The Good, the Bad, and the Mediocre
Incarnations of Batman
THE GOOD: The Dark Knight Returns
This is a no-brainer, being the graphic novel that reinvigorated both the Batman franchise and the genre of graphic novels as a whole. From the stark, scratchy rendering to the truncated, pulsating dialogue (both credited to paranoid comic book legend Frank Miller), this book really defines what is meant by "comic books for grown-ups." It's still about a guy dressing up in spandex and beating the tar out of criminals, but he curses and shit. This book can also be credited with planting the subliminal seed that would eventually lead to the murder of the most hated Robin character, Jason Todd. God, I hated that little brat. Exploding him to smithereens was too sweet a death for him.
THE BAD: Silver Age Batman
After Dr. Fredric Wertham blamed comic books for juvenile delinquency in his tome Seduction of the Innocent, and the related senate investigation into JD's that followed, the comic book industry decided to impose a special code of conduct and "tone down" their gritty, urban stories about guys that dress up like circus performers and fly around town throwing cars at each other. Interestingly, though Batman received what is arguably the worst scrutiny in the investigation, with Wertham suggesting that Batman and Robin's relationship was homosexual in nature, the response by DC comics was to make Batman even more gay. And flaming it was, with Batman hurling all manner of stupid batarangs and acquiring new members of the Batman Family™, including Bat-Hound. In the 1960's, the franchise would suffer another indignity with the debut of the Batman television series, starring Adam West. Now, if the relationship between the television Batman and Robin wasn't homosexual, then John Waters can be considered a rugged, strapping man.
THE MEDIOCRE: 1970's Batman
Though many consider the 1970's to still be within DC Comics' Silver Age, there was a big difference in their portrayal of Batman. For one thing, the long ears on his headpiece and the interminably long cape returned. For another thing, many artists of the era portrayed him as a brooding, mysterious figure that stuck to the shadows, instead of the wisecracking punster of the 60's. What really made this era bland was the introduction of his alter ego Bruce Wayne as a real character. Batman was always heir-to-millions Bruce Wayne, a forgettable playboy that used his friendship with Commissioner Gordon to pump him for information about new crimes. In the 70s, writers for Batman introduced a crisis of conscience for Mr. Wayne, and had him wrestle between his compulsion to soar above the rooftops of Gotham City as Batman and the apathetic cad that Bruce Wayne portrayed himself as for so long. Was he Bruce Wayne playing Batman, or was it the other way around? Let me quell the debate for all time: no one gives a fuck about Bruce Wayne. Wayne strolls around charity events and shmoozes with fake-ass crackers, Batman clobbers hordes of henchmen and fights the Joker in an abandoned funhouse. Bruce Wayne calls his lawyer before going skiing in Aspen, Batman dodges giant silver dollars and fights Two-Face on a floating platform in Gotham River. There's no contest. If you really think you've got to choose, then you're probably too pussy to be Batman in the first place.
THE GOOD: The Dark Knight Returns
This is a no-brainer, being the graphic novel that reinvigorated both the Batman franchise and the genre of graphic novels as a whole. From the stark, scratchy rendering to the truncated, pulsating dialogue (both credited to paranoid comic book legend Frank Miller), this book really defines what is meant by "comic books for grown-ups." It's still about a guy dressing up in spandex and beating the tar out of criminals, but he curses and shit. This book can also be credited with planting the subliminal seed that would eventually lead to the murder of the most hated Robin character, Jason Todd. God, I hated that little brat. Exploding him to smithereens was too sweet a death for him.
THE BAD: Silver Age Batman
After Dr. Fredric Wertham blamed comic books for juvenile delinquency in his tome Seduction of the Innocent, and the related senate investigation into JD's that followed, the comic book industry decided to impose a special code of conduct and "tone down" their gritty, urban stories about guys that dress up like circus performers and fly around town throwing cars at each other. Interestingly, though Batman received what is arguably the worst scrutiny in the investigation, with Wertham suggesting that Batman and Robin's relationship was homosexual in nature, the response by DC comics was to make Batman even more gay. And flaming it was, with Batman hurling all manner of stupid batarangs and acquiring new members of the Batman Family™, including Bat-Hound. In the 1960's, the franchise would suffer another indignity with the debut of the Batman television series, starring Adam West. Now, if the relationship between the television Batman and Robin wasn't homosexual, then John Waters can be considered a rugged, strapping man.
THE MEDIOCRE: 1970's Batman
Though many consider the 1970's to still be within DC Comics' Silver Age, there was a big difference in their portrayal of Batman. For one thing, the long ears on his headpiece and the interminably long cape returned. For another thing, many artists of the era portrayed him as a brooding, mysterious figure that stuck to the shadows, instead of the wisecracking punster of the 60's. What really made this era bland was the introduction of his alter ego Bruce Wayne as a real character. Batman was always heir-to-millions Bruce Wayne, a forgettable playboy that used his friendship with Commissioner Gordon to pump him for information about new crimes. In the 70s, writers for Batman introduced a crisis of conscience for Mr. Wayne, and had him wrestle between his compulsion to soar above the rooftops of Gotham City as Batman and the apathetic cad that Bruce Wayne portrayed himself as for so long. Was he Bruce Wayne playing Batman, or was it the other way around? Let me quell the debate for all time: no one gives a fuck about Bruce Wayne. Wayne strolls around charity events and shmoozes with fake-ass crackers, Batman clobbers hordes of henchmen and fights the Joker in an abandoned funhouse. Bruce Wayne calls his lawyer before going skiing in Aspen, Batman dodges giant silver dollars and fights Two-Face on a floating platform in Gotham River. There's no contest. If you really think you've got to choose, then you're probably too pussy to be Batman in the first place.
posted by Reggie Hemingway at
2:31 PM
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