Is Batman realistic? Or just a comic book character?

[burtongenius]

Do all you batman fans think

1) batman can exist in our reality   OR


2) batman can only exist in comic books or movies


I'd like to hear your opinions.  I personally think a real 2009, US citizen, batman hero couldn't exist.  The batman in the comics is non realistic.  Bruce Wayne is realistic, but batman is non realistic.  But hey, thats just my opinion.  Any thoughts..........

[Catwoman]

as long as citizens arrests are allowed yes it could happen. need someone with the money and the desire but yes.

if one pops up, i volunteer to be kidnapped so you guys can come face to face with him

[burtongenius]

what about the technology?

[thecolorsblend]

There's very little about Batman that's at all realistic.

A guy like Bruce would likely grow up to be a male version of Paris Hilton.  But even if he became Batman, I'll never be convinced a reality-based Batman could dodge that many bullets per night.  The law of numbers says he'd eventually get made into swiss cheese.

Also, he'd never be able to have any sort of "arrangement" with the police.  He's a criminal himself and he would not long evade police detection, billionaire or not.

Batman is a fantasy character (as his villains demonstrate) and while "realistic" stories might be entertaining as captivating Elseworlds stories, they're simply not good for the character over the long haul.

[Catwoman]

There's very little about Batman that's at all realistic.

A guy like Bruce would likely grow up to be a male version of Paris Hilton.  But even if he became Batman, I'll never be convinced a reality-based Batman could dodge that many bullets per night.  The law of numbers says he'd eventually get made into swiss cheese.

Also, he'd never be able to have any sort of "arrangement" with the police.  He's a criminal himself and he would not long evade police detection, billionaire or not.

Batman is a fantasy character (as his villains demonstrate) and while "realistic" stories might be entertaining as captivating Elseworlds stories, they're simply not good for the character over the long haul.

right. i said it could happen. not that it'd last. lol.

[burtongenius]

There's very little about Batman that's at all realistic.

A guy like Bruce would likely grow up to be a male version of Paris Hilton.  But even if he became Batman, I'll never be convinced a reality-based Batman could dodge that many bullets per night.  The law of numbers says he'd eventually get made into swiss cheese.

Also, he'd never be able to have any sort of "arrangement" with the police.  He's a criminal himself and he would not long evade police detection, billionaire or not.

Batman is a fantasy character (as his villains demonstrate) and while "realistic" stories might be entertaining as captivating Elseworlds stories, they're simply not good for the character over the long haul.

Your right.  And that begs the question of why people even read comic books or watch super hero movies.  I know its alright to watch something thats fiction, but not something that makes out that its real, or could be real.

[The Dark Knight]

I'm with colors. Batman is more realistic than others sure, but he's a fantasy character and nothing more. Batman can be dark and terrible, but he's not realistic.

After playing Arkham Asylum today, this is exactly how he and his world should be. Hard hitting violence and dark themes, but set in a world where killer plants can tear buildings apart.  Where regular people can instantly be transformed into muscle bound freaks. Where people are tracked by alcohol vapours and so on.

Also, the look of the environment is semi-realistic. It carries aspects of reality, but it's clearly not reality. The sky is a strange tinge, the buildings are ancient and gothic, right down to the iron fences. It all adds to the experience and vibe. It's called expressionism.

[phantom stranger]

He is realistic but only if you strip away a lot of the core elements.

Take the Batmobile, for example. Even if you could build one without anyone finding out, someone would eventually follow you back home. Interestingly, Bob Kane criticized the Batman movie serials (or at least the first one) because Batman just drove a regular car. But if you really wanted to be discrete, that's what you'd have to do.

Also, being one of the most famous people in the world wouldn't help the whole secret identity thing. He'd have to have a mask that covered his entire face. But even then, his fame would chip away at his privacy--something he would desperately need to keep his guise going.

And then there are the various gadgets which either defy reality or plausibility. I, for one, wouldn't rely on a grappling hook to save me from a 100 story fall. Although it seems to have worked for the finales of '89, '95 and '97.

Also, I think he'd have to carry a gun because every two-bit thug seems to have one of those. I suppose it could be unloaded because the point is just to scare a few guys. Or maybe shoot a few rounds in the air just to scare people and then take them out with fisticuffs.

So there you have it guys: A Batman who shoots people while driving a Chevy pickup. I think we have our next Elseworlds title.

[The Dark Knight]

Take the Batmobile, for example. Even if you could build one without anyone finding out, someone would eventually follow you back home.

I've always thought that. Going to and from Wayne Manor in the Batmobile each night really is rolling the dice. No matter how stealthy you may be - or how hard you try, eventually someone is going to follow you back, place a tracer or whatever. It's mostly out of your hands.

It's a big City out there with lots of people in it. People talk and people observe. And you can't tell me after operating in Gotham for years, Batman is rather complacent about the whole thing.

And that's just with people. Technology really would complicate things.

Given his vigilante status, in reality they'd view the entire Gotham area via satellite with heat vision capabilities. He wouldn't even know. You'd have footage of his movements to and from Wayne Manor and it would be all over the news.

Say they had just began the monitoring, and they didn't know where he lived - and Batman was in Gotham and *somehow* aware of this, he's still going nowhere. He'd be driving around all night and all the police would be after him. That really would be it. He's caught. He couldn't drive back to Wayne Manor. And it would eventually be morning.

[thecolorsblend]

Take the Batmobile, for example. Even if you could build one without anyone finding out, someone would eventually follow you back home.

I've always thought that. Going to and from Wayne Manor in the Batmobile each night really is rolling the dice. No matter how stealthy you may be - or how hard you try, eventually someone is going to follow you back, place a tracer or whatever. It's mostly out of your hands.

It's a big City out there with lots of people in it. People talk and people observe. And you can't tell me after operating in Gotham for years, Batman is rather complacent about the whole thing.

And that's just with people. Technology really would complicate things.

Given his vigilante status, in reality they'd view the entire Gotham area via satellite with heat vision capabilities. He wouldn't even know. You'd have footage of his movements to and from Wayne Manor and it would be all over the news.

Say they had just began the monitoring, and they didn't know where he lived - and Batman was in Gotham and *somehow* aware of this, he's still going nowhere. He'd be driving around all night and all the police would be after him. That really would be it. He's caught. He couldn't drive back to Wayne Manor. And it would eventually be morning.

I'm obviously never going to write Batman comics or movies or anything but this is something I'd develop and explore.  Even in a fantasy setting, you'd have to somehow acknowledge it so I'd tackle it head on.  Basically you could establish that Bruce has (via agents of agents of agents) influenced Gotham City into building elevated trains and eschewing all subways.

The subways are then walled off and closed down -- as far as the city knows -- but each of them empty into various buildings all over Gotham which are owned (via agents of agents of agents) by an alias of Bruce's.  It allows Batman free and instant access to the city ("he appears and disappears at will") while also camoflauging his activities from the authorities.  If anyone ever investigates who owns X building, all they'd find is Bob Smith, who's perpetually out of the country.  Nothing tied directly back to Wayne.

Batman has wealthy and powerful enemies (King Snake, Black Mask and others) who would have the means, motive and opportunity to track his movements so it's on him to muddy the waters a little bit.