With that out of the way, here we go.
Jake Paul. A household name on YouTube. Infamous for the creation of Team 10, the pool fire incident and the media van desecration, his competitive relationship with his brother, and the Alissa Violet situation - all of which cost him a lot in terms of reputation.
At the beginning of the year, after I'd written two or three posts on Logan Paul and the whole Suicide Forest mess, I promised that their names would never be mentioned on this blog again. I'm breaking that promise today because my opinion has changed, and that's okay. Opinions on people and past events can differ and fluctuate, and it's fine to recognise that as a healthy thing. I'm not denying that Jake Paul, like his sibling, has done his fair share of shitty things, and I'm certainly not about to sit here and make excuses for him. Get ready to clench because here comes the but...
I honestly think Jake deserves a second chance.
Yes, Jake. Jake Paul. A part of me can't believe I just typed those words, but that’s coming from a side of me that didn’t know all the facts or all sides to the story. I made judgements before I knew anything, and that was based solely on my dislike for Logan.
Shane Dawson decided to meet with Jake and observe him, then interview him about every topic that people did or do still have questions on. If there's one man on YouTube willing to find the biggest magnifying glass and the brightest light to put somebody under I think we all know that Shane is the guy to do it. The conclusion I took from it, which isn't all that profound, ended up making a whole lot of sense to me. It's just not that deep.
One of the first and most prominent opinions I formed is that of everybody on each opposing side, including Alissa Violet, Jake seemed to be the one that gave the most honest and genuine reaction when Shane was conducting the interview. His breathing was stunted like he was speaking before he could find the breath to help the words come out. Like he was holding everything in his chest as if it were a strain on his lungs. I know I personally feel the same sensation when I'm both anxious and trying to keep myself together. It's almost like suffocating. I think this came in response to being so open and honest, being able to share his unfiltered feelings, and he was entirely afraid of what Shane or the audience's reaction might be to that. Not only did he answer every question without hesitation, but every response is so clearly unrehearsed. He didn't attempt to embellish how he was feeling, and he admitted to the things he did without reproach or regret, and I respect that.
Over the last two years, Jake has been through months of bad press, 24-hour media coverage, lawsuits and fallouts. I think during all that, people forgot that Jake is... well, he's just a kid. Such a big thing that people constantly overlook is that Jake was young and lacked maturity. He was nineteen when he formed his company, and spent a long time living with his friends making what was perceived as funny and questionable content for their young audience. I believe that this lack of maturity mixed with 'the YouTube grind' contributed to many of the problematic situations Jake was caught up in. Including what happened with the Martinez twins and Alissa Violet. Both of which ended with Jake stabbed in the back.
I don't believe that mentally Jake is mature even now at the age of 21. I think the lack of a 'normal' childhood has caused him to use the time he should be spending learning and growing on having the fun he missed out on as a kid. This meant that he became complacent and was able to be easily manipulated by those around him, as well as manipulating who he needed to in order to get his way without realising. After Nick Crompton made the decision to leave the Team 10 house, I think Jake unknowingly lost the one person at the time that could keep his head out of the fog. And Jake being immature and probably unused to losing people, probably saw Crompton's departure as a betrayal.
The last point I'd like to touch on is the quite profound change we can see in Jake since Erika Costell's involvement in his life. Since Costell became a more permanent fixture, it's pretty clear that she's had a calming effect on him. He is far more controlled at present as opposed to the reckless, unsafe, joyriding young man we saw in the old clips. He appears focused, and determined to work on himself with her encouragement and reassurance. For me, Erika's positive response to Shane revealing he'd had a therapist accompany them really says a lot. She wants the best for him, and it's so blatant to see.
Written by Elijah Radford.
Proofread by Rhys Davies.
Meta Sentience.
23/10/2018
