Another year, another Comic-Con come and gone. And with it, many huge announcements about many nerdy things. One of which, to everyone's delight, was the first footage for "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice", including Batman and Superman facing off and the first photo of Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman. I'd love to say that a more surprising revelation occurred at the convention. But we didn't really get anything we didn't already know or could guess ourselves.
The Batman/Superman panel was the biggest thing to a surprise we got. But what a surprise it was. Batman's wearing "Dark Knight Returns" style armor! He and Superman are definitely going at it! Wonder Woman looks fantastic! Quite simply, we nerds went nuts. But more than just nerds went gaga over the footage. It seems the entire Internet broke in half over this. Even with footage from Avengers 2 premiering, the big talk was about the Batman/Superman film. This got me thinking, which got me ranting. Batman turns 75 this year in the comic books, an event that's being celebrated the world over. More than any other super hero, Batman has grafted himself into the very center of our popular culture.
He has almost a dozen live action films, several animated shows and movies, some incredibly popular video games, and a rouges gallery of villains just as popular (if not more so) than he is. Batman is more than just a man. He's a full-blown phenomenon. And then that got me thinking about a little film called "The Dark Knight Rises." I've analyzed it before, of course. In the two years since its release, who hasn't? But with the Bat's 75th anniversary approaching, it felt like as good a time as ever to revisit the film. A film many praised upon release, and then almost immediately decried as being inferior to its predecessors.
In many ways, "Rises" is indeed the weak link of Chris Nolan's "Dark Knight" trilogy. The eight year time gap means half the plot points are set up by exposition, violating the film medium's sacred "show, don't tell" rule. There are several leaps in logic in the film itself, defying the realism of the last two movies. And while the epic, ambitious scope is to be admired, the wealth of characters makes it hard sometimes to narrow the film's focus. These are problems only several repeat viewings turn up, as on the surface "Rises" is still an entertaining experience. Entertaining, yes, but flawed as well.
But unlike "Spider-Man 3" or "X-Men: The Last Stand", this third chapter feels like an integral part of the series, and doesn't dishonor what came before. And upon my latest viewing, a thought occurred to me that completely changed my outlook on the film. A thought that, funnily enough, coincided with Batman's 75th anniversary, which feeds into what WB is doing with the Bats/Supes crossover. In order for this thought to make sense, a little background is in order. And don't worry, I won't take up ten paragraphs explaining it.
There are a lot of people who theorize that superheroes are a modern mythology. Our modern day heroes have taken the place of the Greek gods and demigods we once idolized in eons past. Just look at the parallels between the stories of Moses and Jesus compared to Superman, and you'll see there's some justification here. But while Superman may have the most mythic of backgrounds (and indeed, his has been built into a sort of American mythology), Batman's enduring popularity has given him a greater opportunity to become a modern legend. That derives from the fact that, unlike most other heroes, Batman is 100% mortal.
Joseph Campbell's monomyth, or Hero's Journey, outlines a basic story that all mythic heroes go on. Moses, Jesus, Osiris, Odysseus, Achilles, Perseus-all of them go on this basic hero's quest. They start from humble beginnings but have a part of the divine in them. They have an interesting relationship with their fathers, who are often absent yet come to define them. They go on a great quest, often of a spiritual nature, that involves slaying, taming, or resisting literal or symbolic monsters. In order to do so, they must confront some form of innate evil, descending into the underworld and reaching their lowest point. They will then emerge triumphantly from this trial, obtain a form of divine wisdom, and return to save their world, becoming a true hero.
The reason this basic quest is so fundamentally effective is because it outlines a sort of wish fulfillment we all want to achieve. We want to believe we have some sort of innate power, that will allow us to conquer the demons we all have and save those we love. All these heroes posses those traits, but what makes them so great is that, despite their superhuman natures, they are all innately human. While Superman often has this mythic aspect due to his human upbringing, modern society often focuses on his alien heritage and powers, saying no one can relate to him.
Batman, on the other hand, despite his billionaire status, saw his parents gunned down from a young age (a very real fear) and sought to master his rage by becoming fear personified. He's a self-made man, with abilities born from physical and mental training. It's no wonder he's more popular and relatable in our cultural mindset. So on a fundamental level, Batman fits the criteria of the Hero's Journey better, since he's a man who goes on a great quest to become more than human to defeat his opponents. It's about a man so dedicated to an ideal that he becomes superhuman, despite his still present mortality.
It is this aspect that Chris Nolan's "Dark Knight" trilogy captures so well. "Batman Begins" captures the essence of the Hero's Journey, with Bruce leaving Gotham, questing to gain knowledge, and returning to save his city. "The Dark Knight" continues that theme by showing Batman's rise to become a demonic figure to the mob, even inspiring imitators. But it is "The Dark Knight Rises" that cements Batman's legendary in-universe status. And by doing so, celebrates Batman's iconic standing in popular culture, both in the past and future.
Think about the film's plot for a minute. Bruce begins the film a crippled shut-in. Batman has been vilified by Gotham City, while Harvey Dent made a martyr. Bane comes in as this mythic figure, spouting "no one cared who I was until I put on the mask", and talking of how he was born and molded in darkness. Bruce tries becoming Batman again, hoping to recapture his legendary status, but secretly wishing for death as he is without a true purpose. Then Bane utterly breaks him, stuffs him in a literal pit, and proceeds to dismantle all of Batman's good work by demystifying the legend of Harvey Dent, exposing his corruption.
So as we begin the film, Batman is made profoundly mortal while Bane and a post-mortem Harvey Dent are like modern myths. But over the course of the film, Dent is brought down to humanity again thanks to Bane, who also cripples Bruce to utterly remind him of his mortality. Bruce then rebuilds himself in prison, learning of Bane's mythic origins, and then ascends the Pit and returns to Gotham to save it. This is 100% Joseph Campbell in its execution, building Bruce back up from a man to a myth. It also fulfills the promise of "Batman Begins", where Ras Al Ghul told Bruce he'd become legend if he devoted himself to an ideal.
Bruce returns to Gotham, now fully Batman again, and utterly destroys Bane. He damages Bane's mask, exposing him to pain, and giving him a weakness. With this, Bane can now taste the mortality he gave Bruce. He is simply a man, not a myth. And then Talia comes in, revealing Bane never climbed out of the Pit. Many fans hated this revelation, as it removed Bane's "cool" factor and seemingly made him subservient. First of all, Bane's final actions defied Talia's direct orders, meaning he was never a lackey.
Second of all, Bane's demystification is the entire point. As Bruce ascends from man to myth, Bane is knocked down from myth to man. He's made a mortal with mortal feelings, in this case love for Talia. And once he's defeated by Batman and his myth unmade, he's rendered fully mortal. Cue Catwoman and her mounted guns, to give Bane a swift end after he's served his purpose. Anti-climactic? Maybe. But earned nonetheless, especially since Bane's ultimate demise came at the hands of the very woman who betrayed Bruce to him.
And then we approach the end of the film, where Batman cements his own mythic status by sacrificing himself for Gotham. As Batman dies, Bruce gets to live, emerging once again as a man who can now find peace. But Bruce can only emerge a man because he's fulfilled his purpose with Batman. He's made him an undying symbol, a concept that's larger than life. He's become a true mythical figure. Don't believe me? Explain the statue immortalizing Batman, followed by Robin taking up the mantle at the end. That entire sequence wasn't a direct sequel set-up. It was signifying that Batman is now an idea, that can transcend one man because it's larger than that now.
As if that wasn't enough, think about all the apparent logic gaps people like to complain about. The back-healing rope. The flaming Bat symbol on the bridge. Bruce's mysterious re-entry into Gotham. His survival of the bomb blast. All these actions only succeed in cementing Batman's status as a mythic figure. Just listen to those actions and tell me that's not something a mythical hero would do. Or better yet, a comic book hero. Because despite the Nolan series' penchant for realism, what Nolan is doing here is ditching the logic for mythology building.
The eight year time gap, despite a new reliance on exposition, is key to this. It allows for a new generation to grow up seeing Batman as a legend, personified in Robin John Blake, who is ultimately chosen to carry that legend forward. All those logic gaps may piss people off, but it only serves to cement that Batman is now a mysterious, mythical, god-like figure who can achieve the impossible. In other words, you know that persistent meme that Batman can do anything just because "he's Batman"? Well, "Rises" is just creating a situation where that's true. Bane's takeover of Gotham leaves the people so desperate, they need a mythic figure to save them. Batman is that figure, and save them he does.
But the real key here is that ending, where Robin takes over the mantle of the Bat. This is actually where Nolan got meta, in the best way imaginable. That final scene is Nolan stating that Batman comes in many forms, with many faces. How many actors have stepped behind the cowl? Between Adam West, Michael Keaton, George Clooney, and the voice of Kevin Conroy, a fair few. And as we now know, the legacy will continue, good or bad, with Ben Affleck. And even if Affleck is terrible, the history of the Bat proves he will survive, and return in a new form, as all myths do.
The ending of "The Dark Knight Rises" proved both in-universe and in a meta sense that Batman will always survive. He has 75 years worth of comic books, games, shows, and movies to prove it, all with different tones, styles, and even characters. But if the revelation of "Rises" wasn't enough to cement Batman's mythic status in our culture, the upcoming "Batman v. Superman" film definitely will. The Comic-Con teaser showed an armored Batman lighting the Bat-signal on a stormy night. The signal illuminates a flying Superman, who turns on his heat vision to begin their fight. More than anything, this footage shows Batman as a mythic figure because he now has the means to take on a literal demigod.
As I've said before, Superman has his roots in Judeo-Christian myths, and the latest film, "Man of Steel", tried to emphasize this mythological subtext. But "Man of Steel" failed where "The Dark Knight" trilogy succeeded because it didn't emphasize its protagonist's human core. Clark Kent's entire human upbringing was glossed over in flashbacks, whereas his Kryptonian background was given a 20 minute opening prologue. Zach Snyder tried to make us care for Clark when he had him kill Zod to protect a human family.
Obviously the intention was to show Clark putting his adopted race over his mother race. But if the Zod fight just destroyed a city, and Clark made no attempt to even show concern, can we really buy he's on our side? Snyder was so focused on making Superman's powers and alien background cool that he forgot it's the human side of him that gives him his power. He realized it too late, and forgot to reinforce it. Thus while both MoS and TDK focused on their hero's legendary status, "Rises" succeeded by showing Bruce's human failings, while "Man of Steel" did not. Nolan gave us the man so when he was made a myth, it was earned. Snyder tried giving us the myth we all wanted, but without showing us the man first, it felt hollow.
So how can this be corrected in the sequel? Well, if you want to truly mystify Superman, you have to do the same thing that Nolan did to Batman. And I don't mean make his mythos dark and gritty. I mean focus on the human element first, for in that lies the key to creating a myth. Mythic heroes come from emphasizing their humanity, so people can root for them when they do something heroic. Now that Superman (in-universe and in a meta context) is hated for the Zod fight, Batman will come in to knock him down a peg. To prove gods can bleed. A mortal going against an immortal, to prove he can be hurt. That's the stuff that myths are made of.
Now that "Rises" proved and celebrated Batman's mythic status, "BvS" will cement it and further it by having these two titans of comic book culture square off. In doing so, Batman will show he's worthy of being superhuman despite his mortality, while Superman will prove his own humanity despite his alien gifts. As for Wonder Woman and the inevitable Justice League? Diana literally comes from Greek mythology. She'll be there to help Superman and Batman form a modern Greek pantheon, that being the League. And with Batman proving his worth to this pantheon, he'll be made a literal demigod, proving without a doubt his new mythic status.
If done right, "BvS" will not only continue elevating Batman's mythos, but prove DC characters in general are worthy of their god-like status as well, in more ways than just showing off their powers. But even if the film fails, we at least know that Batman himself will endure. He's endured for 75 years, and will continue to do so. The comics proved that. The films have now proved that. And the legacy of the Bat will still prove it, another 75 years from now and for decades thereafter.
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