Doyle Promises a Batman "For Every Fan"

[MajorHoy]

Uh . . . I didn't think it would be so literal. LOL!!

It's Grant Morrison.

He gave us many . . . unique . . . Bat-things.

[Westbats]

Another problem with the "one book to rule then all idea" is that a lot people only like/read about certain characters in the Batline. Heck some people probably only real get into ONE of them. And a lot of people probably prefer the other Bat-characters to Batman himself. So you have all of the other Bat-characters, and their supporting casts, being crammed into one book that also heavily features Batman himself (in fact he's the focus of half the book). Well then by it's very nature, you're going to have to pick and choose what characters you focus on for a specific time/arc, while the others will either not be featured or be shoved into the background. To say nothing of trying to feature all of their supporting casts/villains. "Hey, do you like Jason Todd, but not necessarily to other Bat-characters? Well good, now you get to wait patiently for the next three to four months until we feel like getting back to focusing on him. Are you a Barbara Gordon fan, well enjoy her cameos because we've got her penciled in for an arc in like six months or so. Dick Grayson fans, see you next July, and so on."

Saying that that is more preferable than having these characters be the main characters of their own books just doesn't work. You could make EVERY issue OGN-sized and you'd STILL struggle to fit them all in. Heck as much as I'm enjoying Eternal, I'll freely admit that it's had trouble balancing all of it's various characters/storylines and giving them proper focus at times. And this idea would make it even WORSE since you'd be shoving even more characters into the mix (Dick, Damian, Kate Kane, Helena B, etc, plus their supporting casts/villains). You're basically going to anger/drive off huge chunks of your readership, for no good reason.

This post helps me vocalize my critic of Batman Eternal at the moment, there are too many loose strings in the storyline, and with it concluding on April 01, I cannot see the full plot. There is plenty of characterization and development going on in the book, but most of it is off panel; Stephanie Brown and Harper Row, for example.

[oasis1313]

Attachment 15034

The only bat-character that truly matters.

Bat-Cow is THE Character Find of the 21st Century. She needs her own solo title. In the premier first issue, she could eat grass for 28 pages. Then in the blockbuster follow-up Issue 2, she chews her cud. In the all-important Issue 3, she regurgitates the cud and chews it again. Same for Issue 4, then--hey!--she's got two more stomachs to pass that cud through! Bat-Cow is MUCH more fun and interesting than Tim Drake!

[Dr. Cheesesteak]

I guess I'm more interested in the story in the present and going forward. I could care less if 3 people or 300 went to his funeral. It does nothing to enhance the character. As far as integrating him back into the bat family I'm sure it will happen soon but I think they needed to seperate him to build a good foundation with him in the new direction before having him reappear. It seems like DC is happy with the new direction. They probably have to find away to integrate him back but keep him Grayson. Their is no question though the stories about him and how he is written is much better than Nightwing.

I said in a thread a while ago that Grayson as a title doesn't have to be as finite as a lot of ppl were suggesting when it first his shelves.

But now I wonder (I'm sure this has been mentioned before), do we or DC think it's viable to keep Dick just as the "Grayson" concept character permanently?

It potentially fills a creative niche (spy/espionage), as well as can lead to plenty of opportunities in different mediums - TV series, more realistic guest appearances in movies (think of Batman's spy in the DCCU!), maybe even his own video game if Grayson as a concept character gets big enough. I kinda liken it to Nick Fury or Agent Carter for Marvel now - the behind-the-scenes supporting characters who are now at the point they can carry their own weight. Grayson could be much bigger than them.

It's funny b/c I was reading another thread about listing our favorite characters, and Richard Grayson was probably the most difficult for me to consider. I thought "you know, I love Richard Grayson. I liked him as Robin and Batman, but of all the Nightwing stories I read, I never really cared for him as Nightwing. Sure, he's still Richard Grayson, but maybe it was the fact he was solo that made me think less of him? Maybe I feel he works best with others? Maybe just the stories themselves I read weren't very good?" I couldn't really figure it out, but I didn't want to put "Nightwing" on my favorite list, which is probably the most common concept character attached to the Dick Grayson persona, no? And obviously couldn't put him as just Robin or Batman. He's just a great character as Dick Grayson, imo. Honestly, if he goes back to Nightwing, I'd probably be less interested in him.

He's never reached huge heights as Nightwing. DC may be sitting on a gold mine w/ him as just Grayson...

[oasis1313]

I'd like to see maybe some Elseworlds books with stories of Dick, Jason, and Damian (666) as Batmen.

[cgh]

I realise that this is completely dreaming but I'd like to see a run in a Bat-book (Detective?) that built on Azzarello/Bermejo's "Joker" one-shot hardcover. There is so much great characterisation in there, from Croc to Harley to the Joker himself, in a much less cartoony Gotham, that it seems a shame to let it slip away. Everything seemed a lot more human. Plus it was pretty funny.

[brucekent12]

I'm enjoying Dick's exploits as a spy, and the book is selling well, so I'm sure it will be around for a while. Having said that, comics are usually cyclical, so I figure a few years down the road, Dick will be back in a costume. Maybe not Nightwing but he will be in another cstume. But if I'm wrong that's ok because I do like the spy world of Grayso. Yay!

[Starchild]

Maybe they can give Batwing another chance?

[oasis1313]

I'm enjoying Dick's exploits as a spy, and the book is selling well, so I'm sure it will be around for a while. Having said that, comics are usually cyclical, so I figure a few years down the road, Dick will be back in a costume. Maybe not Nightwing but he will be in another cstume. But if I'm wrong that's ok because I do like the spy world of Grayso. Yay!

I don't expect Dick Grayson to return to the DC Universe until Dan Didio retires.

[nathdog]

The editor`s point is valid. One of the main things that makes Batman, Batman, is not just the titular character. It`s the whole world, from Gotham to the Robins. You can`t have a single anthology worth for every character streamlined in one single weekly and make it work, especially with most characters having agendas that aren`t the same as the main character. Eternal struggles to keep consistancy as it is.

I don`t disagree with the general rule of less books, but most of the bat related books are actually just that: related.

It's not the stories that generate the interest but the iconography of the character. Ask any 4 year old+ boy. As for no one batman archetype why the continual reboots? This is simple supermarket economics where the major brands fill shelves up with stock to reduce competition. I am sure there are great books from publishers like Valiant, IDW, Dark Horse etc with books far more deserving of shelf space than the endless cycle of Batcrap DC churn out every year. This is one of the reasons I am dropping Batman after 25 years, it's about as plain as a McDonalds cheese burger and tastes just so.