Batmania

So I’ve watched Batman Begins a few more times now that I have it on DVD. The movie just does not cease to amaze me. If you are one of the unfortunate souls who have not seen it yet, you really have to. Your life depends on it. I know I’ve mentioned this work of art before on my blog but I really don’t remember what I said. So if I repeat myself…then I’ll be repeating myself.

Batman. Batman, Batman, Batman. What mere words could I attempt to transcribe that could possibly do the legend justice? Like I was telling a friend earlier today, if I was getting a doctorate in psychology, I would write my thesis on Bruce Wayne and his alter ego, Batman. Of course, that would mean I’d know what a thesis paper consists of, which I absolutely do not. In speaking about the movie, I would like to present to you a numbered list of the things that the movie got right, ranked in order of importance. Knowing full well that this entry would be completely one-sided without the opposing view, I will also include a list of the things it got wrong.

Things it got right:

1. Everything.

Things it got wrong:

1. Nothing.

Apparently, people think that if you don’t talk about a subject very often, it automatically means that you do not like it. Contrariwise, if you speak of something regularly, it seems to be the consensus that it is the only thing you love. Such is the case of my affinity for both Spider-Man and Batman. They have both been at the top of my list pretty much at the same level. I allow this to happen because in the DC universe, I favor Batman. Meanwhile, in the Marvel Universe, Spidey is my character of choice. So now, I’m telling people how much I like Batman, and they shudder in horror as if there has been a mandate requiring all the peoples of the world to only pledge allegiance to one (super)hero.

One thing I will gladly admit is that Batman seems to have repeatedly gotten the most gifted writers in the business who have treated the character with the utmost respect that it so rightfully deserves. And it deserves nothing but the best. There’s so much I could say about Batman that right now I’m having a really hard time deciding where to start. You just have to read the comics and graphic novels to understand the glee I am engrossed in every time I open up a new story.

Like in The Dark Knight Returns and The Dark Knight Strikes Again, where Bruce Wayne is really old and pretty much single-handedly gets the world back in order. Oh, and along the way manages to beat the crap out of Superman. Or in No Man’s Land, where Gotham City is nearly obliterated by an earthquake and officially severed from the rest of the country. Meanwhile, the place is overrun by territorial gang warfare led by the Arkham Asylum inmates. And of course, Batman is nowhere to be found. Or how about Bruce Wayne – Murderer? and Bruce Wayne – Fugitive; where Bruce is framed for murder and sent to prison where he essentially kills off Bruce Wayne and becomes only Batman, all the while ignoring his circle of friends. And let’s not forget Knightfall, where Bane frees all of the inmates at Arkham to test the limits of the Bat with the sole purpose of breaking him in order to take over Gotham…which he does. That is, until the mantle of the Bat is passed on to Azrael who goes completely crazy and starts killing everyone. The beauty of it all just never ends.

If anyone is interested in reading any incredible Batman stories I strongly suggest the following as great starters:

By: Frank Miller
Batman: Year One
The Dark Knight Returns
The Dark Knight Strikes Again

By: Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale
The Long Halloween
Haunted Knight
Dark Victory

Those are just a handful of the plethora of insanely well-written and drawn story arcs in the Batman saga. If anyone out there wants more recommendations, just ask, cause there are plenty more.


...half a million dollars will always be missed