Why is a Japanese design aesthetic sweeping global social media platforms? If you havenât heard of it already, Wabi Sabi is a Japanese design aesthetic focused on the beauty in the imperfect, damaged and weathered parts of life. Wabi refers to the philosophy of living simply and in harmony with nature. Sabi more directly refers to aesthetic qualities and seeing the value in objects, the imperfections, asymmetry or patina, which can inspire contemplation.Â
An art form that uses the idea of Wabi Sabi is Kintsugi. Rather than throwing away broken porcelain or ceramics, they are repaired using Urushi, a Japanese lacquer. This lacquer is not used to restore the ceramic but rather fill in the cracked gaps to later be dusted with gold dust, which highlights the cracks, marking the moment in the ceramicâs life. Many see this art form as adding to the ceramic âpersonalityâ, making it more precious and valued in the home.Â
So why has this specific sound gone viral in 2025? Let’s delve deeper.Â
The original clip came from a series called King of the Hill, which started in 1997 and aired for thirteen seasons till 2009. A reboot for a fourteenth season premiered in August of this year, but the sound does not come from the new season. To make it more interesting, the clip came from Episode 6 of Season 7, titled ‘The Son also Roses’, aired in 2002. The episodeâs plot followed Hank and Bobby Hill, a father and son, growing roses for a competition. Previously, Hank had tried to get Bobby into football, but when that didn’t work out, Bobby became intrigued by gardening. With his dad not being able to coach him for football, Hank tried coaching him in rose guarding, a well-meaning gesture which backfires. They enter the Single vase section of the competition, meaning they would have to select one rose to enter. This is where the clip comes in.Â
When assessing each rose, Hank consults a book by the American Rose Society, which sidebar happens to be a real American society founded in 1892. Bobby selects a rose he finds perfect, but his father disagrees as it doesnât adhere to the Society’s specifications. Bobby gives his reasoning as Wabi Sabi. Hank thinks he made up the phrase to win the argument, and so Bobby goes on to explain that Wabi Sabi âis an easter tradition, Dad, it’s celebrating the beauty in whatâs flawed, like the crack in the Liberty Bell or the mole on Cindy Crawford’s face.â Unfortunately, Hank snips the reasoning in the bud, quite literally, as he cuts Bobbyâs desired rose head off, stating they are out to win the competition.Â
Bobbyâs lines have been repurposed into a social media sound spreading across TikTok and Instagram, but why? An early 2000s cartoon clip about an ancient Japanese design aesthetic was not on my 2025 bingo card. Most clips, using the sound, completely miss the mark on what Wabi Sabi actually means, just jumping on the current viral train. Some clips feature topics of body positivity, predominantly women with curves, rolls, features that donât fit the notion of conventional attractiveness, but rather their authentic selves. Other clips show candid moments with friends, family or partners, some pure unedited joy, most of them being funny, small mistakes. My favourites have been the alternative fashion styles, the outfits that you donât really get to wear in everyday life when you have to conform to societal standards, whether that be for work or school.Â
So, did this go viral because of the new season and happened to work as a great marketing strategy for the studio which owns King of the Hill or are people tired of their carefully curated social media presence?Â
I am yet to see a truly original piece of media hit streaming services since the pandemic. Most films or series are sequels, reboots or live-action adaptations, media recycling. The same is for King of the Hill, a late 1990s, early 2000s sitcom rebooted after sixteen years, for nostalgia or an easy money grab? Other examples are Wickedâs screen adaptation from the 2003 Broadway production, Avatar’s Way of Water and Fire & Ash reboot from 2009, or Disneyâs ânewâ Fantastic Four from 2005. When did it become so hard for film media to come up with an engaging original idea? Does it stem from the fast demand for new content?
We thought there was a global shift into better managing your well-being or mental health. Some of that has been through social media engagement, but has it been too much content, and is it inadvertently driving the problem worse off than before? Digital burnout is a growing issue many have faced, with constant notifications, doom scrolling, and the demand for having your life online and also a lot of our daily work being online as well. Following the news from Australia banning the use of social media by those under the age of sixteen on sites such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and others from December 10th. There is a sense of irony with this trend, as Wabi Sabi is about taking time to contemplate the small details of life, but with this trend, it promotes the exact opposite, with such a large amount of fast media it’s created. As usual, we have missed the true point.Â
I think this trend says more about us than about the Wabi Sabi aesthetic. We desperately crave to be accepted for our authentic selves, to find our people, but find ourselves trapped in a system that perpetuates fast consumption, society’s idealised version of us. I doubt this is the moment we break from that standard, and this will be another trend lost to the social media archive before the start of 2026.
Editor: Grace Lees