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Batman: Origin and Appeal of the Dark KnightDC Comics' Bruce Wayne and his Alter-Ego
From Batman's first appearance in Detective Comics to Christopher's Nolan's The Dark Knight the appeal of DC comics' Batman always lies in Bruce Wayne's human status.
For 3 quarters of a century, fictional billionaire Bruce Wayne’s caped alter-ego Batman has entertained and inspired comic book readers. For decades, the dedicated hero wowed audiences in a movie franchise crossover, starting with Tim Burton’s Batman in 1989. Most recently, the Christopher Nolan’s Batman: The Dark Knight raked in a record-breaking opening weekend with Christian Bale as the latest incarnation of the masked vigilante and Heath Ledger in a final haunting performance as his arch nememsis, the Joker. Batman’s OriginsBatman’s story is simple. First revealed in Detective Comics #30 and never strayed from, Batman’s true identity is millionaire Bruce Wayne. Wayne was a rich kid who witnessed the untimely and brutal death of his parents at the hand of a criminal and grew up to vow to protect his home town Gotham from the same scum that took his parents. Batman BeginsBased on a mix of Zorro and Sherlock Holmes, Batman creators Bob Kane and Bill Finger sketched out the character following the unprecedented success of the Superman comics in 1938. Received well by depression-era kids after his first appearance in Detective Comics, Batman got his own series in 1940 and began his illustrious career as a calm-but-intense purveyor of justice to Gotham’s never-ending circus of criminals. Batman: More Human Than Superman or Spider-ManHis appeal lay in the fact that Batman has no superpowers. Unlike his alien or radiation-soaked comrades (see Incredible Hulk) Batman is just an ordinary man with extreme dedication. This fact makes Batman one of few superheroes who’s god-like status feels within reach for his fans. Without X-ray vision, super-strength, and flight, Bruce Wayne transformed into Batman on sheer dedication and obsession. That, and a whole lotta training. Largely revealed in origin stories, it is written that Bruce Wayne used his extraordinary inheritance to travel the world learning martial arts, gymnastics, disguise, criminology, forensics, even ventriloquism. The future fighter of crime learned 127 styles of combat and physically trained endlessly to metamorphose into the unstoppable menace to criminals. Batman’s GadgetsMuch of Batman’s appeal also arises from those nifty gadgets. From the bat cave to the batarang, Batman’s extensive selection of crime fighting tools hints at his extraordinary ability of foresight and thought, instead of relying on improvised superpowers. Exclusively financed by Bruce Wayne’s millions, these gadgets are as high-tech as they get. His arsenal includes:
Rogues GalleryBatman’s frenzied enemies often outshine his own calm and focused presence. Also without superpowers, these criminal crazies must be creative to attempt to outsmart Batman. The list of loons includes Joker, Two-Face, the Pengiun, Scarecrow, Riddler, Ra’s al Ghul, Clayface, Bane, and Killer Croc. Batman and the Justice LeagueBatman continues to cement himself into the DC universe and the souls of fans through numerous series crossovers, such as his critically acclaimed foray into DC’s Justice League of America. A successful movie franchise continues to pour in newly inspired readers with 6 blockbuster movies and more to come. Batman has been most notably played by Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, George Clooney and Christian Bale. Batman Fun Facts
The copyright of the article Batman: Origin and Appeal of the Dark Knight in Graphic Novels/Comics is owned by Stephanie Cox. Permission to republish Batman: Origin and Appeal of the Dark Knight in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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