명예로운 죽음

The English translation, "Honorable Death," is pronounced as /ˌɒnərəbəl ˈdɛθ/. The original Korean name, "명예로운 죽음," can be approximated as "Myung-yeh-roun Jook-eum" for English speakers.

This meme originated in 2014 from Episode 12 of Lee Mal-nyeon's webtoon 'Lee Mal-nyeon's Essay,' titled "Ki-an84, are you watching? Fashion King utterly failed." It began when Lee Mal-nyeon, discussing the box office failure of the movie <Fashion King>, told Ki-an84, "Even without Interstellar, it would have failed, but you made it seem like it failed because of Interstellar. It suffered what you might call an 'honorable death'." The comic was well-received from its initial release, and the phrase has since been consistently popular, used as a reaction image (jjalbang) applicable to various situations.

'Honorable Death' originally refers to the general meaning of dying while upholding one's honor, such as falling in battle or dying in the line of duty while saving others. However, as internet slang, 'Honorable Death' is used for works, individuals, or situations that, despite the presence of an overwhelming competitor, actually faced a total disaster independently of that competitor, resulting in a crushing defeat or box office failure. The characteristic feature is that while the party involved might want to claim they fought well despite losing to a strong competitor, from a third-party perspective, it doesn't look like they fought well at all. This can be seen as a form of 'spiritual victory' (a term for self-deception or rationalizing failure).

This meme is primarily used actively among internet users in their 20s and 30s who enjoyed Lee Mal-nyeon's webtoons. It is widely consumed by both men and women who are familiar with online content like webtoons and internet broadcasts, and who understand humor that satirizes or mocks specific situations.

This meme is primarily used in the format: "Entity that suffered an 'Honorable Death' ← Its competitor, or the claimed competitor."

• Movies:

* Fashion King (Movie) ← Interstellar * Young-gu and Dduddu the Dinosaur ← Jurassic Park * Uhm Bok-dong, the Bicycle King ← Captain Marvel

• Video Games:

* Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition ← Elden Ring * KartRider: Drift ← Mario Kart World * Sudden Attack 2 ← Overwatch

• Electronic Devices:

* LG Q6 ← Galaxy A 2017 Edition * LG Electronics / Mobile Communications Business Unit ← Apple

The 'Honorable Death' meme contains sarcastic humor and satire, so it's important to use it considering the situation and context. It can appear as if you are mocking someone's serious failure or difficulty, so when using it, be careful not to hurt others' feelings. It is particularly effective when the party involved clearly intends to rationalize their failure, but otherwise, it can lead to misunderstandings.