words Al Woods
One thing people love about YouTube is that it allows people to be as creative as possible. However, your algorithm may be recommending safe content to you that has no creativity whatsoever. What if you like your content to be a little out there? This article will look at some weird channels over the years. These videos can even inspire you to make your own content. Go create some amazing videos, consider YT Shorts views to buy, and get a following of your own.
LasagnaCat
Have you ever seen weird or ironic Garfield humor, which is popular with Millennials and Gen Z? Well, you may have LasagnaCat to thank for that. This channel’s content primarily consists of a live-action re-enactment of a Garfield comic, and then an abstract skit or music video based on the comic follows suit. One of its most popular videos is “07/27/1978,” (the videos are named after when the Garfield comic was released,) where a man talks for over an hour about how a three-panel comic about Garfield smoking a pipe changed his life. Of course, LasagnaCat has shorter videos as well.
LasagnaCat has had two seasons, with the first airing all the way back in 2008, and the second in 2017. With a nine-year gap, we wonder, will there be a third season in 2026? We hope so!
AI_Peter
One technology that’s changing the Internet in the 2020s is AI. While there are many concerns about AI art, AI has been used on YouTube to make ironic humor and weird covers of songs. One such AI-based channel is AI Peter, which live streams 24/7 AI Family Guy skits using 3D models of the characters. It’s one of those channels that blurs the line between copyright violation and fair use, so we don’t know how long it will be up, with a similar channel based on SpongeBob getting consistently taken down. AI is still a brand new frontier, so expect this type of content going forward.
Marble Hornets (and totheark)
Analog horror, found footage, alternate reality games (ARGs) are popular in weird YouTube. There have been many big channels in recent years, and perhaps they can all be traced to Marble Hornets, which uploaded from 2009 to 2014. Marble Hornets is a first-person found footage series, such as Blair Witch Project, where the protagonists encounter an entity known as The Operator, which is the creators’ take on the Internet legend Slender Man.
Alongside Marble Hornets is totheark, a channel that responded to the various uploads with weirdly edited videos chock full of hidden messages. This was back when video responses existed on the platforms. Since video responses are gone, it can be a little annoying to know which totheark video responds to which entry. However, there are wikis you can look at that will give you the proper watching order.
Super Mario 64 Beta Archive
Now, let’s flash forward to more recent analog horror and ARGs. If you’re a gamer, you have definitely played or heard of Mario’s first entry into the 3D space in 1996. While a harmless game on its own, its primitive graphics and its history of rumors (from how to unlock Luigi to how every copy is personalized,) make it ripe for horror channels.
This channel was active from 2020-2021, with it claiming to have unreleased beta footage of the game. You can find songs that claim to be early versions of the familiar tracks you’re used to, beta builds of the game, lost promotional materials, etc. Of course, all of these are fan-made and meant to invoke an odd feeling of “I’ve seen this before.” This channel is well worth checking out, even if you know you’re watching a fan project.
BookOfValis
There are many channels that cover things such as the Mandela Effect, the paranormal, glitch in the matrix stories, weird theories, iceberg videos, etc. One channel that does it all is BookOfValis, which is a good introduction to this genre of videos. One of the videos is a video about over 100 Mandela Effects that lasts for over two hours.
In case you haven’t heard of the Mandela Effect, it’s when someone remembers history, media, or has other memories different than what they actually are. The effect is named after Nelson Mandela, who people remember dying in prison in the 1980s. However, Mandela did not die in prison, became the President of South Africa in the ‘90s, and died in 2013. Some people say the Mandela Effect is proof of alternate universes, while others believe it simply shows how unreliable the human memory can be. Either way, it’s interesting to watch those videos and see if you remembered something wrong.
Arabic Ghost Hunting Channels
This is not one channel, but several. If you’re into the paranormal, you probably have watched ghost hunting videos, be it on YouTube or TV shows such as Ghost Adventures. However, one genre of ghost hunting videos that have become popular are Arabic ones. The reason is because these videos take ghost hunting to the next level, with violent encounters, creepy entities caught on tape, and high emotions. They make some of dramatic scenes in American ghost hunter shows look tame by comparison.
Whether you believe, or you think these videos are staged, they are great entertainment. So binge some of them during Halloween, or any time of the year.
Cyriak
Finally, if you’re looking for abstract animations with great music, there’s Cyriak. Their channel uploads strange animations, mainly animals transforming into abominations, accompanied with some catchy original music. The animations are so abstract, you wonder what is going on in the creator’s head.
Another awesome fact about Cyriak is that they’ve been on YouTube since 2006, and still upload videos to this day. With so many of these channels lasting for only a couple of years, it’s nice to see one this weird, and still weird, for almost two decades.
Final Thoughts
Weirdness is one of the appeals of YouTube. While many of the default content is safe, you can venture into the weird side and find some odd, creative videos, both recent and from the archives. So next time YouTube’s algorithm tries to funnel you into the safe and familiar, break out and seek the unknown. Search some of these channels or ones like them, and not only will you find videos unlike anything else, but you’ll likely discover entire new genres you never knew existed.
