Who is your Batman

[Slam_Bradley]

I did one of these a while back to modest success...so thought we'd try a new one.

http://forums.comicbookresources.com/showthread.php?t=225353

So I ask the collected classicists, Who is your Batman? It can be any incarnation of the character. It could be Dick Sprang's or Neal Adam's or Jim Aparo's Batman. Rather than an artist it could be Bill Finger's or Denny O'Neil's or Doug Moench's Batman. Maybe you grew up with Adam West on the tv or maybe Michael Keaton rocked your world or maybe Bruce Timm finally did you in.

So come on guys...Who is your Batman? And why?

[will_butler]

Batman from Batman: The Animated Series, easily.

[DubipR]

Wow, a toughie. I really wouldn't say I have one, but perhaps 3 or 4:
- Jim Aparo (definitely the foreruuner of them all)
- Mike Parobeck
- Alan Davis

[rick]

My Batman is by Adams & O'Neil.

[Red Oak Kid]

The Neal Adams version.

[Lone Ranger]

1. Jim Aparo
I know that I'm not the only one on here with a serious Brave and the Bold obsession. When I close my eyes and think of Batman - it's Aparo's. I love the way Aparo drapes the cape over Batman's shoulder. Love it.

2. Don Newton
Newton is a god (obviously) and his Batman rocked. He was drawing the Dark Knight at exactly the right time for me. I was 8-10 during his prime Bat years.

3. Norm Breyfogle
I got back into Batman during the latter part of high school. I loved the Breyfogle look. Very different, but very effective. Great Batmobile, too!

4. Sheldon Moldoff
As much as I'd like to say Dick Sprang or Jerry Robindsn, when I started picking up older issues (some 80 pg Giants, too) so many were signed 'Bob Kane'. Well, now I know that the bulk of those in my collection as a kid were by Moldoff. So, when I close my eyes and think 'old school' Batman, I get Shelly's version.

5. Irv Novick
He pencilled 'The Lazarus Affair'. That's enough to make my top 5.

[Slam_Bradley]

This one is a little hard for me. It's definitely the Bronze Age Batman. Neal had renewed his look. O'neil and Robbins had re-made him as a creature of the night. Dick Grayson was still Robin, but was mostly working solo or with the Titans. The World's Finest team were still buddies. Batman wasn't a sociopath...he even smiled now and then. He was still the world's greatest detective and proved it frequently.

I miss my Batman.

[Bicorn Halfelven]

Adam West, for sure. As a child, I'd watch reruns of this every day.

For comics, it'd have to be Frank Miller's Year One Batman. My first Batman comic was Batman #406, which was in SHARP contrast to the Adam West Batman... it kinda freaked me out and put me off of Batman for quite a while, since my six year old mind wasn't ready for it.

[Red Oak Kid]

[
4. Sheldon Moldoff
As much as I'd like to say Dick Sprang or Jerry Robindsn, when I started picking up older issues (some 80 pg Giants, too) so many were signed 'Bob Kane'. Well, now I know that the bulk of those in my collection as a kid were by Moldoff. So, when I close my eyes and think 'old school' Batman, I get Shelly's version.

Usually I'm a very nostalgic fellow, but I felt cheated too many times out of my 12 cents by Batman comics with Infantino covers and Moldoff interiors. So my classic Batman nod goes to Dick Sprang for his stories in the 80pg Giants.

[Pól Rua]

This one is a little hard for me. It's definitely the Bronze Age Batman. Neal had renewed his look. O'neil and Robbins had re-made him as a creature of the night. Dick Grayson was still Robin, but was mostly working solo or with the Titans. The World's Finest team were still buddies. Batman wasn't a sociopath...he even smiled now and then. He was still the world's greatest detective and proved it frequently.

I miss my Batman.

I'm with 'The Slammer' on this one.

(Like that? Just made it up then...)

The Batman I like is a detective and a thinker, but is quick-witted and deals with problems that come is way creatively and inventively. He's a classic adventure hero like Robin Hood or The Lone Ranger, with a dark edge... but it's JUST the edge. At his heart, he's a good guy and definitely a hero.

However, the Batman I like is diverse enough to handle Bob Haney-style self-referential hepcatness, Dick Sprang-style over the top tomfoolery, Neal Adams-style sleek realism, Adam West-style shenanigans and Frank Miller-style expressionistic thuggery.

My favourite Bat-artists are Alan Davis who did a great run of 'Detective', and Michael Golden, who did some amazing work with the character in 'Batman Family', but I usually think of him as drawn by Jim Aparo.

[Slam_Bradley]

My favourite Bat-artists are Alan Davis who did a great run of 'Detective', and Michael Golden, who did some amazing work with the character in 'Batman Family', but I usually think of him as drawn by Jim Aparo.


I tend to picture him as drawn by Don Newton (because Newton is my favorite). But I also love Rogers, Aparo and Adams.

[Red Oak Kid]

The Batman I like is a detective and a thinker, but is quick-witted and deals with problems that come is way creatively and inventively. He's a classic adventure hero like Robin Hood or The Lone Ranger, with a dark edge... but it's JUST the edge. At his heart, he's a good guy and definitely a hero.
.

Well said.

[Kirk G]

My Batman is by Adams & O'Neil.

You said it, brother...:evilsmile:

[benday-dot]

I grew up with the Aparo Batman. So that's the one I'll go with. However, I find myself these days being drawn more and more to good old Dick Sprang's "short ears." There's something wonderfully charming about that caped crusader.. sort of the equivalent of the Swan Superman.

[Scott Shaw!]

Dick Sprang drew "my" Batman. This spectacular illustration pretty much sums up why:

http://www.scooterscustomworks.com/batcave/uploaded_images/batcave1-738821.jpg

Aloha,

Scott!

[benday-dot]

Dick Sprang drew "my" Batman. This spectacular illustration pretty much sums up why:

http://www.scooterscustomworks.com/batcave/uploaded_images/batcave1-738821.jpg

Aloha,

Scott!

Incredibly cool Scott! Where is that from?

[rick]

Dick Sprang drew "my" Batman. This spectacular illustration pretty much sums up why:

http://www.scooterscustomworks.com/batcave/uploaded_images/batcave1-738821.jpg

Aloha,

Scott!

Man o' man is that a beautiful picture.

Sprang is just such good artist.

[Red Oak Kid]

At the time, I thought that huge Batmobile was dumb.

But now, I love it! It had a fully equiped crime lab in the back. And this was before computers!

[MichikoS]

Jiro Kuwata.

No, I'm kidding, but I did want to mention that I went to a talk by the great CHIP KIDD last night with my daughter. Kidd was promoting his recent book Bat-Manga!: The Secret History of Batman in Japan, about which more here:

http://www.amazon.com/Bat-Manga-Secret-History-Batman-Japan/dp/0375425454

For just one year, in 1966, Shonen King magazine licensed the Batman character for Japanese manga serialization, as drawn by 8 MAN creator Jiro Kuwata. I was living in Japan in 1966 and seriously getting into American comics at the time. I do recall the "Japanese Batman," but it was just a blip on my youthful radar screen, quickly dismissed.

Kidd showed several examples of Kuwata's stylish rendering of Batman and Robin for the manga version in his enjoyable presentation to a very full auditorium in Kansas City. Kidd says that Kuwata's version of Robin (who is a young boy in the manga version, rather than a teen) is his all-time favorite Robin. The story lines are sci-fi and goofy, honestly, but they have a charm fresher than the over-the-top camp approach of the popular TV show from about that time.

Unlike many on this board, (that's you, Bat-Fan extraordinaire Scott!), I am not and never have been big on Batman. But I will admit that I'm partial to KELLEY JONES idiosyncratic portrayal of a demonic, weirdly proportioned Batman that I encountered in catching up with comical books after 20 years of absence from regular comics reading. I'm guessing I'm pretty much alone in my choice.

Michi

[Red Oak Kid]

But I will admit that I'm partial to KELLEY JONES idiosyncratic portrayal of a demonic, weirdly proportioned Batman that I encountered in catching up with comical books after 20 years of absence from regular comics reading. I'm guessing I'm pretty much alone in my choice.

Michi

IMO, Jones' version is influenced by the Berni Wrightson version in Swamp Thing.:smile:

[Bruce Wayne Jr.]

Batman from Batman: The Animated Series, easily.

I'm right there with ya. He's a perfect combination of all incarnations.

[benday-dot]

Jiro Kuwata.

No, I'm kidding, but I did want to mention that I went to a talk by the great CHIP KIDD last night with my daughter. Kidd was promoting his recent book Bat-Manga!: The Secret History of Batman in Japan, about which more here:

http://www.amazon.com/Bat-Manga-Secret-History-Batman-Japan/dp/0375425454

For just one year, in 1966, Shonen King magazine licensed the Batman character for Japanese manga serialization, as drawn by 8 MAN creator Jiro Kuwata. I was living in Japan in 1966 and seriously getting into American comics at the time. I do recall the "Japanese Batman," but it was just a blip on my youthful radar screen, quickly dismissed.

Kidd showed several examples of Kuwata's stylish rendering of Batman and Robin for the manga version in his enjoyable presentation to a very full auditorium in Kansas City. Kidd says that Kuwata's version of Robin (who is a young boy in the manga version, rather than a teen) is his all-time favorite Robin. The story lines are sci-fi and goofy, honestly, but they have a charm fresher than the over-the-top camp approach of the popular TV show from about that time.

Unlike many on this board, (that's you, Bat-Fan extraordinaire Scott!), I am not and never have been big on Batman. But I will admit that I'm partial to KELLEY JONES idiosyncratic portrayal of a demonic, weirdly proportioned Batman that I encountered in catching up with comical books after 20 years of absence from regular comics reading. I'm guessing I'm pretty much alone in my choice.

Michi

Earlier in the week I started a little thread on this one Michi. I'm glad you are as excited about this book as I am.

[KidCommando]

Neal Adams is tops!

[spoon_jenkins]

1. Jim Aparo
I know that I'm not the only one on here with a serious Brave and the Bold obsession. When I close my eyes and think of Batman - it's Aparo's. I love the way Aparo drapes the cape over Batman's shoulder. Love it.

2. Don Newton
Newton is a god (obviously) and his Batman rocked. He was drawing the Dark Knight at exactly the right time for me. I was 8-10 during his prime Bat years.

Aparo and Newton are the big two for me.

I also see Aparo's Batman when I visualize the Caped Crusader in my mind's eye. Aparo was such a prolific contributor to the Bat books. I started collected comics after Brave and the Bold was cancelled and but Aparo was my childhood Batman artist for his work on post-Crisis Batman. It was Jim Aparo who made an impression on me rather than any of the writers who were paired with him.

Don Newton is my favorite Bat artist of all time. But I only really started collecting Newton's issues in recent years.

So the Batman of my mind's eye and my formative fan years is Aparo, but my favorite take on the character is Newton.

[MichikoS]

Earlier in the week I started a little thread on this one Michi. I'm glad you are as excited about this book as I am.b-d, sorry didn't mean to steal your thunder. Can you tell me where to find your thread on BAT-MANGA? I'd love to read it, but I can't find it. I rarely read outside the Classics forum.

The manga-rific onomatapoeic Japanese sound effects (which Kidd left intact, but alas, untransliterated) cracked my daughter and me up big time!

Michi

[Lone Ranger]

Usually I'm a very nostalgic fellow, but I felt cheated too many times out of my 12 cents by Batman comics with Infantino covers and Moldoff interiors. So my classic Batman nod goes to Dick Sprang for his stories in the 80pg Giants.

I'd love to say Dick Sprang too - but the honest answer, for better or for worse, is that my Silver Age Batman is Shelly's.

I should dig out those old books, scrape the mold off and have another look this weekend.

[MDG]

I'd love to say Dick Sprang too - but the honest answer, for better or for worse, is that my Silver Age Batman is Shelly's.
That's kind've the way I feel, mainly because as a kid I was much more likely to buy an issue of Batman than something called "Detective."

I think my favorite Batman period, though, is just post-Adams, especially as drawn by Irv Novick.

Absolute favorite, though, remains Englehart/Rogers.

[Cei-U!]

I should dig out those old books, scrape the mold off and have another look this weekend.

Good luck with that. I personally hate Moldoff's work* on the character.

"My" Batman is an amalgam of various '70s/early '80s interpretations**: the mysterious urban vigilante, capable of both deductive brilliance and explosive violence, who works as hard (if not harder) to solve the murder of an anonymous bag lady as he would that of a prominent politician and tempers his passion for justice with mercy. He lives in a penthouse atop the Wayne Foundation building, he drives a non-descript black sports car and has no use for flashy, campy bat-paraphrenalia. He keeps his own counsel, appears and disappears like a pointy-eared ninja but is still human enough to sing carols with Gordon's cops on Christmas Eve. Superman is his best friend, he is a valued member of the JLA and he works and plays well with an amazing range of others, everyone from the Metal Men to Plastic Man to Sgt. Rock. As Bruce Wayne, he is a visionary philanthropist, a socially responsible businessman and a supportive father figure to Dick Grayson.

That's not only my favorite Batman, it's my favorite super-hero. Period.

Cei-U!
I summon the four-color icon!

* (Added a couple of hours later) Okay, that's not fair. I don't *like* Moldoff's Batman, either pre- or post-New Look, for what I think are solid reasons but I don't hate it. If I hated it, I wouldn't read it!

** Honorable mentions to the Finger/Robinson/Sprang and Dini/Timm/Parobeck versions.

[Lone Ranger]

Oh, I don't like it - I'm just stuck with it in my head. I've suffered through a lot of the Infantino cover bait & switches too. Much like the Adams B & S covers later on.

I always wondered why those particular Batmans from 160 to 180 were always so cheap when I was a kid.

In all honesty, I was really just trying to use the 'mold off' joke.

[Red Oak Kid]

Oh, I don't like it - I'm just stuck with it in my head. I've suffered through a lot of the Infantino cover bait & switches too. Much like the Adams B & S covers later on.

In all honesty, I was really just trying to use the 'mold off' joke.

I had a delayed reaction to your joke, but I liked it when my brain finally processed it.

I think it is a testament to the strength of the Batman character that it can trigger such an intense reaction among the people here who I thought had pretty much said all they had to say on various subjects.

Originally, I liked the penthouse Batman because it was such a relief to be free of all the camp aspects of the 60s. But while it was a necessary move, at the end of the day, I think Batman should be in Wayne Manor and have a Batcave.

I don't know if I'll ever decide how I feel about Robin.

For a brief period in the early 70s I couldn't make up my mind who was my favorite artist, Aparo or Adams. I used to wish that Adams would be the regular artist on Batman and Aparo be the regular Detective artist.

I think what hurt Aparo in my eyes was the format of Brave and Bold. Because of the guest stars and the colorful Haney stories, we didn't get a chance to see Aparo do an ONeil/Adams type Batman story.

He may have done such stories after B&B but I am not familar with anyone' work on the character in the 80s.

[InfoBroker]

The Neal Adams version.

Red Oak would never pick the Neal Adams version. He can't stand Neal Adams.

Who are you? Did ROK leave his computer unattended and you jumped on to get him in trouble?

-jb the "actually I'm the one in trouble" ib -

[Cei-U!]

In all honesty, I was really just trying to use the 'mold off' joke.

That whizzing sound you heard was your joke rocketing over my head. :redface:

Cei-U!
Pleads a lack of caffeine!

[InfoBroker]

WOW! This is a toughie.

I can't separate out just one favorite Bat-man. There are too many good ones, and I, like time itself, have had tastes that changed as I aged.

Without a doubt it was the Batman television series as it first aired on ABC that heightened my interest in super-heroes. Yet within mere months, I grew to detest the TV show, and the Batman line of comics themselves for following what seemed to me at the time, a sneering, sarcastic, almost disdain for the genre. Much as I loved Carmine Infantino's moody covers, the interior stories themselves left me feeling cheated and conned.

The re-revamp back to the roots of the character by Julie Swartz, Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams was a wonderful correction, and I have strong memories and appreciation for several of the stories told in this time frame.

I admired Jim Aparo's long and distinct run on the character, with again several tales that I enjoy reading over and over again.

Frank Miller's interpretations with its influences from both the early stories and especially those of Steve Englehart (who brought back the term Dark Knight long before the mini-series was proposed) also deserve and have a place in my definition of "my" Bat-man. Like Scott! I also have early and fond memories of Dick Sprang's version.

Then there's my first(and only) attendance at the ComicCon in San Diago in 1992. At one of the tables (a very small table), the some animation guys had set up a VCR and some promo signage for a new Saturn-day Morning television series called Batman: the animated series.

I was instantly attracted to the imagery and the style.

While watching one of the episodes I commented in what I thought was an inner voice directly mainly at myself, how wonderful the visual imagery and style of the animation and characters were. They blended what had become a very dark Batman, with a clean 50s Batman imagery to provide a great appeal, approachable for young fans. Even said that it reminded me of the Fleisher Super-man cartoons of the 40s.

One of the people behind behind the counter turned to me and smiled, and told me that was exactly the look they were going for, and how much the Fleisher series had indeed influenced their design goals. Turned out it was Paul Dini, and we had a grand time talking about the series, the colorful supporting cast and he even pulled out a portfolio with additional presentation sketches and animation characters sheets.

What a grand experience that was.

Over the years I have long since abandoned and rewarmed to the old Batman TV series, although I still cringe at the effect it has had on how the general masses react to comics and super-heroes. Lots of stereotype there for sure.

Still. Picking out my Bat-man?

WOW. That's a tough one.

-jb the indecisive ib -

[Rob Allen]

Cei-U! described the character perfectly.

For the art, the first name that came to my mind was Irv Novick. When I was getting into the mainstream DC heroes, Irv was the Batman artist. Jim Aparo was the other Batman artist. Others like Adams and Rogers and Dick Dillin in JLA drew the character, but weren't identified with him like Irv and Jim.

[benday-dot]

b-d, sorry didn't mean to steal your thunder. Can you tell me where to find your thread on BAT-MANGA? I'd love to read it, but I can't find it. I rarely read outside the Classics forum.

The manga-rific onomatapoeic Japanese sound effects (which Kidd left intact, but alas, untransliterated) cracked my daughter and me up big time!

Michi

Hey no real thunder to steal Michi. It was a thread with more of a whimper than a bang. :wink: There's a few prospective buyers of this book here on Classic Comics though. The thread I kicked off should still be on the first or second page of this very forum! Here it is. (http://forums.comicbookresources.com/showthread.php?t=245543)

[Leocomix]

Jim Aparo is the man, especially when he inked himself. It was inspired by Adams, yet better. I'm not saying that Aparo was a better penciler than Adams just the he was as good and IMP slightly better than Adams. Adams did too much distortion and dramatisation for me.
I'm surprised by how many people also anwered this. I thought Aparo lied in undeserved obscurity.

[Beria]

Don Newton drew Batman when I first got interested in the character, so I guess his version is my Batman. He and Aparo clearly stand in the same tradistion as Neal Adams, so I guess any of those three would count.

Other favourites include Rogers, Mazzuchelli, Infantino and, of course, Miller.

[prince hal]

As most of us here seem to agree, The Batman (I always liked that) is not an anti-social psychotic. He is a detective, a father to Dick Grayson, a noble man who still hurts because of the deaths of his beloved parents. He smiles when he's home, but not very much when he's working.

If I could only have one run of Batman, I'd be hard-pressed to decide, but I might opt for the Engelhart-Rogers-Austin version from 1978 because it captures, without simply imitating, so many of the best attributes of many of the other Batmans already mentioned.

[Paradox]

Definitely an old school O'Neil/Adams guy.

[Babylon23]

My Batman is definitely the Jim Aparo Batman, with Marshall Rogers a close second. These were the artists on my first Batman stories, beautifully presented in cheap old B&W Australian reprints.

I'm still amazed at how few issues of Batman Rogers actually produced. When I was younger, I assumed he'd drawn the book for years, given that I had 3 preints collecting his work. Little did I realise that this was all of his work.

[Ideal.]

I love Dick Sprang, but there was something about Shelly Moldoff that captivated me. It's a tough call, but I think Moldoff edges it. The chances of my mind changing once I hit "Post" is 100%.

[Ideal.]

...whoops.

[Pól Rua]

My Batman is definitely the Jim Aparo Batman, with Marshall Rogers a close second. These were the artists on my first Batman stories, beautifully presented in cheap old B&W Australian reprints.

I'm still amazed at how few issues of Batman Rogers actually produced. When I was younger, I assumed he'd drawn the book for years, given that I had 3 preints collecting his work. Little did I realise that this was all of his work.

I was the same with Michael Golden. When I was a kid, all you could get were Australian B&W reprints of (mostly DC) stuff. They'd throw all sorts of stuff together in a weird hodge podge.
You'd get Neal Adams nestled alongside Jim Aparo and Dick Sprang... maybe even some Swanderson... a Kurt Schaffengerger Robin... maybe even Wayne Boring illustrating a tale of the World's Finest.
So yeah, as a kid, I saw these Batman stories with art by Michael Golden. Fantastic stuff, simultaneously gritty and ugly while being quite ornate and decorative. Beautiful pools of black shadow and water.
I found out later, the guy never even had a regular run on 'Batman' or 'Detective' and that the stories came from the short-lived 'Batman Family' title/.

[destro]

Another vote for Jim Aparo here. Never cared for the corny older versions (what worked for Superman looked awful on Batman) or the psychotic dark modern versions.

[devildinosaur]

Jim Aparo always drew the definitive Batman for me.

[devildinosaur]

Don Newton drew Batman when I first got interested in the character, so I guess his version is my Batman. He and Aparo clearly stand in the same tradistion as Neal Adams, so I guess any of those three would count.

Other favourites include Rogers, Mazzuchelli, Infantino and, of course, Miller.

Oh, good call. I'd almost forgotten about Don Newton. He's right on Mr. Aparo's heels.

[MichikoS]

A quick question about the state of the Batman Himself, since the finale to the Batman RIP storyline came out this week. I flipped through the book at my LCS, and then I tried to read the posts on the Batman forum about RIP.

I swear, it's like reading a transcript of the Council of Trent. Bat Theology is rampant. Morrison apologists are in high dudgeon. The tenor of the debate is sectarian and abstruse.

In short, I couldn't understand a single thing going on. Is this what Batman, the comic book, has come to? How can anyone stand the damn thing?

Please, someone tell me what's going on with DC and this comic book in particular. It's just going right over my head. Are any old Batman fans buying into this (literal) insanity?

Michi

[prince hal]

Are any old Batman fans buying into this (literal) insanity?

Michi

Not I, says this little red hen. DC's current "continuity," "universe," "reality," "reboot, " whatever you want to call it, makes Lyndon La Rouche's take on the world seem lucid. I haven't followed it for decades now. Can't even make sense of it when it's synopsized. And now they're even rebooting the rebooted reboots: there's a new version of Superman's origin coming out, told from Clark Kent's perspective. Very creative and all, but could we settle on one origin story per generation of readers, please?

Take two Sprangs and call me in the morning.

[Global Honored]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoX-HkOcEuE

[Pól Rua]

A quick question about the state of the Batman Himself, since the finale to the Batman RIP storyline came out this week. I flipped through the book at my LCS, and then I tried to read the posts on the Batman forum about RIP.

I swear, it's like reading a transcript of the Council of Trent. Bat Theology is rampant. Morrison apologists are in high dudgeon. The tenor of the debate is sectarian and abstruse.

In short, I couldn't understand a single thing going on. Is this what Batman, the comic book, has come to? How can anyone stand the damn thing?

Please, someone tell me what's going on with DC and this comic book in particular. It's just going right over my head. Are any old Batman fans buying into this (literal) insanity?

Michi

I'm quite enjoying it, but mainly because it's restricted to the Bat Titles and there alone. Yes, Batman is a little more complex and 'weird' than it has been, but honestly, I'm quite enjoying it. Very much looking forward to the Trade.
That said, if you're after something a little less surreal, Paul Dini's work on Detective has been a lot more straightforward.

[Mia]

My Batman...that's hard. But I'll make it a tie between Greg Rucka and Grant Morrison's. The character is more fully developed under the pen of these two gentlemen.

[AugustEngine]

Bruce Timm. Batman: TAS is just too good. They also have the same first name.

[stelok]

Frank Miller's Batman.

[Sean Walsh]

Jim Aparo Batman, probably, with (now and forever) the voice of Kevin Conroy. :smile:

[Leocomix]

A quick question about the state of the Batman Himself, since the finale to the Batman RIP storyline came out this week. I flipped through the book at my LCS, and then I tried to read the posts on the Batman forum about RIP.

I swear, it's like reading a transcript of the Council of Trent. Bat Theology is rampant. Morrison apologists are in high dudgeon. The tenor of the debate is sectarian and abstruse.

In short, I couldn't understand a single thing going on. Is this what Batman, the comic book, has come to? How can anyone stand the damn thing?

Please, someone tell me what's going on with DC and this comic book in particular. It's just going right over my head. Are any old Batman fans buying into this (literal) insanity?

Michi

How could I not like a writer who reintroduces the ten-eyed man?

[FanboyStranger]

When I picture Batman, I always picture Marshall Rogers' Batman. He always gave Batman a real fluidity and grace that enjoy a great deal more than many of the bulkier 'Batmen' that have followed in the past two decades. I have to admit I have a real fondness for Aparo's Batman, and I think Tim Sale has been the definitive Bat artist of the past fifteen years.

As far as writers, it's Matt Wagner who writes the Batman that I enjoy the most, although I have to give props to Denny ONeill, Steve Englehart, and Archie Goodwin.

[Polar Bear]

When I "hear" Batman, I hear Mike W. Barr's words. When I "see" Batman, I see Michael Golden or Don Newton's art. Lots of love for Dick Sprang, though.

Incidentally, for the Joker, it's Engelhart/Rogers, no contest.

Still waiting for the definitive Catwoman--probably it'd be Jim Balent drawing her in the late 1970's/early 80's costume. (I absolutely *hate* the hair-covering costume variants she's been stuck in since the early-to-mid-90's Catwoman #68.)

[Bradley]

I thought I knew my own answer-- Steve Englehart and Marshall Rogers forever!-- but reading everyone else's answers has reminded me of how much good Batman stuff has been produced over the years. For art, it's hard to top Jim Aparo and Norm Breyfogle's work on the character (unless you're Neal Adams). The Tim Burton movies deserve some recognition too-- they're not just good comic book movies, they're good films, period. And the animated series is still great. The Doug Moench and Paul Gulacy stuff holds a special place in my heart, as does the Mike Barr and Alan Davis era. Most recently, I think Grant Morrison has written the best Batman in decades. Honesty, the Batman era I have the least use for is the one ushered in by Frank Miller, where Batman is just a brooding bore-- gritting his teeth, chock full of pathos (sadly, that's about all we've seen in the past two decades).

I guess I like the Batman of the seventies-- particularly when he's written and drawn by Englehart and Rogers-- and any version of the character inspired by the Batman of the 70s (Burton's, Morrison's, and-- I think-- Dini and Timm's).

[MichikoS]

Not wishing to derail this thread too much, but I'd like to post a final comment on my befuddlement, expressed earlier, with the direction of the Batman franchise in the 21st century.

This is from the Savage Critics (http://www.savagecritic.com/labels/Abhay.html) blog, and it's written by Abhay Khosla as part of a review of Secret Invasion #8, which apparently Marvel spoiled with an article on the series' climax in the New York Times published on Wednesday, December 3, the release date of the final issue:

Marvel’s only able to spoil the end of SECRET INVASION because they can understand it. DC would have loved to spoil the end of BATMAN RIP, but they’d have to understand what happened at the end. And as far as I can tell, nobody does. The issue after Batman is killed by Satan / his Father / some actor (?) / a helicopter that he punched too hard (!)(!)(!), he’s trapped in a machine by alien gods from the god dimension and forced to relive For the Man Who Has Everything outtakes.

What? What in the fuck? How do you conceivably spoil that?? DC has no idea! They don’t understand it anymore than anyone else.

I sure don't.

Michi

[Pól Rua]

Not wishing to derail this thread too much, but I'd like to post a final comment on my befuddlement, expressed earlier, with the direction of the Batman franchise in the 21st century.

This is from the Savage Critics (http://www.savagecritic.com/labels/Abhay.html) blog, and it's written by Abhay Khosla as part of a review of Secret Invasion #8, which apparently Marvel spoiled with an article on the series' climax in the New York Times published on Wednesday, December 3, the release date of the final issue:

Marvel’s only able to spoil the end of SECRET INVASION because they can understand it. DC would have loved to spoil the end of BATMAN RIP, but they’d have to understand what happened at the end. And as far as I can tell, nobody does. The issue after Batman is killed by Satan / his Father / some actor (?) / a helicopter that he punched too hard (!)(!)(!), he’s trapped in a machine by alien gods from the god dimension and forced to relive For the Man Who Has Everything outtakes.

What? What in the fuck? How do you conceivably spoil that?? DC has no idea! They don’t understand it anymore than anyone else.

I sure don't.

Michi

The Bad Guy tries to kill Batman systematically by breaking down everything he is. Then, when he feels that Batman is 'dead', i.e. that everything that he is is destroyed, he buries Batman... which is what you do when someone is dead.
Batman, however, retains his will, his identity and his determination. He renews his faith in himself and returns from 'death' to destroy the machinations of the evil mastermind behind the whole thing who may simply be a failed actor but may also be much, much more.
In the end, for reasons of his own, Bruce Wayne stops being Batman.
And yet... SOMEONE is...

You REALLY don't get the scene with the helicopter?
The baddies are escaping in the helicopter. Batman jumps onto the landing gear and they try and shake him off. Batman climbs up to the cabin and punches out the pilot. There's a crash. What's not to get?

Honestly, there ARE a lot of things in RIP which are quite dense and not easy to get your head around with a cursory glance, but there seem to be an equal amount of thing where people are being willfully obtuse.

[Greg Hatcher]

I think about this question of 'my' Batman a lot, because it's how I judge the Batman comics I'm reading. And truthfully I think we all do this, only we don't talk about it in terms of 'my' Batman. We talk about it in terms of who we think actually 'gets' Batman, as though it's an arbitrary, quantifiable standard. I know who I think Batman should be, and I have my short-list of the creators who I think GET IT.

So "my" Batman is hard to nail down, because I don't know if anyone got the whole thing. The story in which he became my favorite superhero of all time is easy to remember, it was "Half An Evil." So I think he first appeared under Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams.

Then there's Frank Robbin's, Archie Goodwin's and Steve Englehart's version in Detective. Those were all my guy to some extent. Doug Moench's first run in the 1980's, for sure; not so much his second run. Chuck Dixon.

The trouble is the Frank Miller stuff is enjoyable but that's not my guy. But it influenced the guys who WERE writing my guy, it had such a huge gravitational pull it warped everything-- post-Miller Batman by Denny O'Neil is not nearly as much fun as the older O'Neil/Adams Batman, for example. And so on.

As for what he looks like, he's the Adams/Aparo model, the one that stuck for roughly twenty years from 1969 to the first Tim Burton movie. Probably best realized by Don Newton.

I guess he's the 70's guy, but I remember being bitterly disappointed by a lot of 70's stuff, too. (I remember David V. Reed.)

"Scary but not psycho about it" is how I think of him. My Batman is a terrifying figure to criminals but only inspires awe in civilians, and he can kid around with Robin and Alfred when they're hanging around in the cave. He's clearly a good guy and not some humorless driven clenched-jaw fanatic. A lot of guys in recent years seem to confuse Bruce Wayne with Frank Castle and it irritates me. To me, those writers don't GET IT, and it's my biggest problem with Frank Miller's version, as popular as that was. But your mileage may vary.

[Alan2099]

The single best Batman story ever, and the one that defined not only him, but also laid out the ground work for his whole universe to me was the Untold Legend of Batman, by Wein, Aparo, and Bryne.

I hate to spoil it, but it actually revolves around a mystery even Batman can't figure out, with key elements from his past being brought forward and him being attacked where he lives. Turns out it was Bruce Wayne trying to destroy Batman because he had negelected the Bruce Wayne part of himself so long it had developed into sort of a split personality and ends with Batman decided he's become too obsesed and driven and needs to lighten up and remember who he realy is. (It reads much better than it sounds)

I loved how they did that and feel that should be required reading for anyone that brings out the "Batman is the real person and Bruce is the mask" garbage.

[Bradley]

The trouble is the Frank Miller stuff is enjoyable but that's not my guy. But it influenced the guys who WERE writing my guy, it had such a huge gravitational pull it warped everything-- post-Miller Batman by Denny O'Neil is not nearly as much fun as the older O'Neil/Adams Batman, for example. And so on.

...

"Scary but not psycho about it" is how I think of him. My Batman is a terrifying figure to criminals but only inspires awe in civilians, and he can kid around with Robin and Alfred when they're hanging around in the cave. He's clearly a good guy and not some humorless driven clenched-jaw fanatic. A lot of guys in recent years seem to confuse Bruce Wayne with Frank Castle and it irritates me. To me, those writers don't GET IT, and it's my biggest problem with Frank Miller's version, as popular as that was. But your mileage may vary.

Really well said-- I think you've completely nailed it (although the older I get, the less "enjoyable" the Miller stuff seems-- but that's largely because of what was written in Miller's wake, I think, and probably isn't such an indictment of the original work).

[devildinosaur]

Jim Aparo's Batman: lithe and gymnast-like...not all roided up and Schwarzenegger-like.

[icctrombone]

Adams and Aparo without a doubt. This nut job version thats been around the last 15 years is not him.

[Polar Bear]

Got to echo the comment about Untold Legend by Wein--it's pure gold. (I even have an audiotape of issue 1!)

For me, it's about anything written by Mike W. Barr, especially Batman Special #1 with Mike Golden. ("Player on the Other Side," IIRC.) And the Denny O'Neil/Don Newton issues in Detective about 480-495 or something like that.

Yeah, that's my Batman.