trampb

August 8, 2012 10:05 am Thanks, 6 sounds about right-these year long arcs havebeen wrecking my head. Doesn't give you any jumping off or jumping on points, which I think is important in comics. From now on, I'm going to avoid reading a story that takes as long as The Court of Owls. Not enough happened to justify the multiple chapters. The back up story set in the past was much better.

August 8, 2012 7:56 am Anyone know how long this story arc is going to take? Intrigued by The Joker's return but not sure I can stand another DC boreathon.

August 3, 2012 6:00 am I worry about enabling bad comics too, but I've followed this stupid story so far now that I have to see it through to the end. Then I'm jumping ship. I don't know what to replace them with-maybe a Marvel title-Daredevil, Spider Man? I wouldn't mind reading All Star Western-anyone know if that's any good? Might wait for the trade paperback of that before I jump on though. Whatever I do, I'll be glad to have Swamp thing and Animal Man gone-such a shame as they're two of my favourite characters.

August 2, 2012 2:53 pm Even Snyder's BatMan run is far too drawn out, considering how little happened. Comics have got to get over having these stupidly long story arcs that could easily be wrapped up in three issues.

August 2, 2012 4:52 am I've been reading Swamp Thing and Animal Man out of a love of both characters, but have found both of them to be a chore since around issue six. That was when I realised that this was some kind of Never Ending Story. It's the same with Snyder's Bat Man(though that last issue had the best fight I've seen in comics for years). DC have made a cynical decision to drag these stories out in the hope that people will keep reading until they wrap it up-even if they're bored senseless. More has happened in two issues of BatMan Incorporated than has happened in either of these two titles in a year. And is it just me, or does the whole 'elemental' thing sound more ridiculous everytime they mention it? It seems to replace actual cause and effect plot lines with a load of vague nonsense-good for a short three issue run, maybe. I'm not sure many stories could survive this marathon.

July 22, 2012 6:22 pm trampb says: July 22, 2012 at 4:24 pm Okay, I agree with Wheelhands when he says we’re free to imagine what we want about the ending. My imagining is that Bruce comes back, carries on being Bat Man and that Blake turns out to be someone other than he is, eventually becoming Robin. I’m not a massive fan of the “Real World” take on comics, so this pleases me more than the rational, ‘realistic’ ideas a lot of you guys have. My idea doesn’t make anyone else’s idea less valid; it’s just how I like to see it. I would like to see a new Bat Man film that doesn’t have to retread the origin, but I would also hate to see a Bat Man film without Bruce Wayne in the cowl. I think either move would upset some of the hardcore fans. For my opinion on Bat Man being more than just a ‘Realistic, violent, gritty, vigilante’ see here: http://trampb.blogspot.co.uk/

July 22, 2012 10:03 am SPOILER!!!! Right, just wondering why so many people are convinced that Blake is the new bat man at the end of the film. Could somebody help me out here, but the ending seemed ambiguous and left the chance of Bruce's return as much as anything. Blake might think he's training himself up as a succesor to Bat man, but if Bruce did return, surely he would be more likely to end up being Robin?

July 22, 2012 5:43 am The whole French revolution thing was definitely there-also references to the Russian revolution in 'Ten Days That Shook The World,' style scene on the steps. I think both dark Knight and this one had underlying political messages without a doubt. I know nothing about Nolan as a person, but I'm guessing he's pretty right wing. The first half of DKR played to current anti-banker feeling, but the second half seemed to suggest that revolution will always end in disaster. The only possible interpretation here is that though rich powerful people can be bad, the only people capable or worthy of stopping them are other rich and powerful people. Admittedly, there are flaws in this interpretation, such as everyman cop, John Blake or the fact that the league of Shadows are the instigators of the 'Revolution,' but the sense of revolutionary futility comes through most of all. (Most obviously with Cat Woman's change of heart about her planned revenge on the rich.) Slavoj Zizek has an amazing interpretation of The Dark Knight as excusing Western foreign policy. Sounds like a massive leap, but makes perfect sense when you read it. Unfortunately, I can't remember where I read it so can't throw up a link.

July 21, 2012 3:35 pm I'm reading this until at least the end of the story. Mieville's The City and the CIty was an amazing book and this is showing flashes of that quality. Unfortunately, I don't think he's quite got the hang of comic writing yet. He wrote one before, that you can find in his short story collection, Looking for Jake, and it was the worst thing in it. But the ideas bubbling under here are right up my street so I'm hoping he can get the hang of it as he goes on.If not, DC are welcome to let me take over the book; I think it would be about the most fun thing to write at the moment.

July 21, 2012 3:21 pm Arvind...I am thirty four years old and love comics. When I was talking about comics being a children's medium I was referring to their origins. I realise that they have transcended that now, but when The killing Joke was released, it was still in that transitional period; you only have to read other books from that era to see that some creators were making their first tentative steps toward a more sophisticated approach while other creators were still producing work intended for a very young audience. I agree that Nolan does find ways of using those comic book tropes that you mention, but he always finds a way of making it 'real' which I personally think defeats the object. Uspunx...I agree that DKR is the most 'comic book' of the trilogy-which is why I liked it the most out of the Nolan films. But the whole business of not calling Cat Woman Cat Woman was just stupid. Arvind...What was the giant robot dragon?