First example of Protagonists vs Antagonists illustration?

December 21, 2021 5:17 PM

I don't even know what to call this! It's a.. character battle tableau? Not looking for "generic two armies clash" but very specifically Our Heroes vs Our Enemies.

The earliest similar thing I find in my own personal media history is the Dinosaucers intro @ about 00:50 (timestamping YT isn't working for me at the moment for some reason), and that's '87, but it's just the two sides facing off. What I'm really thinking of is "sides clash together" bit in the X-Men intro at around the same time mark, but that's '92. I'm sure this has some storied origins in comics history, if not even earlier.

posted by curious nu to Media & Arts (5 answers total)

The earliest one that I can think of is probably the Elgin Marbles. There are a lot of post-battle victory procession illustrations on Roman columns and arches (monuments). I think Trajan's Column has some actual battle scenes, and it's pretty clearly indicated in those who are the Romans and who are the barbarians.
posted by heatherlogan at 5:37 PM on December 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

“ TRACES of war more than 5,000 years ago appear in an enhanced image of rock-shelter art found on the Iberian Peninsula. Credit: “Identification of Plant Cells in Black Pigments of Prehistoric Spanish Levantine Rock Art by Means of a Multi-Analytical Approach: A New Method for Social Identity Materialization Using Chaîne Opératoire,” by Esther López-Montalvo et al., in PLOS ONE, Vol. 1, No. 2, Article No. E0172225; February 16, 2017”
SA piece from 2018
posted by Ideefixe at 7:50 PM on December 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

The Superfriends cartoon in the 70's and 80's did this.
posted by vrakatar at 10:22 PM on December 21, 2021

Best answer: TVTropes: Mirrored Confrontation Shot

A stock pose seen in cartoon openings, movie posters, video game box art, comics covers, paintings, this is a shot that pits two teams against each other on opposite sides of the screen. It can be a massive group shot, featuring all the series's heroes and villains, or show just two characters— all that matters is that the two sides are facing each other and look ready to strike.

Usually the left and right side are evenly balanced and evenly matched. The characters across from one another tend to be evil counterparts and are often mimicking the other side's pose, and suggesting Counterpart Combat Coordination.

Unfortunately they don't usually put dates in the examples, but there are loads of candidates inside.
posted by Rhaomi at 12:11 AM on December 22, 2021

Egyptian reliefs of battles may be an example of what you are looking for.
posted by bdc34 at 6:03 AM on December 22, 2021