Welcome back to the first edition of 2026's Weekly Meme Roundup, where we go over five of the biggest memes from the past week that you should probably know about.

The first full week of 2026 has come and gone, and in just a few short days, we've already been bombarded with a wave of fresh memes covering everything from fandom delusion to home defense to really cool skeletons — all trying to claim to be the "first meme of 2026."

So, it's time to take a load off, kick back, and catch up with these five memes that absolutely dominated social media this past week.

Steve Harrington Drawing

Stranger Things is over, but fans aren't done squeezing it for juice quite yet, turning a simple drawing of Steve Harrington into a powerful reaction image.

The illustration, which is based on the second episode of the fifth season, was made by artist Ayisha Zeba and posted on her Instagram page back in December, to hundreds of thousands of likes.

It shows a very annoyed Steve Harrington driving the van with Jonathan in the back and a bloodied-up Dustin in the passenger seat.

Its distinct cartoony style, similar to a caricature, and Steve's relatable expression clicked with a lot of people, who started using it as a reaction image on sites like X, Instagram Reels and TikTok to convey their annoyance over anything and everything.

Since then, the image has become a massive meme. It's inspired edits that pair it with the scene it's based on, AI edits that bring it to life, and a whole lot of redraws and photoshops that alter Steve to resemble other characters and reference popular brainrot meme formats.

Examples

Conformity Gate

While we're on the topic of Stranger Things, did you hear about the secret ninth episode that Netflix is supposed to release?

Yeah, that never happened, but whether you're a fan of the series or not, the hype around "Conformity Gate" was unavoidable as fans coped over what they found to be a disappointing ending to their favorite show.

Conformity Gate was inspired by the idea that, by the end of the series, a lot of the characters in Stranger Things all "conformed" to become the type of people they, and mostly their fans, didn't want to be.

Soon, the series' strongest fans, mostly those from the "Byler" fandom, a group of shippers who really wanted Will Byers and Mike Wheeler to end up together, started picking apart details in the show's final season that arguably pointed towards a big, secret ending.

The idea was that the events in the last episode never happened, and it was all just a hallucination brought on by the antagonist, Vecna, supported by numerous inconsistencies in the last few episodes.

The idea of a secret last episode was cool, and when you're presented with all the evidence, it almost makes sense.

Unfortunately, all the hope and evidence in the world couldn't materialize a new episode, leaving many fans disappointed when the supposed January 7th release date came and went.

Turns out all those inconsistencies were just production errors, and all that the fans did was probably make the Duffer brothers sad that their ending didn't land for everyone. Thankfully, there's always fanfiction.

Examples

@brettgelman #st #strangerthings #conformitygate #fyp #whendovescry ♬ When Doves Cry – Short – Lionet

@cassiesbooktok We were bamboozled #conformitygate #strangerthings ♬ Me want more movie – CAPN COOK

@_zookeeperr It’s been eight hours since midnight. 12 hours to go. 🤡 #conformitygate #strangerthings ♬ original sound – I Green Screen Things

@kylobae #conformitygate created by @Jess ⋆. 𐙚 ˚ i love how this theory resulted from the fandom crashing out over the finale. crazy together right? #strangerthings #strangerthings5 #strangerthingsedit #strangerthingscast ♬ original sound – kylobae

Skeleton Banging Shield

Even in the year 2026, Skyrim continues to provide us with memes as one of the biggest formats of the year so far is the game's skeleton banging a shield.

@relfawn #skeletonshieldmeme #shitpost #2026 #sports #school ♬ Down on the Floor (Vox) – Ah2

The skeleton meme started popping up online at the end of 2025, but it's really hit its stride in the past week or so.

The meme takes an animation of Skyrim's skeleton enemy banging its shield and pairs it with a very aggressive growling noise and the crowbar clang sound from Half-Life.

This winning combination became extremely popular on TikTok, Instagram Reels and X / Twitter, where it's being paired with funny captions about situations where you might feel like a shouting, battle-ready skeleton. Who can't relate to that feeling sometimes?

Now, the skeleton is becoming further ingrained in the world of brainrot memes as some of TikTok's top brainrot creators get in on the format. It's also inspiring reanimations that apply the same shield-banging and "raaah-ing" to other characters.

Examples

@i_post_funny_video_daily like why… i was first 😭 #fyp #meme #skeleton #skeletonshieldmeme #relatablememes ♬ original sound – DVNINJA35

@kelsxnoel be in that line for 30 minutes minimum everytime … #skeletonshieldmeme #trending #viral #publix #meme ♬ original sound – Kelsey Noel ☆

@inmyrestlessdreamslol #skeletonshieldmeme #fyp #goviral #childhood #CapCut ♬ original sound – mournme

@diasama47 Help~#skeletonshieldmeme #trend#ishowspeed#humor#viral ♬ son original – Eywe23

Franklin Will Eventually Show Up To Defend His Home

Brainrot never dies, and a recent Grand Theft Auto V meme about how "Franklin will eventually show up to defend his home" is all the proof you need.

@llawliet496 franklin will eventually show up to defend his home #gta #franklin #tuff #facts #viral ♬ original sound – 𝐋

This meme is based on a fake Grand Theft Auto V fact claiming that, if you play as Trevor and shoot rockets at Franklin's home, he'll text you angrily, then eventually show up to defend his home.

The fact was shared by GTA fact page @gtasecrets_x02 back in October 2025, and as it turns out, it's not a fact at all. While the video does show Franklin showing up to defend his home, the whole thing is just a ruse.

That didn't stop a clip of the "fact," which features a text-to-speech voice saying the now-iconic line, "Franklin will eventually show up to defend his home," from resurfacing and becoming a big meme.

As a meme, the clip is edited into unrelated videos, usually at the end of a sentence, to make jokes about Franklin showing up to defend his home in a variety of absurd situations.

The clip has also been recreated in a wide variety of other video games, like Minecraft, showing us the importance of home defense and the long-lasting power of GTA V.

Examples

@shlatfish Franklin will eventually defend his home #gta #franklin ♬ Classic classical gymnopedie solo piano(1034554) – Lyrebirds music

@gjkfkfk

franklin will eventually show up to defend his home

♬ original sound – ️

@makototho franklin will eventually show up to defend his home @Faz #persona #fyp #makototho #persona5 #franklin ♬ original sound – makototho

@barnakull Neru Will Eventually Show Up To Defend Her Home #teto #kasaneteto #synthv #vocaloid #fypシ #fypage #xybca #xyzbca #franklinwilleventuallyshowuptodefendhishome #franklin ♬ original sound – Barnakull

Hood Saxophone

Finally, the classic '90s movie Boyz n the Hood is being introduced to a new generation of meme lovers thanks to a viral series of memes about the dangers of hearing "saxophones in the hood."

@65shkots Poof gotta go after that one #woodyharrelson #gottago #fyp #tiktokviral #saxophones ♬ original sound – foreverhumblemarc96

TikTok and Instagram Reels have suddenly become inundated with memes about hearing saxophone music while in the hood, particularly if you're a '90s movie protagonist.

Why? Well, it's all a reference to a scene from Boyz n the Hood where, spoiler alert for a 30-year-old film, the character Ricky gets shot by rival gang members. Before Ricky gets lit up, a very memorable piece of music that features a lot of saxophone starts to play.

This clearly left a mark on a lot of viewers, who are now portraying the sounds of saxophones as a sign that bad things are about to go down.

The memes combine different reaction images and scenes of people fleeing, escaping and panicking with captions alluding to a dark meaning behind the sounds of the sax.

Basically, if you happen to be in a '90s movie right now and you hear saxophones, you'd better get out of the area fast.

Examples

@slumxps.jay Just gotta accept you’re fate at that point 😭 #late90s #hoodmovie #xyzcba #viral ♬ original sound – foreverhumblemarc96

@quankeepscorinn 😂😂 still had a above average rookie season 🔥. #camward #tennesseetitans #nfl #fyp ♬ original sound – foreverhumblemarc96

@nbdybutqua #explorepage✨ #fypシ゚viral #fyppppppppppppppppppppppp #saxophone ♬ original sound – foreverhumblemarc96

@thelastbarbz they about to light me up in the bed i’m not even supposed to be here #90s #boyzinthehood #gottago #yn #funny ♬ original sound – foreverhumblemarc96

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We'll be back next Friday with another edition of our Weekly Meme Roundup series, so stay tuned!