Homestuck Sharpie Bath

The Homestuck Sharpie Bath is an alleged fandom occurrence in the Homestuck fandom that happened at Anime Expo in 2011. That year, the convention was held in Los Angeles, California from July 1, 2011 to July 4, 2011, which gives a more specific indication of when it was said to have happened.https://animecons.com/events/info/2293/anime-expo-2011
The veracity of this story has been called into question over the years, and it has become somewhat of a fandom urban legend. 
== The Original Post ==
Though the story is purported to have originated on 4Chan, the earliest surviving versions of this story are reblogs dating to early 2012 of a post by now-deactivated user phantom-shadow.https://cancerously.tumblr.com/post/19022310014/homestuck-sharpie-dying-horror-story The post reads as follows: 
The original post links to another post from another now-deleted tumblr user, legdisabled. The contents of this post appear to have been entirely lost. The earliest attempt to archive either post on the WayBackMachine show that they had been deleted by March of 2016.https://web.archive.org/web/20160317082940/http://legdisabled.tumblr.com/post/18978719723 https://web.archive.org/web/20160316232353/http://phantom-shadow.tumblr.com/post/18983415151/homestuck-sharpie-dying-horror-story
== Veracity ==
If the sharpie bath ever occurred, it is unknown what ultimately happened to the cosplayer. Some have purported the individual to have died from alcohol poisoning, while others say that there were no lasting harmful effects. https://www.reddit.com/r/homestuck/comments/1bd0q4i/comment/kuji238/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button Regardless, no one has ever come forward with solid proof that this alleged incident happened nor has the promised photographic evidence emerged. https://eznii.tumblr.com/post/711936185933627392 
Over the years, it has been speculated that the post originated on 4Chan as a rumor made to damage the already negative opinion many had of Homestuck cosplayers. 
An investigation by YouTuber Funk McLovin, outlined in a January 2024 video essay ascertained that there was no concrete proof that the incident happened.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OSxbEhLlh4 However, in a way the story can be seen as meta truth in that it "epitomizes the reputation of the Homestuck convention going community." At the time of the circulation of the original story, after all, young and inexperienced Homestuck cosplayers had gained a negative reputation for acts such as getting improperly applied body paint everywhere, throwing buckets at people, and passing around a bucket to spit in (video footage of the last exists). https://www.reddit.com/r/homestuck/comments/185m5v4/comment/kb5hzo6/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button Ultimately, it can be thought of as a false story, but one that did have tangible impact on the community. 
== Legacy ==
Redbubble user FeralFoxKid has released a logo design inspired by the sharpie bath that people can buy on shirts, stickers, greeting cards, and mobile phone cases.https://www.redbubble.com/i/sticker/Sharpie-bath-by-FeralFoxKid/80814861.EJUG5?country_code=US&utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic-shopping&utm_campaign=organic+shopping
The Etsy shop SimplyMadeForYou also sells keychains based off the event. https://www.etsy.com/listing/1675502487/sharpie-bath-keychain
Presumably in response to this event, the term "Sharpie Water" emerged by January of 2013. According to Urban Dictionary, along with referring to the sharpie bath incident, an alternate universe of the term had emerged.https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Sharpie%20Water
== Fan Reactions ==
== See Also ==
* "The Homestuck Cosplayer Who Dyed Her Skin With Sharpies" by lzzzyzzz (archived version)
* "SHARPIE BATH." by Funk McLovin
== References ==
Category:2011 Events
Category:Homestuck
Category:Homestuck Fandom Glossary