Batman: a rant

 I've made plenty of Batman jokes. Most of them stemming from his Child Soldier rearing, How he sees Orphanages as Army recruiters see High School Seniors and

Zack Snyder's piss poor understanding of Batman and Superman. Now I'm going to do something that may appear as shocking. I'm going to defend Zack Snyder's Martha scene.

Hold your horses... the defense is not that deep. The execution of the scene, which lies on Zack Snyder, was still awful. The idea of it is not THAT bad. The idea that Batman has gone off the deep end and is becoming what he swore to fight against is interesting IN THEORY. It's something that could be explored in a FINAL Batman movie before transitioning to Batman Beyond. This is not something to use as one of the building blocks of a Cinematic Universe,  which is one of the many areas where Zack Snyder failed... 

But this isn't about Snyder and his shortcomings as a director. This is about Batman and my thoughts of him as a character. I'm a bit clueless on how to tackle this, since it's Batman. I have to tackle the topic I dread the most, since I fear my own demons, and how they make me feel guilty of my Mom's death... Just like I assume Bruce must feel. Think about it: Why did the Waynes die? They were mugged by Joe Chill when they crossed through "Crime Alley" (the name Crime Alley was given AFTER the death of the Waynes). Why were they crossing "Crime Alley"? Because they were leaving the Morarch Theatre. Sometimes it was because they finished watching The Mark of Zorro, in others, Little Bruce, who was 8-10 years old, was frightened by a movie or Opera concert. The Waynes get mugged and killed, with the child being the only survivor.

Now, here's the thing: No matter how much normal people can rationalize the ridiculousness of Bruce Wayne's motivations, it hits closer to home, when one has Survior's guilt. In Bruce's case: "If I hadn't pestered my parents to see The Mark of Zorro, they wouldn't have died." Assuming it's the Bruce watched The Mark of Zorro before his parents were killed continuity. If it's the Bruce got afraid at the Opera continuity, his Survivor's Guilt manifests with the mantra " If I hadn't been afraid, they wouldn't have left the theatre earlier and they wouldn't have died." How can I be so certain about this? Because "If I hadn't been born, My Mom wouldn't have gotten a transfusion with tainted blood and she wouldn't have died years later from complications with treating her Hep C." Survivor's guilt can leave some common points of view on people.

Theoretically speaking, Bruce clings to his survior's guilt to push forward. While he's aware that Joe Chill was the actual murderer, he feels guilty about being the reason WHY the Waynes  crossed paths with Chill. On the rational level, he gets it, but emotionally, he must feel like it was HE who pulled the trigger...  again, he was 8-10 when he lost his parents.  I was 33 when my Mom died, yet emotionally, I feel like I was the one who tainted her blood, since my birth was the reason she needed a blood transfusion. (Back then blood tests couldn't detect Hep C. Also. I'm going to therapy to work these awful feelings out) So, having an 8 year old feeling horribly guilty about his parents' death, despite not being actually guilty makes sense. 

Many have wondered why Bruce "never got therapy". Real world reason, back when Batman was created, Therapy was uncommon, especially on children. But think about this: Bruce is obsessed with that moment. He swore to his parents' souls that he would not only avenge them, but he would dedicate his life to avoid the suffering he went through. He used that trauma to push himself, not exactly healthy, because he isn't allowing himself to heal, to let go... I get it... I don't remember My Mom's voice, or scent. I get to remember what she looked like because I kept a picture of her. 

I suppose Bruce has more luck there since his parents were celebrities of sorts and he can find footage of them, so he can hear their voices, see their faces, etc.

Also, I've been triggered by people who knew me through my Mom and recognize me as her son. I wouldn't want to imagine how horrible it must be being in a city where EVERYONE KNEW OF YOUR DEAD PARENTS and always found a way to remind you of them. Especially since Thomas and Martha Wayne were borderline saints in Gotham. 

It's funny, Bruce is going on a self-destructive path, but his path to self-destruction is paved with good intentions and it yields results. They aren't exactly the results he wants, seeing that there have been mishaps like the Death and Resurrection of Jason Todd, the existence of Damian Wayne, his creation of child soldiers, but at the same time, he was able to save Dick Grayson from following a darker path. He even took Tim Drake under his wing,  when the third Robin lost his family, and proved himself worthy of being Robin by rising above the parh of vengeance. If it wasn't for Bruce, the Justice League wouldn't have been a Justice League... since guess whose deep pockets fund the league?

Batman's... especially in continuities without Oliver Queen and Ted Kord. 

But what do I mean with Self-destructive behavior? He literally goes out at night picking fights with criminals and some of them are strong enough to snap a man like a twig. He does this FOR FREE, so the excuse of "it pays the bills" that policemen and firemen have to risk their lives isn't useful here. Batman has fought literal gods. Can you fight a literal god and live to fight another day? I know I can't fight an average mortal and leave unscathed. A god would kick my ass so hard that all my ancestors would feel it. 

Then there's all the philanthropic work done by his Bruce Wayne mask. Batman doesn't simply punch people as some ill-guided critiques state.

The way Batman attacks crime is a two-pronged approach. Billionaire Playboy and Philanthropist, Bruce Wayne makes the news by being a socialite in many charitable soirees. There he helps fundraisers to various social programs. Not to mention that he has 2 foundations working to alleviate the issues plaguing Gotham. The Thomas Wayne Foundation deals with stuff related to the medical field. The Martha Wayne Foundation deals with stuff related to social and education issues. The problem is that Gotham is rotten to the core. The Mob has its tentacles shoved up many crevices. Throwing money won't make the Falcones back off. Crazy man dressed up like a bat does. Hell, Gotham is so corrupt that Jim Gordon had a hard time cleaning up the GCPD and despite his efforts, it's not exactly squeaky clean. By simply throwing money at the problems, those who would embezzle the funds will do it anyway. By dressing up as a bat, Bruce instills fear on Gotham's criminal elements and does what the GCPD can't or WON'T do.

His Countermeasures seem paranoid, but they make sense. I don't mean it in the "The justice League are too powerful and they need a way to stop them if they ever go rogue" way. I mean it in a "Bruce Wayne suffered his greatest loss by a random mugging that he wasn't prepared for" kind of way. Not to mention that most of Bruce's own rogues gallery are Doctors, Scientists, and other positions of high esteem, when people who aren't "criminally insane" hold said positions. Or that Gotham is rotten to the core and the Waynes are the only "source of hope" for Gotham. He's so used to see the worst in humanity, so he's preparing for the event of any League member having a bad day and snapping. 

Returning to the whole "why doesn't he get therapy" thing. Sadly, about 93% of people who go to therapy lie to their therapist. I, regrettably did lie to a previous therapist. I did it out of fear of facing a truth about myself and out of fear of being interned... at the time I was contemplating Soloing Task Force X. Fortunately for me, I managed to shake off those thoughts. With my current therapist, I've been able to open up a bit more and was able to face the fact that I once did contemplate to take a permanent solution to a temporary problem. I'm not proud of that moment of weakness, but I can acknowledge that it did happen. If *I*, who am terrible at lying, was able to do so to a therapist; then I can easily believe that the guy who can beat the Lasso of Hestia WILL lie to his therapist. Not to mention the "Billionaire Playboy" persona fits the outlook on life of people who have gone through a Near Death experience and have had some sort of trauma. So, a person like that would have some seemingly shallow responses to the therapist.

Out of the Mainstream DC Superheroes, Batman is the most interesting of all, due to his traumas and tragedies. Sure Kal-El being "The Last Son of Krypton" is very tragic and all, but the love given to him by the Kents, who raised him as their own, protected Clark from what he lost in Krypton. The Kents showed Kal-El the Best Humanity has to offer. Wonder Woman was the daughter of Zeus and Hippolyta... (Zeus, you horngod...) at best the worst thing she has is daddy issues, but then again 99% of the children of Zeus suffer from that. Hell, they tried to batman-ize Flash by having Reverse Flash go back in time to kill Barry's mom and pin it on Barry's dad.

His skills are a very, VERY divisive section. Mainly the whole "Prep Time" meme. It's cool to see Batman using Logic and detective-ing his way out if a trap, showcasing his mind as his greatest weapon. Problem is when his exploits defeat all rules of physics including the DC superpowers with:

"I'm BaTmAn!"

I know that Batman overplays that to terrify criminals, but when writers are having Batman defeat characters waaaaaaaay out of his league with "He's Batman" as the reason, that. is. bullshit. 

Now I have to tackle THE most polarizing thing about Batman... yes, even more polarizing than the Prep Time meme...

The One Rule... yes, I'm aware that most Cinematic Batmen have ignored it. Why, say Keaton's Batman gets a pass while Affleck's doesn't? This is a loaded question. I'll try to answer it as honestly as possible. There are various factors:

-Faithfulness to the source Material:

Tim Burton not being a fan of the comics us a well known fact. He also never pretended to be a superfan unlike a certain dollar store Michael Bay wannabe who hides behind his daughter's Soloing Task Force X. Snyder pretended to be a super DC fan after he had derided DC. Remember the whole prison rape comment. If Snyder had never painted himself as a superfan, his ill-guided universe might have received less scorn.

-Hypocrisy:

Keaton's Batman killed various henchmen... true, but he also killed or didn't save Joker and Penguin. While not accurate to the source material, it's honest and consistent. This Batman was judge, jury, and executioner. On the other hand, we have Affleck's Batman, whi killed various henchmen, yet lets Robin's murderer run free. Dude was hellbent in killing Superman "because he could be evil" yet Joker, who everyone knows he's evil, is alive and kicking. If Batman had gone dark and began killing, Joker should've been first one on the list.

But enough about movies... wait! Fun fact: George Clooney was the only Batman who actually stuck to the One Rule... until Pattinson came along. Now Clooney is the First Cinematic Live Action Batman to not have killed... that means even Adam West has killed...

Back to the comics and the One Rule... For the most part, I like the One Rule. I know that it would make sense to break it in Joker's case, but while Batman's activities aren't exactly legal; even if GCPD supports them. Especially with the big ass Signal Light atop the GCPD HQ. If Batman were to cross the line, a shit ton of trouble would fall in Gotham. The GCPD would be in deep shit for collaborating with a murderer, then the entire police force would be disbanded, probably replaced by outside agents, total chaos. Hell, I'm not even sure if the repercussions would reach the JLA. To me that makes more sense than the "If I kill one, then I won't know how to stop" argument. I would also prefer to consider the idea that deep down Batman HOPES for the rehabilitation of Gotham's "super criminals" since many of them would be highly productive members of society if they weren't criminals. To me, it fits the mentality of a child who wants to prevent Gotham's children from suffering the same pain Bruce Wayne did. Killing criminals would make more kids having to suffer the loss of a parent. Beating them up keeps the kids from becoming orphans. Sure, they might have their parent away for some time with the whole ending up in jail, but they're alive.

Because the thing is that Batman is still a child. He might be on the top 2 most intelligent people in the DC Universe's Earth. He might be the 21st Century Sherlock Holmes with his cunning.  He might be a Martial arts prodigy with a dash of Houdini,  but deep down he's an 8-10 year old who hasn't processed the death of his parents. 

Batman is everything Bruce wasn't that night.

He is strong where Bruce was weak. He is intimidating when Bruce was meek. He literally went across the globe learning all the skills he could to become a supercop and stop crime all over Gothan. That's not something a mature adult would do. That's what a child would do. Then we have the whole dressing up as a scary monster. That's literally a child's move. 

Is Batman nothing but a chronically depressed child with severe PTSD trauma that has been festering inside for decades, while pretending to be a functional adult? I'm no psychologist, so I couldn't make a proper assessment for multiple of reasons. But it's obvious that Batman has some severe issues. They hit closer to home when one goes through the loss of a parent and one feels like it's their fault. I could say that Batman changed a lot for me after my Mom's death. 

Most of DC's heroes are unrelatable to normal folks... the biggest exception is Batman, because of his pain and suffering gives the audience something to hook them in. Sure he may do some incredible acts of unrealistic bullshit because "he's Batman" but at the end of the day, he's a severely flawed individual who is trying to do the right thing, even if his methods aren't exactly right. He's one of the more "imperfect" DC characters and it's those imperfections what make him more interesting.