The Dark Knight Rises Is it too early to be sad that it's over?

[Tim_Riggins]

I don't see why one would be sad. I was pumped coming out of the movie, pumped because the ending is very open to me, and I'm starting to dream of a possible sense of continuity in the next Batman movies, and particularly hoping that JGL

Spoiler

has signed on for several movies and will be either Robin or Batman

because there is some crazy potential there, it is such a tease and a guy like JGL deserves it.

What I think they should do is just do a Batman 4, with the continuity of the DK trilogy, that way, JGL can be in it, and things can get interesting, and I think (hope so) that WB knows how beloved Nolan's movies are and are going to play it safe at first, and they can always do a reboot later.

Some fans might not be on board with the ending of TDKR, but as a fan, and a Gordon Levitt fan, it would be insane to see him

Spoiler

be the new Batman or Robin, or Nightwing or whatever

 

[uniqueweasel]

I'm sad it is actually over, but at the same time, i'm glad we finally have a trilogy that does justice to the Bat!

 

[Silvermoth]

I'm sad Nolan's trilogy is over but I'm excited that there might be more!

Just hopefully not a reboot

 

[Tim_Riggins]

There will be more, it's not even a question.

 

[Chrisbarnes182]

I don't see why one would be sad. I was pumped coming out of the movie, pumped because the ending is very open to me, and I'm starting to dream of a possible sense of continuity in the next Batman movies, and particularly hoping that JGL

Spoiler

has signed on for several movies and will be either Robin or Batman

because there is some crazy potential there, it is such a tease and a guy like JGL deserves it.

What I think they should do is just do a Batman 4, with the continuity of the DK trilogy, that way, JGL can be in it, and things can get interesting, and I think (hope so) that WB knows how beloved Nolan's movies are and are going to play it safe at first, and they can always do a reboot later.

Some fans might not be on board with the ending of TDKR, but as a fan, and a Gordon Levitt fan, it would be insane to see him

Spoiler

be the new Batman or Robin, or Nightwing or whatever

I am with you 100% this is exactly how I feel and JGL is a great actor and deserves his shot at leading up a film of this type. I really don't want any reboot but at the same time i don't want Nolans trilogy to be dampened because of poor sequels.

The could leave Nolans Trilogy as his Trilogy and with the John Blake character the can start a new trilogy which just happens to follow on from Nolans.

Nightwing Trilogy yes please.

 

[SpaceWay2009]

I'm a little sad that Nolan will no longer continue the series. But it was a great end! Hopefully there'll be a spin-off (Robin or Nightwing sounds good to me. Or maybe Batman Beyond).

 

[joker1524]

Im very sad...didnt hit me till a couple of days ago

 

[Spuzz]

It's not too early to be sad. But it's also not too early to watch TDKR again...and again...and again.

 

[cryptic name]

Watched TDKR for the third time and... I guess it finally hit me.

It's over.

I mean, sure. We have the DVD still. And we'll always hope for extended cuts (my god, I think they would set DVD sales records - especially Dark Knight!). And there will always be more Batman produced, likely more films in a few years.

But this trilogy, this great journey... it's done. Complete. Concluded.

And I'm just... I'm satisfied, but I'm also sad. Because yet again, another great piece of entertainment I've so enjoyed is done and over with. The future of the films is uncertain again, when it really hasn't been much to worry about (quality wise) since the day "Begins" was released and a collective sigh of relief was breathed.

I feel a little excitement about the "what if?" and "maybe..." possibilities of what is next, but mostly... something great is gone and over, and I just want to hug my Nolan-verse memorabilia and rock back-and-forth chanting "In Nolan We Trust" because for every "Dark Knight" there is a "Batman & Robin" and for every The Animated Series (92-95) there is a "The Batman" (2004) and... why do good things have to end?

I'm right there with you. I remember being on these boards when it was a toss up between Arronofsky's Year One project, the Batman Beyond film, and the Batman vs. Superman film. And then one day the news that the "Memento guy" was doing "Batman: The Intimidation Game" with David Goyer. I remember the "Bale dammit!" days, and the feeling of vindication and joy when it actually was Bale, dammit. We were all kind of skeptical when the title "Batman Begins" was announced, and didn't know whether to be elated or confused when the first image of the tumbler was released. I remember that first big review of the leaked script and hearing that it was actually great. Then the movie came out, it was the summer between my junior and senior year in high school, and it captivated me. It was the Batman film I'd always imagined (more or less).

2 years later when things were ramping up for the sequel was even more intense; between title arguments (Batman: Escalation, lol) and drawn out fights about the Joker being an albino who never laughed and didn't wear a purple suit, and Paul Bettany vs. Lachey Hulme for the role. Then the Ledger announcement (WHAT?!) the title announcement (Awesome!) and slowly the first pics of the new suit and the first reveal of Ledger's Joker through the first piece of the epic viral marketing. Following that viral marketing defined my life for a year, it seemed. I couldn't get enough. And the movie itself, wow...well we all saw it so we know.

I could go on and on, but I'll just say Nolan made these last 7 or 8 years an amazing time to be a Batman fan. It is a strange, sad feeling to know I won't have another Bat film from him to obsessively follow as it develops. I mean I know there will be more Batman films, probably damn good ones, but it just seems the era where it's so all consuming has come to an end with the completion of this amazing trilogy. Well, at least I have the blu ray box set to look forward to.

 

[cryptic name]

I am with you 100% this is exactly how I feel and JGL is a great actor and deserves his shot at leading up a film of this type. I really don't want any reboot but at the same time i don't want Nolans trilogy to be dampened because of poor sequels.

The could leave Nolans Trilogy as his Trilogy and with the John Blake character the can start a new trilogy which just happens to follow on from Nolans.

Nightwing Trilogy yes please.

I actually like the way that suit looks without a belt. Not really digging the goggles though.

 

[batbax]

wasnt there a thing a long time ago that said bale had signed on for 4 movies? something tells me this was all planned.

 

[kvz5]

I do feel sad/depressed about it. It hit me once the production ended back in 2011. Nolan's Batverse was the perfect storm for me. Favorite comic book character, director, and actor all in one series and the fact that it's over and there's no more stories to be told by the same cast and crew is pretty depressing.

 

[Destructus86]

I'm conflicted. I'm a little sad it's over because I DO like Nolan's version of Batman...on the other hand i'm also very glad it's over because I want a Batman film closer to the comics, complete with the gothic feel.

 

[Tim_Riggins]

Man, I really hope that they'll give JGL his spin off or give him the lead in the next Batman movie, seriously, it would be a missed opportunity if they just left it there, there is tremendous potential and I had fu cking chills at the end of TDKR with Robin (well let's use his real name ^^) being baptized by the bats, and the new owner of the Batcave if I may say so.

Some sense of continuity would be nice, and I don't think that WB is willing to wait 5 years or more to do a reboot, the trilogy is way too beloved.

 

[BeserkerHilf]

I'm right there with you. I remember being on these boards when it was a toss up between Arronofsky's Year One project, the Batman Beyond film, and the Batman vs. Superman film. And then one day the news that the "Memento guy" was doing "Batman: The Intimidation Game" with David Goyer. I remember the "Bale dammit!" days, and the feeling of vindication and joy when it actually was Bale, dammit. We were all kind of skeptical when the title "Batman Begins" was announced, and didn't know whether to be elated or confused when the first image of the tumbler was released. I remember that first big review of the leaked script and hearing that it was actually great. Then the movie came out, it was the summer between my junior and senior year in high school, and it captivated me. It was the Batman film I'd always imagined (more or less).

2 years later when things were ramping up for the sequel was even more intense; between title arguments (Batman: Escalation, lol) and drawn out fights about the Joker being an albino who never laughed and didn't wear a purple suit, and Paul Bettany vs. Lachey Hulme for the role. Then the Ledger announcement (WHAT?!) the title announcement (Awesome!) and slowly the first pics of the new suit and the first reveal of Ledger's Joker through the first piece of the epic viral marketing. Following that viral marketing defined my life for a year, it seemed. I couldn't get enough. And the movie itself, wow...well we all saw it so we know.

I could go on and on, but I'll just say Nolan made these last 7 or 8 years an amazing time to be a Batman fan. It is a strange, sad feeling to know I won't have another Bat film from him to obsessively follow as it develops. I mean I know there will be more Batman films, probably damn good ones, but it just seems the era where it's so all consuming has come to an end with the completion of this amazing trilogy. Well, at least I have the blu ray box set to look forward to.

It appears we're the same age, I was also going into my senior year when begins came out. I was just telling my girlfriend that she had no idea the scale of The Dark Knight in terms of the virals and debates in the 9 months or so leading up to it's release.

 

[mongoose-mania]

I'm very sad. I loved Batman Begins when it came out, but really got involved in the hype during the virals for TDK. It's been one heck of a journey, and as sad as I am to see it all end, I'm also very happy with what Chris Nolan has given us all. Can't wait for the DVD of TDKR so I can finally have a marathon.

 

[Grommers]

I am sad. For many a reason, I initially jumped on the SHH forums during the TDK filming I had stumbled upon it, and the viral marketing I thought was pretty cool and I had no clue what to expect. I had just watched Batman Begins finally and fell instantly in love. (None of my friends went and saw it in theatre, and I wasn't really a batman fan.)

Batman begins really introduced me to the character, before TDK, I started reading the graphic novels that many of the Hype members recommended, and they were amazing. I could only imagine what was in store for TDK. I followed the whole TDK Viral marketing and participated in these boards huge, TDKR obviously with the smaller amount of marketing, I didn't find myself as active, but I'd still come in here and snoop, and lurk.

I found myself trying to expand, and I ended up reading GL comics, and well, I discussed it quite a bit, but well, once it came out, everyone knows how well that turned out. So, I was back to square one, and back to discussing Batman.

The nice part of batman was, there was always the cartoons for me to discuss, and the movie, and to a certain extent Arkham City. Now, There isnt any Arkham game announced. (as of yet.), There is no cartoon ( Yes I know beware the b-man is coming out.), but TDKR and the Nolan trilogy is over. Which means A LOT of downtime.

I truly hope that this new superman is awe inspiring because I quite like it here, the people are nice, and you get REALLY indepth conversations that well, I can't have with real life friends and view points. Yes, I realize there's other parts of the boards that has discussion, but I don't find it nearly as tantalizing to read, and no where near the depth that the batforums reach.

Going forward - I'm not gonna say I'm leaving the hype, hell I'm not even a big "Named" poster to begin with, but I have to imagine it will slow down here - the discussions wont be new with everyone already have put in there two cents. No new material etc, and for that reason alone I am sad this all over. It really invigorated my brain reading some posts, and how they view certain scenes that I had never thought of with the same consideration.

I am sad that the Nolan Era is over, but I honestly think I'm gonna be more sad of the discussion that took place on this board, that will inevitably die down.

 

[Bruce Malone]

Trust me we will look back and be grateful nolan didn't come back to temp fate and make a 4th one.

It's already one of the best trilogies of all time no problem with leaving on top.

 

[Doc Samson]

I personally feel a great sense of gratitude towards Nolan, not just because he created a great Batman saga, but that, in my personal experience, he created one that seemed tailor made for my tastes. I don't know how, but the man seems to have a direct line straight to my brain.

Exactly how I feel, I believe that's why I'm so partial to this trilogy even though my first real movie going experience was B89. I can remember that vividly, it's still the biggest waiting line I've ever seen in my life, it stretched literally outside the theater and down a block.

But as a man now, there's certain aspects of Batman I've always preferred. From the selection of villains, to the tone and approach, Nolan just gave me exactly what I always imagined Batman to be on film. It's going to be damn hard for me to get this excited again, although I think there's still a wide open spot for someone to do a direct comic version of films, in the vein of TAS.

 

[Mace Dolex]

Yeah It's sad that the ride is over why I even remember reading the IMDB frontpage in 2004 with the announcement that Christian Bale was going to be Batman, "Hell yeah".

And at work I would mention to my co-workers how this was a complete new more serious take on Batman and of course they would ask me questions about this and that.

 

[BatLobster]

Very bittersweet. I'm so grateful and frankly still amazed that this trilogy even exists. In one sense, I'm breathing a sigh of relief that it's all set in stone now. I can sit comfortably with my Making of The Dark Knight Trilogy book, eventually the trilogy box set (maybe some day extended cuts or at least deleted scenes *crosses fingers*) And there's always room for some Nolan-verse fan-fiction. And of course, the comics will always be there to give me my Bat-fix. Not to mention the third Arkham game and all the other Bat-media that will come our way in the near future.

But yeah...I've been anticipating Nolan Bat-films since 2003 and it definitely feels weird and empty to no longer have one to look forward to.

One thing I do have though: the memories and real life friendships that were forged from a shared love of this franchise. It was a great time to be a Batman fan...and it was a great time in that everyone was a Batman fan. These movies were almost like a way of life.

 

[Rowsdower!]

Yeah, I think the Seuss quote pretty much sums up my feelings of the matter. While I don't know what's in store for the Dark Knight on film now (or the rest of the DCU for that matter) I'm just happy that I walked out of the theater after TDKR feeling ecstatic because Nolan really did the impossible and made three GREAT movies. He made a trilogy that stands up against the other ones (LOTR, Star Wars, Back to the Future, Indiana Jones). People can dissect each of these movies and pull out the plot holes if they want but to me, each film is great in its own way and as a Batman fan, I can't help but feel like we all owe Nolan something because he took our favorite character and truly made a classic series of films about him.

I'm a fan of the genre. I loved The Avengers and the films that led up to it, I liked most of the X-Men films, the first two Spider-Man movies are great, and Superman '78 is a classic. But Nolan's films (so far) are the first complete series of truly great superhero movies that we've gotten. What I loved about all of these movies is that they were all incredibly faithful to the source material, incorporating key scenarios and characterizations, yet they also weren't afraid to take the story in new directions. They went places where Batman and Gotham have never gone before. Some people might criticize TDKR because they didn't like Batman hanging it up for eight years or they didn't like the idea of a peaceful Gotham. But I think these were bold moves that really allowed the character and the story to evolve.

Comic books are really glorified soap operas. Batman might go through some crap here and there but eventually, he'll go back to solving crimes; the Joker will always escape Arkham no matter how many times he gets locked up; Jim Gordon will always shine the Bat-signal when he needs help; and every time a Robin grows up, some new kid will replace him. And don't get me wrong; there's a part of me that loves the static nature of comics because if I feel like reading a new Batman story, I can usually just pick up a book and it's not hard to figure out what's changed since I last read (it usually isn't much). But a movie series is not the same way. And if you intend that series to be finite... if you want it to be a trilogy, then there has to be a reason it comes to an end. I think Nolan did a fantastic job with these films. I can't wait to see what he does next.

 

[Keyser Soze]

Man, I really hope that they'll give JGL his spin off or give him the lead in the next Batman movie, seriously, it would be a missed opportunity if they just left it there, there is tremendous potential and I had fu cking chills at the end of TDKR with Robin (well let's use his real name ^^) being baptized by the bats, and the new owner of the Batcave if I may say so.

Some sense of continuity would be nice, and I don't think that WB is willing to wait 5 years or more to do a reboot, the trilogy is way too beloved.

I think anyone thinking these movies will continue with Joseph Gordon-Levitt's John Blake in the lead role got the wrong idea. That was the end of the story. The stuff with Blake was to give us a sense of possibility, that this world will continue on in our absence. But I don't need to see that world any more than I need to see the.media fallout of Rorscarch's journal being discovered at the end of Watchmen.

Nolan finished his story with his trilogy. Rather than watch a different director try to continue in that world, I'd prefer a clean slate and a new vision for a future Batman film.

 

[tek]

there will be more batman movies. i am only sad that heath passed away denying the chance to see more of that joker. i still have that even while watching the 3rd movie, despite it being fantastic, thinking of what might have been

 

[Chrisbarnes182]

there will be more batman movies. i am only sad that heath passed away denying the chance to see more of that joker. i still have that even while watching the 3rd movie, despite it being fantastic, thinking of what might have been

It was a very sad day when Heath passed away with or without The Dark Knight the world lost a very talented person.

And with that being said after finally watching The Dark Knight and seeing what he had done/achieved with that character, the same character that nobody thought could be done again to the standard previously set by Jack Nicholson in Batman (89). He blew it out of the water and took it further than I am sure anybody on these forums and I bet even Christopher Nolan himself could have imagined.

I remember the feeling of excitement and extreme sadness upon leaving the theatre, Excitement of how great the film truly was but the sadness of knowing we will never see that purple suit and scars again.

"Why So Serious"

R.I.P Heath Ledger