It is appropriate that, since the Pepper Spray Cop surfaced at the University of California at Davis, the evolution of Lt.John Pike into a meme be traced in an academic style and popular culture format.
Just to provide some context, let me admit that I am not a fan of comic books. Nor do I understand much of the supposed humor. It's my guess that the reason for this is connected to a personal experience. You see, when I was eleven years old and just three years in America, my mother had the bright idea of placing me in a foster care situation, in a home with just one child for whom I was supposed to be a playmate. For whatever reason, I was more fascinated with a HUGE collection of comic books in which the girl of the house had no interest. So, my reading the comics was seen as a violation of their expectations (as was my disinterest in their TV, a novelty in 1952). So, within short order, it was decided to almost everyone's satisfaction, that I would be sent back to boarding school. And I never saw comic books again until I met my spouse and learned they're an American cultural artifact.
And now John Pike is not just a comic book villain, but a meme. If you don't know what a meme is, the videos will explain it. I think I've had enough exposure to the academic analysis of popular culture over the years to judge that this effort by A.D. Coleman is very good.
So, without further ado: