# Subverting Expectations
Subverting Expectations is a sarcastic catchphrase used to mock story twists in franchises like Star Wars and Game of Thrones that fans found illogical or lazy. It took off after The Last Jedi in December 2017 and became a standard fandom insult by the time Game of Thrones ended in 2019.
## Origin
The exact spark is hard to pin down, but the phrase started circulating as an ironic putdown right after Star Wars: The Last Jedi opened on December 15th, 2017. Reviewers had praised the film for breaking series conventions, and unhappy fans latched onto the specific words "subverting expectations" as shorthand for what they thought was lazy writing dressed up as boldness[3].
RedLetterMedia's community pushed the phrase hardest. The channel's Last Jedi review, posted December 19th, 2017, pulled in millions of views over the following years[4]. Ten days later, on December 29th, the crew's annual Best of the Worst episode dug into subverting expectations as a narrative shortcut that could sink a story[5]. The next day a poster in /r/RedLetterMedia opened a thread titled "I don't understand the 'subverting expectations' meme," which is the first written record of fans calling it a meme[1].
- **Platform:** YouTube / Reddit (viral spread)
- **Creator:** Unknown
- **Date:** 2017
## Overview
Subverting Expectations works as a sarcastic quote of praise that critics gave to writers like Rian Johnson and the Game of Thrones showrunners. Fans flip the compliment back on itself, using it to mean the writing chose shock value over coherent storytelling[3]. The joke lives in the gap between what the phrase literally says and what fans think actually happened on screen.
The format is mostly text-based. It shows up as a caption on screenshots of jarring scenes, as a tag on angry review threads, or as a one-line reply to anyone earnestly defending a twist[1]. When the phrase is used sincerely by a critic praising a bold choice, fans quote-tweet or reply with the same words to signal they think the twist was cheap[2].
## How It Spread
Through early 2018 the phrase stayed mostly inside Star Wars circles. On January 18th, 2018, YouTuber ThatAnimeSnob re-cut the RedLetterMedia Best of the Worst discussion into its own video, which pulled over 4,400 views within a year and a half[1]. That September, a /r/RedLetterMedia thread asked whether the channel had actually invented the meme or picked it up from behind-the-scenes Rian Johnson interviews, signaling that fans were tracing the joke's roots[6].
The phrase got a second wind with Game of Thrones season eight in April and May 2019. Fans who felt the final episodes traded character logic for shock beats reached for the same insult, and a /r/OutOfTheLoop thread on May 7th, 2019, asked why the phrase kept coming up in Game of Thrones discussions[7]. Two days later YouTuber Yah_way posted "Game of Thrones S8 Sucks: 'Subverting Expectations,'" which crossed 26,000 views inside a week[8].
By the time season eight wrapped, subverting expectations was a stock caption on Game of Thrones image macros, especially ones targeting the Night King's death and Daenerys's turn[1]. It stuck around as a general fandom insult for any twist critics defended and fans hated.
## How to Use
The typical use is to quote a critic or creator praising a twist, then reply with "subverting expectations" as the caption, often on a screenshot of the scene in question. It also shows up as a standalone reply to any earnest defense of a divisive plot choice. Common convention includes air quotes or italics around the phrase when written out.
## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is Subverting Expectations?
A sarcastic catchphrase fans use to mock plot twists they think were written for shock rather than sense, most often aimed at Star Wars and Game of Thrones[1].
### Where did Subverting Expectations come from?
It started circulating after Star Wars: The Last Jedi opened on December 15th, 2017, with RedLetterMedia's Last Jedi review helping cement the phrase inside fan discourse[4].
### What does Subverting Expectations mean?
Literally it means a story defying what the audience predicts, but as a meme it is used ironically to accuse writers of choosing shock over coherent plotting[2].
### How do you use Subverting Expectations?
Typically as a one-line sarcastic caption on a screenshot of a divisive scene, or as a reply to anyone praising a twist fans dislike[7].
### Is Subverting Expectations still popular?
It became a classic fandom putdown after Game of Thrones season eight aired in 2019 and is still a common reference point in film and TV criticism circles[8].
## References
1. [https://www.reddit.com/r/RedLetterMedia/comments/7mtcl9/i_dont_understand_the_subverting_expectations_meme/]()
2. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dj_jPKVjMk]()
3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/subverting-expectations]()
4. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9hwGZFPSmw]()
5. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSqcvmLE0ek]()
6. [https://www.reddit.com/r/RedLetterMedia/comments/9csil7/did_rlm_start_the_last_jedi_subverting/]()
7. [https://www.reddit.com/r/OutOfTheLoop/comments/bllbju/why_are_people_talking_about_subverted/]()
8. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4Fivz-EsE8]()
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Source: https://meme.com/memes/subverting-expectations
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