#danny steals the batwing

[britcision]

Okay listen though

That love triangle

Danny thinks it’s hysterical

Yeah, sure, the vigilante he saw a grand total of once and who happened to get caught in a pic pulling him away from a cloud of fear gas? Totally in love with him. For sure

So he definitely plays up that side

Goes full sarcastic “baby’s first crush uwu” with the press whenever they catch him

Laughs about it with his best friend in the whole world… Damian

Who is alternately just

- jealous as fuck of himself when he sees Danny swooning over Robin in post-rogue-attack footage,

- fucking furious that Danny thinks so little of himself when Danny jokes that no one could possibly find him attractive so of course Robin’s not interested,

- biting his lips to keep his own mouth shut when Danny talks wistfully about maybe finding someone one day

- deeply concerned by Danny’s jokes that “well it would take a vigilante to keep me in one piece” and “not that falling off a roof hurt me the last time I did it but the catch was nice”

And…. Well.

It’s Gotham. There’s a lot of rogue attacks.

Vicki Fucking Vale gets a picture of Danny being pulled from rubble by Red Robin one day and the tabloids LOSE THEIR GODDAMN MINDS

Tim thinks it’s just funny until Damian gets his old grapple-cutting scowl back on his face and sabotages Tim’s Red Robin suit by filling three hidden pockets with pure vanilla extract - annoying rather than dangerous, which is a nice change, but still a warning

Danny thinks this is all Even Funnier and begins publicly swooning over vigilantes as chosen by a little spinner he makes himself

Damian, who is Totally Just Making Sure His Friend Is Alright, begins semi-stalking Danny on patrol to make sure ROBIN is always on hand to save him

Not Red Fucking Robin

Not Red Fucking Hood

Not Batwing or Batgirl or Batwoman or Spoiler or Signal or Orphan or Bluebird or Nightwing or Batman or Superboy fuck you Jon Damian invited you over for video games not stealing his man

Danny is Only Encouraged

Begins joking with Damian that “maybe Robin does like me after all”

Damian is going to burst a blood vessel clenching his butt cheeks too tightly to try and contain his Emotions and provide civilian appropriate responses but at least it’s better than the time Danny unknowingly rated his siblings by butt pics

(Dick won it’s a legal necessity and Danny refuses to judge either Robin until they stop wearing ass covering capes)

And then… and then one day Danny stops joking about heroes (it was relevant the school was attacked Yet Again and they got the rest of the day off) and just softly says that maybe there was someone else he wishes was actually interested in him

Damian internally swears on his entire family’s honour (the assassin side of the family) that he will kill this person for getting Danny’s attention which they surely do not deserve, Danny is perfection

Then Danny says it’s him and Damian is now in a combo uncomfortable position of “how do I say YES YES YES I WOULD LOVE TO PLEASE DATE ME without looking desperate”, “is this actually happening? How did I miss it???”, and “well shit I just swore an oath to kill myself, when will the next clone arrive, I can’t break my word”

Dead serious prompt cuz I never do ship prompts.

Let's give it a shot!

Danny transfers to Damian's highschool, specifically he transfers into Damian's class. Damian's immediately smitten with him, head over heels love at first sight. Maybe Danny's done some animal rights protests and fundraisers with Sam? Maybe Danny just has good vibes.

Damian has no clue what to do with this feeling. He's emotionally constipated so Danny's first day ends with him getting a note in fancy lettering that reads

"Your eyes are like sapphires."

It's only one sentence (I can't write good poetry) But there's a beautiful Drawing of him below the writing. Danny smiles and puts this in his school binder. Damian sees this as an absolute win.

If we go with the Idea that Damian has the reputation of being cold and calculated it makes this prompt cuter.

Just Damian being a fully trained assassin and part-time vigilante but the moment Danny walks in he's googling

"How do you talk to cute boys?"

"What is a crush?"

" How to romance a guy as a guy?"

Just imagine being one of Damian's classmates, oh my God they must be so confused. The kid who usually talks like a dictionary and is as cold as block of ice is suddenly leaving romantic poetry in the transfer student's locker?!? He actively participates in class activities to talk with him? What kind of witchcraft is this??

Danny is doesn't know who his secret admirer is, but he kinda hopes it's Damian.

[im-totally-not-an-alien-2]

Danny had never liked the guy.

Still, he never thought he would stoop so low to do something like this to his sister. Danny didn't have a lot of options. This world wasn't new to them anymore, they had been here since he turned twelve two years ago and while the superheros were new, people in general were not.

Jazzs boyfriend, Crapface Mcgee was going to get the stuffing beaten out of him once Danny got ahold of him. He pretended to be Jazzs dream guy and convinced her to come help out his family farm in the middle of nowhere because it was struggling.

Only once she got there his entire personality changed like someone flipped a switch. He and his family were horrible to her and she was forced to flee in the middle of the night into a pitch black forest with nothing but the phone her brother had modified to be able to work anywhere regardless of what plane of reality it was on. They likely only let her keep it thinking she wouldn't get any reception out there.

Oh how wrong they were.

Unfortunately for the siblings Danny was still hurting from a fight with some eldrich horror a few days ago and couldn't fly that far away and certainly wouldn't be able to carry her back.

Upon seeing Batmans plane parked somewhere in the dark of Gothams streets he got an idea and told jazz not to freak out and not to hang up. Hed be there soon.

.

.

.

"What are you doing?" Batmans face appeared via some kind of hologram projector while he was already high in the air and while he wanted to fanboy over the high tech he was too worried about his sister. "Look, I'm sorry. I am. But I needed a way to save my sister. It shouldn't take too long and I should be back before tomorrow night."

Batman seemed to process this information, but Danny didn't give him a chance to resond, "Tell me where you want me to park it and I'll be there waiting for whatever punishment you want to deal out." He paused, "Within reason, of course."

Suprisingly, Batman agreed.

And Danny upheld his end of the bargain with his big sister waiting by his side

[dukereviewstv]

Duke Reviews Tv: Batman: The Animated Series 1x01 On Leather Wings

Hello, I'm Andrew Leduc And Welcome To Duke Reviews TV, Where Today We Start Look At One Of The Best Animated Series Of All Time, Batman: The Animated Series...

What Can I Say About This Series Other Than It Gave Us The Best Batman And Joker Voices Ever? Well, All I Can Truly Say Is That It's Obvious That Everyone Who Worked On This Series Has Great Love For Batman As The Background And Character Designs Throughout The Series Are Fantastic...

So, What Better Way To Start Our Then Start With The First Episode, On Leather Wings....

This Episode Sees A Mysterious Creature Terrorizing Gotham, Leaving The Police Very Little Choice But To Pursue Batman...

Will The Dark Knight Clear His Name?

Let's Find Out As We Watch On Leather Wings...

The Episode Starts With All Quiet In Gotham City, That Is Until A Giant Half Bat/Half Human Creature Flies Past The Gotham Air One Blimp...

Quick Fun Fact: One Of The Policeman In The Blimp Is Voiced By Kevin Conroy, The Voice Of Batman...

And Breaks Into Phoenix Pharmaceuticals, Assaulting An Officer And Stealing Assorted Chemicals From Laboratories With This Being The Latest In A Series Of Break-Ins At Pharmaceutical Companies...

The Report From The Blimp And The Wounded Guard Leads Detective Bullock (Played By Joey Tribbiani's Father) After An Unauthorized Interview with The Gotham Glaser, To Petition Mayor Hill For A Special Task Force To Eliminate The Strange "Batman" That Has Appeared Around The City...

But Despite Commissioner Gordon Refusing As It's Not Batman's M.O., Mayor Hill Authorizes Bullock's Task Force Due To His Reputation Of Getting Results And Harvey Dent Promises Bullock Immunity If He Nabs The Bat...

Realizing He's Being Set Up, Batman Investigates The Robberies By Sneaking Into The Crime Scene By Using Knock Out Gas On The Guard...

Spotted By 2 Scientists Who Are About To...

I Know It's A Kids Show But It's Implied That They Were Going To And If This Was A Horror Movie, They'd Be Dead...

As I Was Saying, Spotted By 2 Scientists, They Call The Police Leading To Bullock Calling His Squad To The Scene....

Investigating The Area, Batman Finds An Audio Tape Of The Creature's Cry Along With Some Hair Samples...

Bullock's Task Force Tries To Trap Batman At The Crime Scene But They Just End Up Blowing Up The 3rd Floor Of The Building While Batman Escapes With The Samples...

Taking The Samples To The Gotham Zoo As Bruce Wayne, He Meets A Married Couple On Staff, Dr. Kirk Langstrom (Voiced By Marc Singer) And Dr. Francine Langstrom (Voiced By Meredith MacRae)

Quick Fun Fact: Meredith MacRae Is The Daughter Of Gordon MacRae Who Starred In 2 Movie Versions Of Rodgers And Hammerstein Musicals, Carousel And Oklahoma...

But MacRae Herself Is Mainly Known For Starring In The TV Show, Petticoat Junction...

Anyway. They Work With Francine's Father, Dr. March (Played By Rene Auberjonois) Who Likes Bats More Than He Does Humans, Insisting That They'll Survive The Next Evolutionary Cataclysm Where Humans Won't...

Asking The Zoologists To Analyze The Evidence From The Crime Scene, Citing A Pest Problem, They Agree To Help Bruce Do That...

Returning To The Batcave, The BatComputer Has Been Unable To Match Either The Sounds Or The Hairs To Any Species Known To Man..

With March Calling Back, He Tells Bruce That The Hairs Are Of A Common Brown Bat While The Sound Is A Mixture Of Brown Bats And Starlings Fighting Over A Nest In The Chimney, Taking It To The BatComputer, The Explanation Proves False...

Believing March Is Lying, Batman Returns To The Laboratory Night To Investigate...

(Start At 0:05, End At 1:26)

Recoiling At The Sight Of Francine Who Came To The Lab When She Heard The Noise, Kirk Leaves In Shame With Batman Right Behind Him When He Attaches His Grappling Hook To Man Bat's Leg...

During The Fight, Man Bat Drags Batman Through The Sky Across Half Of Gotham..,

Eventually Both Of Them Pass Gotham Air One And A Chopper That Has Bullock And Gordon On Board, Allowing Them To See That Man Bat And Batman Were In Fact 2 Different People..

Either Way, I Bet Gordon Is Going...

Finally Being Able To Subdue The Man Bat, Batman Takes Him Back To The Batcave Where He Analyzes The Chemical Makeup Of The Formula So He Can Come Up With An Antidote To Reverse The Transformation...

Taking An Unconsious But Fully Restored Kirk Back To The Zoo To His Wife, Batman Tells Her That It's Over...

I Wish I Could Say That Batman Was Right..,

This Episode Is A Great Start To The DCAU...

While Man Bat Is Not One Of The More Memorable Villains In Batman's Rogues Gallery (Hell, They Made Him Much More Villainous In The Batman Than Here) I Did Enjoy The Episode, The Story Was Interesting, The Acting Was Good And Man Bat Looked Pretty Good, Either Way, This Is An Episode I Say To Watch...

Till Next Time, This Is Duke, Signing Off...

[spaceorphan18]

Spaceorphan’s Movie Reviews: Batman (1989)

Before settling down to watch (and rewatch) all the films related to Marvel properties, I thought it’d be fun to take a look back over at DC.  Batman was probably the first superhero I was aware of? Since he (and Superman to a lesser extent) were the most well-known superheroes in the cultural zeitgeist.  I still say DC’s merchandising is far more prominent among children than Marvel, so of course, even in the late 80s, when I was a very young little person, I knew who Batman was.  

Of course, before 1989, there were other iterations of the character, most notably the Adam West series (and TV movies) of the 60s.  I remember catching those old episodes when it reran on Nick-at-Nite in during the 80s - I mean they were ridiculously campy, which of course also makes them family friendly, and so we had them on all the time.    Then Tim Burton came along and updated Batman to be dark and gritty.  (Like the comics! Actually, I have no idea, I’ve never read any Batman comics, so I can’t actually comment on that.)  Of course, being six at the time of theatrical release, I didn’t know what a big deal this would be.  

I don’t remember when I first watched the film.  It wasn’t in the theaters (I was too young - but not too young to see the sequel!), but I did see it a lot once it came out on VHS.  And I’ll be honest with you, it straight up scared me as a kid.  The Burton-esque imagery, mixed with dark cinematography, and the horror-esque elements of the film really seared into my young brain.  It wasn’t a film I sought out (though I don’t remember my parents watching it either, even though we owned it, I wonder if my brother watched it) but it was one that had a lasting impression, much like Ghostbusters and Back to the Future - it’s a film that I vividly remember from my childhood.  

The interesting thing (to me) is that I haven’t seen it (until now) since I was a kid.  I can think of no time as an actual adult that I’ve had the chance to pop it in again and watch it.  But, interestingly, there wasn’t a single moment of the film that I had forgotten - watching it again after, maybe, fifteen-twenty years, I really do remember every beat of this film.  However, maybe for the first time, I really understand the film as it’s intended - cause, yeah, it’s not a kids’ film (even if there was a ton of merchandising for kids - which there was, we had a toy batmobile and batwing).  

So, how does this film hold up all these years later? Surprisingly well - for what it is.  

So, maybe this is the analytical person in me, but I think this film is, maybe, more fun to talk about than to actually watch.  Of all the super fascinating things going on - the plot is the least interesting part of it, even the film itself seems to loosely hinge on the random things The Joker decides to do and is a little, meh, don’t think too hard about it.   To sum it up quickly - Gotham is being run by a crime ring and mob bosses and Batman is single handedly taking them down.  Meanwhile, The Joker is a crazed guy who wants to be bigger than the mob bosses who whole him back, and after he nearly dies in a vat of acid - he decides to become even more of a psychopathic killer and tries to kill everyone.  Because why not?

First, standing out to me much more as an adult, is all the Tim Burton-ishness about it.  Which I don’t say as a bad thing.  He has a certain Gothic, horror, cartoon-ish style, which I may say, is slightly toned down in this film than a lot of others.  Visually, I think he was a good choice of director, I think the film has such a captivating stylized look that it holds my attention when the plot doesn’t.  I think what stood out to me the most was that Burton went a drearily dark, with an occasional splash of white that made the whole film almost seem like it was in black and white - which was purposefully contrasting to the colorfulness of The Joker.  I mean, Burton is purposely giving artistry to the cinematography in a way that I don’t necessarily see in superhero films anymore, and I think that’s kind of cool.  There are times when the film is, maybe, too (literally) dark - but I feel like had the technology been just a bit better, it would have helped.  

Burton also seems to be aware of the special effects limitations of the time, because at no point was I taken out by how cheesy the graphics looked (it helps that there weren’t very man), and some of the scarier images from when I was a kid, like when The Joker kills the guy by incinerating him, hold up pretty well.  Some of the fight scenes seem weaker and stiff, not helped by the fact that I don’t think Michael Keaton could move much in that suit, but the action isn’t overdone.  The action sequences aren’t what they are today, by any means, but I think they work fine given the era of the film - I don’t really judge them for that.  

So - Michael Keaton’s Batman.  Does he do a good job? I say mostly.  As Bruce Wayne, I completely buy him.  He’s a bit charming, a bit reserved, a bit mysterious, and a bit crazy - and when Keaton is actually allowed to do something with the character, he comes alive pretty well.  The unfortunate thing is that this film really isn’t about Batman - it’s about The Joker (which I’ll get to in a moment) and therefore we don’t get to see much of Bruce Wayne doing anything - except staring off into the distance thinking about things.  I get The Joker is iconic and everything, but Keaton has made Bruce Wayne interesting enough that I do wish there had been more - because his character doesn’t get to move much beyond ‘brooding about my parents; murder thirty years ago’.  

As for Batman himself, he’s… fine.  I don’t really have any complaints, but he feels incredibly limited - more so because of the suit, and the constricting ability to do much while wearing it than anything in Keaton’s performance.  It makes sense that Batman would be a near silent warrior, but not being able to see Keaton’s expressive face holds this version back a bit.  

Meanwhile… The Joker.  Before I rented the film again, I was looking through some old reviews - and many of them mentioned that this film seemed to be more about The Joker than Batman.  And I was a bit taken aback.  I hadn’t remembered it that way.  However, it wasn’t like I was paying that much attention as a kid.  But yes, it’s true, this film really is not Batman’s film.  It’s The Joker’s.  And I understand why - The Joker is possibly one of the most intriguing characters and villains in all of literature.  He’s a character who merges tragedy, comedy, and psychopathy all in one - and yes all three are in this film.  I’m sure there are hundreds of think-pieces on The Joker as a character - understandably so.  So, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised at how much of the film he takes up.  

I’m not invested enough to say who played The Joker the best, I hardly think comparisons are necessary (even if inevitable), but I really like Jack Nicholson in the role.  More so now than what I remembered.  Nicholson really embodies that whole crazed-lunatic pretty well, and I think he’s captivating enough that he does steal the show from Batman himself.  I feel like there are so many people who discuss The Joker, much better than I can, that I won’t elaborate much more.  But yes, Jack Nicholson’s Joker is pretty amazing, and I think it holds up relatively well.  

Rounding out the limited cast is Kim Basinger’s Vicki Vale.  And, well, she’s… there.  Despite being the literal stand-in for the audience during most of the craziness - an outsider coming into Gotham and being a conduit between Batman and The Joker.  She doesn’t get much to do and is the pretty standard obligatory love interest.  Keaton and Basinger don’t have that much chemistry - but I don’t blame them, they really only have one big scene to sell the romance, and for me, that’s just not enough.  You just really aren’t given any reason why these people would like each other more than they’re supposed to.  

Meanwhile - during the scene where The Joker is dancing around with Vicki - I kept think about that one test where if the woman is replaced with a lamp, would it change the scene?  And no - no it really wouldn’t.  I get the time period of the film, and how the ‘romance’ angle is kind of beat by beat what you would find in most films around this time, so I’m not judging too harshly.  But still, she’s almost third wheel to the more entertaining and layered dance Batman and The Joker are having throughout the film.  

Smaller Thoughts: 

Prince was the official artist of this films’ soundtrack - and I’m not entirely sure how I feel about it.  The film has such a 40s-esque feel about it that when something slams it into the modern 80s, it feels a little jarring.  At the same time, the dirtiness of 80s New York, and the cultural materialism is all over this film, so the Prince songs fit nicely in.  It’s a weird dichotomy.  

Music, in general, is also what sells this film - and keeps it at ‘Classic’ level.  Danny Elfman (Tim Burton’s go to director, and a personal favorite of mine) does amazing things with the score - and helps deliver the atmosphere Burton is going for.  

I have a soft spot for Alfred - even if he weirdly decides to bring Vicki to the Batcave unannounced.   She’ll disappear next film anyway - so ultimately it won’t matter. 

I kind of enjoy the fact that Jack Nicholson insisted the actor who played Bob be in the film - and that Bob is unceremoniously and somewhat randomly killed off.  

This film is very murdery - even Batman is murdery.  He tries to kill off The Joker whenever he gets the chance.  

Billy Dee Williams is here as Harvey Dent - so that’s a super interesting thread that was never pulled on again.  

Most of the government/police force was kind of meh - and I couldn’t even really tell who Commissioner Gordon was.  

I did really like the flashback to Bruce Wayne’s parents’ deaths.  That guy who they had play a young Jack Nicholson? Spot on.  

There’s a lot of mask symbolism throughout the film.  Again, I’m impressed by Burton as an artist - and as someone who’s willing to tell a more layered film within a superhero film.   

Things that scared me as a kid: The mimes, the parade floats, The Joker’s girlfriend wearing that mask, the two dead models, the dead mob guy being burnt to a crisp, The Joker’s grin, The Joker’s laugh, really every time Jack Nicholson was on screen, and that laugh box that kept going after The Joker had died.  This film really did use to scare me.  

Final Thoughts: This film was incredibly interesting and enjoyable to come back to as an adult.  I don’t think it’s entirely rewatchable - it’s plodding along at a snail’s pace during some sequences, and I don’t think the plot is that engaging.  But I do think there’s a lot of artistry here given to us by Burton, and worth coming back to every now and then to see a film that would inspire superhero films for decades to come.