The Assassination Chain meme originates from the TV series 'Person of Interest,' specifically a scene from the episode '6,741.' It depicts a sequence of four characters aiming at one another in a church, escalating from a handgun to a long-range sniper rifle in the balcony. The template became a viral sensation as a way to illustrate hierarchies of power, domino effects, or situations where a small issue is overshadowed by increasingly larger problems. It is widely used across the internet to demonstrate how one action or entity can be unexpectedly targeted by a more dominant force.