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What Is 'Zoomposting?' 'It's Was Me, Barry!' Memes Explained
The controversies surrounding the new Flash movie have unearthed an evergreen meme that stems from the Flash's DC Comic beginnings. Zoomposting is a meme tradition that spans over ten years, and it focuses on a phrase uttered by the Flash's enemy, "Zoom."
Here are the origins of the It Was Me Barry! meme, a catchphrase delivered by Zoom, a red-eyed man in a yellow suit.
Where Does The Catchphrase 'It Was Me Barry!' Come From?
Around the year 2010, DC Comics published a six-issue series of comics titled Flash: Rebirth. At one point in the story, the main villain, known as "Zoom," reveals to Flash that he was responsible for just about every terrible thing that's happened to the Flash throughout his life, including the murder of his mother (shown below).
The comically villainous nature of Zoom immediately became a popular joke among fans of the comics, who began to imagine jokes where he admits to causing even more mayhem in Flash's life.
How Is The Zoom's Phrase Used In Memes?
The first versions of Zoomposting involved people making one-line gags in reference to Zoom's villainy, with the earliest such meme being traced back to a 4chan thread from 2010. The post read, "THAT TIME WHEN YOU POOPED A LITTLE ON YOUR GIRLFRIEND'S COUCH? ME BARRY. ME HHAHAHAHAHAHHAH"
In 2014, a post to 4chan's comics board discussing Zoom's singleminded goal of ruining Barry's life inspired a hoard of users to make their own jokes about Zoom, leading to a long 4chan thread full of Zoomposting.
How Did Zoomposting Evolve Over The Years?
In 2020, Twitter user @viewtifulval took a scene featuring Zoom from the 2013 Justice League animated movie, and dubbed over the sound to deliver a "It was me, Barry!" joke. The video went viral on Twitter and inspired a fresh wave of Zoomposting memes.
I felt compelled to voice over this… https://t.co/8lMDr3mfFZ pic.twitter.com/OgSwpubxc3
— 🎙️Viewtiful Valentine🎙️ (@ViewtifulVal) June 14, 2020
"It was me Barry!" jokes continued on YouTube, with people dubbing over videos and photos of the Zoom and making him admit to increasingly absurd villainous acts.
For the full history of Zoomposting, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.
