Canned fish, canned soup, and spicy foods are the specialties of seniors Marshall Lockey, Harrison Madnick, and Caleb Novotony, respectively.  These students each run their own social media food review accounts: “Marshall’s Canned Fish Review,” “Harrison’s Hotness,” and “Caleb’s Canned Soup.”  

Every food reviewer has a different motive.  For Lockey, his motivation for reviewing canned fish is expressed by his desire to “do something weird”.  Madnick, on the other hand, started eating spicy food at a young age while growing up in India.  Since then, he has been fascinated by the “science” of spicy food.  His fascination motivated him to develop “Harrison’s Hotness”, where he now enjoys being able to engage in something with which he has a personal connection.  Novotny, with a more simple motive, chose to review canned soups because they are “quick to make, easy to eat, and relatively cheap.”

 Among the three reviewers, they all agree that the best part of reviewing food is being able to share their opinions.  Marshall thinks that making the videos is “quite enjoyable” and that “the editing process is a rewarding experience”.  He explains, “the positive feedback keeps me going.” While he notes that “the overall support has died down a little,” Lockey has maintained a loyal audience: “my family and a few of my friends always express their appreciation.”  Madnick likes that he has a small community of “Spice Lords” who give him recommendations on what hot sauces he should try next.  Novotny, meanwhile, thinks “it’s fun to sit in front of a camera and explain your thinking about things.”  He finds soup very delicious and hopes he can encourage people to try out new things.

All of the reviewers have a review that they pride above the rest.  Lockey’s favorite review was when he tried the Scout Lobster Polenta.  After Lockey posted this review on Instagram, the chef who made the dish, Charlotte Langley, noticed the post and sent him some free samples.  The chef even promised to help Lockey with a future episode to review fancier canned fish. Madnick thinks that every review he does is equally enjoyable but he loved when he reviewed the “Wicked Nightmare” hot sauce with the rowing team. Novotny fondly reminisces about reviewing Campbell’s Baked Potato and Bacon Bits.  He’s not entirely sure why it sticks out to him but he believes “it was a quality can.” He has also had soup companies (like Campbell) contact him because of his reviews. “It was great to receive recognition from a powerhouse in the soup industry,” Novotny remarked.  

COVID-19 has been somewhat of a challenge to these reviewers.  Lockey is finding it difficult to record entertaining videos because of social distancing.  He has been trying to keep himself and his family safe by maintaining isolation and social distancing.  He hopes he can be a good example to the community and prioritizes the CDC guidelines.  He sees a lot of people, especially young content creators, disregarding social distancing to create content and he thinks “it’s important to remember we are still in the middle of a devastating pandemic that won’t go away until we all take action”.  Novotny seconds that COVID-19 has made it difficult to create reviews.  At the start of the pandemic, many stores were nearly empty, so he had to review soup from his cupboard.  “I didn’t want to take that food from someone who may have needed it,” noted Novotny.  He hopes that he can buy soup from local businesses to help them during this pandemic.  Madnick has also felt the effect of COVID-19.  He hasn’t been posting nearly as much due to the “lethargy from being inside all day.”  He hopes he can start getting back into uploading soon.

Starting up a review account can be very challenging and overwhelming.  Trying to figure out what to review can be extremely difficult.  Lockey suggests that “if you have something you want to do, just do it.”  He advises that the key to making entertaining videos is changing it up and keeping the audience on their feet.  He is constantly trying to think of new ways to keep things fun and informative at the same time.  Madnick thinks that people shouldn’t be afraid to share something they’re passionate about.  “Friends of mine laugh that I’m so invested in spice but at the end of the day, they know it makes me happy,” noted Madnick.  Novotny gives short and simple advice. “Persevere and have fun, there’s nothing more important than those things.”

If you would like to support these content creators, follow them on Instagram: @marshall_likes_canned_fish, @caleb_reviews_canned_soup, and @harrison_hotness.