Batman: Gotham Knight Review Pt 2

Disclaimer (I am not a comic otaku, but I will try my best to do research into as much Batman related lore as I can, since Batman is by far my favorite DC character)

In Darkness Dwells (Madhouse)
This begins with an investigation by Gotham P.D. of a group hallucination in a church, and the abduction of the Cardinal into the crypts and sewers associated with it. Batman gets involved as they track the criminal and gives Gordon a way to communicate with him while he’s tracking the abductor. But it’s protected by quantum cryptology so they can’t trace him it seems (Bouncing off satellites and whatnot). Batman’s already targeted the main villain, Scarecrow, the psychologist obsessed with fear. And the backstory of Killer Croc, the other villain involved, is changed somewhat, though he still has the skin condition and such. The lore about him being flushed down the toilet by his mom for being so ugly is thrown around once. But now he is noted as being part of an experiment by Scarecrow of fear aversion therapy while in Arkham. And Killer Croc’s phobia is identical to Scarecrow’s: bats. Eventually Batman encounters Killer Croc, getting bit in the shoulder in the process, saying he works through such pain (which will connect to the next episode) and eventually throwing what appears to be a grenade in his mouth, scaring him off. The Scarecrow’s fear toxin was in Killer Croc, so now Batman is seeing things, but he gets over it as he moves through the sewers. Eventually he traces Scarecrow to a place near where they used to store corpses, now flowing with methane gas. The Scarecrow has a “cult” of escaped Arkham inmates and is threatening to kill the Cardinal for helping the weak, since he wants to drive them down into insanity very likely. This Scarecrow’s look is very cool, probably even cooler than the version from Batman: The Animated Series. Batman manages to escape with the Cardinal by exploding methane above. He has a moment where he Matrix-style dodges a scythe thrown by Scarecrow and as they’re escaping out a pipe, they almost get cut up by a ship propeller. Batman leaves the Cardinal with the police and he leaves, not accepting their help, saying, “Maybe next time” as he runs away into the shadows again, to nurse what is probably still a bad wound from a 7 foot mutant with teeth sharpened to nails. This one introduces the most Batman villains, but I shouldn’t complain overall when the real message is Batman in a sort of day to day thing, looking deeper into his psyche, not unlike the new Batman film series.





Working Through Pain (Studio 4ºC)
The episode begins with Batman stumbling through the sewers, deeply wounded. He manages to cauterize the wound, making you see the theme of the obviously titled work. The scene then shifts to India (as evidenced by the cows sitting around and people in sarongs by the river), Bruce watching a mongoose and cobra fight it out. He is notified by an informant that he has been rejected by the fakirs (Indian mystics, essentially) for training. The training is still unrevealed, but the fakirs apparently knew he was not seeking enlightenment or truth, and was dishonest with them, which they were able to see through somehow. The informant suggests one more source, a mysterious woman living outside the main village. It is revealed that Bruce is looking for a way to deal with his pain. The woman, called Cassandra, clarifies later that there are two types of pain: exterior and interior, Bruce’s pain manifesting as both in his line of work. The line that pain always scars is interesting and relevant to Batman’s own past as Cassandra stands on hot coals. The theme becomes Bruce learning from her that you don’t make pain work for you, you work through the pain. Cassandra reveals that she was outcast because she deceived the fakirs into thinking she was a boy. But they apparently knew that already and tried to mess with her. But she completed the training and was then revealed to be doing something she shouldn’t, so she was outcast by her village and family (So women can’t do fakir training in India…still sexist a bit I see). They try to indicate Bruce might be romantically involved with Cassandra, which is possible, but not likely, since Bruce seems rarely to get involved with teachers, as opposed to villains or adversaries like Catwoman, Talia al Ghul and Zatanna to my memory. Eventually Bruce tries to defend Cassandra from what appear to be just teen boys threatening her. Bruce takes a stick to the head without reaction as well as a bottle and then fights off the 6 guys. But Cassandra brings him his things and tells him to leave, since he didn’t understand that she didn’t need his help, since they would’ve gotten tired in the end. She reflects that Bruce’s pain is beyond her help and possibly even beyond Bruce’s attempts as well. Prior to this, we see another flashback where Batman waits for Alfred to pick him up and finds a bunch of guns tossed aside in a storm drain along with garbage. As Alfred pulls the drain off the street, he offers his help, but Bruce with all the guns in his hand says he can’t since he appears to be in emotional pain as well, unable to give up the guns that he wants to get rid of from the street and take the help that he needs to heal his physical wound. This one is probably the most revealing of the tragedy manifest in Batman’s life, since it doesn’t explicitly involve his parents’ death, but suggests that it still affects him by his desire to get rid of guns, even those thrown into the sewers.




Deadshot (Madhouse)
The final episode begins with Bruce flashbacking to his parents’ murder, splicing together with Deadshot (a relatively little known Batman villain) putting together his sniper rifle. The next day, still shifting scenes between Batman and Deadshot, we see Bruce working out (like Bruce Lee with one armed pushups) and Alfred bringing the gun collection from the last episode into the room. Bruce reflects that while he doesn’t use guns, he can appreciate why his enemies like to use them, in the way Batman understands his enemies so well (Joker in particular). He even says guns hold the power of “God”; in the loosest sense I’m sure. Deadshot then shoots from probably 2000 meters away and splits a wine glass off at the stem, lodging the bullet in his target’s head. He is then seen speaking to his informant about another mission and as he leaves, he throws a little martini sword and impales a bee on it, making me see a parallel that probably wasn’t completely intended between this villain and Marvel Comics’ Bullseye, the adversary of Daredevil and the Punisher. It’s revealed that Ronald Marshall from “Field Test” hired Deadshot to kill the protestor that he had so graciously named the building after. Commissioner Gordon is the next target for Deadshot and he tries his best to keep safe, wearing a helmet while outside and not wanting to wear it in the car. Batman tries to find where Deadshot is shooting from and with Alfred’s help, finds that he is not only trying to shoot a car from a train going 60 miles an hour, but in between a second train going the opposite direction. Batman stops him and chases Deadshot into a tunnel where they continue to fight. Batman eventually gets the edge and nearly pushes Deadshot into getting his face ripped off by the protrusions from the sides of the tunnel, getting part of his mask torn off. Deadshot is beaten and afterwards, we see Alfred patching up Batman again from a shot that he got in running towards the assault from Deadshot’s hand-mounted machine gun. After remembering that he is fighting so that nothing like what happened to his parents and him will ever happen again, the Bat Signal appears outside the window in the sky and we end with Batman leaving to jump into the fray yet again.

Overall, this series of animations is a good introduction to Batman for newcomers born in the 2000s era. Although admittedly the film is probably for a teenage audience or so with the violence and cursing associated with it, it’s a good follow-up to your kids watching the Batman animated series from the 90s. Not to mention the varied animation styles of 4 different studios well known for series such as Noir and Dot Hack Sign (Bee Train), Ghost in the Shell: SAC and FLCL (Production I.G.), Trigun and Chobits (Madhouse) as well as the involvement of the directors and writers from the Batman Begins film. All in all, a 5 out of 5, and 100% recommended from me, a rarity indeed. Until next time, Namaste and Aloha

Batman: Gotham Knight Review Pt 1

Disclaimer (I am not a comic otaku, but I will try my best to do research into as much Batman related lore as I can, since Batman is by far my favorite DC character)

Batman: Gotham Knight’s not exactly what I’d call a movie perse, since it’s just 6 segments blended together into a movie length feature. This was direct to DVD I think, so my complaints on that are pointless, but at least Superman: Doomsday and such were actually movies. Not that this is a bad film by any means. It’s good in that it takes different talents and puts them together in a mixing pot to create what promises to be a new, yet classic take on Batman and his effect on Gotham City. So onto each episode in some detail.

Have I Got a Story For You (Studio 4ºC)
This one begins with kids skating in a street area, graffiti scattered around a large warehouse with pools that promise much fun. Eventually four kids gather and start talking about why three of them were late. The first tells a story that eventually involves Batman, as all three of the stories do. This version describes him as a living shadow, slinking away from attacks and striking back just as quick, which I suppose is only evidence of Batman’s great training in martial arts. To any normal person not trained, he would move very much like he was immaterial and then material in the blink of an eye. The villain throughout this animation is a guy in a nondescript black/blue suit with red goggles of sorts. Progressively he reveals new tools, like a jetpack and two especially large guns. Eventually the baddie sneaks away and Batman leaves. The next story begins the conflicting accounts of Batman, the only female in the group insisting that Batman is like a winged bat demon creature of sorts, her explanation for how Batman seems to fly through the air. This is relevant since this is where the jetpack comes into play for the villain. But Batman stops him and in the exaggerated version he takes the guy’s head off. But in reality, the villain escapes again. And our final storyteller insists that Batman’s neither of the previous descriptions, but is a robotic/mechanical soldier almost, with arms that change into various weapons and plods along at a pace that seems unlike Batman, especially if you think he wears armor that heavy. But after the failed attempt at robbing people on top of a building, Batman chases the guy down again. And as the third story finishes, the villain and Batman crash into the skate warehouse and the reality sets in. The villain throws a smoke bomb and Batman is almost stabbed in the back with a shard of broken glass, but the first kid we see skating whacks the guy with his skateboard and stops him. Batman then thanks him and disappears into the smoke mysteriously. The other three somehow didn’t see him and the story ends with the fourth kid no doubt describing the Batman as real as he is in the flesh. However vulnerable Batman was, actually bleeding a bit and not exactly perfect, he still gave off that air of something that the kid respects and we’re already to a good start with giving a varied account of Batman’s adventures. Supposedly all these episodes are connected, similar to how each kid’s story in this particular animation is linked in a sequence that ends at the place it began. There are some interrelations, but each story could stand on its own quite well, which is the greatest appeal the movie has.



Crossfire (Production I.G.)
This one begins at the police headquarters and we’re introduced to Detectives Allen and Ramirez, part of Gotham’s Major Crimes Unit, headed by Commissioner Gordon. The two are sent to take a criminal back to what is presumably Arkham Asylum, or a similar facility, that is now the entire island, which reminds me of the recent release of the game by the same name, which has Arkham Asylum located on an island as well. The criminal seems like a no name guy, but his designs are supposedly based on the earlier forms of the Batman villain Firefly. Moving on, though, we get to the conflict within this short; Allen and Ramirez arguing about whether they can trust Batman. Allen sees him as a dangerous vigilante, while Ramirez sees him as the first person to really change Gotham for the better. A large theme that progresses through the 6 episodes is a war going on between the groups headed by Maroni (Salvatore Maroni possibly) and the Russian (no relation to the Marvel character by the same name). There’s an interesting thought by Allen that Gotham and the asylum are both abandoned to madness, which is somewhat true in that the gangs do have influence everywhere still, even with Batman’s help in the fight for justice. The detectives continue to argue about Batman, Ramirez saying that Batman is what keeps her going to be a cop and the whole incident cut short as they realize they are in the middle of the gang’s turf warfare. The two sides open fire, while the detectives are caught in the crossfire (omg title drop!). The Russian eventually pulls a rocket launcher and almost kills Allen, but he’s saved by Batman, who goes down and beats the heck out of most of the bad guys. Ramirez and Maroni survive the blast, but Maroni pulls a stray gun and threatens to kill Ramirez. Batman appears before this and as he walks closer we get a nice image with the flames licking at his costume, making the Dark Knight just look more intimidating as even fire doesn’t hurt his present Batsuit. He quickly rips the gun from Maroni’s hand and knocks him out. He then notes that Gordon picks his members well, indicating that both Allen and Ramirez are people he can trust. We’ll see more of both of them as well as Gordon in later episodes. This series overall does have links you can draw, as a sequence over a period of a week or so, but it can just as well stand as a set of episodes for a TV series, since we progressively introduce the various threats to Gotham and later start dropping more familiar names, making this seem more like the recent attempt in the 2000s to resurrect the Batman animation in the form of the show simply called The Batman.



Field Test (Bee Train)
The third episode introduces us to a figure little known except to older Batman fans or recent fans of the new series starting with Batman Begins, Lucius Fox, a member of Wayne Corp that helps Bruce with various gadgets and the like. This time, he’s experimenting with a device used to guide Wayne Corp satellites, an electromagnetic gyroscope. The aftermath pulls everything metal within a few feet of the initial experiment into the central area. Fox then reveals an application of the technology that involves a sound sensor attached to it. When it hears a sound around a certain decibel level, it releases a pulse from the electromagnet that’s able to deflect bullets, though only small arms. But Bruce is interested and so he brings it with him for a test as he tries to get info from Ronald Marshall, who’s holding a gold tournament for charity. Bruce inquires about the project and how a protestor was mysteriously killed a week or so before the opening of the area where Marshall plans to open up a new shelter for the homeless; along with the golf course as well. Marshall’s response is that it was tragic, but he’s naming the shelter in her honor. How nice. In the match, Bruce activates the EMP device, sending Marshall’s club flying into the woods through slipping a remote device into his golf bag and activating it with his watch. The two millionaires speak afterwards and Bruce rejects an offer for dinner since he’s going with a half Italian half Russian date, which Marshall whistles at in astonishment (since I guess he only gets Italians or Russians by themselves). Batman then interrupts an attempt at Maroni’s keeping out of the Russian’s sight by remote controlling (again) the boat they’re on, crashing it into the Russian’s in the same area. A firefight ensues and Batman kicks butt as usual, deciding the two gangs’ turfs for them until he can decide a better system in the future. He mentions Blackgate, which I think is part of Gotham’s prisons, but is probably unrelated to Arkham Asylum, since that’s for the criminally insane, not the merely criminal such as the gangs that Batman initially fought. Batman avoids getting shot from behind thanks to the EMP armor, but the ricochet hits one of the Russian’s men. Batman takes him to the hospital and forces him to accept the help, since the wound is dangerous enough to the guy’s health. And in the conclusion, Bruce gives the device back, saying it works too well. He’s quite willing to put his own life on the line, but not at the cost of putting others in the same amount of danger he puts himself in. And Fox just accepts it quietly, ending this 3rd of 6 episodes. Until next time, Namaste and Aloha.