Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore may be one of the most respected characters in the history of literature, but he's also a highly flawed Harry Potter hero whom we all love to poke fun at now and then. You don't groom a child to sacrifice himself for the greater good without ever even having the guts to tell him and then not expect to be roasted every now and then.
The Internet is full of Dumbledore memes that only fans who've watched the movies or read the books will understand, and some of them are so hilarious they'll make you feel like you've had too much Gigglewater.
Emperor Dumbledore
When TheMetaPicture.com compared Dumbledore with the emperor from Mulan... well, they weren't wrong! Like the emperor who thanked Mulan for saving China, Dumbledore surveyed the wreckage caused by the hero before praising Potter and his friends for a job well done before announcing that Gryffindor won the House Cup because of their antics.
Of course, Dumbledore is much kinder on Harry and his friends. He barely even points out the chaos that Harry, Hermione, and Ron have left in their wake before gifting the Gryffindors extra house points and bumping them up to win the House Cup all of the time.
Dumbledore The Dazzling Dresser
Readers of the books know that Albus Dumbledore has always been a snazzy dresser who enjoys flamboyant clothing, particularly of the purple variety. That's why seeing him dressed "smart, gray three-piece suits" in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, as Lucy Wood points out on Twitter, was so jarring for many fans.
Nobody's complaining about how young Albus looks, especially with someone like Jude Law in the role, but we are left puzzled about just when he developed his fashion sense. It seems odd to start dressing in purple robes in your old age, especially after over a decade of fans creating cool fanart of him.
Dumbledore's Aging Process
Speaking of Jude Law as Dumbledore, true fans of Harry Potter were puzzled to witness how young the teacher was in 1927 when he is an old man only 11 years later, as he was portrayed in the previous films. Later, in 1943, he appears ancient, prompting fans to ask just what happened to this man in such a short period of time to make him age so rapidly, especially considering that he lived to be about 150 years old.
The joke here works on two levels since it doesn't only mock Dumbledore's timeline but points to how stressful it is to be a teacher, no matter what world you live in.
Dumping Baby Harry
floccinaucinihilipilification's Tumblr exposes how ridiculous Dumbledore's original treatment of Harry Potter as an orphan baby was in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. In the middle of the wizarding world's celebration about Voldemort's defeat, Albus dumps Harry on the doorstep of family members who don't only not know him, but who also despise magic and wizards, as Dumbledore surely knows.
The decision is a terrible one, but the meme makes us laugh because it clearly illustrates just how cavalierly Dumbledore drops Harry off without a second thought. In the meme, McGonagall even suggests just ringing the doorbell to explain, but Albus wants no part of such muggle logic.
He's Two Ingredients Shy Of A Polyjuice Potion
Fans love to poke fun at Dumbledore "not being all there." Just check out Potter Puppet Pals for a good example. In this meme, floccinaucinihilipilificationa once again points out that Dumbledore is absolutely ridiculous as he attempts to use a Patronus Charm on his own staff because he thought they were Dementors because they "suck so much."
He also requires parental consent forms to visit a candy store but not to play "murderball," as McGonagall points out, and hires Quirrell despite the fact that the wizard "smells like death." It's so many Dumbledore jokes all wrapped up in one and an absolute delight.
Muggle Rules Don't Apply
Only those who've read the books or seen the series will understand this meme about Albus Dumbledore repeatedly sending Harry Potter his Hogwarts letter every day, even on Sunday, in order to ensure the boy opened it. How Dumbledore knew that Harry was being denied his letters was never fully explained, but as the most powerful wizard alive he had his ways.
Of course, fans argue that since he knew Harry was being kept under the stairs in a cupboard, he was also aiding in the abuse of the malnourished and mistreated boy, which steers this lighthearted joke into some particularly grim territory.
Not Quite A Pair Of Socks
One of the funniest and most popular memes about Dumbledore puts him in front of the Mirror of Erised, depicting what the wizard truly wishes for most in life. Once fans discovered that the wizard was gay, they started putting rather attractive poses of Snape in the frame, which is funny on a whole new level.
Dumbledore has always protected Snape and allowed him to bully students, but we never get the reason why until the end of the series. He still should never have allowed this behavior from a teacher, no matter how hard Snape worked for the Order, but, if he fancied his double agent, it would certainly explain why he was so lenient.
Slytherin Who?
When Quirrell announces that a troll has made its way into the Hogwarts dungeons, the fact that the dungeons are where the Slytherin common room and dormitories are seems to escape Dumbledore's mind. This meme takes it a step further and presents the situation in a much more hilarious, albeit dark, light; Dumbledore doesn't even care, which is why he sends the Slytherins exactly to where the troll is located!
It makes sense since Dumbledore's always robbing the Slytherins of their hard-earned House Cup, but it's also hilarious in the manner of which Dumbledore snaps, "OMG Malfoy, you act like I even care!"
Welcome To Hogwarts, Where The Rules Make No Sense
Everyone wonders how Dumbledore could have abandoned young Harry Potter to live with the relatives who despise and abuse him, but only true fans think about how he also defies their wishes in where he should attend school. Sure, they are lousy, but he totally made them his guardians and should abide by their wishes if he's not willing to be guardian himself. Yes, Lily's blood protects him, but that seems rather weak.
Not to mention the fact that he KNOWS this and yet doesn't let Harry go to Hogsmeade without a permission slip! It's a ridiculous double standard hilariously depicted here.
Saving The Hippogriff
Dumbledore allowed Hermione to use the Time-Turner to take multiple classes almost casually, and he let the kids play with the sensitive magical object in order to save Buckbeak the hippogriff and Sirius Black—but absolutely couldn't use it to stop the wizarding wars, save Harry's parents, prevent Tom Riddle from being born...
The logic here is hilarious and it only highlights Dumbledore's weird decision-making even further. Yes, Rowling's rules do explain this (a bit), but real fans know that Dumbledore's logic is full of holes, which is why we have to laugh at memes like this one.