2010

M’lady

I would never say there was a particular moment in history where fedoras were ever fashionable, but starting in the 2010’s the ‘suave fedora wearing gentlemen’ made their breakthrough and took the internet by storm. It became common to log onto Twitter and be greeted by a dapper looking man tipping his fedora to you in greeting. Those memes really knew how to make a girl feel special.

Hide your kids, hide your wife

I’ve heard of this classic meme, but was not really privy to it at the time. The meme itself originates from an Alabamian who’s sister was nearly assaulted by a home intruder. The man was on the news the same day issuing a warning to everyone in the nearby area. The situation itself is not funny, quite the opposite. However, his advice for his neighbors to hide their kids and hide their wives struck a coord with the internet community. It was soon made into an auto- tuned pop hit and rose to become the most viewed YouTube video of that year.

2011

Spiderman pointing at Spiderman

This meme is a classic in my opinion and one of my personal favorites. There is just something so meme worthy about the image of two cartoon spidermans pointing at each other in shock. There really isn’t much more to say than that, so I would recommend that you just sit back and enjoy scrolling through the Spiderman clone meme.

Nyan cat

Nyan Cat is a staple of Internet culture. The lovable PopTart cat flying through space with a rainbow shooting out from behind it is one of the many iconic faces that represents the Internet and what it stands for. This loveable cat was created by a man from Dallas, Texas in 2011. Nyan Cat originally started out as ‘PopTart Cat’, but after the GIF became the hit YouTube video with the Japanese music in the background, the Internet dubbed the lovable creature ‘Nyan Cat’. Nyan Cat truly became a legendary meme and character and any well respected Internet goer should know who this cat is.

2012

Crying Michael Jordan

2009 was a big year for Michael Jordan, it being the year he was officially inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. 2009 was also a big year for the internet. Why is that? It was the year that the Internet was introduced to one of the greatest reaction images ever. While the induction took place in 2009, Jordan’s actual reaction didn’t become the loveable meme it is today until 2012. The internet latched onto this pure moment of vulnerability and quickly spun it into a viral image that was then used to emphasize any strong emotion. Happy tears? Crying Jordan. Sad Tears? Crying Jordan. That feeling in your heart when you see something adorable? Crying Jordan. Enough said.

Grumpy cat

The internet is filled with cats. The internet is obsessed with cats. Who is the queen of cats? Grumpy Cat. An adorable cat with an underbite and feline dwarfism that makes its face appear to be forever sullen. Images of this grouchy looking cat were used to create pessimistic memes, often making hilariously sarcastic or cynical jokes that are meant to tease the recipient of said image. Grumpy Cat is another example of a classic internet meme and is by far one of the most famous and most recognizable ones there is. She provided a lot of joy and laughter to people over the years and will always be remembered as the internet’s greatest cat. Rest in peace Tardar Sauce.

2013

‘This is fine’ dog

Finally, we’ve made it to what is perhaps one of my absolute most favorite memes that has ever existed. This meme is the greatest example of how I feel about all the unfortunate things going on in the world. Sometimes life really drags you down and you really lack the mental energy to care about the stuff going on. So how do you respond when the world is metaphorically engulfing you in flames like it is to this dog? You simply say ‘this is fine’ and flash a painful smile to hide the fear behind your eyes. Upon writing this, I am suddenly realizing how depressing this sounds… but I’m fine. This is fine.

Doge

Much wow. Such doge. Very cute. Doge rose to a legendary meme status in 2013, with the loveable Shiba Inu breaking the internet with its CUTE FACE. The internet spoofed his language, creating a fun meme with an even funnier language to go with it. Doge is pure and I love and appreciate Doge.

2014

Shrek

I don’t like Shrek. I never have and I probably never will. The movie itself is okay, but Donkey is the superior character and I will fight anyone who disagrees. Anyways, Shrek became a popular meme in 2014 and was so prevelant that I felt it would be wrong to not include him. The memes started with a not so kid friendly video which evolved into more memes of him being created. The only Shrek memes that I find funny are the “what are you doing in my swamp?” memes and the “someBODY ONCE TOLD ME-” Smash Mouth memes. Anything else I find weird and I do not like it.

Kermit

Kermit the Frog is something from most everyone’s childhood, so imagine my surprise when I find that this loveable childhood character was then turned into a meme for the whole world to laugh at. The moment I saw the first meme I was on board. There is something so amusing about the the muppet, most likely due to the funny way the puppeteer positions and moves him. Everything between his facial expressions, his rotund body and his skinny limbs, and the shock with how the internet will spin the childhood character chalks Kermit up to being a truly legendary meme.

2015

Doggo/pupper

As discussed previously, the internet loves its cats. Does it love dogs any less though? Absolutely not. While perhaps not on the same viral scale as cats, dog memes have always been around and appreciated by many. This could not be truer than the creation of “doggo” and “pupper”. These spin on names for dogs and puppies became a trend during 2015 and has now become a universally accepted way of referring to man’s best friend. I personally call my dog and puppy “doggo” and “pupper” all the time, so I quite enjoy the meme and the fun it has brought along with it.

Pizza rat

I think (to a degree) we can all relate to Pizza Rat. Pizza rat became popular in 2015 after a New Yorker snapped a photo of a subway rat dragging a piece of pizza on a set of stairs. I think part of the charm of this meme is that the pizza rat image is not often accopanied by funny words or jokes, it is simply: Pizza Rat. In a weird way that is what makes Pizza Rat so appealing and relatable. We are all pizza rat in some way, shape, or form.

2016

Dat Boi

Dat Boi is my favorite meme of the decade, even above ‘This is Fine’ dog. This meme really serves no purpose and isn’t really used as a reaction image or anything of the like. It is simply a derpy looking frog on a unicycle who is living his best life. The meme is so random and makes no sense and… I love it. It is a lovely representation of the saying that ‘simplicity is beautiful’ and indeed it is beautiful.

*record scratch*

This meme is a meme that apparently became popular in 2016, however I wasn’t aware of it until this year. The record scratch meme pays homage to your classic and cheesy movie opening where the main character freezes the frame during a weird scene and says “Yup, that’s me. You’re probably wondering how I got into this situation”. I enjoy this meme as it doesn’t take itself too seriously and isn’t afraid to poke fun at a movie cliche that we have all seen.

2017

Bee Movie

After his long running show Seinfeld, Jerry Seinfeld decided to try to dip his toes into the world of children’s entertainment. The movie sunk at the box office with unfavorable ratings and criticism and with Jerry himself saying he knew it was not a good movie. However, that all changed in 2017. The Bee Movie resurged and became even more popular than it did back in its release year in 2007. How could a movie that tanked so hard suddenly become popular? The internet. The internet saw something in the Bee Movie that professional critics did not: how absoultely meme worthy it was. I suddenly could not log onto Twitter or Instagram without seeing some Bee Movie meme, video, or the entire script posted somewhere on my dashboard. I had my fun with this meme, happily sending the script to my sister during times when I just wanted to be obnoxious. The Bee Movie is a perfect example of the internet turning something bad into something bee-autiful.

Distracted Boyfriend

I absolutely could not log onto any form of social media without seeing this meme somewhere. This stock image of a boyfriend checking out another girl while his girlfriend stares at him in absolute horror became the reason for so many memes. It was used in so many different ways that it is hard to keep track, but it sure was hilarious. I think the fact that it is a stock image somehow adds to the humor and charm of this image and makes it just that more meme worthy.

2018

Infinity War

Marvel rose to be a juggernaut in the film industry in the past decade with one of its most ambitious movies, The Avengers: Infinity War, climbing the charts and becoming another one of their big hits. Like any great movie however, the internet turned it into a meme. This was another meme that was everywhere in 2018, many poking fun at the heartbreaking moment where Peter Parker gets snapped into oblivion whilst saying goodbye to Tony Stark or simply creating viral images and videos of people or things disappearing as a result of Thanos’ snap. This meme had a good run and I personally enjoyed it while it was in its prime.

You Know I Had To Do It To ‘Em

This is the last meme that is in my top three favorite memes of the decade. Just like Dat Boi, YKIHTDITE is a meme that really makes no sense and just appeared out of nowhere. The photo itself is so odd looking with the way that the man in the image is posed and is then highlighted by the confusing caption which aptly became the name of this meme. What did the man do? Did he murder somebody and is now posting a cryptic message as a way of celebration? The world will never know.

2019

Area 51

People’s fascination with Area 51 truly piqued in 2019, with many people suspecting that our government was hiding aliens in its secret government facility. The internet hates being lied to, so it had to do something to right this injustice. Together as a crazy weird community the internet decided to band together and plan a raid on Area 51. The facility and the surrounding area was mapped out and taken into account when planning and the internet worked together to form a game plan, one where they would be able to successfully break in. The logic was that the government couldn’t shoot everybody, could they? With this piece of ammunition loaded into their guns, the internet set a date and was prepared to risk its life for the sake of getting answers. We had the Kyles, the infamous Naruto runners, the hackers, the uno reverse cards, the Logang, the Minecraft miners, and the sky shooters. If you were wondering, the plan flopped. It was a beautiful moment in internet history however and shall never go forgotten.

OK BOOMER

Most millenials and Gen Zs are familiar with Karens, your stereotypical mom or older woman who always has an issue with service and asks to see the manager everytime she goes to a restaurant. However Karens are not fully inclusive, as there are plenty of male Karens. The internet remedied that situation by creating a phrase that can be yelled at baby boomers and any older person who has a problem with how we deal with issues. I tend to use OK BOOMER on occasion in my everyday life, but not often. I do think it is funny however and the trend has really gained traction thanks to TikTok.

2020

Draw 25

This meme came out during the beginning of this year. The meme consists of an image of a person holding an Uno card with “admit __ or draw 25” and the person they are playing against holding the whole deck. The meme has been edited many times and is really fun when it comes to setting people up for funny jabs and jokes.

World War III

The decade has only just begun and we already appear to be in a lot of political trouble. Trump’s decision to kill an Iranian general is gutsy and has caused a lot of drama to rise up politically speaking. The internet has had a field day with trying to make this serious situation funny and has created many memes that predict the start of the next World War.