I miss the "weird avenger of the dark, this avenger of evil, The Batman!"

[Deathscythe]

Everybody has their take on who Batman should be. I think the pinnacle of the character's evolution in comics started with the O'Neal/Adams run and ended when the "Year One" look returned to the comics, which was after No Man's Land, IIRC.

Batman: The Animated Series captured the essence of this version: a driven and intense avenger of the night who wasn't a psychotic paramilitary *******, but instead, a man who could still smile and even laugh despite the circumstances of his life. I especially love the runs of Alan Grant and Norm Breyfogle, which gives us that very human O'Neil/Englehart Batman but with the grit and darkness of the late 80s.

We haven't seen this version in the comics since Paul Dini's excellent run on TEC, which I personally preferred to what Morrison did over in the Batman title. Morrison's "Batgod" overshadowed the excellent work Dini did there. Then came Batman, Inc, and we got a Batgod/James Bond take on the character, reliant on advanced tech and even ridiculous stuff like Bat-Mechs, armored suits, and the "Batmobile" of Dick and Damien's time as Batman and Robin.

I know it's not going to happen, but I wish we'd get a return to The Batman, weird creature of the night whose very name is only uttered in hushed whispers, whose shadow strikes fear into the hearts of criminals. Yet the man casting that shadow is human, can be hurt and even make mistakes and not know every single thing and is a master of detection, disguise, and science.

[Carabas]

Isn't that just the 1930's Batman?

[Deathscythe]

Isn't that just the 1930's Batman?

No, 30s Batman was still a work in progress. The O'Neil/Adams Batman was a return to the core of the character after decades of being a pure adventurer and the subsequent years continued to focus on The Batman as more than just a guy with lots of money and gadgets.

[yohyoi]

I miss the Adam West Batman. We need less dark Batman.

[MajorHoy]

No, 30s Batman was still a work in progress. The O'Neil/Adams Batman was a return to the core of the character after decades of being a pure adventurer and the subsequent years continued to focus on The Batman as more than just a guy with lots of money and gadgets.

Snyder's New52 run really overly-focused on kewl gadgets and less on his best asset: Batman's brain and deductive reasoning.
How many times since the New52 began has Batman been totally blindsided by all these super-duper-secret organizations that were operating freely in his city without Batman having a clue?

[TheJudge95]

Snyder's New52 run really overly-focused on kewl gadgets and less on his best asset: Batman's brain and deductive reasoning.
How many times since the New52 began has Batman been totally blindsided by all these super-duper-secret organizations that were operating freely in his city without Batman having a clue?

At least the gadgets were updated to modern-day technology, so it was interesting for me.

[Aioros22]

Ah the original Crimson Avenger That weird mix of Green Hornet and the Shadow.

But yeah, meets the point and by a year.

[Agent Z]

Snyder's New52 run really overly-focused on kewl gadgets and less on his best asset: Batman's brain and deductive reasoning.
How many times since the New52 began has Batman been totally blindsided by all these super-duper-secret organizations that were operating freely in his city without Batman having a clue?

I don't get why the idea of Bruce not knowing everything that happens in Gotham bothers so many people. That's not Snyder ignoring Bruce's intellect, that's writing the villains as being smart

[darkseidpwns]

Yeah the Court of Owls just ooze intellect.

[adrikito]

Isn't that just the 1930's Batman?

So, the first Batman inspired the AVENGERS of Marvel..

[Elmo]

My Batman is mid 70s-early 80s Batman. None of the campy nonsense of the 50s and 60s (though I adore that stuff as well) but still very lighthearted, a brooding tough guy but never afraid to crack a smile here and there. The radical turn into a untrusting, depressive ******* never sat right with me. If he isn't surrounded by kids and smiling once in a damn while, he isn't my Batman, simple as that. I'll still read it though...

[SamGuthrie1977]

My Batman is mid 70s-early 80s Batman. The radical turn into a untrusting, depressive ******* never sat right with me.

Totally agree.

Batman has been too dark and unrelatable for awhile now. I'm not sure where I lost officially interest -- maybe Morrison's BatGod was the watershed moment for me? Or maybe it was the gradual increasingly dark turn the character took throughout the 90's and into the early 2000's. Maybe it was the Brother Eye stuff for me?

Regardless, somewhere along the way, Batman lost me.

I miss the Neal Adams, Jim Aparo, Jerry Bingham, and Norm Breyfogle visual interpretations.

Granted, Batman is a tragic character and Gotham is a dark and ugly place. Admittedly, Gotham isn't Metropolis or Central City -- but for the Batman books to work right I think there still should be an element of color, fun, and fantasy to them.

[WontonGirl]

Totally agree.

Batman has been too dark and unrelatable for awhile now. I'm not sure where I lost officially interest -- maybe Morrison's BatGod was the watershed moment for me? Or maybe it was the gradual increasingly dark turn the character took throughout the 90's and into the early 2000's. Maybe it was the Brother Eye stuff for me?

Regardless, somewhere along the way, Batman lost me.

I miss the Neal Adams, Jim Aparo, Jerry Bingham, and Norm Breyfogle visual interpretations.

Granted, Batman is a tragic character and Gotham is a dark and ugly place. Admittedly, Gotham isn't Metropolis or Central City -- but for the Batman books to work right I think there still should be an element of color, fun, and fantasy to them.

Morrison wasn't enough fantasy for you? LOL!

[WontonGirl]

Could this also be generational as well? Like you tend to like the Batman that you grew up with or became an adult with? And then that version carries with you.

I say that because this thread definitely is naming more writers of the past vs the usual threads here on CBR that tends to favor much later artists; especially Morrison or Synder.

[Aioros22]

So, the first Batman inspired the AVENGERS of Marvel..

Not much, the word "avenger" was used to label a good deal of iconic Pulp characters of the era. The Shadow, Green Hornet, The Phantom, The Spider, The Black Bat and many others who may not be well known or as widespread. I kind of detest 30`s Batman as presented because k*** was a hack devoid of creativel ideas. That panel - which is traced as far as I`ve read about the subject makes Batman look like he`s about to take a quick dump before his ride picks him up.