Sunday Spotlight - Batman: Year One

OK, I know Bat-May has only just left us, and we're all still geared up for Batman Day next month (when we'll be drawing that awesome Batman Bundle) but I really can't let the 25th anniversary of the Batman movie go past without some sort of mention. And I know we reviewed the film last month, which is why today we'll be shining the Sunday Spotlight on something from the same era – Batman: Year One.



Bruce Wayne returns to Gotham after many years abroad, still intent on obtaining vengeance against Crime for the murder of his parents so long ago. At around the same time, a young detective named James Gordon begins work at the Gotham City Police Department, widely known as one of the most corrupt law enforcement agencies there is. While Bruce Wayne takes his first tentative steps as a vigilante, Gordon tries to hold onto his strong convictions and ethics in a town that seems almost designed to destroy good cops. But as Bruce Wayne's vigilante alter-ego Batman gains notoriety, Gordon is tasked with tracking him down. Both men have the same goal – bringing down the gangs that dominate the city, and to prove themselves as warriors against injustice, but they approach those goals from entirely opposite directions. Will they be able to find a middle ground or will their conflicting methods bring about a violent confrontation?

Originally released in 1987, written by Frank Miller and drawn by David Mazzucchelli, Batman: Year One is rightly one of the most iconic stories in the history of Batman. Miller's gritty style suits the grim Gotham City we encounter throughout the book, and Mazzucchelli brings that city to life with outstanding art. The story is brutally violent, but sets the tone for how Batman would be seen for years to come – he is a shadow in the night, a terror to strike into the hearts of criminals everywhere. Most importantly, it focuses on the parallels between Gordon and Batman as crime-fighters on the opposite sides of the law. Batman's origin isn't exactly new information to most people (HIS PARENTS ARE DEAD) so including the 'origin' of one of Batman's closest allies, and how he came to become one of the closest allies is vital to making the plot interesting. Over the course of the story you can see them changing, starting to trust each other and changing their methods to suit – Gordon accepting that Batman's ways of working outside the law are more effective than the corrupt police force and Batman realising that he needs allies in his war on Crime.

It's not difficult to see how influential this comic has been on the Batman mythos – Batman Begins drew on it heavily and there was actually going to be a film adaptation prior to Christopher Nolan rebooting the franchise. Batman had been moving towards this style already (Miller had already written The Dark Knight Returns) but this, coupled with the Crisis on Infinite Earths gave DC the chance to reboot a character that had gotten a little 'silly', which, as we know is




It's also a great place for new readers to start, as I've said before. Part of this is the huge influence it has had, but it's also a story that lays out all the groundwork for understanding the character of Batman. It gives the reader a chance to see how his world operates, and then gives the option of continuing with the character, rather than immediately starting a new arc. This stand alone book is one every Batman fan should have on their shelf and should be read even be non-Batfans.

Batman: Year One – 9781401207526 – Frank Miller - $27.99 – 144 pages

Movie Monday - Batman Forever

Well... here we go. After the mixed reactions to Batman Returns, Tim Burton was removed as director of the Batman franchise and Joel Schumacher was put in his place. Schumacher was to bring a more family friendly atmosphere to the series that would bring in more merchandise. Let's see what kind of film he managed to create in Batman Forever.

Director: Joel Schumacher

Writer: Lee Batchler, Janet Scott Batchler

Starring: Val Kilmer, Chris O'Donnell, Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey, Nicole Kidman

Released: 1995

Former District Attorney and friend to Bruce Wayne, Harvey Dent, is now the villain Two-Face, bent on a crime spree to lure Batman into a string of death traps. So far, Batman has been able to avoid Two-Face's murder attempts but innocents have also suffered. A family of acrobats, the Flying Graysons, all die preventing the deaths of a circus full of people from Two-Face's attack – save the youngest member, Dick Grayson. Taken in by Bruce Wayne, who knows the pain of becoming an orphan, Dick begins to suspect that there's something more to the billionaire playboy than first appears. Chase Meridian, a psychotherapist new to Gotham, also has suspicions about Bruce Wayne, as well as a fascination with Batman. Bruce Wayne's double life has never been in more jeopardy. And when the Riddler develops a new device that is able to read minds before teaming up with Two-Face, Batman may need to learn to trust someone with his secret before it's too late and costs him his life.

THE SQUEE

• Jim Carrey. This film is completely over the top and the casting of Jim Carrey as the Riddler was inspired. In 1995, Carrey was a massive star coming off Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and The Mask. He brings a tremendous amount of energy to the role, overwhelming pretty much everyone else on screen. The sets must have been delicious because Carrey spends most of his role chewing the scenery. They may have tasted like ham. However, Carrey's personality carries each and every one of his scenes, making this film almost more his than Batman's.
  
  
• The aspects of Batman's psyche. One of the ongoing themes in this series of Batman films is why Bruce Wayne feels the need to dress in tight leather and beat the stuffing out of colourful criminals. Batman is something Bruce Wayne does, and the duality of the two identities creates much of the drama. In comparison, the Nolan trilogy is more about Bruce Wayne as a false identity, hiding Batman. Batman Returns had a similar theme, but this first series has a much greater focus on the secret identity aspect. Some villains were entirely motivated by discovering Batman's secret identity, much like in the 1966 television series.
  
  
• The soundtrack. There were two outstanding songs on the soundtrack for this film – Seal's 'Kiss from a Rose' and 'Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me' by U2. These were massive hits and both strike perfect chords with the film. 'Kiss from a Rose' is bittersweet and aching, and 'Hold Me, Thrill Me' is a raw song with the epic sound of a U2 classic.

THE SUCK

• The camp. Camp is great in some situations. Rocky Horror Picture Show is fantastic. The 1966 Batman series was amazing at the time, as a perfect adaptation of what was going on in the comics. However, coming off the back of the dark fantasy that is anything Tim Burton touches, Batman Forever feels more like a children's cartoon. There's a return to horrendous puns that do little more than unsubtly nudge the viewer in the ribs to remind them that 'hey, this is a comic book movie!' It stops being gothic and just becomes silly. There are some great examples of Batman being silly (check out Batman: Through the Looking Glass for one), but this doesn't feel like any of those. For an audience that had become accustomed to Tim Burton's style and the dark, brooding attitudes of the post-Dark Knight Returns comics, Batman Forever is a neon-coloured nightmare.
  
  
• Plot holes are everywhere. Everywhere.
  
  
• Val Kilmer. He's a great actor (I LOVE Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) but this is not his best role. He's not the quirky Batman of Michael Keaton, nor the gruff harshness of Christian Bale. He's almost forgettable as Bruce Wayne and as Batman is all about the character.

As a highlight of Jim Carrey's career, Batman Forever is unsurpassed. However, it is pure marketing and merchandising, with only brief developments of the character with 60 years of history. The film is truly an ode to the 1960's Batman, but not necessarily that of the comics or the incredibly popular animated series that was in the middle of its 6 year run.

Bat-May is nearing its end! Get your entries in now!

Sunday Spotlight - Batman: War Games

The relationship between Batman and his allies is often one fraught with tension. The Batman is not a trusting creature, and has an extremely harsh outlook on his way on crime. If you aren't following his orders, you don't get to help police his city. There have been a number of stories that deal with this element of Batman, and one of the most tragic is the War Games arc.

Tim Drake, the third Robin, has retired, after his father discovered the double life Tim had been leading. Batman puts into motion a new method of stopping crime in Gotham, filling a street gang's power vacuum with his own man, named Orpheus. But resources are still stretched thin, and Batman turns to Tim Drake's girlfriend, Stephanie Brown, who is also the masked vigilante known as Spoiler. She steps into the role of Robin on a trial basis, despite a number of Batman's allies' concerns over yet another young person entering the crusade against crime. However, things do not go as Batman hoped and he is forced to fire her.

Soon after, a mysterious message is sent to all the major figures of the Gotham underworld, arranging a meeting. Tensions are high and one wrong move creates a massacre. The ensuing violence spreads as different crime families take the opportunity to settle scores and make their own plays for power. Batman frantically tries to restore some sort of order as his city is gripped by a vicious gang war. But the cause of the war is much closer to home than he would have thought, and there are others who plan to take advantage of the chaos to carve out their own criminal empire.

The War Games arc crossed over many of the Bat-family titles of the time, from the regular Detective Comics to Nightwing and Catwoman. It ran for four months, but given the number of titles involved, it was able to pack a lot of action in. The build up and initial stages of the gang war are told superbly across all the titles, as the sense of dread and anxiety grows. The pieces all start falling into place and the fuse to the powder keg is lit. There's a real sense of urgency to the story as Batman tries to first discover what has happened and then frantically try to stop the events from escalating. Like many of the best tragedies, the reader gets to see all the pieces and know how things could have worked out if it wasn't for one key element.

Throughout the story, there's a strong portrayal of Batman as an overbearing figure – someone who puts his beliefs before those of anyone else. He's dealing with a new police commissioner, one who hasn't had years of cooperation and trust to rely on that Batman is doing things for the good of the city. A lot of Batman's interactions with his allies, such as Oracle and the free clinic doctor Leslie Thompkins, show just how harsh he can be. Batman is unforgiving and the person he will never forgive is himself. Part of his own arc in this series is learning to put what someone else needs ahead of what he feels should be done. It's a lesson that he takes a long time to learn, but a vital one for him.

While not as altering to the cast as The Killing Joke or Death in the Family, War Games is a strong story that really shows the way each of the characters operates. It's been nearly ten years since it was originally released, so there's a lot that has happened since then, but it remains on of the best examples of the shift in Batman's attitude towards his allies, as well as the constant tragedies that drive him.

Don't forget to get your entries in for Bat-May!

Batman: War Games Act One – Outbreak – 9781401204297 – 208 pages

Batman: War Games Act Two – Tides – 9781401204303 - $21.99 – 192 pages

Batman: War Games Act Three – Endgame – 9781401204310 – 200 pages

Movie Monday - Batman Returns

Tim Burton's Batman was a critical and financial success (and better yet, created massive amounts of merchandise), so a sequel was never in any doubt. But with the Joker dead, where would the franchise go next? Well, if one villain was good, two are even better! And thus, Batman Returns set the scene for the escalation of super villains in sequels. Here's our thoughts.

Director: Tim Burton

Writer: Daniel Waters, Sam Hamm

Starring: Michael Keaton, Michelle Pfieffer, Danny DeVito, Christopher Walken

Release: 1992

Many years before, the Cobblepots, a incredibly wealthy Gotham family, had a problem. Their new-born son was deformed, suffering from a condition that fused his fingers together. Not only that, but he was a vicious creature, intent on killing. Horrified at having spawned a true monster, his parents attempted to dispose of the child by throwing him into the river. But the child did not die, and instead was carried through the storm drains and sewers to be raised by a group of penguins (because Gotham has a colony of penguins now).

33 years later, the child has reached maturity. He is seen as a myth, nothing but an urban legend but he emerges into Gotham, intent on vengeance. Dubbed 'the Penguin', he comes to the attention of Batman after he joins forces with a local industrialist, Max Shreck, and runs for mayor. But the Penguin's plans are much more sinister – he intends to kidnap and slaughter the children of the wealthy members of Gotham society.

Batman attempts to stop the evil plot but has to deal with another figure on the scene – a mysterious leather-clad woman calling herself Catwoman, who seems to be entering both of his dual lives. But is she a friend – or a foe?

THE SQUEE

• First off, Tim Burton delivers an amazing Gothic film that combines the unsettling elements of German Expressionism with massive stunt-based action sequences. It makes for one of the most stylistic comic book movies ever, drawing on a number of strong themes of parentage and family, disguises and masks and the animal tendencies of humans. There's references to classic Expressionist films like The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Nosferatu, as well as other films of the era like King Kong and Frankenstein, not to mention more modern horror movies, creating an incredibly dark story so at odds with the comic book style and main characters. It's a real return to Batman's roots in the 1930's.
  
  

• The cast. Oh my god this cast! I raved about Keaton in the last Movie Monday, and Pfieffer and DeVito play off him perfectly (purrfectly in Pfieffer case ha ha). Batman films have a tendency to lean towards hamminess – we'll see that more in Batman Forever. DeVito could have gone completely overboard but instead he portrays the Penguin with an amazing amount of pathos for a character that is forever an unrepentant monster. Pfeiffer, as always, is outstanding, playing the slightly crazy Catwoman.

• Christopher Walken. He gets his own section because he is a gem. As the evil capitalist Max Shreck, he perfectly mixes ominously creepy with viciously manipulative. He's somewhat otherworldly, in true Walken style, pausing... at... odd places when he... talks. Somehow, they also found someone to play his son, who imitates the style superbly! Props to Andrew Bryniarski for that.
  
  
• Once again, the score. Danny Elfman proves that he is simply one of the best composers in the business.
  
  
• The dialogue is just so appropriate for an over-the-top superhero film, heavy on alliteration and the entire cast is able to deliver the lines without making it seem too cheesy.

THE SUCK

• Unfortunately, the emphasis the film has on the other characters means that Batman is only occasionally present in the film. I've heard it referred to as 'Batman Returns for About Twenty Minutes'. The characters with the active story arcs are Shreck, Catwoman and Penguin. Batman is just kinda there. He doesn't really have much agency in his own film. The first film had his origin and quest for justice. Now he's pretty much hanging around, reacting to everybody else's actions. It doesn't make him a boring character, but he doesn't have any particular motivation beyond 'crime = bad'.
  
  
• There is a lot of dissonance between different elements of the film. The dark, overtly sexual tone in some scenes is heavily undermined by the reliance on (at times) almost campy plot-devices – the Penguin's trick umbrellas spring to mind. Stylistically, the film is superb, but that can also be a drawback. When the Penguin takes control of the Batmobile, he does so in what looks a coin-operated version of the said vehicle – it's great for the visuals because of that connection, but why does he have that? Just to pretend that he's driving the Batmobile? Is this what he does in his downtime? There are cheesy puns aplenty in the middle of vicious threats. The film is better than that and it's clear that there was a strong attempt to make the film more accessible to the 'family' market. This is NOT a family film (neither was the first one, despite the massive toy tie-ins). The film has the dark fantasy style that Burton excels at but it's a distinctly adult theme and the Batman elements feel like they're drawn more from the 1960's series than anything that resembles the comics series.
  
  
• There's not particularly much tension in any of the major sequences. Batman saves the day because, er, Batman, I guess. There's a problem, he overcomes it immediately – Penguin frames him for murder, he immediately reveals Penguin's true nature to Gotham City. There are mind-controlled penguins with rocket-launchers (yes, really), I'll just dodge them, the end. Probably the moment with the most suspense occurs midway through the film when Batman loses control of the Batmobile, but for the rest, there's never really any threat. Even his sitcom-like secret identity shenanigans with Selina Kyle are more wacky than filled with tension.

OK, yes, the film suffered from meddling to make it more marketable to families. It was a financial and critical success but unfortunately it didn't do what executives wanted it to, which was sell toys. This isn't a film for children. It's a film of twisted sexuality and violence, and Batman feels like a child entering an adult world. Probably the strongest scenes Batman has are his interactions with Catwoman but those are underused in favour of what can only be described as silliness. More's the pity, that's what was emphasised in the next films in the franchise, rather than the amazing style that Burton brought to the character.

What are your thoughts? Agree? Disagree? Anything to say about what we've got coming next week? And remember to get your entries for Bat-May in!

Sunday Spotlight - No Man's Land

Comics are so often about status quo. It's designed to help new readers easily get into the story – relationships and settings stay steady and can be explained quickly (well, that's the dream). Batman's based in Gotham and always will be, Superman works out of Metropolis, the X-Men will always be reviled and ostracised by humanity. But occasionally, there will be a storyline that completely shakes things up. Knightfall was one of these, and another is No Man's Land.

In the late 90's Batman had to deal with a number of threats, averting by moments threats that would have destroyed Gotham City. And then there was an earthquake. A massive earthquake. It took place in the major series Cataclysm as Batman and his allies frantically tried to rescue victims and maintain order as the city devolved into anarchy. They failed. The government declared that Gotham City was no longer habitable and evacuated the inhabitants that they could. The city was left to the disenfranchised, the poor, the criminals. No aid was to be given. There would be no rescue. The gangs took over.

But there were some good people who stayed and tried to maintain some semblance of order. Many members of the police department, under Commissioner Gordon remained, protecting as many people as they could. Without the rule of law, they're little more than just another gang. Not only that, but Batman is gone. While many of Wayne Enterprises buildings were earthquake proof, ironically Wayne Manor (and by extension the Batcave) was not. Bruce Wayne battled with the US government to re-start aid to the city, but was continually denied. Despondent, he realises that if he is to help the citizens of his city, he needs to be there. After a long absence, Batman returns to Gotham City, but he must work to gain the trust of his allies, and to convince the criminals, secure in their new fiefdoms that they must fear him once more.

No Man's Land is a great relocation for Batman – he has always worked outside the law, but has been aware of where that law is. In No Man's Land, the law is gone. Batman must adjust to a entire society that only respects the rule of strength. It's a great way to throw light on Batman's tactics. Normally, he's fighting for a justice that can be achieved – here, he's fighting just to make people believe justice is possible.

Because of this, the stories of the Gotham City Police Department would play a large part in No Man's Land – one of the (many) writers was Greg Rucka, who would go on to write the amazing Gotham Central with Ed Brubaker, that focussed exclusively on the GCPD. These were stories about men and women who believed in justice and the law just as much as Batman did, and loved their city just as much. But when Batman disappeared, they believe he has abandoned them and the city and that betrayal is also a core plot element.

The story-telling in No Man's Land is absolutely outstanding. The first issue began with a priest trying to find a way into the city to distribute food. It swiftly shows the blockade that is in place stopping anyone entering or leaving. The priest eventually bribes a helicopter pilot to fly over the city and drop supplies in. The action then follows some of those supplies as they're fought over by the different gangs, until one of the major characters is encountered. It's a great example of 'show-don't-tell' that is present throughout the rest of the series.

No Man's Land isn't essential reading for Batman fans. Neither is Cataclysm. It's a series that develops the characters but there aren't any especially life-changing moments for them. It does develop the character of Cassandra Cain (the second Batgirl), who is amazing, and has lots of focus on Renee Montoya (who is also amazing). There's some great subplots with Catwoman which are probably some of the funniest scenes in the entire run. This isn't a funny series, however. Many of the stories are about the grim fight simply to survive, and the depths humanity can sink to when darker impulses are given free reign. The battles are all hard fought, with every bullet and punch counting but there is an inevitably to it all. Eventually, the food will run out. The ammo will run out. Medicine will run out. Hope will run out. Nothing Batman does can change any of that.

Of course, Gotham DID receive help in the end, from an unexpected quarter (but I won't say where, because it's a great twist). The series is one of the stronger Batman arcs through the 1990s, featuring all of the Bat-allies (even an appearance by Robin in Young Justice) and was clearly part of the inspiration for Batman: Arkham City. If you're after strong story-telling that really develops its characters, this is a series to look for.

Don't forget that you can enter the Bat-May competition and get a chance to win a Batman Bundle!

Batman: No Man's Land vol. 1 – 9781401232283 – $45.00 – 544 pages

Batman: No Man's Land vol. 2 - 9781401233808 - 512 pages

Batman: No Man's Land vol. 3 - 9781401234560 - $65.00 - 480 pages

Batman: No Man's Land vol. 4 - 9781401235642 - $49.99 - 552 pages