Here’s how the Hulk’s “These are confusing times” line in Avatar off the top spot as the highest-grossing film of all time.
Despite rave reviews from fans and critics alike, there was one aspect of Avengers: Endgame that a lot of people didn’t agree with - Bruce Banner and the Hulk’s amalgamation into Avengers: Infinity War was something fans hoped Avengers: Endgame would address, so seeing the Green Goliath effectively erased by the creation of Professor Hulk was a big disappointment to many of Hulk’s fans.
But love or hate him, he did generate a lot of hilarious Professor Hulk memes. One meme, in particular, arose from a scene early on in Avengers: Endgame in which Professor Hulk is seen for the first time when he, Scott Lang, Natasha Romanoff, and Steve Rogers meet in a diner. After Scott expresses confusion over his new hybrid form Bruce Banner replies, “These are confusing times”, later adding “It’s crazy. I’m wearing shirts now.”
Professor Hulk's line “These are confusing times” was deemed meme-worthy by the internet community and in the weeks following the release of Avengers: Endgame, memes parodying the phrase started cropping up on Reddit and other online platforms. Unlike some more cryptic memes, the “These are confusing times” meme does literally mean what it says on the tin – expressing that something confusing is occurring.
One of the funniest and earliest examples of the meme was a reference to Avengers: Endgame itself. Posted by Redditor MCU too, such as when Redditor u/General-Bobo posted a version to r/memes in response to a CNN TV news banner reading “President’s spokesman says he can’t speak for the president.” In Professor Hulk's words, confusing times indeed.
