The newest photo meme out of Japan? “Dragonballing” anime-style fight scenes!
posted Friday, March 29, 2013 at 1:08 PM EDT
It takes a fair amount to surprise us when it comes to absurd photo memes doing the rounds. We all weathered the bizarreness of planking, Tebowing, cat breading, and more. But the newest photo trend that's exploding out of Japan is something even more weird and hilarious: immense anime/manga styled fight scenes, mostly done by schoolgirls.
First brought to wider attention by Kotaku, the trend has gotten even more specific, with these Japanese teens now specifically mimicking the kamehameha from the famed anime and manga Dragon Ball Z. It's exactly as absurd as it sounds, with people hurling themselves around in order to make it look like they've been hit by a fictional martial art move. Apparently this meme has taken off due to the upcoming release of Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods, the first Dragon Ball Z film to receive a theatrical release in 17 years.
Since this trend first started getting reported earlier this week, it has unsurprisingly spread to other shores. Allen Murabayashi, chairman and co-founder of Photoshelter, is featured in the bottom-most image of the set below (though the image was actually shot in Tokyo.)
Give it a week or two, and you can bet that your social network of choice will be filled with similar over-the-top recreations. The only remaining question is what do we call this? Kamehameha-ing seems like a bit of a mouthful. Some have taken to dubbing it the Hadouken meme after a move in the Street Fighter games, or maybe Dragonballing? Any suggestions from our readers?
