References to the films in the comics

[BatmanFurst]

The Red Triangle Gang appears in 'Parent Trap' (Robin V #15, August 2022). I won't post the scene in its entirety, because the fight lasts for several pages, but here's an extract. Note the umbrellas in the panel on the left, hinting at their connection to Cobblepot.

Interesting. Aside from the colors, the umbrella holder even matches the one from Returns.

[The Laughing Fish]

I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned this before, but in Batman #135, Batman travels the multiverse and encounters different versions of himself. This includes Keaton's Batman and West's Batman. You can see glimpses of Burt Ward's Robin and Cesar Romero's Joker in the background.





Other cameos include BTAS, Arkham Batman, Batman Beyond. The variant cover has West and presumably one of the Batman actors from the 1940s.

[thecolorsblend]

I don't have screen shots. But about midway through No Man's Land, there was a storyline involving (I think) Lynx. Iirc, it was drawn by the always welcome Paul Gulacy.

More than ever before, Batman was drawn to visually resemble Val Kilmer and his outfit was colored black and resembled the Panther suit from BF.

I glanced through the thread and didn't see anybody else mention it.

[BatmanFurst]

I just want to point out that I'm reading Detective Comics, Batman Comics, and Legends of the Dark Knight. I'm skipping the majority of the Elseworld's tales. So some of the stuff I'm pointing out could've debuted in Elseworld's comic books and I don't have a clue.

Having said that, in "Batman Dreamland" Batman uses a line launcher. This is the first time I can recall him using such a device in comics. The line launcher initially debuted in the 1989 film.


In Batman Ego (2000) the name Chuckie Sol is mentioned which is a reference to a gangster in Mask of the Phantasm.


Another reference in Ego is the chemical factory being named "Axis Chemicals".

[BatmanFurst]

In Detective Comics 781 the Bat-Plane is in the shape of the Batsymbol. I don't recall seeing this prior to this issue so this very well could be the first time that design was implemented into the comics. Based on how the villains are designed in this comic series, I think this was initially meant to be a reference to the Animated Series Batwing. However, I'm posting it here because Batman (1989) was the first piece of Batman media to have a Bat-Plane shaped like this.
EDIT: I just noticed that Silver posted this panel years ago. My mistake.


In Legends of the Dark Knight 172 the Batcave has elements that I think are inspired by Batman 1989. The Batcomputer and the vault seem to be direct lifts from the film.

[BatmanFurst]

Thanks I know there are plenty more references in the comics, I'm just wracking my brain trying to remember them all. But for now here's a fairly substantial one. So substantial in fact that I was surprised to find no one had mentioned it before in any other thread. It should interest the members of this site.

BATMAN: CHILD OF DREAMS

The most heavily Burton-influenced Batman comic of all time is probably Batman: Child of Dreams (originally published in 2000-2001, paperback edition published in 2003). Written and drawn by Kia Asamiya, and adapted into English by Road to Perdition writer Max Allan Collins, this graphic novel was an experimental fusion of Batman and manga. It was very heavily influenced by the Burton movies, and the paperback edition includes an interview with Asamiya in which he credits the 89 movie for introducing him to the Batman mythology.

"...what really got me into Batman was the Tim Burton Batman movie. I started reading American comics more at that point too."

There are plenty of references to both Burton movies throughout the book, but I'll start with the most obvious one. The Batman in this story was allegedly modelled on Michael Keaton, and several reviews I've read have pointed out the visual similarity. The Batman Wiki page on Keaton's Batman even goes so far as to list Batman: Child of Dreams as one of his appearances: http://batman.wikia.com/wiki/Batman_(Michael_Keaton)#Appearances

The image of Batman on the cover portrays a remarkable resemblance to the actor.



But while this story does not take place within the standard Post-Crisis canon, it isn't technically part of the Burtonverse canon either (if such a thing exists). Both the Joker and Penguin are still alive, Harvey Dent is Caucasian, and Commissioner Gordon resembles his comic counterpart rather than Pat Hingle. The similarities with the Burton films mostly stem from Batman himself and his arsenal of gadgets.



Gotham City looks similar to the version from the 1989 film. Note the bridge on the left side of the image. Its explained in the back of the book that manga is typically read from right to left, as opposed to the western style of left to right. In order to make it easier for westerners to read, the pages were flipped horizontally (which is why Two-Face's scarred side is on the right side of his face rather than the left). So originally the bridge would be on the right side of the panel, just like the opening shot of Batman 89.



The main love interest in the story is a Japanese TV journalist called Yuko Yagi, who's come to Gotham in the hopes of landing a one-on-one interview with Batman. The first time she and Batman meet is when the Dark Knight rescues her from a Two-Face imitator (the central plot concerns a criminal mastermind deploying genetically enhanced imitations of Batman's greatest foes). This scene is clearly influenced by his first encounter with Selina Kyle in Batman Returns. The Two-Face imitator has a gun to Yuko's head. Batman hurls a Batarang so that it becomes embedded in a wall, making his opponent think he's missed. Then he tugs on an attached cable, pulling the Batarang out of the wall so that it hits the Two-Face imitator and knocks the gun out of his hand, allowing Yuko to escape.



Some of the reviews I read pointed out that while Batman looks like Michael Keaton, Bruce Wayne looks less like the actor. This is true to an extent, and Wayne chiefly resembles a standard manga character. He has straighter hair, a more prominent nose and a smaller forehead than Keaton. But his eyebrows, jaw, mouth and cheekbones still resemble those of the actor.



Yuko is invited on a date by Bruce Wayne. She dresses for the occasion in a long black coat and matching beret.



The dinner date takes place at Wayne Manor, and begins with a series of images depicting the two talking and eating together, implying a cosy and intimate meal...



...until the following page reveals they are actually sitting at opposite ends of a long dining table. A gag taken straight from Batman 89.



The date ends prematurely when the Joker is sighted in Gotham Park, standing atop a mountain of pills and beckoning to nearby spectators. The way he goads the crowd in this scene recalls his dialogue during the parade in Batman 89.



This is later revealed to be another imitator, and the real Joker is still locked up in Arkham Asylum. Nevertheless, this imitator has been injected with the Joker's DNA and displays the same criminal characteristics. Batman tries to take an explosive detonator off him, only for the Joker to pull the same detachable-hand trick from the movie.



Another fake villain who shows up is the Riddler, and Asamiya seems to have modelled him on the Jim Carrey version from Batman Forever.



The Joker imitator then lures Yuko into a trap by tricking her into thinking she has a date with Bruce.



But Batman rescues Yuko from the fake Joker, at one point hoisting her from the jaws of death using the grapple gun.



Batman then takes her back to the Batcave.



Unlike the movie, Yuko is unconscious when he takes her to the Batcave, but wide awake when he takes her back to the city.



Notice the dialogue in this scene. Batman only speaks when he has to and is generally characterised in a similarly reserved manner as Keaton's Batman. Throughout the story he refers to the fact that he likes to remain in the shadows and that, if he does his job properly, no one should even know he was there; echoing Burton's sentiments that Batman is a character who likes to remain hidden.

Also, Bruce Wayne is this story is not shown to be an extrovert partier, but rather a focused and intense businessman. Early in the book we are told:
"But somewhere along his tortured, if righteous path, the bat became dominant, of the two words making one...the man beneath the cape and cowl overshadowed by the dark role he played on the darker streets of Gotham. He was born Bruce Wayne, and yet now he spent his days pretending to be himself...ever since becoming a nightmare figment of his own imagination...even as children of all ages acted out their own Batman fantasies."
This could easily be a description of Keaton's Batman, uncomfortable in his own skin and immersed in the monster he's created out of his childhood fears.

The Batmobile in this comic is also clearly inspired by the Burton version.



In the interview featured in the paperback edition, Asamiya is asked what his favourite aspects of the Batman myth are. He replies:

"Personally, I love cars, so if I had the money I'd buy the actual Batmobile from the movie, register it and drive it in Japan. That's my dream."

Batman's costume seems to be based on the movie version too. The cowl, gloves and boots all look like the ones seen in the films.





On their way back to the city, Batman and Yuko are attacked by a Batman imitator. After defeating him, the real Batman removes the imposter's mask. He is shown to tear the material in a manner recalling the umasking scene from Batman Returns. The texture of the material as it rips suggests it is made from the same rubbery material.



Later in the story Yuko dreams about the first time she saw Batman when she was a child. This flashback has blatant parallels with the opening sequence of Batman 89. Yuko and her parents are visiting Gotham and walking the streets late at night. Her father struggles to locate their hotel on a map, while her mother suggests they find a taxi.



They wander down and alleyway and are confronted by a pair of muggers, one of whom is dressed like Eddie (George Roth) from the 89 film.



But of course Batman comes to the rescue, and the muggers turn to find him standing behind them, cloak spread in a wing-like fashion.



The story takes Batman to Tokyo on the trail of the main villain. Once there, we see him suit up – with the focus on the belt fastening, cape and chest emblem – similar to the suit-up scene from the 89 movie.



While investigating Tokyo, Batman finds himself face to face with Catwoman. Only this is actually Yuko, who has been injected with Selina Kyle's DNA by the villain and brainwashed into acting like the real Catwoman. She immediately attacks Batman and the two of them fight on a rooftop.



At one point Catwoman strikes Batman's ribs in the same weak spot she identified in Batman Returns.



She also makes a couple of nine-lives puns.





During the final showdown, Batman's opponent has injected himself with Bruce Wayne's DNA and donned a high-tech version of the Batsuit (which bears a slight resemblance to Bale's Batsuit from The Dark Knight). Once he has defeated his foe, Batman tears off his enemy's mask. And again, he physically rips the cowl like he did in Batman Returns.



The villain then activates a bomb in a final effort to kill Batman. Batman uses a voice activated remote to summon the Batmobile and make his escape.



At the end of the story – in a scene reminiscent of Batman Returns – Bruce Wayne is shown relaxing in front of a roaring fire while watching television back at Wayne Manor.



Well that's about it. Sorry this comparison was so longwinded, but Batman: Child of Dreams is a pretty long book and there's a lot to be said about it. All in all, it's actually a pretty good Batman story and a particularly enjoyable read for fans of Michael Keaton's Batman.

I know this was posted a while ago, but great job with this post Silver. I just got done reading this manga myself and the influence of Tim Burton's original film was very apparent. I wanted to add two more visual nods that I noticed.

Wayne Manor looks exactly like it did in the film.


In these panels Wayne sports a black turtleneck and is sitting in a chair that resembles the seats in the 89 Batmobile.

[Silver Nemesis]

Those are good additions, BatmanFurst. It's been a long time since I read Child of Dreams, but I remember enjoying it a lot. From what I recall, it evoked the feel of the Burton films more successfully than the Batman '89 comic did, even though it wasn't set in the Burtonverse.

If I was to compile a list of graphic novels that fans of a particular cinematic version of Batman would enjoy, then Child of Dreams would definitely make the Burtonverse list.

[Silver Nemesis]

A recent storyline by Chip Zdarsky has shown Batman mentally battling various incarnations of the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh (the backup identity in Bruce's subconscious that takes over if his mind is ever compromised), each modelled on a different version of the Dark Knight. One of them is based on Keaton. He first appears in 'The Bat-Man of Gotham: Conclusion' (Batman V3 #135, July 2023), following the Keaton cameo mentioned earlier in the thread.

This issue also features a scene where Batman defeats a giant Shark Joker using shark-repellent bat-spray given to him by the Adam West Earth-66 Batman.

The Batmen of Zur-En-Arrh return at the end of Batman V3 #139, and the Keaton version is among them. Note West standing next to him.

The storyline continues in Batman V3 #140.

Batman has to mentally fight the Zurs for control of his body. At one point he goes up against the Bat-Keaton of Zur-En-Arrh.

Keaton throws a chemical capsule at him like he does when battling Catwoman in Batman Returns.

Then Batman takes him down by exploiting his inability to turn his head.

Batman also fights a West Zur-En-Arrh in this issue, as well as other Multiversal incarnations including the vampire Batman and The Dark Knight Returns version.

[BatmanFurst]

This next one was so random. While reading Legends of the Dark Knight 179 I noticed a panel that was a direct recreation of a shot from Batman Forever.

[BatmanFurst]

Finally started reading Under the Red Hood for the first time and started to notice the first of Nolan's influences on the comics. In Batman 635 this is the very first time where we find out that Bruce's gadgets have been coming from the R&D department of Wayne Industries. This comic is dated to February 2005, but I definitely think it's an influence from Begins which would've been in post production around this time.



The credits for Batman 637 feature the Nolan Batsymbol. This is the very first appearance of this symbol in comics that I'm aware of.