Pepe the Frog

In 2008, the page containing Pepe's bathroom scene and his "feels good man" catchphrase was scanned and uploaded to 4chan's /b/ (random) board15. The Something Awful forum also picked it up in February 2008 when contributor Jon Hendren posted the comic5. 4chan users immediately began adapting Pepe's face to express different emotions and scenarios, and the meme took root fast.

By 2009, an edited version showing a distraught Pepe with the caption "feels bad man" started circulating on 4chan and the Bodybuilding Forums5. The sad variant hit Tumblr by 2012, and the "Smug Pepe" variant emerged that same year15. Versions appeared on Chinese social media platform Baidu Tieba as early as 2014, where he was known as *shangxin qingwa* (傷心青蛙), or "sad frog"15.

Pepe broke into the mainstream in late 2014. On November 8, Katy Perry tweeted a crying Pepe with the caption "Australian jet lag got me like," pulling in over 17,000 likes and 10,500 retweets5. A month later on December 18, Nicki Minaj posted a twerking Pepe on Instagram, racking up 281,000 likes5. By 2015, Pepe ranked as the #6 most important meme according to Daily News and Analysis and was the most retweeted meme on Twitter15. Tumblr's Daily Intelligencer called him the platform's "Biggest Meme of 2015"15.

During this period, 4chan users began treating creative and unique Pepe variations as "Rare Pepes," collecting and trading them like digital cards. Some were sold on eBay and posted on Craigslist, and 4chan users became protective of the meme, referring to outsiders who used Pepe as "normies"15.