When X / X When

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About

When X / X When is a common meme template used in a myriad of other meme templates to convey or imply how strongly or in what way someone, a group or something(s) would or did react under a specified circumstance, such as "when the guac is extra" or "when the impostor is sus." This meme appears as a phrasal template in titles of image macros/videos, and in images as text before or after a reaction image inside the panel. It is commonly used as auxillary text on top of various memes or pictures with no context to create a sense of emotional context to a hypothetical moment.

Origin

The first documented example of the "when x / x when" meme template being used on the internet as a meme was on January 10th, 2008, by user Stolz (shown below). Stolz said the "Mindfuck is also 'When you see it, you'll shit bricks'" in a forum thread started by user Amen, called "Mind Fuck Megathread" on the game-modding website GameBanana.^[1] Based on how Stolz worded their post, it is likely there are earlier posts online using that phrasal template but have since been lost.

This forum thread was about "mindfuck" images, another term for the "when you see it, you'll shit bricks" meme. "When X / X when" as a meme template may predate the internet due to its broad format for humor and mockery.

When You See It …

"When You See It, You'll Shit Bricks" is a popular caption for many Demotivational Posters. The phrase expresses what one will feel after they discover the hidden image or message in the post. The images are often referred to as "mind games" or "mindfucks." The "when you see it, you'll shit bricks" catchphrase had an entire website dedicated to it on April 9th, 2008.^[2]

My Face When (MFW) / That Face When (TFW)

"My Face When …" (also shortened as ">mfw") is a colloquial phrase commonly used on 4chan imageboards as the opening line of reply posts and greentext stories, in particular. The phrase is used in forum discussions to discuss how users would respond to a given situation, whether it be hypothetical or based on experiences of real life. "Mfw" posts can be also accompanied by a reaction image. ">mfw" threads first began appearing on 4chan's imageboards in late 2009, with the earliest archived thread dating back to November 29th, 2009 in the /mu/ (music) thread "Syd."^[3]

When I'm Bored

When I'm Bored is a video remix series featuring short clips and images from various fandoms compiled into a fast-paced montage sequence and set to the Audiostalkers remix of "Let Me Hit It" by Sporty-O. Many of the video titles use variations of the snowclone template "When I'm X." YouTuber ancasgirl95^[4] uploaded a video titled "When I'm Bored" (shown below, left) on August 31, 2010, which featured several short clips and images of the character Yoko^[5] from the Japanese anime series Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. Much of the source material was taken from the music video "Kirameki Yoko Box – Pieces of Sweet Stars", ^[6] accompanied by the Audiostalkers^[7] remix of the song "Let Me Hit It."

When U Mom Com Home And Make Hte Spagheti

When U Mom Com Home And Make Hte Spagheti is an intentionally misspelled expression derived from a Tumblr post featuring a GIF of a dancing green alien. On April 21st, 2012, Tumblr user familyfriendlyurl^[8] posted an animated GIF of a dancing green alien captioned with the phrase “when u Mom com home and make hte spagheti.” As of June 20th, 2013, the post has more than 98,000 notes. The dancing alien GIF^[9] has been used online since the 1990s in banner ads for mortgage loan services.^[10]

When You Forget Your Headphones

When You Forget Your Headphones is a reaction image series revolving around the commonly shared experience of forgetting to take one's headphones before heading outside, particularly the feeling of dismay upon realizing it at a distance away from home. The earliest known image macro examples were uploaded as part of the first world problems meme on Twitter in early 2013.

When You're at a Sleepover

When You're at a Sleepover refers to a series of image macros that caption photographs of humans or animals underneath a variety of objects with some variation of "When you’re at a sleepover and your friend doesn’t give you a blanket." The earliest known usage of the meme was posted on August 27th, 2014 by Twitter user @lilnaebossin.^[11] They posted an image of a person sleeping underneath a throw pillow with the caption "When yo friend ain't give you no cover before y'all went to sleep💀💀💀💀💀😂😂😂😂😂." The post received more than 7,800 retweets and 4,200 likes in four years.

When Mama Isn't Home

When Mama Isn't Home is a remix video series based on a clip of a father playing the trombone while his son repeatedly slams an oven door to the tune of DJ Timmy Trumpet's 2014 electro-house single "Freaks." On October 6th, 2014, YouTuber bauerbirds uploaded a video titled "When Mama Isn't Home," featuring a father and son wearing sunglasses while performing a short section from DJ Timmy Trumpet's song "Freaks"^[12] in the kitchen using a trombone and oven door for a kick drum (shown below). In the first month, the video gained over 560,000 views and 340 comments.

When Your Parents Ask Where All Your Money Went

"When Your Parents Ask Where All Your Money Went" is a series of reaction images based on a photograph of American actor Zac Efron shrugging with a smile that bears resemblance to the emoticon I Dunno LOL ¯\(°_o)/¯, indicating that the allowance has been already spent in shopping. The pictures of Zac Efron were taken for the promotion of the 2007 Disney TV musical film High School Musical 2 in which the actor reprises the male lead role Troy Bolton. The original images can be found on the online catalog of movie stills MovieStillsDB.^[13]

WHEN YA EX DIES

WHEN YA EX DIES refers to an event on July 19th, 2016, Twitter user @CoolMemesClub^[14] tweeted a picture of Kermit the Frog with his mouth open, captioned "WHEN YA EX DIES." On August 1st, 2016, Twitter user @hyped_resonance^[15] posted a screenshot of that tweet and challenged Twitter users to send the image to their exes and post screenshots of the results (shown above). As of August 4th, 2016, the tweet has 239 Retweets and 949 likes.

When Guac Is Extra

When Guac Is Extra is an ironic meme based on an exploitable advertisement animation for the 2018 animated film The Grinch. On September 16th, 2018, the @grinchmovie Instagram feed posted a promotional video for the film in which The Grinch character falls to his knees below a caption that says "When Guac Is Extra" (shown below).Over the next month, the post gained over 1,300 comments, many of which mocked the post as cringeworthy and out-of-touch.

When That Cold Brew Hits

When That Cold Brew Hits refers to parodies of an online advertisement for the animated film Arctic Dogs. In the advertisement, a bear from the film--PB, played by Alec Baldwin--takes a sip of what appears to be iced coffee then rides a sled down a snowy hill, off a ramp, and flies into the distance. The scene features the text, "When that cold brew hits." The advertisement was mocked in ironic memes in online communities, similar to When Guac Is Extra. On September 29th, 2019, the Twitter account for the film Arctic Dogs^[16] posted a short advertisement for the film in which PB takes a sip of coffee, rides down a snowy hill on a sled and flies into the distance. The advertisement features the text "When that cold brew hits" (shown below).

When the Imposter Is Sus / Sus Jerma

When the Imposter is Sus / Sus Jerma refers to a series of shitposts based on an edited image of streamer Jerma985 in which he is given an eerie, unnatural smile, usually captioned with the catchphrase When the Imposter Is Sus. The meme gained popularity in /r/jerma985 subreddit and in the streamer's Discord, later spreading to Twitter and Instagram. On November 13th, 2020, Redditor^[17] LavaMeteor posted an edited image of streamer Jerma985 in /r/jerma985 subreddit. In the edit, created in FaceApp, the streamer is given an eerie, unnatural smile. The post (shown below) received over 460 upvotes in /r/jerma985 subreddit in one month.