Lore

Are we going to see a @coolcats multiverse??? If you're into NFTs at all, you need to see this. Because Cool Cats released something new and innovative today. No, I'm not shilling my bags (I haven't even minted my own yet). But this is TOO COOL not to share. First off, let me say — this drop was soooo underhyped. You heard me: UNDERhyped. I got to see previews as part of the Community Council and they were cool pieces of art. But my goodness, I did not know there were THIS many variants. What am I talking about? SideKX. Pronounced 'sidekicks', they're the companions to Cool Cats main characters Jo, Ardi and Kira (red bird, anteater, antagonist Shadow Wolf). Spelt that way because Disney has trademarked the normal spelling. Milo (the four-legged one) is Ardi's sidekick, Sage (the ragdoll) is Jo's sidekick, Bones (creepy Mimikyu-looking one with a hand tail) is Kira's sidekick. Okay okay okay... so there's new characters and new art. What's so special? Well, basically the Cool Cats art team went NUTS on this collection. Nuts in the sense that they reimagined the 3 SideKX characters in basically the equivalent of like 110+ different dimensions. You know regular PFP projects? They can't usually do this because it messes with the consistency of the main collection and affects how recognisable a community is. But this isn't a PFP. These are companions to PFPs. So the same restrictions don't apply. While PFPs are there to embrace being part of a collective while having slightly distinguishing features, these SideKX don't have to do that... and fully embrace the weird and wackiness of each variant. It's like you can accessorise your main PFP with a little companion who represents your weird, wacky quirks and interests. Let's theoretically apply the same concept to other NFT collections just as a thought experiment: This would be if like the Bored Ape Kennel Club collection had different types of wacky dog types - shibas, golden retrievers, huskies, zombie alien space dogs, Pokémon-esque Elemental dogs. This would be if like the Beanz collection didn't just limit itself to 10 types of Beanz (different colours + Elementals) but also had random thematically inspired anime variants. Like a One Piece-inspired version, a My High School Academia-inspired one, a One Punch Man-inspired one. This would be if like Lil Pudgies didn't just have lil penguins but had lil bears and lil seals and lil fish and those bears and seals and fish were astronauts and truck drivers and firefighters and aliens. I'm not complaining about or comparing those collections — they're great projects in their own right. But if they have to be PFP-able, then you can't go as wild for the sake of consistency... or the really wild ones have to be 1/1s (shoutout to y00ts for some of the cleanest 1/1s out there). So my main point is: SideKX is something different (and thus it's pretty damn cool). Again, let me reiterate: I'm not shilling my bags. Buy it, don't buy it, I don't mind. Even for Cool Cats/Pets holders, these are the result of a burn so technically most people got it for free. I'm just raising awareness of this new NFT sub-collection out there and saying that maybe Cool Cats found something new with this art that doesn't need to be PFPable, especially since there's already main & secondary collections (Cats/Wolves). The genius thing about all of it? There's still consistencies within sub-sets. Like, look at it. Who wouldn't want a full set of fast food? Or desserts? There's more where that came from — did I mention there are 110+ different forms? My timeline has been going bonkers today with the amount of people sharing their SideKX. Obviously, my timeline is very Cool Cats-heavy, so I'm not surprised. But you, my friend. If this is the first time you've chanced upon SideKX because you follow me and somehow have made it so far in this longform tweet and you value what I put out there in terms of content... Here's the call to action: Go look at the collection. I'll link the official collection on OpenSea in the tweet below. Just go look at it. You don't have to buy anything, although you're always welcome to if you want to. The floor will probably drop over the next few weeks but there's staking and Journeys and all that jazz going on. But I kinda think @AgnesDraws and @_ratpal_ and @MidnightEtude and @cloncast KILLED it with this collection. For outsiders who aren't part of our community, there's two things you need to know about Cool Cats: 1⃣ The art is iconic. Floor price be damned, Cool Cats have some of the most iconic IP in the space. It's clean, it's recognisable, it's iconic. Put whatever the project is doing to the side, people still recognise and love the Cats. It might not be the most popular art style because it's more cute than cool, but it's damn solid artwork. 2⃣ The team's never stopped building. There's been changes to the organisational structure and team members, community members have come and gone (and c'est la vie). There's been drama from time to time as is the case in NFTs. But the team's never given up. They've tried a LOT of things, they've flopped at a bunch of things but hey they're still here building, pivoting, trying something new. And you've got to give them credit for that at least. So to wrap up, this isn't even a tweet telling you to come join the Cool Cats community (although you're always welcome to hop in the Discord and feel out the vibes). This is a tweet telling you that Cool Cats is still around. And they made something new and cool. And if you like NFTs, you should check it out.