All the Times Watermelon Went Viral in the Summer of 2017

Watermelon is a summertime staple. Maybe it’s cubed, grilled or blended with vodka at your barbecue. Whatever the presentation, it’s going to be in the mix when the weather’s hot.

The first example of this delicious melon proving its capacity to go viral came last summer, when BuzzFeed posted a bracing video of the fruit’s explosive potential.

The question: How many rubber bands would it take to make the melon detonate in everyone’s faces? The answer: Enough to keep people watching the Facebook Live video for a full 45 minutes.

This summer, the fruit has again tasted Internet stardom. Take, for example, the Internet-anointed “Watermelon Bae.”

Salt Bae had swagger, and he brought it all the way to the bank. But this fruit ninja, Christine Ward a.k.a. Melon Mama, seemed much less camera-conscious when she whipped out her knife to cut a fine watermelon figure. Still, her slicing and dicing scored raves and enthusiastic headlines. The skills were impressive and the watermelon, evenly chopped. (Don’t try this at home if you aren’t Watermelon Bae.)

Beloved as the seasonal fruit is, watermelon prep doesn’t need to be appetizing to sweep the Internet. When another chef, James Briscione of the Food Network series Man Crafted, skewered some innocent watermelon and sprinkled it with taco seasoning, countless observers felt emotionally wounded by the unique finishing touch.

The result was a divisive viral video which served as a reminder that perhaps watermelon isn’t always a universal crowd-pleaser, after all.

The watermelon dress trend, on the other hand, won many more fans.

This one’s for the DIY social media fanatic and doesn’t require advanced culinary training.

In late May, people started posting photos of subjects “wearing” so-called “watermelon dresses” that are literally just shapes carved out of the fleshy pink fruit that play with perspective for a bit of trompe l’oeil fun.

Even Emma Lee Bunton, formerly known as Baby Spice, tried one on for size, which is how you know it’s a thing.

Finally, YouTuber DaveHax went viral for his very informative lecture on how to use a pineapple slicer and wedger on a watermelon.

With a handy apparatus, he proved how even those lacking Watermelon Bae’s skills can enjoy watermelon sliced like pineapple rings for all of their warm weather bash needs.

For this watermelon hack, he screwed the slicer into the fruit, with the melon meat eventually coming out Instagram fruit sculpture-ready. For the big finish, he turned the hollow melon into a punch bowl.

Shared to YouTube in July, the video has been viewed more than 1.6 million times.

Not a bad season for a melon without a publicist.