The top 12 internet characters of 2012

by Lauren O'Neil Posted: December 14, 2012 5:00 AM Last Updated: December 14, 2012 9:29 AM

Categories: Community, Science & Technology

View the story "The top 12 internet characters of 2012" on StorifyThe top 12 internet characters of 2012We took a look through some of our most popular stories over the past year and pulled out 12 of the internet-famous characters our audience responded to most.Storified by CBC News Community · Thu, Dec 13 2012 17:49:12imgur: the simple image sharerImgurIn covering the daily news of internet culture and social media over the past 12 months, we here are the CBC Community desk have stumbled upon hundreds of fascinating characters.

Some of the ones we told you about on our blog were inspiring, some were hilarious, and some were straight up puzzling. But what each of these characters had in common was that they sparked a major response -- in us, in you, and in people all around the web.

We took a look through some of our most popular stories over the past year and pulled out 12 of the figures our audience responded to most.

Here are our top 12 internet characters of 2012.

12. Poodle Moth

undefinedStaticflickrIt's the image that launched a thousand quips:A fuzzy, winged creature with golden horns and a set of eyelashes out to theresits with its hands (paws?) clasped on a surface of indeterminate size.

Tweeters let their imaginations run wildover what has been dubbed "the Venezuelan Poodle Moth" online in late August.

At time of writing, they are still divided over whether the poodle moth is adorable or terrifying.

11. Teen Girl Fashion Model Grandpa

OffbeatchinaLiu Xianping, a 72-year-old Chinese man, became an unlikely fashion icon after modeling pieces for his granddaughter's online female clothing shop Yuekou.

Offbeat China reported in November that "reactions from local netizens havebeen overwhelmingly positive" and English-speaking audiences were similarly charmed.

Sales to the shop reportedly increased five-fold after the photoswere uploaded.

10. Dancing Australian Hurdler Michelle Jenneke

Imgur19-year-old Australian junior hurdler Michelle Jenneke had a stellar performance at the AAF World Junior Championships in July, but it wasn't her hurdling skills that had people talking -- it was her unique warmup routine.

Footage of her dancing went viral, earning Jenneke the internet-bestowed title of "world's sexiest hurdler."

Twitter wedding proposals ensued.
Dancing Australian hurdler captivates the web - Your CommunityMeet the Community Team CBC News Community team, from left to right: Andrew Yates, Andrea Lee-Greenberg, Lauren O'Neil, John Bowman If yo...

9. Balpreet Kaur, the bearded Sikh woman who taught Reddit a lesson

TumblrBalpreet Kaur is a young Sikh woman whose photo was taken at an airport,posted online, and then ridiculed by hundreds on Reddit.

After taking to the site to defend herself (so eloquently that her original tormenter feltcompelled to apologize to all Sikhs everywhere), the Ohio State University student became an unlikely internet hero and poster-girl for alternative beauty.
Bearded Sikh woman teaches Reddit a lesson - Your CommunityView the story "Bearded Sikh woman teaches Reddit a lesson in tolerance" on Storify] When a photo of Sikh university student Balpreet Kau...

8. Hologram Tupac

StorifyThe Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April produced one of the web's most riffed-upon characters this year.
'Holographic' Tupac Shakur wows Coachella crowd - Your CommunityMeet the Community Team CBC News Community team, from left to right: Andrew Yates, Andrea Lee-Greenberg, Lauren O'Neil, John Bowman If yo...At the end of an April 15 performance at the California festival, Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg (now known as Snoop Lion) were joined by a 'holographic' Tupac Shakur, who died in 1996.

The use of the late rapper's image and the technology itself both sparked plenty of discussion, as well as multiple hashtags and parody accounts.#HOLOHologram Tupac

7. Mysterious 'goat man' of Utah

StorifyA man dressed like a goat, crawling on his hands and knees among a herd of real, wild goats has been spotted by multiple people in Utah this summer -- and the web became curious.

Many had fun with the Goat Man, assuming his identity with fake Twitter accounts and Facebook fan pages.
UPDATE: Mysterious 'goat man' baffles wildlife officials in Utah - Your CommunityCBC News Community team, from left to right: Andrew Yates, Andrea Lee-Greenberg, Lauren O'Neil, John BowmanUtah wildlife officials later identified the goat man as a 57-year-old hunter from Southern California.

6. Sour Face McKayla Maroney

StorifyMcKayla Maroney was considered a top contender for a gold medal in the vault after the U.S. women's gymnastics team won the team gold medal this summer, but the young athlete's attempt fell short. She ended up with a silver instead and she was not impressed -- or so her face would indicate.
Gymnast McKayla Maroney's sour face at silver medal wins on the web - Your CommunityMeet the Community Team CBC News Community team, from left to right: Andrew Yates, Andrea Lee-Greenberg, Lauren O'Neil, John Bowman If yo...

5. Ikea monkey

StorifyOne of Canada's splashiest internet characters is the Ikea Monkey who shot to fame just this week out of a parking lot in Toronto.

The rhesus macaque monkey was found Sunday afternoon wearing a diaper and a miniature shearling coat.

He has since become an international superstar.
Ikea monkey runs amok on Twitter - Your CommunityView the story "Ikea monkey runs amok on Twitter " on Storify] Storified by CBC News Community · Mon, Dec 10 2012 04:27:38 A pet monkey w...

4. Botched Fresco Woman

StorifyAn elderly Spanish woman's August attempt to restore a fresco depicting Jesus Christ turned her into a world-wide laughing stock, but her work went on to become one of the most recognizable images of 2012.'Fixed' fresco face fiasco fuels funnies - Your CommunityView the story "'Fixed' fresco face fiasco fuels funnies" on Storify] Storified by CBC News Community · Fri, Aug 24 2012 09:01:01 An elde...Cecilia Jimenez's restoration of Ecce Homo, which many found to be humourous, now attracts crowds of tourists to her small town in northeast Spain -- so many so that she reportedly sought royalties for the work in September.

According to the Spanish newspaper El Correro, the octogenarian hired a lawyer to copyright the image, which a BBC correspondent likened to "a crayon sketch of a very hairy monkey in an ill-fitting tunic."

3. NASA Mohawk Guy Mohawk Ferdowsi

StorifyThe landing of the Mars Curiosity Rover this August was a major victory for modern science, but it would appear as though many viewers of NASA's Mission Control live stream failed to notice what was happening on the red planet.

They were too distracted by stars on one handsome young scientist's head.
'NASA Mohawk Guy' rockets to fame - Your CommunityMeet the Community Team CBC News Community team, from left to right: Andrew Yates, Andrea Lee-Greenberg, Lauren O'Neil, John Bowman If yo...With his red-tinged, star-flanked Mohawk and striking good looks, Ferdowsi stood out among his blue-shirted brethren at NASA, and the internet took notice in big way.
Storify

2. Psy

Tumblr34-year-old South Korean rapper and reality TVpersonality Psy (whose real name is Jae-Sang Park) is the man behindinternational viral sensation and most-viewed YouTube video of all time "Gangnam Style" -- you know the one. It's got millions aroundthe globe obsessed with his moves, style and and music.

We followed up on our August story about Psy with a top 10 Gangnam Style parodies post in September, but could easily have done 100 more.

Psy will go down in history as one of the internet, and then pop culture's biggest success stories of all time.
The top 10 'Gangnam Style' parodies - Your CommunitySep 18, 2012 ... The top 10 'Gangnam Style' parodies .... Our Top 10 TIFF 2012 Star Spotting submissions from the CBC Community...

1. The Mars Curiosity Rover

undefinedTwimgOf all the characters we followed this year, the Mars Curiosity rover was the most written about. While not technically an autonomous being, the internet gave Mars Curiosity a life of its own through parody Twitter accounts like SarcasticRover and image macros galore.
BusinessinsiderNASA even gave the rover its own voice with an official @MarsCuriosity Twitter account. It now has over 1.2 million followers.

Here are a few of our favourite Mars Curiosity stories from 2012.
Hushed Mars Curiosity discovery sparks wild predictions - Your CommunityView the story "Hushed Mars Curiosity find inspires hilarious predictions" on Storify] The Mars Curiosity rover has made a discovery "for...Curiosity rover shoots Mars with a laser #PewPew - Your CommunityView the story "Curiosity rover shoots Mars with a laser #PewPew" on Storify] Storified by CBC News Community · Mon, Aug 20 2012 09:08:14...NASA crew behind Mars Curiosity rover answer questions on Reddit - Your CommunitySo far, mine is this one. -Keri/@KeriOnMars Does Curiosity get wake-up songs every morning like the other Mars rovers got? If so, what ha...Mars rover photos spark UFO speculation - Your CommunityView the story "Mars rover photos spark UFO speculation" on Storify] Storified by CBC News Community · Thu, Aug 23 2012 14:33:18 It was b...Unfortunately, we couldn't include every internet character we were fascinated with this year. You'd be reading all night! Here's a list of some we might have included if the list went on.

Honourable mentions:

Hacking collective Anonymous
The members of Pussy Riot
Bullied bus monitor Karen Klein
Angelina Jolie's Right leg
The Hot Cheetos and Takis kids
Tanned Mom
The Copco Lake 5
"Drunk" Tom Hanks Fan
The Beat Boxing Beauty Queen
Unemployed Big bird
The Florida mystery monkey
Billy Idol's ultimate fan

Who did we miss? Tell us who your favourite internet characters of 2012 were in the comment section below.

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