#it’s Jim Carrey as the riddler (but not as over the top as the first time)

[1prodigy1]

Nobody is ready for my Riddler and Penguin dream cast.

[pumpkinstrawbrew]

how do you feel about nolan’s batman/scarecrow?

i’m not fully sure what you mean here. like, as in how i feel about the characters in that movie or that version of the pairing? 

but either way, i don’t hate it! i don’t hate any of batman movies tbh. no matter, how different or hella campy they are compared to source material, i still can see smth redeeming in them. i’m generally somewhat lax n’ chill with superhero movies/games. in most cases, i’d be more nitpicky toward cartoons/newer comics, than i’ll ever be toward cinema or video games. nolan’s batman falls into that category too. it’s not my fav batman movie by any means, but it has its moments.

besides, i believe that it was the first dc’s newer *2000 era* cinematic project back then, n’ i happen to watch it as a kid, so i have somewhat nostalgic memories about it as well. i also must say, that the tone of nolan's dark knight was very different compared to more campy, playful batman movies till that point. so it was nice change too. very unexpected turn in a way.

personally, for me it was hit in some places n' a fairly big miss in the others. for one, i get why a lot of people were annoyed with who nolan chose to play the scarecrow, since yes, it is strange to see a character, who canonically was considered to be far from pretty *to put it mildly* suddenly becoming basically an opposite of it. but tbh, i usually not very sold on who they pick to play characters in those movies. so it’s not like i tend to be 100% pleased in that aspect. n’ i do find it somewhat amusing, that for once, jonathan can be a real ‘princess’, both in manners n’ looks. it took some getting used to for sure, but i’m not super-duper upset about that change! i feel like i would have more inner dissonance if that batman movie, where nicolas cage was about to play crane had actually happened lol. i mean, it could have been interesting tbh, bc i cannot imagine cage being tame in his performance, esp back then. so maybe it's actually too bad that it didn't happened, bc we might have gotten the most over the top jonathan crane, who ever existed. like, you see jim carrey's riddler n' there is still no riddler to this day to top his exaggerated, campy performance lol. n' i have this vibe here too. i can bet 10$, that nick would have improvised in some scenes, n' like licked batman's face or smth. .... ah man, now i kinda wish that it had happened, dang.

but uh err, back to nolan's movies. if i’m being completely honest here, my main pet-peeve with nolan’s scarecrow wasn’t his looks per say, but rather how little he was presented in those movies in itself, and how nothing was really going on there for him. it really rubs me the wrong way, that he wasn’t even his own thing, just a pawn for another batman villain to use. he was never allowed to play a major role in anything, despite *might be wrong here tho* how nolan said that he considers the scarecrow to be batman’s real arch-nemesis not the joker, so this is why he used the scarecrow first. the scarecrow being batman's real fuel is smth i’m 100% sold on, and it all considering, that i actually love the joker as character. but like, the clown gimmick is basically antipod to literally everything lol. him being batman's 'fuel' always felt kinda idk, a bit lazy to me. at least, make the black mask or two-face his arch-enemy, this would be way more nuanced vs the clown, who's just hella insane n' have zero morals. so if nolan was also one of those people, who felt that the joker can be put aside for a moment or two, n' let another old batman's rogue shine, welp, he didn't implemented said sentiment very well in his movies.

there was a lot of room to do smth with crane’s character. to flash him out in newer ways or craft him more specifically for the setting, that they had going on. batman 2022 actually got this bit right. their edward was still very riddler-like, while also possessing enough ‘original’ elements to make him exist within the movie’s narrative/tone perfectly. he felt like that movie's main villain specifically n’ he played the part. n’ it all considering how he also was on the screen for idk, 20 minutes at max. but his presence was important n’ left an impact. not hannibal lector from silence of the lamb level, of course, *you cannot beat a suspense masterpiece after all* but still, it was smth. n' it was one of those things, that made me like the movie way more, than i expected.

with this in mind, now compare it to how we had to sit through a long ass movie, where we were teased with the scarecrow being the main antagonist. only for it to turn out to be a lie. instead, crane was taking the back seat to ra al ghul. just degist this sentence. he wasn't even bested by the joker or bane. but by ra flipping al ghul. like out of curiosity, i asked a couple of people, who have very limited n' slight knowlege of batman's media as whole, but who watched nolan's movies, n' i asked them who was the villain in the first movie. and they all were like 'the scarecrow'. no one even remembers ghul. an' it's not bc crane did smth big in the movie, but it's bc no one really cares about that past lore, where ghul was bruce's teacher. everyone only remember, that he kinda died or smth, when the cave/building collapsed lol. granted, i’m also bias here, bc ra al ghul is one of those batman’s villains, who personally bore me. and naturally, him stealing the spotlight from crane doesn’t win him any brownie points with me. but like, idk. this is just so unfair to the scarecrow. i mean, his iconic fear toxin wasn’t even released by him or on purpuse, which had me like ??? as a kid. bc it just made zero sense. it would have been the same, if i dunno, a clock king in btas had released joker’s laughing gas, all while the joker himself was just sorta/kinda there. just idling in the background without any proper input, aside from being the one who created the said gas lol. this is what had happened there. so yeah, it was a very awkward way to make bruce's old asshole teacher revelant again. also jonathan being a drug dealer *kind of* an' having a 'business plan' is so hiliriously opposite of what he usually did in the comics/btas. maybe, he could have shared his knowlege of how to make money with other cranes, who are usually broke as hell lol.

n’ well, if i had to be nitpicky here, i also was disappointed with how little thought they put into crane’s scarecrow costume. the excuse of ‘they tried to make it more realistic’ doesn’t work on me, bc catwoman in burton’s batman was designed with the same idea in mind, n’ her costume was freaking awesome n’ creative. but oh well…it is what it is.

as for nolan’s scarebat version, well, i don’t mind it. i love comic/btas crane n’ bruce the most. love jon as that socially inept, unsightly, closeted gremlin, n’ bruce as a low-key emotionally stunted, but still sympathetic hero. but aside from that, i can see an appeal in a good-looking scarecrow, who might have the power to sway batman with one smokey look. granted, jonathan already acted all whorish around the bat in the movie, so it’s not hard to picture him trying to seduce his way out of an encounter with batman just bc he feels that he can do it. so just this one time, crane can have it ‘easy’, when it comes to wooing the big bad bat. there is also smth funny about people expecting the fearsome scarecrow to look literally anything, but how nolan’s one looks. an' i also must add, that i've read a few of nolanverse scarebat fics an' usually the authors doing a better job at flashing out crane, than the movie did lol. so props to them for that!

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

I would love to know your rankings of the live action (+ podcast) Bruce Waynes. :)

Janie you are one of the best tumblr mutuals anyone could ask for. so reasonable, never absorbed by stupid discourse, so fun to talk shit with. you were also sent from hell to kill me.

disclaimer 1: I'm excluding the 40s Batman serials because I haven't seen them and even I don't love committing to a bit so hard that I'm willing to watch them to make one (1) 5 note post.

disclaimer 2: all of my opinions are right and I'm not interested in arguing with anyone about any of this.

anyway, let's get rolling. as with the Riddler, we'll be proceeding chronologically!

Adam West (Batman '66) - 10/10

the sixties Batman series gets a lot of shit for being excellent, and I for one will not stand for it! its biggest crime is, I think, being itself and having a good time; it's stupid and charming and really funny, and I think Adam West is a rock solid foundation on which to build the show. his Bruce is a freak of the unflinching normie, devastatingly upright and pathologically wholesome while also a bit of a skank. I suspect he's too chummy with Republicans and yet I trust him with my life. I could write entire essays about what's going on with this man's masculinity. also worth noting that Batman 1966 is like, easily my second favorite live action Batman movie of all time. I love him, your honor.

Michael Keaton (Batman 1989 and Batman Returns) - 10/10

my BELOVED. for those of you wondering when I said '66 was my second favorite movie YES, Batman Returns is the first! Michael Keaton's Bruce is a grade-A freak of the week and I want to wrap him in a weighted blanket about it to see if that will possibly calm him down. his films are great because he's used sparingly, something that no fucking Batman movie knows how to do anymore, and it makes the screentime he does have so much more effective. his Bruce/Batman contrast is stunning - his Batman is an unblinking stalwart lunatic in a suit so crunchy he can barely move; his Bruce a charmingly inept sad sack in a sexy little sweater. and I can't even start talking about his dynamic with Michelle Pfeiffer's electric Selina Kyle or we'll be here all day. chef's kiss, Mr. Keaton.

Val Kilmer (Batman Forever) - Kiss From a Rose/10

right off the gate I would like to acknowledge that whatever else I may say about him, Val Kilmer has the most kissable mouth of any Batman. look at him! good for you, Mr. Kilmer!

anyway, I'm gonna level with you gamers: I've made absolutely no secret of my distaste for Batman Forever, which I think is genuinely dumber and worse than Batman and Robin. Kilmer's Bruce is serving us almost nothing; he's a stale whole wheat cracker to whom things are incessantly Happening. he's being aggressively propositioned by Nicole Kidman when he's Batman and by Jim Carrey when he's Bruce; Tommy Lee Jones keeps trying to murder him while giving a performance that would seem absurdly over the top if he weren't right next to the aforementioned Carrey; and he's just adopted a poor little 25 year old orphan with some serious attitude problems. everyone in this film is so much at all times, and between that and Joel Schumacher's intensely questionable direction I don't really blame Kilmer for deciding to say fuck it and make Bruce more of a mannequin than a man. I think there are some intriguing glimpses of the Batman that could have been here and there in his role, but he's ultimately done in by being trapped in an unspeakable clusterfuck of a movie.

George Clooney (Batman and Robin) - Bat Credit Card/10

where West's Bruce sidles through life with a veneer of normalcy that seems to be just barely concealing the potential to throw someone out a window at any moment, Clooney's Bruce genuinely seems like he's got his shit together. he actually seems to be reflecting the character arc he's limped through across three previous films and two recast actors, and as a result is so well-adjusted and fatherly that it's almost unsettling. who is this very normal man? why is dressing up like a bat to fight Austrian Mr. Freeze and drag queen Poison Ivy? surely he should be filing his taxes or going to a parent-teacher meeting to discuss his 30 year old son's behavior in class.

Christian Bale (Dark Knight Saga) - 3/10

real talk, friends: I don't remember Bale's performances that well, because I haven't watched one of his Batman movies since the Dark Knight Rises came out in theaters. I do not recall liking the movie, nor having any particularly favorable reaction to Bale at any point in the trilogy. I always felt his strongest performance was "Bruce Wayne being Batman playing idiot billionaire Bruce Wayne," portraying the pretense of Bruce better than he played either a sincere Bruce or Batman. dare I say it, I don't think Christopher Nolan let him be enough of a weirdo. disappointing underutilization of a man who who is extremely willing to be unhinged. three stars.

Ben Affleck (Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Justice League) - 10/10

I'm just going to say upfront that Ben Affleck's self-written/produced/directed/starred in Batfamily movie is my pop cultural white whale and I'm going to die mad about it, which should probably give you an indication of where this one is going. Batfleck is so perfect to me. that is my baby baby 40-something year old boy with manic depression and homicidal tendencies. is he going through a bit of a grimdark phase? yes. duh. it happens! but he feels soooo bad about it, and he spends the next movie getting bullied by literally everyone to make up for it. he's just so TIRED. this is a Bruce who's SEEN SOME SHIT. he's canonically lost a Robin; he's a grieving dad! he's broken and he's trying and more than any other Bruce I can see him driving around a minivan full of bastard parkour children. every day I miss him.

Robert Pattinson (Thee Batman 2022) - 10/10

when I heard certified real-life freakboy Robert Pattinson had been cast as my personal favorite fictional freakboy I felt hope about a DC movie announcement for the first time in years. and you know what? it was justified. Pattinson is a very specific take on Bruce Wayne that I definitely don't think works in all settings - a Bruce for all seasons he is not. but within his own miserable, wet little Gotham he can do no wrong. I love this pale, pathetic insomniac. I love that he hates eye contact. I love that he barely seems to willing to eat or sleep. I love how obviously confused he is in his attraction to Zoë Kravitz's Selina. I love that after the film's climax we find him covered in filth and working tirelessly to dig civilians out of rubble, offering comfort where he can. I'm so genuinely excited to see this version of Bruce continue too grow. that's my SON.

and since you threw in podcasts for no reason that I can immediately discern

Winston Duke (Batman Unburied) - 10/10

Winston Duke's take on Bruce is so profoundly dear to me. like Pattinson I think he's not exactly an archetypal Bruce but what he's serving is perfect for this universe, not least of all because Duke is voice acting his ass off. his Bruce is warmer and more emotionally vulnerable than most - he tells Alfred he loves him! - while maintaining the requisite cocktail of mental illnesses that makes Batman what he is, which makes him a wildly compelling narrator to ride along with. his Batman voice arrives late in the story but is absolutely worth the wait; Duke is bringing something positively primordial to the Bat that makes you understand instantly why the folks of Gotham might assume he's some kind of inhuman monster (something that also plays well with the fact that Duke's Bruce is, presumably, meant to be understood as a Black man, which puts his vigilante activities and difficult relationship with the police in a very different light than any white Bruce's). cannot wait to get more of him when the blessed second season drops and drills holes in my brain; you've all been warned that I will be unhinged at that time.

[valkerymillenia]

The Batman (2022)

Ok, so here's my non spoilery opinion on the movie.

It's good. It's very, very good.

Forget everything you watched on the trailers, they do not do the movie any justice.

First of all, they don't beat that dead horse again. Aka, we don't have to see the Wayne's die for the millionth time.

Second of all, both Pattison and Reeves understood the assignment.

This is a movie that was clearly written and directed by a comic book reader, it comes across well, not only in the way it's adapted and the characterization of the characters but also in all the subtle references and all the foreshadowing constantly being dropped.

It's also definitely not for children/younger audiences. And the fact that it's not constrained by the DCEU's family-friendly policies really shows. The old Comics Authority would have a field day with this movie

But, moving on...

The first thing you have to bear in mind is that this is a portrayal of a Batman that is young and still fairly new to his role, he has been at it long enough to be extremely effective and win over Gordon's trust but he's still very green emotionally, still discovering himself and his role and growing as a character.

We also see a return to Batman's true origins- the detective and the cryptid, long before he became just another fighting machine (although he still is an excellent fighter and absolutely brutal).

Robert Pattison delivered a very good portrayal of the character, the use of silence and anti social behavior were perfect (very emo but absolutely a young Bruce Wayne), as was his level of intelligence and his single-minded attitude. He clearly understands Bruce Wayne on a level other actors have not (perhaps because he actually reads the comics).

Zoe Kravitz also delivers an excellent performance as Selina, and for once we get a Selina that is actually her own character with her own development instead of just a sexy prop or supporting character for Batman. She's also at the beginning of her career and quite faithful to the essence of her comic roots (although with some twists).

Riddler is fantastic. If you are used to cartoony flamboyant Riddler or Jim Carrey's over-the-top Riddler, forget it. If you are used to awkward and nerdy but hyper competent, extremely intelligent, ruthless, death-trap loving Riddler from the comics though? You're going to love this guy.

Penguin's characterization is good. Very good. I can't go into more without being spoilery.

The visuals and editing are stunning, is it dark and gritty? Yes, it is, but not in the boring, minimalistic, militaristic, too real, dull grey of the Nolan movies, instead it's simply very modern gothic and the use of color is very well thought out, exactly what you'd expect from Gotham.

The music is good, I won't say it's phenomenal, it might not stick with you afterwards, but it's still very good and works really well to complement the scenes.

The wardrobe in general is excellent without being over the top (unless it has to be). And after seeing it in a different light, Pattison's mask is definitely a nod to Adam West's Batman in 66, the disassembled gun bat symbol is dramatic as hell but it actually works really well.

In my humble opinion it might be one of the best Batman interpretations in modern live action (I'm sorry, Keaton, my darling).

Is it perfect? No, no movie is.

But it's still very good and it has POTENTIAL to be so much more, Reeves gave us a lot of foreshadowing and laid down a lot of ground work for sequels that I honestly hope get green-lit but I can't discuss that without spoilers so I'll leave that in a separate review.

[crazyw3irdo]

I see you’re also a Riddler fan. I gotta ask, how do you feel about his portrayal in the upcoming pattinson batman movie?

anon my beloved thank you so much for giving me this opportunity because i have ranted about this to multiple people irl but i don’t think i’ve fully lost it on this blog yet. long angry rant under the cut.

TLDR: i hate it

first of all, i can’t talk about what they’ve done to my beloved puzzle doofus without addressing the larger problem that dc movies have as a whole: the “dark and edgy” factor. i’ve done a bit of a rant on this in my tags recently here but that was really just a side point to what i was talking about at that moment. basically, fans want characters to be happy. movie makers continue to not understand that. i’d thought the dceu was moving more towards the actual fun stuff lately- shazam, birds of prey, and the suicide squad were all amazing- but as much as i love robert pattinson and think he’ll do a great job it’s not. it’s not looking good. i don’t want another grimdark movie. i want fun.

when i first heard that ed was gonna be the main villain i was just. very concerned. like. i would love to see him in a movie. i would love my good riddle boy getting to be funny and over the top but i just wasn’t sure if they were going in that direction and just… it’s clear that’s not it. and it’s not even in a direction i could understand?? like i knew in my core they wouldn’t let him be camp, but to jump so far into. whatever the hell that outfit is was just entirely unexpected.

i know comics can change canon characterization around from comic to comic and that combined with various fanon interpretations that how everyone looks at specific characters can be different, so i’d like to quickly take a moment to express my ideal form of the riddler that might just include a lot of projecting:

he’s a guy who thinks he’s smarter than everyone else. he’s a guy who wishes he had someone on his level. he just wants attention. he does like batman, he respects him, he thinks that since batman can solve his riddles that maybe he isn’t as lonely as he thinks, but batman still locks him in arkham and as smart as he is he doesn’t understand why. he’s like a child acting out because it’s the only way he knows how to get attention. he’s a gifted kid with burnout. he struggles so much socially that he tries to reject society by focusing on riddles and intelligence but still wants that social attention. he’s a campy theatre kid that loves showing off. he’s a smug little bastard trying his best. he pouts when he doesn’t get what he wants. he’s autistic. he’s gay but nobody wants him. he and oswald are divorced.

i know i likely won’t ever get my ideal riddler, but really just what hurts me the most is there are so many ways to make him edgy and just out of character enough that would still work so much better than whatever this is. make him a snobbish asshole in a clean pressed suit sneering at those below him, make him a rejected loner who wants to prove the world wrong through any means necessary, make him a jigsaw-like character with deadly escape rooms, hell make him an r/iamverysmart “you say you want to improve society and yet you still live in it? checkmate. i am very intelligent.” and it’d still be better than whatever the fuck this is.

and good god the costume. the fucking costume. edward has fucking standards. what the absolute fuck were they thinking? i get if you don’t want him looking like the jim carrey version or the early comics where he had that amazingly terrible skintight bright green spandex, i don’t expect him to wear that, but in almost every other version of the riddler he wears a suit. that’s his thing.

look at the arkham & telltale games versions. look at how good these are. he’s not even wearing a suit in arkham knight, but it still works

yeah they’re not live action, but you know what riddler looked fucking amazing in live action?

i have very mixed feelings about the gotham tv show, especially for someone who never watched it, but just look at his fucking suits. it’s amazing. they’re iconic. they’re beautiful.

what the fuck is this. who is this and what did they do to my little riddle lad. i hate this. it’d be better if he was in secondhand party city onceler cosplay.

[glitchbirds]

the past couple months ive been rewatching 60s batman + watching tas batman for the first time and very hesitantly but curiously peering at other batman media produced over the decades. three of the major takeaways thus far: -i dont remember having strong feelings about any particular member of the rogues gallery as a kid (i mostly just adored bruce and alfred, and i still very much do, alfred especially), but i immediately latched onto penguin upon rewatching a couple 60s episodes and he continues to be The Favorite overall. harley and harvey+two-face are also high up there; bane will probably also be in the top 5 once i see more of him. have an odd little soft spot for the ventriloquist+scarface too, them and penguin feel the most Tailor-Made To My Sensibilities -absolutely fucking despondent over the fact that every time ive tried to look for anything related to penguin on this god forsaken website ive had to sift through a sea of garbage from that 2010s show i dont care about that turned him into a skinny twink for riddler yaoibait purposes. you will give me the gay fat bastard i deserve or you will die by my hand -most things peaked in the 60s show and even though there’s a lot of stuff i love about TAS so far, i am always going to love the adam west series’ vibe more than anything. most of my favorite performances of most rogues are in there. riddler in particular was at his best with frank gorshin rolling around on the floor while giggling like a lunatic (though jim carrey in batman forever absolutely killed it at the role, and robert englund voicing him in the 2004 show is fantastic casting in concept, though i havent seen that show myself yet)

[canadian-riddler]

Hi Indy! I know Arkhamverse Riddler is definitely your specialty. Do you happen to have a rough ranking of Riddlers that you like from most to least? And which do you think is the most definitive version of the character?

I THINK that’s what my blog description says, anyway

Yes, at all times I have a rough ranking floating around in the back of my mind.  It is going to be very long so I will answer the last question first.

For most definitive version of Riddler I’m going to have to go with BTAS.  No recurring villain really had a distinct personality from their original (1940s) version, and while I am not knocking Frank Gorshin the 1966 Riddler absolutely was a bit Joker-y.  Most importantly (if I am not mistaken, which I could be), BTAS gave Riddler what became his most important trait: his intelligence.  Before that he was mostly an average weirdo who wore a green suit (sometimes) and liked riddles and sometimes built puzzle traps.  After BTAS, though, the Riddler’s intelligence became the driving force of his character.  Batman ‘66 saved Riddler from obscurity, but BTAS made him both relevant and future-proof.  Will we ever see a Riddler of average intelligence who doesn’t specialise in computer programming/engineering ever again?  I doubt it, and that’s because of BTAS. 

Onto the list.  It does not include EVERY Riddler ever because I have not read every Riddler story ever, but it should cover most of them (or at least the ones you’ve probably heard of).

1. Anything Paul Dini wrote.  This actually covers a few different Riddlers, which would be the first two Arkhamverse games, the most notable PI Riddler stuff, and of course the Riddler from BTAS.  Paul Dini can write the Riddler as both being a bad person and sympathetic at the same time, which is actually harder to pull off than it sounds.  AND he does it without using backstory as a crutch, which really is hard.

2.  Jeph Loeb/Jim Lee’s Riddler from Hush.  He only actually appears for two issues, but it’s one of the best Riddler stories merely because it allows him to do all the things Riddler SHOULD be able to do, but can’t because then there would be no Batman comics because he would have ended them.  619C is also, in my opinion, the best Riddler cover of all time.

3. Jim Carrey’s Riddler from Batman Forever.  Why would I put him this high on the list, you ask?  Because some writers forget that the Riddler is half just in it to have a good time and he doesn’t really care about how other people perceive him.  This man is living his best life and he’s doing it in glittery spandex and a light-up jacket.  Is he over the top?  At the time, no, not really.  At the time Riddler kinda just acted like that.  And he should be able to do so, in my opinion. 

4. Current Riddler (James Tynion IV).  While this Riddler has some issues with consistency (though this probably has to do with being shuffled from a main comic story into a Catwoman story), he returns to being almost self-cripplingly paranoid and absolutely losing it when he’s bested, which I think are important traits for Riddler to have.  I’m also actually really amused that they gave him the Batman Forever hair.

5. Batman ‘66.  While it did likely rescue Riddler from pending obscurity - he actually never appeared in a Batman comic before 1965, and before that was featured in only two issues of Detective Comics - and he definitely checks the ‘charming’ and ‘having fun’ boxes, there isn’t a whole lot differentiating him from the Joker he’s playing alongside.  If you watch the Batman ‘66 movie they’re almost the exact same character, just one likes jokes and the other likes riddles. 

6. Hush Returns and its aftermath.  This stuff is weird and doesn’t make a whole lot of sense because it mostly involves Riddler running away from Hush and retcons certain things from Hush, most importantly the part where Riddler got everyone to work together because he gave them what they wanted.  Hush Returns (which also contradicts itself during the story) for some reason has everyone angry at Riddler for tricking them and it ends with him getting the shit beat out of him and puts him into a coma for a year, which leads into him getting total amnesia and becoming a PI.  That’s the reason it’s so high on the list.  The story is weird and makes no sense at all for any of the other characters in it either but it gave us a reason for PI Riddler and that makes it matter.  Sort of.

7. Brave and the Bold/The Batman Riddler.  I’m putting them both together mostly because BatB Riddler features in I think only one episode and he deserves a mention because he’s adorable.  TB Riddler was an interesting experiment into a Riddler that, for whatever reason, never really came into himself as a person and instead sort of enacts revenge for his existence on life.  If I remember correctly he’s also pretty low-key about his intelligence, which is another interesting character choice.  I respect the things they went for but this Riddler overall gives me the impression of a person who always says no when invited to something but gets upset when people stop asking which, while definitely something the Riddler would do, isn’t really my preferred take.

8. Snyder Riddler (New 52).  The problem I have with this Riddler is that I have no idea what his motivation even is.  I was told a long time ago that a backstory for him WAS written but didn’t make it into Zero Year because the story was already too long, which is... not a great look for a professional storyteller.  And because we don’t know anything about this Riddler, this story consists of a dude who wears green to impress women (which he never shows any interest in), gets the mob to work for him... somehow... and decides to spend a YEAR watching the people in Gotham die because... I’m not sure?  If it amused him, sure, I could understand that.  But he just seems super bored during the entirety of the story.  He doesn’t even seem particularly excited when Batman actually shows up in front of him.  Beyond Zero Year his appearances are, to my knowledge, limited mostly to two issues in Batman Eternal, where he’s hiding, three issues of The Flash, where he speedruns Zero Year and is undone by the Flash villains teaming up against him (which I don’t know enough about Flash villains to comment on), and Scarecrow 23.2, where he for some unexplained reason seems to look up to Scarecrow.  And then there’s Detective Comics: Future’s End, which is just the worst thing ever.  Snyder didn’t write all of these stories, but they are based on his Riddler.

9. Gotham Riddler.  I didn’t watch past season 3 so I can’t comment on too much after that, but the arc with Mad Grey Dawn and ‘I knew that you knew that I knew’ was some of the greatest Riddler stuff we had gotten in years and if they had just kept on with that they would have had one of the greatest Riddlers of all time. 

10. Jeph Loeb/Tim Sale Riddler.  Full disclaimer I haven’t read Catwoman: When in Rome, but I have read The Long Halloween and Dark Victory.  The reason I don’t like this Riddler is because he actually bears no resemblance to him.  He’s a literal moron who just stumbles around incompetently for the duration of his relevance to the plot.  It’s like they decided to make an ironic Riddler who is actually stupid and also for the first time in his life does not have the ability to locate a tailor.  I don’t actually understand the point of this Riddler’s existence.  He isn’t even really Riddler, he’s just some sort of vaguely Riddler-coloured person.

[that-shamrock-vibe]

Movie Review: Sonic the Hedgehog (Spoilers)

Spoiler Warning: I am posting this review the day the movie is first released in the U.K, so if you haven’t yet seen the movie do not read on until you have.

General Reaction:

It's difficult with today's movie going audience to predict how movies like Sonic are going to perform and be received. Especially when the ad campaign did absolutely no favours for this movie other than convince Paramount that Sonic needed a more truthful redesign than what they originally put out.

Here's the thing. Sonic the Hedgehog to me is trying to be 2020's Detective Pikachu capitalising on that nostalgia of a beloved classic franchise.

However, I do feel that the haters and internet trolls out there are not going to be able to get past the comparisons this movie draws to 2011's Hop, which was a live-action/CGI-hybrid movie starring James Marsden who becomes the companion of a somewhat overbearing CG creature.

But, I encourage all movie goers, including the haters, to go into this with an open mind...particularly if you have any history with Sonic because you will get some enjoyment and walk away afterwards feeling happy overall.

My personal history with Sonic is slightly less-so than I would like. I played the original 2 SEGA games countless times and did watch some episodes of the earlier animated shows.

Having said that, my main Sonic fandom actually comes from the mid-noughties series Sonic X, which I feel this movie could have adapted but alas. Also I played the Shadow the Hedgehog spinoff game and more recently Smash Bros where I actually won as Sonic recently.

Now this movie reminds me of those shows and games practically in no way. I mean there is that opening sequence where you see Sonic running around and looping like he does in the SEGA games, I do also feel like James Marsden's character could easily be an older version of Chris, the boy from Sonic X, but aside from that, the gold rings and Robotnik...there's not a lot for the Sonic fans to spot.

I can't say this is a perfect movie, because it really is not. There are a lot of super speed gags and some of them do stick but some just fall flat and at times feel repetitive.

The worst crime this movie commits in my opinion is stealing Quicksilver's gimmick of speed scenes. By which I mean there are not one but two occasions when time is slowed down to almost a halt and we see Sonic running around still. They even have songs specific for these scenes.

Also, because I'm not fully aware of every Sonic incarnation, I did not understand why Sonic is effectively The Flash with being able to generate lightning. I mean I understand the laws of physics of generating enough friction can create static but I have never known Sonic to have any electric attacks.

I did like how the static electricity was preserved in his quills when they fell off though. In animation and the games you don’t think about Sonic’s realistic hedgehog qualities such as having quills so it was a nice touch.

I am also aware that Sonic has turned Super Saigen before with the help of the Chaos Emeralds I believe, so the fact we see a similar transformation here is quite good to see for that reason.

In terms of story I do think this is a simple plot that has been done numerous times, Hop is definitely one example that comes to mind, but I feel it’s also a very accessible story for non-Sonic fans.

I don’t know if Longclaw the Owl is an original character or one from Sonic mythology but I did not really vest much interest in her. Baby Sonic I thought was cute, but I refuse to accept anyone saying he is cuter than Baby Yoda as no one is cuter than Baby Yoda.

On the subject of age, it was good to see them acknowledging Sonic’s age for a change as opposed to just presuming because up until now I did always think he was some sort of teenager but this confirms it. If Baby Sonic is around 5-9 years old then Sonic in present day is late teens which makes sense with his temperament.

The gold rings being used as teleportation devices, I don’t know if they’re meant to be in the games but loved their use here.

I enjoyed the use of technology in this movie and particularly Robotnik’s commentary on how technology is more reliable than people which ties into his ultimate fate of being stranded alone without another soul on the planet he is sent to which forces him further into insanity.

The fact Sonic’s story is about fitting into society while James Marsden’s character is about figuring out what’s right in front of him are great parallels and do balance each other out rather well.

Also where he ends up with effectively being part of a family as well as a town hero was a nice way to wrap things up.

However, that mid-credits scene showing the arrival of Sonic’s faithful protege Tails to the real world looking for his friend screams for a sequel, especially if this means that more of Sonic’s companions could be introduced in the future like Knuckles, Shadow or even Rouge the Bat.

Characters:

Dr. Robotnik:

I don’t want to say he is the best character because I feel all four of the main cast members do a great job, but my favourite definitely is Jim Carrey as Robotnik. This is Carrey back on form and there were so many great shades of back when he was at the top of his game in the 90s with work such as Ace Ventura, The Mask and The Grinch.

From his first scene he stole every scene he was in. You could tell that he was taking the role seriously while also having the time of his life with it and this is why, back in the day, he was on such high form.

He may not have been the overweight bald megalomaniac, at least with the latter two not until the end of the movie, but he was the evil genius and mad scientist and almost every line he delivered he nailed.

I think “rockonnaissance” is going to be the new “joygasm” for him but it worked for The Riddler and it works for Robotnik.

I’m also happy he was nicknamed Eggman in the movie by Sonic because of the shape of his drones, I thought it was fitting. I can’t wait for Sonic to see the new bald version.

Sonic:

Yes Sonic is second but I said it before, there were times when he was overbearing.

Ben Schwartz by the way does a fantastic job voicing the character, I know he voices Dewey in the new Ducktales series and also for some reason voices BB-8 in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, but this is my favourite role of his voice is so realistic for a wide-eyed and somewhat innocent “alien” hedgehog.

I enjoyed how when he first came to Earth he was this urban legend around Green Hills who spent those 10 years people watching and either making up nicknames for the citizens while also longing to fit in with them but knowing not to.

Also the movie’s comedy was never as vulgar as Ryan Reynolds or immature as Russell Brand. I think they had one fart joke in the movie but the rest was generic comedy movie material which was hit and miss in comedy.

It was quite touching also that he was so protective of Green Hills and the status quo so much so that when Tom said he was planning on leaving to move to San Francisco, he was so offended and I thought it was going to be that trope of “Oh now they’re going to separate only to discover they need each other later” but instead it was a few digs and then they got over it.

I am so happy they did redesign the character because the movie’s original look for him was horrendous and did make Cats look reasonable whereas this is more like the Sonic everyone knows and I did not realise he didn’t have his traditional running shoes until Jojo, the niece of Tika Sumpter’s character, replaced them for him.

I will keep saying I want a sequel just because I am interested to see where Sonic’s story takes him next, especially with Tails now on Earth and the potentiality that others could join.

The Wachowskis

Again I thought James Marsden and Tika Sumpter did very pleasant jobs. This is my favourite James Marsden performance to date. Up until now his roles have been either corny or simply bland for me but here, yes there were a couple of dodgy jokes and moments but overall I thought Tom was a very likeable character and at the very least a driven character.

His wife Maddie, first of all props to the movie writers for having a mixed-race couple front and centre in the movie. But also, Maddie, who is also an accomplished career woman alongside her accomplished career husband, did not weigh Tom down or the story down as simply being “just the wife”.

I also enjoyed Maddie’s sister and niece, Jojo is quite cute and for the little screentime that she has does well with it for a child her age. While Natasha Rothwell continues to grow in my estimations after her fabulous turn in Love, Simon as the very sassy teacher.

Others:

As for the rest of the cast, this was a great who’s who for spotting the great jobbing actors as Lee Majdoub, Neal McDonough, Michael Hogan and Adam Pally all have minor supporting roles that do not go unnoticed.

Meanwhile Colleen Villard (née O'Shaughnessey), who voices Tails in the video games as well as voicing Wasp in The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes series and Sora in the Digimon franchise, reprises her role as the anthropomorphic fox in an uncredited mid-credits scene. I am hoping she returns for the sequel because it is good to hear her acting again.

Recommendation:

I do see a future for this movie in terms of a franchise. I do not quite see it crossing over with Detective Pikachu as I know there were rumblings of some sort of Super Smash Bros. movie cinematic universe.

However, if the movie does warrant a sequel, and with a current Rotten Tomatoes score of 64%, considering this seems to be a deciding factor for some cinema goers, I don’t see why not. I am hoping the future of this franchise does see the introductions of Knuckles, Shadow, Rouge and even Amy.

Potentially also spinning off from this franchise, there could be Donkey Kong, Mega Man and maybe even Mario to create that Super Smash Bros. universe.

Overall I rate the movie 8/10, it’s a great movie and definitely has some rewatchability to it.

Having said that I can see where some cinema snobs or even haters may come from as they inevitably target the movie but I encourage everyone not to be taken in by other people’s opinions, not even mine, make up your own minds and see it for yourself.

So that’s my review of Sonic the Hedgehog, what did you guys think? Post your comments and check out more Movie Reviews as well as other posts.

[aion-rsa]

The Batman Trailer Breakdown and Analysis

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

The Batman trailer is finally here, accompanied by Nirvana’s “Something in the Way.” The two-minutes-and-a-half of footage presents a nightmarish new take on Gotham and the Dark Knight, an impressive feat considering only 25% of the movie has been shot so far, according to what director Matt Reeves said during the DC FanDome digital event.

Matt Reeves’ Batman reboot explores the early days of the Caped Crusader’s career, about two years into it, and focuses on a younger Bruce Wayne who is haunted by his past as well as a new villain who’s leaving victims all of the city for him to find.

We see in the trailer as Batman is hunted by a serial killer who is leaving him letters at every crime scene, teasing that the movie will feel more like a detective story than the usual action take. The trailer also gives us our first look at several villains, including Penguin, Catwoman, and a gang that seems to call back to a group first introduced in an animated series.

While the trailer makes quite a few things clear about this new Batman movie universe, there are a few lingering questions left in the promo’s wake. So we’re going breaking down the trailer to see what’s really going on in The Batman. And if there’s anything you spot in the trailer that we missed, let us know in the comments!

Before we get started, take a look at the trailer again:

Okay, let’s get started:

The trailer kicks off the character reveals right away, giving us our first look at The Batman‘s version of the Riddler — at least I’m pretty sure this is him. The riddle-obsessed villain isn’t really known for wearing a full facemask with glasses over it, but as you’ll see throughout the trailer, this movie seems to play like an extended fever dream full of grotesque baddies set against an almost overbearingly dark Gotham City.

This is the perfect version for this new take on the Riddler, who seems more like a serial killer here than the grinning megalomaniac we know from the comics, video games, and Batman Forever. In fact, Paul Dano’s Riddler looks about as far the opposite of Jim Carrey as you can get.

The trailer definitely sets up the Riddler as the main villain of the piece, a killer obsessed with getting to the Batman by leaving behind corpses and messages for the Dark Knight at his crime scenes. Above, we see one such victim, his face wrapped in tape with the words “No more lies” written over it.

Uncovering a lie seems to be a major aspect of the movie, as its a message the Riddler repeats to the Batman several times in the trailer. It suggests the Riddler knows something about the Caped Crusader that no one else does. Does the villain know that Bruce Wayne is the masked vigilante? Or does this lie run much deeper than that?

The fact that the Joker movie also dealt with the idea of the Wayne family’s hidden past — in that case, that Thomas Wayne may have had an illegitimate son — and that this movie could have at least one potential connection to last year’s Taxi Driver-inspired character piece makes me think the Riddler knows a secret about Bruce’s past. The Riddler, who seems to be speaking to Batman throughout the video, tells the Dark Knight at the end of the trailer that “he’s a part of this,” meaning whatever the villain is doing was designed to punish Bruce for something.

Reeves has said that his take on Batman is more of a detective story than an action movie, and this trailer definitely delivers on his promise. We see Jeffrey Wright’s Jim Gordon investigating the crime scene the Riddler leaves behind at the start of the trailer, while a forensics team takes photographs and gathers evidence.

One piece evidence is a green envelope left behind for Batman. Inside is a card with a riddle that I can’t quite make out, but it’s undoubtedly meant to lead the World’s Greatest Detective to the next clue in the Riddler’s twisted game. We also see that the Riddler has also picked up a few things from the Zodiac Killer’s book of riddles, as he leaves behind a code for the Bat to crack.

A blink-and-you’ll-miss-it shot of a framed newspaper at the crime scene gives fans of The Dark Knight and The Long Halloween a nice easter egg to mull over. We already knew John Turturro was set to play crime boss Carmine Falcone in the movie but now we know that his comrade in crime/rival Salvatore Maroni also exists in this universe and has been busted for transporting drugs at some point before the start of the movie. Was Maroni one of Batman’s early targets? Maybe we’ll find out.

Here’s an excellent look at what the top half of the new Batsuit looks like. It’s pretty much a suit of armor, although the cowl and cape seem to be made out of leather. And as we already knew, this Batsuit has a collar, which is a pretty neat addition to the usual suits designed for the movies.

This scene also confirms that by year two of Batman’s career, he’s already on good terms with Gordon and the GCPD, although something tells me that relationship ain’t gonna last very long…

I have no idea who this is, but I’m going to guess it’s The Batman‘s version of Commissioner Loeb, the corrupt head of police that preceded Gordon. Since the movie is getting a GCPD-centric spinoff on HBO about the corruption inside the police force, I’m going to assume this version of Loeb will be a bit closer to the power-hungry chief introduced in Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli’s Batman: Year One.

We also get a look at the new Batcave, which is about as minimalist as the Dark Knight’s secret lair can get. In fact, it looks more like a garage than a secret underground science lab/high-tech surveillance station. It even looks like this version of Bruce spends more time working on his Batmobile than on his computer piecing mysteries together. Can you even call that a Batcomputer? It looks like a workbench with a dual-monitor PC setup. Does this dude even get wi-fi inside his underground mechanic shop?

Bruce is at someone’s funeral for someone I don’t recognize when a car comes crashing through the church. Inside seems to be a man with a bomb and a letter for Batman strapped to his chest. Does the Riddler know Batman is attendance already or does he think this latest scheme will lure him there?

Either way, we also get our best look at Pattinson as Bruce. It’s interesting to see a version of Bruce who doesn’t sport slicked back billionaire hair. Instead, Pattinson wears more of an emo slick — very fitting for the mood of this trailer.

We get our first look at Zoe Kravitz as Selina Kyle doing what she does best: stealing. Reeves said during DC FanDome that this version of Selina hasn’t quite morphed into Catwoman at the start of the film and is instead still being shaped into the master thief we know and love.

The trailer shows us a brief snippet of Selina taking on Batman, suggesting that the characters will be at odds with each other in the movie. But could this be the start of a love-hate relationship like what we’ve seen in past takes on this duo? This should be interesting.

We also get to see Colin Farrell’s absolutely incredible transformation into the scarred Oswald Cobblepot, who, according to Reeves, is still working his way up the crime ladder in this movie. He’s not yet the powerful crime lord known as the Penguin, but it sure seems like he causes plenty of havoc for the Bat nonetheless.

Here’s why I mentioned that Joker connection earlier. The gang of face-painted goons that challenge Batman in the trailer sure look inspired by the Clown Prince of Crime. My initial reaction was that The Batman was doing the Jokerz, the Joker-worshiping gang introduced in the Batman Beyond animated series, but what if these guys were actually inspired by Arthur Fleck’s actions in the ’70s-set movie?

We know that by the end of Joker, Arthur has a cult following rallying around him, despite the fact that he’s admitted to murdering quite a few people by that point. His followers, who don their own clown makeup and masks, see Arthur as a freedom fighter, someone fighting for justice in a corrupt city where the rich have it all and the poor have nothing. It wouldn’t be surprising to see that Arthur has become a symbol all these years later, inspiring the next generation to go out into the streets and cause their own chaos.

I know WB has said that both The Batman and Joker exist in their own universes, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the studio was suddenly anxious to tie these two movies together after the massive success of the latter. If Pattinson ever does take on the Joker, you can bet your Batarangs that WB will try its very hardest to make it the Joaquin Phoenix version of the villain.

Anyway, we eventually watch as Batman beats the ever-living shit out of one of these clowns. It’s a bit…much.

While Batman and the GCPD seem to be on good terms at the start of the trailer, things have certainly taken a turn later. We first see Bats getting into a scuffle inside an interrogation room surrounded by cops and then later escaping a building while police officers shoot at him. That second shot actually seems to recreate the famous panels from Year One where the Dark Knight escapes an abandoned building surrounded by the GCPD with the help of a swarm of bats, a scene that also inspired an action sequence in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins.

Why are Batman and the GCPD suddenly at odds? It’s possible this is part of the Riddler’s plan to destroy the Bat. Has the villain framed the Dark Knight for something? Or has Batman gone too far in his search for justice?

The new Batmobile is front and center towards the tail end of the trailer. It’s a very cool and surprisingly realistic take on the Batmobile unlike what we’ve seen in past movies. This muscle car definitely looks like something Bruce would have worked on himself inside the Batcave.

Finally, we get a look Batman sans mask. There’s no elegant bachelor under the cowl in The Batman but a beaten down, soot-covered man who looks more troubled than any other Bruce before him. Pattinson’s Bruce almost looks more inspired by The Crow than Ben Affleck, Christian Bale, or Michael Keaton before him. It definitely looks like he’s taking the character in a new direction.

We’ll find out for sure when The Batman hits theaters on Oct. 1, 2021.

The post The Batman Trailer Breakdown and Analysis appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[stranger-who-writes-fiction]

Wasn’t gonna do a 5x11 post, but ya know what? It was a good one, and it’s fun to talk about stuff ya like.

SPOILERS.

Folks this one is LONG:

Admittedly, I don’t really understand what Brainy did with the rock and the stick, but it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter, because we get Motorcycle Brainy.

I appreciate that nearly every character on this show has the impulse to go out and get a black Stealth Outfit and procure a motorcycle whenever they gotta do clandestine, under-cover stuff. (See also: Lucy, Kara, Alex, J’onn.)

ALSO appreciate the ongoing commitment to characters showing they care via food, as seen in the Breakup Feast scene. 

I’ve seen this episode four times and it’s only JUST occurring to me that Lex is grabbing some of Evil!Winn’s hair and not just creepily picking lint off his shirt, after their little chat.

Lena Laments to Lex! Lost Lots of Lobe Legwork.

And then NAT CITY TOY CON! 

Lex’s action figure is safe for children ages 5 and up, AND the articulation allows for lots of action and superhero poses!

(That thing has NO visible leg or arm joints, Lex will not be doing ANY action posing, whatsoever. XD)

But, for real: It’s a pretty great prop. The packaging is spot on. 

Love all the Supergirl action figures in the background too. (AND WITH THE NEW SUIT I am envious of Earth Prime.)

Get ‘im William, GET ‘IM.

The Lex and Kara scene was GREAT, loved the recorder smash.

Then dramatic slow walk with wiiiiiind, very nice.

CAPE SAVE

WINN

Absolutely love the moment between him, Alex, and Kara when he reveals he has a family. 

AND HIS WIFE AND DAUGHTER ARE LOVELY. THAT KIDDO IS SO CUTE.

Group huuuuuuug

‘I might have missed you just a little bit.’ ‘Me too, just a little.’ ‘Yeah, well, I missed you, like, A LOT.’

Side note: Really dig Winn’s superhero outfit. 

“I wanted to apologize to you, for how I treated you after you took my mother’s medallion.”

*Skeptical Thor face* Is it really hers though?

(Answer: No.)

Okay OKAY now we get to the REALLY GOOD PART but first, a bit of appreciation for Winn referencing Sam Spade.

Alright, are we ready? ARE WE READY????

J’onn’s office (which is ALREADY a cool set) gets a SECRET ELEVATOR that leads tooooo...

THE TOWwait, whoops, almost forgot:

Kara’s total nerd reaction to the secret elevator and Alex’s elder sibling-ly ‘don’t push’ while actually pushing Winn are just. *chef’s kiss*

Okay, we’re back: THE TOWER!!!!!

Complete with PAPA BEAR HUG for Best Son Winn!

I like J’onn’s Martian vest, though I do feel like he should get some finger-less gloves, or something, to complete the look.

“In the future they call it the Hall of Justice.” “I like that.”

“So like STAR Labs.” “Or the Arrow Bunker.” “A place where my Superfriends can work, whenever they should need it.” 

1.) I don’t know why the casual references to the other shows are throwing me, it’s not like they haven’t done it before...maybe it’s the fact that characters besides Kara have this kind of...lived-in familiarity with this stuff that’s otherwise been reserved for her, due to the nature of JUST the lead visiting the other shows. 2.) It occurs to me that Supergirl, the show, never had a central hub like the Arrow Bunker or Star Labs that’s just for the main characters. (Well, I guess the Office of Solitude counts? Kind of?) All of the sets (aside from Kara’s Loft and J’onn’s office which are like...living spaces) require at least a handful of extras milling around in the background. I don’t know where I was going with this....*Marge Simpson voice* I just think it’s neat. 3.) J’onn calling them his Superfriends!!!! :D

“What are you gonna call it?” “I was thinking...The Tower.” “COOL.”

Kara you lovable nerd, you.

The cut from the Martian Memory Meld to Winn’s puking is comedic gold.

“And James runs a small town newspaper and mentors children? That’s adorable!”

You can tell who’s only watching the show via gifs, because this line threw them.

Alex being like, ‘BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE.’ XD

Evil!Winn’s message has Jim Carrey Riddler energy. I think it’s that ‘Let’s play to win!’ bit that does it.

Aaaand some other stuff occurs. Lex and Brainy talk, The Kara and William stuff at CatCo, Evil!Winn’s warehouse lair.

But then BACK TO THE TOWER for more nerding out and some lovely heart-to-hearts!

Winn telling Nia about Nura: :D :D :D

And then OOOOOH BOY, my favorite scene: Kara and Winn.

It starts off great, with Kara being like, ‘I bet you’re a great dad.’ And then Winn gets to talk about being a dad! And naming his little girl after his mom! ‘It was either that or Winifred.’ Heart AND humor??? AND THEN: “KARA WAS AN OPTION.” AAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWW

BUT THEN WINN’S LIKE, ‘EVERYONE IN THE FUTURE NAMES THEIR KID KARA’ HECK YEAH THEY DO

 And then the scene continued to be great but I will admit that I was gripped with a sudden, terrible fear that when Kara mentioned not being too thrilled with her ‘legend’ she was gonna talk about how she betrayed Lena yet again but THANK GOODNESS IT WASN’T THAT.

Instead what we got was this nice little exchange about Kara feeling like she’s endangering William, and Winn being like: ‘you put ME in danger but I always trusted you to protect me’ which is a LOVELY bit of trust and reassurance and a nice deconstruction of the idea that heroes have to distance themselves from others in order to best protect them. Supergirl the TV show has always said and will always say NOPE.

STRONGER TOGETHER.

“Being in your orbit...it’s inspiring.” “You.”

I JUST LOVE KARA HAVING THEM THERE GOOD FRIENDSHIPS.

Then Wicked Winn’s Warehouse! Followed By Lex on a Legion Ship! Learning of Leviathan!

The Obsidian pitch sounds TOTALLY legit, can’t IMAGINE how that could be exploited for evil.

Then Toyman’s Terrible Tigers! Which Brainy Tries to Tame! 

And, look. You’re either the kind of person that watches these DCTV shows and rolls your eyes at on-the-nose music cues, ooooor you’re the kind of person that applauds that kind of go-for-broke attitude.

I am one of the latter.

(BUT it’s always just gonna be...really hard to top The Flash using “Flash Gordon” as Barry jumps into a black hole.)

ANYWAYS.

Always cool to see Kara speed folks away from danger. Very nice!

Whoops, little out of order here, I got excited: prior to the super speed, we have a Winn Stand-off.

(NGL the mental image of Winn singing “Nothing Left to Lose” with his evil counterpart has been amusing me all week long.)

But I digress! Toyman seems to perish in the explosion, but given that this is a two part episode...HMMMM. I think NOT.

(I mean, there’s also the end of episode cliffhanger, so. Yeah, obvious guess is obvious.)

But for the moment, Winn’s future is safe! Yaaaaay!

Then we get the cute moment between Kara and William and YEAH, THAT’S RIGHT, I SAID CUTE. BECAUSE IT WAS CUTE.

So please put me firmly in camp: Generally indifferent to ships but certainly not opposed to more cute reporter shenanigans.

(Also she wouldn’t let him have dinner alone with the world’s saddest sandwich.) 

Instead William gets to come to GAME NIGHT!

Everything about that scene is. So good.

The friendly trash-talking! The glasses bit! ‘Marty’! William saving the Jenga tower for Kara! Space Dad being there! 

(Oh, forgot another scene in my haste to rejoice over game night. Winn and Brainy. T’was good.)

(Oh, no, forgot another one: LENA HAS Q-WAVES. THE GOL-DANG MIND CONTROL PLOT CONTINUES.)

And then there’s the cliffhanger and the next episode preview WHICH I’m absolutely looking forward to because MORE WINN and also KARA AND WILLIAM GET TO SING “AFRICA”.

WHICH...thank you, show, for giving us “Africa” after revealing that was Kara’s other choice, but she went with “Intergalactic” back innnnn...season...three? Well the reveal was in season four. But karaoke night proper was in season three. And “Intergalactic” was great! But. 

COME ON.

IT’S GONNA TAKE A LOT TO DRAG ME AWAAAAAAY FROM YOOOOOOOOOU

Anyways. Wonderful episode! A true season highlight! David did such a good job! EVERYONE did such a good job! This fandom is the worst! And I hope that they actually DO stop watching the show, because it will be better for their emotional well-being and mental health, as well as our own!

[kylo-ren-jepsen]

I'm going through my whole movie collection in more or less alphabetical order. (More or less because some of the kids movies my daughter wants me to wait & watch with her and series will be watched chronologically.) Ima post a pic of my copy, where/why I got it, & a little review.

I skipped ahead to watch my favorite of the 2 Batman movies Joel Schumacher directed when I heard the news of his passing.

I was a casual fan of Batman in the 90s (most kids were between the Tim Burton movies, the animated series, & in some cases reruns of the 60s series) and, as I pointed out before, a huge Jim Carrey fan. So news of Jim Carrey being in a Batman fan was, like, the coolest thing to me.

So in 1995 I thought this movie was amazing. I loved the visuals, the soundtrack, the bits of humor interspersed among the action & angst. As I got older I realized how cheesy and over the top it was & while I'd rag on its shortcomings I still loved it, mostly for nostalgia feels. But in more recent years I learned that when Warner Bros wanted to tone down the series after Batman Returns scared kids and worried parents, Schumacher looked to the 60s TV series & Golden Age comics for inspiration. Looking back, this can be seen in the campy acting and dialogue, especially Jim Carrey channeling Frank Gorshin's version of the Riddler and then cranking it to 11. Yet scenes like Bruce's flashbacks & the Flying Graysons' deaths were a callback to the darkness of the first 2 films. The mid-90s just wasn't the time for a half campy/half serious movie. Nor were they ready for Bat-Nipples

[fishing-for-blood]

What is your opinion on Jim Carrey as The Riddler? (I was super curious because I saw your reblog of old school Batman villains.)

A RIDDLER ASK I'M GONNA CRY OMG long post incoming look what you've started but tldr I'm CONFLICTED

So first off, I haven't watched Batman Forever in years but of what i remember...

He is faaarrrrr too flamboyant for me. Like I've got no issue with old golden age cornball Eddie, but the sequin spangled unitard and pyrotechnics is far beyond the scope of his usual... over-the-top personality or theatrics. Way way way too flashy. Also he isn't really among the most brilliant of riddler portrayals either, which is AT LEAST 80% of a Riddler's charm. He found out batmans identity, but like not through any sort of intellectual effort as he has in comics. He just had mind-reading gear?? I mean he was a tech nerd inventor I guess but the whole brainwave shtick reminds me more of Mad Hatter than Riddler. And I understand that Jim Carrey was using Frank Gorshin's giggly kind of goofy portrayal as inspiration, but I honestly feel like at the end of the day Jim Carrey just played Jim Carrey, the same damn character he does in every one of his films?? It also doesn't help that I have a grudge against the fact that Riddler is called 'a poor man's Joker' often times because of Carrey's portrayal. The character design, writing, and acting all really really worked AGAINST what makes a good Riddler imo.  

Buuuuuut but at the same time i do think the publicity boosted the character's popularity in general? Like, there is HUGE nostalgic value there for me in that respect. I really owe my love of the riddler, and DC altogether to that movie? Jim Carrey was my absolute FAVORITE actor as a kid, so 5 year old me immediatley equated loving Carrey with also loving the Riddler. I remember watching BTAS around the same time and being like 'OH THATS RIDDLER! I KNOW HIM! I LIKE HIM!' And so my riddler obsession began.

So really I can't be MAD at it even though I think its among the weakest and un-riddler Riddlers to be featured as a main antagonist. Like, I've held onto these FOREVER (aha pun intended) I love them

[whatif-animagineblog]

A Love Letter to Batman (TV Series ‘66)

I know most of you know me for Star Trek and my love for it. But my fandom didn’t start there. It started with Batman.

So I’ve been rewatching the Batman ‘66 series the last few days. And by that, I mean watching all the Riddler episodes back to back. With the bookworm episodes thrown in there. (And the Episode with Ma Parker)

I owe this series a lot. It’s an anchor point for me. It’s something I turn too when I get too stressed, too angry, too sad. It keeps me grounded and makes me laugh, for the same and different reasons than it did when I was two and my parents sat me in front of it after they cleaned the pins in my medical halo. It soothed me then and does now. 

It got me into comics and the lore of Batman. Something I still work to at least have a working knowledge of. It gave me a love for adventure and wild storytellings. It allowed me to find a soft spot for Marvel characters like Spiderman and the X-men. (And weird looks when I say I prefer DC over Marvel) It made me watch Batman: The Animated Series which is also now a safe spot for me. 

It’s so silly and it knows it. It knows it’s ridiculous with all the labels and silly jokes. But that’s what makes it so special.

It gave me a love for characters that has continued for nearly 20 years. An appreciation of them when they aren’t just dark brooding drama machines. 

It gave me one of my, if not my all-time favorite characters, The Riddler.  Yeah sure when I was like 6 or something I had a major crush on the Boy Wonder. And I still deeply love Dick Grayson to this day, but The Riddler has always been my guy. And Frank Gorshin’s portrayal will always be at the top of my lists. He had a great balance of over the top mania and a coldness that had the mania simmering right underneath. I’ve always kept some of his mannerisms in my headcanon. (And no I don’t like Jim Carrey’s portrayal. I loathe it)

So this is a small thank you show that was always on the same Bat-channel at the same bat-time, even in the 90s and early 2000s. 

To the show that my mom watched when it first came on, and has been watching reruns with me ever since.

To the show that got me and my parents through my medical halo at the age of 2

To the show that got me through losing all my friends and moving schools 

To the show that helped me through highschool

To the show that still holds my hand as I fight through college.

So here is a Bat - Thank you from a lifetime bat-fan

[justgotham]

(NEW YORK) — Actor Cory Michael Smith plays Edward Nygma, aka The Riddler, one of the many over-the-top villains on FOX’s Batman-universe spin-off, Gotham.

Smith’s certainly not the first actor to play the role: Frank Gorshin played it on the campy 1960s Batman TV series, and Jim Carrey took a spin in 1995’s Batman Forever.  Smith said while he’s a Carrey fan, having grown up watching Carrey classics like Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and The Mask, he intentionally avoided revisiting Carrey’s take on the character.

“For me it was also just self-preservation.  Like, steer clear,” Smith says.  “‘Cause if I saw him do it, it would just be, this kind of like reaction that I would be imitating him, and I didn’t wanna mess with that.”

You can tell Smith takes seriously the responsibility of tackling the role, and acknowledges the pressure that brings.

“If you take an iconic character like this and you do it terribly?  Or in a way where most people think you are wrong, when people look at you and are like, ‘Meh, that’s just off the mark, man,’ he says, “I just feel like that, you know, that can be a devastating setback to a young career.

Nygma’s only one of the scenery-chewing villains Gotham is known for.  Smith says if it looks like he’s having a blast playing part, it’s because he is.

“When he gets to be a bit of a showboat, I have a blast,” he says.  “There’s something about this character, when he just gets to be so cocky and then the rug gets pulled out from under him?  It’s a very satisfying thing.”

[dom8888]

Jim Carrey Turns 60: From ‘Eternal Sunshine’ to ‘Ace Ventura,’ His 10 Best Film Performances

Actor and comedian Jim Carrey has accumulated a wide range of memorable performances that have made him one of the most revered movie stars in history. The Canadian-born actor started alongside great stand-up comedians like Rodney Dangerfield before getting his big break on television with the classic variety series “In Living Color.”

Variety is ranking his 10 best film performances to celebrate the actor’s 60th birthday.

Carrey’s run in the 1990’s is among the most dominant for any actor in film history. In 1994, he opened three worldwide moneymaking juggernauts – “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” ($107 million), “Dumb and Dumber” ($270 million) and “The Mask” ($351 million). From that point forward, there was no stopping him.

He moved into the villainous Riddler in Joel Schumacher’s “Batman Forever” (1995) opposite Val Kilmer before reprising his role in the undervalued “Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls,” which introduced the world to a young Sophie Okonedo before she would get her Oscar nom for “Hotel Rwanda” (2004).

He made history as the first actor to be paid $20 million for Ben Stiller’s black comedy “The Cable Guy” (1996), playing a mad cable TV installer who becomes obsessed with one of his customers, played by Matthew Broderick.

It was the year of “Titanic,” and Carrey still stayed in the conversation with his take on a lawyer who is unable to lie for 24 hours in the hilarious “Liar Liar” (1997). He received a Golden Globe nod for his work, an awards competition which spawned one of Carrey’s best jokes: “It’s insane… I mean Jack Nicholson, Dustin Hoffman, Samuel L. Jackson, Kevin Kline – I don’t see how I can lose.”

Looking to change it up, he teamed up with Peter Weir for the dramedy “The Truman Show” (1998), winning his first Golden Globe for lead actor drama, over top-tier actors like Ian McKellen (“Gods and Monsters”) and Tom Hanks (“Saving Private Ryan”). However, he was famously snubbed by the Academy in favor of Roberto Benigni (“Life is Beautiful”) and Edward Norton (“American History X”), which he referenced hilariously when he won the MTV Movie Award for best male performance.

Carrey’s determination to venture further into the dramatic realm remained firm. He took on the life of Andy Kaufman in Milos Forman’s “Man on the Moon” (1999), which led him to his first and only SAG nod. He also played the heartbroken Joel Barish in Michel Gondry’s “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” (2004), landing him his only BAFTA nom.

Since then, he’s been a shell of his former self in terms of box office clout, but there are still hints of his greatness, such as his con-man Steven Russell in “I Love You Phillip Morris” (2009) and even his Dr. Robotnik in “Sonic the Hedgehog” (2020).

Read Variety’s rankings of Jim Carrey’s best performances in film down below:

Honorable mentions: “Batman Forever” (1995), “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events” (2004), “Me, Myself & Irene” (2000)

[theabominableblogger]

My Reaction to “Gotham” S2E19

Yep.  Told ya I’d get this one up.

AN:  I managed to record my reactions to this episode and hopefully I can transcribe what I said into this post.

Whoa....

What the....

“Has there been any improvement since he [Theo] woke up yesterday?”  “No.  But he's wonderful, isn't he?“  I... I wouldn’t say that...

“The Will and Order of St. Dumas.”  What?

*Jim stops by Arkham*  Oh SNAAAAAPPP!

“Pinewood Farms was started by Thomas Wayne in an attempt to cure humanity's greatest ailments on the genetic level old age, disease, even death.”  “But that's not what happened, is it?“  *snaps sassy Z-line in the air*  No it ain’t!

“Karen said the program tried to play God, and you [Hugo] ended up creating monsters.”  “I was just a researcher with no knowledge of that until it was too late.“  Uhh, ha ha, no.

“I’m [Jim] not here for a therapy session, Professor.”  Thank you.

“No.  It’s more like an interrogation by a man who is no longer a police officer.”  Ohh!

“[Jim] You're trying to make up for the sins of your past, and you believe that this case will somehow bring about your own personal redemption.”  *grimaces*

“Victor Fries is dead, Mr. Gordon.”  Well that is a lie.

“Really?  I saw him last night.”  Thank you!

“I [JIm] can read tells, too.  [Hugo] You’re lying.”  *claps and points at screen*  Yeeess!

Oh there it is!  There’s the theme!

*Ed explains to Aaron that the other inmate’s personality is not him via pretending to scold the air AKA “Lucy”*  OK, this is actually not a bad way to diffuse the situation.

Look at Ed being the negotiator when it comes to situations in Arkham! 

*claps*

“Go to hell, Ed.”  Thank you!

“Nobody beats me.”  Really?

“I [Jim] did.  See you never, Ed.”  Hahahaha!

There’s the Jim Gordon I know!

“What has no hands but might knock on your door, and you better open up if it does?“  Fate?

“I [Ed] can help you [Hugo] take him [Jim] down.“  You better not!

*One of the inmates tries to lick Ed*  EEEWWW!!

*Ed explains to Hugo how he manipulated the other inmates by simply listening to them and what they want*  Holy crap, Ed!

This is the Riddler!

“Everyone has a story...”  Azrael?

Ed, what did you do?

“We have got to give him [Theo] a great, heroic story.”  “We need to give him a good heroic dose of Thorazine, but you're [Hugo] the boss.“  ...Yes.

Uhhh.... is this a good idea??

“Hello?”  *in best Hugo Strange voice*  It’s me.

WHOA

“Don’t you [Theo] feel a father’s love when I [Hugo] look into your eyes?” *in high pitched voice* NOT REALLY!

“No. No. There is another life. There is a sister, a high tower-”  *puts hands on head in shock*  Ohhh, he [Theo] remembers Tabitha!

Whoaaa ho ho hoooo... oh my gosshhh...

“This man [Hugo] ordered my parents' death?  You're sure?“  Why would Hugo Strange order the deaths of Thomas and Martha Wayne?

“Bruce, I [Jim] know you're frustrated, but we need to do this the right way.”  “The right way? And how many times did that fail with Galavan?“  HOOO!!

“We'll work on Barnes, get him to sign off on a warrant and put Strange away for good.  The right way.“  Where are they gonna put Strange if they do arrest him?  Blackgate?  Probably not Arkham.

Is this immersion therapy [the St. Dumas video Strange is showing Azrael]?

AN:  The video actually reminded me of the conversion video from the video game “Outlast” (and no, I’m putting a link of that video in because it is also a trigger video from a disturbing game- a game that I’ve only seen gameplays for and don’t actually plan on playing anytime soon).

“This Dumas character was made a saint, performed a lot of miracles and so forth. And one of the miracles was bringing Azrael back to life.”  “I [Miss Peabody] still prefer Thorazine.“  Heeheehee!

What the heck did they do to Theo’s face?  Was that from when they re-stitched his face back together after removing the umbrella from the back of his head??

*Ed watches Miss Peabody take Aaron down to Indian Hill*  Oooohhh...

Oh my God, is this gonna be how Ed escapes?  Please do not follow them!

Yeah, where are they taking Aaron?

Waaait, they’re taking him to Azrael!  Oooohhhh...

Oh I like that shot of Ed with the rose-tinted windows behind him.

*Aaron meets Azrael*  Oh.  Snaaaappp...

“I [Hugo] am crafting your [Azrael’s] armor as we speak, but first, your skills must be tested.“  NOOO, he’s gonna kill Aaron!!

*gasps when Azrael knocks out Aaron with the briefcase*

“Not exactly what I had in mind, but good enough.  Try opening the chest, my son.“  Hahahaha...

[It’s like in “Hercules”]  “USE YOUR HEAD!”  “Riightt...”

Hahaha, this is exactly what happened!

“The Sword of Sin.  Your [Azrael’s] ally and instrument of justice, a vanquisher of evil for generations.  She thirsts for blood.”  How’d they get a sword?

“My lord, I [Azrael] am the Angel of Death.  James Gordon dies... tonight.”  Hooo!

Why would they [the GCPD] let the press anywhere near the crime scene?  That is way too close!

Where is the tape?  Where is the line?

“Listen, kid- Mr. Wayne- I [Barnes] don't care how much money or pull you have in this town.  I'm through talking to him [Jim].”  “Are you through listening to the truth?“  Whooo...

“What are you [Ed] gonna do with all this stuff, anyway?”  That’s a good question...

“I think Professor Strange is hiding something.  And I think that something is a secret way out of this dump.  So I'm gonna use this stuff to find it.“  This is totally like Jim Carrey-level Riddler right here... and I like this better than the actual Jim Carrey Riddler!

I like the Riddler better than Ed.  What’s goin’ ON?!?

“[JIm] You self-righteous punk.  You think you have all the answers?  Maybe you should run it yourself!”  “Maybe I will one day.“  HE DOES!

*softly gasps when the precinct lights go out*

“Who’s there?”  OH SNAP!

Here’s my question:  how did Hugo Strange get all the armor for Azrael?

If this armor’s bulletproof, I swear to God...

WHOA!

Grab his [Azrael’s] cape!

*Azrael leaps out of the precinct*  Whoa...

Masked man in a cape- Bruce, do not take any ideas from this for Batman!

“Calls himself Azrael.  Wants to kill me [Jim].  We know Hugo Strange is responsible.“  Do you?

“Excuse me, Captain.  I [Bruce] find your flippant attitude to be inappropriate.“  Hoo hoo hooo!

“I [Jim] can't make the moves I need to make if I'm worrying about you [Bruce].  You need to be at home, where Alfred can look after you.“  Bruce is like “...no... I’m never liking this.  When has there ever been a situation that I liked?”

Whoa!  Oswald, what the heck happened to you?

*gasps when Azrael gets flashbacks of his past life*

Whoaaa!

“I'm [JIm] not a cop anymore, remember?  I don't need to follow your [Barnes’s] orders.“  No, but you’re a citizen now, technically.

Through the Looking Glass?  We’re getting a sneak peek of Mad Hatter this season?

Dutch angle!

If Azrael tries to storm the GCPD to get Jim, I swear to God..

*The lights go out*  Oh snap, are you freaking kidding me?

Yeah, that’s freaking him [Azrael].  Hooooly crap.

He’s gonna bust through that window-

*Azrael crashes through the window*  Oooohhh!!

Oh he’s [Azrael] gonna do the superhero landing.  Wait for it!

Oh he didn’t- THERE WE GO!

*claps*  WHOO!  Superhero landing!

How do they not recognize Theo’s voice?

*gasps when Azrael butchers one of the cops*

Whoa!

*Barnes knocks Azrael to the ground*  Oh, go Barnes!

“We need a bigger gun.”  *laughing*  Yeah...

You’re gonna have to like nuke him!

Oh yeah, like a freaking pipe [wedged in the door handles] is gonna stop Azrael.  When he can literally punch a hole through the door!

[Barnes] Do not go at freaking Azrael WITH A PIPE.

“Let’s dance.”  *after a five second pause*  Put on your red shoes and dance the blues...  let’s sway!

*gasps when Barnes knocks Azrael to the ground*  Oh snap!

He’s [Barnes] gonna see his [Azrael’s] face!

*gasps when Azrael stabs Barnes in the knee*

NOOOOO!  NOOOO oh my God!

Nooooo!

*Jim comes onto the rooftop*  Ohhh snaaaappp...

This better not the end of the freaking episode.  I’m gonna riot.

“Come to me [Azrael], and I will show you [Jim] the way to hell.”  “I know the way.“  Whoooo....

*Jim manages to shoot Azrael off the rooftop*  OooohhhH!

*gasps when Azrael falls on top of the news van*

Nah, no no no no, Barnes ain’t freaking dying nope!  We’re not doin’ this.

*Tabitha, Butch, and Barbara go through the TV channels*  OH SNAP!  They’re gonna see the TV!

What the heck...

“OK, she [Barbara] scares me [Butch].”  Heeheehee!

“Do we have any limes?”  HAHAHAHA!

Oh my God, Oswald’s gonna go after hiiiimm [Azrael] ...

*counts off with fingers*  Wait, so Jim’s going after him, Hugo Strange is going after him, probably Tabitha’s gonna go after him to... teach him his humanity, Bruce is probably gonna go after him....

“Strange must be behind this.”  He’s always behind this.

“What the hell is happening to our city?”  That’s a very good question, Alfred!  You should ask that every single freaking time!

*trying not to laugh*  What the heck is this music?

*ends up boogie-ing to music while laughing*  This music!

AN:  It’s “I’m Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover” by Mitch Miller

Is Ed gonna encounter Azrael at the end of this episode?  Hoooly snot!

Hiii Indian Hill...

“Oh my.”  Oh my, indeed.

That’s a really good shot of Ed in the middle of the aisle

Oooooh, is this Jim’s leitmotif?

*puts hands around mouth* CGI TRANSITION PANNING SHOT!

*Azrael stands on top of the bridge overlooking the city*  Oh my God... that’s a freaking Batman pose!

*Azrael brings about the end logo by flourishing his cape*  YOOOO!!!

*about ready to lose voice*  That was so much Batman!  Before we even get Batman!  Aaaaahhh ha ha...

*jams out to ending theme*