MelasZepheos said:
No offence Nolan, but that's a really crap title. More and more you're beginning to conjure up memories of the Dark Knight Strikes Again, a comic-book run with only slightly less dignity than Batman and Robin and a good deal more shit.
And not using the Riddler vicariously proves soemthing I have suspected all along. Many people condemn the sillier aspects of Batman, like Robin, the Riddler, the entire Silver Age, because they declare that they add nothing to the character.
In the hands of a good writer the Riddler is a terrifying madman with a deeply disturbing motif. In the hands of a good writer Robin is a reflection of Batman, but becoming the man Batman could never be, because Robin's tale is always one of self-discovery, instead of running away from the problem.
You'll note the use of the words 'In the hands of a good writer.' More and more I suspect that the new Batman series is not in fact well written. What is well written is blanketly ripped off from better comic books and what isn't well written (hello awkward romantic sub-plot) just reads like someone vomited on the typewriter.
Of course, none of this will outdo my fanboyish need to watch the movie, because I was one of the people who tried to delude himself that Batman and Robin wasn't terrible, but the more I collect the backissues of the comics the more I realise that whoever this Nolan-verse man is, he's not a Bat-man
But then again, at least he's not Frank Miller's Crazy Steve
Goddamn Batman.
One thing I've seen just as a casual observer of batman is that there are several versions of him, and Nolan's falls into the category I'd call "Black Suit" (compared to "Blue" and "Grey"), which is both fitting the actual suit he wears but also what his gadgets are like (Blue has the most ridiculous ones, Grey has at worse "Anti-" spray and kryptonite, but sometimes is unprepared, while black has only realistic ones). But even then, you have one of the biggest problems that prevents him from completely fitting in there: his Bruce Wayne. Look back on every Bruce Wayne in the "Black" or "Grey" suit and you'll know what I mean. Problem here is the his Bruce Wayne is both too comfortable with being Bruce Wayne (which in these categories, he should be more comfortable as Batman, which is what makes the voice thing so ridiculous). Yes there have been Waynes who have done something similar, but they all either showed at least some strain or at least signs they thought of themselves as Batman even while they were pretending (look at TAS for examples of both of these).
Anyways, Riddler and Robin both actually can be great characters, especially Robin. For example (and I somehow know I'm going to regret this, but why not just get it over with) the Robin from the Teen Titans show. Sure the show eventually turned me away, but the character here showed signs of being a unique character that you could definitely tell was influenced heavily by his mentor, yet still trying to catch up. He had the potential to be as good as Batman, and this show seemed to be him trying to both prove that and train himself at the same time, but he would always have the ability to turn out better if only because he had help early on while Bruce didn't. But the biggest point here about him is that he can be taken seriousy, he can be a great character, and he can be a nice sidekick to Batman without appearing as someone who just tags along (TAS even had the story of Robin win an award back in the day).
As for the Riddler, Batman: Hush and Arkham Asylum have forever proven how great he can be. He isn't just goofy, but rather is one of the more intelligent villains batman can face, enough so that he could almost make TvTropes change Xanatos Gambit to Riddler Gambit
What I will say about Nolan though, is that he's proven that he's able to overcome both Silver Age problems, and the stigma of the previous recent flops, something Superman desperately needs (note: not going to get too much into Superman here, but just know that like Aquaman, he's actually better than his Silver Age image that you all know him as, but it will forever haunt him it seems... Hm... It seems like DC has a problem with it's silver age, doesn't it?).
