The savage art of the comeback is something that we should all take the time and dedication to master. There are very few things in life as satisfying as completely and utterly decimating someone with your wit, your snappiness, and your banter. And if you throw some good old-fashioned logic and common sense into the mix? Whew, you’re a legend.
The place that celebrates these “well-constructed put-downs, comebacks, and counter-arguments” is the legendary ‘Murdered By Words’ subreddit. Boasting a whopping 2.5 million members, r/MurderedByWords shares the best comebacks that we all wish we came up with ourselves. And, well, during the actual arguments, not days later while we’re shampooing our hair in the shower.
One of the moderators helping manage the vast r/MurderedByWords community answered some of my questions about the community. "The way we see it, a murder should (but doesn't always have to) be more than a quick response or retort. The best murders are well-constructed, thought-out responses that leave the opening argument completely without any ability to reply. In other words, their point has been totally demolished," the mod explained to Bored Panda.
"Now, obviously there's more than one way to murder with words, and sometimes a quick rapier thrust or stab to the heart (a short, swift reply) can be just as deadly as a drawn-out murder, and you'll frequently see both types in this sub," they added. Scroll down for the moderator's insights about how they and their colleagues tackle the challenges that come with managing such a large online community.
Check out the best online verbal put-downs, upvote the ones that impressed you the most, and be sure to give r/MurderedByWords a follow if you’re a fan of their stuff. When you’re done with this article, you’ll find some more inspiration for your future epic comebacks by checking out our previous features of the subreddit here, here, and here. Somebody call the police and the coroner because these ‘word-murders’ are out of control.
This post may include affiliate links.
Red Shirts Everywhere...
I Think This Belongs Here Too
Women Aren't People, Apparently
The moderator representing r/MurderedByWords shared with me that they have a very thorough vetting system in place for new mods. "We manage the community by being a tight-knit group of moderators who are all carefully vetted before being given the position, to ensure the stability of the subreddit and that good content gets through," they said. However, it's not just the mods who decide whether or not a comeback can be classified as a 'murder.' That honor is also given to the community members themselves.
"Overall, we believe in letting the subreddit determine what is or isn't a murder, and try to step in or remove posts only when the rules are broken or we see the same post for the gazillionth time," the mod explained.
According to the moderator, the community has its own challenges, just like any other large subreddit. "Every single post will always have someone who says, 'Not a murder,' 'This sub is dying/dead,' 'Mods suck,' etc. That comes with the territory of any subreddit, from smallest to largest," they told Bored Panda that these sorts of comments are completely unavoidable, no matter what the community might be. However, a bigger issue is... politics.
Yes, The Answer Is Yes
Who Doesn't Love Irony?
Far Too Many People See The Answer To This As Being "Yes"
"Another challenge that came up was when we decided before the US Presidential Elections to ban politics from the sub (there is a sticky at the top of the subreddit outlining what is/isn't allowed). Somehow, we managed to have both sides of the political spectrum pissed off at us for that one. Democrats complaining we had caved to the Republicans who kept getting 'owned,' and Republicans complaining because this was one big left-wing [echo chamber] and now they couldn't even respond with their own posts. We then made the ban permanent, but we still have to remove plenty of posts which fit the criteria for the no-politics rule."
But at the core of it all are practical challenges like finding ways to keep the subreddit growing and full of fresh content that will keep redditors happy. "We're lucky in that we frequently create posts that reach the front page and receive tens of thousands of upvotes (many have even passed the 100k upvote mark), which in turn helps draw attention to the sub, which creates more content, etc."
The Media Makes It To Be A Feel Good Story Over A Dystopian Nightmare
You’re An Asstrovert
Let’s All Make A Pledge
Nearly two years ago, I had a friendly chat with redditor Xor50, who’d been one of the moderators helping run r/MurderedByWords. They told me a bit about the community that has been running since December 2016, the type of content the subreddit features (and how it differs from similar subreddits like r/clevercomebacks), and how to give your put-down more substance.
“A ‘real murder’ in terms of this subreddit would be [this]: A murder should be a response to something or someone that totally, for lack of a better word, destroys them. They are, of course, subjective, and should be more or less based on fact,” Xor50 told Bored Panda previously.
Don't B Confused
More C-19 Experts..
Am I So Out Of Touch? No, It's The Children Who Are Wrong
“What is the difference between a ‘murder’ and ‘burn’ anyway? The mod team and even the MBW community has struggled for over a year to try and define the difference. It’s quite subjective and nearly an ‘I know it when I see it!’ situation, however, there are some generalities,” the redditor explained that there have been debates about the details of what constitutes a ‘murder.’
“Murders tend to be longer. It’s nearly impossible to ‘murder’ someone inside of a tweet. It’s just not long enough. You can burn them pretty good yes but a ‘murder’ is far more complete,” they said.
“Basically, anything that you would think is a witticism, one-liner, snappy comeback, or hot take is going to be a burn. Those may be a better fit for /r/clevercomebacks. Murders tend to be long-form, taking a minute or several to read, and thoroughly deconstruct an argument and/or the person making it.”
Columbus Day
🤣 That reply has some zing to it, anyone know where I can find that spcie?
Murdered By Wit
I Like The Second Guy’s Energy
Xor50 added that your personal passion for a topic can help inspire you to find a clever way to put down someone’s bad arguments. “Think about a topic you’re really passionate about and imagine you’re talking to an idiot who just doesn’t get it. That’s how I imagine it,” they said.
The art of the comeback isn’t out of reach for us, no matter how epic and unreachable some of these slap-backs and roasts might seem.
Classic Karen
Yeah, That'll Work
That’s Got To Hurt
British comedy writer and stand-up comedian Ariane Sherine explained to me during an earlier interview what the most important parts of a comeback are. “I think the most important thing with comebacks is speed. Even if the joke isn't a total zinger, people will be impressed by your quickfire response," she told Bored Panda.
According to Ariane, most stand-up comics actually have a “repertoire of comebacks” that they rely on while on the stage. This way, they can be prepared for hecklers and (at least some) unexpected situations. There’s a lot of prep that goes into being a good comedian!
“We're not all as fast and talented as it seems! But if we're doing stand-up, our own routines will be original—it's just heckle putdowns that might not be," she said.
How Dare We Give You The Correct Amount Of Changes
Bit Of A Stretch
What's with people and body hair? If you like body hair, good for you. If you don't, also good for you. No need to body shame someone for something that occurs naturally. It's like insulting someone for having legs. I'm looking at you, female beauty standards
Seriously What Is Wrong With You
Ariane revealed to Bored Panda that comedy professionals build up emotional resilience with time and experience.
“Heckle putdowns are generally shared among comics so there's no code of honor when it comes to using them (but you mustn't nick original stand-up material!),” Ariane told me where we can find some inspiration for clever comebacks.
Good Luck To The Women In Your Future
Entitled Karen Getting Stabbed By Words
Get Wrecked...
The comedy writer also pointed out that comebacks can either be spontaneous or more planned out (if you’ve got the time), depending on the actual comic.
"It [the comeback] needs to be very fast, well-timed, and take people by surprise as well as being clever, witty, and immediately understandable,” she said, adding that it’s relatively rare in her experience to have spontaneous eruptions of genius all the time. “That's relatively rare in my experience. I'm sure many other comics are more natural than I am!"
Research Before You Sprouts Anything On Social Media
Better Check Those Facts
Handle With Care
'As a man, the only emotion you should show is forest hack-saw domination', said, a conservative.
Why Go Out Of Your Way To Be An As**ole?
This Doubles As A Til About The Spanish Anthem
Once Wasn't Enough, He Came Back For More
Rip Sportsball Fan
I completely support LGBTQ rights because LGBTQ people are the same as us heterosexuals, they just have different romantic preferences. They don't deserve to be treated as less than us...
God vs. Humanity
Trying To Gatekeep Conversations
What the actual f*ck is the original poster thinking? This must be one of the stupidest things I have ever read.
I've Had A 32" TV For Longer Than I'd Like To Admit
Oh, No! Anything But That!
US heath insurance is a scam... And textbooks are a scam... And minimum wage is a scam... Basically everything is a scam
I live in Japan. I pay about 50,000 yen (about 500 USD) a month for "social insurance" which includes all health, dental, medicine, social security, worker's compensation, etc. etc. etc. I can go to any doctor or hospital I want. To go to my local clinic, I don't need an appointment. I just show up, and can be seen within about half an hour. I have ZERO deductible. I pay only about 30% of the cost, and there are caps on how much I have to pay per procedure/visit, per month and per year to prevent medical debt. Last month, I had surgery. I was in the hospital for five days. I had excellent care from outstanding doctors and nurses. They ALSO cleaned my teeth (because they were going to put a tube down my throat). I was seen personally by two different doctors, who were very kind. One was my surgeon, who I met with several times, and the other was on rounds with medical students. Cost to me? Under $500 USD. Top that.
I'm so jealous! I had to have my gallbladder removed in July of 2019 and I'm still paying off those medical bills. :/
Load More Replies...LOL. "Insurance". LOL. What a cute misnomer! Insures nothing except profits for the company.
I can't believe that there are still people out there who don't think this is a problem.
Would any human living in America recognize a problem they don't have? This is just like Jeff Bezos and starving children all over again.
Load More Replies...Ooh, hit the brakes with this one. Private insurance *as it is right now in the US* is deeply predatory, but you do want to keep something like what we have in New Zealand, where public healthcare creates competition that drives the price of private insurance way down (we have a lot of plans under $100/month and even my super-comprehensive one is only $200/month, without any employer contribution.) In an ideal country, you wouldn’t need it, but if New Zealand conservatives can defund the s**t out of our system when we’ve had public healthcare so long that a lot of us weren’t born when it got started, you can imagine what Republicans will try. Public healthcare isn’t a one-and-done thing, so keeping the private sector around will probably be helpful.
70% of all costs in the US Health Care is directly tied to US regulations and compliance that have zero to do with quaility of care, patient privacy, or similar. Further if we allow purchasing over state lines after chucking all those onerous "regulations", we can cut out 85% of the cost of insurance, eliminate deductables. Etc. Health Care in the US is as expensive as the US govt makes it because of politics, not health. We can have far lower costs with higher care than any other country if politicans would be willing to strealine regulations, rather than pile on more.
Which onerous regulations are you referring to? The ones that require health care personnel to be properly educated and credentialed? The one that requires medications to be tested and demonstrated to be effective with minimal risk? The ones that require hospitals to demonstrate they have the resources (personnel and materiale`) to provide complex care to the very sickest patients? Be specific.
Load More Replies...Capitalism with the absence of social supports and programs makes a commodity of poverty and debt. Being poor and in debt in the US is such a lucrative business for private markets. There’s no incentive by the wealthy to change it.
OMG! And I think with 600 insurance per month and 300 out of pocket I am paying too much...
Courtney why lie to make your false point? You do NOT get a 10-20% raise a year. It may go up over time. The largest jump was when o'Bama care came into effect. ( higher premium/extremely higher deductibles. )
Note: This varied state to state, b/c the ACA allowed each state to implement the ACA as it wished. Which often led to predation. Ironically, the very conservative state of Kentucky saw great gains under ACA by implementing it as it was intended before Congress butchered it. In my current state of residence, our premiums dropped by 50%. Depends!
Load More Replies...Y’all know we still have the option of private insurance in countries with universal healthcare? It’s just premium service, that still costs a fraction of what the US pays for theirs. I actually love having the option. Great service without it (compared to the US) but for those who like a little extra
Private insurance is pro-profit business, which means they want to collect money from "insured" people and keep it in their bank accounts.
Government health insurance is a scam. You get injured badly or very sick and they curb your butt. Signed, beneficiary of free health care.
Australian here: we have free healthcare AND private health insurance for those who want it.
The cost of my private medical insurance doubled, literally doubled, from $400 per month to $810 per month, when Obamacare made the policy I had illegal and imposed all sorts of regulations on new policies. Thank you Mr Obama.
Arguably it could have possibly turned out worse but I still can't help but wonder where the U.S. society would be today if it weren't for the deregulation push of the early 80's. Hey everybody! Let's take this mortgage, a thing which already makes money, and spin it into a derivative which we can package into an "investment opportunity"! Creating an artificial investment system which drives the need of high risk/high reward returns won't cause any problems, will it?
Private insurance should be allowed, even with Medicare for all. If people who already have healthcare still happen to want to pay half their incomes to a company that mostly does nothing for them them and spends most of its funds on its "let's not actually do our one job" department, why stop them?
All health care is a scam Imagine living under a system that enforces social standards and then takes away the rights of its society by pushing upon them a framework that denies even basic care I am appalled Australia are trying to go down that track gradually but I refuse private Heath care. If I can afford it but my neighbour can’t wherefore that leave them? Disgracefully disadvantaged
UK has the NHS, and still has private healthcare, so... Those who can afford it shouldn't take advantage of taxpayers to fund their medical bills, but those who need support shouldn't be made to suffer because healthcare should be affordable. If you want doctors and nurses to be paid well, the whole thing needs to be financially viable
My insurance was terrible, but it really nosedived after AHCA. My cost went from 50/month to 200/month for insurance that does everything but actually insure me. If I want any protection at all, I need to shell out 500/month at least.
The Ol' Switcheroo
Who Ever Will Fight A Wolf ?
But How Will They Make Money If They Can't Take Advantage Of People?!??
What Are Crab Cakes?
Doctor Of Reading?
Sounds like the symptoms of covid...so people without vaccination tend to get covid symptoms ... Who'd ave guessed?
I Don’t Really Know If This Counts But..
1) why would you be this pretentious in the first place 2) why would you be so pretentious on a god damn memes page...
Just So We’re Clear
It's Almost As If
You Can't Justify Her Actions No Matter What
He was trying to create a new line of skin care products...to sell in baskets....
I Once Knew A Peacock
Note: this post originally had 119 images. It’s been shortened to the top 45 images based on user votes.
Sometimes I actually forget that so many people are so completely stupid. Thank you for reminding me because it's important to remember.
Idiots being like "BP users are just looking to get offended" while being a BP user
I had to quit reading. I've never read so many stupid, uncaring remarks in all my life!
I keep hearing Only Fans on the internet lately, but I have a feeling I shouldn't bother Googling it.
Sometimes I actually forget that so many people are so completely stupid. Thank you for reminding me because it's important to remember.
Idiots being like "BP users are just looking to get offended" while being a BP user
I had to quit reading. I've never read so many stupid, uncaring remarks in all my life!
I keep hearing Only Fans on the internet lately, but I have a feeling I shouldn't bother Googling it.