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Lolcows: The Internet's Never-Ending Tragedy
“The internet doesn’t just watch people fail—it turns their collapse into entertainment.”
Don't know what a lolcow is? Welcome to a new and unique genre of internet entertainment. The Internet’s Never-Ending Tragedy is the first book to explore this uniquely modern phenomenon in depth.
A lolcow is someone endlessly baited, provoked, and “milked” by online audiences for their reactions. The term blends “lol” (laugh out loud) and “cow”—a person repeatedly milked for amusement. Once targeted, escape is rare.
Behind the memes and mockery lies a darker audience manipulation, emotional breakdowns, public humiliations, drug use, shameless grifting, lies, and often financial ruin—played out in real time before a global audience.
These are not fictional villains or scripted characters. They are real people whose rise and fall mirrors classic tragedy, amplified by the internet’s endless memory and appetite for spectacle.
Each lolcow provides a tragic rise and fall story, but also an opportunity to learn. This book will explore the lessons in lolcows and how they can serve as examples for us.
Inside, you’ll
How lolcows are created—and why they can’t break the cycle
The traits and behaviors that make someone vulnerable
The role of trolls, audiences, and platforms in sustaining the phenomenon
Six in-depth case studies spanning multiple internet eras and
DarkSydePhil aka Philip Burnell - Burnell has been called “the internet cockroach” for his longevity, persistence, and behavior. An early pioneer of the video game genre, his career spiraled out of control due to his angry reactions to trolls. His lies, e-begging, and manipulation have made him an internet outcast.WingsofRedemption aka Jordie Jordan - Jordan was once a respected video game commentator. Despite his early success, his lack of conception around being a public figure led to him getting repeatedly trolled. His reactions to trolling has created a cottage industry of people dedicated to watching him fail.Boogie2988 aka Steven Williams - Williams was once called the “Mister Rogers of the Internet”. He was an early Youtuber who went viral for his angry Francis character and vulnerable storytelling. He was the ultimate underdog. However, it wasn’t long till his true self was revealed. His wholesome image hid a mountain of lies and manipulations.Rekieta Law aka Nick Rekieta - Rekieta was a pioneer of the “Law Tube” genre on Youtube. His colorful commentary on legal issues and cases built an audience of millions all over the world. His wholesome small town lawyer image was shattered by revelations of his other life. His legal issues surrounding child neglect, drug possession, and losing his license to practice made him the subject of the Law Tube genre he helped to create.Ian Johma aka iDubbbz - Johma ran a successful comedy channel that also offered social commentary. He was known for his wit and edgy humor. He collaborated with the biggest Youtubers of his era. After a series of controversies, lashing out at his fans, and an unsuccessful stint as a boxing promoter, he has become the very creator his used to lampoon.
Don't know what a lolcow is? Welcome to a new and unique genre of internet entertainment. The Internet’s Never-Ending Tragedy is the first book to explore this uniquely modern phenomenon in depth.
A lolcow is someone endlessly baited, provoked, and “milked” by online audiences for their reactions. The term blends “lol” (laugh out loud) and “cow”—a person repeatedly milked for amusement. Once targeted, escape is rare.
Behind the memes and mockery lies a darker audience manipulation, emotional breakdowns, public humiliations, drug use, shameless grifting, lies, and often financial ruin—played out in real time before a global audience.
These are not fictional villains or scripted characters. They are real people whose rise and fall mirrors classic tragedy, amplified by the internet’s endless memory and appetite for spectacle.
Each lolcow provides a tragic rise and fall story, but also an opportunity to learn. This book will explore the lessons in lolcows and how they can serve as examples for us.
Inside, you’ll
How lolcows are created—and why they can’t break the cycle
The traits and behaviors that make someone vulnerable
The role of trolls, audiences, and platforms in sustaining the phenomenon
Six in-depth case studies spanning multiple internet eras and
DarkSydePhil aka Philip Burnell - Burnell has been called “the internet cockroach” for his longevity, persistence, and behavior. An early pioneer of the video game genre, his career spiraled out of control due to his angry reactions to trolls. His lies, e-begging, and manipulation have made him an internet outcast.WingsofRedemption aka Jordie Jordan - Jordan was once a respected video game commentator. Despite his early success, his lack of conception around being a public figure led to him getting repeatedly trolled. His reactions to trolling has created a cottage industry of people dedicated to watching him fail.Boogie2988 aka Steven Williams - Williams was once called the “Mister Rogers of the Internet”. He was an early Youtuber who went viral for his angry Francis character and vulnerable storytelling. He was the ultimate underdog. However, it wasn’t long till his true self was revealed. His wholesome image hid a mountain of lies and manipulations.Rekieta Law aka Nick Rekieta - Rekieta was a pioneer of the “Law Tube” genre on Youtube. His colorful commentary on legal issues and cases built an audience of millions all over the world. His wholesome small town lawyer image was shattered by revelations of his other life. His legal issues surrounding child neglect, drug possession, and losing his license to practice made him the subject of the Law Tube genre he helped to create.Ian Johma aka iDubbbz - Johma ran a successful comedy channel that also offered social commentary. He was known for his wit and edgy humor. He collaborated with the biggest Youtubers of his era. After a series of controversies, lashing out at his fans, and an unsuccessful stint as a boxing promoter, he has become the very creator his used to lampoon.
268 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 19, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 29, 2026
This was a light, enjoyable read, but could have covered way more ground. It attempts to analyze the lolcow phenomena and trace the life cycle of a YouTube content creator until they reach lolcow status (a person whose eccentric, foolish, or vulnerable behavior is exploited by online communities for mockery and entertainment). It does a decent job and uses a handful of case studies from some popular YouTubers like idubbz, DarkSydePhil, and The Quartering.
But the book explicitly refuses to cover the biggest, most popular lolcow of them all, Chris Chan, due to him being "severely mentally ill." But why would that matter? The author admits that all lolcows have some sort of mental illness or "personality flaw". I just feel like you can't discuss the lolcow phenomena without talking about Chris Chan to some degree.
Another thing that is only glossed over are the forums like Kiwi Farms or lolcow.farm or even 4chan and Reddit. It would have been great to learn the history of those sites, who runs them, or how these online communities operate and stay afloat, navigate shut downs, and dodge accountability as they skirt the line between documentation and harassment.
The author also claims that men are more inclined to be lolcows than women, but I don't think that's true (Eugenia Cooney comes to mind). There are forums like Pretty Ugly Little Liar that have countless threads about female content creators being scrutinized by other women. Not to mention the popularity of snark communities on Reddit. People love to gossip about celebrities and hate on influencers. How different are those from lolcows?
Despite my criticisms, this book was enough to whet my appetite for "academic" or objective analysis of terminally online behavior. It's been fascinating to watch certain channels rise and fall and struggle to remain relevant in a cutthroat industry that dehumanizes people.
This book could have zoomed out even further into a critique of late stage capitalism or into philosophy, but that's asking too much out of this book. You'll get better internet anthropology of the terminally online from the likes of Katherine Dee (Default Friend), Taylor Lorenz, or Angela Nagle's book Kill All Normies. Or if you really want the Chris Chan deep dive, go watch the ongoing 80+ part documentary series by Geno Samuel on YouTube.
My final take is that "Lolcows" is a self-published book to supplement and boost the authority of the author's YouTube channel. It covers enough to give a layperson an interesting snapshot, and gives enough overview for those already familiar to be an entertaining trip down memory lane.
But the book explicitly refuses to cover the biggest, most popular lolcow of them all, Chris Chan, due to him being "severely mentally ill." But why would that matter? The author admits that all lolcows have some sort of mental illness or "personality flaw". I just feel like you can't discuss the lolcow phenomena without talking about Chris Chan to some degree.
Another thing that is only glossed over are the forums like Kiwi Farms or lolcow.farm or even 4chan and Reddit. It would have been great to learn the history of those sites, who runs them, or how these online communities operate and stay afloat, navigate shut downs, and dodge accountability as they skirt the line between documentation and harassment.
The author also claims that men are more inclined to be lolcows than women, but I don't think that's true (Eugenia Cooney comes to mind). There are forums like Pretty Ugly Little Liar that have countless threads about female content creators being scrutinized by other women. Not to mention the popularity of snark communities on Reddit. People love to gossip about celebrities and hate on influencers. How different are those from lolcows?
Despite my criticisms, this book was enough to whet my appetite for "academic" or objective analysis of terminally online behavior. It's been fascinating to watch certain channels rise and fall and struggle to remain relevant in a cutthroat industry that dehumanizes people.
This book could have zoomed out even further into a critique of late stage capitalism or into philosophy, but that's asking too much out of this book. You'll get better internet anthropology of the terminally online from the likes of Katherine Dee (Default Friend), Taylor Lorenz, or Angela Nagle's book Kill All Normies. Or if you really want the Chris Chan deep dive, go watch the ongoing 80+ part documentary series by Geno Samuel on YouTube.
My final take is that "Lolcows" is a self-published book to supplement and boost the authority of the author's YouTube channel. It covers enough to give a layperson an interesting snapshot, and gives enough overview for those already familiar to be an entertaining trip down memory lane.
May 2, 2026
A fun read into the internet lolcow phenomenon. I enjoyed the look at it from an analytical interpretation than the more common troll point of view. I would recommend reading if you are interested in online drama.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews