Somewhere in the Disney backlot in the late '90s, several clever animators got together and createdThe Emperor's New Groove,a zany satirical comedy that was far-removed from the company's portentous, uplifting films about little mermaids and street rats. It told the story of an arrogant young Emperor named Kuzco (David Spade), who ruled over a kingdom in South America with little regard to his subjects, and never guessing his adviser Yzma (Eartha Kitt) would ever be secretly plotting to overthrow him.

After she turns him into a llama he's forced to accept the help of Pacha (John Goodman), a peasant who's family he's recently displaced, in order to build himself a fancy summer house where their village used to be. In order to regain his human form and defeat Yzma, Kuzco must learn about self-sacrifice, selfishness, and the value of true friendship while inspiring these 10 great memes.

10 BOOM, BABY!

In many ways,The Emperor's New Groovewas ahead of its time. It was going to be a lot more dramatic, spiritual, and emotional, but afterPochatonasandThe Hunchback of Notre Damefailed, Disney decided to make it a slapstick comedy. Unfortunately, Disney fans weren't satisfied with that either.

WhereasDeadpool'sadult-oriented approach to the superhero genre redefined it,The Emperor's New Groovedidn't change anything for the way Disney structured its films. However, since its release it's become celebrated for what has become obvious; Kuzco was and is the Deadpool of Disney animated movies.

9 THE EMPEROR'S NEW APPRENTICE

When Anakin Skywalker was accepted into the Jedi Order and began training under Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Warsprequels, he didn't know that another mentor was waiting in the shadows and manipulating his lessons. He took the advice of both Kenobi and Chancellor Palpatine, who was in fact the Sith Lord Darth Sidious.

Palpatine's advice would often contradict Kenobi's, causing a moral quandary in young Skywalker. Eventually, he would succumb to the dark side of the Force and become the apprentice of Darth Sidious, despite Kenobi's desperate attempts to help him.

8 YZMA GETS IT

Yzma isn't a people person, as evidenced by her horrible track record interfacing with Emperor Kuzco, Pacha, and even Kronk. She's condescending, demanding, and impossible to please, but someone Kronk still remains loyal to her cause throughoutThe Emperor's New Groove.

In many ways, the duo of Kronk and Yzma mirrors the relationship between an extrovert and an introvert; someone who's naturally buoyed by the presence of others and someone who would rather be in their secret lair, privately plotting their demise.

7 TONY-TOPIA

When Pacha makes the treacherous trip to Emperor Kuzco's palace, he has no idea what the summons really pertains to; Kuzco getting his opinion on where to put "Kuzcotopia", a giant summer house for the Emperor to enjoy when he wants time away from his royal responsibilities.

The planned site for Kuzcotopia happens to be on the same plot of land as Pacha's village, a minor inconvenience for Kuzco but a major one for Pacha and his family. The horror of the reveal is perfectly captured in this meme, with Tony Stark depicting Kuzco, Captain America depicting Pacha, and Kuzco-Topia represented as Stark Tower.

6 IT'S ALL ABOUT THE VILLAINS

WhileThe Emperor's New Groovehad a lot of memorable characters with a lot of hilarious lines, the standout performance belongs to Yzma, with some of the best villainous one-liners to come out of any Disney film. Her quest to take over Kuzco's Kingdom was one long running joke after another.

A villain is often only as good as their henchman, and unfortunately Yzma put too much faith in her buff but brainless right hand Kronk. More concerned with accidentally burning his cheese puffs than giving Kuzco the wrong poison, he proved to be her ultimate undoing.

5 MONEY IN THE GROOVE

Drake might be known as a popular rapper and songwriter now, but he initially gained recognition in the teen series Degrassi: The Next Generation in the early '00s. After releasing his albumRoom for Improvementin 2007 he began charting a path to wide reaching fame and success.

Even though he was nothing more than a humble peasant inThe Emperor's New Groove,Pacha was a community leader and an integral part of the agricultural infrastructure under Emperor Kuzco. He may not have had the same aspirations as Drake, but he has a superior meme format.

4 THE EMPEROR'S NEW GROOVE

Emperor Palpatine established himself as one of the most powerful Sith Lords in the galaxy when he achieved what most of them could not - immortality. Previously thought dead after the destruction of the second Death Star inReturn of the Jedi,he reappeared inStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalkerto once again claim galactic dominion.

Whether it's the fact that he was the first character to show off Force lightning, or the fact that he was able to create such political turmoil in the galaxy that he could appoint himself Emperor, his groove far surpasses Kuzco's. All he needed was Yzma to rule by his side.

3 LUCK OF THE SNAP

When Thanos snapped his fingers at the end ofAvengers: Infinity War,half of the world's population disappeared, including heroes like Peter Parker, Black Panther, and Doctor Strange. Doctor Strange had seen multiple outcomes of the event and knew, to some extent, not only how the future would play out, but what needed to happen in the past.

All superheroes who disappeared were sent to an alternate dimension, and were able to return just in time when Thanos and his forces were battling every superhero left on the planet. Luckily, they were coming back to the future where Thanos was defeated.

2 WHEN IT ALL COMES TOGETHER FOR THANOS

Thanos the Mad Titan spend the course of several films in the MCU trying to get his hands on the Infinity Stones, the final components necessary to bring the full power of the Infinity Gauntlet to bear. By itself the weapon was useless, but with the stones he could make half of the world's population disappear with a snap of his fingers.

Yzma's henchman Kronk was fond of a good diabolical plan, but he was often easily distracted, and therefore bungled Yzma's great ideas before they could be accomplished. If she wanted to get things done, she should have probably teamed up with Thanos.

1 "BUT FIRST, LET ME POLISH UP ME RESUME."

These days, many people find themselves working from home for a variety of reasons. While the economy adjusts to the safety parameters put in place because of the coronavirus pandemic, they adjust to their new method of production. Something tells us that Yzma wouldn't have any problems remaining at home.

In Inca Empire territory of Pre-Columbian South America, whereThe Emperor's New Groove Takes Place,there were all sorts of debilitating diseases in circulation that she would have had to keep safe from (if she wasn't trying to figure out to isolate their antibodies and package them as her own biological weapon).

NEXT: Harley Quinn: 10 Hilarious Memes Inspired By The Show

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About The Author

Kayleena Pierce-Bohen (1400 Articles Published)

Kayleena has been raised on Star Wars and Indiana Jones from the crib. A film buff, she has a Western collection of 250+ titles and counting that she's particularly proud of. When she isn't writing for ScreenRant, CBR, or The Gamer, she's working on her fiction novel, lifting weights, going to synthwave concerts, or cosplaying. With degrees in anthropology and archaeology, she plans to continue pretending to be Lara Croft as long as she can.

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