20 Videos That Defined The Early Years Of YouTube

Remember when you first discovered the wonders of the internet? Come embark on a journey down memory lane--find things you wish you'd remembered, and other things you wish you could forget...

1. Charlie the Unicorn

Remember when everyone had Charlie the Unicorn merchandise? Tee shirts, rubber bracelets, belts, buttons--all from Hot Topic? And EVERYONE said "Chaaaaaaaarrrrrlieeeee" when they were trying to get your attention?

2. Muffins

Quite possibly our first experience with the term "boy, that escalated quickly". It's not even remotely as cringeworthy as Charlie the Unicorn--in fact, it's actually still kind of funny (and relevant with the "Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Muffin"), so it's not as painful to watch.

3. Shoes

From the creator of "Muffins", came the anthem of early YouTube: "Shoes", which introduced us to some of our first swear words, like "shitbag" and "betch", and answered the age old question: what are you going to do with your life? Kelly's answer? "I'm going to get what I want." Kelly inspired the young 13 year-old feminist in all of us.

4. Fred Figglehorn

Ah yes, the thrilling saga of a whiny pissbaby with a chipmunk voice. Our long forgotten celebrity. That we hope will stay forgotten. Somehow he got two movies AND a TV show out of this. What the Hell? Did we actually think this guy was funny? His voice haunts you like the whispers of a ghost. A ghost that hasn't taken its daily dose of Prozac for the day.

5. Literally Anything by Shane Dawson

Watching Shane's videos always made you feel "edgy" when you were younger. Because they used inappropriate language. You thought you were so hip and rebellious, when in fact, you just had really bad taste. And EVERYONE had his haircut. I believe Shane Dawson is single-handedly to blame for the rise of the "emo hair" movement.

6. It's Peanut Butter Jelly Time

Let's just...let's move on. Don't linger on the past...

7. Family Guy: Epic Chicken Fights

Ah, yes. The famous "Battle of the Chicken". So much carnage...so many civilian casualties...

8. The "Gummy Bear Song"

Apparently this was a German techno song that got taken wayyyy too far. Like, WAY too far. As in people actually watching it more than once.

9. The Gummy Bear (Robot Chicken)

Just a casual reminder that Robot Chicken existed...and still exists today.

10. Chocolate Rain

Remember when everyone was so AMAZED by how DEEP his voice was??? Like none of us had ever heard a baritone before apparently. And we were convinced that it had been pitched down, because for someone reason we actually cared.

11. Nyan Cat

Okay so now we're moving into the awkward high school phase, but come on. We can all admit that we kept the original page open on our computers, on mute, so we could tell our friends that we listened to Nyan Cat for 72 straight hours. If you could make it through more than a minute and a half with the volume on, you had balls of steel. Apparently people like to pretend that this is still relevant.

12. Do You Like Waffles?

I'm getting full-body cringes just from typing this. For some reason, it was catchy. We all got infected with it stuck in our heads. Some of use embraced it. Others tried to resist and died screaming.

13. Llamas With Hats

YEAH, KIDS! VIOLENT CRIMINALS WITH LONG HISTORIES OF VIOLENCE ARE COOL!

14. Salad Fingers

...ugh...

15. SNL's The Shooting

Pretty sure this is still the greatest video on the internet. End of story.

16. Malk

I can't even explain to you why this video is even funny? Is it the fact that they're all screaming their own pronunciation of the word "milk"? Or is it the fact that when things get loud, an older caucasian man tells them to keep it down and the African American boy says: "Sorry, Dad..it's my white friends"? Julian Smith's ideas were always so ridiculously outlandish and loud that you couldn't help but shed a tear of laughter because you were so confused.

17. Hot Kool Aid

This is really the video that Julian Smith is known for. Pro tip: next time you make a meal for someone you care about, scream at them to eat it and then yell "I MADE THIS FOR YOU!!! I MADE THIS!!! BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!!!" until they agree to eat whatever it is you made for them. Even if it IS hot Kool Aid.

18. Crazy Frog's "Axel F"

Everyone was so obsessed with this...why were we all so obsessed with this?

19. The Hamster Dance

Where did this come from, anyways? Where and WHY? They used to play this nonstop on Radio Disney. When Radio Disney was a thing. The song was horrifically catchy--but HAVE YOU SEEN THE MUSIC VIDEO??? LIKE ACTUALLY SEEN IT??? EXPERIENCED THE HAMPTON THE HAMSTER HAMSTER DANCE MUSIC OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO??? IT LOOKS LIKE IT WAS MADE IN ADOBE FLASH.

20. Potter Puppet Pals: The Mysterious Ticking Noise

Quite possibly the cinematic masterpiece of our time. Want to feel really old? This video came out in 2007. It's 2014. This video is a "Solid Gold Oldie".