He’s the World’s Greatest Detective, one of the World’s Greatest Super-Heroes and also just a straight-up Super Friend. But one of the things that makes Batman so awesome? The fact that he can stand up to such interpretation so well.
More than any other character, the basic Batman design thrives no matter who is drawing him (I’m tempted to say that only Spider-Man really compares, and even he can stand or fall depending on the artist’s ability to do webs well). Good job, Bob Kane or whoever designed the character originally.
February 21st, 2012 at 10:24 am
1 – These posts have been great fun.
2 – One time I interviewed Matt Wagner about his Batman work, and he said the reason artists like drawing Batman so much is that he’s a character made up entirely of triangles, which is something you almost never get to draw under other circumstances.
February 21st, 2012 at 3:44 pm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Finger
If it was just up to Bob Kane we’d have a much goofier looking Batman…
February 21st, 2012 at 4:12 pm
Even with the reboot, the only drastic change to his costume was that they took away his over-underwear…
February 21st, 2012 at 4:23 pm
I’ve been a Batman fan for 25 years.
Removing that damn silly underwear was enough for me. And as far as i’m concerned the movies always captures the LOOKS of Batman better (aside from Schumacher’s batnipples and the cumbersome rubber)… and it was hightime Batman was updated in the comics like his movie counterpart (in terms of looks) as an armor-clad crime fighter.
That damn external underwear makes no sense for someone seeking to be “scarey”. I’m glad it’s finally gone.
February 22nd, 2012 at 7:26 am
That’s actually one of my issues with the Nolan movies (though I do love them) it’s the “What If Batman Was Real” angle. He’s a fantasy character. If we make him realistic, then it’s no longer a fantasy comic book.
February 22nd, 2012 at 6:56 pm
No, I’d say Batman’s costume stands or falls (as evidenced by those examples) depending on who is doing the cape, and how they’re doing it.
Also, his outer-underwear was always pretty goofy and was only recently dropped altogether (a not too small a change if you ask me).