Maybe in another universe

TikTok Trend
Synonym(s):
Date(s):	2023–2024
Distinguishing element(s):	Primarily use of the two indicated audios; slideshows of characters matching the sentiment in the text
Associated audio(s):	When the Sun Hits by Slowdrive Strong Enough by boygenius
Associated hashtag(s):
Related:	TikTok, "We need more 'X'" Y'all can't even handle 'Y', Vids
See also:
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During 2023 and 2024, fannish videos around the sentiment of "Maybe in another universe" began to appear with increasing regularity, in-line with a TikTok trend where people related various sentiments building on the phrase to their personal lives.

One clip that seems to have appeared early in the trend was the walk away scene from the movie Meet Joe Black (cutting before Brad Pitt's character is hit by a car) with just the sentiment "maybe in another universe..." However, many subsequent songs use slideshows and different audiotracks, so its influence on the other fannish edits is unclear.

Many of the fannish edits built on the phrase to add in the hoped for alternative, a few examples being:

• "Maybe in another universe, I could have saved you"
• "Maybe in another universe, I can just be a kid and not have to save everyone"
• "Maybe in another universe, I'm not hated"
• "Maybe in another universe, I'm not angry at the world"

Along with a wide range of other possibilities.

Later, some versions of the edits added a "the other universe" extension, as a means of demonstrating that the same pattern was perpetuated in lots of media. For example, "Maybe in another universe, I wouldn't be hated for simply being a woman with feelings" with one female character that the creator felt was treated that way by fandoms, followed by a slide with "the other universes", with multiple female characters they felt were also treated that way.

While various audio tracks have been used in the background of these edits, two appear more than most: When the Sun Hits by Slowdrive and Strong Enough by boygenius, the latter of which has been used in other fannish edit trends. A number of the edits lost their audio in February 2024 as Strong Enough was one of the many songs removed from TikTok when Universal Music Group did not renew the license with TikTok.

Examples of Fannish Use

• Maybe in another universe, I could have saved you two - Featuring trios from shows such as Tokyo Revengers, Bungou Stray Dogs, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Attack on Titan where one character survived the other two.
• Maybe in another universe, I can just be a kid and not have to save everyone - Featuring characters such as Percy Jackson, Eleven (Jane Hopper), Scott McCall, Katniss Everdeen, and Miles Morales, as well as other main characters who were responsible for saving others in their canon world as children or teens.
• Maybe in another universe I feel like I belong here - Featuring characters like Will Byers, Wanda Maximoff, Luna Lovegood, and Charlie from Perks of Being a Wallflower as well as other examples the creator felt were of characters who felt unlike their peers.
• Maybe in another universe I'm not angry at the world - Featuring characters like Jesse Pinkman, Richie Tozier, BoJack Horseman, and other characters the creator felt were portrayed as angry at their circumstances, society, or the world at large within their canon.
• Maybe in another universe I won't get punished for getting angry - An example using a single character for the sentiment, using scenes of Raphael from TMNT being punished and mocked by the other turtles.
• Maybe in another universe I wouldn't be hated purely bc i'm a woman with feelings, the other universe: - An example of the extended use, with the creator using examples of women in various media they feel receive fannish hate for simply being women who express strong feelings or complex feelings.