Boom Meter

2024catchphrasesemi-active

Boom Meter is a five-point rating system used by TikTok father-son duo A.J. and Big Justice (the Costco Guys) to score food products, popularized during their 'Boom or Doom' segment. It went viral in June 2024 after clips were reposted to X, where viewers joked that the meter's integrity was ruined because nearly every item earned 5/5 booms.

Overview

The Boom Meter is a food-rating gimmick used by TikTok father-son creators A.J. Befumo and his son Big Justice, better known as the Costco Guys, in their recurring 'Boom or Doom' segment1. A score is delivered by shouting 'BOOM,' flexing a bicep, and slapping a clip-art explosion graphic with a bomb emoji onto the screen, with items rated on a five-boom scale2.

By mid-2024 the format became a running joke on X because the family and their extended cast, including The Rizzler and Cousin Angelo, appeared to award almost every product the maximum 5/5 booms1. That inflation turned the meter itself into the punchline and the graphic into an exploitable that other users started editing2.

How It Spread

One day later, on June 10th, 2024, A.J. and Big Justice posted a Boom Meter review of triple-chunk chocolate cookies featuring The Rizzler and Cousin Angelo, and the clip pulled in around 2.9 million plays and 294,800 likes on TikTok over ten days1. X user @JUSTcatmeme reposted the same video that day with the caption 'Jesus died for this,' where it racked up 15.9 million views and 29,000 likes in ten days and pushed the bit well beyond its TikTok audience1.

A follow-up Boom Meter review of Fruit Blox fruit snacks landed on June 18th, 2024, earning about 1.3 million TikTok plays and 72,000 likes in two days, and @JUSTcatmeme's X repost of that clip added another 6.6 million views1. The same day, X user @chief___keefe posted the line 'As more and more items earn 5/5 booms on the boom meter, I begin to question the integrity of the boom meter,' which drew over 75,000 likes and became the definitive shorthand for the joke1.

Exploitable edits followed almost immediately. On June 18th, 2024, X user @DildoGaggins89 posted a doctored image of Big Justice giving 9/11 a 5/5 booms, which pulled roughly 17,000 likes in two days and confirmed that the Boom Meter graphic itself had crossed over into template territory1.

How to Use This Meme

Boom Meter edits typically take the pre-existing five-boom bar graphic from an A.J. and Big Justice video and slap it onto some unrelated subject, usually one that clearly does not deserve five booms. The comedy leans on the mismatch between the enthusiastic 5/5 verdict and whatever tragic, mundane, or offensive thing is being rated, echoing the @chief___keefe complaint about the meter's blown-out scoring1. Captions often mimic the Costco Guys' delivery, with a shouted 'BOOM' and an explosion emoji standing in for a real review.

Frequently Asked Questions