A piece of fan art replicating the Pepe Silvia meme from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia replaces Charlie with The Batman’s Robert Pattinson as he tries to unravel the Riddler’s clues. After numerous delays, Matt Reeves’ The Batman recently released to widespread critical acclaim and impressive box-office results. Many have been calling the director’s reimagining the most accurate depiction of the Batman comics in a live-action film, with Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne giving predecessors Christian Bale and Ben Affleck a run for their money as the best Caped Crusader.
One element that fans were particularly looking forward to was the emphasis on this Batman as "The World's Greatest Detective," as he was put up against Paul Dano’s Riddler in a battle of wits. This element was successfully adapted in a manner that fans felt had not been done before, likening the film to a mix of the David Fincher films Se7en and Zodiac, but starring the the Dark Knight. This element was even incorporated into the marketing of the film, with secret messages being hidden in posters and other promo materials, inviting fans to decipher puzzles to reveal further details.
Now, artist Sean Filart crafts a piece of humorous fan art that sees Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne trying to make sense of the Riddler’s conspiracy in the same manner as Charlie Kelly in the infamous Pepe Silvia meme. The piece sees an unmasked Bruce in his Batsuit posed in front of an evidence board in the exact same way as Charlie in the widely shared Always Sunny meme. In place of Charlie’s crazed writings is the mind map that Bruce spray paints on the floor of Wayne Tower in the third act of the film to lay out the Riddler’s enigma, which is bizarrely reminiscent of the sitcom’s image. Check out the post below:
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The piece is a hilarious crossover adapting the events of the film into a familiar format that parodies it quite effectively. Any fan of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia will be familiar with the origin of the Pepe Silvia meme, from season 4 episode 10, “Sweet Dee has a Heart Attack,” in which Mac and Charlie get office jobs in order to obtain healthcare. While working in the mailroom, Charlie apparently uncovers a major conspiracy within the company regarding a fake person named “Pepe Silvia,” only for the conspiracy to be completely fabricated by Charlie’s wild imagination, leading to the two losing their jobs. The scene went viral upon broadcast and has since become a widely popular meme shared to make light of alleged conspiracies.
The Batman’s emphasis on establishing itself as a detective noir may have been the key to making it of interest to fans and general audiences alike, with Pattinson’s Dark Knight being the third live-action film incarnation in the last 10 years. Fans have cited moments such as Batman and Jim Gordon skulking through crime scenes as highlights of the film, setting it apart from its predecessors while delivering a key element of Batman’s character as an intellectual crime fighter. With the positive reception of the film, hopefully Warner Bros. and Reeves will continue to focus on this element going forward as the series delves deeper into the Caped Crusader’s mythos. This fan art crossover with It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is a humorous tribute to the tone set out by this new version of Batman, indicative of how the fans are receptive to seeing “The World’s Greatest Detective” earn his title.
Source: sean.filart/Instagram
