Internet Explorer Encounters Modern JavaScript

Level 1: Old Dog, New Tricks

Imagine trying to show your great-grandpa how to use a new smartphone app when he’s only ever used those old rotary phones. You excitedly say, “Look, Gramps, you just swipe here to see the pictures,” and suddenly he looks at the phone like it’s a haunted object and exclaims, “What on earth is this sorcery?!” He’s completely confused and maybe even a bit scared by this strange new gadget.

That’s exactly the feeling this meme is going for, but with a web browser. You (the developer) did something new and cool in your code – kind of like using new slang or a fancy new toy – and Internet Explorer reacted like a bewildered grandfather. In the meme, Internet Explorer is represented by a shocked cartoon face (Wallace) saying, “what the heck did you just bring into my world?!” It’s basically a funny way of saying the old browser doesn’t understand the new stuff you showed it, and it freaks out. The emotional core here is the humor in that generation gap: the young person (modern code) introduces something to the old-timer (IE browser), and the old-timer panics because it’s so unfamiliar. We find it funny because we know the new thing isn’t actually dangerous or evil, but to the out-of-date Internet Explorer, it might as well be magic. It’s like trying to teach an old dog a new trick – the dog might just tilt its head or run away thinking, “What is this madness?”

Level 2: Modern Code vs. Ancient Browser

For newer developers, let’s break down what’s going on. The meme highlights a conflict between a modern JavaScript feature and an old web browser. When the text says “Me: use lambda expressions,” it’s talking about using ES6 arrow functions in JavaScript code. An arrow function is a newer, shorthand way to write a function. For example, instead of writing a traditional function like:

// Traditional function expression (old style)
var add = function(a, b) {
  return a + b;
};

you can write an arrow function (introduced in ES6, 2015) like:

// Modern arrow function (ES6+ syntax)
const add = (a, b) => a + b;

Both of these do the same thing (take two numbers, return their sum). The second version is just more concise. We call it an arrow function because of the => arrow. Sometimes developers loosely refer to any short anonymous function as a “lambda expression” (a term borrowed from other programming languages and math), so that’s why the meme says lambda. It’s basically the code on the right side of the arrow is an anonymous function’s body.

Now, “Internet Explorer:” in the meme sets up the browser’s reaction. Internet Explorer (IE) was Microsoft’s web browser that dominated the early web but became notoriously outdated. The meme specifically jokes about older versions of IE (like IE11 or earlier) that do not understand arrow function syntax. If you were to run the above arrow function code on Internet Explorer, it would error out because IE’s engine doesn’t recognize the => symbol at all. It would be as if you wrote gibberish in your code. The kind of error you’d get might just say something vague like “Syntax error” or “Expected ‘)’” – essentially IE saying “I have no clue what this is.” This is one of many browser support issues web developers face: different browsers support different JavaScript features. Modern browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge) happily support ES6 features like arrow functions, but IE being a legacy browser stopped receiving updates before arrow functions became standard. So it’s stuck with older JavaScript capabilities (ES5 and below).

The bottom part of the meme shows a picture of Wallace (from the claymation series "Wallace and Gromit") with a red, pixelated, horrified face. The caption on it says, “what the f**k did you just bring upon this cursed land.” This is a popular reaction image format. Here, Wallace is essentially acting as a stand-in for Internet Explorer. The red, distorted look is an exaggerated way to show anger and panic. So, the meme is imagining that when the developer uses an arrow function, Internet Explorer responds like Wallace in shock: “What on earth is this code?!” The phrase “cursed land” is a humorous exaggeration – IE is treating the new JavaScript feature as if it’s some dark magic or curse that doesn’t belong in its world. This is poking fun at how out-of-date IE’s understanding of web code is. To IE, a simple modern feature looks as confusing and alarming as a forbidden spell.

In simpler terms, the meme is relatable to front-end web developers because it dramatizes a common hassle: compatibility with old browsers. If you’ve ever made a website, you know you have to test it in different browsers. Using the latest and greatest language features can break your site for users who, for example, still use Internet Explorer. Developers often had to employ transpilers or polyfills – tools that convert modern code back into old-style code – so that IE could run it. For instance, a tool like Babel will take that arrow function const add = (a,b) => a + b; and transform it into equivalent older code var add = function(a,b){ return a+b; }; before shipping the code, specifically to avoid upsetting IE. The meme skips those details and goes straight to the joke: “I used a modern JavaScript feature, and Internet Explorer absolutely loses it.” It’s funny to those in web development because we’ve seen it happen – one small modern tweak can cause IE to freak out.

The Wallace and Gromit reference isn’t directly about programming, it’s just a funny image choice. Wallace is a mild-mannered, quirky British clay character, so seeing him with a profane caption adds absurdity. It’s basically saying IE’s reaction is so extreme that it’s like making a usually calm character scream in terror. The line “what the f**k did you just bring upon this cursed land” is a meme-y way of saying “What have you done?!” indicating complete dread. This over-the-top phrasing makes the scenario comical. And indeed, many developers who had to maintain legacy code for IE feel a mix of horror and humor looking back – horror at the memories of things breaking, and humor in exaggerating IE as this drama queen of a browser.

So, to recap: the dev does something modern (uses an arrow function, aka lambda), and the old browser (IE) reacts like a panicked cartoon character. It’s highlighting the generation gap in technology – new code vs old software – in a jokey way. Anyone who’s tried to open a modern website in IE or had to support IE will chuckle at how accurate this feels. And for those who haven’t experienced it: now you know, this was a real issue! Thankfully, IE has been retired (hence the “Rest in peace IE” comment), which means developers today rarely have to deal with this particular problem. But the meme immortalizes those Frontend Humor moments where a single line of modern JavaScript could make an entire browser feel utterly cursed.

Level 3: Summoning the Syntax Demon

From a senior developer’s perspective, this meme hits on the painful hilarity of browser compatibility issues – specifically the nightmare of supporting legacy systems like Internet Explorer. The setup is instantly familiar: “Me: use lambda expressions” (i.e., I happily write modern ES6 JavaScript) and then “Internet Explorer:” followed by that horrified Wallace face. Every experienced web developer who’s battled IE can relate: as soon as you introduce a shiny new language feature or any modern web tech, IE breaks down in panic. The humor comes from exaggerating IE’s reaction, as if the browser is sputtering, “What the **** did you just bring upon this cursed land?!” – which is only a slight exaggeration of how it feels in reality. In practice, you might load your site in IE and be greeted with a blank page, a console full of cryptic errors, or an outright crash. It feels like the browser is cursing your name for daring to use an arrow function or some fancy new syntax. This shared trauma is real: ask any veteran front-end dev about the time they used a perfectly valid modern JavaScript feature only to have QA report “It doesn’t work in Internet Explorer.” Cue the facepalm and exasperated groan.

The industry pattern here is the eternal struggle with browser support issues. Internet Explorer (especially versions 6 through 11) was notorious for lagging behind on web standards. By the time ES6 arrow functions became commonplace, Chrome, Firefox, and others had moved on, but IE was stuck in the past. This meme pokes fun at that gap: the modern web vs. the legacy browser that time forgot. It’s essentially satirizing how IE reacts like an old grumpy system whenever confronted with new code. The phrase “cursed land” nails the sentiment – many devs do think of IE as a cursed land of quirks, where otherwise normal code behaves like forbidden sorcery. We’ve all written something clean and modern that works flawlessly in Chrome, only to see IE choke and die. That’s why you’ll hear seasoned developers half-joke, half-cry, “Well, does it work in IE?” before merging a PR. It’s the same energy as a dungeon adventurer gingerly opening a coffin, fearing what curse might be released – we deploy new code fearing IE’s wrath.

In real-world scenarios, this leads to all sorts of cross-browser hacks. Senior devs have war stories of adding polyfills, tweaking Babel config, or introducing build steps solely to appease IE. There were even IE-only CSS hacks and JavaScript shims to keep that beast happy. The meme’s exaggeration isn’t far off: adding something as innocent as an arrow function without transpilation could crash an entire page on IE11. So the dev in the meme says “use lambda expressions” like it’s a cool idea, and IE responds with abject horror – that’s basically a dramatization of the email you get from QA: “IE is throwing errors, site is unusable. What black magic did you deploy?!” The shared experience makes it funny: thousands of developers have been in that exact situation, bringing some modern code into an old environment and triggering chaos. It’s relatable humor for anyone who had to keep supporting IE while the rest of the world moved on.

Additionally, there’s a layer of dark comedy in the Rest in peace, IE. Or maybe in pieces? sentiment from the post. Internet Explorer has been officially put to pasture, and frankly, a lot of us are not mourning. This meme is essentially dancing on IE’s grave with a wink. After years of wrestling with its idiosyncrasies and legacy quirks (like the infamous IE6 bugs, or IE’s peculiar JavaScript engine differences), developers feel a mix of relief and schadenfreude seeing IE panic in a meme. We remember spending disproportionate time fixing “IE-only” bugs – that one user out of 100 who still used IE could wreck your whole day. It’s corporate dysfunction at times: “We must support IE because one executive insists on using it,” leading to technical debt in the form of ancient code patterns. The meme captures that absurdity with one image: IE’s clay-face screaming in pixelated horror at a mere arrow function. It’s a senior dev’s inside joke – we laugh because it’s over-the-top, but also because it’s exactly how it felt dealing with IE. In summary, this meme takes a classic web-dev pain point (modern JavaScript vs. old browser) and portrays IE as a terrified, angry Wallace, perfectly embodying our collective frustration and the ridiculousness of maintaining browser compatibility with a browser that thinks ES6 is a demonic invasion.

Level 4: Unexpected Token Sacrilege

At the deepest technical level, this meme exposes a language parsing fiasco. JavaScript’s ES6 arrow functions (often nicknamed lambda expressions in homage to functional programming) are essentially anonymous functions with a sleek => syntax. Modern JavaScript engines parse something like x => x + 1 by recognizing the => token as part of the grammar for an ArrowFunctionExpression in the ECMAScript specification. But Internet Explorer’s JavaScript engine – an ancient beast from a bygone era – does not have this grammar rule in its parser at all. When IE’s interpreter encounters the => token, it’s as if you’ve spoken arcane Latin to a Victorian-era gentleman: the poor thing throws a syntax error and collapses. In compiler terms, IE’s JS engine cannot build an Abstract Syntax Tree (AST) for this code because => is an unexpected token in its limited ES5-era blueprint. The meme’s dramatic “cursed land” reaction humorously personifies IE encountering an arrow function: the browser essentially panics at the sight of modern syntax. Under the hood, it’s equivalent to invoking a function that hasn’t been defined in its world – a ritual it doesn’t know, causing a fatal exception.

Why is this so? JavaScript is standardized by ECMA specifications (ES5, ES6, etc.), and each browser’s engine implements a certain version. IE11 (the last of its line) barely caught up with ES5 (2009 standard) and never fully learned ES6 (2015) features like arrows, let/const, or promises. Microsoft had long since shifted focus to Edge, so IE’s JScript/Chakra engine was frozen in time. That means when you drop an ES6 arrow function into code that IE tries to run, it’s like casting a spell with no corresponding rune in IE’s spellbook – hence the “what the **** did you just bring upon this cursed land” vibe. It’s a fundamental incompatibility at the parsing level: IE’s legacy engine can’t transform those characters into a meaningful operation and effectively shouts in error. Developers ended up using transpilers (like Babel) as an exorcism of sorts – these tools preemptively convert every arrow => into an old-school function before IE ever sees it, so the browser isn’t summoned into a meltdown. It’s a bit poetic (or tragic): we had to write code to translate our code for the ancient tongue of IE. In essence, the meme jokes that introducing a lambda/arrow into IE’s realm is tantamount to summoning a demon in a church – the laws of nature (or JavaScript grammar) are violated, and the only conceivable response is horror.