Gallery: The Animated GIF: Still Looping After All These Years

  • He's Dead
    01

    hes-dead

    *President Obama gave a solemn address on the night that the raid that killed Osama bin Laden was announced. This GIF represented what the internet thought he should have done.*
  • Red Ball Dog
    02

    red-ball-dog

    *In this superlative example of the animated GIF, a terrier named Tito flips out over a big red ball.*
  • Crazy Frog Brothers
    03

    crazy-frog-brothers

    *This GIF of two boys dancing around to the song "Axle F" is also known as "Crazy Frog Brothers."*
  • Survivor
    04

    survivor

    *Taken from a 2008 episode of* Survivor*, this expression of fiendish glee at the suffering of others is the definition of schadenfreude.*
  • Haters Gonna Hate
    05

    haters-gonna-hate

    *Over the years, the meme Haters Gonna Hate has taken many forms – like that cat that walks around with IDGAF swagger – but this little dude's GIF strut by artist Omar Noory encapsulates the concept utterly and totally. Hate on, haters.*
  • Oprah Bees
    06

    oprah-bees

    *Originally pulled from a Conan O'Brien parody, this GIF imagines the least probable but most entertaining Oprah giveaway: BEES.*
  • OMG Cat
    07

    omg-cat

    *A kitten in Japan who injured her jaw (she's fine), OMG Cat catapulted to internet stardom when Justin Bieber parodied her expression as part of an April Fools' Day prank.*
  • Dwight Dancing
    08

    dwight-dancing

    *Dwight dancing on* The Office *is great. Dwight dancing in an unstoppable GIF loop is positively epic.*
  • Muybridge
    09

    muybridge

    *The photographs of Eadweard Muybridge were meant to capture motion. Decades later, GIFs enabled his photos to be put* in *motion*.
  • How Lost Should Have Ended
    10

    how-lost-should-have-ended

    *The producers of* Lost *spun out their show's mystery for six very intense seasons before a finale that left some still wanting more answers. This single GIF expresses most of their (read: our) feelings on the subject in under 10 seconds.*
  • Brendan Fraser Clap
    11

    brendan-fraser-clap

    *Once upon a time the actor Brendan Fraser made a somewhat awkward clapping motion at an awards show … and it became the go-to GIF response for any manner of random message board posting. Poor guy may never want to cheer again.*
  • Dancing Baby
    12

    dancing-baby

    *Remember that viral video of a 3-D baby dancing to Blue Swede's "Hooked on a Feeling" that used to show up in e-mail chains? Here it is in GIF form!*
  • Deal With It
    13

    deal-with-it

    *The descending sunglasses that signify the "Deal With It" meme have fallen on many a face. Here they fall on one of the most powerful faces in the world.*
  • I Regret Nothing
    14

    i-regret-nothing

    *"I Regret Nothing" has been a popular internet response for years, but it is best represented by Spinning Disco Chicken – taken from a Domino's Pizza ad.*
  • McKayla Perfect Vault
    15

    mckayla-perfect-vault

    *Anyone who saw McKayla Maroney's damn-near-perfect-vault (seriously, a judge dropped her jaw) during the 2012 Olympics could see it was a majestic feat. Anyone who watches it repeat like this (above) can see that it's just short of miraculous.*
  • Meryl Street Eye Roll
    16

    meryl-street-eye-roll

    *Nothing can show your distaste for someone else's internet comment better than a Meryl Streep moment from* The Devil Wears Prada.
  • Nyan Cat
    17

    nyan-cat-3

    *This GIF needs no introduction – if you don't know Nyan Cat you've never been on the internet and you're probably not reading this website. But to recap: This little guy went up on Tumblr in spring 2011 and hasn't stopped running since.*
  • Picard Facepalm
    18

    picard-facepalm

    *Nothing says "FAIL" quite as well as this moment from the life of Jean-Luc Picard.*
  • You Are Not The Father
    19

    you-are-not-the-father

    *No one ever knew just how excited one person could be to* not *be a parent until they saw this non-father's happy dance on a 2005 episode of* The Maury Povich Show.
  • Lana Del Rey Dancing
    20

    lana-del-rey-dancing

    *In January 2012, sultry singer Lana Del Rey went on* Saturday Night Live *and proceeded to "dance" by rotating around in a circle. Soon enough the web was posting countless GIFs of the singer dancing through all kinds of situations, including down the toilet (pictured).*
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