Zalgo Expands Its Hideous Franchise

A few months back, I reported on the rising Zalgo phenomena across the internet. Let's review: in brief, Zalgo involves the mutation of popular cartoons into a flurry of almost nonsensical darkness, evil, and chaos. Its most notable feature is the invocation of its eponymous and pseudo-Lovecraftian entity, the mysterious and terrifying Zalgo. Looking at the increasingly numerous examples of Zalgo tracts (several newer examples of which are contained here in this post), one finds the H.P. Lovecraft connection is obvious.



However, at the same time, we find no mention of a Zalgo being anywhere in either Lovecraft's fiction or any other known Cthulhu Mythos works created by his literary disciples. This slight paradox is both frustrating and fascinating. Where does this blasted meme come from? How did it begin? And why is it so damned addicting? The last one is easy to answer--most Zalgo art mixes the best of the internet. One might describe the formula like this:

Passable or Superior Artwork + Variable Doses of Lovecraftian Horror + Variable Doses of Web Humor = ZALGO



Pinpointing the real origins of Zalgo is a good bit tricker. Although the parodies hold a striking resemblance to horrors out of H. P. Lovecraft's Tales, it's probable that we will never know when and where the first Zalgo comic appeared. It is likely that it only surfaced sometime within the last year or two. It's even likelier that it arose somewhere in the humid and decadent jungles of the online image boards and forums. Some even claim Zalgo refers to an Assyrian demon god and means "ray of light," as the author of this piece says, in between multiple Zalogian portraits in his nightmarish gallery.

In the end, it probably doesn't matter how or why Zalgo sprang onto the scene. Like so much of internet humor and horror, it may merely crest and recede with time. Or, it will expand and spawn an improbably vast enterprise of further media incorporating the Zalgo theme, leaving Lovecraftian scholars to scratch their heads in even more articulate and frustrating ways than I am doing here. All that can be said is this: Zalgo is. We know not whence he came, we know not how he's named, but we do know that he carries the very clear stamp of H. P. Lovecraft. And, of course, we know that it's pretty comical, frightening, and a lot of fun.

-Grim Blogger