a thank you from team batman

[RoughNTumble]

oh, I also had a question, I don't know if this is going to be answered in the last couple issues of the court of owls--

why does the court send so many talons to wayne manor when they only send one or two to assassinate all the other city leaders?

it seems like they don't discover bruce is batman until the one follows alfred into the cave.

[ssnyder1835]

And again, I just wanted to say thanks to you all. I don't come here often (you're a tough crowd:)), but I do look at your posts on Batman very often and consider them. I know I'm a young writer to be on these big books, and I have a lot to learn. A lot I could be better at. I hope you're seeing improvement :) like in the cutting down of anecdotes and such! All I can say is I'm giving everything I have to deliver the best book I'm capable of right now. I know how much you love Bruce, and I do too, and your passion for him and the bat-mythology is inspiring all the time. Hope you enjoy 10 and 11. Thanks.

[TZDEKA]

I think we all have a different and very personal take on what Bruce's obsession is. For me, it is basically what you say here, making Gotham a better place, but it's an extreme version of that. It's a never-ending mission to make Gotham completely safe, and to that end, it's an unattainable goal. He can never make it the place he wants it to be, it can never be the safe place where his parents were not killed. This is what turns it from a goal to an obsession for me, personally, the punishing and relentless drive he has to make this impossibility real. And all the things he sacrifices for that impossibility day in and out. The obsession is part of what makes him, for me, the most heroic and pathological of the big DC heroes.

I can agree with that personally, and I agree it's simultaneously incredibly heroic and tragic that he devotes all his energy to something he can probably never totally achieve. Morrison described it as "Batman never takes a day off", just to reference one of your contemporaries. Thanks for answering my question and mad props for coming on here despite the fact that people can be brutally frank. I know it must be really tough to hear sometimes and I think it's really cool it'd mean enough to you to thank everyone that you'd expose yourself to such things. I've been wincing at some of the stuff I've seen people say myself. So again, very cool of you.

[Gnarkill]

Of the ten books on my pull your 20% of them haha. I'm loving swamp thing and Batman and will continue reading both as long as your on them. Keep up the great work, and tell Greg he is killing it with Batman, you guys are a fantastic team!

[maxpower00044]

It seems I've missed all this good discussion, because I was hammering through "The Complete History Of Batman.", from cover to cover. I think it's awesome that you took the time out to talk to people, answer questions, and to explain your ideas to some of the people who haven't enjoyed the story as much as others. It shows you really care about these characters and want to make them the best that you can make them.

- When do we find out the Villain of the next arc? I'm dying here! (besides who the hell's in the Court, this is my most sought after answer.)


Ps. I'm also on the "Swamp Thing is amazing" bandwagon. I had no interest in the character, but picked it up because I have enjoyed you writing on Batman, Severed, and AV; and it's easily shot up to one of my favorite titles I read monthly. Hope you poke you head in here more often, and if not, I'll just pick your brain at 4th World Comics. (best LCS, ever!)

[vampiric_cannibal]

Damn it... the writer is too damn nice to troll or force answers from, and upon a ten second delay or short answer flame him vigorously.

lesson 1 (to a teacher of writing): use your existing, extensive supporting cast. Nightwing's good, and Alfred, but a decent world of Bats needs its Leslie Thompkins and minor GCPD sergeants and detectives and Batman's JL friends popping by
lesson 2: fewer white new characters. Seemingly the two new characters resulting from your run so far, Harper and good-Talon, are rather obviously white. If you're going to make new characters and give them any push, having a Puerto Rican ninja with a German accent or something outlandish and zany and fun is better. A Sri Lankan hero always called Indian is going to have a unique spin on things. More white characters? Already half a dozen there.
lesson 3: forwards, not backwards. I know it will get retconned for aging Batman too much, but stories that go to develop the lore, as opposed to those that draw from it are better. The Court is rather an interesting middle ground.

[doordoor123]

I think we all have a different and very personal take on what Bruce's obsession is. For me, it is basically what you say here, making Gotham a better place, but it's an extreme version of that. It's a never-ending mission to make Gotham completely safe, and to that end, it's an unattainable goal. He can never make it the place he wants it to be, it can never be the safe place where his parents were not killed. This is what turns it from a goal to an obsession for me, personally, the punishing and relentless drive he has to make this impossibility real. And all the things he sacrifices for that impossibility day in and out. The obsession is part of what makes him, for me, the most heroic and pathological of the big DC heroes.

Missed my chance to ask. Guess I'll ask anyway... Does he realize that it is an unattainable goal? Bruce coming to that realization would be a pretty big story and it would move him forward in a big way, but would that ruin the character? Can Batman even survive without his "mission"? I guess that'll have to be saved for Batman's final issue EVER -- hopefully I don't live to see that day.
P.S. I sure hope that isn't how the Dark Knight Rises ends...

[doordoor123]

Damn it... the writer is too damn nice to troll or force answers from, and upon a ten second delay or short answer flame him vigorously.

lesson 1 (to a teacher of writing): use your existing, extensive supporting cast. Nightwing's good, and Alfred, but a decent world of Bats needs its Leslie Thompkins and minor GCPD sergeants and detectives and Batman's JL friends popping by
lesson 2: fewer white new characters. Seemingly the two new characters resulting from your run so far, Harper and good-Talon, are rather obviously white. If you're going to make new characters and give them any push, having a Puerto Rican ninja with a German accent or something outlandish and zany and fun is better. A Sri Lankan hero always called Indian is going to have a unique spin on things. More white characters? Already half a dozen there.
lesson 3: forwards, not backwards. I know it will get retconned for aging Batman too much, but stories that go to develop the lore, as opposed to those that draw from it are better. The Court is rather an interesting middle ground.

Oy veh...
These aren't "writing lessons" More like your requirements.
The only job a writer of comic books should have is writing good stories. Forget the intangibles.

[Jim Thompson]

Hey guys - I'll admit I tend to stay away from this neighborhood. The forums are a place for you to be brutally truthful, and out of respect for that (and partly out of fear:)) I steer clear, usually. But I wanted to come on and just give a quick thank you, on behalf of myself, and all of us working on the book, for all the time and thought you've devoted to the Court of owls arc. On Wed., #10 comes out, and it's sure to be a lightning rod for us. It's got our biggest, boldest reveal yet, and I know it'll spark a lot of conversation here and the bottom line is - I can't wait to see what you think. The story is all about the past coming back to haunt, the unknowable city that is Gotham's past (and the past in general), revealing itself in scary ways to Batman in the present, saying, you'll never know me, and I'm right here beneath your feet, with Gotham revealing shocking evidence of this closer and closer to Bruce every few issues...Some of that history is literal, with the past being dug up, and some is more self-referential for bat-fans, like the story from Batman 107 with Robin becoming Owlman reinterpreted here as Dick was meant to be a Talon. Anyway, it's a story we all believe in, and because of that, I want you to know we appreciate the comments - all of them, good or bad. Again, thanks for reading. S

Classy.

Seriously, I sincerely mean that. Not only do I love what you're doing with Batman right now, but I also wholly appreciate your approach when dealing with the readers. Not only enjoying what I'm reading but feel good about helping to support the people putting out the work.

[Neutrino]

Wow wow wow. There isn't a lot in the New 52 which I eagerly await every release, but BATMAN is one of them.

If you'll do me the huge favour of weighing in Scott... a lot of your characterisation in Batman titles is based on Gotham, and that's no secret. I wonder... has your characterisation of Gotham changed dramatically between the start of your 'Tec and your current BATMAN run? Black Mirror featured a Gotham that'd take you -- 'you' being Dick Grayson, I guess -- and warp you as if you're in a fever dream. Take the good things in your life -- Barbara and Gordon -- and give you James. The Court of Owls seems to more just kick you in the face and taunt you with everything you knew being wrong, trivilialising all the struggles you've been through and the person you -- Bruce, here -- are. Was this a conscious change in Gotham, and what inspired it? Do the two Gothams (if I haven't imagined all this) co-exist in your mind?

If I happen to have your attention... what do you think drives Bruce once he's got it all, including Batman, Inc. and everything that entails? The start of your BATMAN had a confident Bruce, before he had the stuffing kicked out of him. Of course the narrative ensures that he'll never really be happy... but is Batman content yet?

Reply or not, it's awesome to have your ear, Scott. Just... just keep making great comics. That'd do nicely.

[FailureByDesign]

Scott, not only are you one of DC's strongest writers atm, what makes you go even further in my expectations is that you are such a nice guy (met you at Kapow).
My only criticism is that i felt it was really forced in issue 9 where Batman goes to Jeremiah Arkham first, i know thats not your fault but it still..

[Whip Whirlwind]

Lol - I actually agree with you, but none of us knew how many new readers would actually be there for the New 52. I really thought it was going to be all die-hard swampy fans like me, so my early #1 priority was explaining the cont. the mythology, how we kept this and that... Then I realized we had more new readers than old and I became more concerned with moving the story forward and less concerned with explanation. Nothing about the take or mythology changed, but my drive to articulate what was there still stopped and I think the series is better for it. Glad you're enjoying it!

Just wanted to say that I loved the pacing of swamp thing, even though I haven't read much on the character. Admittedly, the pacing was a little too slow in the beginning, but the moment I first saw swamp thing it was all worth it. I was so glad that you focused more on Alec than swamp thing, since it made his choice and his transformation all the more exciting.

Batman is also awesome, although admittedly I was a little mixed on freeze. Some of Freeze's more sociopathic moments kinda struck me as a retread of James Jr. Love the spin you did on Nora though.

[Mr. Holmes]

For how people rag on the Nolan Batman for not being as skilled as the comic book one, he seems to actually be able to achieve that ultimate goal with Gotham for eight years.

[Dr. Hurt]

Just wanted to say that I loved the pacing of swamp thing, even though I haven't read much on the character. Admittedly, the pacing was a little too slow in the beginning, but the moment I first saw swamp thing it was all worth it. I was so glad that you focused more on Alec than swamp thing, since it made his choice and his transformation all the more exciting.

This. Once Alec becomes Swampy he supposedly cant go back. So you need to set him up first and show why his choice matters so much. I'm glad the story picked up though. I hope he and Abby stay together as a twisted Batman and Robin of sorts. Abby in particular is one of my favourite DC characters at the moment, i hope she sticks around no matter what.

[manduck37]

Thank you Mr. Snyder for coming by and saying how much you appreicate our support. I've been reading Batman for a long time now and I'm really enjoying your run on the character, from the stuff pre re-launch to now. I love how you don't shy away from exploring a character that's decades old and delve into his flaws just as much as his heroics. I read a couple of your book, including Swamp Thing which is just awsome. I also enjoy the horror elements you bring to your work. If this is your calibre of writing as a "green" writer, I'm excited to see what you come up with as you work at your craft. I can be a pretty harsh critic at times though there is a lot to love about your work. I can honestly say that you are one of the few writers who has made my list of talented people that get me excited about their books. When I see your name on a book, I know I can pick it up and really enjoy it. I've noticed a couple of pacing issues pop up every once in a while, but that will smooth out as you continue to write. So keep at it and I hope you're with Batman and Swamp Thing for a long time. It's a true mark of someone who loves their craft when they are always looking for ways to improve, even coming to a message board and welcoming some critique. My hat is off to you sir and you have made me a big fan of your work.