Remember Distracted Boyfriend and Side-Eye Chloe? These Are the Very Best Memes of the Decade
With 2020 fast approaching, it's a good time to recall the most addictive, clever, shareable memes of the last 10 years.
Videos and images from pop culture saturate feeds on what feels like a daily basis. Some are embraced for only a few hours. But a select few become so popular they never seem to fade away.
Here's a breakdown of the internet moments that took on a life of their own each year of the last decade.
2010 Runner-Up: Homer Backing Into Bushes
homer simpson, simpsons, toronto, playoffs, nba playoffs, toronto maple leafs, stanley cup playoffs, toronto raptors, bandwagon, homer simpson bushes pic.twitter.com/3YLfson0AK
— Blonde On A Quest (@blondeonaquest) April 24, 2019
Everyone needs a graceful exit for an awkward situation online. This GIF, created from The Simpsons, always does the trick.
2010 Winner: Bed Intruder/Antoine Dodson
This Huntsville, Alabama, resident's animated reaction to a man allegedly trying to break into his family's home has joined the canon of meme greatness.
2011 Runner-Up: First World Problems
No internet... these first world problems got me like,#nointernet#sad#FirstWorldProblemspic.twitter.com/sLsLsQImgK
— Riparoo (@riparoolive) December 4, 2019
Social media users have been tagging #FirstWorldProblems since 2011 to playfully reflect on all those pesky non-issues.
2011 Winner: Table Flip
Hahahaha... You know...the angry white woman meme? Wanting to flip the table and speak to the manager? pic.twitter.com/D9bJxax1o1
— Kahil ❁ (@Kahil) October 9, 2019
When life doesn't go our way, it's nice to have this meme to showcase our irritation. Table Flip memes have served us well since 2011.
2012 Runner-Up: Ermahgerd
LRT: the story of the ERMAGHERD girl is a nice read. The meme's made a comeback now because of the Goosebumps movie. pic.twitter.com/WfR5hF74P4
— Jio de Leon (@jiodeleon) October 16, 2015
Back in the day, a girl named Maggie Goldenberger's passion for the spooky YA book series Goosebumps gifted the world one of its most endearing memes -- "Ermahgerd!" We share her excitement to this day.
2012 Winner: McKayla Is Not Impressed
McKayla's not impressed, 'Fierce Five' gymnast steps away from competition #WATEhttps://t.co/2LBZB5AjZJpic.twitter.com/4vxBL93bHX
— WATE Sports (@WATESports) February 25, 2016
2012 brought us an Olympic-level viral moment involving gymnast McKayla Maroney's unimpressed reaction when she received the silver medal at the summer games in London, England. Her image has served as a fitting reaction to moments that fall short of amazing ever since.
2013 Runner-Up: Side-Eye Chloe
Aw! I just saw SideEye Chloe on an Encore Show of #GMADay. Personality for days! pic.twitter.com/TW3L30zJrD
— #BrittFit50🏋🏾#BIWOC #Advocacy #Equity #Inclusion (@brijh) December 17, 2018
One look and it was clear: Little Chloe's reaction during a car ride was bound for internet gold.
2013 Winner: "Surprise, B*tch"
Surprise bitch, AHS is back tomorrow 😍 pic.twitter.com/lM01Bllhp4
— spacey katie 💫 (@katievaught) October 7, 2014
Fans of American Horror Story: Coven will remember that, in the eighth episode of the season, Madison Montgomery (Emma Roberts) revealed to Fiona Goode (Jessica Lange) that she was back from the grave, proclaiming: "Surprise, b*tch. I bet you thought you saw the last of me." The moment was destined to be shared for years to come.
2014 Runner-Up: Alex From Target
Alex from target guys. He's just a hot guy that works at some target. This is the Internet. This is 2014. 😐 pic.twitter.com/URLMk2wh14
— bianca (@elllobianca) November 3, 2014
Perhaps not long ago, just being a charming cashier at Target wouldn't be enough to make you a household name. But we're in the age of memes. Things have changed.
2014 Winner: Kim Kardashian Breaks the Internet
A post shared by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Nov 11, 2014 at 6:12pm PST
The internet would be "broken" many, many times in the following years, but theKeeping Up With the Kardashiansstar's Paper Magazine cover was created specifically to bring things to a standstill. And it did, to mixed reviews.
In addition to a #BreakTheInternet hashtag, the cover became meme-worthy with #ThingsThatLookLikeKimKardashiansBum, giving us some... interesting comparisons.
2015 Runner-Up: Chrissy Teigen's Crying Face
I really want a chrissy teigen crying face cut out to bring everywhere with me no I need it pic.twitter.com/s1Xd57SceT
— Katie O'Sullivan (@KingdomKatie) November 9, 2016
GIFs of this former Sports Illustrated cover girl and current Twitter fave crying doesn't have an expiration date.
2015 Winner: #TheDress
Gold and white, blue or black. What color is the dress? @kandi is trolling us wearing this Twitter throwback. #ChangMyMind 😂😂 #RHOApic.twitter.com/kkNCawtsPj
— Monsieur Vonni 👑 (@JaVonniBrustow) November 11, 2019
It all began with the posting of the garment online and a simple question: "What Color Is This Dress?" In no time, it took over news cycles and fueled endless posts with some claiming it was white and gold and others positive it was black and blue.
2016 Runner-Up: Math Lady
— Here's the unexpected origin of the "confused math lady" meme: The “confused math lady” meme has gotten a heavy… https://t.co/K8AJQirIrR ☺ pic.twitter.com/WVZyYIh6h5
— Alik (@alik0760) November 8, 2016
Sometimes memes manage to sum up the confusion and/or anticipation related to upcoming events and such is definitely the case with this gem.
2016 Winner: Arthur's Fist
I don’t know why they are the way they are but when my family comes to visit they take over every inch of my house. It’s a mess. They are like an ooze slowly spreading through my house. I’ve been walking around with a perpetual Arthur fist bc everywhere I turn is mess. pic.twitter.com/p8GNhp8DH5
— DD (@talesofaSAHM) December 1, 2019
Taking top honors this year is a shocking image from Arthur, the children's show, which has become a clever reaction to loads of unwelcome news.
2017 Runner-Up No. 1: Distracted Boyfriend
My mom looking for the perfect Christmas trees is literally the distracted boyfriend meme. 🎄 pic.twitter.com/TMnEap80m7
— Megan Gorecki (@MEG_atron13) November 29, 2019
Is this a good meme summary of 2019? #DistractedBoyfriend#WomanYellingAtCat#BabyYoda#meme#2019Memespic.twitter.com/8nnKqYmYl4
— Diego (@DiegoCanuck) December 2, 2019
Wo investiert ihr? #BTC#Bitcoin#Meme#DistractedBoyfriendpic.twitter.com/xEZDWdD6HM
— BISON App – Bitcoin & Co einfach kaufen (@bisonapp) November 29, 2019
Meme-worthy stock photography? Yessir. This object labeling meme illustrating the shiny new thing pulling our focus became so popular that it was featured on the front page of the New York Times business section and shot the models featured into stardom.
2017 Runner-Up No. 2: Salt Bae
A post shared by Nusr_et#Saltbae (@nusr_et) on Jan 7, 2017 at 2:44am PST
These year was so meme-ful that we couldn't choose just one runner-up. Who would have guessed that enthusiastically sprinkling salt on a steak would inspire millions of views and a bona fide viral moment? Turkish chef Nusret Gökçe, perhaps.
2017 Winner: Blinking White Guy
Me: Hey google play Nicki Minaj
Google: *Plays beez in the trap*
Me: Ayeeeee!!
Google: Shut up pic.twitter.com/KvHaJ2xwci— Josh Castillo (@JosshCastillo_) March 28, 2019
Like Chloe, this GIF's use has exploded over the years because, well, we're all confused and mystified on a regular basis.
2018 Runner-Up: Birdbox Challenge
We’ve been playing like we are blindfolded on offense lately, so we did a little BirdBox basketball challenge today. pic.twitter.com/rQpwYO2WmC
— TJ Girls Basketball (@tjhsgirlsbball) January 25, 2019
Dj Birdbox Challenge by Dj Tigerlily 😃 pic.twitter.com/xZC1jsOAwf
— Beat Night Mx (@Beatnightmx) January 24, 2019
This fad-turned-meme inspired people everywhere to do all kinds of things, some arguably unsafe, while blindfolded after the dystopian Sandra Bullock vehicle Birdbox arrived. Don't try this at home.
2018 Winner: Squinting Woman
ok but why does my boyfriend’s baseball picture look like the squinting woman meme pic.twitter.com/olTz505jTe
— baby yoda (@notyourmcbae) May 17, 2018
The popularity of the "Squinting Woman," a meme that took flight in 2018 for its ability to sum up confusing situations.
2019 Runner-Up No. 1: Woman Yelling at Cat
Woman Yelling At Cat https://t.co/RQE4UVQTXi
— Amy Lee Keller (@harleysgal) December 2, 2019
What do you get when you pair Kyle Richards melting down onThe Real Housewives of Beverly Hills with a cat seemingly taking the heat nearby? Viral gold.
2019: Runner-Up No. 2: "I Don't Feel So Good"
Out-of-context Frozen 2 spoiler!
Olaf: Anna, I don’t feel so good! #Frozen2pic.twitter.com/iGB9BTFQmL— Abdulaziz Rex (@AbdulazizRex) November 23, 2019
“Miss Stark I don’t feel so good.”#AryaStark#GameofThronespic.twitter.com/7IVfhb6f9c
— Şule (@sulemsr) April 29, 2019
Another year of top-notch memes, 2019 gave us Peter Parker's "I Don't Feel So Good." Thanks to Avengers: Endgame, users everywhere adopted the "disintegration" meme mimicking the "dusting" or "snap" in the film. Like Thanos' gauntlet, this meme is one formidable tool.
2019 Winner: "Sorry to This Man"
and here is Keke Palmer saying "sorry to this man" in meme format, you're welcome pic.twitter.com/1V6XariICP
— matt gehring (@mattryanx) September 12, 2019
This year, Keke Palmer agreed to a lie detector test during a Vanity Fairinterview, where she admitted that she didn't recognize former Vice President Dick Cheney. The moment was chopped into a shareable clip and quickly trumped Mariah Carey's "I Don't Know Her" of yesteryear.
2019 Scene Stealer: Baby Yoda Drinking Soup
Just when we thought Keke Palmer's "Sorry to This Man" would take the cake for 2019, The Mandalorian's cutest character swooped in. Yiddle -- more popularly known as Baby Yoda -- has taken over the internet as the reigning cutest Star Wars character. (Sorry, Porgs.) Condolences are also due to another beloved character, Kermit, as Baby Yoda's soup meme has become the new go-to for any "sips tea" moment.
Here's hoping the next decade gifts us with a new arsenal of weird and wonderful memes for all occasions.
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