floppy disk 05: labubus are ugly
and an over-analysis on the timeline of “overcompensating”: what's currently on my mind
labubus are ugly
It’s time I speak my truth. I have been silent for too long as I witness a cultural phenomenon undeservingly blossoming. Before I present, arguably, my hottest take, I would like to say that as someone who used to collect questionable items (squishmallows) and is currently collecting trinkets that I will probably regret in a year or so (sonny angels and hironos), I feel like I can confidently say this with experience and without the fear of being thrown bricks at. Okay, here we go…Labubus are ugly. There I said it.
In case you are living under a rock, labubus are monster plushies with pointed ears, jagged teeth, and devilish eyes created by Pop Mart (which also is home to hironos). Despite looking like creepy, possessed dolls, they are beloved by thousands, including Rihanna, Dua Lipa, and BLACKPINK’s Lisa.
According to NBC News, labubus are Pop Mart’s best-selling collectibles, which has led to counterfeits and resales for up to $400 (they typically retail for $30 to $40). Several news outlets have credited celebs like Lisa for Labubus’ sudden explosion, which has resulted in people feening to get their hands on these plushies. I’ve seen dozens of purses and bags with these creatures. I think that consumerism and the desire to stay culturally relevant has plagued us as a society. There’s this need among some of us to be part of a trend and not feel left out.
Labubus being a blind box collectible item also fuels the illusion of exclusivity and scarcity. We buy these blind boxes for the sense of thrill and anticipation. The blind box aspect is a light version of gambling, in a way. We prayed that a box includes our top choice(s). If it is revealed that it does or doesn’t, that dopamine rush or disappointment leads us to wanting to buy more. It just results in a cycle of overconsumption.
I know that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but labubus are just plain ugly to me. Its eyes are haunting, its teeth are gnarly. Nothing about it screams cute to me. I believe some people are only buying them because of the hype. Labubus’ only redeeming traits: being a LGBTQ+ ally and anti-ICE.
adults vs overcompensating (alternatively, overcompensating takes place in an alternate dimension)
I finally succumb to the online hype of Adults and Overcompensating. Both shows being released within weeks of each other and having an ensemble of Zillennial/Gen Z characters has inevitably led to comparisons. These shows couldn’t be any more different though. Overcompensating takes place in college while Adults explore the life of twenty-somethings. Their only similarity is that actor Owen Thiele appears in both shows.
Nevertheless, after watching both shows in one sitting, I do think Adults was a better watch. I need more seasons stat with more than just EIGHT episodes. Adults is a more relatable show to me as I am too an older Zoomer. It captures the struggles of a directionless twenty year old in a post-digital world in a light-hearted but still realistic way. Its internet and pop culture references are tasteful enough that you could tell Gen-Z writers are part of the writing team. Its humor leans Gen Z without being corny or out of touch. In other words, it’s Gen Z’s answer to Gen X’s Friends and Living Single and Millenial’s Girls and New Girl.
On the other hand, Overcompensating, while being a show tinged with Gen Z aesthetics, relies heavily on sitcom tropes that it doesn’t feel original or refreshing. Its premise of a closeted gay man struggling to explore his sexuality in college would have felt revolutionary a decade ago but feels stale now. I enjoyed watching it, but at times it felt a little ingenuine and childish, made even more apparent with their characters being played by actors pushing 30. Like if the storyline of Heartstopper took place on a college campus but with the cast of Euphoria.
My biggest gripe with Overcompensating is that I could not pinpoint when it took place. Maybe the intention to make the time ambiguous and anachronistic but I found it distracting as it led to inconsistency.
At first, I thought the show was set in the 2010s due to some characters’ clothings like Hailee’s infinity scarf and corporate club outfits. Some characters are carrying iPhone 6, which would set the year to 2014/2015. But in one episode, it appears a iPhone with three camera lenses—the first iPhone with that physical upgrade was an iPhone 11—is being used to film a dancing video, most likely for TikTok, which would establish the setting at least in 2019. I know these are minuscule details to nitpick, but I think they are important when establishing time in a show or movie.
The soundtrack also doesn’t help. One of the show’s most famous cameos is Charli XCX. In episode 4, Charli performs a mini concert performing “I Love It,” “Boom Clap,” and “Boys,” the latter released in 2017. The stage Charli performed on features the iconic XCX logo that was used between 2016 and 2019 to promote several albums and mixtapes like Sucker, Number 1 Angel, and Pop 2. All of these established that Overcompensating takes place, at the earliest, in 2017. However, Charli’s attire and hairstyle is more reminiscent of the Crash era, which came about 2022.
The timing is all over the place. Normally, I would do quick research to get an answer, but I thought it would be fun to theorize a bit. My hypothesis is that Overcompensating takes place in an alternative 2020, in which Covid and the pandemic did not exist. This butterfly effect resulted in a slower fashion trend cycle than the rapid trend we see today as TikTok did not explode in popularity as much as it did during the pandemic. Charli XCX also did not release How I’m Feeling Now as that album was made entirely during quarantine, also resulting in Crash and Brat subsequently not being canon. So she remains a flop and has to resort to playing at colleges for extra money (At one point, the characters are shown listening to How I’m Feeling Now tracks, though, at a party, so that’s when my hypothesis get a little murky). It's the only conclusion that I could come up with besides the fact that the show’s creator, Benito Skinner, didn’t give a crap about continuity.
flop watch & reads
Shows, movies, and books I’ve recently enjoyed and recommend:
📺 Adults
🎥 Better Luck Tomorrow, Edge of Seventeen (1998), Sinners, The Living End
📖 Vampires at Sea by Lindsay Merbaum
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