Originally created by Russian illustrator Anton Gudim, the High Five Drown meme features a three-panel comic strip where a hand emerging from the water is greeted with a high five instead of a rescue. It quickly became a viral sensation for its satirical take on 'toxic positivity' and situations where people offer superficial encouragement instead of actual assistance. Since its debut around 2017, the meme has evolved to represent everything from corporate indifference to poorly handled personal crises, making it a staple for dark humor across platforms like Reddit and Twitter.