“To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” was an overnight Netflix sensation. The movie made a star out of its two leads, reintroduced the YA source novel to the public, and sparked a legion of devoted fans that are begging for a sequel. Even though the movie was released a couple of weeks ago, you can still catch a couple of references and mentions of it on any social media site.
That’s where the “To All The Boys” meme comes in. It’s taken over Twitter with sweet, funny, sad and sometimes very thoughtful confessions from users who consider this an opportunity to get creative and make a good joke.
The meme uses the movies’ rambling title to make a self-deprecating comment on people’s past experiences with the boys in their lives. It’s kind of complex once you think about it, and very versatile, best illustrated with a real example.
To All The Boys I’ve Told My Friends About Too Soon
— amanda (@amandaenriquez_) August 27, 2018
TO ALL THE BOYS I LOVED BEFORE UNTIL I HEARD THEM TALK
— Youngweon Lee (@youngweonlee) August 23, 2018
While sometimes these confessions are honest and cute, the best versions of the meme come from people who have a lot of fun with it, making some sort of commentary that results in laughs, but mostly a depressing feeling because it’s so damn relatable and truthful.
To all the boys I’ve loved before they ghosted me as soon as they realised I had ~feelings~ for them, because apparently my type is “emotionally unavailable”
— Lizzi Michael (@LizziMichael) August 29, 2018
To All The Boys Who Made Me List The Star Wars Moves In Release Order Because They Didn’t Believe Me When I Said I Was A Star Wars Fan And Yet They Didn’t Know That Han Solo Is Corellian https://t.co/xPfedyo390
— rachel leishman (@RachelLeishman) August 29, 2018
To All the Boys Who Lent Me Their Copy of House of Leaves in 2008, I Still Have Your Copy of House of Leaves
— Hillary Busis (@hillibusterr) August 28, 2018
To All the Boys Who Bought Me A Copy of Watchmen Because They Were Aghast I’d Never Read Watchmen Before: I Still Haven’t Read Your Copy Of Watchmen https://t.co/NtnVFAsxuJ
— A.B. (@AlannaBennett) August 28, 2018
To All The Boys I Thought I Loved Before I Realized I Was Actually Gay And Just Performing Heteronormativity Because It Was All I Saw Represented In Media, So Loving A Girl Didn’t Seem Like An Option, I Mean I Guess It Was Shown On “The L Word” But We Didn’t Have Showtime Becaus
— Brittany Ashley (@britt27ash) August 27, 2018
It’s strange when one meme gives you the ability to vent about your personal problems, comment on toxic masculinity and the nature of sad relationships — sometimes combining all of these things using less than 280 characters. Situations like this prove how adept we’ve become at these types of communications. And that’s pretty deep for a meme.
