Mashable 101: The creators shaping the internet in 2026
By
Crystal Bell
Digital Culture Editor
Crystal Bell is the Culture Editor at Mashable. She oversees the site's coverage of the creator economy, digital spaces, and internet trends, focusing on how young people engage with others and themselves online. She is particularly interested in how social media platforms shape our online and offline identities.
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Credit: Ian Moore/Mashable/Photo courtesy of Geoff Thew
For anime fans, Mother’s Basement is a trusted authority.
Created by YouTuber Geoff Thew, the channel has built a dedicated audience of more than 1.5 million subscribers on YouTube through deep-dive videos that blend criticism, humor, and genuine enthusiasm for anime. Over the last decade, Thew has built a reputation for explaining not just what is happening in anime, but also why it matters.
His rise has coincided with anime's own transformation from a niche hobby into a mainstream entertainment force. According to research from GEM Partners, anime viewership in the United States more than doubled between 2020 and 2025, reaching 22 percent of the population. As millions of new viewers have entered the fandom through streaming services, Thew has become one of the community's most recognizable guides.
Mashable Trend Report
Mother's Basement's catalog spans everything from seasonal recommendation guides and year-end rankings to video essays exploring genre conventions, storytelling techniques, and industry trends. Popular series such as "What's in an OP?" and his recurring seasonal watch guides help viewers navigate an increasingly crowded landscape, while longer analyses examine why certain shows, tropes, or creative decisions resonate (or don't) with audiences.
What sets Thew apart is his ability to translate fandom expertise into accessible criticism. His videos reward longtime anime devotees without alienating newcomers, a skill that has become increasingly valuable as the medium reaches wider audiences around the world.
Now that anime is no longer confined to convention halls and specialty retailers, Mother's Basement offers one of the internet's most trusted voices helping viewers understand the art form, the industry, and the culture surrounding it.
From YouTubers and TikTok stars to streamers and podcasters, Mashable talks to creators about how they built their platforms, the gear they swear by, and the trends they see coming next. Read more of our creator coverage or see more of this year’s Mashable 101 to discover the internet's most exciting voices.
Crystal Bell is the Culture Editor at Mashable. She oversees the site's coverage of the creator economy, digital spaces, and internet trends, focusing on how young people engage with others and themselves online. She is particularly interested in how social media platforms shape our online and offline identities.
She was formerly the entertainment director at MTV News, where she helped the brand expand its coverage of extremely online fan culture and K-pop across its platforms. You can find her work in Teen Vogue, PAPER, NYLON, ELLE, Glamour, NME, W, The FADER, and elsewhere on the internet.
She's exceptionally fluent in fandom and will gladly make you a K-pop playlist and/or provide anime recommendations upon request. Crystal lives in New York City with her two black cats, Howl and Sophie.
