Tag: Year One

Geekscape Comics: The Stories That Inspired Christopher Nolan’s Batman Films

by Shawn Madden

So, you just saw The Dark Knight Rises and want to read some of the stories that influenced Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy? Well, we are here to help you out with that!

Year One by Frank Miller and David Mazzuchelli

A young Bruce Wayne has spent his adolescence and early adulthood, traveling the world so he could hone his body and mind into the perfect fighting and investigative machine. But now as he returns to Gotham City, he must find a way to focus his passion and bring justice to his city. Retracing Batman’s first attempts to fight injustice as a costumed vigilante, we watch as he chooses a guise of a giant bat, creates an early bond with a young Lieutenant James Gordon, inadvertently plays a role in the birth of Catwoman, and helps to bring down a corrupt political system that infests Gotham.

The Long Halloween by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale

Taking place during Batman’s early days of crime fighting, The Long Halloween tells the story of a mysterious killer named Holiday, who murders people on holidays, one each month. Working with District Attorney Harvey Dent and Lieutenant James Gordon, Batman races against the calendar as he tries to discover who Holiday is before he claims his next victim each month, while attempting to stop the crime war between two of Gotham’s most powerful families, Maroni and Falcone. This novel also acted as a main introduction for one of Batman’s most eluding foes, The Calendar Man, who knows the true identity of the Holiday killer but refuses to share this with Batman. He instead works in riddles and leaves Batman hints from his Arkham Asylum cell. The story also ties into the events that transform Harvey Dent into Batman’s enemy, Two-Face.

Knightfall by various writers/artists

The story takes place over approximately six months. In it we see Bruce Wayne suffer from burnout and systematically assaulted and crippled by Bane. This is the story where we see Bane “break the bat” which is what he has become most known for doing. Wayne is replaced as Batman by an apprentice named Jean-Paul Valley, who becomes increasingly violent and unstable, tarnishing Batman’s reputation. Eventually, Wayne is healed through paranormal means, and reclaims his role as Batman. Knightfall resulted in long-term ramifications for the Batman mythos, as Batman’s trust from the police, the public, and fellow superheroes had to be rebuilt. Additionally, Wayne realizes the peril and burden of attempting to work in solitude, leading to the eventual creation of the modern incarnation of the Batman family. The events of Knightfall also led to the resignation of Wayne’s loyal butler, Alfred Pennyworth. We also see one element of this story in Batman Begins when they release the inmates from Arkham Asylum.

No Man’s Land by various writers/artists

The story began with a major earthquake hitting Gotham City. This was followed by the storylines “Aftershock” and then “Road to No Man’s Land” which resulted in the U.S. government officially evacuating Gotham and then abandoning and isolating those who chose to remain in the city. “No Man’s Land” covered, in detail, a period in the lives of the residents of the city, explaining all events from the time of isolation, until its time of re-opening and the beginning of rebuilding. This story influenced quite a bit of the second half of The Dark Knight Rises.

The Killing Joke by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland

The plot revolves around a largely psychological battle between Batman and his longtime foe the Joker, who has escaped fromArkham Asylum. The Joker intends to drive James Gordon, the Police Commissioner of Gotham City, insane, in order to prove that the most upstanding citizen is capable of going mad after having “one bad day.” Along the way, the Joker has flashbacks to his early life, gradually explaining his origin. Heath Ledger studied this story heavily while preparing for The Dark Knight.

The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller and Klaus Janson

The Dark Knight Returns is set ten years in an alternate future, with a worn and weary, aged Bruce Wayne. He numbs his conscience with alcohol to soothe the guilt he feels for his responsibility for the death of Jason Todd. Gotham City is under siege by a vicious criminal gang who call themselves the Mutants. Wayne unleashes his demons to confront the new threats to Gotham, and Batman is born again. Wayne finds himself struggling with the decline of his physique as he patrols and defends Gotham City. An inexperienced but courageous young girl named Carrie Kelly saves Batman’s life, and Wayne takes her in as a new Robin. Batman is seen now as a menace to Gotham’s society and an anti-vigilantism wave is carried on from the government.

I hope you guys enjoy reading these and finding what bits and pieces Nolan and the cast took inspiration from and even maybe just enjoying some stories you may have not read before.

Five Easter Eggs You May Have Missed In ‘The Dark Knight Rises’!

by Shawn Madden

So, if you have not seen The Dark Knight Rises by now I advise you to not read any further because spoilers do lie ahead.

– Christopher Nolan loves Year One. Juno Temple played a version of Holly Robinson.

If you didn’t know by now, Christopher Nolan loves Frank Miller’s work. He even once gave his brother Jonathan an issue of Year One as a birthday present. So, right off the bat, I could tell who this character was from her first introduction. If you somehow have not read nor seen (there is an animated version which is great) Batman: Year One, here is a little info on the character:

Holly first appeared in Frank Miller’s Batman: Year One as a juvenile prostitute who lives with Selina Kyle. Holly plays a small but significant role in the story when she encounters a disguised Bruce Wayne during one of his early attempts at crimefighting and stabs him in the leg. Wounded by this attack and a subsequent battle, Wayne escapes back to his home, brooding on the fact that his enemies do not fear him. This encounter is an impetus for his creation of the Batman persona. As such, Holly plays an indirect role in the Dark Knight’s origin.

Now obviously the character is different in the movie, as many of them are in the Nolan-verse, and she only had a very minor role, but it is definitely a cool little nod to the fans of Year One.

– Roland Daggett from Batman: The Animated Series

Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn portrays John Daggett in The Dark Knight Rises. In the animated series, Roland Daggett runs a rival corporation called Daggett Industries. In the movie, Daggett runs a rival company and uses Bane to take Wayne Enterprises down (which doesn’t necessarily work out well for him in the end).

– Killer Croc in the sewers

Remember when Foley makes the comment about Gordon seeing “giant alligators” down in the sewer? Now, some of you are going to say that this is far fetched but hear me out.

It’s not. Because Killer Croc already did appear in the Nolan-verse. I take it that many of you have already forgotten about Batman: Gotham Knight, the animated DVD that was released which took place between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight? THE SHAME!

If you didn’t, you’d realize that Batman and Gordon have already gone into the sewer where they ended up fighting Killer Croc. Yup. This was the same animated short that also saw Jonathan Crane putting someone on trial and sentencing them to death. Sound familiar now?

– Yet ANOTHER Frank Miller reference during the chase scene

Remember during the chase scene when a veteran cop tells a rookie to “sit back, you’re in for a show?” As pointed out in our recent TDKR analysis podcast, that’s a wink-and-a-nod to an almost identical scene from The Dark Knight Returns, a story which features a similarly resurgent Batman after years of retirement, once again showing that Nolan does know his source material.

– All of the numerous Robin Easter eggs. Yup. Robin Eggs. Both intentional and unintentional.

If you’ve seen the film than by now you know the ending. And you’ve probably figured out that John Blake is somewhat of a mixture of Dick Grayson and Tim Drake. Grayson was an orphan in the comics while Tim Drake figured out that Bruce Wayne was Batman, thus leading to him becoming the third Robin after Grayson’s first.

Did you also notice the name of the one football player to survive the field caving in?

Now, Hines Ward was obviously playing himself but they definitely could have changed the name. But maybe Nolan and company left it as kind of a nod to Burt Ward who played Robin in the television series? Intentional? Unintentional? What do you think?

And I know quite a few people that missed this one. That R is the one that Tim Drake used on his Robin suit. Now, it’s a truly “blink and you miss it” moment, but Nolan could have taken it out and instead chose to leave it.

So, while none of these are really big deals, they are cool nods to the fans. Bravo Nolan.

Now, can you think of any that we might have missed?