“You Tried” is a reaction image used to express one’s empathy towards a failed attempt at humor or insult, oftentimes in sarcasm or condescension similar to the usage of the phrase “Seems Legit”. On Tumblr and discussion forums, this is typically presented as a clip art of a golden star captioned with the phrase. Origin
The practice of rewarding a job well done with motivational stickers or stamp
s can be traced back to its usage in elementary schools to award students for completing an assignment or good behaviors. On the web, clip art images of gold star have been used as genuine complements towards quality user submissions as early as in January 2011 and its sarcastic usage on Tumblr reportedly began sometime in May 2012.[citation needed]
