jmc@wuphys.UUCP (03/16/86)
First of all, I want to say I much I agree with
the rave reviews of The Dark Knight. It's really
fantastic. Next, I think the blond girl who
has been suggested as the new Robin is named Carrie
and not Michelle. Her friend is Michelle. She's
Carrie. The confusion, no doubt, comes from the name
Michelle being used many times while Carrie is used
only once.
In The Dark Knight, we find out what the Waynes were
doing the night Bruce's parents were murdered. They
went to see the movie Zorro. Now, for those whose
knowledge of Batman is encyclopedic, does this
contradict anything previously published? I can't
remember an comic ever saying where the Waynes had been
that night. All I remember is they were out for a
night on the town. I also didn't know he had ever
been trapped in a cave full of bats. I thought
the whole bat idea was because one flew by his window
while he was trying to think of a suitable name for his
vigilante persona.
I just read that Alan Moore and Brian Bolland are
going to do a Batman/Joker series. According to the
Comics Journal, this will finally explain while the
two hate each other so much and why the Joker rates
as Batman's greatest enemy. This would make
three great teams working on The Batman:
Miller/Mazzucchelli,
Englehart/Rogers,
and now
Moore/Bolland.
While I like the Batman, does he really warrants so
much effort? What can they possibly have to say about
him? He's not Superman, you know. He's just this
ordinary guy with a lot of money and a somewhat
fanatical desire to revenge himself on the criminal
elements. Part James Bond, part looney.
So people, what do you think? How about so debate
on the matter.
ihnp4!wuphys!jmc Jimmy Chenmcb@k.cs.cmu.edu.UUCP (03/17/86)
In article <414@wuphys.UUCP> jmc@wuphys writes: > I just read that Alan Moore and Brian Bolland are >going to do a Batman/Joker series.... > >While I like the Batman, does he really warrant so >much effort? What can they possibly have to say about >him? He's not Superman, you know. He's just this >ordinary guy with a lot of money and a somewhat >fanatical desire to revenge himself on the criminal >elements. Part James Bond, part looney. In my opinion, The Batman deserves even more effort than he is getting! He has got to be one of the most interesting characters in comics. He is a man so obsessed by a childhood trauma (a major one, admittedly!) that he has essentially thrown away his life in an impossible quest for revenge. His "ordinariness" makes his accomplishments more impressive and his fanaticism an even greater tragedy. In the hands of a good writer, The Batman can really come to life! On the other hand, I've never really liked Superman. After all, what can threaten a super-strong, super-fast, invulnerable, flying man? (Other than Kryptonite (green, red, gold, blue, white, and jewel!), Q-energy, red sun radiation, and a thousand other bogosities invented by desperate writers.) Aside from one Superman Annual written by Moore, I've never identified or sympathized with Superman. He is just too powerful to be an interesting character. Well, I've babbled enough for one day. I can't wait to see Moore do The Batman! -- UUCP: ..!seismo!k.cs.cmu.edu!mcb ARPA: mcb@k.cs.cmu.edu "It came time to move, so I packed up my Salvador Dali print of two blindfolded dental hygienists trying to make a circle on an Etch-a-Sketch..."
oz@rlgvax.UUCP (03/19/86)
Path:rhplabs!qantel!lll-lcc!lll-crg!gymble!umcp-cs!seismo!rlgvax!oz > While I like theeBatman, does heereally warrants so > much effort? What can they possibly have to say about > him? He's not Superman, you know. He's just this > ordinary guy with a lot of money and a somewhat > fanatical desireeto revenge himself on the criminal > elements. Part James Bond, part looney. > > So people, what do you think? How about so debate > on the matter. Actually it is the "ordinaryness" of THE BATMAN that makes him so interesting. Consider what happened to Supes; byrthe 1970's he was so powerful that only magic could stop him. Kryptoniteehad been destroyed and his powers had con- tinued to increase so that now he couldr(and has) moved worlds and survived ATOMIC bombs. Supes also has a strict moral code that makes him possibly the most boring hero that you could ever inviterto a cocktail party. He is the type of person that your girlfriends parents would have loved (whileethey found your favoriteeactivities to be illegal, immoral or fattening). On the other hand we have THE BATMAN. First of all he is an "ordinary man." (alright I confess that *I* don't know anyone that is rich, an Olympic class athlete, a genius, a great detective, and a psycopath. If I did then I would hope they had a sister.) Secondly heeis more then just slightly off the wall looney tunes. That was what the original COCKROACH story was all about in CEREBUS. This gives you a lot of posibilities for story lines. THE BATMAN lives byrouhis own moral codes, codes that "worried" meeprior to the "extra" violence that we see in the DARK KNIGHT series. I would love to see a story where THE BATMAN uses his usual interrogation methods on someone only to discover that the person was innocent. Beethat as it may, THE BATMANrouhas always facinated me and Irouhave followed itrfaithfully for many years. If Miller were to continuerouhis series then I could guaranteeeyou that I would follow itrfor MANY more. An interesting side noteeis the premium that DARK KNIGHT #1 is going for in various areas. In Minneapolis it is selling for $4.50. In New York City you can (if you know whereeto look) still find it at cover price and at certain shops in Washington D.C., if you can find it, it is going double cover! Seeewhat ROLLING STONE coverage can do for you? Feh! "A Bat, maybe itris an omen. I could become a creatureeof the night... NAH!" OZ seismo!rl
boyajian@akov68.DEC (JERRY BOYAJIAN) (03/20/86)
> From: wuphys!jmc (Jimmy Chen) > In The Dark Knight, we find out what the Waynes were > doing the night Bruce's parents were murdered. They > went to see the movie Zorro. Now, for those whose > knowledge of Batman is encyclopedic, does this > contradict anything previously published? I can't > remember an comic ever saying where the Waynes had been > that night. All I remember is they were out for a > night on the town. Well, my knowledge of Batman is not "encyclopedic", but, no, I don't think it was ever before revealed where the Wayne's had been or what they'd been doing the night that Joe Chill shot them. I think it is very appropriate that they saw a Zorro movie (in addition to the fact that, being a Zorro fan, I was profoundly pleased with the idea). > I also didn't know he had ever > been trapped in a cave full of bats. I thought > the whole bat idea was because one flew by his window > while he was trying to think of a suitable name for his > vigilante persona. Yes, that's how he chose the name "Batman", but the cave scene certainly doesn't contradict this. When he decided on the bat motif, remember, he said that it would "strike fear into the hearts of criminals". I felt that the cave scene merely demonstrated why Bruce thought that the bat was a fearful image. > While I like the Batman, does he really warrants so > much effort? What can they possibly have to say about > him? He's not Superman, you know. He's just this > ordinary guy with a lot of money and a somewhat > fanatical desire to revenge himself on the criminal > elements. Part James Bond, part looney. That's exactly why he's one of my favorite heroes. He represents us ordinary folk. It's easier to identify with a superhero who is one because he built himself up into the role rather than because of an accident of birth or circumstance that granted super-powers. He is, like most vigilante figures, us striking back at crime. To my mind, Superman and Batman represent the ultimate superheroes, one who is "endowed with powers far beyond those of ordinary men" and the other as one who is the expression of what a human being can become. The only serious rival that Batman has for that role is perhaps Captain America. --- jayembee (Jerry Boyajian, DEC, Acton-Nagog, MA) UUCP: {decvax|ihnp4|allegra|ucbvax|...} !decwrl!dec-rhea!dec-akov68!boyajian ARPA: boyajian%akov68.DEC@DECWRL.DEC.COM