In the past decade, one form of humour has risen head and shoulders above all else: the infamous internet meme. Often bizarre, sometimes nonsensical, but always entertaining, the best memes ever could almost be considered a high art form.
Whether it’s poking fun at relatable situations, or subtly expressing middle-class anguish (see Polo Ralph Lauren meme), memes are hallmarks of modern humour. Memes are the thoughts and feelings of humanity; celebrating the crazy zaniness that is our lives.
Here are just some of the memes that have made us laugh, snicker, or say “mhm, I get you”:
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5. I Love Gold Meme – Goldmember
Mike Myers is well known for his crazy, silly characters in the Austin Powers series, but one of his standouts (aside from the famed Dr Evil and Fat Bastard) has to be the Dutch villain Goldmember. A parody of James Bond’s own villain Auric Goldfinger, Goldmember utters this iconic line shortly after his introduction, instantly cementing him as one of Myer’s most famous comic creations.
Why we like it: If the character himself didn’t make you laugh, every line he delivers probably will. It’s also one of the most famous memes that have come from film – it’s an older one, but it definitely still holds up.
4. Look At The Time Meme – Various
One of the reasons why memes have become so common as a way to express ourselves is because they can be used in virtually any context. Memes like “look at the time” is a pretty funny reminder that we all have places to go and things to do – and sometimes with hilariously funny results.
Why we like it: We can all relate to having a specific time of day set aside for something, especially when it seems that way ALL the time.
3. The Dress Meme – 2015
If you’ve experienced meme culture, you will no doubt remember the great online debate that started over the simple question: “blue and black, or white and gold?” This photo of a dress spread like wildfire all over the world, sparking arguments, puzzling scientists, and making for one hell of a topic to bring up at dinner.
After the dust had settled, it was eventually confirmed to be blue and black, but the world (and memes) were never quite the same.
Why we (don’t) like it: Anyone who said it was white and gold had to be ribbed for weeks afterwards. Some of us still can’t live it down. And then came Yanny and Laurel!
2. Best (X) Ever Memes – Various
Sometimes, memes are just there to celebrate – or denigrate – our own relationships with each other. A quick google search for any of the “best x ever” memes (our favourites include “best boss ever meme”, “best wife ever meme”, “best girlfriend ever meme”, or the “best day ever meme”) will throw up plenty of results. Most of them are wholesome, others are a little sad, but all of them are relatable in some way.
Why we like it: Sometimes you just gotta share how awesome (or not awesome) someone or something is in your life. Other times you just need to make a little passive-aggressive image macro to get those feelings out of the way.
1. Expanding Brain Meme – Various
Do you ever get that smug feeling where you come up with a better way of saying or doing something? There’s a meme for that too: the expanding brain meme (AKA the best idea ever meme), where each variation of the subject becomes more awesome (or more complicated) until you reach the end. Pseudo-intellectual? Maybe. Hilarious? Definitely!
Why we like it: It’s so darn flexible, it can be applied to literally anything and we’d still laugh.
Good Times With Memes
Memes have evolved so much since their inception, that we could have never predicted how utterly insane they’ve become (E.G. the utterly deep-fried Ralph Lauren Polo memes). So that begs the question; where do memes go from here? Well, in our opinion, memes aren’t going anywhere! So long as there is human idiosyncrasy to comment on, memes will be there to share our thoughts and feelings.
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