Leafy Used To Be Here: The Legacy Of Memes Left Behind By Leafyishere And His Reptilian Army

Few names on the internet carry as much weight and notoriety as Leafyishere. After dominating the YouTube scene for a good portion of the last decade, Leafy took a hiatus from the platform for around two years before returning to fans in messianic fashion this year. His return was short-lived, as his channel was removed over the weekend for breaking YouTube rules prohibiting harassment of other creators. Since there's already a plethora of articles and video rants online that go into much further detail about the ban, we will instead examine a less-discussed side to Leafy’s community: his memes.

As such an iconic figure in modern online culture, memes surrounding Leafy and his community are plentiful, but the drama surrounding his channel is so intertwined with his impact of memes that it's nearly impossible to truly separate them. Ultimately, these memes fall into two categories: memes created by his community and memes directed towards him. The differences between these types illustrate a sharp divide between those who like or dislike Leafy but have also served as examples of how meme culture creates icons and cults around the seemingly mundane. With that, let’s examine two significant cases that display the polarity in attitudes the internet has towards Leafy.

HISSS and The Reptilian Army

In modern pop culture, almost every noteworthy individual or group has a strong and devoted fandom dedicated to supporting them. Notable contemporary examples include groups such as BTS’s ARMY, which is often cited as an example of an extremely passionate fandom that puts it above all else. Back during Leafy’s heyday in 2015, he developed a similar group of followers that has since been dubbed the Reptilian Army (or Reptilian Brotherhood). The name originates from one of his rants, where he discussed reptilian conspiracies in detail. This led to viewers creating parodies of Leafy depicted as a reptile himself. Running with the joke, Leafy created an army composed of his most devoted fans who would carry out his reptilian agenda.

What followed was not merely a meme war against another content creator, nor was it explicit orders for a simple raid on a YouTube comment section. Instead, the storm that followed the creation of the Reptilian Army can only be described as an "invasion." Comments such as “HISSS” and “Leaf a Like” began to plague the comments of several major YouTubers, with the Reptilian Army unyielding in their spam campaign. These spammed phrases have no intrinsic meaning, but instead are symbols which represent Leafy and his fans. While Leafy never directly authorized the invasion, allegedly, YouTubers he ranted about in his videos would become priority targets for his fans. This flood led to the inevitable accusations of harassment, which Leafy himself continues to deny was his intention. Nevertheless, the Reptilian Army ran amok on the site for the next several months, expanding into other platforms such as Twitch along the way.

While the Reptilian Army would continue to operate spam operations between 2015 and his hiatus in December 2017, their presence slowly diminished as the backlash against Leafy intensified. In his 2020 resurgence, the Reptilian Army as an entity has taken a back seat compared to his other antics and persisting drama, though it had already left its mark. Leafy himself ranting about someone is inconsequential on its own, but his followers that spread his influence to comment sections through spamming related phrases raised concern among some online. This series of events eventually awakened many to the idea that content creators should be held accountable for their audience’s actions, which was often directed at streamers like Ice Posideon.

A notable example is the Twitch Community Guidelines Update in March 2018, which stated that streamers could be punished for their viewers’ actions. While the Reptilian Army is certainly not the only example of a fandom creating controversy over harassment, the iconic phrases of "HISSS" and "Leaf a Like" have left it ingrained in the minds of his fans and detractors alike.

Leafy’s Chin

While the Reptilian Army’s size and influence cannot be overstated, it, combined with Leafy's own actions, ultimately led to many taking a stance against him. The most popular video calling out Leafy was Content Cop-Leafy by YouTuber iDubbz, which many consider to be the "nail in the coffin" for Leafy's YouTube career. Perhaps the most defining feature of the video was creating a new meme known as "Leafy’s chin." Mocking his physical appearance, the hashtag #NoChin made rounds on social media and soon became a common phrase synonymous with "small." As popular as the phrase was, it quickly faded out of the limelight once Leafy took a hiatus. Unlike the Reptilian Army invasions, Leafy’s chin has not made the same long-lasting cultural impact and served as a notable, but ultimately passing, meme.

2020 Absence and Beyond

When Leafy returned to YouTube in 2020, both of these were notably absent. There were a few who evoked the old memes as a callback to supporting or detracting him. However, neither of these memes played center stage in his return. His feuds with iDubbz and Pokimane garnered much more public attention, particularly regarding the infamous Boyfriend Leak. Now that his channel is gone, the fate of these memes remains unknown for the time being.

Nevertheless, what is known is the lasting impact these two simple memes have had on the platform — illustrating the duality of Leafy. The Reptilian Army represented his meteoric rise and the drama that followed, while his chin represents the inevitable backlash and fall. Regardless of whether you believe Leafy is the best or worst thing to grace the platform since its creation, one thing which remains clear is that the memes he spawned have undeniably left their mark on the online landscape.

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