Don't Obsess Over Me, I Am Only A Legend
About
"Don't Obsess Over Me, I Am Only a Legend" (Chinese: 不要迷恋哥，哥只是个传说; Pinyin: Bù yào mí liàn gē gē zhĭ shì gè chuán shuō) is a popular catchphrase stemming from an eccentric discussion thread posted on the Chinese MOP forums. The expression is mostly used in an ironic way: either to mock someone "trying to act cool," or as a caption to "awkward" images. However, sometimes the phrase is used literally to describe a cool person, and has a correlation with Brother Sharp.
Origin
The original "Don't obsess over me, I'm only a legend" thread was posted on March 25th, 2009, on the MOP forums.
Referring to himself as "big brother"--a common label carrying the connotation of playful narcissism or self-conceit, the OP goes on a rant about how people shouldn't embrace his presence with open arms, as the big brother is a a legend to be admired and feared at the same time. The original post can be translated to:
[Note: "big brother" is reference to himself; grammar is very bad; message sounds very "cheesy"]
This world created the 'big brother' in order to for us to offer our respect and honour, and also to give us hope and a direction in our lives. With hope, life has meaning and worth. If, on the other hand, the presence of the big brother brings tragic effects, the big brother will be ill at ease with himself.
For our future and for the harmony of our family, let us not lose ourselves or adore or love him blindly. Only by proper understanding and and respect can we fulfill the beautiful sentiments that the big brother ushers in. We can, without inhibition, share the joy and transcendent feelings that come from our spiritual connection with him--like the realisation of a dream.
So do not obsess over the big brother. He is only a legend. He is no longer or perhaps was never part of this world, but the world still continues to work through him…
Confused by the ridiculous, "higher-than-thou" tone of his post, other forum users quickly reacted to the thread by mocking the OP with over 4900 tongue-in-cheek replies.
Popularity
Google Trends for 哥只是个传说 (I Am Only a Legend) and 不要迷恋哥 (Don't Obsess Over Me).
- Another popular forum called End of the World contained several threads on the topic:
- One with 100+ replies (Mar 30, 2009)
- 50+ replies (Mar 30, 2009)
- 250+ replies (Dec 20, 2009)
- List of variations on the catchphrase. (Aug 18, 2009)
- Reference to the phrase on nddaily (October 28, 2009)
- Usage in the NBA (Oct 29, 2009)
Derivatives
Text variations
There are many satirical versions of the phrase:
Examples:
不要恶搞姐，姐会让你吐血
Don't make fun of me, older sister will make you vomit blood.
不要迷恋妹，妹才十九岁
Don't obsess over me, little sister is only nineteen years old.
不要羡慕爸，爸只是个神话
Don't envy me, dad is only a myth.
不要牵挂妹，妹只是两行泪
不要忘记爷，爷落下一双鞋
不要单恋奶，奶只是个二奶
不要忽略妈，妈当年一朵花
不要埋怨嫂，嫂如今男人少
别老想着姨，姨让你脱层皮
不要盯着姑，姑让你想哭
不要意淫姐，子宫出过血
不要蔑视叔，叔也出过书
不要迷恋锅，锅是平底锅
Videos
Most video derivatives use the song, "Only a Legend" (哥只是个传说) by Chen Xu (陈旭).
Examples
- Brother Sharp version (380,000+ views)
