This video is sponsored by Raid Shadow Legends. It's a game! Hey you, my name is Thomas 'TomSka'
Ridgewell, I make videos on YouTube and for some reason that makes people want to meet me!
Well, at conventions at least. In real life, I'm a little more... Repellent
Doctor: Here's your baby boy, Mr Ridgewell! Dad: Oh, god! Ew!!
[slam + airhorns] (my dad's name is Duncan so this is a good joke)
When I was younger I attended conventions and meetups as a fan and every time I met
someone I looked up to it kinda sucked... They'd be sat down, bored, tired, or distracted.
Young Tom: Hewwo Mr Celebwity! May I pwease have an autogwaph?
[celebrity sighs]
[rubber stamp]
It all made me feel so insignificant and to top it off I'd sometimes even have to pay for
the privilege! So, I made a pledge that if I ever reached a point where people wanted to meet me
I'd do things differently! A kissing booth?? No. I'd be standing, I'd be excited, there wouldn't
be a table to separate us and you'd never have to pay to meet me. Not to say that I wouldn't provide
plenty of opportunities to buy something, of course, but it wouldn't be mandatory nor
would you get a lesser experience if you didn't. [sirens] Security, this kid didn't buy a t-shirt! [thuds]
Since then I've worked around 65 events which is roughly 60 more than the human body is built to handle!
[stomach growls] [vomitting up lanyards]
Oh god... I can meet around a thousand people each show so it should come as no surprise that I've
got some pretty weird, wacky, and woeful stories to tell. So, without any unexpected interruptions,
let's go to tomcon- Oh no! Stop! I'm you from the future! Really? This again? Yeah...
Tom, something terrible is gonna happen if you don't promote Raid Shadow Legends...
Again... Raid Shadow Legends? Isn't that the free-to-play battle MMORPG where you summon
champions, level up skills, and battle dungeon bosses? [slap] Ah! Yes. But last time I played I
got so addicted I briefly forgot how terrible the world is... It was lovely! Oh yeah? Prove it! What
was your favorite part? The PVP arena. I was pretty good! At losing? At losing... Well
it's very easy to get back into, they give out weekly rewards and they're always updating it!
Sure, have they introduced the "Doom Tower" with "120 floors, 12 bosses, and secret challenge rooms"?
Pfft! No! [slap] Okay, yes, they have! So what happens if I don't promote Raid? Does the world end? Does my butt fall
off again? No! We just run out of money. Oh no! That's much worse! Click the link in the description now
to install Raid Shadow Legends! New players will get 50 gems, 3 energy refills, an XP booster,
an ancient shard, and the new void champion: Bulwark. You can find all your treasure in the inbox here!
Quick question. Yo, what's up? What's that? Oh, that's Deathknight. He's from the game. Nice guy
actually, quite underrated. I don't like him. Go away! Be nice to him! Go away, please? No-
You're a monster! Yeah. Now get out of here! [pathetic whimper]
So anyway, most meetups go a little something like this: Hey! Hey! I like your videos. Thanks! I like your...
Face? That was weird, I'm sorry... It's okay... Wanna get a photo? Sure! Byeee! Weee! [boom]
But while the pattern stays the same, the people I meet are all pretty unique. There's the Mumblers:
[mumbling] Haha... Yeah...
The Stumblers: Waah! [crash] Haha... Yeah...
The Repeaters: Hi! Hi! Hi! Hi... Hi! Hi??
The Scared To Meetchas: [inhales] [screaming]
The Screamers: [screaming] Aah!
The Criers: [sobbing uncontrollably] This is why i keep a handkerchief on me at all times...
And They Apologisers: I'm sorry... It's okay! I'm sorry... You're fine! I'm sorry... Are you melting?
There's The Manly Huggers: [crunch] Ow, my spine! The Handsy Mothers: [crunch] Ow, my arse...
The Fainters: Um... The Body Painters: [squelch] Nyeh...
The Unimpressed Partners: Get off my man!! and The Really Unimpressed Parents:
Who are you? No no, really, who are you? I have no idea who you are! I have NO idea- Aah! [wham]
[gasp] I'm free... I'm FREEEEE!! [fireworks explosion]
True story time, I once had a meet-and-greet turn into a beat-and-greet when a kid queued up for an
hour only to immediately slap me in the face and run away. Kid: I slapped TomSka! Hahah... [level up]
And then he queued up again just to try and slap me a second time! But ohoho no, I was ready for him!
And I put that little kid in a wristlock. Hah! Try and slap me now! [slap]
Oh right, he has two hands. Kid: I did it again! Wahey! Hahah- [boom]
Of course he has two hands, Tom, why would you even bring that up? Well, there was the time I kinda
went for a handshake with a guy who... Didn't have a hand... And you're probably wondering at what point
I realised my mistake. Was it here? Here? Here?? [mortifying piano note]
Okay, this is awkward, but what matters is that I handled it with grace! Whoops, sorry about that!
Eh, it's fine! Everybody give a round of applause To Tom for being a good person! [cheering]
Just kidding! I screamed "Oh God, no!" out of sheer panic at MY faux pas and there was just...
No fixing that situation... But at least that's the only awkward thing I've ever done. Right?
Well, there was that one time when a couple girls were showing me a group photo from the last
time we met and I noticed a guy from their group was now missing so I asked if they wanted me to
record a video message for him saying "ha ha, we're here and you're not!" and they said "no, that's okay.
He's dead." [mortifying piano note] and then there was the girl who told me her boyfriend couldn't be
bothered to queue up with her so I joked "well, you better break up with him then!"
and she did! [mortifying piano note] and I know this because I met him the next day and as an apology I let
him take a photo where it looked like he was choking me. We're even now. Oh, I guess there's also the
cosplayer who'd made an extremely elaborate prop that I just HAD to hold for a photo. No no, wait!
[smash] [mortifying piano note]
Please just... Take some money and go... and how could I forget the meetup I did in
France where I thought I'd spent the entire weekend speaking perfect French and saying
"thank you very much!" every time they walked away, but it turned out I'd actually been saying
"thank you, nice arse!" [mortifying piano note] and then of course there was my first convention ever
Where, after spending an entire weekend getting to know the really nice guy next to us, I went home and wrote
a blog post about how much his videos sucked... and he found it... So I coined what I call TomSka's Law:
Anything you say online can and will be found by the person you said it about. I wonder whatever
happened to that guy... Eddie: Uh, I've been your creative partner for seven years? Oh no! He found me again! [smash]
One thing I genuinely love about conventions and meetups though is the things you give me.
I always keep a box next to me called 'The Nice Box Of Nice Things From Nice People' where I put art,
letters, mysteriously ticking packages, and other gifts I get given and I've kept every single thing.
Except for that one signed loaf of bread; that never left the convention center, I'm sorry...
[sad violin music]
Father, why? Speaking of baked goods, I also don't eat any of the food I'm given. Not that you'd
guess that by looking at me.. [badum-tish] Aha, fat joke... [audience laughter]
this is the unfortunate result of something we refer to as the
pube-cake incident where someone gave me and all my friends home baked cupcakes! Yay!
[munching] [dramatic music]
Nope! Put that down! Don't eat that!
[slide whistle] No!! [splat]
[sad violin music] Father!!
[splat]
And unfortunately, that's not even the worst story I have about convention consumables.
One year at a convention after party I was given an unwanted drink
which had been given to a friend by a girl who had been given the drink by a
sleazy guy and of course, being the thirsty idiot that I am, I drank it!
[drinking] [dramatic music]
And, of course, it turned out that the drink had been spiked with a drug which soon knocked me
unconscious and I woke up the next morning, with absolutely no memory of the previous 12 hours,
butt-naked [fart] but at least in my own hotel room. So, don't accept drinks from strangers, kids! But also
don't give those drinks away to other people... But also don't drug people's drinks what the f- [boom]
So, why? God! Why do I do this? Why do I subject us both to these traumatically embarrassing moments?
Well, it's because meeting you is my favorite part of what I do... Judging the success of my
videos by how many hundreds of thousands of views they get makes it very easy to forget
that each and every view is a real person! A person I could walk past in the street...
And sometimes I do! And I ALWAYS make eye-contact first...
[horror music] No...
Hearing the impact my videos have had on you or the friends you've made watching them or even
just getting to make an adorkable memory with you is awesome! And I barely even notice how much my
feet hurt the whole time! He's so heavy, man, I- I can't do it no more! No, lefty, don't leave me!
Gah! Uh-oh! [smash] But I do wanna say, after a decade of meetups, I don't resent a single one of those
grumpy celebrities I met when i was younger. Being in meetup-mode is mentally and physically
exhausting and by the end of the day, I am a husk of a man. Sorry, can i just grab one more photo?
Guuuhhh! [horror music] [screaming]
Anyway, thank you for watching and I really look forward to when we can finally meet up again! Oh,
and if you just can't get enough of me, I've also made a video on my secondary channel talking even
more about conventions and the crazy things that have happened at them. See you next time!
TomSka out! [fart]