doesn't use them because he is never angry enough (though he did say that his Mormon upbringing could have been a cause).
• He's Back!: As of Suburban Knights.
• I Have Many Names: even more than PsyWeedle:
  • That Dude In The Suede: His pre-mission name. Still used in his Channel Awesome user account and blogTV account.
  • Ask That Dude In The Suede: Used in the Ask That Guy Episode 31 That Dude In The Suede Edition.
  • Iron Will/Iron Will Productions: His Anime Music Videos moniker. Referenced in the Return Trailer.
  • Aurisath: His YouTube, DeviantArt, Skype, LiveJournal and Yu-Gi-Oh! The Abridged Series forums name.
  • SuedeBlade: His Twitter account name.
  • Will DuFrense: His misspelled name in the Suburban Knights credits.
  • Suede: His post-mission name and his blip.tv account moniker.
  • Jareidan: His PlayStation Network Tag.
• Legacy Character: He never became one, but he expressed openness to the idea in his farewell video.
• Limited Wardrobe: The suede jacket, though a more formal outfit has been used on occasion post-hiatus.
• Mission from God: Literally—as a Mormon, he was on hiatus due to his scheduled missionary activities.
• Nice Guy: Even-tempered and calm, especially when compared to his peers.
• Perma-Stubble: Had one in his later pre-hiatus videos and Suburban Knights.
• Ridiculously Cute Critter: Kyuu/Cue, as of Fandom Stranger episode 1.
• The Rival: Suede's is Benzaie.
• Running Gag:
  • "What the Hell is going on? I mean what the HELL is going on?!"
  • Any depiction of his fanbase includes one comment about how awesome his curtains are.
• Shared Universe: Due to being part of Channel Awesome, and his numerous cameos and crossovers, he's part of the Reviewaverse.
• Self-Deprecation: Takes several shots at himself for being (In his own words) "a rip-off of That Guy With The Glasses" and a "Bottom-Level, Z-Grade, Intern Class Almost Nearly Semi-Celebrity In Training".
• Sincerest Form of Flattery: His very first video he states that "I'm That Dude In The Suede, I'm a rip-off of That Guy With The Glasses and proud of it", even though he eventually grew into his own style.
• Sitcom Archnemesis: Benzaie.
• The Stinger: Has had one since his Top 11 American Anime video.
• Twofer Token Minority: He was both the only Mormon and the only Kiwi in Channel Awesome.
• World of Weirdness: The Reviewaverse, weird stuff can and has happened.

Animenia

• Accentuate the Negative: His review of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, which stands out since he's normally one of the most positive reviewers on the site. At the end of the review, he whispers, "Between you and me, I actually didn't hate it that much."
• Action-Hogging Opening: Pointed out as a common trait of animes in his Top 11 Openings video, and he provides the page quote.
• Air Guitar: Does this to Trigun's theme song. He's not very good at it.
• Animesque: His "official" return to the site centers around the best of these.
• Breaking the Reviewer's Wall: Benzaie at one point kills Suede using Death Note mechanics.
• Brick Joke: In his "Top Ten Anime Villains" video. Yeah, Benzaie having that book is definitely not important...
• Call-Back: His "We should make another Star Wars sequel!" line is one to an episode of Ask That Guy with the Glasses were he's asked if glasses make people smarter, proceeds to take his off and utters the "We should make another Star Wars sequel!" line.
• Chekhov's Gun: Discussed; Suede's mind is blown during his Pokémon shorts review when he realizes that the Leaf Stone Exeggcute uses to evolve had made a blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance a minute or so beforehand.
• Chess Motifs: When the villain in Pokémon 2000 compares seeking out legendary bird Pokémon and blasting them with a giant net (Linkara compares the onscreen interface to a "crappy pre-alpha build for a tactical RPG") to a game of chess":
  Suede: Uh... no, it isn't.
  Linkara: Hey, Suede, wanna play a game of chess with me?
  Suede: Do I ever! I love chess!
  JewWario: Ooh! Me, too! I get to face the winner!
  Suede: Wait, what are you-
  [cannon cocks off-camera; Suede is caught in a net; Linkara tackles him, shouting; punches land]
  JewWario: Must be getting old. Kids these days with their battle-chess, and their ruptured spleens...
  Suede: Check... mate...
• Department of Redundancy Department: "Just be like every other internet reviewer on the internet and be a jerk to your fans!"
• DVD Commentary: His Advent Children review now has one.
• Don't Fear the Reaper: The first Bleach theme seems to have made him believe this.
• Dope Slap: "If you're watching this with someone else and they haven't guessed it, I give you full permission to give them a slap on the back of the head."
• First Installment Wins: Averted in-universe; he prefers Naruto: Shippuden, Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIG and Death Note theme songs to the first ones.
• Flat "What": Does this over Saban Entertainment's decision to change Tai's last name from Yagami to Kamiya.
• Freeze-Frame Bonus: In the Trigun review to show what the D from Nicholas D. Wolfwood stands for. It's "Dokonokuminomonjawaresumakinishiteshizumetarokakora", though in reality Yasuhiro Nightow has said various other options, such as "Daily Cigarette Intake".
• Gag Dub: In the Advent Children review, in order to sum up otherwise dull and stupid conversations
• Gag Sub: In his AMV video to show the Viewer Gender Confusion with Goku's Japanese voice.
• Gateway Series: In-universe; Suede considers Pokémon: The Series to be one for anime.
• Good Angel, Bad Angel: Had a case of this in his Trigun review.
• Halloween Episode: Top 11 Anime Villains.
• Heroic BSoD: The end of Elfen Lied sends him into one.
• Inelegant Blubbering: He considers it the correct way of crying, and he provides the page quote.
• Internal Homage: He did the "Top 11 American Anime" for his return to pay tribute to his first video. Totally not out of laziness. Not at all.
• In Name Only: He says that Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children is the story of a guy called Cloud that knows the plot of Final Fantasy VII.
• Manly Tears: Beast Wars was the first TV Show that made him shed physical tears, and tries to defend himself saying that he was only 10 years old, though it still causes him to cry to this day. Granted it was over Transmutate, so it's understandable.
• Mood Whiplash: As noted by Suede in the The Girl Who Leapt Through Time review, Mamoru Hosoda's and Mitsuyuki Masuhara's careers are this. And Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island too.
• Ominous Pipe Organ: In his "Top 11 Anime Villains" episode.
• Only in It for the Money:
  • He half-asses a speech about reviewing Trigun because he likes it and to show that anime is an underrated art form before loudly insisting that this trope is the real reason for the review.
  • This comes up again when he reviews Pokémon: Mewtwo Returns. After noting about how Mewtwo's reappearance in Pokémon: Genesect and the Legend Awakened has made him relevant again,^*This was before it became widely known that said Mewtwo was a wholly separate one. he adds: "Also, my Pokémon reviews give me the most money."
• Orphaned Series: Suede's latest Pokémon: The Series movie review is Pokémon 4Ever... released on February 21, 2014. This is owing to co-reviewer JewWario's death leaving him unsure of how to continue, though he hasn't outright cancelled the series, but put it on hiatus. His replacement for that video Jesu Otaku has outright retired from video style reviews since apart from 1 guest appearance in another Suede review, and Linkara implied he's unlikely to come back to the series as he never watched the films after the 4th.
  • After JewWario was revealed to have been a sexual predator, Suede decided to redo his reviews of the 'Pokémon'' movies. So far, the reviews of the first two movies have been remade, with Linkara coming back for those.
• A Rare Sentence: "...If Bill Murray were a teenage girl" from the The Girl Who Leapt Through Time review. It's also #145 on the list of sentences he thought he would never say.
  • 90% of them were uttered after he joined the site.
• Real Song Theme Tune: Finally revealed to be "How do you have your tea?" by Urbantramper & 10,000 Times Glorious in the The Girl Who Leapt Through Time review.
• Shown Their Work: For the Pokémon: The Movie 2000 review, Suede tracked down the air dates of certain episodes to prove the existence of a plot hole about Charizard trusting Ash.
• Soundtrack Dissonance: Put the Elfen Lied theme song as #10 on his Top 11 Anime Openings because of this. He also admits that the Trigun theme song slowly became this as the series progressed, and that the Neon Genesis Evangelion theme suffers from this.
• Spiritual Successor: Inverted; he believes The Transformers was conditioning us for the oncoming Dragon Ball Z craze.
• Sturgeon's Law: Remarked upon in-universe. He applies to animesque programs, and goes on to focus on the remaining ten percent.
• Subbing Versus Dubbing: In-universe, Suede prefers subbing except in the case of Cowboy Bebop.
• Suckiness Is Painful: A variation. Rather than causing mental anguish as per the norm for the trope, the American rap openings to Pokémon: The Series and One Piece cause Suede actual, physical pain.
• Surrounded by Idiots: Uttered when one of Suede's clones breaks the atmosphere of his Samurai Jack sketch.
• Take That!: Various aimed at Dragon Ball Z and one aimed at Negima! Magister Negi Magi in his Top 11 American Anime Video.
• Theme Tune Rap: Hates these not on principle, but because most of them are done poorly. He likes Samurai Champloo's theme, calling it "the exception that proves the rule".
• Top Ten List: Well, Top 11 lists, cataloging anime opening sequences, anime villains. and American anime.
  Suede: "Why Top 11? "Because I want to be as much like That Guy With The Glasses as possible, so that other people will watch me."
• Two Words: Added Emphasis: His response to the Trigun theme song: "Two words: air guitar."
• Waxing Lyrical: After showing several clips of angsting cloud in his Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children review.
  Suede: Crawling in my skin. These wounds, they will not heal.
• With Lyrics: Does this to Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children's score during that review.

AMV Heaven

• Metaphorgotten: In the first episode, he goes from speculating on which billionaires the AMV-maker would have to be as rich as to afford the intellectual property in the video to speculating on which billionaires make AMVs.
• Parody Episode: AMV Heaven episode 3 is a parody of Games That You Might Don't Know but That are Still Pretty Damn Sweet.
• Poorly Disguised Pilot: His Animenia episode on AMVs is one for AMV Heaven.
• Previously on…: Happens in Episode 3, mocking the instances where Buffy the Vampire Slayer used it.
• Real Song Theme Tune: Smack My Bitch Up by The Prodigy.

Fandom Stranger

Formerly Anime Weirdness.

• Anime Hair: Dedicated the first episode (then called Anime Weirdness) to it.
• Content Warnings: "Warning: the hairdo you are about to see breaks all known laws of the universe. Be advised."
• Drunk on Milk: During his review of Phoenix Wright: The Truth Reborn, he feels compelled to crack open a case of "Mormon hooch" - that is, Indian tonic water.
• Eye Scream: Played for Laughs in the Phoenix Wright: The Truth Reborn review, were his eyes burn after seeing a few clips of the musical.
• Hypocritical Humor: When he rants about a shoehorned love interest in the Phoenix Wright musical, the subtitle says he's a closet Phoenix/Maya shipper.
• Mondegreen Gag: He named the show Fandom Stranger because Return of the Phantom Stranger sounds like Return of the Fandom Stranger.
• Orphaned Series: In spite of liking the concept, Suede spent the last months before the hiatus focusing on Animenia and AMV Heaven, making this his shortest series at the time with only one episode. Understandably, it's listed as an episode of Animenia on TGWTG (possibly due to Channel Awesome's 5 videos rule). Time will tell if the show's resurrection will fix that.
• Real Song Theme Tune:
  • Return of the Phantom Stranger by Rob Zombie.
  • And, when it was Anime Weirdness, Let’s Fighting Love by DVDA.
• Suckiness Is Painful: Similar to the Animenia example, his eyes start burning after seeing a few clips of Phoenix Wright: The Truth Reborn.
• Take That!: Has one directed at Thom Yorke at the Phoenix Wright: The Truth Reborn video.
• Tempting Fate: "Sweet Justice, how can it go wrong? Oh, Crap!, why did I just say that?"

Suede Played

• Designated Hero: In-Universe: He calls Ryu Hayabusa in Ninja Gaiden Σ; "Cold-blooded killer of innocent brown ninjas", but he takes it back when he learns that the murdered ninja had "Gaping holes in his defense".
• Disproportionate Retribution: Again, it's fine to kill ninjas if they have gaping holes in their defense.
• Early-Installment Weirdness: The first version of the first episode was shot in his parents' house, instead of his new one, it also was a normal Let's Play, instead of the second version.
• Extra! Extra! Read All About It!: He recapitulates the first stage of Ninja Gaiden Σ as a news report of Ryu breaking into Murai Mansion.
• Gag Dub: Does it in the more boring parts of the game.
• Groin Attack: "OH MY GOODNESS DID HE JUST! Um... Yeah... Ow."
• Let's Play: Has described the series as somewhere between this and The Spoony Experiment.
• No, Mr. Hayabusa, I Expect You To Dine
• Real Song Theme Tune: Airbrushed by Anamanaguchi.
• Rule of Three: He falls into a trap door three times.
• Trap Door: "Ahh...trap door! My old nemesis. This trap door is evil."

Other Works/Appearances

• Aerith and Bob: When he did a fanart of an evolved Lugia, his main problem was its lack of a name. The ones he thought up were Lugiana, Fulugia and Steve.
• Always Wanted to Say That: He has no real qualm with commenters on his videos, he's just always wanted to rant about them.
• Anti-Villain: Type III in Suburban Knights.
• Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: Or at least don't completely hate one another. Benzaie's greeting to That Dude In The Suede in Suburban Knights. Though Benzaie claims that while he still hates him, Conan loves him.
• The Bus Came Back: In Suburban Knights.
• Call-Back: Benzaie making reference to his longstanding rivalry with That Dude in the Suede in Suburban Knights, which had never been brought up since Suede left two years ago.
  • In the Pokémon: The First Movie review, there's a Call-Back to the climatic battle of Suburban Knights.
• The Cameo:
  • On the Games That You Might Don't Know but That are Still Pretty Damn Sweet Sweet episode on Wiz 'n' Liz: The Frantic Wabbit Wescue, answering Ben's call to anyone play the game with him, wich Ben ignores. Spoony's cameo on the same episode was written for Suede, but he declined.
  • On Paw Dugan's Channel Awesome Dance Spectacular 3, he appears on the background with his back turned when Linkara raises his sword.
  • The Previously on… segment on the Atop the Fourth Wall episode on issues #3 and #4 of Justice League: The Rise of Arsenal; fighting with himself over the fans' confusion with his costume change.
  • On the The Spoony Experiment/Atop the Fourth Wall episode on issue #4 of Warrior, as Doctor Insuedeo, a Alternate Universe version of Doctor Insano.
  • On the Atop the Fourth Wall episode of The Electric Tale of Pikachu, returning after the Entity/MissingNo. dies. Annoyed that it was all a Pokémon reference and performing the MissingNo. glitch on his copy of Pokémon Red.
• Clip Show: The visuals for the "Suede's Goodbye" video is just every episode of Animenia sped up.
• Combat Pragmatist: In Suburban Knights, after the The Good Witch Warrior Of The Woods starts shooting lightning during a climactic battle, Suede punches her saying, "I find that quite vexing".
• Crossover: Did an AMV with Galderon17.
  • His reviews of the Pokémon movies, hosted by him, Linkara and JewWario.
• Defeat Means Friendship: Played for laughs in Suburban Knights.
• Dramatic Unmask: In Suburban Knights.
• DVD Commentary: Did one for Suburban Knights with Noah, Lindsay, Elisa, Bennett, Mathew, Benjamin, Brad Jones, Linkara, Ed Glaser and Justin.
• 11th-Hour Ranger: In Suburban Knights he joins Doug's group in the end of Part 5 of 7.
• Follow the Leader: "Neon Genesis Evangelion in 5 seconds" was originally made by Suede in 2007 as a tribute to Doug Walker's 5 Second Movies. It was uploaded to the site after he became a contribuitor.
• Freeze-Frame Bonus: In Ask That Dude in the Suede, when asked who killed the dinosaurs he claims that Kunimitsu Tezuka did it. To prove himself (due to the ridiculus yet true description of the video he gave) the screen flashes a link to a (now taken down) YouTube clip of Tezuka killing dinosaurs.
• Friendly Enemy: Despite being there to stop them from finding Malachite's Hand, he essentially lets the Critic defeat him with a Fingerpoke Of Doom before joining the team on their quest in Suburban Knights.
• Here We Go Again!: After Linkara convinces Missingno to kill itself and everything is back to what passes for normal for such a show, Suede is seen playing Pokémon Red, talking to the old man who sends you to Cinnabar Island where you can catch Missingno.
• "Hey, You!" Haymaker: Does this to The Good Witch Warrior Of The Woods in Suburban Knights.
• Homage Shot: Dedicated an entire series called They're Having An Evangelion Moment! to show clips of anime inspired by a scene in episode 24 of Neon Genesis Evangelion.
• Mad Scientist: Doctor Insuedeo on the review of Warrior issue #4.
• Malevolent Masked Men: Subverted in Suburban Knights.
• Mind Screw: "Neon Genesis Evangelion in 5 seconds" mocks the series' use of this trope.
• The Mole: Unintentional yet effective example in Suburban Knights. By getting a job with the obstacles, he was in the position to betray their best-kept secret to the heroes when no one else would.
• Nostalgia Filter: For Final Fantasy VIII, as admitted in this vlog. Further evidence arises when you look at his wedding invitation.
• Offscreen Teleportation: In Part 6 of Suburban Knights, he in NC's left when NC takes Malachite's Hand from him. He then appears in the group shot, the group is in NC's front.
• Original Character: He created a Pokémon called Dadger and his evolutions Blaxdger and Katanakuma.
• Phlebotinum Killed the Dinosaurs: According to Ask That Dude In The Suede, Tezuka did it.
• Punch-Clock Villain: The actual obstacle in Suburban Knights got a desk job, he's filling in for him.
• Real Men Wear Pink: According to this video, CR brought him into the herd.
  • He also loves Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse so much, each installment of Stream of Consciousness has a different clip of one of the shorts, as an Every Episode Ending.
• Sir Not-Appearing-in-This-Trailer: Averted in Suburban Knights. He did the voice-over at the beginning using a gruff american voice and there was a quick close up of him being masked.
• Sixth Ranger: In Suburban Knights.
• That Makes Me Feel Angry: In Part 6 of Suburban Knights,, he calmly walks to The Good Witch Warrior Of The Woods while she's shooting lightning everywhere, calmly and quietly tells her "I find that very vexing", and then punches her out.
• Troubled Fetal Position: As seen in his return trailer, Takarazuka Revue's Phoenix Wright: The Truth Reborn sends him into this.
• Unexpected Character: In Suburban Knights.
• Voice Grunting: The dialogue in "Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children In 5 Seconds" is this, with the only exception being Sephiroth's "Hello Cloud" line.

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