There’s no hiding that this post is a bit of a corrective measure because I come off as very harsh to Threes because of who I talk about most frequently. Charlie is a good example of a healthy Three, but I kept putting him off because he’s so normcore it wraps back around to being remarkable. He’s nice. He’s got a healthy morning routine. He’s incredibly funny. He’s got an environmental consciousness themed slime plushies line. If it turns out he steps on puppies, im gonna be real upset.
From the distance that I watch him at, Charlie isn’t terribly confusing, but he does have pronounced quirks that can be pointed to as signs that he belongs to the Three archetype. Charlie is an improv artist, weaving into and out of jokes and stories very quickly. He’s got some of the type Three shapeshifter gene, with a touch of the helper-oriented Two wing that makes him more attentive and engaged with his immediate environment. He’s got an eye for other peoples’ talents and is very good at spotlighting what they are. He likes playing with persona and storytelling collaboratively with people. He’s attentive to the energy of the room and is good at balancing things out based on snap decisions and instincts. He’s got a very well-managed image, to the point where someone watching him might not think of him managing his image at all. That last bit sounded sinister, but it’s worth noticing that his PR instincts seem to come very easily; it’s one of his more in-built skills.
This is an interesting one because we’ve got a Schlatt (8w9) Ted (definitely core 2, still thinking about wings) and Charlie (3w2). If we add in the type Eight growth point (Eight goes to a very devoted and provider-like Two as growth) there’s a surprising density of Two-energy in this trio, on top of all their talent as entertainers.
Both Ted and Charlie are good at playing with Schlatt while also being accommodating to his feelings. Schlatt can be delicate, in the sense that small things can set him off, including being called delicate. Ted and Charlie both have a good enough read on his feelings to know when to push as well as when to stop, all without coming off as babying. Schlatt has a lot of raw, reactive talent, so having two people who are actively invested in his wellbeing gives him a good environment to work in.
Charlie is just happy to be here. He can handle the socially conscious role of co-host when they’ve got guests on as well as handle The Bits when he needs to bust out his improv side. Charlie takes on a bit of a Freudian superego role, paying attention to the emotional meta of what makes a good show and balancing out the energy in whatever direction it needs intuitively. (Basically they’re right to be concerned that episodes without him might be like driving without brakes.)
Ted has similar priorities to Charlie, just slightly different instincts. He’s the technical host of the podcast so his role in steering the ship is more explicit, so that’s where he’s at most often, making sure things run smoothly. He can get tunnel vision when he’s concerned about a certain thing (the show being good, the guest being comfortable, the show following a structure, the bit being funny) so having a pair of invested co-pilots was very good for him.
Chuckle Sandwich is two explicitly caring people and one implicitly caring person with a heart too big to hide (despite his many desperate efforts.) Applied well, care is the beginning of competence. It means you give a damn about your output and you are invested in your impact on people. All three of these boys are powerhouses and they managed to pull together a podcast where I wouldn’t have had to be aware of them before listening, which isn’t always the case for youtuber/streamer podcast content.
thoughts on why there aren’t more type 3s in the mc sphere of content creation? too ambitious and they don’t think it’s legitimate enough? it seems like it would be the perfect conduit for admiration.
This is a goodass question because there’s a lot that goes into it.
Every new crop of people in the YouTube sphere is going to come down to a bit of randomness, so what I’m about to say is going to be wildly unscientific sample-size wise. Still, this is a good opportunity to compare types, because there does seem to be a trend here. I’m going to be comparing the Threes we’ve got to the oddly prominent Twos and Nines in the YouTube space.
Pure interpersonal well-wishing and admiration is actually more of a core Two thing, since they’ve got the drive to feel ‘loved’ and bonded with people. Twos tend to do surprisingly well on YouTube and elsewhere because of their ability to connect with and lead their audience. Threes want to be well thought of, but that desire is tied with the will to feel effective in the world, which is why they usually want to be admired for their achievements instead of in general; they want to be affirmed in the worth of their own actions. (Underneath it all Threes do want to be affirmed of being innately lovable apart from their work, but that’s usually saved for their personal lives.)
Nines can be hard workers that like a stable flow of activities and people to interact with, which plays nicely with the chill content cycle of Minecraft content. They can be very happy with the relaxing, hamster-on-a-wheel loop of Minecraft, becoming absorbed in the slow (or fast for the PVP’ers out there) pace of the game. While Nines can also be strategic and competitive, they have a much greater tolerance for gameplay plateaus, and can have a bit more of the ‘it’s the journey not the destination’ mindset. This mindset can also apply to the YouTube cycle itself.
Minecraft is a game primarily associated with exploration and self-set goals. You kind of have to love the grind and be willing to set your own pace, as well as self-validate when you do something in-game (short of beating the ender dragon, but that’s one thing in an entire game.) My sense is that this round of Threes gravitate more towards using Minecraft as a means to an end rather than settling into it as a full-time grind. Minecraft is good for that because it is a sandbox that you can mod to hell and back again, but when I think of content done in Minecraft by the Threes that I’ve seen, it’s usually used as a stage to enact a vision rather than something purely open-ended.
Charlie uses a lot of the games he plays as a backdrop for his Improv so he’s got a lot of flexibility in how much milage he can get from a game, Minecraft included. Wilbur has (independently) used Minecraft as a sandbox for social experiments and then transitioned into roleplay later, using it as a way to interact with other people. Aside from ambition and esteem, I think some Threes just get restless in the game compared to the other things that they could be doing instead, so they’re less likely to center themselves on it.
Threes tend to have the workaholic equivalent of restless leg syndrome, wanting to keep themselves busy with something that they feel is worthwhile distinct and engaging, since they basically think of themselves as their work. Their work feedback loop can make them feel whole and alive, so it's actually kind of healthy for them to be willing to step away from things that make them feel stuck. If Threes have a realistic sense of what performs well and they value attention, they probably wouldn't dismiss Minecraft for not being a 'prestige game', but it also might genuinely not be their pace.
i've been looking through your charlie tag - i was wondering if you still had the same opinion, seeing as it's been a while since you last mentioned him. (especially with him and grace most likely breaking up recently) also idk if you'd want to do an analysis on baghera (the person who he's rumoured to now be dating) but most of her content isn't in english so idk how that would work for you lmao
As it stands I have no updates on how I've been thinking of him, I haven't been watching his friend interaction content as much as the odd solo game stream edit. I think my approach has been "fond but suspicious" for a while. I have a sense that I "know that I don't know" more clearly with him than some others.
I don't think I know enough about Baghera to be able to give any meaningful breakdown of her character, but I hit up the personality database and someone had her logged as a 7w6, and I can kind of see that. I tend to struggle with culture and language differences the most when it comes to first impressions and getting a sense of type through those factors so that's a very tentative, borrowed guess.
thoughts on charlie slime and wilbur interactions?
Wilbur and Charlie are a pair of Threes with different wings, Wilbur with a pretty heavy Four wing and Charlie with slightly more of a Two wing. Both are hard workers and want to keep busy with projects, so they tend to meet when they're in motion.
They both share a kind of chamelion instinct, which they both get to have fun with when they're recording with eachother and doing bits. Wilbur has said that Charlie 'gets' his humor and plays along well, which is probably a relief for him since he can struggle with how his humor lands with people. Charlie and Wilbur also share a background in non-comedy roleplay so they can dig into the drama aspect of bits as well-- they can throw themselves into something really moody and intense for a bit of drama if a video needs it.
I don't have a strong sense of how they are off-camera, which while that may be true for everybody I feel like it's especially true for a pair of image-concious storytelling Threes. They're similar but they're not so similar that it causes friction, so they've got good on-screen chemistry.
