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by Dave Scrimgeour & Kevin McCluskey   Written by Dennis O'Neil Illustrated by Jerry Ordway Coloured by Steve Oliff Lettered by John Costanza SynopsisWith Gotham's 200th anniversary celebrations underway, The Joker unleashes his Smylex gas masterplan upon Gotham. However Batman employs some more of his "wonderful toys" and thwarts The Clown Prince Of Crime, leading to a showdown in the bell tower of Gotham cathedral. Dave So here we are, on the last act of the movie adaptation, and it has certainly been a version of its own. Kev It certainly has. This is a bit of a more difficult act break here though. If we’re doing this right, and this is indeed the beginning of the third act, it’s not quite as clean, as it doesn’t necessarily break between pages here. Dave It really was quite difficult deciding where the breaks would be, as this is so quick in shifting between scenes, but I figured as, technically, this leads us into the third act of the film, that would do. Kev I think you're spot-on with it. It's just that it's a bit compressed, and the real estate of the page, not to mention the page count, has made it quite tight. In keeping with that messy break, going back to Act 2; people gave Zack Snyder a hard time for his Batman being a killer, and to a lesser extent, Burton too for the way Batman acts in 'Returns,' but he’s even taking lives as early as here, ‘cause let’s face it, none of The Joker’s goons are surviving that Axis explosion. And even if they did, the toxicity of the chemicals would get them later. Dave Oh yeah, there must have been a body count with that Axis Chemicals explosion. The whole of page 43 is basically more exposition of scenes that haven't been included, but we are getting the set up for what is about to occur. Kev Definitely. Burton and Co. really did refine this script down to a lean, mean, fighting machine by the time they came to shooting it. Certainly by the time Ray Lovejoy was done editing the movie. Talk about killing your darlings. There’s a load of dialogue here that is missing by the time we get to the screen. All the important elements are still there though, just in a slightly different order and a little more verbose. Dave I like that 4th panel on page 43, of Batman hanging out the sunroof. He's striking a good pose as well. Kev Ha, ha! Yeh, right enough. Dave I reckon, by this stage O'Neil, and Ordway have got the cutting down to a T, and know what needs to be utilised, as well as what can be thrown away. Page 44 is another example of getting to the point of what needs to happen with no time wasting, but there's yet more dialogue not in the film. Kev Yeh, they're racing through this set piece so that they can spend a bit more time on the big finale. It's all beautifully illustrated by Ordway and Oliff though, particularly the Batwing snaring The Joker’s balloons sequence. I've always thought that Nicholson’s delivery of that, “Why didn’t somebody tell me he had one of those…..things?” line is hilarious. Although, I do like that, in the cinema cut, Joker requests that Bob hands him the gun before using it to shoot him. Dave Yeah, a lot of the dialogue is out of sync with what we know. It's still there, it's just rearranged. I really love the artwork and colours on page 45. That middle section of the Batwing and close up of Batman is superb. It really captures a cinematic look on the page, but establishes its own feel as well.  Instead of dressing up as a bat why don't you help people with those energy bills, you greedy billionaire bastard. Kev Yeh, Page 45 almost has a bit of a storyboard feel to it. That panel of The Joker saying, “Back for more? Come to me…” on page 48 is absolutely outstanding, in that it is like a frame taken straight out of the film. Going back to the Bob incident just for a second, I think it's a big moment. It really shows just how unhinged The Joker is. There’s not a single person that’s of any value to him. Not Alicia, not Bob, not Vicki Vale, not anyone. So take the job as one of his goons at your own risk and peril. Dave Yeah, he is truly a sociopath. I like those last two panels on page 48 as well, there's something very striking about them. Page 49 is another visually interesting page, with the Batwing crashing. Kev Yep, 49 is great as well. It's so dynamic. Once again, we're showering praise upon Ordway and Oliff. Deservedly so though. Dave Absolutely, it's a nice, explosive, combination of colours. It's bright and eye catching. The colour palette is far more rich and comic book-looking, which suits this version. Cinema-wise, Burton's palette is very noirish, and not bland, but kind-of how a black and white film would have looked in colour, if you catch my drift. Kev Yeh, Burton definitely took so much of the visual aesthetic for the movie from the noir movies of the 30's and 40's. Which makes sense, considering that's when those initial Batman comics were published. Dave The Vicki and Bruce relationship is more fleshed out and more intimate in this than it was in the film. It would have been interesting to see how the film would have turned out if O'Neil had written the script. Kev Yeh, I think their relationship was originally like that in the script as well, but by the time the editing of the film was done, it seems to have been pared back quite significantly, and as you've quite rightly pointed out, it's far less intimate as a result. Dave I'm liking those bottom two panels on page 50. The artwork is picking-up the notch again.  I hear you, Bruce. After a certain age the joints really do start to creak, don't they? Especially the old knees. Kev I LOVE that last panel on page 50, of Bats stumbling into the church. I think it's fantastic. Although, arguably not as cinematic as the frame from the film, of him pushing the doors open, with the beautiful back lighting from the streets of Gotham. Dave Yeah, that is a brilliant panel on page 50. Kev Funny that, that a frame from a movie would be more “cinematic” than a panel from a comic book, eh? If I actually had a critic card I would gladly hand it over here. That was a terribly clumsily made point. Dave Haha. Page 51 is another short and succinct form of storytelling. Kev Yep, and that panel of Bats falling into the pews is straight out of the movie. Sublime stuff, once again from Ordway and Oliff.  Pew, pew, pew! Pew, pew! Pew, pew! Dave Vicki is less intimidated here, on page 52, than she is in the film. Kev Ha, ha! Yeh. Come to think of it, Vicki Vale has done significantly less screaming here than Kim Basinger did in the movie, where she's often depicted a bit more as a traditional damsel in distress. Dave O'Neil does like portraying strong women in his writing. Kev That's a really good point, actually. Something that we've found again, and again, as we've covered his seminal Green Lantern/Green Arrow run with Neal Adams. Dave There's a lot more dialogue with Gordon here, he is getting a more active role in this as well, whereas in the film, he was more of a backseat character. He was the good, decent Commissioner, but didn't really get a whole lot to do. Kev Yeh, he really is. Looking back on it, he was a little bit incidental in the cinema cut, wasn't he? The “bat in my belfry” line was used in loads of the TV spots and stuff, if I remember correctly. Dave There was tons of TV spots used to advertise the film. I would like to see a Youtube cut of all of them combined. Kev Ha, ha! That'd be great. There's got to be one out there, right? Dave I wonder, eh? That 2nd panel on page 53, of Batman emerging from under the hatch to the bell tower, is great.  Peek-a-Bat! Kev I was just thinking that as well. It's a cracking panel. I always thought this bit with the extendable pad on the palm of the glove was a bit naff. In fact, I hadn’t realised that it was a extended pad gimmick for years. I thought he just stopped the flippy/kicky guy dead with the palm of his hand. Like a open palm strike sort of deal. It looks simultaneously better here, in that Ordway’s choice of angle actually allows you to see what’s going on, yet also worse, because said angle just exposes how silly the device is. Dave I always thought that extendable pad was really dumb, as well. That scene was not well filmed, as it would have had to really extend out to hit the guy in the nuts. Kev Exactly. It's one of those Bat-Gimmick things that would've worked in the 60's TV show as a comedy spot, but here, it just feels out of place. Dave I like how this guy on page 53 has knives attached to his legs. However, how the hell does he walk with them on. Kev Ha, ha! They must have retractable blades. Dave You're right about Vicki being far less screaming. Even when The Joker fires the toy gun she doesn't squeal. And despite the background battle with Batman and the goon being near him and Vicki, The Joker doesn't seem to care it because he is so caught up in the moment between him and "Miss Vale.". Kev True. I wonder if that was just Basinger doing bits of "business," purely in order to give the character something to do, or if that was the direction she was given by Burton. She kind-of reminds me of Kate Capshaw as Willie Scott in 'Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom.' Although, to be fair to Basinger, she's nowhere near as loud as that. Dave Ordway and O'Neil have written a far more capable Batman, when it comes fighting the heavies. Kev They really have, haven't they? He kind-of gets his arse kicked in the movie. To be fair to him though, he has just been involved in a plane crash. Dave Yeah, he was really messed-up by this stage. And it's a neat move of how he finishes off the goon. Kev Yep. That's another dead goon though. Another death on Batman's hands. This is a tough scene to adapt, because O’Neil and Ordway don’t have the luxury of real estate on the page to indulge in the cuts between The Joker dancing with Vicki Vale, as well as Batman fighting The Joker’s goons, so they’ve made a genius call to combine at least two shots into a single panel in order to save space. Very clever stuff. Dave It is a good call, alright, as the fight scene combined with Joker and Vicki condenses this scene. And it's interesting how Batman tells Joker on page 56 that he murdered his parents. Kev Definitely. Back to that real estate of the page and page count that I was banging on about earlier. Yeh, that line about killing his parents is a lot more shouty, by the looks of things. Bats delivers the punch before the, “Have you ever danced with the devil by the pale moonlight?” line here. It’s the other way round in the movie. Keaton’s delivery of it is so good that I can hear it in my head as I’m reading this. As is Nicholson’s, “You…..idiot! You made me! Remember?! You dropped me into that vat of chemicals! That wasn’t easy to get over! And don’t think I didn’t try!” The dialogue polishes between the screenplay, this adaptation, and then the final movie are really effective. They’re much, much better in the final cut, if you ask me. In fact, a lot of this scene has been rewritten, not just the dialogue. Dave This version of Batman, and Bruce Wayne, is more emotionally expressive, but that's down to O'Neil’s writing, he likes to have more verbal interactions. Kev That's true. Plus, you need some dialogue on the page for it to work better as a comic, I suppose. Otherwise it really is in danger of becoming just a glorified storyboard. Dave That's what I'm liking about revisiting this, it's a very loose adaptation that takes on dialogue and changes of its own, yet sticks to the actual storyline. A glorified storyboard wouldn't work. Kev No, absolutely not. Yeh, it's definitely its own animal. Dave That's a good panel on 56 of Batman and Vicki looking over the ledge after The Joker falls over. "I saved the last dance for you!" The Joker loves his dancing.  We all "fall off" sooner or later, Vick. Kev Ha, ha! He loves a bit of a boogie, does Nicholson's Joker. Dave Quite a bit of strength The Joker has here, as he pulls both of them over the balcony. Kev From that position?!?! Definitely. Dave "You wouldn't hit a man with glasses would you?" At least that got kept in. That was a good line. Kev I LOVE that line. Particularly how Bats just clocks him after he says it. Dave "What are you laughing at?" That's a good comedic moment. Kev Again, Nicholson's delivery of it was just spot-on. Dave I like the first panel on page 57 of The Joker kicking away the ledge. Kev Yeh, I like how he's holding onto the ledge with the gargoyle on it above him for safety. Good choice by Mr. Ordway. Dave That's a great panel on page 57, with Batman and Vicki on the ledge and the light from the helicopter on them.  Just some bullshit exercise in branding, Vicki. Kev Yeh, and it's unusual in this, in that it's one of the few big uses of white, because of the light from the helicopter. I’m glad they dropped that, “I suppose the media would label it a Batarang” line, as well as the Batarang itself here. It’s a bit cheesy. Dave Yeah, the Batarang quote is quite cheesy. It seems like blatant product placement. Kev It really does, eh? Lots of fantastic perspective work from Ordway in this scene. He's really selling the vertigo inducing height of the church tower here, and the danger that goes along with it. And how good is that bottom panel on page 59? “Wall art,” as you would say. Dave That's a superb panel at the bottom of page 59, very rich in detail, and the helicopter light on Batman and Vicki helps to enhance the visuals. Kev Yep. More use of that brilliant white.  "I lost touch with reality, now, my personality is an unwanted commodity." Dave I also like that panel of the helicopter pilot, "What the heck are we dragging?" Kev Yeh, that guy looks like he could pilot 'Airwolf,' or 'Blue Thunder.' Dave He's got that rugged looking, 80's tough guy, look. A bit of Lee Majors going on there. Kev Ha, ha! Or Ryan Gosling now. 'The Fall Guy.' Dave Haha. Indeed. On page 60, the first panel of them falling is so visceral. Kev Yeh, you can almost feel the gravity in that panel, can't you? Again, another excellent panel at the bottom of page 60 too. That really does look just like a still from the movie. Again, the likenesses are outstanding. Ordway and Oliff are killing it with these. They're finishing strong.  Jack Nicholson, laughing all the way to bank in 1989. Dave It's a very kinetic page, the angles are great. I like how Batman crashes through a window with Vicki in tow. Kev He likes crashing through skylights and windows, does this Batman. Despite all I've said about changes to the script and deviations from the cinema cut, I do like Batman and Vicki crashing through the church windows onto the walkway, as opposed to just being left hanging on the outside of the building. I wonder if, because something similar had just been done in 'Die Hard' the year prior, they thought better of it, and decided to do something different. I always forget about the unconscious Knox in the cape and cowl bit here. I wonder why they decided against that in the movie. It’s a good little bit. Dave Yeah, I really like that bit on page 61, with the twist of Knox lying under the cape, it's another nice touch. That middle panel on page 61, of the cops running towards Knox, is particularly good, and we see an almost angelic looking Vicki standing there too. Kev That's a good point, man. Vicki always does look somewhat angelic in this, doesn't she? I suppose she represents the light that Bruce is intended to head towards, to draw him from out of the shadows that he's wrapped himself in. It's interesting that she represents something that Jack Napier/The Joker also yearns for. Although, perhaps for more purely aesthetic, superficial reasons, in that particular case. Dave Yeah, that's another neat touch there. I really like the panel on the bottom of page 61 of Bruce walking away, looking very buff.  Bruce rocking the compression clothing in 1989. Kev Yeh, Bruce looks ripped in that panel. Not sure Michael Keaton was ever that ripped in real life. Dave He wasn't for the movie, as he had a costume on. Kev Ha, ha! True. He didn't need to be. Good for him. He looks lean as anything these days. He looks super fit. Dave That whole scene has changed, but in terms of the story, it adds a more comic book feel to it, I think. Kev Yeh, I think you're right there. It really does. Dave And even on the next page, Commissioner Gordon is talking about the mix-up with Knox and Batman. O'Neil is just going off on his own tangent here, unless that scene was cut from an earlier draft of the script. Perhaps Burton didn't want that in, who knows? Kev The bit with Knox NOT being Batman was in the script, yeh. I wonder why Burton chose to excise it then. It's a good little bit of business. Dave I also like the bottom panel on page 62, as we are looking upwards to the signal, the colours are great, and Knox gets a nice smooch on the next page. Was that in the script? Kev It was, yeh. That script is vastly different to what finally made it to the screen in a lot of places though, to be fair. Dave Interesting, so really it must have been the directors call to what went in and was changed. This version is definitely less emotionally detached. Kev Absolutely. There's definitely more of an emotional connection in this, particularly, as you said, between Bruce and Vicki, when compared to the movie. When I was 11/12 years old, I was insanely jealous of Knox for getting that kiss. Dave Yep, Basinger is stunning in the movie. A big difference to Sean Young, who is also beautiful, and a terrific actress. Kev Sean Young might also crop up when we come to do 'Returns' as well. Dave Yeah, Sean Young was originally cast as Vicki Vale and was filming for a bit, until she fell off a horse and broke her arm during a scene at Wayne Manor with her and Bruce riding a horse. I guess Burton wasn't taking any chances. Kev No, I guess not. I suppose you can't when there's as much money involved as there needs to be to make this kind of movie. Young had no luck when it came to getting cast in these Batman flicks, which is a shame, because she clearly wanted to be in them so badly. Dave At that stage she was definitely on her way up the Hollywood ranks, which is probably why she got cast. And this page of Vicki meeting Alfred, with Batman on the prowl, wings spread, again, looks brighter and more colourful than the movie itself does. Kev Yeh, this scene with Vicki and Alfred is very well done. Great likeness for Michael Gough as well. And that last page, the splash page, is unreal. It’s a lot more dynamic of a pose than the one at the end of the movie. I suppose Ordway had the advantage of not having to deal with the weight and restrictiveness of that rubber suit. And Oliff’s colour palette here is sublime. Dave I love that closing splash page panel, it's really detailed, and the colours are awesome. And you're right, it's far less stiff than the movie. As I'm typing this, Danny Elfman’s 'Batman' theme music is going through my head. Haha. Kev Yeh, what a page, and an image to end this on. Dave This panel sums up what a comic adaptation should be; make it a comic book, not a carbon copy of cinema. Kev Spot on, man. It's in the description. "Adaptation." Anyway, for me personally, this is the gold standard of comic book movie adaptations. Certainly superhero ones. As The Joker said “They don’t make ‘em like they used to,” and in this instance, he is absolutely correct. They definitely do not make superhero movie comic book adaptations like this anymore. Dave Yeah, it was a really interesting to revisit one of our childhood favourites, completely seeing it in a new light. I bet as kids we probably read through, noticed the differences, but were just so happy to have this item of memorabilia, so didn't really care about them. It was the summer of ‘89, after all. The Summer of the Bat. That sounds like a good start to a blog; “It was the summer of ‘89. The Summer of the Bat." Kev Or a fitting end to one.  Wasn't that what Nate Diaz said to Joe Rogan in his post-Conor McGregor fight interview? (D) & (K) The end.
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