Say what you like about Matthew Mercer — he’s a man of good humor, quick wit and hair that makes many of us shake our fists at the sky in jealousy, to name just three things. But… how many people would consider the Critical Role DM the ideal choice to offer relationship advice? One MCM attendee did, producing one of the most unexpectedly heartwarming moments the CR team has ever enjoyed.

During an appearance at MCM London in 2019, one critter had a very special question to ask Mercer specifically: how can they get a wife as great as Marisha Ray?

“I’m glad you can come here for Mercer’s dating tips,” Matt joked in response, somewhat self-consciously, adding, “Rule one: Prepare for disappointment.”

Marisha Ray’s own reaction might have been a particular mixture of embarrassment and amusement at the idea that Matt was necessarily the right person to offer any kind of doing advice (with perhaps just a slight hint of curiosity about what he was going to say mixed in, as well), but here’s the thing: Matt’s actual answer was actually kind of great.

“Honestly, it sounds so hackneyed, but be yourself,” he said. “Because the perfect person, and the awesome person, is the one who’s going to appreciate you for all your weirdness, and your ideosynchracies, and your quirks, and your frustrations, and your anxieties, and your depression — all the things that come with being a human being. You want to make sure that you don’t hide those aspects; you want to find somebody who can see you as a full picture, and go, ‘Yeah. Let’s go ahead and spend the rest of our lives together.’”

Check it out for yourself below.

Surprisingly sweet, right? The MCM crowd certainly thought so, judging from the cheers. Here’s hoping that similar moments happen when the Critical Role crew hit the Empire Stage at New York Comic Con 2023 — a panel that can be seen both in person and right here on Popverse, where we’re live-streaming the whole thing. Tune in Thursday, October 12 at 11:00AM EST.

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Popverse will be providing wall-to-wall coverage of New York Comic Con 2023, with an all-star crew of writers, editors, and video producers there all four days (and nights), as well as in advance of the show. You can follow along to this coverage as well as the panels we're streaming with our NYCC Popverse coverage guide.