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hey!  i said i was a comic geek and i am.   I try hold it back because to the non-comic fan (which is mostly everyone) i sound very conceited and i dont want to come off that way.  But I know a good general background on comic book characters such as Spider-Man, Hulk, Batman, Superman, Punisher, Flash, Wonder Woman, Daredevil, Fantastic Four, etc etc.  The X-men and green lantern are very hard to follow because  there are so many timeline or corps stories.  I try though and learn from other comic fans.   My specialities are Spider-man, Superman, and Batman.

all this goes to the main jist of the article which is the latest superhero movie, The Dark Knight.

I will not put spoilers but I will talk about the movie.  If you have not seen the movie, please do not read this blog until you do. I am going to refer to the movie so it might ruin it for you.  Heres what I will discuss: My reaction to dark knight, batman, joker, batman and joker relationship, the ending of the dark knight.

The Dark Knight was a sequel to “Batman Begins” which was a reboot of the failed Batman Burton-Shumacher series.   The Dark Knight is perhaps the best superhero movie ever made and will be hard to top.    The movie pulls you in the first five minutes and from then on its a roller coaster until the end.  Every scene with the Joker was amazing and kept making me saying “wow”   over and over again.    The movie uses the comic storylines of “the killing joke” and “the long halloween”   I was so stunned I couldnt find my car for 10 minutes!   It was during the day too!!!!   The Dark Knight pulled about 154.4 mill  in just 3 days.   The Dark Knight is truly going to be in the Hall of Fame of comic movies and movies in general.  I think this movie will not be topped, but what makes this so?   To understand we must understand the Batman and Joker relationship because it is unlike anything in the comic world.

Lets talk about Batman first.  Batman was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger in the 1930s when Detective Comics (DC comics) wanted to replicate the success they had with Superman.   The 1930s were a time of hardship in the United States because it was the time of the Great Depression and when crime was rampant. The mobs were in control and the streets were corrupted.   I am sure most of the readers know the basic background story of Batman but let me repeat it to any newcomers.

Batmans story begins with  two bullets and fear.  When a young Bruce Wayne accidently fell into a cave filled with bats.  The fall shocked Bruce and he became scared of bats.  A short time later, while Thomas and Martha Wayne went out an outing with their son.  They went into a dark alley where they were mugged by a man named Joe Chill.   Chill killed Bruce’s parents in front of him and the shock caused Bruce great despair.   Bruce figured that he will never be truly safe and sought to avenge his parents, ensuring whatever happened to him will never happen to anyone else again.  Using his family fourtunes, he traveled the world learning escape tricks, various martial arts, and whatever other skills he needed.    He came back to Gotham City years later and tried to stop a crime but he was stabbed by a prostitute. He decided he needed an image to stike fear into his enemies.   He saw a bat while he was in his study and he remembered the intiial fear he had.  He decided to use the bat as his image and thats how he became the Batman.

In the world, there is much corruption and this was the case for Gotham City. Gotham City was ruled by the mob and the police worked for the mob so Batman could not work the police. Therefore he had to be outside the law in order to strike fear into his opponents.   Thats what Batman is essentially, a champion against corruption.   If a person is dedicated enough, they can make a difference in the world.

Now lets talk about Joker.   The Joker was also created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger.   He was originally a psychopathic clown who just killed.  In the 1950s, he was made into a gimmick clown and was revived again to his original traits in the 1970s.   The origin of the Joker is very debatable.  Some stories have him as a failed comedian, some as a past mobster, and others mix it.  In “The Killing Joke”, the most popular origin of the Joker, said he was a failed comedian and a former Lab Tech for a chemical company.  His wife was pregnant and he needed money.  He was set up to rob his old workplace when the cops said his wife and child died in an accident.  The criminals still forced him to aid him in the crime.  They dressed him in a red hood and they were confronted by Batman.  The man jumped into a vat of chemicals turning his skin bone white and his hair green.  The days event plus this was enough to drive him insane.  The Joker was born.  However this is just one of many stories and the Joker himself keep altering the truth to the point where he does not even know. The Joker is insane and very unpredictable.  His mission is to prove that even the most righteous person can be corrupted and be a “freak”.  The Joker cripplied the orginal Batgirl and killed the second Robin with a crowbar.    The late Heath Ledger portrayed him beautifully and nailed the part on the nail.  He for sure deserves an oscar.

now what makes the movie great?  Batman and Joker.  They are like the ying and yang to each other.  Batman is very sane and uses his head to fight crime.  He also will not kill.  The Joker is very insane and does things on impulses.   The Joker will not only kill, but will slaughter by the thousands.   Batman says we dont need to be freaks, we can both co exist and protect the innocents.  The Joker responds by the fact that innocent people can be harmed and can be corrupted means there are no innocent people in the world, so Batman protecting the innocents is a big joke.  The Joker is basically underminding Batmans whole exisitence and this is why their battles are so epic.  Sure there are other heroes.  The Green Goblin is the archenemy of Spider-man but he dosent want to fight against Spider-mans reasons for fighting.  Lex Luthor does want to disprove Superman but is not as insane as the Joker.    in The Dark Knight, you see this relationship blown up and this is what makes the movie so untouchable.    Both men are good at their skills and neither will back down.

The ending of Dark Knight was truly inspirational.    The Joker tried to corrupt Harvey Dent and almost succeeded if it wasnt for Batman.  He was turned into Two-Face another Batman villian and killed about 5 people.  Dent was like the light for Gotham and his work was hope.   If the people learned of his crimes,  then Gotham would be lost and the Joker would succeed.   Batman is a vigilante and a figure of the dark and is meant to be feared and hated.   He took the blame peserving Gothams hero and hope.   Batman does whatever it takes and he was truly a hero.

I hope this blog has entertained you.  Theres a little bit of The Dark Knight in all of us.

BATMAN, SUPERMAN, LEX LUTHOR, TWO FACE, JOKER, GREEN LANTERN are all property of DC Comics

Spider-man, Fantastic four, green goblin, X-men, etc are all property of Marvel Comics.

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