Curious. Has any writer ever come up with a plausible reason for the Batmobile?

[MajorHoy]

"The Bat" from The Dark Knight Rises was imo also cool idea.

The bigges problem with the Batmobile is imo actually the geographie of Gotham that consists in it's current version out of several islands, which are connected with just a few bridges, with Wayne Manor being actually outside of Gotham across a another Bridge.

Btw. the Solution in the "Penthouse Era" was also not Bad. Back than Batman operated out of a Bunker below the Wayne Foundation Building and used a car that was more or less just a tuned regular sports car with a few gadgets.

And back in 1950, the Batmobile was more the size of a large SUV.

[Immortal Weapon]

In the Telltale game the batmobile is disguised as a regular sports car using advanced camouflage tech.

[GamerSlyRatchet]

Have we actually ever SEEN the Batmobile in the middle of a traffic jam? The only time I recall that happening was in Beware the Batman (which is ironic, due to that Gotham's empty streets), but I'm sure it's been in other cartoons, movies, or comics.

[Vakanai]

Given the premise, it sounds nice, but given Fontana's track record, I am afraid it will be pretty flat.

What else has Fontana worked on?

I'm hoping since these stories are so different and not connected to continuity they will be more like passion projects and get better quality out of the people writing them, but we'll see.

And back in 1950, the Batmobile was more the size of a large SUV.

I like that there is a lab in that Batmobile, keeps the detective aspect pretty front and center.

In the Telltale game the batmobile is disguised as a regular sports car using advanced camouflage tech.

I don't play games anymore (too pricey) but that sounds kind of neat if a little too sci-fi, how did it look/work in game?

[millernumber1]

What else has Fontana worked on?

I'm hoping since these stories are so different and not connected to continuity they will be more like passion projects and get better quality out of the people writing them, but we'll see.

She did most of DC Super Hero Girls the comic series, and also a very mediocre arc of Wonder Woman just after Rucka left.

[kevink31593]

An excerpt from the 2012 novel "Wayne of Gotham", by Tracy Hickman:

It did nominally look like a "mobile", Bruce admitted but, that, too, was something of an illusion, because the wheels on the vehicle were not solely designed to operate on streets. Bridges were choke points too easily cut off by civilian traffic or the misguided vigilance of the Gotham City Police Department. So for the last year, Gotham Power and Light had been upgrading - thanks to the influence of a number of Wayne Industries subcontractors - power, water, and sewer systems throughout the Gotham network. The real purpose had been to install rapid access points at key locations throughout the city where the TS8c could turn a corner and vanish from the street, the suspension shifting the wheel positions as the vehicle plunged down abandoned subway tunnels, utilities-access conduits, or even main subway lines, if traffic permitted. His favorite system involved a pair of rail clamps that could extend upward out of the front and rear of the vehicle and attach themselves around the specially designed power conduits that ran the length of each of the Gotham bridges. The variable suspension could then rise upward against the bottom of the bridge structure as though it were an upside down road, allowing him to cross the river beneath the bridges unimpeded, while above him the snarled traffic contended with the occasional roadblocks set to catch him.

[Flash Gordon]

What would be the point of Batman without a really rad car??

[Mataza]

No, Priest wanted Bruce to drive the taxi in disguise.

Batman ripping off Moon Knight

[SixSpeedSamurai]

Knowing the city as well as he does, he probably avoids taking it into heavily trafficed areas until 2AM. I would also guess that given the amount of crazies in Gotham, the streets are fairly empty after dark.

Between No Man's Land and Contagion I think they almost halved the population to make the city seem more empty at the time.

[Flash Gordon]

I imagine Gotham is more akin to Chicago or Philly, where there isn't as many people out and about at night.

As opposed to Metropolis, which is more in line with Manhattan. Manhattan, but sleek and new.

[Elmo]

An excerpt from the 2012 novel "Wayne of Gotham", by Tracy Hickman:

that is so cool. just imagining Batman driving upside down across a bridge and then disappearing into a sewer tunnel at the end just makes so much sense and is dope to visualize.

having systems like this would be cool to see imagined in a movie. or hell even an actual comic lol

[Jim Kelly]

Up until the late 1980s, Batman was considered part of law enforcement, so the Batmobile was a cop car and had priority on the road.

The Batmobile really didn’t come into its own until after Batman was deputized in the early 1940s, so there was no reason to question its use in traffic. It’s only the retcon of Batman as outlaw that creates the problem.

I don’t see why Denny O’Neil would have had a problem with this in the early 1970s. But I do remember the Batmobile becoming *yawn* unremarkable (a conventional sports car with a bat head painted on the hood) at that time. And most of the time, Batman was swinging from roof to roof and not using a car. Moreover, he was living in the heart of the city, at his penthouse, so the car was unnecessary for a lot of his work.

Even now, I figure that Batman just drives into Gotham from the Batcave and parks the Batmobile at the Wayne Foundation, then swings into action.

The idea that there has to be plausible reasons built into the Batman mythos is like nails on chalkboard for me. It takes all the fun out of Batman

[Alan2099]

I suppose it beats taking the bus.

[Chubistian]

In Batman: Prey, a five part story within the Legends of the Dark Knight title, done by Moench and Gulacy, the idea of a still young Batman needing a car was an important part of the comic. Basically, Batman keeps getting into trouble because of the lack of the Batmobile. Throughout the story, we see Bruce building the car that makes its entrance in the final chapter. It’s very well done and a good story overall. Batman’s gadgets and equipments weren’t so over the top, so the Batmobile felt necessary given that Batman didn’t have things like the Batplane in the story. But I don’t think the Batmobile isn’t plausible, Batman knows how the traffic works in his city and, in times where you have apps to know if there’s and accident in route, Batman in a comic book world has means to know which route he must take that are far better. Also, it has one hell of a maneuverability

[millernumber1]

An excerpt from the 2012 novel "Wayne of Gotham", by Tracy Hickman:

That is a really cool passage. Too bad the book was really, really dreadful. (I just read it last year and was very disappointed.)

Up until the late 1980s, Batman was considered part of law enforcement, so the Batmobile was a cop car and had priority on the road.

The Batmobile really didn’t come into its own until after Batman was deputized in the early 1940s, so there was no reason to question its use in traffic. It’s only the retcon of Batman as outlaw that creates the problem.

I don’t see why Denny O’Neil would have had a problem with this in the early 1970s. But I do remember the Batmobile becoming *yawn* unremarkable (a conventional sports car with a bat head painted on the hood) at that time. And most of the time, Batman was swinging from roof to roof and not using a car. Moreover, he was living in the heart of the city, at his penthouse, so the car was unnecessary for a lot of his work.

Even now, I figure that Batman just drives into Gotham from the Batcave and parks the Batmobile at the Wayne Foundation, then swings into action.

The idea that there has to be plausible reasons built into the Batman mythos is like nails on chalkboard for me. It takes all the fun out of Batman

Exactly! Don't go imagining the Batmobile in traffic! That's not the POINT of Batman. I'm all for pushing Batman in a less superpowered/cosmic/scifi direction, but he still should be inspiring and incredibly cool. (But I do, obviously, have some toleration for alternative takes, such as Priest's, as previously mentioned.)