What would be awesome is a 'universe' that had DC ORIGINAL characterization

[TheCorpulent1]

Well, yeah. Batman with a gun would be awesome. Having a gun is like having a whole extra penis--he can be twice as manly as he would be if he were just using his girly fists.

 

[fifthfiend]

It would be great if they kept the old characterization and the current characterization. So like you'd have Batman do the whole bit about like "I may be punching the daylights out of you but I will never kill; it is the line I will never cross because to do so would be to become the very thing I hate the most etc etc etc blah blah." And then he pulls out a gun and shoots someone in the head!

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Then he could change his name to Hypocrite Man and call it a day.

 

[Spade]

Having recently read "Joe Chill in Hell" in the Batman: The Black Glove hardcover, I would say I'm not too hot about seeing the original characterizations coming back. For characters like Batman, where their first portrayal was an about face in comparison to what we know now, they can stay as they are. I like Morrison's run on Batman, but one of the things I disagree with the most is the aforementioned story. I don't see how a character that once helped a criminal commit suicide out of guilt can be such a hypocrite about guns later on. Some of the ideas are interesting, true, but as examples of things that don't mesh with the real reasons why these characters are beloved. It's best to respect the history for what it is and move on from there.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Yeah, Batman's absolute unwillingness to kill and his disdain for guns because they were the instrument of his parents' death are two parts of the holy grail of Batman characteristics for me. I like that he's basically one of those super-dark, gritty characters in every way except that he won't ever kill anyone, period. It gives him more complexity than, say, the Punisher, whose objective in every situation is very clearly "kill the enemy."