2014-12-19
Explanation
The Joke
Two people are having a conversation. One asks: "Who do you think would win if Batman fought Superman?" The other responds with nihilistic philosophy: "The span of two lives is but a wink in the eye of the universe." He continues: "Human victory, even on the grandest scale, is not meaningfully different from a tub of ants glorifying in the discovery of a dead rat."
The first person asks: "There would be no win and no loss. Just the ongoing rearrangement of particles as they sleepwalk toward entropic purgatory?" The philosopher confirms. Then the first person asks: "So if Batman had a kryptonite batarang?" The philosopher immediately answers: "Batman, then."
The Humor
The comic sets up a classic contrast between lofty philosophical posturing and genuine human interests. The philosopher delivers an elaborate nihilistic worldview claiming that all human achievement is meaningless in cosmic terms -- victory and loss are just rearrangements of particles heading toward heat death. But when presented with a specific, fun hypothetical (Batman with a kryptonite batarang), he instantly abandons his philosophical position and engages with the nerdy question. The joke reveals that even the most committed nihilist still has opinions about Batman vs. Superman, exposing philosophical nihilism as somewhat performative.