- Should we be scared of virtual vloggers?
- Let's talk about that.
(retro music)
(fire roars)
Good Mythical Morning.
- A change is happening on YouTube
and it has nothing to do with PewDiePie
or advertising boycotts.
No, we are talking about virtual vloggers
and it could spell the end of our careers.
- So the question today is how real is this?
How concerned should we be?
- Are you trying to be ironic, how real is this?
It's not real at all, - No but I'm--
- that's the problem. - I'm effortlessly ironic.
Let's look at some examples right off the bat.
I wanna show you Japanese virtual vlogger,
she's gained over 200,000 subscribers
since last October with her daily vlogs.
Let's watch one.
(speaking Japanese)
- Hi.
She calls herself a virtual YouTuber.
(speaking Japanese)
- Heart-fluttering moments.
I haven't had enough.
- She's getting anxious.
(speaking Japanese)
- You're welcome.
(speaking Japanese)
- Okay.
(speaking Japanese)
- Yes. - What?
So she's weirding people out
- Hold on. - and guilting people
into watching. - I got a heart-fluttering
moment when she asked me if, if I, I feel moved by that.
- If it was okay for her to like,
is it okay for her to like you?
- Yes, I want her to like me.
She's sad without me.
- No, that's not, it wasn't the question.
The question is is it a, yeah, I guess
that was the question. - Yes, yeah,
and I'm not making this up.
I gave-- - Does she have the capacity
to like anything?
- I gave myself over to this experience
and I saw my future flash before my eyes.
That girl is the future.
- And you're with her?
Dude, this stuff's wrong, man, this doesn't seem right.
- I'm, hey, I'm not--
- You've got a family.
- I'm not making judgments, man.
- I am.
- I'm just letting myself get caught up in this.
- So that one felt a little weird, you know,
in her Matrix-y white space.
- What about Barbie?
- You know Barbie's getting in on this.
- Barbie has a YouTube channel
with almost two million subscribers.
She releases a vlog or a YouTube challenge
a couple of times a month and, every once in a while,
her boyfriend Ken shows up.
Let's watch Barbie Vlog.
- Hey guys, so the number one request in the comments
has been a Ken does my make-up task.
- Oh, of course. - So, just for you.
- Hey guys. - There he is.
- Hey, Ken!
- No one taught Picasso how to paint.
- He's got a pocket tee.
(speaks French)
- [Barbie] You're so strange!
- It's so much fun.
- [Barbie] You think you're done?
- Let's see it. - Okay.
- Make-up challenge reveal!
(Rhett gasps)
- Oh my gosh.
- Look at that, like just such a good--
- It is so cute.
- Yes! - You like it?
- Yes, it's a cat.
- Well, of.
- K's so good at make-up.
- Of course he is.
- I thought it was gonna be like
the other boyfriend vlog things.
- It's a cartoon.
- I thought it was gonna be all messy
and then turns around and she's a cat!
This is twice a month?
It should be everyday!
- I'm sorry that I'm not able to give myself over
to this in the way that Rhett is but--
- I'm so scared. - That was a good cat.
- It's so much better than what we do.
- I don't--
- There's so many mistakes in what we do.
- This,
it seems like that was a live performance that was then
motion-captured - Yeah.
- or something. - It was probably
some actors. - There's actors involved
behind the scenes but, still, I'm not--
- Good actors.
- But this one, I don't know, this one might be better.
Ami Yamato had her channel since 2011,
has over 50,000 subscribers, she's from London,
and she inserts herself into the real world.
Let's watch.
- This little fella just stands here guarding
the Toho Hibiya building.
But, if you're a Godzilla fan, coming to Tokyo
- I am. - and you're hoping
for something more impressive,
- See she's walking around but - don't let this
- she's not walking around. - disappoint you
because - I don't know.
(Godzilla roars) - That's real footage
of a Godzilla, right?
- It's a, that's not
actually Godzilla is it? (speaks Japanese)
- No, it's, but it's a real statue.
- And now she's speaking Japanese to it?
(speaks Japanese)
So, I don't know exactly--
- I wanna know more about her life and her trips.
- Well, yeah, exactly. - Just a little,
just a little peek into that place that she's,
where is she?
Where was she?
- Well, she was in Japan but she's from London.
- But, specifically, where in Japan?
- Tokyo.
- Whoa!
- [Link] Rhett really wanted to do that one.
- You weren't really taking my,
you weren't really taking - Yeah, sorry.
- the bait there, man.
Well, Japan but specifically. - If you were,
if you were virtual.
I'm sorry you really had to beg for that one.
- Oh yeah.
You made that hard. - I don't know,
I feel a little threatened by that one
because I'm like "Wow, obviously, you know,
"there was, she was in
"the real world, man!" - Right, and what--
- And if you at Godzilla out of the corner of your eye,
I felt like she was real.
- You can begin to think that this is all real
and the thing is is actually this isn't that hard to do.
You can do this if you have
a little motion-capture software yourself.
Which we have come across.
- Yeah, so, I've got a webcam here and
this is going to calibrate to me.
There's lots of different characters, given the software
that we're using, that you can choose from.
I've made my choice.
Now let's see how this feels.
Hey guys, so, I'm here in the outdoors
just flipping my bangs around.
- Hi. - I've totally, hi.
- Let me, I wanna speak, let me speak to you.
- My, I can't move my arms so,
- Hi lady.
- That's not gonna work.
Hi.
- I could get used to this, Link.
I could get used to being, you being her.
- This is not a one-- - Where's, you--
- This is not a one-on-one chat,
this is my vlog channel.
- Well, make it, let it - And welcome to it.
- be one-on-one.
You need a jacket.
It looks cold where you're at. - Yeah.
I left my jacket back in - Hold on.
- that glowing cabin. - Your voice is too Link-like.
- I left my jacket back in this glowing cabin.
- What are you, what are you up to today?
- I've got, my right eye has kind of a problem.
- You might need, - Now my left eye.
- you might need to see a doctor.
- I can't, I can't keep my, both my eyes open,
I'm so sleepy.
- Did you just get some kind of injection on your face?
- I'm so sleepy, it must be the hypothermia kicking in.
I'm awake now!
- You have so many bows.
- I love bows.
I make them in my cabin, I sell them on Etsy.
- Wow.
- Any more questions for me? I'm kind of--
- What's your name?
- My name's Rotunda.
(Rhett and crew laugh)
- Which is, I think, also like, it's like stairs
that, I don't know what they are.
What is a rotunda?
It's like a lobby with stairs?
- Yeah.
- It is a great place to be.
My arms are so stiff.
Okay, I'm exhausted, thanks for liking,
commenting, and subscribing!
Oh man.
This is actually more difficult
than just being a normal vlogger.
Why don't you give it a shot.
- I'm very, I mean I was kinda
into that, Link, - Slap, slap that.
- I'm not gonna lie to you.
- Into the outfit maybe?
- Hey, guys.
- Hey, you're a burger face.
- I'm Hell Burger.
Welcome to, welcome to Hell.
I'm in charge now.
Welcome to my channel.
- Oh, goodness, what--
- I've got, what--
- You see, I think I'm talking to you too like it's a chat.
- Hey buddy, welcome to my channel.
- Hey, call me buddy. - You like Hell?
You like burgers?
Cause we got both!
- I love your fry-brows, move those around.
- Yeah!
Look at my fry-brows.
- Do you like singing songs?
Sing like a burger song.
♫ Hey, welcome to Hell!
♫ Hey, what's that smell?
♫ It's the burger.
That's my song.
I taste of burger constantly.
And I am burger so I taste myself.
- Look to your right or your left, I wanna see some
profile in this burger. - That's to my right.
And that's to my left.
Hell on both sides.
Hell everywhere.
Disobedient burgers and hot dogs and foodstuffs.
I'm also dirty good to Satan.
So,
- Alright, you--
- How many subscribers do I need?
- Zero is how many you deserve.
- Okay, are you my first subscriber?
- I'm your first subscriber, we're talking--
- Thank you for liking-- - I think you're,
I think the burger's getting pretty well done at this point,
- I wish you would just-- - we should probably
shut it down.
What is that?
Somehow the burger--
- I just discovered a new skill.
Wide face.
- I think the burger's getting well done at this point.
- Okay, bye.
- I don't think I would subscribe to that channel.
- Really? - No,
I'm not too threatened by
- That wasn't compelling?
- by hot burger.
- Well, now here's the thing, this is only the beginning
because, as soon as AI is sophisticated enough,
you won't need a person involved at all.
You just have the AI engine with the visual
and you've got 100% virtual vloggers.
I mean, this is a little taste of what Good Mythical Morning
could become in the future.
- Good Mythical Morning.
- Thank you for making us a part of your daily routine.
Today we're gonna do a little
- Yes, yes we are. - reminiscing about what
YouTube used to be like.
- Remember back when humans used to have to talk
and do things like, even on this show,
there were two stupid, imbecile humans.
- Yeah, I remember those guys
with their hair. - Behind a desk.
- And they would, they actually ate stuff, the losers,
they needed nutritional sustenance just to stay alive,
do you remember that?
When they used to do that?
(both laugh)
You remember that? - Virtual joke!
- Losers.
(Robot laughs)
- I'm glitching.
- Yeah, you're glitching again.
- Little bit. - It's embarrassing.
- I still have a little bit of human in my mouth area,
I'm a rotten human mouth but the rest of me is total robot.
Oh my goodness.
I'm so much fun, having so much fun.
- That's something I been meaning to talk to you about is--
- My mouth?
- Yeah, your mouth.
Yeah, it's--
- It's the last part of me that's human.
- Will you let me nibble at it?
Because--
- I don't think that's, that we have the capability
in this virtual environment.
- Okay, well.
- For nibble interaction.
- Alright, well that's enough reminiscing for today.
- We're going to have to end the show.
- Yeah, we have to end it right now.
- As good as it has been.
- The way we always do.
- Thanks for liking, commenting, and subscribing.
- You know what time it is.
- Hello, my name is Ronnie and this is Quincy
and it's time to spin the Wheel of Mythicality.
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Rhett and Link logo merch over at rhettandlink.com/store.
20% discounts on sweatshirts, T-shirts, posters, wristbands.
If it's green and it's got this logo on it,
it's got a deep discount.
- Click the Good Mythical More,
we're gonna play Chicken Stream.
Chicken Scream.
Not Chicken Stream, that's a different game.
- We're play that later. - Chicken Stream.
Take and Make, take a still from this episode
and make us guests of honor at a tickle party.
- Oh goodness.
- Post it with hashtag #takeandmake.
Don't tickle us too much, though.
Click on the left to watch our show after the show,
Good Mythical More.
- [Link] Click on the right to watch another episode
of Good Mythical Morning.
- [Rhett] And make sure to check out our new channel,
This Is Mythical, by clicking the video at the bottom.
- [Link] Thanks for being your mythical best.