Feliz Jueves, also known as Running Asuka, is a GIF and viral clip featuring the character Asuka Langley from Neon Genesis Evangelion briskly sprinting toward the viewer to wish them a Happy Thursday.
Its wide usage comes from the large contrast between the innocent appearance and nature of the message and the extremely dark context from which it originally derives. On Thursdays, "Feliz Jueves" will often appear posted by users across social media, particularly in the Hispanic community.
“Feliz jueves” translates to “Happy Thursday” in Spanish.
Feliz Jueves came from the episode of the anime mecha series Neon Genesis Evangelion (or just Evangelion, among fans) entitled "The Beginning and the End, or 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door,’” which originally aired in Japan on March 13th, 1996. It’s the 24th episode of the series.
The signature GIF moment comes at the start of the episode, which features a flashback of Asuka running to inform her mother that she was selected as an EVA pilot, a great honor in the context of the series. However, Asuka only finds her mother’s body hanging from the ceiling after her apparent suicide.
Feliz Jueves’ first significant appearance in Internet form was on July 5th, 2018, when motivational Facebook page Mi Lugar Favorito posted a video of Asuka running, accompanied by playful music and the text "Vengo Corriendo Que Quiero Ser La Primera Persona En Desearte un Feliz Jueves!!!" which translates to “I Come Running 'cause I Wanna Be The First Person To Wish You A Happy Thursday!!!"
The post was a quick hit, grabbing over 12k reactions and 20k comments. To date, the video has received over 12k likes, 19.5k comments, and 3.9 million views.
While the post briefly disappeared due to Mi Lugar Favorito’s administrator's apprehension about the GIF’s origin, the positive reception led to a repost.
Since 2018, you’d be hard-pressed to find a Thursday where Asuka’s greeting doesn’t appear, especially among Spanish-speaking communities. In particular, users on Facebook, Reddit, and Taringa frequently trot out the greeting weekly.
After the initial Mi Lugar Favorito post, the usage of Feliz Jueves continued to climb. A year later, on October 27th, 2019, YouTube user Fonzii uploaded a video of the Asuka running GIF set to Bruno Mars’ “Runaway Baby.” The video received over 135k views before being removed from the platform (you can check out the original song here).
A few months later, on April 16th, 2020, when we all had a bit more time on our hands, the Facebook page Animal Crossing: Memexico posted the Feliz Jueves GIF in the style of Animal Crossing, which has garnered 114k views to date.
In 2019, the Latin American voice dub of Asuka herself, Georgina Sánchez, did a Facebook livestream. During the session, she declared she was well aware of the “Feliz Jueves” video and later voiced the phrase herself. On June 7th, 2019, YouTube user #Hal2814 uploaded the clip to YouTube, where it currently has 1.8 million views.
Almost a year later, YouTuber Aaron Yagual posted a clip of Argentinian soccer star Sergio “Kun” Agüero on a Twitch stream. During the video, he reacts to Asuka saying “Feliz Jueves,” before realizing it’s not actually Thursday.
Later that year, on June 11th, 2020, YouTube user 少年Shōnen uploaded a video that mixed voice actor Georgina’s voice with clips from Evangelion. The clip currently has 2.4 million views.
On May 17th, 2020, YouTube user Aaron Yagual[24] uploaded a clip from a Twitch stream of Argentinian soccer player Sergio "Kun" Agüero, in which he reacts to Asuka saying "Feliz Jueves" and realizes he lost track of time. A reupload on June 6th by the user Themingo currently has over 735k views.
Yes, there’s a song that’s been associated with the Feliz Jueves phenomenon, which has stirred a bit of mystery among the internet community after this video popped up amidst the mania in 2020.
“Does anyone know what this song is?” is a common comment when the song appears. It’s definitely not from Evangelion, for instance. However, the song itself is actually “Dress Down,” a 1986 song by Japanese singer Kaoru Akimoto. You can check out the original below.
There you go, but why does it sound so different in the video? As YouTube user @ChoccyCoffee points out:
“For those wondering, this particular remix of "Dress Down" is a sped-up version of マクロスMACROSS 82-99 -『82 99 F.M』, located around 0:50.”
The lyrics are as follows, presented in both Japanese and English:
作詞:秋元 薫 Kaoru Akimoto
作曲:松本晃彦 Akihiko Matsumoto
編曲:武部聡志 Satoshi Takebe
唄:秋元 薫 Kaoru Akimoto
背中のあいたドレス こぼれてしまいそうなイヤリング
乱れた髪 ひと筋もない
おどけたとりまき達 私が笑わないのを
不思議な目をして見ているわ
Dress Down 早くみつけてよ
そんなコにかまって つまらないはずだわ
Dress Down 息が止まる程 見つめられたくって
Please Tell me, Tell me, Why
Blueに揺れるライト あなたが近づいてくる
あわてたつま先 もてあます
不機嫌にさせてくれて ありがとうって切り出したら
あなたは素敵に微笑んだ
Dress Down わざとかき上げる
髪の香りさえも はかられた誘惑
Dress Down あなたが私に夢中になる前に
I'm melting, melting, melting,
melting you
Dress Down わざとかき上げる
髪の香りさえも はかられた誘惑
Dress Down わざとはみ出した口紅の魔力で
I'm waiting, waiting for you
Dress Down あなたが私に夢中になる前に
I'm melting, melting, melting,
melting you
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