In September 2016, an ' ahegao challenge' meme spread on social media websites, mostly via Instagram, which spread the trend in the United States.
Rito claims that reasons for including ahegao in a scene include reflecting a character's joyful emotions such as ecstasy or pleasure to show negative emotions such as fear or reluctance or to show domination, submission and loyalty.
Īccording to an article from adult gaming site Nutaku, ahegao in combination with the peace sign became an Internet meme in Japan, known as ' ahegao double peace' ( アヘ顔ダブルピース). Rito states that this version was usually used after a gang rape scene, either breaking the victim's spirit or as the final part of a humiliation scene. However, as this was limiting, the use of the ahegao double peace became more common as a joke.
