Audio By Carbonatix
There’s perhaps no symbol as ubiquitous and iconic to ‘90s kids as the “cool S,” aka that graffiti drawing everyone was obsessed with as a child. Folks who grew up in the ‘90s and early 2000s may have claimed it as their own, but several reports debunk that fact time and time again. Now, a new theory about the “cool S” has emerged that will send folks into an existential crisis.
What’s The ‘Cool S?’
The “cool S” refers to a drawing that uses 14 connected lines to make a stylized S resembling a pointy Moebius strip. If you’re a millennial or older, chances are, you know how to draw this S from muscle memory alone. They’ve littered children’s notebooks as early as the 1960s, according to some reports. Its origin has eluded people for years, especially after it was confirmed that the cool S was not limited to the U.S.; people from Israel, Egypt, Central America, and more have been drawing it as long as Americans have.
Its mysterious beginning just adds to the iron chokehold it has on millennials. As expected, there are a plethora of theories as to where the cool S came from. Some thought it was linked to the “Superman” logo; others have been calling it the Stüssy logo for decades. Even Suzuki has denied that the “S” thing was attributed to their logo.
The cool S was eventually, unsurprisingly, trademarked by a man in 2020 as ‘The S Thing.’ However, he assured folks he only wanted to “preserve” it.
With no conclusive origins, folks were free to conjure up theories. The latest comes from one TikToker who borrowed an already popular existing conspiracy theory. He then merged it with the cool S mystery.
‘Cool S’ And The Simulation Theory
TikToker Ricky (@rickytrippreal) says, “By far the most convincing evidence that I’ve heard for us being in a simulation is… you know that S thing that appears everywhere… that has been showing up throughout history, all throughout the world?”
He describes the drawing as the one that has been “showing up in schools everywhere, somehow everyone knows it.” Then he reveals his theory.
“The theory is that that ‘S’ is the logo for the company that runs our simulation,” Ricky says.
With over 2.7 million views on TikTok, Ricky’s clip sent folks into a heated debate over the origin of it. Others spiraled about potentially being in a simulation.
“Can the S company chill out with the difficulty settings i want to afford a house,” one user joked. Others couldn’t believe this was the “most convincing argument” for Ricky.
Others thought there were stronger theories. For example, one user wrote, “Busses are more convincing. They are the same width as your car on the outside, but inside each row has four seats and a walk aisle.”
@rickytrippreal Nobody even really has an answer either, aurugshjjsjshsvbshs it’s okay I will keep processing #simulation#simulationtheory #thoughts #s#unexplained
A Potential Origin?
Several called out Ricky for saying “all throughout history” when it was only in the ‘90s. However, one person claimed the S thing was documented as far back as centuries ago.
“The dacians had a version of it in 3300 bc,” one user claimed. Indeed, an article on ‘The S Thing’ website reported that the descendants of the Romans used an extremely similar motif to the ‘S’ thing on their tapestries.
“The only differences are that one diagonal line is missing and the one showing is at a wider angle,” the blog stated. “Whilst we don’t believe ancient Dacians or the people of Ciocănesti were specifically responsible for the international popularity of the modern day S…they certainly represent hundreds of generations of people who for 1000’s of years, simply loved drawing the S on everything.”
UPDATE: In an Instagram direct message with BroBile, Ricky said he’s been curious about the S for years.
He’s known of its prominence throughout history. The fact that no one knows its true origin is something he had heard about.
“I’m pretty sure I originally saw this observation online, I would credit the original person if I could find it,” he said of the simulation theory. “Their words lived in my head for days, I just had to share.”
He continued that the simulation theory is a “fun” philosophical idea but maintains that it wouldn’t matter “if we are or aren’t in one.”
Ricky said his goal was indeed to go viral with his TikTok video.
“I needed to share this information and it seems many others agreed!” He wrote. “
In the end, Ricky said he’s glad his video could get people talking.
“People paying more attention could save the world,” he said. “I know a lot of reality is hard, but this was a fun little piece. Hopefully we can find even more fun facts.”
As for whether he personally believes we live in a simulation, Ricky said he doesn’t know.
“But this world is all I’ve ever known and likely ever will know, but not all of history has been written yet,” he shared. “If there’s anything I hope people gained from this observation was that learning can be fun! Using our brains is fun! Thinking is fun! Not always, but this is proof it can be.”