# Science Bros Science Bros is the fan slash pairing of Bruce Banner and Tony Stark from Marvel's 2012 film The Avengers, played by Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr. Coined on Tumblr in May 2012, the tag sparked hundreds of fanart pieces and headcanons ranging from platonic buddy scenes to explicit romance, eventually reaching Ruffalo himself in a 2013 Vulture interview where he gave the ship his blessing. ## Origin The 'Science Bros' name was coined by Tumblr user killianing on May 5, 2012 in a GIF photoset compiling scenes between Bruce Banner and Tony Stark from The Avengers, which had premiered in the U.S. days earlier[1]. Within 24 hours, DeviantART user PikaDiety spun up a shipping group called #ScienceBoyfriends as a central archive for Banner and Stark fanart, and a second DeviantART group under the name #Science-Bros opened on June 3 under user Cally-wally, giving the fanart community organized hubs almost immediately[3]. - **Platform:** Tumblr (coined) / DeviantART (fanart spread) - **Creator:** killianing (Tumblr user) - **Date:** 2012 ## Overview The tag covers everything from platonic 'science boyfriends' bromance to explicit slash art, with the two scientist Avengers paired up in lab settings, workshop scenes, and reimagined domestic scenarios[3]. Fan output lives across DeviantART shipping groups, dedicated Tumblr fanblogs, and headcanon collections, and the 'Bros' framing gave the pairing plausible deniability, letting readers take it as buddy-cop friendship or coded shipping depending on the post. The pairing crossed from fandom into mainstream entertainment press in April 2013, when Vulture asked Mark Ruffalo, who plays Banner, to react to the fanart online[2]. Ruffalo said he was flabbergasted before endorsing the ship, and his reaction pulled Science Bros into wider slash-culture coverage across entertainment outlets. ## How to Use Science Bros posts typically pair a moment from The Avengers or an original illustration of Banner and Stark with either a platonic bromance caption ('science boyfriends,' 'SCIENCE!') or a shipping-oriented tag. Common conventions include lab-setting scenes, workshop hangouts, and framing the two as intellectual equals with easy chemistry, letting the piece read as buddy content or slash depending on the audience. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Science Bros? Science Bros is the fan slash pairing of Bruce Banner and Tony Stark from Marvel's 2012 The Avengers, played by Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr., with fanart spanning platonic bromance to romance[2]. ### Where did Science Bros come from? Tumblr blogger killianing coined the phrase on May 5, 2012 in a GIF photoset compiling scenes between Banner and Stark from the newly released Avengers film[1]. ### What does Science Bros mean? The tag riffs on Banner and Stark's shared scientist backgrounds; 'Bros' works as either platonic buddy framing or coded shipping, and fanart uses both readings[2]. ### How do you use Science Bros? Fans tag Banner and Stark fanart, GIF sets, and headcanons under the name on Tumblr and DeviantART, often set in labs or workshops pulled straight from the film[1]. ### Is Science Bros still popular? The pairing peaked in 2012 through 2013 alongside The Avengers' initial run, with press attention including a 2013 Vulture interview where Mark Ruffalo endorsed the ship[2]. ## References 1. [http://fluffalos.tumblr.com/post/22439483717/science-bros]() 2. [http://www.vulture.com/2013/04/mark-ruffalo-science-bros-avengers-robert-downey-jr.html]() 3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/science-bros]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/science-bros Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library