Even a zoomer like me knows about "Badgers", a simple Flash animation (and catchy song) that was immensely influential in the early years of Internet culture. Even as recently as the 2010s, it seemed inescapable.
The reason I bring it up today, however, is that September 1, 2023 officially marks its twentieth anniversary- it was first uploaded on b3ta.com on this day in 2003, making it even older than YouTube, the site it would eventually find viral popularity on.
While it's hard to pin down a real point or purpose to it beyond the pervasive "lolsorandom" humor of the time, it's up there with the original Lolcats in terms of shaping the meme culture we see today. Here's to another 20 years—and remember to watch out for snakes.
