Doesn't Batman Returns count?![]()
Do people really want to see the Riddler? Gorshin's performance got integrated into 70s Joker. It's a little bit superfluous to me and I don't like those "clever" ideas like: "Oh let's make him an evil profiler working for the police". Nah, really, Riddler is not movie material.
Here's the thing: most people asking for Riddler are *not* thinking Gorshin. They are thinking the Timm/Dini version of the character, or some of the comic portrayals at least partially inspired by such. This Riddler is not an inferior Joker clone.
He's the mastermind on the other end of the telephone or computer screen, the one engaged in a literal battle of wits with the hero of the story. The best cinematic conparison would be Simon Gruber from Die Hard With A Vengeance, with both traps and obstacles the hero has to overcome, and a deeper scheme that must be deciphered to actually beat the villain.
The modern Joker is influenced by Gorshin, not the other way 'round.
That's an absolutely boring and generic take on the Riddler. People do NOT really want that, albeit they might believe it. Mastermind is also doubtful, in his original stories he was clever, but more of a cheater. The Riddler thinking of himself as some sort of genius is better than him being one. In his best portrayal (Gorshin) he was unhinged and in his best story he was possessed by a demon (Dark Knight, Dark City). I don't want a generic game-playing Riddler or information provider or whatever boring **** people come up to make him more "relevant". There's a reason why Denny O'Neil considered him a joke.
That's an absolutely boring and generic take on the Riddler. People do NOT really want that, albeit they might believe it. Mastermind is also doubtful, in his original stories he was clever, but more of a cheater. The Riddler thinking of himself as some sort of genius is better than him being one. In his best portrayal (Gorshin) he was unhinged and in his best story he was possessed by a demon (Dark Knight, Dark City). I don't want a generic game-playing Riddler or information provider or whatever boring **** people come up to make him more "relevant". There's a reason why Denny O'Neil considered him a joke.
Doesn't Batman Returns count?![]()
Mr. Freeze has potential but is probably a bit too strongly sci fi and though I like Poison Ivy she tends to be a bit goofy/OTT (not as much as in B&R but not that far off also) and so hard to take seriously.
If Nolan's reinterpretations of Ra's Al Ghul and Bane count, so should Burton's Penguin.