About

Smug Frog, also known as Smug Pepe, is a reaction image of a smug-looking frog based on an original cartoon illustration of Pepe the Frog, better known as Feels Good Man and Sad Frog, drawn by webcomic artist Matt Furie.

Origin

The oldest known archived post containing the original derivative (pictured below)^[1] can be dated back to June 2nd, 2011, to a thread on 4chan's /tv/ (television and film) board, whose purpose was to make fun of the style of humor of the television show The Big Bang Theory.

Spread

The image had been used on 4chan throughout 2011 to 2013^[2]. However, in 2014 the image became used much more frequently than in the previous years, and numerous derivatives based off it had been spawned. Despite having a similar origin, Sad Frog and Smug Frog are often considered to be two different characters. While Sad Frog is often depicted as a friend or a companion of Wojak a.k.a. That Feel Guy, Smug Frog is shown to be abusive or antagonistic towards him.

The first known meta-discussion over Smug Frog occurred on August 13th, 2014, on 4chan's /v/ board, in a thread discussing the indie game developer Phil Fish.^[3] A few examples of the meme were posted to the thread, triggering conversation regarding Pepe's transition from Sad Frog to Smug Frog.

Several theories were put forward for Pepe's change in attitude, ranging from simple newfound optimism,^[4] to the possibility that Pepe represents the average netizen adjusting to the culture of 4chan.^[5]

Notable Examples

Search Interest

External References