The twisted history of Pepe the Frog’s journey from lovable cartoon to alt-right mascot
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Oct 19 2020 at 8:00 AM GMT
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- In 2005, artist Matt Furie published the first edition of Boy’s Club, a comic book starring four friends living in the hedonistic and aimless haze of their post-college, early-20s.
- There was Landwolf, the party animal; Andy, the prankster; Brett, the dancer—and then there was Pepe, a super chill frog who, through a series of twisted events, would eventually become the mascot of the alt-right and provide a substantial boost to Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.
- Pepe’s journey from lovable anthropomorphic amphibian to an official hate symbol registered with the Anti-Defamation League is chronicled in the new documentary Feels Good Man.
- In tracking Pepe’s co-option, director Arthur Jones unveils a broader story of how tribalism in internet culture can vastly distort reality to a disturbing, and sometimes lethal, extent.
- “Pepe is this really unique case study where you can talk about the tragic story arc of the silly, stoned cartoon frog, but you can also talk about the larger story arc of trolling,” Jones says.
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- Published Oct 19, 2020 8:00 AM GMT