Introduction

The Unpopular Opinion Swords meme, also recognized as Flynn Surrounded by Swords, is a humorous reaction image derived from Disney's 2010 film Tangled. It features the character Flynn Rider surrounded by swords yet appearing unfazed, which has led to its use as a prompt for sharing unpopular opinions.

Background

In the film, Flynn Rider finds himself at the mercy of a group wielding swords, yet he remains surprisingly calm and collected. This particular scene has resonated with audiences online, sparking the creation of a meme that invites users to share their own unpopular opinions in a lighthearted manner.

Meme History

Tangled premiered in the United States on November 24, 2010. The iconic scene of Flynn being surrounded by swords was first shared as a meme on March 30, 2015, by a user on 9GAG, who suggested it could replace an existing unpopular opinion meme featuring a penguin. This post garnered significant engagement, amassing over 36,000 points and 425 comments in less than six years. On October 11, 2016, an Imgur user posted one of the earliest variations of the meme, achieving over 940 points and nearly 40,000 views within three years, blending it with another popular format called Unpopular Opinion Guns.

Meme Evolution

The meme gained traction on Twitter in August 2020, with users utilizing the image to articulate their unpopular opinions. On August 24, 2020, a user tweeted one of the earliest examples, stating, 'Piper es la peor waifu.' The meme continued to spread, with notable tweets like @exhaustcd's on September 26, 2020, which prompted followers to share food opinions and received over 18,000 retweets and 7,100 likes. The following day, @wordsborn encouraged users to share book opinions that might provoke a similar reaction, garnering over 3,800 retweets and 1,500 likes.