There is no doubt that 2017 was a rocky year. We lost a lot of our sanity, faith in humanity and worst of all, Vine (R.I.P. Jan. 17, 2017).
One of the few goods things that came out of this year were the memes. We got sly duck, mocking Spongebob, distracted boyfriend, cash me ousside, how Italians do things and who could forget the Babadook becoming a gay icon (check out this article for how that happened). Needless to say, we have taken comfort in the fact that even though the world may be crashing down around us, at least we have quality memes.
5. Expanding Brain
This meme originated as a spoof on the “who” vs. “whom” debate. While the images displayed suggest more complex subjects as the list goes on, the list is usually ironic or mundane, showcasing sillier debates between people. This is a great meme for anyone who gets a kick out of intellectual debate or those who enjoy mocking intellectual debate (more likely the latter).
4. Salt Bae
Salt Bae was one of the first memes this year. This meme is a still of a video uploaded by Turkish chef Nusret Gökçe in January, where he can be seen dramatically sprinkling salt onto flank steak. Salt Bae is typically used to convey flamboyancy in ordinary tasks and is especially loved by those with a flair for the dramatic.
3. Roll Safe
Pictured in this meme is Kayode Ewumi portraying the role of Reece Simpson (nicknamed “Roll Safe”) from the webseries “Hood Documentary.” According to Know Your Meme, “[t]he image is often captioned with various jokes mocking poor decision making and failures in critical thinking.” Roll Safe is about those people who think they’re smart while everyone else around them really knows what’s up.
2. Meryl Streep Singing
Beloved Oscar-winner actress, Meryl Streep, was probably shouting words of encouragement at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) award ceremony in 2015. Now, she energetically sings back-up lyrics to some of our favorite songs including “Work It” by Missy Elliot, “New York” by Alicia Keys and “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers. Sing on, Streep — we’re right there with you.
- Drew Scanlon Reaction/Blinking White Guy/Disbelief Guy
Drew Scanlon is a video editor and podcaster for the website Giant Bomb. This meme is originally a gif, but has been used in both picture and gif form to show a salty reaction to a completely plausible scenario. This meme is definitely number one because we have all had those “excuse me?” moments, and oftentimes they produce the greatest memories.
While this list did not include any of the many President Donald Trump memes that graced us in 2017, they were still too prime not to share. Here are some Trump versions of the Top 5 Memes of 2017:
Expanding Brain: Trump
Salt Trump
Roll Safe: Trump
Unfortunately, there is no Trump version of the Streep Singing Meme or Blinking White Guy. There’s still time to make versions though … someone should get on that. In the meantime, since we love memes so much, here is an extensive collection of memes that have blessed our lives this past year (or so.)
Barack Obama’s birthday meme to Joe Biden
The Floor is
Oh No Baby What is You Doin
Sly Duck
Mocking Spongebob
Be a Lot Cooler If You Did
Distracted Boyfriend
How Italians Do Things
The Scroll of Truth
Obamacare vs GOP Replacement
This is the Future That Liberals Want
Spotify Playlist Messages
First of All…
Beyoncé Menu
Am I missing some of your favorites? Comment them below — and if you have some great captions of your own for these memes, check out these blank meme templates to create your own.
@oliphant_haley
