The Brief: The latest iteration of this meme about camaraderie features a still image from a vintage Spiderman cartoon series.
DEEP DIVE
While the exact origin of the phrase is unknown, “Me and the boys” has often been used to caption photo posts on various social media platforms.
The photos usually feature a group of people engaged in some sort of activity.
Vintage Villain Variations
In May 2019, the meme resurfaced on Reddit, this time featuring a still image from Stan Lee’s 1967 animated TV series Spider-Man. The image features Spiderman villains (left to right) Rhino, Vulture, Electro and Green Goblin.
The meme took off from there, spreading across Reddit and Twitter.
me and the boys standing in front of the clock at 4:19pm pic.twitter.com/VjqstbGUNJ
— wiggly p (@yo_eyes) June 4, 2019
Me and the boys discussing all the answers we got wrong #aqageography pic.twitter.com/B4uzQdPlRU
— Valentino (@valentinocren) June 5, 2019
Me and the boys in the back of the class pic.twitter.com/M5CI8ByRUV
— Thegreatratking (@Mousetrap95) June 5, 2019
Other variatons of the meme:
When Fandoms Collide
Many meme-makers have added additional characters to the meme format including ones from vintage comics and other fandoms.
With Tom and Jerry.
They are in from dankmemes
This one’s for all of the Pokemon stans:
[Warning: cursed]
Me and the boys #meandtheboys #pokemon pic.twitter.com/emWaOgqyXn— Tomdubs 👌 (@Tomthadubz) June 3, 2019
Other versions feature real-life public figures.