Buff Doge vs. Cheems
Where it came from
A photoshop of a muscular Shiba Inu next to the small, wide-eyed "Cheems" variant. The "strong vs weak" comparison started in 2020 on Reddit and Twitter.
On the left: a comically muscular Shiba Inu flexing, labeled as some past generation or stronger version of a thing. On the right: a small, confused Cheems labeled as the modern, weaker version. "Men in 1940: stormed Normandy. Men in 2024: got anxious about a phone call." Buff Doge is always the past. Cheems is always the present.
The format is a gag on generational hardship discourse — it pretends to lament how soft things have gotten, but most uses are self-deprecating, with the poster placing themselves firmly in the Cheems camp. The muscular doge is absurd enough that nobody takes the "strong past" side seriously.
Still active, especially on Twitter and Reddit. The Cheems half has also spun off into its own standalone "weak and sad" reaction meme.
Search interest, over time
↳ data courtesy of google trends
