Harp the Wigglytuff @wigglytuffitout@computerfairi.es

another example of A Good April Fool's Goof imho:

rufflechat, a lolita fashion facebook group, has temporarily renamed itself... trufflechat

with the base joke of "suddenly, MUSHROOMS" done, it invites everyone to come play in that fungi-based space. it opens up a platform for everyone else to run with that and create their own jokes, parodies, satire, etc. and that's exactly what the community has been doing!

so in conclusion i think Travis of those McElboys has summed it up best:

"I do not prank. I believe the best kinds of jokes are the ones everyone is in on and when everyone is laughing together. Let’s all be kindly foolish and be foolishly kind!"

don't prank. instead, goof. don't prank somebody. instead invite them to come laugh with you and play in the space pshooowww https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2f9bz5_2dM (ok wrong mcelboy but still counts) PLAY WITH UUUUUUS~

ultimately when people say 'prank' they think of mean things, and i can agree with that connection. a prank is something you play on someone.

a goof, however, is something you do including someone so that they can come laugh too.

down with april fool's pranks, up with april fool's goofs, imho.

it doesn't mean april fools is only for corporations, but it's that spirit that needs to be carried through in other situations, too.

for example a delightful prank that a friend perpetuated upon their boss: writing up an (enthusiastic and flattering) fake aquarium fact sheet as if he is a rare fish species, and putting that up on the door to his office, along with DO NOT TAP ON GLASS.

actually funny, allows person to laugh at it, can be reversed/undone very quickly, not mean! A GOOD JOKE.

additionally i think corporate goofs often have the upper hand because they tend to make it really obvious that it's an april fool's joke, and for me that is an essential part of the experience. it lets the audience in on the joke, gives the audience a chance to laugh, and cuts through any lingering ambiguity.

a joke is only a good joke when everybody gets the chance to laugh tbh.

a good goof adds to experience, and doesn't take away from it.

i think oddly corporate goofs tend to be really good for this - joke teasers and trailers. i'm thinking of ffxiv's goof from last year about a mobile game for gathering that included chucking your phone into a fishpond lol.

thinkgeek i think is most successful in doing april fools tbh. they don't even deprive the audience by having all of them remain jokes! things that people go "i want that actually" get made and sold!

if the joke is going to be targetted in any way, i think it's a chance for some valuable satire, and then it still needs to play by the rules of good satire (punch up, not down)

ex., part of warframe's april fools is teasing a fake game with an overdone, over-confusing chart about which preorder gets you what, lampooning current video game preorder fuckery

unpopular opinion:

i actually quite like most of the goofs i have seen for april fools day

to me a good goof is not a prank that hurts anyone or significantly impairs their ability to use anything, can be ignored quickly and does not overstay its welcome, and has the aim to be silly instead of to shock or alarm

WHOMST WISHES TO BUY ME THIS

https://metro.co.uk/2019/04/01/straight-white-men-to-be-banned-from-comment-sections-9060431/?ito=twitter&__twitter_impression=true&__twitter_impression=true dammit metro, don't threaten me with a good time

(sadly an april fool's)

this is from the amazon page for some nacho spice flavor mealworms

youtube about a week ago decided i needed non-stop ads about wedding stuff, and especially engagement rings

.......................................now it has switched to constantly giving me ads for plan b.

i don't know what that says about their algorithms

gaelic is a very fine language of course, it's just that in my experience, it's rather like

1. imagine how you think this word is pronounced based on spelling

2. Wrong.

fuck me running i feel like absolute dogshit.

it seems like all i fucking do all day long is tread water, trying to cope and stay sane through 7-8 out of 10 pain. i'm so sick of it y'all.

alternatively, recognize the roots of april fool's day by making it truly a 'fool's day' in the spirit of celebrations from roman times on up, but typically codified in medieval era,

where the point of the holiday was to invert the entire social structure to blow off steam and enjoy yourselves with the inherent humor of topsy-turvy, also giving those in power a dose of humility and a reminder that rota fortunae may also turn for *them* and that their power is always going to be temporary.

for the record i am fine with april fool's pranks, provided they are good ones that are actually funny

hurting someone isn't funny

intentionally causing emotional distress isn't funny

creating a mess and making it someone else's problem is not funny

a good goof should bring joy and laughter, not distress. if your prank fails that test, it's a shit prank, and you should feel bad on account of being bad

ah, springtime on mastodon

the April Fool's discourse has already begun

i am perhaps far more bummed out by the knowledge that my #lolitafashion april fool's joke is not going to come out in time because my back and shoulders are throwing an absolute goddamn fit and i need to draw shit to land the joke, and releasing it text-only would end up with joke sadly splatted on the ground instead of neatly touching down on runway

boo hiss bodies suck