Aunt Harriet

Harriet Cooper is Dick Grayson's Aunt, who comes to live at Wayne Manor after the death of Alfred Pennyworth. She was a recurring character on the Adam West TV show, and though many believe she was created specifically for that series, she appeared in the comic books well before the television adaptation.

Fredric Wertham's 1954 book Seduction of the Innocent claimed that comic books were an evil influence on young children, and specifically pointed to Batman and Robin as promoting a homosexual lifestyle. In an effort to address those concerns, writers killed off Alfred so they could add a female presence at home for Bruce and Dick.

Eventually Alfred came back to life, and Aunt Harriet left without too much explanation, slowly fading from memory. When DC comics rebooted their continuity in the 1980s, Aunt Harriet was eliminated, since she didn't fit with the grim and gritty style of Batman established by Batman: Year One.

Pros: With Rachel gone, Batman really does need a female presence.

Cons: You can't have Aunt Harriet without Dick Grayson. Also, she's a pretty uninteresting character.

How I'd do it: I wouldn't.

Casting Guesses: I dunno, Carol Burnett? She vaguely reminds me of the TV Aunt Harriet while still being great. But she would stick out like a sore thumb in a Christopher Nolan Batman movie.

Verdict: Nope.

Harold Allnut

Harold Allnut is a mute hunchback with a gift for building and repairing electronics, machines, and computers. He was never an incredibly important part of Batman's life or anything, but he had some nice moments along the way.

In his introduction to Batman's world, the Penguin discovered Harold's talent for technology, and forced him to build devices to aid in the Penguin's schemes. After taking care of the Penguin, Batman recognized Harold's genuis, and recruited him to work on Bat-gadgets. Harold took up residence in the Bat-Cave for many years, repairing and building all kinds of things. Though he basically never left the cave, he seemed happy to have a purpose in life.

In No Man's Land, a terrible earthquake destroys most of Gotham, and since Batman would not be using the cave for some time, Harold went out into Gotham for the first time in years. He was shocked to find the city falling apart, and went to work on anything in sight that needed fixing.

Later, in the Hush storyline, Hush repairs Harold's spine and his voice and Hush forces him to betray Batman. Harold confesses to Batman, but before he can reveal Hush's identity, Hush kills him. Until that point, no one knew Harold's last name, so Batman had to research his life to give him a proper headstone at his grave.

Pros: Although Wayne Enterprises supplies all of Batman's equipment in the movies, someone would have to do maintenance on the Batmobile, and I can't imagine Bruce just bringing it back for repairs. Having Harold around would at least explain how the repairs happen.

Cons: Harold's unexplained ability to work with technology doesn't make a whole lot of sense, and only works in comic books because those kinds of things always happen in comics. Also, I'm not sure if it's politically correct or whatever to have a mute hunchback servant guy.

How I'd do it: Have a guy named Harold who's an excellent mechanic blackmailed into working for a villain, Batman rescues him, and sets him up with a secret garage where he'll bring the Batmobile (or pod or whatever else) for repairs. I don't think he needs to be in the cave, know Batman's identity, be a mute with a spinal deformity, or any of that.

Casting Guesses: It could literally be anyone, so I'll say Luis Guzman, since he's great
at everything.

Verdict: The Batmobile didn't make it out of the Dark Knight in one piece, so it's possible there could be a Harold-type character.

Ace the Bat-Hound

As his name would suggest, Ace the Bat-Hound is Batman's dog. Well technically Ace is Bruce Wayne's dog, and the Bat-Hound is Batman's dog, but you get the idea.

Originally, Ace belonged to an engraver who was kidnapped by criminals hoping to use his skills for counterfeiting, and Batman used Ace's nose to help track his owner down. When the engraver was rescued, he took a new job which left him no time to care for Ace, and Bruce Wayne offered to adopt the dog. To keep Ace's distinguishing marks hidden when palling around with Batman, he gave Ace a Batman-style hood.

In modern comics, Ace has basically disappeared, since he's considered to be too campy for current readers.

Pros: A dog in a Batman mask is pretty awesome, in a Chris Sims sort of way.

Cons: A dog in a Batman mask is pretty silly, too. And I think that would earn protests from PETA.

How I'd do it: Give Bruce a dog, call him Ace. No mask.

Casting Guesses: Ace was a German Shepherd (and I'm pretty sure a ripoff of Ace the Wonder Dog), so... some German Shepherd.

Verdict: Possible, if it's just Ace the dog, but no chance for Ace the Bat-Hound.

Jason Bard

As the world's greatest detective, Batman doesn't always show much respect for other detectives. Although he occasionally consults with other detectives like The Elongated Man or Bobo the Detective Chimp, Jason Bard is the only detective I can think of that Batman has ever actually hired.

A former Gotham City cop who was wounded in the line of duty by Killer Moth. He quit the force and opened up his own business as a private investigator. Around the same time, he started dating his former boss's daughter, Barbara Gordon. They were pretty serious, but after Barbara was attacked by the Joker, she left him. He reappeared years later when Barbara was running the Birds of Prey, and he was actually temporarily blinded in an accident while helping out her team, but he wasn't able to rekindle his relationship with Barbara.

His relationship with Batman would begin after all this, when Batman was concerned that Harvey Dent, who had been reformed, had lost his way. Having been absent from Gotham, there wasn't enough time for Batman to chase all his leads, so he hired Jason to investigate the disappearance of Orca.


Pros: The movies have played up the physical and psychological aspects of Batman, but haven't paid much attention to his skills as a detective. Including Jason Bard in the third movie would certainly push the story in that direction.

Cons: Jason would take the focus away from Batman and whoever the central villain of the movie might be. Plus, it really wouldn't sell Batman's detective skills very well if the first time he really needed them in a movie, he had to hire someone else to assist.

How I'd do it: Nothing too fancy, just have something that needs investigating during daylight hours, maybe have a scene where Bruce Wayne tries to look into it, but he's too recognizable out of costume to accomplish anything, so he hires Bard.

Casting Guesses: James Marsden. He looks sorta like Jason Bard, and has the right personality too.

Verdict: I doubt it. But if there is a private eye somewhere in Batman 3, they might just name him Jason Bard to pander to fans, but I can't imagine much time spent on a Jason Bard character.

News & Notes

Even after a long break for me, only one piece of news, but at least it's a good one. The LA Times interviewed Christopher Nolan, and he talked some about a third Batman movie:

There are two things to be said. One is the emphasis on story. What’s the story? Is there a story that’s going to keep me emotionally invested for the couple of years that it will take to make another one? That’s the overriding question. On a more superficial level, I have to ask the question: How many good third movies in a franchise can people name? [Laughs.] At the same time, in taking on the second one, we had the challenge of trying to make a great second movie, and there haven't been too many of those either. It’s all about the story really. If the story is there, everything is possible. I hope that was a suitably slippery answer.

That third franchise movie question is a good one. X-Men, Superman, Spider-Man, Jaws, Pirates of the Caribbean, Shrek, Jurassic Park, Star Trek, The Terminator, and The Matrix all come to mind as franchises with lousy third movies. Rocky 3 was a little ridiculous at least, and it could just be nostalgia (at the time, I was pretty sure Mr. T. was the coolest guy who ever lived) keeping it off that list. But Indiana Jones, Star Wars, and the Lord of the Rings (if you don't count that as one 9+ hour movie, which it kinda was) all had solid third outings.

Anyway, I completely understand Nolan's hesitance, I just hope his caution leads them to wait for the right story, rather than leading the studio to pick anther director and rush out a lousy third movie (which, sadly, I would still end up seeing on opening night, because I'm dumb like that... but you know you would too, so shut up).

Dr. Leslie Thompkins

Skipping back to good guys for a bit, since I'm still running out of villains, let's talk Dr. Leslie Thompkins. Just as Alfred Pennyworth has been a father figure to Bruce Wayne, Leslie has traditionally been like a mother to Bruce. A friend and colleague of Dr. Thomas Wayne, she took an active role in helping to raise Bruce after his parents' murder. In some versions of the Batman origin story, Leslie is among the first to arrive at the scene of the murder.

Leslie eventually learns that Bruce has become Batman to fight crime in Gotham, but unlike Alfred, she does not approve. As a pacifist, she believes that Batman's vigilantism will only lead to more violence. Though she tolerates him and occasionally provides medical help, she takes every opportunity to try to talk him into hanging up the cape and cowl. Her most radical attempt was during War Games, when Black Mask tortured Spoiler nearly to death, Batman brought her to Leslie. Leslie allowed her to die, hoping her death would convince him to end his crusade against crime. Much later, it was revealed that she had only faked Spoiler's death, and that Batman had suspected as much, but their relationship seems to still be strained.

Pros: Although a few people have learned that Bruce is Batman, everyone seems to agree with his way of thinking. It would be nice to see someone challenge his reasoning and really try to convince him to stop.

Cons: She's a relatively late (1976) addition to the Batman mythology and it might not work to cram her back into the origin story with new flashbacks. Alfred seems to work fine as a single parent figure, so there's no real need for a "mother."

How I'd do it: I suppose you could skip any flashbacks, and just have Batman injured. Unable to summon the Batmobile and too wounded to make it back to the cave (or the basement thing, if he still hasn't moved back to Wayne Manor), he realizes he's near a free clinic run by an old friend. He stumbles into Leslie's office, she's briefly startled but he takes off his mask, and naturally she tends to his injuries, but when he wakes up the next day she scolds him for being reckless and ignoring everything she'd ever taught him about violence. That's basically how half of Leslie Thompkins' appearances in the comics have gone, but it's a formula that works, I think.

Casting Guesses: Diana Muldaur (Dr. Pulaski from Star Trek: The Next Generation) voiced Dr. Thompkins in the Batman animated series from the 1990s, and did a fine job, but it looks like she may have retired from acting. Most of these types of parts go to Judi Dench or Hellen Mirren, but I'd like to think there's someone else perfectly capable of it. Ellen Burstyn maybe?

Verdict: A definite possiblity. Considerably more likely that any of the Robins, at least.

News & Notes

A really nifty photo set on flickr detailing the origin of Two-Face in Legos.

Poll results: 2 villains seems to be working for half of you, with 27% wanting a whole bunch of villains at once, and a few wanting to see one or three.

I'm headed out of town for a few days, so there probably won't be any updates until Monday.

Cornelius Stirk

Cornelius Stirk likes to eat people's hearts. But he finds that they're tastiest when flavored with "fight or flight" hormones like norepinephrine, so he likes to scare the bejeezus out of them before they die. He has a "hypnotic aura" that lets him make people see him as anyone he wants, which helps him gain people's trust and get close to him (in a few stories, he has used the image of Abe Lincoln), and it also helps with the scaring part (though his natural face is already pretty frightening).

During Knightfall, Stirk teams up with the Joker and they kidnap Commissioner Gordon. Stirk uses his abilities to appear to be Batman and mercilessly tortures the Commissioner. Batman, of course, saves the day, eventually, but Stirk's treatment left Gordon awfully shaken up.

Pros: Abe Lincoln is always funny. And he's a nice contrast to Batman, who is out to do good but projects a terrifying image, while Stirk is out to kill but projects an image to put his victims at ease before he strikes.

Cons: He's a little bit too much like Scarecrow with the whole fear thing, except with supernatural powers that would be hard to believe. And killing people and eating their hearts is a little much for a PG-13 movie, I think.

How I'd do it: His original introduction was when someone was found murdered, and had been seen earlier that night at a bar, talking to a guy who looked like Lincoln. I liked that. I guess I'd rather have him be a master of disguise, disfigured under his masks/makeup, who puts on trustworthy faces to get close to his victims. And I guess keep the heart eating thing, but figure out how to do it with heavy implications but not actually showing it.

Casting Guesses: An unknown. Usually movies where a famous actor is a "master of disguise", we're so familiar with their voice and face that even in an elaborate latex mask, they just seem like the movie star we know in a latex mask. An unknown would be a blank slate, and could actually fool us.

Verdict: I can't see it happening, it's mostly the Scarecrow thing, but he's also not a high profile villain at all, and he'd take some reworking to deal with his supernatural powers.

Ten-Eyed Man

Philip Reardon had his face blown up twice (once in Vietnam, once in Gotham City) leaving him blind. An experimental surgery attached his optic nerves to his fingers, and he was somehow given the ability to see through his fingertips.

This, in addition to his combat training in Vietnam, somehow was supposed to have made him a very powerful foe, but no one seems to be clear on what was so dangerous about someone who could see through his fingertips.

Pros: Ten-Eyed Man has a cult following, not unlike Killer Moth. Seanbaby.com is a fan (sort of).

Cons: His ability isn't that powerful for fighting purposes (though I bet it could be handy for a spy), and the fingertip eyeball thing isn't at all believable.

How I'd do it: I guess make it Iraq or Afghanistan instead of Vietnam. That's about all I can think of.

Casting Guesses: He sometimes has the crazy look on his face like Mel Gibson in his mug shot, so I'd go with him.

Verdict: Nope.

Great White Shark

Warren White was a corrupt businessman who tries to avoid conviction for embezzlement by getting his case transferred to Gotham City. He thinks he's pulling a fast one by faking an insanity plea, but when he ends up in Arkham Asylum, he realizes he's made a huge mistake.

Passed around from villain to villain, he's tortured by Killer Croc who cuts gills into White's throat, basically Two-Face's bitch (or "coin boy") for a while, and he's locked in a refrigerated cell designed for Mr. Freeze. The frostbite gives White what would become his trademark appearance: white skin stretched to expose his teeth, a stump of a nose, and hairless head. Although he was only pretending to be crazy to go into Arkham, his time there ended up driving him mad.

Though he remains incarcerated, the Great White Shark uses his connections in both the professional and criminal worlds as well as his business acumen to run a criminal enterprice from his cell. His business's hitman, The Tally Man, notably killed a number of Batman's villains at White's order.

Pros: He's a striking looking villain.

Cons: His origin relies on being put into Arkham with a bunch of familliar crazy bad guys. Since, as far as we know, the Joker is the only villain to survive in these Batman movies and Heath Ledger's death would make Joker's return the longest of long shots, having a whole Great White Shark origin would require several other origins, and then half your movie is gone before you even have Batman appear.

How I'd do it: If the script called for a crooked rich guy from out of town, I'd name him Warren White as an easter egg for fans. That's about as far as I'd go for White.

Casting Guesses: I forget what White looked like before his ordeal in Arkham, but it seems like a role I'd want Steve Buscemi for. Sort of a supervillainous Mr. Pink.

Verdict: Almost certainly not. He's a very new and very unknown villain. The only chance is for dropping his name as an easter egg, but even that seems remote.

News & Notes

From around the web:

• First rumor in a while: former Lara Croft model Rhona Mitra as Catwoman. Total speculation, I doubt there's anything to it. She looks right for the part, but the last role I saw her in she was kind of average as an actress, and it'd be easy to vanish surrounded by the kind of acting talent these Batman movies have. And Selina Kyle is the type to only vanish when she's being chased by big guys with guns (or batarangs).


• Den of Geek has 10 fan-made trailers for Batman 3. The quality doesn't measure up to the fan-made posters out there, but they're still interesting. I thought this was the best:

• And speaking of those posters, MTV asked Kristen Bell about this Harley Quinn one:
  
  
  
  I still don't really see a good way to put Harley in the movie without the Joker, but after seeing that, if they do cast Harley and it's not Kristen Bell, I'll be pretty upset.

The Clock King

There are a few significant clock kings out there. First, there's William Tockman, a Green Arrow villain who attempted to rob a bank by memorizing the timing of the bank's operation, only to be stopped by a silent alarm. As a career criminal, Tockman's crimes were always time-themed. This version was also adapted for the 1960s Batman TV series, played by Walter Slezak.

Second, there's a recurring Clock King villain from Batman: the Animated Series. On his way to an important day at work, Temple Fugate is inadvertantly delayed by lawyer Hamilton Hill, and the delay ends up costing Fugate his job. Distraught over the disruption in timing, Fugate becomes obsessed with time, and obsessed with revenge on Hamilton Hill, who had since become Mayor of Gotham. Notable for his precise timing of every event, he's a master planner, so much so that his character returns for a Justice League Unlimited episode where he plans a Suicide Squad raid on Justice League headquarters down to the second.

Third, there's a new Clock King in Teen Titans comic books (pictured above), who apparently can see a few seconds into the future. Obviously, in the wrong hands, this is a powerful and dangerous ability.

Small confession: I've never read a comic book with the Clock King in it. But since the comic book versions of the Clock King are more Green Arrow/Teen Titans enemies, that doesn't really affect the Batman angle.

Pros: There's nothing technically supernatural about the first or second Clock Kings, and someone with that kind of ability to coordinate timed events is very dangerous.

Cons: The Joker's opening heist in The Dark Knight demonstrated a similar planning/timing ability, so that might seem repetitive.

How I'd do it: I rather liked the Temple Fugate character, so if I had to do the Clock King I might just rip off that story completely.

Casting Guesses: I've got the animated series character in my head, so without question it'd be Jonathan Pryce. He's a fine actor and looks a lot like Temple Fugate.

Verdict: Nah. It's not that great a character to begin with, but the big knock on him is the similarity to how the Joker operated in his bank heist.

The Reaper

The Reaper was the main villain in Batman: Year Two by Mike W. Barr and several artists. Gotham City's original costumed vigilante, predating Batman by many years, Judson Caspian took up crime fighting when his wife was murdered in a robbery. Unlike Batman, he took a more violent approach, often using lethal force.

In Year Two, one of my least favorite Batman stories ever (though some people do think highly of it), Bruce Wayne falls in love with Caspian's daughter while Batman tries to stop the Reaper, who's returned to the streets after a long absence. Inexplicably, Batman teams up with Joe Chill, the guy who killed Thomas and Martha Wayne, to stop the Reaper, and Batman even carries a gun for a decent portion of the series. So... not my favorite.

But as much as I didn't like the story, the Reaper wasn't a terrible character. And the folks behind the Batman animated series thought so as well, using parts of the Reaper character for their Mask of the Phantasm direct to video movie.

Pros: The introduction of the Reaper's daughter is an easy to way to bring in a love interest. The violent, Punisher-style vigilante forces Batman to examine the rationale of his non-lethal methods. Isn't there a point where you realize someone just won't be rehabilitated and you're just better off killing them? Or is the chance that you're wrong worth risking all those lives the villain will probably take in the future? Decent questions to center a movie around.

Cons: The scythes and the skull helmet and everything are kind of cool in a comic book way, but I think they'd look pretty silly on screen.

How I'd do it: Skip the Joe Chill element, and just have an old school vigilante come back to town, and have his daughter come as well.

Casting Guesses: An older guy, but still tough. Sam Shepard?

Verdict: It could happen. I'd prefer it didn't, because it would make me want to read Year Two again, which I would rather not do.

News & Notes

No real news, so some fan art instead. David Theriault gives us the above image of The Ventriloquist. David's got some more cool art at his blog and on his website.

The only other thing I've got is an article on how to make a Joker costume. It covers the wardrobe nicely, but - I'm not a costume guy so I couldn't say for sure - the makeup part seems like it would be the trickiest, getting the scars to look scar-like, but this article barely mentions it.

Rupert Thorne

Returning to villains after two weeks covering allies, let's start with Rupert Thorne. Thorne was a corrupt politician, a City Councilman who spearheaded anti-Batman policies in City government. He was determined to become Mayor of Gotham so that he could expand his influence, but, having staked his career on the pursuit of Batman, felt that capturing the Bat was the only way to win the mayoral race.

When Dr. Hugo Strange learned Batman's secret identity, I think in Strange Apparitions, it was Thorne who decided to skip the auction of Batman's real name and instead try to torture Batman's identity out of Hugo Strange.

Eventually Thorne is defeated in his quest to be Mayor, but the next election cycle he comes up with a better solution: a puppet candidate. Mayor Hamilton Hill ran Gotham for many years in the comics, and Rupert Thorne ran Hamilton Hill.

Thorne has been largely absent from comics for the past 20 years or so, but he did become the main recurring gangster on Batman: The Animated Series in the 90s.

Pros: A corrupt politician who tries to make the hunt for Batman a major issue is a perfect fit for how The Dark Knight left off.

Cons: I kind of wonder if it might be easier to just make the corrupt politician a Falcone or a Maroni, since those families have already been introduced, but that's all I can think of.

How I'd do it: The city has declared Batman to be public enemy number one, and in every crisis like this there's at least one politician who decides to be the face of the issue, hogging any camera in sight to talk about it. Thorne would obviously be that guy. Whether he's just corrupt, blackmailed by the mob, or running his own criminal enterprise depends on how the rest of the story is set up, but it's easy to see how he fits in.

Casting Guesses: I keep picturing Marlon Brando in the role, and obviously he can't do it. Fred Thompson would be great, but I'm not sure he would want to play a crooked politician so close to his attempt to resurrect his own political career. Maybe Billy Bob Thornton? I at least feel like he can give that smile that politicians give that is supposed to seem reassuring but mostly just makes it look like they're up to no good.

Verdict: One of the best fits I've covered in a while. Thanks to commenter Ray for pointing out that I'd forgotten him.

News & Notes

From around the web:

• Writer David S. Goyer basically says everything I've put in these news updates is bunk.


• Latino Review talks to a WB exec who says the future of Superman movies is on hold until Batman 3 details are worked out.


• And Bill Murray talks to MTV about the rumors that he was considered for 1989's Batman:
  

  MTV: You were once considered to play Batman?
  
  Murray: So I hear. I would have been a fine Batman. You know, there have been a number of Batmen. I like them. ... I thought Mike Keaton did a great job as Batman. It's obviously — it's a great role.

The Robin poll closed, with Dick Grayson dominating, a little love for Tim Drake, and only one vote combined for Jason Todd and the girl-Robins. A new poll's up, asking how many bad guys you want to see in the next movie.

Oracle

The events of The Killing Joke left former Batgirl Barbara Gordon paralyzed, her time as a crime fighter seemingly over. But she turned her passion for justice and knowledge from her day job as a librarian into a gig helping out Batman, the Justice League, and eventually her own team, the Birds of Prey.

Hacker, researcher, and coordinator of group efforts, she provides research, intelligence, and status updates to superheroes by monitoring internet, phone, and radio traffic, hacking into various government and corporate databases, and having a small army of informants.

Pros: She's a tough lady, and is a rare comic book character who overcomes a disability and lives with it, rather than getting some kind of magical or superscience cure.

Cons: People would want to see her as Batgirl first. And if she's going to be Jim Gordon's daughter, at least 15 years would have to have elapsed from The Dark Knight, since Jim's daughter was just a little girl. Also, movie hackers rarely work as more than comic relief. As a computer nerd myself, that's always bothered me, but in a medium that relies on things like movement, someone sitting in front of a computer isn't very dynamic.

How I'd do it: If for some reason the plot of Batman 3 called for someone to break into a super secret computer or something, I'd just skip the Barbara Gordon part, and have a mysterious hacker using the name Oracle contact Batman (possibly through Lucius Fox, having connected Batman's equipment to Wayne Enterprises) and offer her assistance.

Casting Guesses: Bryce Dallas Howard. Technically she was already portrayed by Dina Meyer on the terrible WB TV series Birds of Prey, but I'd like to see what an actual decent actor could do with the part.

Verdict: Probably won't happen. But I won't say there's no chance, because dropping the Oracle name could count, even though it's little more than an easter egg for fans.

Carrie Kelly

Carrie Kelly was featured in Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns and the follow-up The Dark Knight Strikes Again. As a young girl, she's inspired by Batman coming out of retirement, and decides to join him. She saves up some money to get a costume, grabs a slingshot, and seeks out Batman. She is able to help him out in a fight he nearly loses, and carry him into the Batmobile so that Alfred can attend to his wounds. Despite the fact that Batman is still scarred by the death of Jason Todd, he accepts her as Robin.

In the sequel, Carrie ditched the Robin costume and became Catgirl, wearing a leopard print catsuit and roller skates. She had become Batman's most trusted ally and commander an army of Batboys (who I believe were the Sons of Batman from the first book, but I haven't read the sequel in forever).

(image stolen from here)

Pros: The green glasses and the slingshot make for (I think) the coolest Robin design.

Cons: Having a 13 year old girl running around as Robin (or a 16 year old as Catgirl) is probably not a good idea for a major movie, and in a realistic-ish environment, it would be awfully irresponsible for Batman to let Carrie fight alongside him. And of course if there's going to be a Robin, many people would be upset if it wasn't Dick Grayson, or if Batman's going to have a lady sidekick, they'd want Gordon.

How I'd do it: The DKR setup was that Carrie was saved by Batman on his first night back from retirement, and though her parents were still alive, they were so neglectful that they didn't notice she was sneaking out at night. I guess if you're going to include her, that's the way to go.

Casting Guesses: I don't know enough kid actresses to take a guess at this one. I heard someone suggest Ellen Page, but I think you need to go younger.

Verdict: Nah, but she is prety awesome. At least in the first book, and if you're a Batman fan you should totally read that.

Batgirl - Cassandra Cain

Cassandra Cain, the daughter of David Cain and Lady Shiva, became the second Batgirl during No Man's Land.

Raised by David Cain to be a killing machine, she was never even taught to speak, let alone read or write. But since instead of actual language, she had learned to fight, her native language is body language. This gives her the ability to anticipate her opponents movements. After years of training, her father sent her on a mission to kill a man when she was just a girl. The event scarred Cassandra, and she ran away from her father, determined not to kill again. After years of guilt, she was eventually discovered by Barbara Gordon, who gave her blessing for Cassandra to become the new Batgirl, and it didn't take long for her fighting skills to impress Batman as well. She flourished early on as Batgirl, even learning to speak, but her story ended up taking a series of bizarre turns. You can read two pages that attempt to explain the whole thing here, but basically she got drugged by Deathstroke, turned evil, killed a bunch of people, injected with a cure for the drug that turned her evil, took off before it could fully un-evil her, and did some more evil stuff before finally becoming good again. It was pretty dumb.

Pros: The next Batman movie almost certainly needs a female character, and Cassandra Cain is a lady.

Cons: Barbara Gordon is Batgirl to anyone but hardcore fans. If Batman were to take on a sidekick, it should probably be Robin. You probably need some David Cain and Lady Shiva backstory to introduce Cassandra, and all three of those characters' introductions would eat up most of the movie, not leaving a whole lot of Batman time.

How I'd do it: Flash back to Batman training with Lady Shiva, at one point drop a scene where he sees a picture of her pregnant or something like that, and he asks her about it but she dodges the question. Flash forward to the present, Lady Shiva's been hired to take out Batman, and out of nowhere he's saved by Cassandra. A quick explanation that she'd been searching for her mother, only to discover that she was a killer, and I think set up David Cain to be a future villain, instead of spending any real time on him then.

Casting Guesses: Zhang Ziyi I guess.

Verdict: I almost fell asleep trying to come up with that plot idea, it would be just that boring. Add that to all the other negatives, and there's no way we'd see her.

News & Notes

From around the web:

• Adam Osgood has a cool illustration based on the rumor mill.


• From a fairly reputable source, Christopher Nolan might be signed for a third Batman movie, which would be great news.


• And IGN lists characters they don't want to see in Batman 3.

Batgirl - Barbara Gordon

Barbara Gordon, daughter of police commissioner James Gordon, was the original Batgirl. A librarian when she's not fighting crime, she's intelligent, strong, and confident.

Besides Dick Grayson, Barbara is the most famous of Batman's cohorts, having been played by the lovely Yvonne Craig on the Adam West TV series, Alicia Silverstone in the terrible Batman & Robin movie, and voiced by Melissa Gilbert on the not terrible Batman: the Animated Series.

In the original comics history, Barbara eventually confesses her identity to her father and retires the cape, and successfully runs for Congress. After the continuity reboot of 1985, she was again Batgirl, but only for a short while before her career was ended in The Killing Joke.

Pros:A well known, well liked character. Provides the female presence that may be lacking going forward after the events in The Dark Knight.

Cons: Batgirl is in some ways like a second Robin, and the filmmakers have expressed no interest in Robin, so I find it hard to believe they'd find Batgirl any more interesting. And in a realistic setting, it's hard to justify Batman letting a young girl risk her life, especially Jim Gordon's daughter.

How I'd do it: Technically, Barbara probably appeared in The Dark Knight, in the scene where Two-Face holds Jim Gordon's family hostage (but she's credited only as "Gordon's daughter"). She's awfully young to start dodging bullets and jumping from rooftops, so I think I'd hold off for a movie or two.

Casting Guesses: A teenager part, which probably means a lengthy casting search. Unless there's a tough, smart redhead on one of those Gossip Girl type shows, and she can actually act.

Verdict: Not for Batman 3, but maybe sometime down the line. Not until after they break down and include Robin, though.

News & Notes

From around the web:

• That rumor from earlier this week about pre-production already starting on Batman 3 is officially busted.


• The CW network has ordered a pilot for The Graysons, which follows the exploits of a pre-Robin Dick Grayson. I know I've always felt there weren't enough shows set in circuses.

New poll up, this time about Robin. All four Robins covered this week are up there, plus Carrie Kelly, who I'll get to next week.

Spoiler

Stephanie Brown is many things: Tim Drake's girlfriend, the daughter of the Cluemaster, very briefly the 4th Robin, and more. Her life reads a little bit like a soap opera character's, so apologies in advance, and be warned that some recent (within the last year) comic book plot will be discussed.

Since he was in jail for most of her childhood, Stephanie knew her father was a criminal, but when he finally returned home he claimed to be done with crime. But Stephanie soon discovered that he was up to his old tricks, so she whipped up a spooky purple costume, called herself the Spoiler, and stopped her father. At first she would only become Spoiler to stop the Cluemaster, but eventually she grew to like fighting crime.

Some stuff happened at this point, she got pregnant, gave the baby up for adoption, Gotham was mostly destroyed by an earthquake, she and Tim Drake started dating even though she only knew him as Robin, she started getting trained by Batman and Batgirl to become a better crime fighter, and her father died. Pretty rough stretch, huh?

After all this, Tim was forced to quit fighting crime, so Stephanie made herself a Robin costume and auditioned to be Tim's replacement. Reluctantly, Batman agreed and put her through more rigorous training. Eventually though, Batman decided she was too disobedient and told her to quit. Disobeying even that, Stephanie decided to prove herself by stealing one of Batman's plans to take down organized crime in Gotham. She invited all of the heads of the families to a meeting where Matches Malone would sieze power and take over all crime in Gotham. Unfortunately, no one told her who Matches Malone was, and the botched meeeting lead to an all out gang war that would eventually involve Black Mask beating Stephanie to death.

Strangely, Batman never made a memorial to Stephanie, even though Jason Todd's costume has been prominently displayed in the Batcave since his death. This outraged fans enough to start Project Girl Wonder, demanding a memorial for Stephanie. Recently, this was all explained away by bringing Stephanie back from the dead. Leslie Tompkins, the doctor who pronounced her dead and a friend of Bruce/critic of Batman, had faked Stephanie's death to try to get Bruce to see the danger in his methods. Batman never built the memorial because he suspected this all along. And that brings us more or less up to date on her.

Pros: She's a fun character, and there's certainly a lot of story to draw from if you're so inclined.

Cons: She's mostly built around being Tim Drake's girlfriend and the Cluemaster's daughter, so without both of those, it's tough to include her. And there's no way Tim Drake and the Cluemaster will be in a Batman movie any time soon.

How I'd do it: I think you'd need an entire movie to establish some kind of Robin before introducing Spoiler, so there's no way I'd put Stephanie in the next movie.

Casting Guesses: Another teenager type role that I think you'd need to go through lots of casting to find someone for. Either that, or Dakota Fanning might actually be about that age by now, and at least as a little kid she could act. Haven't seen her lately though, who knows.

Verdict: We're more likely to see a Prius Batmobile.

Nightwing

After many many years as Robin and as the leader of the Teen Titans (sort of a Junior Justice League), Dick Grayson decided to leave Gotham City and strike out on his own. He adopts the name Nightwing, and ditches the short pants for what at first was a totally fab disco costume (below, left) but eventually worked it's way into something kinda cool (above).

As Nightwing, Dick becomes the unofficial protector of Bludhaven, a city near Gotham but much smaller (I've heard it compared to Newark, NJ, which is pretty close to New York City). He joins the Bludhaven police force to fight crime and corruption from the inside in addition to his nightime gig as a superhero. But he remains close enough to frequently visit Gotham, taking part in many of the biggest Batman stories of the past two decades, and even briefly taking over as Batman.

Pros: The folks behind the first two movies may not like Robin, but Nightwing would allow them to include Dick Grayson.

Cons: What makes Nightwing interesting in the context of Batman is his previous career as Robin.

How I'd do it: It's a tough one, if you're going to skip Robin entirely, but my best idea would be to have the Grayson family live next door to Wayne Manor. Instead of acrobats, make Dick's mother a gymnast, and Dick is interested in gymnastics as well. Much younger than Bruce, Dick idolizes his older neighbor. When Bruce is off seeing the world and training to fight crime, Dick's parents are killed as well. When Batman starts appearing, Dick understands what would motivate someone to act like that, and how much money it would take to equip Batman. Still idolozing Bruce, Dick decides to join him and makes his own costume (not the disco one), mask, and gear. I think this would do a decent job of replicating the Nightwing/Batman dynamic without the Robin backstory.

Casting Guesses: Milo Ventimiglia (Peter from Heroes) once said he wanted to play Nightwing, and that sounds just fine to me.

Verdict: I guess it's not completely out of the question, but the odds are close enough to zero that I'm just going to call it zero.

News & Notes

From around the web:

• Choke star Sam Rockwell was asked point blank by the Chicago Tribune which Batman villain he'd like to play: "Maybe the Riddler?"


• Some guy somewhere says someone else told him that early pre-production on Batman 3 is about to begin. I sincerely doubt this rumor, and it's not even that interesting, but I'm hard up for news.

Robin - Tim Drake

After the Death of Jason Todd, no one was sure if there would ever be a Robin again. Dick Grayson had moved on to become a hero on his own, and the first attempt at creating a new Robin had failed. But other than the death of a character, nothing drives sales as well as introducing a new one, so Tim Drake was introduced.

When he was very young, Tim Drake was at the circus when Dick Grayson's parents were murdered. That day stuck with him, so much so that later, when he saw footage of Batman and Robin in combat, he recognized one of Robin's moves as one of young Dick Grayson's from the circus. Going from there, he was able to deduce Batman's identity as well. He followed the careers of Batman and Robin very closely. After Jason Todd's death, Tim noticed that Batman's behavior had become erratic. Tim theorized that Batman needed a Robin to keep him sane, and after impressing Dick, Alfred, and undergoing intense training from the likes of Lady Shiva, he becomes the new Robin.

Unlike Batman and previous Robins, Tim had a relatively happy childhood. It was only after becoming Robin that his family life fell apart. His mother died, his father lost the use of his legs, his father's company fell apart, his girlfriend died (sort of, I'll probably have a subsequent post about that), his best friend died, his father died, and I think his step mother died or vanished or something. Much like pimpin', being Robin ain't easy.

Tim Drake has proved popular, much more so than Jason Todd, and arguably as popular as Dick Grayson. Unlike Dick, Tim's Robin has had his own comic book for many years.

Pros: Actual pants! No short shorts like the other guys. Tim's selection as Robin is more natural than Jason Todd's, since he entered the picture due to his natural abilities as a detective. As Robin, Tim spends more time out on his own, taking his own angles at Batman's cases, and even taking many cases on his own.

Cons: Again, we already know we won't be seeing Robin, and most people associate Robin with Dick Grayson. Plus, Tim Drake's origin is tied to there having been a previous Robin.

How I'd do it: I would mix in healthy portions of Dick Grayson and Tim Drake, plus a tiny bit of Jason Todd. Dick Grayson's name and the flying Grayson's origin is something you can't deviate from, since it's too well known and people might be confused by anything else. But I've always liked Tim Drake's deduction being the reason for his selection. And I kind of like the edge of Jason Todd.

So I'd have Dick Grayson's parents murdered, then him quitting the circus and living on the streets. He sees Batman in action and using his acrobatic skills is able to tail him for a while, but Batman's eventually able to evade him. Dick becomes obsessed with Batman, knowing this is the kind of person who could avenge his parents' death, and starts plotting a map of sightings and figures out where the Batmobile must be coming from in the evening and going to in the morning (pointing him to either the cave or the basement thing in the city, depending on whether Bruce has moved back to Wayne Manor in the third movie). Unable to come up with a better plan, he simply knocks on the door and asks Alfred if he can speak to Batman.

Casting Guesses: Again, casting a kid would inolve an unknown.

Verdict: He's my favorite Robin, but still it won't happen.