KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 24 - What were action heroes Ultraman and the Transformers doing near Malaysia’s Bukit Bintang shopping hub?

Why did Godzilla cross… er… get stuck in the road leading to Bukit Bintang? Were they checking out the traffic jams or creating a sinkhole?

These delightful fictional scenes were some of the funny memes that went viral in Malaysia this year, with Malaysians displaying their trademark sense of humour.

Often light-hearted and at times sarcastic, these internet memes or visual gags act as a foil for serious themes and help drive debate on the topics they parody.

In January, the prime minister’s seemingly innocuous “kangkung” (water spinach) remark to smooth over public unhappiness about rising costs got Malaysians’ creative juices flowing, with the fictional McKangkung burger created and a music video featuring a remix of his remark appearing overnight. Memes of the humble “kangkung” vegetable as car fuel and highway toll fares also popped up.

Who can forget “Kiki” and her now-iconic tri-colour steering lock, which she used while berating a 68-year-old man for accidentally hitting her Peugeot? Whether it was about road bullies, the class divide, respect for the elderly, or racism, the video of the incident in July struck a chord with Malaysians and became an internet sensation.

Cue the appearance of fictional superhero Thor and his hammer in internet memes, facing off with Kiki and her steering lock, amid the real-life drama of “Uncle Sim” forgiving Kiki and the latter apologising to him and getting fined in court.

Malaysians also created parodies to mock a bomoh or witch doctor’s bid to “locate” the missing Malaysia Airlines (MAS) Flight MH370 using coconuts, a carpet, a walking stick and basket.

Now everyone knows what Malaysians talked about, shared, searched for the most while online this year.

But all these memes - kangkung, Kiki and her steering wheel lock, cartoon stars - were about moments where Malaysians decided to just laugh together.

And beyond all the fun and laughter, a video where Malaysians resolutely refused to label other races with derogatory names or pigeonhole them into insulting and unfair stereotypes, won the hearts of many as the country celebrated its 51st year together.

To relive the moment where Malaysians stood up for each other, here's our "Are Malaysians racist?" video:

For more on what went viral in 2014:

Najib says opted for ‘kangkung’ in analogy due to popularity Putrajaya insists did not invite ‘bomoh’ to locate MH370 Negligent contractor will get axe for KL sinkhole, minister vows ‘Uncle’ says sympathises with convicted Kuantan road bully Man cites Catholic faith as reason for not reporting road bully to cops Nothing was staged, say participants of ‘Are Malaysians Racist?’ video ‘I told you! Malaysians are truly decent people’, Ambiga says of MMO video ‘Take that, all you racists!’ Marina says after MMO video goes viral