It feels much, much too soon to be doing this again. Anime News Network announced the tragic, sudden death of contributor Nicholas Dupree, sometimes known as LossThief, on Sunday. He was 31.
Nick was an incredible writer and individual, a close friend of several staff members, and a highly respected writer and member of the anime community by all. He was thoughtful, bitingly witty, and the kind of professional rival one feels lucky to have. He will deeply missed.
ANN’s Editor-in-Chief Lynzee Loveridge wrote a beautiful In Memoriam for Nick today, which includes remembrances from many other writers who were close to him. We wanted to take this space to highlight some of our favorite pieces of Nick’s work over the years, and to offer readers a chance to share their own memories and favorites.
Chiaki particularly wanted to share Nick’s shitposting skill, as the two of them needled each other regularly over the years.
Know that I will esclusively use this knowledge for evil https://t.co/pxyUA6kaWa pic.twitter.com/LPVASu6tfF
— Yami ReiRei, JK (@LossThief) September 21, 2022
Note to anyone at Crunchyroll who thinks I might be bending the truth here: pic.twitter.com/IBjRNSxbLF
— Yami ReiRei, JK (@LossThief) March 12, 2022
We had good chemistry. I was a fucking degenerate mess of a catgirl, and he would make fun of me publicly.
— Chiaki Mitama (@terrible.moe) September 23, 2024 at 4:02 AM
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This Tweet is six years old, but it has yet to stop being relevant.
In 2019 we’re gonna have an anime character turn to face the audience, look the viewer dead in the eye, and say in perfect english “I am Transgender” and we’ll still have otaku fuccbois trying to insist there’s an intricate Japanese historical context for why they aren’t.
— Yami ReiRei, JK (@LossThief) December 27, 2018
His writing was as incisive as it was funny. Or as Caitlin says,
Nick came up with my favorite summary of The Woman Called Fujiko Mine:
“The Woman Called Fujiko Mine” asks, “Why is she like this,” and answers it with, “Because fuck you, that’s why.”
Nick was an ardent supporter of Anime Feminist, often speaking up in the comments and defending the site against detractors around the internet. Caitlin adds,
There were a lot of things about Nick I appreciated: his wit, his intelligence, his loyalty. But one thing that always struck me was how broad his tastes were. Most cis men, even when they do their best to be open-minded, carry an implicit bias against media aimed at female audiences. But Nick didn’t care. He’d discuss shoujo romances like Snow White with the Red Hair with the same fervor and enthusiasm that many fans reserve for big tentpole shonen, not to mention his shitposts. Like many members of the staff, he grew up on Tamora Pierce novels and spoke openly about how they affected him. He didn’t go the “egalitarian” route of claiming that demographics didn’t matter, because he was fully aware of how joseimuke work tended to be disregarded by the community. He was far too observant to make that claim. Still, there was never anything performative about it; to him, if it was good, it was good.
He could speak with unfiltered passion and eloquence about titles he loved, and it was an event to look forward to when he shredded a show that turned out to be a dumpster fire, often with undeniable flair.
But maybe his most beloved pieces were as part of the This Week in Anime column, which got to talk about airing shows and news of the day in the community. We gathered a few of our favorites here.
Does Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer Overcome Its Animation Shortcomings?
The Psychosexual World of Belladonna of Sadness
What the Hell is Going on at MAPPA?
Caught Up in this Season’s Whirlwind of Romance Anime
Thank you for everything, Nick.
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