Petitioning to join Wojak, Patrick Bateman, and the ‘Just a girl’ in the pantheon of influential 2020s meme characters, we have a guy most famous for wearing a silly hat.

Up until now, that has been the most common depiction of him, anyway. The jester, as in the guy they kept around to entertain people in medieval royal courts, has become an influential figure in contemporary internet culture. 

Not all those who try to embody him are the people we might suspect. One of the individuals who has done the most to raise his profile is looksmaxxing influencer Clavicular, praised last month for «jestermaxxing at the club» by seemingly enjoying himself and not taking himself too seriously on a night out he was streaming. 

For those of us with less chiseled jawlines, the ability to jest is still within reach; a 3D clipart GIF of a court jester dancing for an unimpressed queen has become one of the most popular reaction images of the year so far. Whether you want to complain about putting in extra effort for a promotion or attempting to impress a date, you have your image.