Last night, I had a "coming-home-from-college reunion" with one of my high school buddies. We watched Pretty Woman, then (for lack of anything better to do), we starting watching the 1943 Batman series. Oh yes, check this out.
All I can say is "Holy shit." I had no idea The Batman came from such humble cinematic beginnings. The whole series was quite entertaining, not for it's film quality, but because we could MST3K it the whole time. I felt like I had a wedgie just looking at The Batman's outfit, his belt was basically all the way up to his man-nipples!
The only other Batman movies I've seen are with bad mother--shut-yo-mouth Christian Bale in The Dark Knight (2008) and Batman Begins (2005). Seeing the 1943 Batman as such a loser who gets beat up all the time was shocking. Little man-child Robin saves his ass at least once per episode. It got me wondering how Batman has changed (other than dropping the "The") throughout his cinematic career. His enemies as well.
1943: The Batman
What they were wearing...
Who they were fighting...
Dr. Daka
(Most definitely a white dude.
Terrible makeup. Terrible accent.)
1949: Batman and Robin
What they were wearing...
Who they were fighting...
The Wizard
(Just weird.)
1966-1968: Batman (TV Series)
What they were wearing...
(Ambiguously Gay Duo!)
Who they were fighting...
Most recurring villains: Joker, Riddler, and Penguin
Most recurring villains: Joker, Riddler, and Penguin
But also Catwoman,
King Tut,
Marsha: Queen of Diamonds
(who is wearing what I can only assume is a giraffe suit)
and many more!
(who is wearing what I can only assume is a giraffe suit)
and many more!
1989: Batman
What he was wearing...
(Michael Keaton)
Who he was fighting...
The Joker (Jack Nicholson)
1992: Batman Returns
(Still Keaton!)
Who he was fighting...
Penguin (Danny Devito) and Catwoman (Michelle Pfeiffer)
1995: Batman Forever
What he was wearing...
(Val Kilmer)
Who he was fighting...
Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones) and The Riddler (Jim Carrey)
1997: Batman & Robin
What they were wearing...
(George Clooney & Chris O'Donnell)
Who they were fighting...
Poison Ivy (Uma Thurman) and Mr. Freeze (Schwarzenegger)
2005: Batman Begins & 2008: The Dark Knight
What he was wearing...
(Christian Bale)
Who he was fighting...
The Scarecrow (Cillian Murphy) and The Joker (Heath Ledger)
This list is in no way comprehensive. I didn't even get into the animations, Batwoman, Batgirl, Bat-mite, or Bat Hound.
Now I must go clear my web-browsing history because my computer feels like a dirty little nerdlet.
No comments:
Post a Comment