# Notices Bulge Owo Whats This > Notices Bulge/OwO What's This is a 2013 copypasta and catchphrase pairing suggestive furry roleplay text with the wide-eyed OwO emoticon to mock exaggerated online flirtation. "Notices Bulge / OwO What's This?" is a copypasta and catchphrase that parodies the online roleplay habits of furry communities, pairing suggestive text with the wide-eyed emoticon "OwO" to mock exaggerated flirtation in chat conversations. The phrase first appeared on DeviantArt in January 2013 and went viral on Imgur and Tumblr in 2015-2016[5]. It rocketed into mainstream awareness in September 2025 after investigators found it inscribed on a bullet casing at the scene of conservative activist Charlie Kirk's assassination[1]. ## Origin The earliest documented use appeared on January 6, 2013, when DeviantArt user CookiMuffinFaic posted a fanfiction cover with the caption "OwO What is this I'm working on? A fanfic cover!"[8]. The post picked up over 130 views, three comments, and three downloads over the next few years[5]. While the specific "notices bulge" wording wasn't in that original post, the "OwO what's this" construction and the furry community context were already in place. The phrase and others like it circulated within furry roleplay spaces through 2013 and 2014, used both sincerely and as self-aware humor about their own community's habits[8]. - **Platform:** DeviantArt (earliest post), Imgur / Tumblr (viral spread) - **Creator:** CookiMuffinFaic (earliest known DeviantArt poster), MinotaurusPro (viral Imgur post) - **Date:** 2013 ## Overview The meme centers on a mock roleplay exchange where one character "notices" another character's "bulge" and reacts with the surprised-face emoticon "OwO" followed by the question "what's this?" The "OwO" emoticon uses the letter O for wide eyes and a lowercase W as a small mouth, creating a cutesy surprised expression[6]. The phrase typically includes asterisk-enclosed action text (like \*nuzzles\* or \*pounces on you\*) that mimics the roleplay formatting common in furry and anime fan communities[8]. In practice, the meme works as a trolling device. People drop the phrase into unrelated conversations, comment sections, or message boards to mock the perceived cringe of furry roleplay culture[7]. The deliberate awkwardness is the point. The "bulge" refers to noticing the outline of a man's crotch, and the exaggerated innocence of "OwO what's this?" plays up the sexual subtext for comedic effect[7]. ## How It Spread The meme's viral era kicked off on June 24, 2015, when Imgur user MinotaurusPro uploaded an image showing two furry characters in a roleplay exchange, with one writing "nuzzles u back and pounces on u and notices your bulge 'OwO what's this...?'"[9]. On July 2, 2015, Tumblr user of-monsters-and-bara reposted the image with the caption "WHO DID THIS," and the post picked up over 60,000 notes within a year[5]. From there, the phrase spread rapidly across Tumblr. On July 3, 2016, user Memeufacturing posted a joke titled "Me as a furry therapist" reading: "me: \*notices abandonment issues engrained in their subconscious\* OwO whats this?:3"[3]. That post earned over 10,000 notes in two months[5]. On July 20, 2016, user pastarrie edited a reblog of a CommunismKills post to include "HI \*TACKLEGLOMPS U\* X3 \*NOTICES BULGE IN UR PANTS\* OWO WHAT'S THIS???"[4]. The altered post racked up over 20,000 notes in roughly three weeks. On August 4, 2016, Tumblr user localplant posted a parody of The Killers' "Mr. Brightside" rewritten with furry roleplay language, incorporating the "OwO" phrase[5]. It gained about 4,500 notes in three weeks. ## How to Use The meme is typically deployed in one of several ways: 1. **Classic copypasta format:** Write out a roleplay exchange using asterisk-enclosed actions (\*nuzzles\*, \*pounces on you\*), include "notices your bulge," and cap it with "OwO what's this?" The more over-the-top, the funnier. 2. **Reaction trolling:** Drop "OwO what's this?" into an unrelated conversation, comment section, or message board to create confusion or derail a thread. 3. **Template swap:** Replace "bulge" with something contextually relevant but unexpected. The "furry therapist" variation ("\*notices abandonment issues\* OwO what's this?") is one popular format[3]. 4. **Standalone emoticon:** Use "OwO" on its own as a reaction indicating exaggerated surprise or faux-innocent curiosity, often in contexts meant to be deliberately uncomfortable. ## Cultural Impact The September 2025 bullet casing revelation forced a niche internet phrase into the global spotlight in a way few memes ever experience. News organizations worldwide had to explain "OwO" to their audiences, creating surreal moments where a state governor read furry catchphrases at a press conference[6]. The incident fueled growing discussion about "irony-poisoned" internet culture, where the boundary between joke and sincere belief is deliberately blurred[1]. *PennLive* reported that research shows extremists can "soft-sell" their ideology through memes, letting algorithms amplify the message, and that meme posters often maintain plausible deniability by packaging hatred as humor[2]. The use of jokes on bullet casings was read by some analysts as deliberate trolling of law enforcement, designed to be inscrutable to anyone outside internet culture[2]. The *Wall Street Journal* initially misreported that the bullet casings were engraved with "transgender...ideology," a characterization not supported by the actual inscriptions[1]. Major outlets including CNN, BBC, and *Wired* quickly published explainers decoding the references for bewildered readers[13]. The furry community, already used to being an internet punchline, found itself at the center of a national news story about political assassination[10]. The incident raised difficult questions about how law enforcement and the public should interpret meme references found at crime scenes. Cox himself declined to interpret most of the inscriptions, telling reporters, "I will leave that up to you to interpret what those engravings mean"[6]. ## Fun Facts - Governor Spencer Cox read the phrase "Notices, bulges, OwO what's this?" aloud at an official press conference, likely making it the first time a U.S. governor explained furry meme culture on live television[6]. - The pastarrie Tumblr post that blew up with over 20,000 notes was actually a sneaky edit of someone else's post. Pastarrie admitted the next day that they had changed the text to include the OwO phrase[5]. - The arrow symbols on one unfired casing (up, right, down, down, down) correspond to the controller input for calling in an Eagle 500kg Bomb airstrike in Helldivers 2, a popular cooperative shooter game[10]. - Robinson's father was the one who identified his son from FBI wanted photos and convinced him to surrender, ending the 33-hour manhunt[12]. - Despite being used primarily to mock furries, the meme was partly reclaimed by furry communities who adopted it as an ironic in-joke about their own stereotypes[7]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Notices Bulge / OwO What's This? It's a copypasta and catchphrase that parodies furry roleplay culture, combining suggestive text about noticing a "bulge" with the surprised-face emoticon "OwO"[5]. ### Where did Notices Bulge / OwO What's This come from? The earliest documented use was on January 6, 2013, by DeviantArt user CookiMuffinFaic, though the meme didn't go viral until Imgur user MinotaurusPro posted a furry roleplay image in June 2015[8]. ### What does OwO mean? "OwO" is a text emoticon where the O's represent wide eyes and the W represents a small mouth, creating a surprised or cute facial expression commonly associated with furry and anime communities[6]. ### How do you use the Notices Bulge meme? People commonly write out exaggerated roleplay text with asterisk-enclosed actions, include "notices your bulge," and end with "OwO what's this?" It's almost always used ironically as a trolling device or joke[7]. ### Is Notices Bulge / OwO What's This still popular? Yes. While the meme circulated in niche internet communities for years, it exploded into mainstream awareness in September 2025 after being found inscribed on a bullet casing at the Charlie Kirk assassination scene[1]. ### Why was OwO What's This on a bullet casing? Tyler Robinson, charged with assassinating Charlie Kirk, inscribed "Notices, bulges, OwO what's this?" on the fired casing along with other meme references and anti-fascist slogans. The exact reasoning behind choosing this specific phrase is unclear[6]. ### What were all the inscriptions on the bullet casings? The fired casing read "Notices, bulges, OwO what's this?" while unfired rounds carried "O Bella Ciao, Bella Ciao, Bella Ciao, Ciao, ciao," "if you read this you are gay lmao," and "Hey fascist! Catch!" with Helldivers 2 controller input symbols[10]. ### What is the connection between OwO and furries? The "OwO" emoticon and the "notices bulge" phrase both originated in online furry roleplay communities, where participants used them during text-based character interactions. The meme format parodies this style of communication[8]. ### Who created the OwO What's This meme? DeviantArt user CookiMuffinFaic posted the earliest known use of "OwO what's this" in January 2013. Imgur user MinotaurusPro popularized the "notices bulge" variation with a viral image in June 2015[5]. ### What is the Helldivers 2 reference on the bullet casings? One unfired casing had arrow symbols (up, right, down, down, down) matching the input code for the Eagle 500kg Bomb stratagem in Helldivers 2, a cooperative third-person shooter published by Sony[10]. ### What does "Bella Ciao" on the bullets mean? "Bella Ciao" is an Italian anti-fascist folk song from World War II that gained renewed popularity through the Netflix series *Money Heist*. Its inscription alongside "Hey fascist! Catch!" pointed toward anti-fascist political motivation[9]. ### What is "irony-poisoned" meme culture? *Reason* used the term to describe internet communication where sincerity and sarcasm are deliberately mixed, making it difficult for outsiders to determine what is a genuine belief and what is a joke. The bullet casing inscriptions were cited as an example of this pattern[1]. ## References 1. [Memeufacturing's furry therapist post]() 2. [Charlie Kirk shooting suspect Tyler Robinson in custody | CNN]() 3. [What Does "*Notices Bulges* OwO What's This?" Mean?]() 4. [Notices Bulge / OwO What's This? - Know Your Meme]() 5. [Assassination of Charlie Kirk]() 6. [Casings Found in Charlie Kirk Murder Carry MEMEs Reference and 'Bella Ciao', the Resistance Anthem From 'Money Heist']() 7. ['Notices Bulge, OwO What’s This?’: Meaning behind the meme engraved on Tyler Robinson’s bullet casing | Hindustan Times]() 8. [What Is The "Notices Bulge, OwO What's This" Meme And Why Was It On A Bullet Casing? LIMC Explains - LESSONS IN MEME CULTURE]() 9. [What does 'notices bulge OwO' mean? Plus 3 other messages on Kirk killer's bullets]() 10. [Internet culture can turn memes into extremism. Is that what’s behind Charlie Kirk’s killing? - pennlive.com]() 11. [OwO? Helldivers 2? Meaning of bullet casing engravings in Kirk killing]() 12. [Charlie Kirk's widow gives tearful address after shooting: 'I will never let your legacy die' - BBC News]() 13. [hey....wats up!!!]() 14. [Charlie Kirk shooting suspect Tyler Robinson in custody | CNN]() 15. [Decoding 'Notices Bulges Owo What's This?' - A Cultural Snapshot - Oreate AI Blog]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/notices-bulge-owo-whats-this Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library