CrypticMirror wrote: ↑Fri Feb 04, 2022 1:07 pm
I'm gonna go beyond the source material here and speculate; that when Bruce's parents died, someone told him he had to be strong, and not fall apart, to be tough and do his father proud. And he was, depending on the comic and series, somewhere between eight or eleven years old. And that fucked him up mightily. Just like it fucks up real kids who suffer a parental death, and are told to be strong and not fall apart. It is the worst thing you can say to a kid who has just lost a parent, it doesn't save the remains of their childhood, it wipes it out. You tell a child to become and act like an adult, at an age they can't possibly comprehend what that entails, and at best you are setting them up for therapy in twenty years, at worst, you've fucked up their ability to relate to peers for the rest of their life. I'd say ask me how I know, but I think you can probably guess.
Bruce was probably out of the impressionistic age a little late considering he doesn't really have friends and gets a delay in socialization. A lot of kids probably start getting their hands into things and internalize the world through their actions what not by that age and are already developing a momentum of esteem where they feel more in control, leading to more frustration when they lose it.
Bruce's lifestyle on the other hand is a little more placid and I'd think didn't take such a weight personally upon him.
In the Arkham series and in the Gotham show Gordon kinda keeps things straight for him and safeguards him against Randian convictions. Then again I think Frank Miller versions (and perhaps Nolan's take) what not incorporate Randianism a bit more.
One thing I like about the Gotham live action version is that it's possibly the only one to speculate that Bruce was not a "normal" child even before his parents were murdered. That he's a child prodigy to begin with and his reaction is to throw himself into the idea that he can solve crime and sticks with said plan for twenty years before being ready to do anything. One might say he's a new shade on the spectrum. It might also explain why he's so emotionally distant because he's not someone who reacts the same way as other people.
Mind you, I also like the very topical idea that Bruce Wayne can't fix Gotham's problems because they're systemic at levels he doesn't even think about even when he tries. Bruce can't buy Senators to be honest, only buy them to give him tax breaks because they're bought by other billionaires.
That’s been my benchmark for what Batman done properly should be honestly: it’s not that he doesn’t fight Gotham’s ills as Bruce just as hard as Batman, it’s that even as the richest man on earth the roots of organized crime and systemic corruption are so deep his wealth and political clout never break through before being siphoned away.
Insofar as the “real world expectation” is that nobody could be as rich as Bruce Wayne without actively engaging in active, deadly abuse of their workers and bribing their way into favorable laws that absolve them of social responsibility.
CmdrKing wrote: ↑Sat Feb 05, 2022 4:24 pm
Insofar as the “real world expectation” is that nobody could be as rich as Bruce Wayne without actively engaging in active, deadly abuse of their workers and bribing their way into favorable laws that absolve them of social responsibility.
To Bruce's credit, it's not Bruce Wayne who would be doing it but Lucius Fox.
RobbyB1982 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 04, 2022 2:28 pm
Batman Beyond was the best Spiderman cartoon ever done until Spectacular Spiderman came along.
It is remarkable how they basically stole elements of the Spider-Man mythos and bolted them into Batman so perfectly, isn't it. Batman Beyond is possibly the crowning jewel of the DCAU. Just something that hits every beat perfectly while being itself almost wholly original without direct comic reference material, I especially love how they flipped the script on Batman/Bruce Wayne and basically gave him the Oracle role.
RobbyB1982 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 04, 2022 2:28 pm
Batman Beyond was the best Spiderman cartoon ever done until Spectacular Spiderman came along.
It is remarkable how they basically stole elements of the Spider-Man mythos and bolted them into Batman so perfectly, isn't it. Batman Beyond is possibly the crowning jewel of the DCAU. Just something that hits every beat perfectly while being itself almost wholly original without direct comic reference material, I especially love how they flipped the script on Batman/Bruce Wayne and basically gave him the Oracle role.
I don't think the rogues gallery really compares to Spiderman though.
