Batman & Robin...Comic Book...Influences??

[thecolorsblend]

Thanks! I'm nowhere near SN's level but if there's something I can contribute, I'm happy to do so.

[Paul (ral)]

I'll have these added to the article in a couple of hours. Great stuff colors!

[Catwoman]

i'm late to the party but i liked batman and robin. like some other people said you just gots to take it for what it is and accept that it is...different. if you take a tim burton mind or whatev into it, you're going to pull your hair out and hate yourself for days lol.

and naughty naughty to the copy cat!

[riddler]

i'm late to the party but i liked batman and robin. like some other people said you just gots to take it for what it is and accept that it is...different. if you take a tim burton mind or whatev into it, you're going to pull your hair out and hate yourself for days lol.

and naughty naughty to the copy cat!

To be honest after seeing the dark knight rises I have a better appreciation for Batman and Robin; you actually have 2 opposite films there; BR is underdeveloped, TDKR is overdeveloped (went overboard making its points), BR wasn't serious enough TDKR was no fun because it was too serious. Batman and Robin may have had too many characters but at least they were all important characters; no John Blake type who wasn't even in the comics hogging the screentime.

[Silver Nemesis]

That's a good catch about the 'Redbird', colors. I completely missed that one. Good analysis of the vehicles' psychological significance too.

As to the fact that the movie Batmobile apparently seats only one, that works on a few levels. Metatextually, Batman in the movie struggles with partnership with Robin. By giving Robin a separate means of transportation, Batman can exert control over him (as the film shows us). The transportation reflects the discord between the two characters.

Somewhere, Joel Schumacher has just read this and smiled: "Finally, somebody gets it!"

This may be the first example of a completely topless Batmobile. I would defer to others on that one.

Well, there was this beauty from Detective Comics #219 (May 1955).



But the Batmobile from Batman #164 was certainly the first traditional Batmobile to ditch the roof/bubble dome look. Its design established a precedent that would be followed by all subsequent Batmobiles throughout the sixties, including the Lincoln Futura used in the TV show. And that was clearly what Schumacher was getting at with his own design.

But if we're counting convertibles, then Batman's earliest use of a roofless car was the model he drove in Detective Comics #37 (March 1940). It wasn't actually called the Batmobile though, so I guess it doesn't count.



The following year Batman drove a red sedan in Detective Comics #48 (February 1941). This was the first car to be directly referred to as the "Batmobile". And it was roofless too.



So I guess you could trace the Batman and Robin Batmobile back to this.

[Silver Nemesis]

Ok, this one's a stretch.

The gang member that tries to kill Barbara during the street race is named Spike. Spike was also the name of the Mutant gang member who tried to assault Carrie in the first chapter of The Dark Knight Returns. Stretching the analogy further, the movie version of Spike has red makeup around his eyes that somewhat evokes the red visors/shades worn by the Mutants in the comics.

The comic book Spike also has literal spikes protruding from his scalp. The movie Spike has similar spikes protruding from the top of his motorcycle helmet, as well as his shoulders.

Both characters are vicious gang members who try to harm a teenage girl destined to become Batman's sidekick. Both girls are saved by the timely intervention of a male superhero; Batman in the comic, Robin in the movie.

Well... I did say it was a stretch.

[BatmanFurst]

I was reading Batman #268 today. The climax of that comic features Batman & Robin ice skating while taking out the bad guys. Reminded me of the action sequence early on in this film.

[BatmanFurst]

Was reading Shadow of the Bat annual #3 and I couldn't help but notice that Ivy's disguise in this is very similar to the film.

[BatmanFurst]

Also, idk if it's been mentioned already but I like that John Glover's character is named Woodrue which is a reference to Ivy's Father who gave her her powers in the comics.

[thecolorsblend]

Honestly, this could've gone in any number of other threads. So, if the mods think this post belongs somewhere other than here in the B&R/comic influences thread and want to move it, be my guest.

I... hadn't thought much about to what extent Schumacher drew inspiration from BTAS/TNBA and, vice versa, how much the animated shows were influenced by Schumacher. But the similarities go a lot deeper than B&R essentially adapting Heart Of Ice's Mr. Freeze.