I appreciate the response, because I see where it's coming from. I just don't agree with the route they are taking. I would feel a more compelling storyline would be him stopping EVERYONE else from also crime fighting to try to make there life happier as opposed to drag people down to his "grim and gritty".
I just look at that as batmans logic and thinking process, which I just feel this is like you said back to the 50s/60s. I just feel the grim & gritty hasn't reached full circle for him to come around and bring more team back yet, maybe in a couple of years, the dark knight I feel is not ready yet, and that he needs to hit the extreme before realizing the need for balance in his life of having allies/friends to support him.
Alright, hopefully I'll phrase this right, because I don't mean to be offensive...
I respect your opinion. Don't get me wrong. But it's an opinion I hear a lot. And see a lot. Generally - and this may not be you, I don't know - it's an opinion that comes from new fans of Batman, or fans that are unfamiliar with the comics.
Everyone's first response (my own included) after being introduced to Batman in other forms of media, is that he's a loner, that that's the route to take, that that's what makes for compelling, realistic storytelling. And sometimes it does, don't get me wrong.
But, by and large, that interpretation of Batman is generally SO far from what Batman actually is in the comics, it's a near-impossible expectation to ever achieve.
I mean, for instance, Batman forcing everyone else to stop fighting crime. Good idea. Makes sense. His lifestyle is a horrible lifestyle, we'll all agree. But in the comics, it's not just Bruce, Dick, and Tim and Gotham City. It's a literal
universe of superheroes, villains, super powered organizations and groups, etc., etc. That's what the DCU - and Marvel U, even - are; they're a reality where superheroes are not fantasy. They're a very real, and very common reality.
So to come in and say, "I think it would be cool for Batman to be a solo superhero in the comics" is a perfectly fine idea that could very well make for some good stories, when you actually submerse yourself into the comic universe reality, it starts to become an almost...ridiculous idea. It's akin to putting a bat in the middle of a flock of pea*****.
But like I said, your opinion and wish for the creative direction for the character, is perfectly fine, but that type of loner Batman is just not something that could really happy within comic continuity. Would it be a good out-of-continuity story(ies)? Sure, definitely. But that's not what Morrison is writing. He's writing in continuity stories that kind of need to fit in the altered reality of that world.
Basically, keep that fact in mind before getting too disappointed about how Batman is treated in the comics. Or, well, you'll end up pretty much constantly disappointed.
