TV & Movies

The Best Memes & Tweets About Arthur Ending After 25 Years

Fans hate Arthur’s grown-up look and find it funny how “world renowned tattle tale” D.W. is now a cop.

'Arthur' characters all grown up in the series finale.
Arthur/PBS

If you were a little kid in the ’90s or early aughts, there’s a good chance you spent some time watching Arthur on PBS — and then never stopped thinking about it. Sure, you probably didn’t keep up with new episodes as they aired, but the prevalence of Arthur memes (like the angry fist, tired D.W., or “I can’t read”) speaks to the power of the animated series after all this time. Even John Legend got in on the fun a few years ago. But after 25 years, Arthur ended on Feb. 21 — proving, even in its swan song, the show’s ability to unite fans with heart, humor, and questions about what the beloved characters are up to after a 20-year time jump in the final episode.

In the finale, Arthur (in a much-talked-about new look) is revealed to be the graphic novelist behind, well, Arthur. His sisters, D.W. and Kate, are a police officer and a student writer, respectively. Buster is a teacher, Francine a sneaker designer, Binky a weather reporter, Muffy a politician, and George the Sugar Bowl proprietor.

But of course, you really need to see it for yourself. After you watch the Arthur finale on YouTube, here’s a recap of the very meme-filled conversation on Twitter.

Arthur Looks Like...

Bald Arthur in a yellow sweater? Good, familiar. Long-haired Arthur in a graphic tee — of apparently his best friend? Hard to grapple with! Twitter had fun comparing the aardvark’s new look to everything from a podcaster, to Ed Sheeran, to one user’s very specific ex-roommate.

Where Are They Now?

Arthur wasn’t the only character to prompt conversation. Several Arthur finale memes and tweets revolved around Officer D.W. and Arthur’s friends — some of whom may or may not be together in 20 years.

An Emotional Goodbye

Even if you haven’t tuned in for a while, Arthur was a pretty pivotal part of many kids’ early media consumption. So if the show ending made you emotional, well, you’re not alone.