Alright, Collectors, allow me to introduce you to my newest YouTube obsession, the web series “i can’t even.” This series is the brainchild of Australian VCA graduates Hayley and Alyce Adams, twin sisters who have created a delightful nerdy comedic series about Em (Louise Cox) and Lex (Tiana Hogben), two fangirls who have a series of geeky adventures (or sometimes, misadventures) while living together. The inspiration came from the creators’ own experience in the fandom favourite social media platform of Tumblr, so the best thing about the series is that the writing is written in fluent fangirl.

Example A:

Fun fact: I’ve had that conversation with my flatmate.

The series has six episodes (all available on YouTube here), and each sketch is between three and six minutes in length. Though the episodes are short, they are a cohesive look at the life of a fangirl, covering a variety of fandoms (Star Wars, Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, Twilight, and more) and fangirl dilemmas (meeting celebrities, book addictions, confessing to your status as a Twihard). Not only is the scope of the series relatable to fangirls, but the writing, again, is humorous, witty, and above all, it speaks to the fandom(s). 

Example B:

(In which Em is me.)

As much as I could wax eloquent about the writing and how amazing it is, I’d also like to point out the more technical aspects of this series. The cinematography is open, welcoming, because really, the story is about us joining Lex and Em in their home. The camera work reminds us of that. Also, everybody slow clap for i can’t even.‘s sound manager, because the music used throughout the series keeps us lighthearted but reminds us of famous film scores (I particularly noticed this in the episodes “Hogwarts Forgot My Letter” and “Join the Dark Side”). The resulting combination of Hayley and Alyce’s vision for the sketches with the exceptional production is a wonderful series that evokes the deepest of feels from my fangirl heart.

My particular favourite is the episode “Book Addicts Anonymous.” As a bibliophile, I’m not ashamed to say that a friend or two had threatened me with intervention when I was sucked into Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments and didn’t emerge for days. A close runner-up is the tongue-in-cheek “Edward Cullen Won’t Stop Stalking Me,” which touches on the most delicate of fangirling topics: those fandoms you just don’t talk about. 

It’s a beautiful thing when people create art out of their passions, and I can’t describe how lovely it is to see a series like this one, created by and for fangirls. Every fangirl has felt the sting of a geeky culture that caters to men, and the Adams sisters are changing the shape of that culture by creating a voice that says “hey, we’re here too, and we’re awesome.”

Ok, so to sum up i can’t even.: fangirls + plentiful pop culture references + sarcasm = the best thing I’ve watched since Orlando Bloom reenacted “They’re Taking the Hobbits to Isengard“.

Watch this. Watch this now.

Crossing my fingers & toes for a season 2,

-The Collectress

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You can follow i can’t even. on their Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, Facebook, and Youtube channel.