With Halloween just around the corner, it’s the perfect opportunity to compare some of the most popular Halloween memes. Whether you’re a meme enthusiast or just want to understand more about these popular internet trends, this article is for you. Here, we’ll compare some of the most popular Halloween memes to understand what makes them so special and why they’ve become so popular in such a short time. Let’s get started.
The First Meme to Sweep The Nation
The world of memes was initially introduced to the masses through the wildly popular Rick and Morty series. Creator Justin Roiland has cited the show’s use of memes as a major reason for its massive popularity. The first season of Rick and Morty contained more than its fair share of memes, and fans of the show have made countless memes based on its quirky characters and absurd situations. One of the earliest examples is the infamous Rick and Morty meme, which compares the titular characters to a certain wealthy, 70s era rapper. The original meme was created in 2012 and has been re-shared countless times ever since.
The meme was initially used to make fun of the then-burgeoning hip-hop culture, but it quickly became apparent that this version of Rick and Morty was a much more diverse spoof. It turns out that the show’s creators were quite aware of this fact and have made several jokes about various cultural differences, including the differences between male and female relations and the differences in social class. While many hip-hop fans may not have gotten the joke, it was definitely a breath of fresh air for people of other cultures who were often left out of many contemporary comedies.
The Running Man
Running Man is one of the most popular memes in the world and the definition of what is now commonly referred to as a meme trilogy. The original Running Man television show premiered in 1970 and was loosely inspired by the popular film The Magnificent Seven. In the show, seven criminals are forced into a race against time as they try to flee from police agents known as “baddies.” This race eventually leads to violent conflict as the criminals try to kill each other to win the race. While the violence, gore, and language might disturb some viewers, the show is largely remembered for its innovative approach to comedy and its campy, over-the-top characters. For example, in one scene, Tommy Chong, the show’s famous stoner comedian, is chased by a horde of policemen while offering the crowd a bong hit. It’s difficult to look at this funny scene and not be reminded of the running man meme itself!
The first season of the meme trilogy contained Running Man, Race for the Redhead, and Death Race 2050. The idea behind the Running Man meme was to contrast contemporary politics with a fantastical race between ordinary people and animals. The show’s creators, the great Bill Murray and Jim Anderson, were inspired by the 1968 Olympic games, when they first conceived of an idea for a race in which the last person left standing is the winner. Even the phrase “Running Man” was inspired by a similar Japanese game show. The meme’s appeal is that it encourages users to compare our current situation to a parody of American culture in which people are usually depicted as comically incompetent. For example, some of the baddies on the show are referred to as such due to their ineptitude, and this is why they’re often the butt of jokes. Nevertheless, they’re extremely aggressive and will harmlessly beat up anyone who gets in their way. It’s almost as if they want to be the last person standing so that they can boast that they’re the greatest. This type of behavior is often compared to that of Donald Trump, and the show’s creators even expressed their approval of the current president. In an interview with Time Out, Anderson said, “I like the way he’s talking about the press. I think a lot of the press is corrupt, and he’s pointing out the corruption.”
Homer Simpson
The Simpsons has been a major influence on contemporary culture and has even been cited as the first modern animated sitcom. The show first premiered in 1989 and is still going strong today. It’s been described as a comedy classic that will be loved by anyone who sees it. It’s popularity can be attributed to several factors. First, and most obviously, is the show’s incredibly rich and diverse setting and hilarious characters. The show centers around the everyday life of Homer Simpson, an average suburban family man who faces the absurdities of growing up in the 21st century. The show’s many running gags are often based on real-life events from the 1980s, and this is what gives the show its unique humor. For example, one of the most popular gags involves Homer coming up with a new word every other minute. Even though these words may not make any sense when said together, each individual word makes perfect sense when spoken individually. It’s a great example of how clever writing and creative wordplay can render random phrases and sentences comprehensible. This is in contrast to many other sitcoms, which often have trouble maintaining their humor as the plots become more complex and the settings become more fantastical. What makes The Simpsons so much fun to watch is its self-referential nature and frequent references to pop culture and the events of the day. While many other sitcoms strive to be edgy and experimental, relying heavily on obscure cultural references and jarring metaphors, The Simpsons just wants to be funny.
Zoids
Zoids is a classic science-fiction comedy series that first aired in France in 1978. The story follows a group of heroic zoo workers who save animals from the destructive robots they created. While the show is often considered a parody of science fiction films and clichés, it’s clear that the creators had a more profound message to impart. The French journalist Hélène Védrine compared Zoids to a kind of futuristic The Honeymooners and hailed it as “a comedy for our times.” The show’s influence can be felt in many different ways. First, the show’s opening theme music became an instant classic and is often used as a stand-in for a comedic effect. Next, many of the inventions the characters use in their day-to-day lives were inspired by real-life scientific advances, and this is what gives the show its scientific accuracy. Finally, and perhaps most significantly, the show anticipates and satirizes some of the biggest issues in society today, especially in terms of environmentalism. In one episode, the heroes discover a plot by an evil corporation to poison the water supply, and in a later episode, they foil a plan to eradicate all animal life on Earth using robot animals.
Zoids was originally pitched as a live-action series, but after seeing the initial test screenings, the producers decided to adapt it into an animated series. The switch saved them money as animating the series was more cost-effective than shooting live-action sequences. As a result, many parts of the show were done in a style that was largely unseen before—namely rotoscoping. This is a process of drawing over real-life footage to provide the illusion of movement, something that is difficult to do live-action. The process was first pioneered in the 1920s and really came into its own in the latter half of the 20th century. You might know this technique from anime, where it is sometimes used to give the characters a 3D quality or to add extra details, like shoes or jewelry, but the innovation of rotoscoping in Zoids was in how it was used—to create an illusion of movement in time with the music. This was a technique used often in old black and white cartoons, but it was rarely seen in color due to the high costs and complexities involved in color correction. With the rise of computer power and modern software such as Adobe After Effects, rotoscoping is now possible in any form, and artists have used this newfound power to create works that were unimaginable just a few years ago.
South Park
Like The Simpsons, South Park is one of the most popular and beloved comedy shows of all time. It first aired in the United States in 1997 and, since then, the show’s been featured in every major international TV awards ceremony. Although the show doesn’t generally get credit for being innovative or breaking new ground, this is far from true. First and foremost, South Park is a satire, and, as a result, it often takes aim at the topics and issues of its time, especially concerning younger audiences. The show’s first and most popular episode, “The Itchy & Scratchy Show,” aired in 1993 and was widely considered to be one of the first TV shows to feature a homosexual relationship as a light-hearted topic rather than a shocking event. This was quite a step for American television at the time. Later episodes would satirize the Columbine High School massacre and Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth, among many other things.