Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, we’ve had memes to explain, critique, and immortalize every moment and hot take. We’ve shared memes about how coronavirus restrictions apparently only apply to certain people and even memed the then-president’s COVID diagnosis. In true season-finale fashion, Pfizer and Moderna each produced their own very impressive COVID-19 vaccines, in record time. This story was originally written as a reading of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines as joyful artifacts that spread a message of hope. But a lot has changed since November.
The first set of memes from late 2020 made light about the ridiculous choices of capitalism. A potential immunization against a virus that’s killed 200,000 Americans is great news. Having to choose between two major pharmaceutical companies’ offerings, one of which was developed thanks to Dolly Parton’s sponsorship, feels absurd.
pfizer vs moderna… a classic jacob vs edward choice
— mikaela (@okmikaela) November 17, 2020
Can’t wait for @wirecutter to tell me which vaccine to take.
— Sachin Agarwal (@agarwal) November 16, 2020
Now that the vaccines are growing widely available and more options are introduced, the vaccine meme landscape is shifting. Under capitalism, the brands you choose define who you are and are an indication of what you have access to. And while which vaccine you get may still often be dictated by what’s available near you, we can’t help but assign personalities to each vaccine: Pfizer vaccine receivers are generally described as elite, original flavor, and classic. Moderna vaccine recipients are thought of as an alternative, slightly off, but valued for their existence.
@thefamousjet This is a joke lol. Get the first vaccine you can‼️ #covid #vaccine #pfizer #moderna
♬ Rude Boy Klean Remix Vs Niska Seb Sander mix – Seb Sander
@joshomz Pfizer just sounds expensive… The Bougiest vaccine right? 💅
♬ original sound – joshomz
Lastly, Johnson & Johnson recipients often get cast as independent, weird, and suspicious. I’m calling it now, though: Surely as the day develops and people catch on to the latest news regarding the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, we’ll start seeing memes that questionably employ Nene Leakes “The Ghetto” monologue.
@melissanacional Reply to @eve.schifman 😏
♬ original sound – Melissa Nacional
Not even this value-neutral breakdown of each vaccine’s personality is free from this thinking. If something – even if it’s a life-saving vaccine – is branded, the brand will become a huge factor in any decision made. And now that vaccination is growing widely available, what was once a Sophie’s Choice situation can split the vaccinated population into the haves and have-nots.
@m4cklin Which one r u?
♬ original sound – macklin
Of course, vaccine efficacy cannot be reduced to a single percentage number. The important thing is to get fully vaccinated. Yet… there’s something about getting that extra percentage point in efficacy rate to make you feel as strong and protected as possible, if only in your mind.
But no matter which jab you received, just because you got vaccinated doesn’t mean the summer of 2021 is going to be a movie. And there is a new meme just to remind you of just that.
Being vaccinated does NOT mean it’s ok to make a rebel of a careless man’s careful daughter
— Tim K. (@uncle_poppers) April 7, 2021
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