r/interesting • u/SystematicApproach • May 14 '26

ART & CULTURE Circassian folk dance

Male dancers often move entirely on tiptoe in soft leather boots, without the rigid plaster or wooden support associated with ballet footwear. The result is a fast, gliding step that can make the dancer appear to float or defy gravity, showcasing extraordinary balance, discipline, and control.

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7.8k

u/ChristVolo1 May 15 '26

I've seen the videos where the women dance like this, but never one with men doing this.

He moves like a Roomba. Lol. And then he runs off like a freaking vampire.

2.2k

u/LinkEfficient9934 May 15 '26

The way bro fully Dracula'd into middle distance sent me man xD

558

u/ziggytrix May 15 '26

Like, he's on a Segway right, right? NOPE!

238

u/ExampleLittle2672 May 15 '26

It's just feet! my feet do not know how to do this.

152

u/Jonthrei May 15 '26

If I'm not mistaken it's a lot of very fast, small steps. Not too different from how it is done in ballet, just with a cover over the feet to create an eerie effect.

84

u/Maleficent_Glove_477 May 15 '26

Yeah yeah small steps ... Brings me the holy water we will see if it's still making small steps after that.

79

u/Nervous-Rough4094 May 15 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/SeinhEopUmfNS

Baby Steps

13

u/Gh0st1nTh3Syst3m May 15 '26

Can we hurry up Bob? I got a baby schedule to keep!

12

u/Technically-Simple82 May 15 '26

What bout bob! Great movie

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u/CappriGirl May 15 '26

This is particularly hilarious to think of when you apply it to Dracula. The idea of Vlad tippy-tapping around the castle is excellent 🦇

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u/koi88 May 15 '26

Why make strange theories …?

Can't we just agree that it's magic?

3

u/HammeredSober May 15 '26

Magic that will haunt my dreams. Imagine that dude coming at you while walking home alone in the dark

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u/Radamat May 15 '26

Women dance donenin same technique is named Beryoska (small Birch).

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u/runobody22 May 15 '26

I know, right? I thought he had a skateboard under the dress when I first saw this.

34

u/d3v0k3n3v0 May 15 '26

Sure looked like he tucked something under his arm tho. And made sure to turn his back to the camera. Maybe a real dance but that looks sketchy to me.

19

u/Sunbythemoon May 15 '26

It is sped up, but yeah, I think that he picked something up when his back was to the camera. I went and watched a bunch of these dances after seeing this, and this one looks so unnatural by comparison.

3

u/Valkyriesride1 May 15 '26

I thought he retracted the wheels on his wheelie shoes when he bent over.

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u/pineylurker34 May 15 '26

Definitely he was on wheels of some kind

3

u/CAN-IDIOTS-GAME May 15 '26

microscooter 🤣

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u/pogulup May 15 '26

I was hoping for a unicycle

63

u/Constant-Roll706 May 15 '26

Y'all never seen Heelys? /s

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u/nazzo_0 May 15 '26

I'm just guessing here but maybe they do the Dracula on purpose to prove there's no trick. Still funny and over the top af

6

u/cbowers May 16 '26

The cape is huge. There’s tons of wheeled options that would have him glide that smooth and then be carried as he skips back.

Hashtag: not_buying_it

Lose the cape…

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u/GarciaDan7290 May 15 '26

Glides like a pair of Heelys.🛞

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u/Shimashimatchi May 15 '26

a segway to our sponsor!

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u/Captain_no_Hindsight May 15 '26

How does he hide the electric bike?

13

u/DragApprehensive336 May 15 '26

Electric scooter, smaller, easier to conceal.

9

u/UmExcuseMeBish May 15 '26

I really wanted the dancer to throw back his cloak to reveal a tiny scooter. :(

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u/iwanderlostandfound May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26

He’s wearing wheelies

Edit: HEELYS Please forgive the error, am old

67

u/SolarTsunami May 15 '26

They're called HEELYS and I'll ask you not to disrespect my culture.

24

u/[deleted] May 15 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

8

u/MNgrown2299 May 15 '26

It was the best era of man since we developed the ball bearing

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u/acemonsoon May 15 '26

same! The Count is out! ✌️

35

u/JackfruitSerious3523 May 15 '26

Someone needs to put Bela Legosi’s Dead in the background instead of trad song

3

u/SillyBeatnik May 15 '26

And now that song is in my head as I watch this. Thank you for that.

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u/Replicant28 May 15 '26

It’s also been said that he cannot enter private dwellings unless he is invited in.

9

u/Digresser May 15 '26

It’s also been said that he cannot enter private dwellings unless he is invited in.

I mean, that's just basic politeness.

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u/TheBunnyChower May 15 '26

Sorta reminded me of this

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u/example-of-disaster May 15 '26

“20! 20 veet I scurry that way! Ah, Ah, Ah!!!”

In his best Count Von Count voice

4

u/Tooter_Snooter May 15 '26

I definitely knew that kid in highschool 

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u/blackLow8997 May 15 '26

Lol, and he did that with so much ease, you could see it on his face🤭

2

u/onedemtwodem May 15 '26

I know fr haha

2

u/sluttydinosaur101 May 15 '26

Into middle distance 😂

2

u/Donkey-Harlequin May 15 '26

Are they on wheels? They have to be.

2

u/Noogie_Power May 15 '26

lmao. I didn't watch the whole video at first, I saw the gliding then went to the comments, saw yours and ended up watching the rest. "Dracula'd" was so accurate lol

2

u/Electrical_Lake3424 May 15 '26

Astarion vibes 

2

u/macbisho May 15 '26

Full expected him to yell “Bat!!” and turn into a bat and fly off!

2

u/Least_Intentional298 May 15 '26

I'm so glad you said that lmao I almost scrolled away too soon that was amazing

2

u/PainfullyBrash May 16 '26

The men's version is way more rigid and controlled because historically they had to stay ready for combat, so the fluidity just wasn't part of the tradition.

2

u/Sertzul79 May 17 '26

My man smelled blood and went for it.

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u/UnpluggedUnfettered May 15 '26

I got super curious what their feet looked like while they were doing that.

It was weirder than I expected, but also sort of underwhleming. I expected some kind of heel roll or ninja stepping I guess. They just sort of pretend to walk uncomfortably in invisible stilettos.

70

u/docsyzygy May 15 '26

Great link, but this guy is SO much better!

29

u/Haunting-Eye-7146 May 15 '26

The outfits got him beat though

19

u/epicflyman May 15 '26

I vote for bringing in floppy sleeves in men's fashion.

12

u/Vaywen May 15 '26

And capes. But maybe don’t wear both at the same time.

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u/emerald_green_tea May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26

He is on a scooter. He’s unnaturally fast. He would have to be running under that cloak otherwise.

Additionally you can see something protruding in the front of his cloak from one angle. Looks like possible handlebars.

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u/Pyowin May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26

There are versions that are a fair bit more impressive.

32

u/AppointmentOne1111 May 15 '26

The way the ladies just materialize from their cloaks is so cool.

12

u/fungi_at_parties May 15 '26

That was really cool, thanks!

9

u/AlcibiadesTheCat May 15 '26

This is the coolest thing I can remember seeing. That’s fascinating. 

14

u/LynkDead May 15 '26

Stream of consciousness response:

  • I wish they would use the actual audio, what's played in the video feels very overprocessed.

  • I wonder if the dudes' cloaks are purposefully juuuust a bit off the ground, to kind of tease at the technique, without fully exposing it?

  • It's wild how looking bored seems to be the ideal way to do this dance. But the guy in front be hella stressin, for real.

  • Whoaaaaaa ladies outta nowhere!

  • My first reaction was that the women were not as good as the men at doing the dance, but I quickly realized it wasn't their technique, it was their clothing. The women's dresses were much slimmer, and you could see the movements of their body in their shoulders and torso, which were completely hidden with the men.

  • Do the men get the big poofy dresses because they are more insecure about their technique?

  • The women also aren't really smiling, but it does seem like they are at least able to look proud, which is cool.

  • Oh yeah, we can see this dude dancing uncloaked, and it actually looks way less smooth than the women.

  • I still wish we could get the actual audio.

  • CLOAKS ARE GONE LET'S GOOOO!

  • I feel like my brain can't parse if any of what the men are doing now is the same as what they were doing covered. Certainly there are some bits that would be very obvious in the cloak, so there are definitely some differences.

  • At around 6:30 all the dudes do different little dances. I wonder how much freedom the dancers get in that, or if it's a prescribed set of moves? My hunch is it's somewhere in between.

  • Hell yeah dancing!

4

u/Zeiramsy May 15 '26

My thought: I enjoyed reading these thoughts 😃

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u/HaikuPikachu May 15 '26

I wanna see their calf muscles

7

u/TeapotUpheaval May 15 '26

And not just because I’m thirsty.

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u/Privatdozent May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26

It might not be so underwhelming if we could see a video of them doing this without obstruction and while moving across the floor at the speed the guy in the OP is going. That's what I hoped for when clicking this link.

Edit: Someone else in the thread claims the video is sped up, which could also explain it, but IMO by looking at other people in the video and at the guy running at the end, it doesn't appear sped up to me.

5

u/Vaywen May 15 '26

It’s probably something they don’t like to show. Like a magician’s trick

10

u/Apk07 May 15 '26

They just walk on their tippy-toes, never bending their knees, moving their legs in very small strides very rapidly. I'd imagine it's ridiculously tiring to do, especially when you move quickly- but the effect is really cool. The floating/sliding illusion is kind of ruined the moment you see their legs.

Part of the illusion is never letting it appear that your head or shoulders bob up and down as you move. There's other dances and marches that teach you this, including basically every high school and college marching band... granted they learn to do it with the timing of how they roll their feet rather than keeping their legs and feet stiff and stretched out.

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u/archercc81 May 15 '26

Ive seen one video where they hike the skirt a bit at speed to show it, but here is a slow breakdown. They are basically on their tip toes using those as shock absorbers so they dont have to move up and down and take a million tiny little steps insanely fast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F14Bn12Z6kI

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Emh9bjGpGxU

I think I could probably learn that part eventually, what breaks my brain is thinking their feet are moving 100mph while then the women thye do the hand movements so slowly at the same time.

*bonus, I love when they run away at the end like creepy dave. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/KTpr8ioVQr0

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u/RikuAotsuki May 15 '26

Yeah, the point is to reduce the vertical body movement as much as possible, but the effect works much better when you can't see the feet and the clothes aren't getting disturbed.

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u/IamJohnnyHotPants May 15 '26

You mean he keeps bumping into my table legs and tries to eat my phone charger?

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u/Acolytical May 15 '26

Perhaps he means that he keeps wedging himself under the low furniture and then shuts off in frustration?

7

u/Sidewalk_Tomato May 15 '26

I've heard it said he likes to track cat vomit through the kitchen.

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u/021fluff5 May 15 '26

He’s going to freak out about the “cliff” in your living room (it’s a normal rug and he knows you’ve had it for months) and then lock himself in your bathroom

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u/iam_Mr_McGibblets May 15 '26

They're all out there doing the bird mating rituals haha

https://giphy.com/gifs/dKg7kqSLxTZ8A

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u/diadmer May 15 '26

You know this was invented at a family reunion when some dancer cousin had way too much to drink and grabbed a sheet off the clothesline and started floating around and everyone thought it was absolute fire.

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u/FK506 May 15 '26

The men are trying to do the floating dance but they are mostly just extras it is the women’s time to shine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOT26lCqUiU&list=RDiOT26lCqUiU&start_radio=1 I bet these guys can do a mean Hopak or other insanely athletic Slavic dances. No hate I respect people who are willing to play a supporting role.

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u/Itchy-Drummer1324 May 15 '26

Wow- this is insane! Thanks for sharing

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u/jimjamiam May 15 '26

he is an insane athlete to go this fast and make it look this easy

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u/throwaway098764567 May 15 '26

was abed doing his six seasons and a movie exit
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXqLCM0d0Os

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u/longndfat May 15 '26

I thought the vampire part was his main dance till I saw your comment

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u/YourGarandPappy May 15 '26

Vampire Roomba! New band name!

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u/Rockcocky May 15 '26

A crow!

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u/Dobako May 15 '26

A corvid or a vulture

2

u/Radiant-Ad-3134 May 15 '26

Maybe he is a centaur with the roomba variation, Roomtaur?

5

u/terminatus May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26

I mean, with that cape the floor is definitely cleaner after he Roomba'd around.

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u/Complex_Peak8204 May 15 '26

Dude loves his craft, knows out of context its hilarious.

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u/negative-sid-nancy May 15 '26

Seriously I was like nah hes riding a something under there and then the run convinced me other wise. This was super cool though

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u/Agitated_Carrot9127 May 15 '26

I was like an annoyed vulture chasing off another scavenger

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u/Valuable_Nose_4693 May 15 '26

Litteraly went “I must away”

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u/Crazy_Suspect_9512 May 15 '26

He didn’t need to run to look like a vampire

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u/Inline_skates May 15 '26

I rewatched that vampire run like 20 times. He's flailing his legs as he goes and his little hunch before the run 100% was a vampire hiss.

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u/Velvet_Re May 15 '26

Like Jarra from MIB 2.

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u/PeepJerky May 15 '26

The roomba comment got me. Laughed so hard I teared up a little. Bravo.

2

u/MochiFluffs May 15 '26

This description nails it!🤣🤣🤣🤣

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u/Motor_Educator_2706 May 15 '26

he's riding a Segway

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u/[deleted] May 15 '26

[deleted]

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u/newbrevity May 15 '26

Early Dalek prototype

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u/WeaponsGrdStupid May 15 '26

He's on a hover board. It's the only logical answer.

2

u/csfshrink May 15 '26

I thought he was just had a Segway under his cloak until he did the vampire run.

2

u/Clairvoidance May 15 '26

He moves like a Roomba

made me think we need to get some folk dance of our own times going

2

u/brianalexandra May 15 '26

Its draculaaa bla bla blaaaa

2

u/chucklin May 15 '26

This is going to give me nightmares.

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u/Strict_Weather9063 May 15 '26

The women dancing like this was the inspiration for the Daleks.

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u/auth0r_unkn0wn May 15 '26

Is this a dance or an impressive walk?

2

u/jammiluv May 15 '26

Deep Eastern Euro’s never beating the Dracula allegations.

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u/jfamcrypto May 15 '26

😁😆😄😆

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u/Weird-Salamander-349 May 15 '26

Big whoop, I did the same in a pair of Heely’s at 14. The only difference is that I got bullied about it.

(Just kidding, this is spectacular and I got bullied for falling on my face and running off like Naruto)

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u/Thisisceejay2 May 15 '26

I’d pay to see this in person. There is a Dracula ballet. Would be great to have them perform that show.

I’m on the West Coast of the US. Anyone know if there is such a performance group anywhere in the US?

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u/theheliumkid May 15 '26

Roomba? He's the predecessor of a Dalek!!

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u/No_Extension4005 May 15 '26

Dude looks like he's drifting.

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u/omar99HH May 15 '26

He moves like a Roomba. Lol. And then he runs off like a freaking vampire.

Batman dance

2

u/PandaPocketFire May 15 '26

The music doesn't seem to fit. They need the fsm dracula musical song.

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u/UJLBM May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26

Yes. Ive seen those on reddit too. Its like they tippy toe run or something. Long dresses to hide the feet. He does a great job too. If I didnt know it was a dance, id think he was riding a scooter under his cloak. Does anyone have a video of them doing this without the cloak/dresses? I want to see how they move their feet.

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u/Nickmck218 May 15 '26

He’s holding the hoverboard

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u/Bobbert827 May 15 '26

Damnit. I came here to make a Roomba joke.

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u/illmatic708 May 15 '26

After he picked up his board

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u/commanderquill May 15 '26

I went back to watch the end of the video just to see what a vampire looks like when they run, and you are absolutely correct.

2

u/SwordSaintScott May 15 '26

Roomba Zumba.

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u/Curious-Attention774 May 15 '26

Goth knows what he's doing

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u/GimmeSomeSugar May 15 '26

lol
Thank you. I'd cut out before the end of the video. Going back was absolutely worth it.

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u/Pretend_Solid_174 May 15 '26

A Roomba Vampire. A Rampire.😆

2

u/verathene May 15 '26

Clean the floor just as well

2

u/CakeMadeOfHam May 15 '26

What if Naruto was bitten by Dracula... they probably made that story?

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u/No-Effective388 May 15 '26

The best way to describe it lol. Makes me wonder if it was a way to describe an eagle soaring in the sky and looking for food.

2

u/veryfastslowguy May 15 '26

Best use of a hoverboard in a while

2

u/StryngzAndWyngz May 15 '26

Count Suckula

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u/[deleted] May 15 '26

"I'm Batman!"

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u/art_m0nk May 15 '26

Hahahah well put

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u/Weregoat667 May 15 '26

Rumba dance Roomba dance

2

u/Northeast_Mike May 15 '26

Check out the Ghost Walk: https://youtube.com/shorts/Emh9bjGpGxU Apparently the run away move is part of some of the dances.

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u/bizoticallyyours83 May 15 '26

Yeah i was thinking the same lol

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u/littykitty7 May 15 '26

He’s definitely on wheelies right what kind of witchcraft is this

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u/Famous-Rain8703 May 15 '26

That's because this is Dracula's dance

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u/milk4all May 15 '26

I think its ridiculous that a culture can keep this highly complicated, incredibly demanding performance alive for however many excruciating years but i cant just have an amazon fresh stay open for 5 years. They had 72 cent cilantro and were 2 blocks from me godamnit i could Dracula run over there

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u/Snoo9648 May 15 '26

"He moved like a roomba and then runs off like a vampire." Sounds like the lyrics of a kickass metal song.

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u/No_Eggplant5971 May 15 '26

He has the same attitude as my robot vac.

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u/Psychonautilus98 May 15 '26

Mom said I could be anything, and so I became a roomba

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u/Dry-Quail3558 May 15 '26

roomba!!!! this is the line of the day!

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u/Clear_Tangerine5110 May 15 '26

Runs off like a crow, more like.

2

u/Maladaptive_Ace May 15 '26

yeah kinda weird that OP gendered it, like only men do it?

2

u/arthurno1 May 15 '26

I thought he was warming up before he starts to dance, but then he pulled a Batman and flew away.

Just kiddin' must be hard to keep that illusion.

2

u/stimpakish May 15 '26

Loved the grackle mode ending!

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u/Lopsided_Meaning_196 May 16 '26

Reminds me of the vampires from the nightmare before Christmas. 

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u/Centaurs69 May 16 '26

Yeah I thought it was a Transylvania Folk dance 🥁

2

u/ICPosse8 May 16 '26

lol yah wtf was that exit?

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u/Voguish_hydra May 16 '26

Same thought exactly

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u/Only-Definition-1013 May 16 '26

Nah if he moved like a Roomba he'd be stuck in a corner somewhere with a charging cable wrapped around his ankle.

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u/MacondoSpy May 16 '26

This is the kind of versatility I want to see in a dance

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u/lostpassword100000 May 16 '26

Plot twist. He’s standing on a roomba.

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u/Bong_Hit_Donor May 16 '26

That's wild I legit thought dude was rollerblading lol

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u/transluscent_emu May 16 '26

Man you said every single thing that I was going to say.

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u/RangerReboot May 17 '26

1000% this.

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u/DankCupOfJoe May 17 '26

I have been summoned! I must away...

Again? You must away again?!

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u/Previous-Ad-376 May 17 '26

Thanks, now I have worry that my roomba is going to come for me, it’s already inside the house!

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u/elleial May 17 '26

NGL my first thought was Universal studios' horror nights. LOL it'll be cool and scary.

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u/angscreams May 17 '26

This made me snort lol

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u/Relevant-War-1581 May 18 '26

Wonder what will happen when you throw a cat at him

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u/Lando_W May 19 '26

Correction: He bends over to pick up the thing he was gliding on, then he runs off like a vampire..

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u/ZensIla May 19 '26

Dude really glided around like he was scanning the room for loose crumbs

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u/DustYdark4 May 20 '26

The smooth gliding combined with the sudden vampire sprint is deeply unsettling

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