You may have seen the picture above making the rounds on Twitter. It’s taken from an episode of ’90s anime series The Brave Fighter of Sun Fighbird (yes, that’s how it’s spelled), specifically from a scene in which an android doesn’t know what butterflies are called, asking “Is this a pigeon?” The screencap has been the subject of memes since 2011, but it’s had a big resurgence on Twitter over the past few weeks.
One of the earliest tweets during the resurgence of the meme came from Netflix, who were making fun of adults being cast as teenagers in TV shows:
— Netflix (@netflix) May 3, 2018
Black Panther references were also common, with the second tweet here fittingly coming from a Disney animator:
— josh pappenheim (@papsby) May 6, 2018
no regrets pic.twitter.com/8KcIkROzUW
— Wynton Redmond (@wyntonred) May 10, 2018
Some people meme’d their feelings:
— Jennifer Espinoza (@sadqueer4life) May 1, 2018
— Brandy Jensen (@BrandyLJensen) May 1, 2018
— Cat Graffam (@catgraffam) May 4, 2018
https://twitter.com/chvschpr/status/980101365480415232
I feel personally attacked by some of these…
— eb🕸️ny (@memeyard) May 9, 2018
https://twitter.com/JMarcusGuevarra/status/993378536504229888
https://twitter.com/NOTVIKING/status/993541072583356416
— Catapult (@CatapultStory) May 2, 2018
https://twitter.com/mumble_sauce/status/995168786775986177
— hattie (@haticebot) May 14, 2018
Others vented their frustrations about work:
— jeremy poxon (@JeremyPoxon) May 7, 2018
— . (@jaboukie) May 12, 2018
People also used the meme to take aim at Jimmy Fallon, the Met Gala, Eurovision, Microsoft Excel, and the entire state of California.
— ahmed ali akbar (@radbrowndads) May 3, 2018
https://twitter.com/PatchNavillus/status/993695340787322881
https://twitter.com/mathaiaus/status/994521862242615297
hot off the presses pic.twitter.com/D2PMrDBlQq
— 🛸 UFOtekkie 🛸 (@UFOtekkie) May 8, 2018
https://twitter.com/tilton_raccoon/status/993692327456616448
Others took aim at guys they’re mad at:
https://twitter.com/romiosini/status/989363885881819136
https://twitter.com/DanaSchwartzzz/status/995655591765970944
I’m finally doing one of these. I don’t feel good about it either. pic.twitter.com/YJzd4vd0qn
— Andrew Nadeau (@TheAndrewNadeau) May 10, 2018
— ᡕᠵ᠊ᡃ່࡚ࠢ࠘ ⸝່ࠡࠣ᠊߯᠆ࠣ࠘ᡁࠣ࠘᠊᠊ࠢ࠘𐡏- – – – – ♡ (@girlntheiceburg) May 5, 2018
https://twitter.com/rfetts/status/994780011356983296
Some people delved into art history:
Others delved into English history:
— Blah de Vivre (@blahdevivre) May 11, 2018
— Dara Kaye (@DaraKaye) May 9, 2018
But the funniest memes arrived when some clever so-and-sos went subversive or meta with it, or combined the meme with other recent memes:
— ceeks (@70Ceeks) May 9, 2018
— Todd 'Papi' Carlos (@TheToddWilliams) May 14, 2018
— leon (@leyawn) May 11, 2018
https://twitter.com/RunningInThe2K/status/994926449550340097
am i getting this right? pic.twitter.com/9BMDWsNdLc
— Noah Ratcliff (@20c109) May 7, 2018
— leon (@leyawn) May 11, 2018
— A-H (@bluevioletdog) May 9, 2018
— regular gem (@Choplogik) May 9, 2018
https://twitter.com/tastefactory/status/994310360071991296
— Ken Jennings (@KenJennings) May 12, 2018
— Stefan (@Zin5ki) May 8, 2018
(Hat tip to Know Your Meme)