Nathan Fox’s animated gif of Batman and Superman is a whole new take on the rivalry

The Batman/Superman rivalry/friendship is a thing of myth. Like titans of old, they get along often enough to not destroy the planet. And they fight enough to put everyone in jeopardy a couple of times per year. Leave it up to Nathan Fox to shine a new light on the complex relationship. Because really, when an immovable object hits an unstoppable force, what else are you supposed to do but play a game?

When asked about the animated gif he did for Vulture’s piece (titled ‘What We Talk About When We Talk About Batman and Superman‘) and how it came to be, Nathan told us:

It was requested that I do an animated gif for their header/lead story. The schedule was tight (due the same week!) and I wasn’t sure I would be able to get it done in time so we went back and forth on concepts and my Rock Paper Scissors one fit the bill. Short and sweet and to the point. The article wasn’t written and I wouldn’t be able to read or see it until close to launch date but the gist I worked with was that Superman never wins. So, how do we show the popularity of the Dark Knight over the years vs. the dwindling supremacy of Superman? What if the tables were turned and Superman finally won something? How would we show that? So I tried to boil the short story down to static images, moving assets and one animated sequence for Superman’s surprised face when he won. I finally got to jump into After Effects. I am sure it could have been animated MUCH nicer than it is but with the time allotted and the schedule to get it turned in, it was a mad dash for efficiency. The whole project was an amazing education in and of itself. So I just kind of ran with it off the cliff to see how well I might be able to fly on the way down.