Modern Warfare 2's Side-Eye TikTok Meme Explained

Overall, it seems the campaign in "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" is being well received. Judging by what most critics have said about it, the short-but-sweet "Modern Warfare 2" campaign is intense, well-written, and action-packed. On top of all of that, the story is carried by an ensemble cast of familiar and beloved characters from past "Call of Duty" games, such as Captain John Price, John "Soap" McTavish, Kyle "Gaz" Gerrick, and the masked Simon "Ghost" Riley among others. Ghost, in particular, has proven to be a popular character among "Modern Warfare 2" fans, with some of his antics becoming so iconic they've grown beyond the scope of the game's already massive player base.

During Mission 6 ("Cartel Protection") of the campaign, Soap, Ghost, and two other characters drive through the fictional town of Los Almas, Mexico, after gaining information on Hassan. As one of the characters, Alejandro, gives Soap and Ghost the low-down on Los Almas and how it's entirely controlled by the local cartel, Soap looks out the window and notices something rather peculiar. He sees a street vendor selling balloons to children as an armed cartel member watches over the transaction. Shocked by the conditions, Soap relays this information to Ghost, who can only be seen giving a concerned side-eye glance to his comrade. This moment, in particular, has become a meme and has begun spreading throughout the internet.

For one reason or another, the look that the masked Ghost flashes Soap during "Cartel Protection" is so intense that many on social media platforms, like TikTok, have taken it upon themselves to turn it into a meme. Usually accompanied by a rather ominous brass instrument sound, the meme has been used to convey a wide range of emotions, such as disappointment, shock, disinterest, or even fear. On Twitter, user Pyrocynical posted a compilation of some of the memes shared on TikTok, Twitter, and even through private text messages.

Admittedly, some of the memes seen in Pyrocynical's compilation are a bit off-color, but there are quite a few gems to be found on TikTok and beyond. One example of the memes' use was posted along with a caption referring to the look one friend might flash another after they break several traffic violations to save time — only to be stopped by the next red light anyway.

The original use of the meme captured the disdain one might feel if they only received one serving of sauce for a large food order; now, there's no stopping fans from coming up with unique and humorous applications for Ghost's glance.