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These days, using the Internet, you definitely can’t avoid constantly falling for memes – old, new, strange, hilariously funny … Any witty or ironic information can become a meme – a picture, a phrase, a concept, or even an occupation. Having “hooked” one or several users, the meme spreads very quickly on the network (almost like a virus), sometimes changing or transforming in the process, giving rise to continuation memes, etc. Well, which of the experienced “Internet surfers” is not familiar with, for example, sketchy faces that can reflect the widest range of feelings: trollface, pokerface, facepalm, lol, etc.? A “stoned fox”, sad Keanu Reeves, cheerful Leo, a bear in the bushes, a girl running away with soap bubbles, a crumpy cat, a suspect dog, Zhdun, finally, are all well known to millions of users.
And somehow earlier it was traditionally believed that the coolest memes come up in Western countries. But in June 2018, American Twitter users under the nicknames sinister gay catboy cabal and hieromance almost simultaneously posted several Russian memes with their translation into English. In just a couple of weeks, these posts scored several tens of thousands of “likes”. In the comments, many Americans sincerely admired the Russian sense of humor, calling our memes beautiful and even brilliant. And shortly thereafter, a Briton from Leeds created the Russian Memes United Twitter account, posting more than 500 Russian memes over the summer with translation (explaining some of them for his compatriots). By the end of August, the number of his subscribers reached 22 thousand (now – about 55 thousand). Among them were many Russian-speaking users who willingly “thrown” fresh memes to the author and help translate them.
We invite you to get acquainted with the memes that have received the highest number of “likes” (= the most popular) among Western users.
10 Mouse (mouse)
Memes with animals, of course, are a huge success not only in the Russian-speaking segment of the Internet (cats are our everything!), but also in the rest of the world. Of our memes on this topic, for some reason, the first to get an unrealistic number of likes in the West are the simplest ones, for example, “Mouse (crouching)”. Later, others appeared in the same logic – “Koshk (noobludait)”, etc.
9. Kus
Memes with cats, dogs, etc. are very popular in Russia. on the general “theme” “Kus”. (Kus – short for “bite” – is a kind of “synonymous” with a kiss from a domestic fluffy, a sign of his affection, sympathy). Western users also highly appreciated such memes (and not only with pets, but also with wild ones, for example, “bite” from a wolf or a bear).
8. Me and my dog
A huge number of “likes” are gaining our memes about the relationship between the owner and his dog. Among Western users, one of the most beloved was the meme “Me and my dog that chews something.” Another very popular meme in Russia about the “woolen wolf” (aka “Where without a leash!”) Could also become one of the leaders abroad, but just didn’t get into that same summer “stream”.
7. me and problems
Russian memes on the topic “Me and my problems” received great understanding (and recognition) from American and British “memo lovers”, many of which even have a somewhat suicidal connotation. Well, no wonder … The whole world is now full of people who have long been struggling to cope with eternal rush jobs, lack of sleep, troubles, stress and other similar “troubles” and, if possible, trying not to solve them, but somehow “not to notice” or bypass. This topic is international and close to many.
6. I’m in the mirror and I’m in the photo
In our time, when “Only Frodo can’t take a picture with an iPhone in the mirror” (by the way, also a meme), the discrepancy between your personal idea of uXNUMXbuXNUMXbits own appearance (= own irresistible beauty) and what happens in the end in the photo is a great topic for memes. And also quite international. That is why Russian memes about “I am in the mirror and I am in the photo” gain so many “likes”.
5. Dinosaur, what are you doing?
And now a few “out of series” memes that Western “memo lovers” liked just like that, on their own. Here, for example, is a sculpture of a dog, which very successfully fell under the snowfall. As a result, a snowy “dinosaur” formed on her back, gently hugging the dog by the shoulders. Well, isn’t that cute?
4. Ponic attack
And this meme plays on the distant similarity of the words “panic” and “pony” (and even more – derivatives of them “panic” and non-existent “pony”). Since in English this pun also “converges” very well – “panic attack” and “ponyc attack”, the meme perfectly “went” to the English-speaking audience.
3. Ellie and Scarecrow
The meme with Ellie and the Scarecrow from The Wizard of Oz caused the British and Americans to have a real hysteria of laughter (and a real flurry of “likes” and reposts). Apparently, this is due to the fact that it was from these countries that a whole galaxy of “gurus of everything and everything” “splashed out” into the world, teaching people how to live. At the same time, they broadcast with a confident air such banality, which has long been known to everyone and everyone, that “Captain Obviousness” (also a meme!) Just nervously smokes on the sidelines.
2. Suffering Middle Ages
Oh, those strange pictures from medieval manuscripts! They often not only depict a completely incomprehensible plot, but the very manner of drawing causes a modern person not just a smile, but sometimes even Homeric laughter. And it was the Russian authors of memes who were the first to perfectly “taste” them. At the moment, there are already at least a hundred memes in this style (a whole very popular series “The Suffering Middle Ages”). And not only European medieval miniatures, but also plots from antique vases, from Russian religious paintings and popular prints, etc., went into use. Western users also turned out to be completely delighted with them. It is quite difficult to single out any one meme from the series – so many of them are popular. But, for example, the author of the Russian Memes United public liked the joke about the baby and the year 1348 the most.
1. How do you like that, Ilon Musk?
After Elon Musk’s SpaceX launched a red Tesla electric car into space (on board a Falcon Heavy launch vehicle) in February 2018, numerous memes almost immediately appeared in Russia containing a comic challenge to this entrepreneur promoted in the media. Our users massively posted on the net the most stupid and strange (and sometimes almost ingenious) domestic “life hacks” under the heading “How do you like it, Elon Musk?” These memes reached the United States only six months later (in August), causing shock, surprise, and at the same time, most often, real admiration for American fans of meme culture. Many of the “Mask” memes received tens and hundreds of thousands of “likes” and reposts.
By the way, it was after this that the US Senate Intelligence Committee suddenly sounded the alarm: they say that the Russians are trying to manipulate the public consciousness of Americans with the help of memes in social networks. And this needs to be stopped immediately! Hmm … Well, how can one not recall the famous phrase of our chief diplomat Sergei Lavrov (which also suddenly became a meme then) – “Morons, b …!”