R.I.P.

Grant Gustin at Oliver Queen's Grave

Grant Gustin at Oliver Queen's Grave

2020 — 2020

CAUSE OF DEATH

"Overshadowed by actual global tragedy"

Obituary

On January 28, 2020, actor Echo Kellum posted a photo that would become the internet's favorite way to dance on a grave. Grant Gustin, star of The Flash, knelt beside Oliver Queen's headstone on the Arrow set, throwing up a peace sign with the kind of irreverent glee usually reserved for tourist photos at serious monuments.

The image spread like wildfire across Reddit and Facebook. Within days, the gravestone became a canvas for the internet's passive-aggressive eulogies. Chrome standing over Internet Explorer. Heavy metal beside disco. Your sanity next to 2020 itself. The format was brutally simple: label what's dead, label who's celebrating, post.

For a brief, glorious window, Grant Gustin's grin became shorthand for every petty victory, every "told you so," every quiet satisfaction at watching something terrible finally die. The meme transcended its CW origins to become a universal language of smug vindication.

But the Fastest Man Alive couldn't outrun the calendar. By mid-March 2020, a global pandemic had given everyone real graves to think about. Suddenly, making jokes about death felt different. The format didn't die so much as become inappropriate for the moment—shelved indefinitely while the world dealt with actual mortality.

Rest easy, Barry. You ran your lap, threw your peace sign, and reminded us that sometimes the best way to honor the dead is with absolutely zero reverence. ✌️

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