>>11105794it's not that strange. he was pretty much the only guy during those years who had a clear connection to something that was genuinely highly relevant in popular culture, which was the young goth/emo imagery. almost everybody else either felt like they belonged in another dimension, or were merely a parody of what was already existing. it helps that he was talented, charismatic, and good looking.
what is interesting is how that scene still managed to return to the forefront of pop culture despite it getting so wildly ridiculed for so many years on multiple periods.
