The Batman Spoiler Discussion Thread

[Vaibow]

I took it as Batman/Gordon's attempt to further disorient the Joker and make him crack easier. Didn't work obviously. The Joker was made of tougher stuff than they guessed.

The old good cop bad cop routine...

Even Reeves bettered that.. good cop, bat **** crazy cop...

 

[Vaibow]

Regarding using tdk, and VonRomberg said the same, I too felt like I had seen parts before... but I think what Reeves did, is he took what worked, adapted it to his style, also it's like nostalgia, people like the comfort of that they know..

This movie is legit for me like retelling Nolan's version, through the lens of Burton - not sure if that makes sense but I was very happy with what I saw. I do think the studio wanted to play it somewhat safe but also, the format Nolan used, the story, the beats, it was hardly ground breaking. Maybe that's why it resonates, as it touches upon the batman history so well.

 

[C Prometheus]

How do you guys respond to the statements from Holy BatCast that The Batman borrows heavily from The Dark Knight (not intentionally, necessarily)?

Here's a summary of their comments -

“Thinking of a Batman film that starts with a Batman that’s been around long enough that the urban legend is there, throughout Gotham. To the point where the Batsignal in the sky is enough to make criminals ditch whatever they’re doing because they’re scared.

This new Batman has a strong relationship with Lieutenant James Gordon. To the point where James Gordon allows him into crime scenes to the dismay of his fellow officers and superiors. And their first meeting in the film is to a crime scene to investigate this new criminal in Gotham.

And this new criminal in Gotham is going to bring Gotham to its knees by killing the Mayor, the police Commissioner, trying to kill the District Attorney. And he’s going to make sure everyone knows about it because he has these homemade videos that he’s going to send the Gotham News where not only does he make his threats known, but he also shows you what he does to his victims.

This new criminal is so bold that he ends up blowing up one of the people closest to Batman/Bruce Wayne and when Batman finds out it’s about to happen, he has to race through the city to stop it – but does not make it in time.

In his investigation, Batman goes to a nightclub and gets into a fight in order to get to and interrogate a mobster.

This new villain is always one step ahead of Batman – and Batman doesn’t even catch him initially. The villain intentionally gives himself up to Batman and Gordon. He ends up in jail so Batman can have a scene with him in an interrogation room where he and Batman can talk. Where the villain tells Batman he was inspired by him, where they’re the same and that there is a plan in motion already and Batman can’t do much to stop it.

But Batman does his best to do what he can and makes big sacrifices to save Gotham and we end the film with Batman riding off into the light on his motorcycle to fight another day.

Which Batman film am I thinking of?”

Holy BatCast #335 - The Batman Review - YouTube
@53:00

While I understand the general point, the BatCast is deliberately fudging details between the two films to make them both a bit closer than they are. For instance, Joker kills a judge, not the Mayor in TDK. Meanwhile Riddler successfully kills the DA in The Batman and makes far greater use of using videos and social media than Joker did in TDK.

Moreover, it's not even a matter of Batman not making it in time to save Alfred; he was already too late from the moment he first realized Alfred was in danger. Heck, this even ignores one of the strongest aspects of that sequence in TDK; Joker deliberately switched the locations so that whoever Batman chose to save would be the one he lost.

Again, I understand the general point, but I really think he's blowing it out of proportion. Especially when there's so much that The Batman absolutely does differently than TDK. Both films are about the same character and mythology, even down to using The Long Halloween as a cornerstone of narrative inspiration. But they both adapted different elements from that same book and deliberately buried their flags in the grounds of completely different movie genres.

TDK is far more action-oriented, focusing heavily on grandiose set-pieces and is quite indebted to the work of Michael Mann. Meanwhile The Batman is notably slower paced, more intimate with its framing of the action sequences that are scattered throughout the film and focuses on the psychology of its primary character as he tries to solve a mystery. I'd also argue that The Batman has far more of a horror movie angle to it than TDK.

 

[VonRomberg]

Some of the points feel too generic to pay attention to.

“Killer communicated to media” - Right, like basically every second serial killer in any movie. That’s obviously borrowed much more from the Zodiac Killer than TDK.

“Had a tight relationship with Gordon” - As opposed to how many iterations where they don’t work closely…?

“A Batman that’s been around long enough that the urban legend exists” - Obviously? But in TDK he has one city-saving adventure behind him already and he’s more than just a dark urban legend, in this one the cops and public think he’s a freak and don’t trust him until the end.

“Batman goes to a nightclub and fights a mobster” - How strange that two Italian mobsters with almost identical MOs (Maroni and Falcone) would spend time in similar places, right?

Even if each and every one of these plot beats was exactly mimicked it wouldn’t matter because A) The styles of the movies are so different it’s unnoticeable while watching and B) All these beats repeat in multiple Batman source material arcs - it seems like deliberate stirring to insinuate the only place this could’ve come from is TDK.

 

[chintai80]

i can't count how many times i've seen batman going into a mobster's nightclub to interrogate him in the comics and cartoons. lol

 

[VonRomberg]

We could play this game with Batman Returns and The Batman:

We catch two villains both explain their grand plan, have it recorded and then released for the public to hear. Penguin’s plan for Gotham in BR and Falcone’s murder of Annika to protect him being an informant in The Batman.

Catwoman and Batman have an altercation and fight twice, and another time she jumps from a high building to escape.

Selina Kyle tries to kill a man who wronged her in the past in both movies, Falcone now and Schreck in BR.

In both movies there’s some kind of huge infrastructure corruption cover-up that serves as a relevant sub-plot affecting both Batman and Bruce Wayne, Max Schreck’s power plant whatever nonsense and The Renewal Fund’s misuse now.

There are probably more random similarities I can’t think of off the top of my head - but we probably wouldn’t say there are weird similarities between The Batman and BR.

 

[Eddie Dean]

Other similarities I noticed between The Dark Knight and The Batman:

-Have "The" in the title
-Batman is the main character
-Batman has a butler named Alfred
-Batman drives the batmobile
-Batman has a cowl and cape
-Batman lives in Gotham City
-Batman is actually a guy named Bruce Wayne

 

[Kirk Langstrom]

While I understand the general point, the BatCast is deliberately fudging details between the two films to make them both a bit closer than they are. For instance, Joker kills a judge, not the Mayor in TDK. Meanwhile Riddler successfully kills the DA in The Batman and makes far greater use of using videos and social media than Joker did in TDK.

Moreover, it's not even a matter of Batman not making it in time to save Alfred; he was already too late from the moment he first realized Alfred was in danger. Heck, this even ignores one of the strongest aspects of that sequence in TDK; Joker deliberately switched the locations so that whoever Batman chose to save would be the one he lost.

Again, I understand the general point, but I really think he's blowing it out of proportion. Especially when there's so much that The Batman absolutely does differently than TDK. Both films are about the same character and mythology, even down to using The Long Halloween as a cornerstone of narrative inspiration. But they both adapted different elements from that same book and deliberately buried their flags in the grounds of completely different movie genres.

TDK is far more action-oriented, focusing heavily on grandiose set-pieces and is quite indebted to the work of Michael Mann. Meanwhile The Batman is notably slower paced, more intimate with its framing of the action sequences that are scattered throughout the film and focuses on the psychology of its primary character as he tries to solve a mystery. I'd also argue that The Batman has far more of a horror movie angle to it than TDK.

Agreed on all points. All three of the main guys on HolyBatCast are notorious Snyderverse fans, and that’s fine, but they clearly made up their minds before The Batman even came out that they didn’t like it. The notion that The Batman “borrows” or “steals” from TDK is just silly. Both movies borrow from the same source material, I.e, The Long Halloween, Year One, etc.,.,. so obviously there’s going to be some similarities.

 

[BMW 224]

Finally got to see The Batman today...

Robert Pattinson as Batman has surpassed Christian Bale for me.

He's the most complex take on Batman we've gotten yet in my opinion.

 

[Vaibow]

Other similarities I noticed between The Dark Knight and The Batman:

-Have "The" in the title
-Batman is the main character
-Batman has a butler named Alfred
-Batman drives the batmobile
-Batman has a cowl and cape
-Batman lives in Gotham City
-Batman is actually a guy named Bruce Wayne

SPOILERS!!

 

[BatLobster]

The movies are very different for so many obvious reasons, for sure, nobody is saying it's plagiarism and obviously it's based on the same source material, etc. If you listen to the full podcast, it's not like they're nonstop bashing the movie. They had a lot of very positive things to say and they all liked it overall. But I think there is some merit to the observation. Parallels are inevitable, but I think as we get deeper into franchise reboots there is a bit of deja vu to it all and your mileage will vary on whether that's entirely a good thing or not. I don't mind it personally, I enjoy viewing it as a celebration of the character's history including the prior movies, but it does make me hope to see more different comic influences and stuff that feels even more fresh in the next film.

We could play this game with Batman Returns and The Batman:

We catch two villains both explain their grand plan, have it recorded and then released for the public to hear. Penguin’s plan for Gotham in BR and Falcone’s murder of Annika to protect him being an informant in The Batman.

Catwoman and Batman have an altercation and fight twice, and another time she jumps from a high building to escape.

Selina Kyle tries to kill a man who wronged her in the past in both movies, Falcone now and Schreck in BR.

In both movies there’s some kind of huge infrastructure corruption cover-up that serves as a relevant sub-plot affecting both Batman and Bruce Wayne, Max Schreck’s power plant whatever nonsense and The Renewal Fund’s misuse now.

There are probably more random similarities I can’t think of off the top of my head - but we probably wouldn’t say there are weird similarities between The Batman and BR.

I mean, I actually thought of that too. And it seems like Reeves' two favorite Batman movies are TDK and Returns-- at least those are the two he's publicly talked about the most.

Another off the top of my head-- Batman escapes being pursued by the police by gliding away (both scenes are the debut of Batman's gliding technique too).

I honestly do think the influence of previous Batman films seeps into this movie as much as a lot of the other influences it's pulling from. I think that just comes from Reeves being a fan, including the movies, as he's said numerous times. It still has its own identity, clearly. But I don't think it's wrong to see certain parallels.

 

[C Prometheus]

The movies are very different for so many obvious reasons, for sure, nobody is saying it's plagiarism and obviously it's based on the same source material, etc. If you listen to the full podcast, it's not like they're nonstop bashing the movie. They had a lot of very positive things to say and they all liked it overall. But I think there is some merit to the observation. Parallels are inevitable, but I think as we get deeper into franchise reboots there is a bit of deja vu to it all and your mileage will vary on whether that's entirely a good thing or not. I don't mind it personally, I enjoy viewing it as a celebration of the character's history including the prior movies, but it does make me hope to see more different comic influences and stuff that feels even more fresh in the next film.

While I can respect all of those points and understand that this is all subjective, I think part of the steely reception towards these points right now is possibly due to an undercurrent from some fans of needing to push down on The Batman as a knee-jerk reaction to the recency bias rearing its head and TDK having its turn in the target fire, as Batman 89 did back in 2008.

And again, this is all subjective and there's validity to not wanting fans to overreact in bashing a great film they've loved for years in order to raise up a new film. I know I've harped on this here plenty over the past few weeks and months about my own history with the Nolan trilogy and how close those films are to me. So if that is the case for folks, I do get it and I empathize.

At the end of the day, I just think it's a bit of a fruitless endeavor. Comparisons will be made, especially the longer Batman continues to thrive as a blockbuster IP and have more and more iterations from different directors and actors. This has been the case with James Bond for decades now, and I'd argue it's been a thing with Batman too for the last decade or so.

Maybe us comic fans aren't quite used to that idea, since the superhero genre is still in its adolescence age and the overwhelming majority of characters haven't been adapted repeatedly to a generally consistent level of success from multiple iterations, but this is inevitable for any character that finds this sort of longevity as a franchise past multiple incarnations.

I mean, I actually thought of that too. And it seems like Reeves' two favorite Batman movies are TDK and Returns-- at least those are the two he's publicly talked about the most.

Another off the top of my head-- Batman escapes being pursued by the police by gliding away (both scenes are the debut of Batman's gliding technique too).

I honestly do think the influence of previous Batman films seeps into this movie as much as a lot of the other influences it's pulling from. I think that just comes from Reeves being a fan, including the movies, as he's said numerous times. It still has its own identity, clearly. But I don't think it's wrong to see certain parallels.

Oh I agree, there's definitely similarities between The Batman, TDK and Returns. There's also echoes and winks back to the '66 show and film too.

I'd also point out though that it's not like Nolan didn't also echo back to the Burton films during his tenure either. From the first line Bale says in the Batsuit in Begins mirroring Keaton's introduction in Batman 89, to mirroring the framing of Joker's fall to his death in 89 to the shot where Batman catches Joker midfall at the end of TDK to having Bruce and Selina both dance at a fancy ball. Hell, if you wanted, you could argue that last one stretches over to Snyder too with Bruce and Diana's dance in BvS rather obviously riffing on the ones in Returns and TDKR.

Do those parallels make those films any weaker or lesser for doing so? If not, then why would that make the parallels in The Batman different? Especially when, by all of our admissions, it's ultimately still a very different film than Batman movies that have come before it?

 

[BatLobster]

While I can respect all of those points and understand that this is all subjective, I think part of the steely reception towards these points right now is possibly due to an undercurrent from some fans of needing to push down on The Batman as a knee-jerk reaction to the recency bias rearing its head and TDK having its turn in the target fire, as Batman 89 did back in 2008.

And again, this is all subjective and there's validity to not wanting fans to overreact in bashing a great film they've loved for years in order to raise up a new film. I know I've harped on this here plenty over the past few weeks and months about my own history with the Nolan trilogy and how close those films are to me. So if that is the case for folks, I do get it and I empathize.

At the end of the day, I just think it's a bit of a fruitless endeavor. Comparisons will be made, especially the longer Batman continues to thrive as a blockbuster IP and have more and more iterations from different directors and actors. This has been the case with James Bond for decades now, and I'd argue it's been a thing with Batman too for the last decade or so.

Maybe us comic fans aren't quite used to that idea, since the superhero genre is still in its adolescence age and the overwhelming majority of characters haven't been adapted repeatedly to a generally consistent level of success from multiple iterations, but this is inevitable for any character that finds this sort of longevity as a franchise past multiple incarnations.



Oh I agree, there's definitely similarities between The Batman, TDK and Returns. There's also echoes and winks back to the '66 show and film too.

I'd also point out though that it's not like Nolan didn't also echo back to the Burton films during his tenure either. From the first line Bale says in the Batsuit in Begins mirroring Keaton's introduction in Batman 89, to mirroring the framing of Joker's fall to his death in 89 to the shot where Batman catches Joker midfall at the end of TDK to having Bruce and Selina both dance at a fancy ball. Hell, if you wanted, you could argue that last one stretches over to Snyder too with Bruce and Diana's dance in BvS rather obviously riffing on the ones in Returns and TDKR.

Do those parallels make those films any weaker or lesser for doing so? If not, then why would that make the parallels in The Batman different? Especially when, by all of our admissions, it's ultimately still a very different film than Batman movies that have come before it?

All valid points. You're right, those echoes exist in the other films too and I always appreciated them. However, I will say The Batman is the first time I started getting the vibe of much of it feeling a bit familiar. Maybe that's partly because there is so much movie on display here AND it's harder to avoid when there are more films in the canon now and arguably some pretty definitive ones too. That's the best way I can put it. I think the franchise has gotten away with it easily up to now, but I also think when you're the 8th (or 9th/10th depending on how you count) entry in a franchise, the importance to keeping things fresh becomes even more heightened to where people might start noticing similar beats more.

In truth, I do enjoy seeing some of those echoes, cause it helps build a sort of lineage for a franchise with so many wildly different creative takes. But I can also totally see how the amount of it that's present here could become an issue for someone else. In the case of Holy Batcast, clearly they have been dubious of the need for another 'grounded' take from the start and brought that baggage. I don't see it as an invalid opinion to have though. And I do enjoy listening to some different opinions on the movie. I listened to tons of criticism of the Nolan films back then too. Helps me get a footing on where I agree and where I think the criticism misses the point.

 

[C Prometheus]

All valid points. You're right, those echoes exist in the other films too and I always appreciated them. However, I will say The Batman is the first time I started getting the vibe of much of it feeling a bit familiar. Maybe that's partly because there is so much movie on display here AND it's harder to avoid when there are more films in the canon now and arguably some pretty definitive ones too. That's the best way I can put it. I think the franchise has gotten away with it easily up to now, but I also think when you're the 8th (or 9th/10th depending on how you count) entry in a franchise, the importance to keeping things fresh becomes even more heightened to where people might start noticing similar beats more.

In truth, I do enjoy seeing some of those echoes, cause it helps build a sort of lineage for a franchise with so many wildly different creative takes. But I can also totally see how the amount of it that's present here could become an issue for someone else. In the case of Holy Batcast, clearly they have been dubious of the need for another 'grounded' take from the start and brought that baggage. I don't see it as an invalid opinion to have though. And I do enjoy listening to some different opinions on the movie. I listened to tons of criticism of the Nolan films back then too. Helps me get a footing on where I agree and where I think the criticism misses the point.

Like I said in my last post, I think Batman is at that point in its life cycle where it's arguably more comparable to James Bond than it is most other superhero films. I don't think Batman is at a stage where it's as formulaic in general as a Bond film, especially seeing how there's a treasure trove of stories that haven't been tapped into for inspiration yet for Batman, but the general mythology and expectations of what Batman entails are far more engrained into the general public's memory than practically any other superhero not named Peter Parker.

As for the biases that Holy Batcast carried with them into their review of The Batman, it is what it is. Like I said before, people are entitled to their opinions and everyone has their own ideal take on Batman that they prefer seeing. Some folks want more grounded material, others want WB and DC to go whole hog and embrace the fantastical sides of the character and world.

And shocking and unbelievable as it probably sounds to most of those latter fans, I do believe that it's inevitable that we will see more fantastical takes on Batman in the years to come. Whether it's Keaton's return in the DCEU or whoever come into the fray after Reeves and Pattinson end their tenure together, there will eventually be a shift towards the more fantastical. And eventually, it'll swing right back around to more grounded takes as well. And so on and so forth... much like the Bond films have over the last sixty years.

 

[Gothamsknight]

Similarities are inevitable when you have so many different iterations of Batman in live action, so those things don't really bother me. In fact, I see it more as a compliment to what's been done with the character already, and it's a testament to how many things about the character and his world have become iconic. The stuff that may feel familiar is a hallmark of good storytelling when it comes to Batman, if you ask me.

As for comparisons, they're inevitable also for the same reason. I will fully admit, I'm a bit on the defense of the Nolan trilogy right now because of the whole "recency bias" thing, and it gets extremely annoying trying to argue points with people (mostly younger people) who try to claim something isn't really a Batman film for whatever BS reason while completely exposing how little they know about Batman or, really, filmmaking in general. But when you set that aside, and i try my best to, comparisons will always be made regardless. As a big Batman fan, I try to filter it out the best I can and embrace what's in front of me. So long as it's good, I mean.

 

[BMW 224]

Similarities between different Batman films are nothing new in my opinion.

Begins and Dark Knight both made homages or reminded me of certain 89 plot points at times.

Like those film's The Batman has enough differences for me to be it's one unique Batman film.

Batman Selina alone story's alone were separate from anything that happened in Dark Knight.

Even similar set up scenes like the Riddler's video calls felt distink different than Jokers or Batmans introduction.


To be honest this movie to me at least felt like an origin story of Batman Seinla and Oswald Riddler without actually showing there backstory in full details.


Also the tone was completely different.

Dark Knight feels alot more.... Large bombastic and classic blockbuster Hollywood with Nolan's signature style and touch.

The Batman to me felt way more intimate noir and raw and surprisingly hopeful to.

 

[BMW 224]

Off topic but did anyone else love that we got to see Batman and Gordon really get hit with the cold truth on now corrupt Gotham really was ?

I feel like in previous adaptations hell even the comics there's not really a moment where Batman or Jim are caught of guard by the corruption with the whole institution.

It's something they already know or even take for granted.



Batman and Gordon looked so betrayed when they discovered the whole renewal project scam and who was really in charge of the city.

I really liked that aspect.

 

[Kirk Langstrom]

How do you guys respond to the statements from Holy BatCast that The Batman borrows heavily from The Dark Knight (not intentionally, necessarily)?

Here's a summary of their comments -

“Thinking of a Batman film that starts with a Batman that’s been around long enough that the urban legend is there, throughout Gotham. To the point where the Batsignal in the sky is enough to make criminals ditch whatever they’re doing because they’re scared.

This new Batman has a strong relationship with Lieutenant James Gordon. To the point where James Gordon allows him into crime scenes to the dismay of his fellow officers and superiors. And their first meeting in the film is to a crime scene to investigate this new criminal in Gotham.

And this new criminal in Gotham is going to bring Gotham to its knees by killing the Mayor, the police Commissioner, trying to kill the District Attorney. And he’s going to make sure everyone knows about it because he has these homemade videos that he’s going to send the Gotham News where not only does he make his threats known, but he also shows you what he does to his victims.

This new criminal is so bold that he ends up blowing up one of the people closest to Batman/Bruce Wayne and when Batman finds out it’s about to happen, he has to race through the city to stop it – but does not make it in time.

In his investigation, Batman goes to a nightclub and gets into a fight in order to get to and interrogate a mobster.

This new villain is always one step ahead of Batman – and Batman doesn’t even catch him initially. The villain intentionally gives himself up to Batman and Gordon. He ends up in jail so Batman can have a scene with him in an interrogation room where he and Batman can talk. Where the villain tells Batman he was inspired by him, where they’re the same and that there is a plan in motion already and Batman can’t do much to stop it.

But Batman does his best to do what he can and makes big sacrifices to save Gotham and we end the film with Batman riding off into the light on his motorcycle to fight another day.

Which Batman film am I thinking of?”

Holy BatCast #335 - The Batman Review - YouTube
@53:00

Why has that podcast suddenly become a thing around here all of a sudden. End of the day they’re just three guys with their own opinions. No different than any of us posting here.

 

[BMW 224]

Why has that podcast suddenly become a thing around here all of a sudden. End of the day they’re just three guys with their own opinions. No different than any of us posting here.

My problem with this "summary" is that they leave out the more essential details that make it different.

 

[Captain Tired]

Why has that podcast suddenly become a thing around here all of a sudden. End of the day they’re just three guys with their own opinions. No different than any of us posting here.

Hey, give someone a mic and suddenly they're an acknowledged authority on something. It's the way of the modern world.

 

[BatLobster]

I've listened to Holy Batcast on and off for the past 8 years. I've enjoyed them for the most part. But yes, just another bunch of Bat-fans with an opinion. I've disagreed with them plenty before. IE- I've got no love at all for Snyder's DC films, and they do. That's fine. I wouldn't call them 'toxic' in any way, I think they're genuine fans who love Batman and I've never seen those guys being "part of the problem" when it comes to fan discourse. Again, I like hearing different opinions. Especially in this day and age when people have become allergic to that and echo chambers are a very real thing.

 

[Boom]

**** Rataalada is active.

 

[antsman41]

**** Rataalada is active.

^ the porn version of The Batman?

 

[Vaibow]

Like I said in my last post, I think Batman is at that point in its life cycle where it's arguably more comparable to James Bond than it is most other superhero films. I don't think Batman is at a stage where it's as formulaic in general as a Bond film, especially seeing how there's a treasure trove of stories that haven't been tapped into for inspiration yet for Batman, but the general mythology and expectations of what Batman entails are far more engrained into the general public's memory than practically any other superhero not named Peter Parker.

As for the biases that Holy Batcast carried with them into their review of The Batman, it is what it is. Like I said before, people are entitled to their opinions and everyone has their own ideal take on Batman that they prefer seeing. Some folks want more grounded material, others want WB and DC to go whole hog and embrace the fantastical sides of the character and world.

And shocking and unbelievable as it probably sounds to most of those latter fans, I do believe that it's inevitable that we will see more fantastical takes on Batman in the years to come. Whether it's Keaton's return in the DCEU or whoever come into the fray after Reeves and Pattinson end their tenure together, there will eventually be a shift towards the more fantastical. And eventually, it'll swing right back around to more grounded takes as well. And so on and so forth... much like the Bond films have over the last sixty years.

Great post.
Totally - tones shift and times change and the minute a comedy version breaks bank, watch others follow suit... I think the main thing here is about finding an audience - for me, I loved iron man and the first phase of marvel then I lost interest as it all started to seem the same and blend, then black panther came out and it was different and I enjoyed that, ant man too, to an an extent but, yeah the market is saturated.. Snyder tried to be different and it didn't sit well with me - but The Batman, it seems so different to what is on offer right now.. in that its a detective movie involving a comic book character..
will movies shift to follow this? I'm sure many will... then will we get bored of this and want something fantastical?
As you rightly said, Keaton coming back will be so interesting... as I was so stoked to see it, then is aw The Batman and my fickle mind was like, Keaton who? But I am interested to see a Burton inspired batgirl... which I hope it is.
I

 

[WatchProtect]

That Riddler Year One comic is pretty cool, I hope it actually comes to fruition.