What Is the Surprised Pikachu Meme? Origin & Meaning
Learn what the Surprised Pikachu meme is and why it went viral. Create your own Surprised Pikachu meme for free.
The Surprised Pikachu meme is a screenshot of Pikachu from the Pokemon anime with a wide-eyed, open-mouthed expression of shock. The image comes from the Pokemon anime series, specifically from a scene where Pikachu makes this exaggerated surprised face.
The meme went viral in October 2018 when it was posted on Tumblr and quickly spread to Twitter, Reddit, and other platforms.
How It Works
The joke structure is always the same: someone does something obviously predictable, and then acts shocked when the predictable outcome happens. The top text sets up the obvious cause, and the Surprised Pikachu face represents the feigned shock at the completely expected result.
Example Structure
A typical Surprised Pikachu meme goes: "Does [obvious thing that will have obvious consequence]" followed by [obvious consequence happens] and then the Surprised Pikachu face. The humor is in the absurdity of being "surprised" by something entirely predictable.
Why It Resonates
The meme is popular because everyone knows someone (or is someone) who acts surprised by predictable outcomes. It is a gentle way to point out when a situation's result was entirely foreseeable.