Surely you know the comic strip. It is, probably, the DC drawing that the most people have seen around the world, although very few know the author and, of course, even fewer have read the comic from which it comes: Batman slaps Robin with all kinds of different phrases (which, over the years, have gradually lost their charm). The first version of the meme, which many believed to be real, showed Robin saying “Hey, Batman, what did your parents buy you for Christ–?” only to receive a punch from the hero who shouts: “My parents are deaaaad!”. Well, none of this is true. But, looking at reality, I wish it were.
An Imaginary Comic Strip!
To find the origin of this vignette, one does not need to look in the pop art of contemporary artists or in modern comics of the character: one must go way back in time, when DC Comics had little competition, back in November 1965. At that time, the series ‘World’s Finest’ was releasing its issue 153, on the cover of which Batman was throwing a kryptonite batarang at Superman, shouting “You’ve fallen into my trap, Superman! How sweet is revenge!”. Of course, as was customary in these types of stories, it was made clear from the outset that this was an imaginary story and none of this would affect the canon of the super-friends.
“Discover what would have happened if Superman and Batman had become bitter enemies, on opposite sides of the law!” The main story of the comic – there is another one, taken from the DC archives, along with numerous comic strips and ads – was exactly that. In fact, it is even set on “an imaginary day.” In its pages, Batman believes that Superman killed his father, who had just created an anti-kryptonite serum, and seeks revenge against him, while his enemy is busy fighting ants in the jungle (without harming them, of course). Anyway, things from the 60s.
In the end, Batman allies with Lex Luthor, discovers that he was the one who stole the serum, and sacrifices himself to save Superman, bringing an end to this, let’s call it, epic. The thing would have passed without a hitch (there are hundreds of comics with alternative stories where one of the heroes becomes a villain and fights against his friend) and would have been forgotten in history if it weren’t for page 5 gifting us the famous panel. Only, in this case, it has another context: the Masked Crusader shares his thirst for revenge with Robin, and he responds that he must be mistaken. What is the reaction? Well, a slap, of course.
My parents are deaaad!
In the original comic strip, Batman says “Don’t tell me I’m wrong, kid… Proving that Superman is guilty is my whole mission in life!” and Robin responds “Ow! Batman, your grief has obsessed you with this idea of revenge. I beg you, let it go!”. The original image, in fact, is inverted from what we now know as the meme, with Robin on the right. Its creator, by the way, was Curt Swan (scripted by Edmond Hamilton), although at that time it was not customary to credit artists. In any case, the comic strip did not have much impact.
Until June 10, 2008, when someone uploaded the already modified image to the SFWChan forum. It only took a week to go viral on Tumblr and Ebaumsworld. Soon, there was no one who didn’t know the meme… Or who, thanks to a generator that was launched the following year, could create their own, forever modifying pop culture and adding a new piece to the Batman lore as important today as the Spider-man pointing at each other. In fact, if it weren’t so evidently complex to justify, we would have already seen it in some DC movie.
Over time, the meme was modified to include other characters, change their appearance, and even talk about the meme’s own death, leading to the current moment where it is clearly out of use… but anyone can use it and make it recognizable at first glance. The magic of the old Internet was that no one knew where the next viral thing could come from. A comic from 1965 that absolutely no one knows? Of course.
Nowadays, even memes, like social networks and any website, are much more sanitized. It’s hard to find something truly original beyond the users’ imagination without falling into shitposting or brainrot, and it’s a shame because, deep down, that was what gave meaning to the Internet. Who knows. Deep down, it’s tough to feel nostalgia for a meme that we came to loathe. From an era so full of creativity as well as boredom. From an unpredictable Internet. From Batman slapping.
