There is a perennial tradition of YouTubers and similar entertainers who are hugely popular in niche circles.
Generally, they do not become well known outside of those circles until a devastating scandal erupts.
This week, it was the Try Guys turn. The beloved group of ex-Buzzfeed entertainers have a massive following.
Ned Fulmer was one of their number. He cultivated a “wife guy” reputation.
At least, he did. Until Tuesday, September 27.
On Monday night, social media positively exploded with claims that he cheated — with a younger, engaged employee.
Tuesday showed the world’s reaction to this scandal.
This is Ned Fulmer and his wife … for now
Ariel Fulmer has enjoyed a status as a beloved fan-favorite for Try Guys viewers. That, many speculated, was part of why Ned projected such a “wife guy” persona. In retrospect, some wonder if it was also a cover.
They have kids, by the way
There is no “good” way to cheat on your spouse, but having young kids at home and a spouse whom you use to keep your image squeaky clean is a particularly bad look. It’s not that Ned was a fan-favorite (that’s Eugene, don’t @ me), but it’s probably safe to say that most people didn’t expect this of him.
So when the rumors began …
People were up at absurd hours (just look at that timestamp) agonizing over Ned’s fidelity. The first reports came out on Reddit, claiming that he had been kissing another woman. Then, that alleged other woman’s identity became public.
Alex from Food BabiesAlexandria Herring is an associate producer and therefore a Try Guys employee. That adds an extra ick factor to all of this. Workplace dating happens sometimes. Workplace affairs between an employer and an employee, when the former is married and the latter is engaged, isn’t a harmless tryst.
You don’t have to be a Try Guys fan to be drawn inLet’s be hoenst — so many of us were only peripherally aware of Try Guys. But everyone likes a good story, which is part of why this circulated so widely. We cannot emphasize enough that our entire social media feeds were almost nothing else all day on Tuesday. It turns out that Alex’s fiance is the one who broke the news to Ariel. Then, rumor had it, the Try Guys were working on editing out Ned from their content. Rumor … or fact?
OH!
The Try Guys put out an official statement on Tuesday afternoon, confirming that Ned was no longer part of their group — or their business. It is probably a testament both to the decency of the remaining Guys as people, their responsibility as employers, and Ariel’s popularity that they took such swift action instead of rallying around their bro. You love to see it.
Ned, on the other hand …
People who had never heard of these guys before Tuesday were taking delight in dunking on him, and not without reason. Yes, there are worse scandals, but the existence of someone worse does not make an adulterous employer above reproach. And, again, it was just kind of fun to roast him.
Ned put out a pretty bad apology
“I lost focus” is a weird statement. Outside of certain slapstick comedies and very implausible porn premises, one does not generally slip and fall into someone else’s genitals because they weren’t focusing enough. Also, “had a consensual workplace relationship” is just skeevy. Both because he’s her employer and because it feels like he’s trying too hard. He could have said less.
There was so much
Meanwhile, different people got the news at different times. It was a spectacle. Ned was the main character on Twitter on Tuesday — which is seldom a good thing for that person.
The jokes
Okay, so the whole premise of Try Guys is basically that they do antics — trying different things. These ex-Buzzfeed faves have a general vibe of a softer, more civilized Jackass, if that makes sense to my fellow elder Millennials.
Ouch
Ned has an Ivy League education, which … does not prevent adultery.
Here is a good explanation
John Mulaney often featured his wife and his love for her in his standup comedy. For years, fellow Millennials highlighted this in contrast with other comedians (looking at you, Jerry Seinfeld). And then, suddenly, he was divorcing his wife and having a baby with Olivia Munn. Try Guys fans skew a little younger, though they have many Millennial fans (and Mulaney has many Gen Z fans), but that’s the vibe.
A perfect set
With people joking that Adam Levine is the Gen X equivalent of these three, the jokes continues. That said … was Adam ever seen as a “wife guy” exactly? Just as a cheater.
Let’s not forget the innocents in all of this
First, fellow Try Guys who ousted Ned immediately didn’t do anything wrong. Neither did an adjacent project of ex-Buzzfeed folks, Watcher. The Ghoul Boys — Shane Madej and Ryan Bergara — branched out after leaving Buzzfeed, working with Steven Lim to churn out more meme fodder and Puppet History lessons. Oh, and to try and fail to locate some ghosts along the way.
Inevitably
Buzzfeed was once a revered institution before systematically eliminating large portions of their talented staff. A lot of these companies do this, and it tends to tank trust in their brand. But Buzzfeed is still around, and of course they wrote about the drama.
Foreshadowing?
As it happens, the beautiful Eugene Lee Yang of Try Guys answered a question during a previous Try Guys episode. He said that he did not expect that Ned and Ariel would divorce, but the machine registered this answer as a lie. Lie detectors are notoriously ineffective, and even courts (which allow junk science constantly) do not admit their results. It doesn’t mean that Eugene knew something; it’s just funny.
WAIT
Okay, it looks like someone knew about this weeks before the news broke. All of this surfaced on Reddit, so it looks like maybe someone knew, was furious, and waited until they had evidence to bring to Ariel’s fiance before they said more. Very curious. Anyway, OP’s girlfriend is clearly a great judge of character.