Summary
- Memes from TV shows like Community and Futurama continue to be popular and widely used even years after the shows aired.
- Shows like Star Trek: The Next Generation and The Simpsons have provided iconic memes that have become widely recognized and used in various contexts.
- Memes from The Office and Key & Peele have also gained popularity, often being used to express relatable situations or humorous responses to mistakes.
Many hilarious internet memes take inspiration from equally entertaining episodes of TV. Memes are an important part of online communication, allowing people to convey ideas and thoughts using images, videos, and quotes. However, they often spread so fast and wide that the origin of the memes gets lost.
One of the most popular sources for memes is TV shows. Some of the best sitcoms and cartoons have produced iconic memes that are still relevant years after the shows ended. While comedy is a more common origin, sci-fi and drama shows provide inspiration for memes as well. While the origin stories aren't necessary for a meme to serve its purpose, often the source material is just as interesting as the meme itself.
10 The Darkest Timeline From Community
NBC and Yahoo’s show Community inspired one of the funniest memes used on social media. The darkest timeline meme is frequently used when a person leaves a conversation or post for a minute, only to find everything in chaos when they return. The Community episode that inspired the meme, “Remedial Chaos Theory,” centers on a housewarming party for Troy and Abed. When the pizza arrives, they roll a die to decide who will get the door, creating multiple timelines.
In Community’s darkest timeline, Troy goes to get the pizza and all hell breaks loose. A series of events take place that cause Pierce to get shot, Britta to light the apartment on fire, and Jeff to burn his arm off. Troy comes back into the apartment to find the study group in utter disarray and screams. Ultimately, this is one of the most iconic Community episodes, creating a bit that appears on the show multiple times.
9 Fry “Not Sure If…” From Futurama
One of the shows that's created the most memes is Futurama. The popular “not sure if” meme features Fry squinting with the text, “Not sure if [X] or just [Y].” This comes from the Futurama episode “The Lesser of Two Evils,” where Flexo, an evil robot almost identical to Bender, steals an atom of Jubonium. He disguises himself as Bender, at which point everyone goes searching for Flexo. Fry’s looking through Leela’s underwear drawer when she and Bender come in to confront him. The iconic squinting image used in the meme occurs when Fry can’t decide whether it’s Bender or not, fitting with the meme’s online use.
8 Face Palm Picard From Star Trek: The Next Generation
While most memes come from comedy TV shows, one of the most versatile and funny memes comes from Star Trek: The Next Generation. This meme features Captain Jean-Juc Picard putting his face in his hand. People use this meme in a variety of settings, most frequently when someone has a lapse in judgment or memory. The meme comes from the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Deja Q.” In this installment, Picard’s nemesis Q gets turned into a human and seeks asylum aboard the USS Enterprise. The Captain momentarily puts his head in his hand when he’s stressed deciding whether to accept Q on the ship.
7 Old Man Yells At Cloud From The Simpsons
The Simpsons has produced many hilarious memes, including “Old man yells at cloud.” This image and phrase are used to describe a situation in which a person complains about something small and mundane. While the original image references someone old, the meme can be used for anyone out of touch with modern ideals and technology.
The meme comes from The Simpsons’ episode “The Old Man and the Key,” during which the titular family visits Homer’s dad, Abraham Simpson II, aka Grampa, at his retirement home. Grampa wants to get his driver's license to impress another resident. At the DMV, he asks the lady taking his picture whether she can just use the recent photo of his from the newspaper. He pulls out a newspaper clipping with the words “Old man yells at cloud” and a photo of him shaking his fist at the sky. Grampa Simpson falls right in line with the kind of person who’d be the subject of this meme.
6 No! God, Please, No! From The Office
One of the most memorable memes from The Office comes in the form of manager Michael Scott’s quote, “No! God, please, no!” People online use this meme as a response to undesirable things they must cope with. This meme comes from The Office’s “Frame Toby” episode, during which Michael Scott learns corporate reinstated Toby to his previous position. Since he’s taken by surprise, the manager shouts the exclamations used in the meme. His response encapsulates the dread of being forced to interact with a person one dislikes.
5 Pointing Spider-Men From Spider-Man (1967)
One of the most popular and funniest memes online is the pointing Spider-Men. This meme is used to point out two things that are seemingly the same. Three Spider-Man movies have recreated this meme with fun, quirky twists. The Spider-Man pointing meme originates from the “Double Identity” episode of the 1967 animated Spider-Man series. This episode follows a villain named Charles Cameo who pretends to be Spider-Man, even recreating his abilities like web swinging and wall climbing. When Spider-Man shows up to take him down, the two characters point at each other and shout, “He’s the impostor!”
4 Pepe Silvia Conspiracy From It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia
Pepe Silvia memes from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia are some of the most hilarious and unhinged memes on the internet. These consist of a screenshot from the iconic Charlie rant alongside statements about conspiracy theorists and people who get too wrapped up in a subject. The meme comes from the It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia episode “Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack,” wherein Mac and Charlie get jobs in an office to take advantage of the health insurance.
While Mac’s struggling upstairs, Charlie spirals working in the mailroom. This culminates in two minutes of Charlie raving to Mac about employees who don’t exist, starting with a man named Pepe Silvia. The moment that makes this funnier is when Mac confirms that all the people exist and have been asking for their mail.
3 Ya Done Messed Up A-Aron From Key & Peele
Comedians Key & Peele inspired the funny “Ya done messed up A-Aron” meme that’s used online to poke fun at people after they’ve made a mistake. This meme comes from one of , “I’m Retired.” During the “Substitute Teacher” skit of the episode, a man named Mr. Garvey does roll call with a biology class. He cannot pronounce any of the students’ names, creating hilarious banter. After lecturing a few students about the pronunciation of their names, he calls out the name “A-Aron.” When the student tries to correct his pronunciation, Mr. Garvey says the iconic meme line.
2 Surprise Motherf*cker From Dexter
A hilarious and versatile online meme comes from the character Sgt. James Doakes from Dexter. His catchphrase, “surprise motherf*ucker,” has become a part of the pop culture zeitgeist, with people replacing the first word with phrases that rhyme or have the same cadence. Alternatively, the meme is used with the original phrase as a way to say hello after a long time away.
The meme comes from the Dexter episode “Born Free,” where Doakes first says his catchphrase. When Dexter visits the shipyard to inspect a murder site, Doakes confronts him with the saying. The two characters get into a fight, which is eventually broken up by the dock manager. This is a prime example of a meme changing the tone of its source material. Whereas the character says it menacingly, the memes take on a zanier tone.
1 True Story From How I Met Your Mother
There is an abundance of amusing How I Met Your Mother memes, many of which center on the character Barney Stinson. Barney was even turned into a comic for the popular “True Story” meme, which people use alongside relatable experiences.
This meme combines Barney’s catchphrase with a still image of him from the How I Met Your Mother episode “Do I Know You?” In this episode, Lily helps Barney win over Robin. Robin and Barney go out to dinner, and he tries to act like a gentleman. Interestingly, he doesn’t use his catchphrase in this scene. As such, the meme takes creative liberties rather than remaining true to the source material.
