Wheeze Comic

2016Exploitable comic / reaction imagesemi-active

Also known as: Wheeze · Wheeze Meme

Wheeze Comic is a 2016 four-panel exploitable webcomic by Tumblr user patientno7 depicting a man with a visible wheeze reaction to absurd memes while unmoved by clever jokes.

The Wheeze Comic is an exploitable webcomic format created by Tumblr user patientno7 on April 23, 20161. The four-panel comic shows a man completely unfazed by a well-crafted joke but losing it over a stupid modern meme, reacting with a visible "wheeze." It became a popular reaction template across Reddit, Tumblr, and other platforms for poking fun at the absurdity of internet humor2.

webcomic memesexploitable templatesreaction memesironic memestumblr memes

Overview

The Wheeze Comic is a four-panel exploitable format that satirizes modern meme culture. The setup shows a man being told a well-constructed, traditional joke. He sits stone-faced, completely unmoved. In the next panels, someone shows him a low-effort or absurd internet meme, and he doubles over laughing, captioned with the word "wheeze" in italics or bold text2. The joke is self-aware: it mocks how internet users find dumb, context-dependent memes funnier than actual jokes.

The format works because it's honest. Anyone deep enough into meme culture knows the feeling of not laughing at a real joke but completely losing it at a deep-fried image of a cat or a single word repeated forty times1.

The comic was first posted to Tumblr by user patientno7 on April 23, 20162. The original version used the then-popular "succ" meme as the absurd punchline that triggers the wheeze reaction2. The post was captioned with a self-deprecating reflection on how the internet had changed the poster's sense of humor, with patientno7 writing "the internet changed me" and wondering "how much lower can we go"1.

On the same day, a Photoshop edit of the comic appeared on Reddit's r/me_irl subreddit, swapping in a different absurd meme as the punchline2. This quick crossover from Tumblr to Reddit kicked off the format's life as an exploitable template.

Origin & Background

Platform
Tumblr (original comic), Reddit (viral spread)
Creator
patientno7
Date
2016

The comic was first posted to Tumblr by user patientno7 on April 23, 2016. The original version used the then-popular "succ" meme as the absurd punchline that triggers the wheeze reaction. The post was captioned with a self-deprecating reflection on how the internet had changed the poster's sense of humor, with patientno7 writing "the internet changed me" and wondering "how much lower can we go".

On the same day, a Photoshop edit of the comic appeared on Reddit's r/me_irl subreddit, swapping in a different absurd meme as the punchline. This quick crossover from Tumblr to Reddit kicked off the format's life as an exploitable template.

How It Spread

After the initial Reddit crosspost on April 23, 2016, the Wheeze Comic picked up traction across multiple subreddits. The r/me_irl community adopted it early, fitting the subreddit's brand of self-deprecating humor about internet addiction. It also spread to r/MemeEconomy, where users treated it as a viable meme investment.

Beyond Reddit, the format appeared on Tumblr, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Users swapped out the punchline panel with whatever absurd meme was trending at the time, making the comic endlessly renewable. Each new wave of dumb internet humor gave the Wheeze Comic fresh material. The "wheeze" reaction panel also broke free from the full comic and circulated as a standalone reaction image, used whenever someone wanted to express that something was inexplicably hilarious.

How to Use This Meme

The Wheeze Comic format typically follows a simple structure:

1

Panel 1-2: A person tells a normal, well-constructed joke. The listener shows zero reaction.

2

Panel 3: Someone presents a current, absurd, or low-effort internet meme.

3

Panel 4: The listener completely loses composure, doubled over with the caption "wheeze."

Cultural Impact

The Wheeze Comic tapped into a growing conversation in the mid-2010s about how internet culture was degrading traditional humor. The format gave people a way to acknowledge that their sense of humor had been irreversibly shaped by meme culture without feeling bad about it. It was self-aware without being pretentious.

The standalone "wheeze" reaction became part of the broader vocabulary of reaction images, sitting alongside formats like Crying Laughing emoji and "I'm dying" reactions. The word "wheeze" itself became shorthand in online spaces for laughing at something so hard you can barely breathe.

Fun Facts

The original comic was created as a commentary on how the internet had changed the artist's sense of humor.

The comic went from Tumblr to Reddit on the exact same day it was posted, April 23, 2016.

The "succ" meme, which was the original punchline, was itself a meme about memes, making the Wheeze Comic a meta-meme from day one.

The format is endlessly renewable because it can absorb any new absurd meme as its punchline.

Derivatives & Variations

Standalone Wheeze Panel:

The final panel showing the "wheeze" reaction broke away from the full comic and circulated independently as a reaction image[2].

Succ Original:

The first version of the comic featured the "succ" meme as the absurd punchline, making it the template that all later edits followed[2].

r/MemeEconomy Edits:

Users on r/MemeEconomy created versions featuring whatever meme was currently being "traded," using the Wheeze Comic to comment on meme trends in real time[2].

Frequently Asked Questions

Wheeze Comic

2016Exploitable comic / reaction imagesemi-active

Also known as: Wheeze · Wheeze Meme

Wheeze Comic is a 2016 four-panel exploitable webcomic by Tumblr user patientno7 depicting a man with a visible wheeze reaction to absurd memes while unmoved by clever jokes.

The Wheeze Comic is an exploitable webcomic format created by Tumblr user patientno7 on April 23, 2016. The four-panel comic shows a man completely unfazed by a well-crafted joke but losing it over a stupid modern meme, reacting with a visible "wheeze." It became a popular reaction template across Reddit, Tumblr, and other platforms for poking fun at the absurdity of internet humor.

webcomic memes exploitable templates reaction memes ironic memes tumblr memes

Overview

The Wheeze Comic is a four-panel exploitable format that satirizes modern meme culture. The setup shows a man being told a well-constructed, traditional joke. He sits stone-faced, completely unmoved. In the next panels, someone shows him a low-effort or absurd internet meme, and he doubles over laughing, captioned with the word "wheeze" in italics or bold text. The joke is self-aware: it mocks how internet users find dumb, context-dependent memes funnier than actual jokes.

The format works because it's honest. Anyone deep enough into meme culture knows the feeling of not laughing at a real joke but completely losing it at a deep-fried image of a cat or a single word repeated forty times.

The comic was first posted to Tumblr by user patientno7 on April 23, 2016. The original version used the then-popular "succ" meme as the absurd punchline that triggers the wheeze reaction. The post was captioned with a self-deprecating reflection on how the internet had changed the poster's sense of humor, with patientno7 writing "the internet changed me" and wondering "how much lower can we go".

On the same day, a Photoshop edit of the comic appeared on Reddit's r/me_irl subreddit, swapping in a different absurd meme as the punchline. This quick crossover from Tumblr to Reddit kicked off the format's life as an exploitable template.

Origin & Background

Platform
Tumblr (original comic), Reddit (viral spread)
Creator
patientno7
Date
2016

The comic was first posted to Tumblr by user patientno7 on April 23, 2016. The original version used the then-popular "succ" meme as the absurd punchline that triggers the wheeze reaction. The post was captioned with a self-deprecating reflection on how the internet had changed the poster's sense of humor, with patientno7 writing "the internet changed me" and wondering "how much lower can we go".

On the same day, a Photoshop edit of the comic appeared on Reddit's r/me_irl subreddit, swapping in a different absurd meme as the punchline. This quick crossover from Tumblr to Reddit kicked off the format's life as an exploitable template.

How It Spread

After the initial Reddit crosspost on April 23, 2016, the Wheeze Comic picked up traction across multiple subreddits. The r/me_irl community adopted it early, fitting the subreddit's brand of self-deprecating humor about internet addiction. It also spread to r/MemeEconomy, where users treated it as a viable meme investment.

Beyond Reddit, the format appeared on Tumblr, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Users swapped out the punchline panel with whatever absurd meme was trending at the time, making the comic endlessly renewable. Each new wave of dumb internet humor gave the Wheeze Comic fresh material. The "wheeze" reaction panel also broke free from the full comic and circulated as a standalone reaction image, used whenever someone wanted to express that something was inexplicably hilarious.

How to Use This Meme

The Wheeze Comic format typically follows a simple structure:

1

Panel 1-2: A person tells a normal, well-constructed joke. The listener shows zero reaction.

2

Panel 3: Someone presents a current, absurd, or low-effort internet meme.

3

Panel 4: The listener completely loses composure, doubled over with the caption "wheeze."

Cultural Impact

The Wheeze Comic tapped into a growing conversation in the mid-2010s about how internet culture was degrading traditional humor. The format gave people a way to acknowledge that their sense of humor had been irreversibly shaped by meme culture without feeling bad about it. It was self-aware without being pretentious.

The standalone "wheeze" reaction became part of the broader vocabulary of reaction images, sitting alongside formats like Crying Laughing emoji and "I'm dying" reactions. The word "wheeze" itself became shorthand in online spaces for laughing at something so hard you can barely breathe.

Fun Facts

The original comic was created as a commentary on how the internet had changed the artist's sense of humor.

The comic went from Tumblr to Reddit on the exact same day it was posted, April 23, 2016.

The "succ" meme, which was the original punchline, was itself a meme about memes, making the Wheeze Comic a meta-meme from day one.

The format is endlessly renewable because it can absorb any new absurd meme as its punchline.

Derivatives & Variations

Standalone Wheeze Panel:

The final panel showing the "wheeze" reaction broke away from the full comic and circulated independently as a reaction image[2].

Succ Original:

The first version of the comic featured the "succ" meme as the absurd punchline, making it the template that all later edits followed[2].

r/MemeEconomy Edits:

Users on r/MemeEconomy created versions featuring whatever meme was currently being "traded," using the Wheeze Comic to comment on meme trends in real time[2].

Frequently Asked Questions