Blog Archives
85 Years Of, The Batman!
Eighty five years ago, today, the smoking gun barrel of Joseph Chill unleashed unto the wretched streets of Gotham City, a nocturnal nightmare of which they had never seen before. The mindless murder of Thomas and Martha Wayne, before the innocent eyes of their young son, Bruce, unshackled a force of vengeance and righteous justice that has been preying on Gotham’s criminal underbelly with furious anger, ever since… The Batman!
Created by the peerless pairing of Bill Finger, and Bob Kane, this creepy and curmudgeonly creature of the night’s first ever appearance was in DC Comic’s revered – Detective Comics #27, which released on 30th March 1939 (though the issue was dated May, comics are often dated a month or two ahead) Since that time, the dark and surly one has gone on to become, quite possibly, the most popular and renowned Superhero ever conceived, with his fame spreading across every single known entertainment medium, from comic-books through video-games, television shows, movies, toys, clothes, novelisations, and so, so much more, firmly cementing his Bat-place in heroic history!
But what is it that compels readers to immerse themselves in a vengeance driven man-hunter, a being that has devoted his life to bringing his own brand of Bat-justice to a corrupt and dystopian city seething with criminal detritus? I absolutely believe that it’s his inherent vulnerability and pathos, you see, unlike the vast swathe of caped crusaders, Bruce is, ultimately, just a man in a costume… he can’t leap tall buildings in a single bound, or deflect bullets with bracelets, he’s not capable of reaching the speed-force, or even talking to fish! but what he does possess is the inherent belief in his own righteousness and decency, it’s his integrity and moral fortitude that has enabled him to rise above the sea of costumed crimefighters and be the best he can be, no matter the adversity or lack of powers thereof… the mark of a true hero (of course, billions of dollars, an unsurpassed mastery of myriad martial arts, genius level intellect and a compendium of glorious gadgets also, sort of, helps!)
So, Happy eighty fifth anniversary to the greatest comic-book character ever created! So, my bodacious Bat brethren, why not sound off in the comments below about your very first encounter with the dreaded Dark Knight, and what you will be doing to celebrate eight five years in the company of Gotham’s grim and gritty guardian.
Precinct1313’s Holiday Swag Bag…
Felicitations, fellow fans of fantastic festive fiction, and welcome to another thrilling treasure trove of terrific toys! That’s right, my beleaguered Bat-wallet has taken a particularly brutal beating at the behest of various geeky retail outlets! But, we’ve come away with, quite possibly, our greatest haul of nerdy necessities yet. So let’s dive on in…
Batman: The Complete Television Series…
“Holy bumper box of bodacious Batman blu-rays!” That’s right, old chum, the swinging sixties sensation has taken up residence in the Precinct with this classic collection of all 120 episodes! So it looks like I’ll be spending the entire holiday period ‘Kapowing’ my way through this camp classic, 2717 minutes of crazy capers, 3 hours of extras at a ridiculously reasonable £30… Bat-tastic!!
Dr Fate Action Figure..
Lord of order – Dr Fate, has magically materialised onto the Precinct’s overburdened shelves with this fantastic figure based upon his likeness from the recent Black Adam film. Dr Kent Nelson (played by Pierce Brosnan in the movie) is a powerful sorcerer and agent for the Lords of Order, originally created in 1940 by Gardner Fox and Howard Sherman.
I’ve wanted a Fate action figure for awhile now, so was pleasantly surprised to walk into my local HMV during one of their sale periods, to find this striking sculpt, and at a ridiculously cheap £10! With over 30 points of articulation, a stand, so the good ol’ Doc can levitate, and a collectors trading card, this was a complete and utter bargain!
NECA – Ultimate Robocop Figure…
“Drop it, dead or alive this toy is coming with me!” isn’t what I said to my local comic shop proprietor… but thinking back on it, it would’ve been cool if I had, oh well! I was absolutely giddy to find this stunning set in my nearest (and dearest) comic-book shop. NECA make some of the very best figures and statues in the business, and this ultimate robo is another awesome addition to their classics line.
I love Robocop, the original 87 movie is my favourite film of all time, so whenever I find absolutely anything to do with the classic cyborg, I am utterly compelled to pick it up. Standing at 7 inches, and meticulously detailed, this absolutely lives up to its Ultimate appellation. It features a spring loaded holster for Murphy’s Auto-9 pistol, a Cobra Assault Cannon, data spike alternate right hand, and an interchangeable head. “I’d buy that for a dollar” It wasn’t actually a dollar, it was 50 quid, but worth every single penny!
NECA – Elvira – Red, Fright & Boo Figure…
Another notable NECA addition to my collection is this rousing rendition of the devilish and dynamic diva of the double-entendre, the mistress of the dark herself – Elvira!
Thanks once more goes to my local HMV for providing this fabulous figure of Cassandra Peterson’s alter ego, the horror hostess with the mostest… busting out from the collector’s box, this 8 inch figure is fully articulated, with tailor fabricated clothes, and a whole host of horrortastic extras, including an alternate winking head, haunted chalice, skull and snake candle display and figure stand.
Happy Holidays!
Comic Cover Of The Week: Battle Of The Batmen
That’s correct, old chum, these burly, brawly bodacious Batmen are battling it out once more, to see which of these utterly captivating comic cover classics end up on top of this breathtaking bat-pile! Delightful and dazzling DC Comics have bestowed upon us, humble comic book fans, another perfect plethora of phenomenal pictorials starring everyone’s favourite curmudgeonly creature of the night – The Batman, but which of these cool and creatively compelling covers will win out in the end… only YOU can decide.
Another month, another bustling, brimming battalion of brush-stroked Batmen! DC Comics know what their frenzied fans want, and that is, apparently, a cavernous cadre of crazy chiroptera clad comic covers, there’s more images of the dark and surly one here than you could shake a batarang at, but which of this cavalcade of caped crusaders is your fave? Why not sound off in the comments below, fellow fans of fantastic fiction!
Detective Comics #1077 – Cover By – Evan Cagle
World’s Finest: Teen Titans #5 – Cover By – Chris Samnee
Poison Ivy #16 – Cover By – Eliza Ivanova
Batman #139 – Variant Cover By – Mike Deodato
Batman #139 – Cover By – Jorge Jimenez
This Brethren Of Bodacious Bat-Books Are Available At Your Local Comic-Book Emporium, Right Now!
Batman And All Related Imagery Are Copyright: DC Comics.
Comic Cover Of The Week – Halloween Special
Well, hey there, fellow fans of fantastic freaky fiction! and welcome to our hellacious Halloween special! That’s right we’re setting off for some seriously spooky Samhain shenanigans with a cadre of creepy comic cover collectables courtesy of devilish – DC Comics!!
But… What’s this? DC’s ominously occult offerings this all hallows eve are most definitely more cute than creepy, as they serve up a delightful delectation of chibified character creations! (Chibi, which is also known as super deformation originates from Japanese anime and manga, where characters are drawn in an exaggerated style, usually small with large heads and stubby limbs… super-cute!!)
So, why not pull up a tombstone, and lets get this eerie excursion on the go…
All eight of these terrific trick or treat covers are rendered by the creatively commendable – Chrissie Zullo Uminga, who previously worked for DC on their Vertigo imprint, supplying art for such tantalising titles such as – The Wolf Among Us and, Cinderella: Fables Are Forever.
Happy Halloween!
Precinct1313’s Monthly Swag-Bag…
Well, hey there, fellow fans of fantastic fiction, we’re back! Yep, that’s right, your favourite DC Comics doling destination has once again resumed its mammoth mission, to bring you all the news and reviews pertaining to THE greatest comic-book publisher of all time!
And where have we been, you might ask, well… as you know, if you’ve been an agent of the preternatural palazzo – Precinct1313 for a while, we produce all our posts from this ancient abode, the majestic (and sometimes malefic) mansion of mystery, over a month ago we found ourselves trapped within a mysterious realm that the Precinct had decided to dimension hop us into, a perplexing plane of existence that had zero internet! Upon contacting our service provider, we were told that their inter-dimensional internet engineer was on holiday, for a month!! But rejoice, for we have returned, phoenix like to bring you another thrilling treasure trove of toys!
Warner Bros – 100th Anniversary – Wile E. Coyote Dressed As Batman Figure
Meep meep… it’s our favourite Warner Bros cartoon character of all time, the wild & wacky – Wile E. Coyote dressed up as that creepy, curmudgeonly creature of the night – Batman! I mean, how could I resist picking up this fantastic model at my local Smyth’s toys, a marvellous melding of two of my absolute favourite figures. Wile stands at seven inches in height, has around sixteen points of articulation and comes with a card certificate of authentication (which also has its own cute stand!) But, even dressed up as comic’s most renowned Masked Manhunter, he’ll still probably fail at catching that pesky Roadrunner!
Michael Keaton ’89 Lego Batmobile
You wanna get nuts? let’s get nuts, with this bodacious Batmobile based on the greatest Bat-vehicle of all time, Keaton’s 1989 classic car! This, in my humble opinion, is the best onscreen batmobile ever (closely followed by the Adam West variant and the more recent Robert Pattinson muscle-car adaptation) The 438 piece set measures 5cm high and 28cm in length and features a removable cockpit, revolving flaming exhaust and adjustable blasters, plus two extremely cool mini-figs – Keaton’s Batman, and a Joker-tastic Jack Nicholson! (I haven’t actually got around to building this one just yet, so my Bat-apologies!)
Blue Beetle Action Figure
Following on from the recent (and brilliant) Blue Beetle movie, once again, my local Smyth’s toys provided this 30cm action figure. At a bargain £10 pounds! the hero mode figure features 11 points of articulation and is surprisingly well sculpted for such a relatively cheap price. Scarab-tastic!
Lynda Carter Wonder Woman PVC Statue
“Wonder Woman, now the world is ready for you, and the magic that you do… ” That’s right, we’ve added yet another stunning statue of the wondrous one to our absolutely massive Wondy collection, this time it’s the lovely Lynda Carter variant. The Gallery Diorama series statue manages to golden lasso our heart with this 9 inch figure based on Lynda’s appearance in the sensational seventies show. The Diamond select diorama shows her crossing her magical bracelets of submission as her paradigmatic logo rises up from below. Exquisitely sculpted by Rocco Tartamella, who manages to perfectly capture Lynda’s appearance and physique, this has become one of my most treasured pieces based upon the awesome amazon.
Why not join us again next month, for even more spectacular swag!
One Cover To Rule Them All…
Felicitations, fellow fans of fantastic fiction, and welcome once more to our crazy cavalcade of cool and compelling comic cover collectables!
And, hoo-boy, there is an astonishing array of illustriously illustrated issues available at your nearby newsstands this week, so many in fact that it was absolutely impossible to pick just one! So here, for your decidedly delightful delectation, are my five fantabulous favourites…
Wildcats #10 –
I mean, it wouldn’t be a legitimate multi comic cover extravaganza if it didn’t feature at least one image dedicated to our favourite sullen, morose and downright curmudgeonly creature of the night, so here’s The Batman mixing it up on the new Wildcats issue, alongside the decidedly deadly duo of Grifter and Zealot, drawn by the talented Stephen Segovia.
World’s Finest: Teen Titans #2 –
The Teen Titans investigating a haunted house mystery? Yes freakin’ please! all this issue needs now is Shaggy and Scooby to pop up for some serious seventies spooky shenanigans!! Fantastic retro style cover by the great Chris Samnee.
Spirit World #4 –
Love this cover by artist – Haining, the cover and interior art are very reminiscent for me of Monty Oum’s – RWBY, which I adore, plus the main character wields a sword as big as themself! Anime/Final Fantasy style weaponry is fun, but ridiculous, I mean look at the size ratio of the handle to the blade, how on earth could you even lift it? (mind you the comic contains demon hunters, superheroes, and mystical realms of the deceased, so in context, big-ass swords with hilarious hilts are rather humdrum in comparison!)
Thessaly #1 –
I’ll take anything and everything Sandman please, especially when it reunites the consummate talents of Nightmare Country visionary – James Tynion IV and Faithless artist – Maria Llovet, who, in this one-shot Black Label special take you on a harrowing journey through the festering iniquity pulsating beneath the glitz and glamour of Hollywood.
Danger Street #8 –
Ok, the award for creepiest comic cover of the month goes to Jorge Fornes for this chilling photographic style cover that’s just freaking me out! I mean, creepy doesn’t even cover it, this is downright disturbing and I shall be reading this one with the lights firmly on! Another fantastic instalment in Tom King and Jorge Fornes’ scintillating saga wrought for DC’s adult imprint – Black Label.
Personal pick for me this month is – World’s Finest: Teen Titans #2, but which of these fabulous five is your fave? Why not sound off in the comments below…
Daily Dose Of DC…
The Spectacular Art Of Steve Rude!
Steve (the dude) Rude is an American comic-book artist, who is best known as the co-creator (alongside Mike Baron) of Sci-Fi comic-book – Nexus – which began life in 1981 and ran for an initial eighty issues, with seven shorter mini-series that released yearly after the main comic ceased publication.
It was 1984 that Steve produced his first work for DC Comics, in – Tales Of The Teen Titans #48 – he later collaborated on DC’s World’s Finest series with writer/artist – Dave Gibbons (of Watchmen fame) in 1990, before moving on to a myriad of projects for the comic-book publishing giant. Steve was also the subject of a documentary titled – Rude Dude: The Steve Rude Story – in 2014. Filmed over a period of three years, Steve spoke candidly about his effort to enter the world of fine art and his daily struggle with bipolar disorder. Steve is one of my personal favourite comic-book artists, with a unique and instantly recognisable painterly style, so why not kick back and enjoy some of the finest imagery to ever grace a comic-book page…
All Imagery Copyright: Steve Rude.
Nine Years In The Precinct – An Anniversary Special
Well hey there fellow agents of Precinct1313, it’s fantastic to see you, and we’re so glad that you could make your way over to the majestic mansion of mystery in time to partake in our ninth anniversary celebrations. In a few moments we will wind our way down through the Precinct’s interminable depths as we head towards the infamous ‘Halls Of Quaffing’ to celebrate in style.
Unfortunately our usual anniversary tour guide, the Precinct’s carrion crow of woe – Eldritch won’t be available to usher you through this arcane abode, as he’s still in the dog-house (uhh, crow house?) for leading us astray through a preternatural portal that lead to Raven’s Reach Sanitarium and a padded cell! (For more on that tantalising tale, why not click right HERE)
But fear not, oh fellow fans of fantastic fiction, as I am able to stand in as the (distinctly human) Corvidae conductor for this ninth anniversary commemoration. And so, without further ado, let our peregrinations begin…
The mystical mansion of mystery known as Precinct1313 first materialised unto this dimension in 2014, this paranormal palazzo, oft thought to be a sister building to the sinister House Of Secrets has housed many scribes throughout the countless alternate realities it has dwelled, and in 2014, I discovered it’s many dimensional delights when it revealed itself in terrifying fashion (which you can read about right HERE) and have been trapped within it’s herculean hallways and reality shifting structure ever since. Which actually turns out to be a good thing as it has given me copious amounts of time to relay to you, dear agents, the wonderful world of comic-books, cult movies and general geekery!
And so, fellow fans of fantastic fiction, thanks to this mythical edifice’s psychokinetic power, we are able to transport you back in time (it doesn’t hurt too much, honest!) to visit our most popular posts of yore…
As you are more than likely aware if you’ve been an agent of the Precinct for awhile, our absolute favourite comic-book creation of all time is the Themysciran Titan herself the glorious Wonder Woman, I first discovered the dynamic delight that is Diana, Princess of the Amazons when I was a mere nine years of age, and have been a super fan ever since. A myriad of reviews, overviews and gushing posts have ensued from the Precinct since its inception, and looking at the ol’ stats the most popular of these is… Wonder Woman: Tempest Tossed.
Another mesmerising mainstay of the Precinct over the years (and my absolute favourite posts to write) has been the – World’s Finest: Interview – series, where each episode we invited one of our most treasured Superheroes, SuperVillains, Costumed Crimefighters, Dimension Dwelling Demons and Super-Pets to answer a quotient of quintessentially quirky questions about life, the universe and cake (’cause everyone loves cake) Such classic characters as Harley Quinn, Circe, and Cheetah, have darkened the Precinct’s media studio and have harassed, bludgeoned, nibbled, and vexed our poor hapless interviewer (why, at one point he was even turned into a worm! an actual worm!!) Checking that ol’ stats page again turns up that the most popular of these was… World’s Finest: An Exclusive Interview With V
Another character that has helped form the foundations of the Precinct over the last nine-tastic years alongside Wondy has been Gotham’s Grim Guardian, the big, bad bat! I have been a mega-fan of the dark and surly one since the age of six, he was instrumental in ushering in my love of the comic-book medium and my fave company – DC Comics. And, just like the Amazon princess, I have written multitudinous amounts of material on his dark crusade to clean up the fetid streets of Gotham, and absolve himself of the grief and guilt of his parents’ death by dressing up as a giant bat, and viciously beating seven shades out of crazy costumed villains! And, heading back to that trusty ol’ stats screen, the most read of all those is – Batman Rebirth #22.
Phew! thanks so much fellow fans of fantastic fiction for joining us on that timely tour of the Precinct’s past, and as we near the Halls Of Quaffing for many a beer and celebration, may I just say a massive thank you to all of my fellow bloggers, followers and readers for making this blogging odyssey over the past nine years such a fantabulous experience, it is YOU that have made this journey worthwhile… now, beer!!
Oh, And As Ever, Make Mine DC…
Daily Dose Of DC…
On this very day, 84 years ago, The Batman made his first ever appearance in Detective Comics #27, featured in the thrilling tale – The Case Of The Chemical Syndicate – brought to you by his astounding architects – Bill Finger and Bob Kane.
The highest graded copy of ‘Tec #27 is a CGC 9.2 Near Mint, which, if it was to ever see auction today is estimated to exceed a staggering £2.5 million pounds (around $3 million dollars) The most expensive copy ever sold was a CGC 8.0 Very Fine, which sold in 2010 for a whopping £890,000 or $1.1 million!
Happy Birthday Bruce!
Happy 40th Anniversary – Jason Todd!
“Tell me what bothers you more, Bruce, that your greatest failure has returned from the grave, or that I’ve become a better Batman than you!?”
As I’ve mentioned on a number of occasions, I’ve been a huge fan of the big, bad bat since the tender age of six, and though I initially discovered the character in the late seventies, I was way too young to appreciate the nuance and depth of the tantalising tales that beset my young eyes in publications such as Batman and Detective Comics. And so, it was the eighties that my appreciation of the Caped Crusader really took flight, through scintillating storylines regaled to me by such luminaries as Gerry Conway, Frank Miller and Alan Grant. The eighties were also a time of change for the Dynamic Duo themselves, as Batman’s lifelong partner against crime – Dick Grayson vacated his role as teen sidekick – Robin, all grown up and now wearing his big boy pants, he flew the nest and became the fun loving quip-tastic costumed crimefighter known as Nightwing!
Leaving poor ol’ Batsy rudderless, as Dick acted as his moral compass and helped bear a lot of the pain and pressure that comes with wading through the villainous detritus that the streets of Gotham spewed forth, Batman’s crusade got darker, and the bat himself, meaner and even more violent, a Batman without Robin was a minacious prospect. Luckily (or, maybe not so, with context) Batman would soon have a new soldier in his never ending fight against crime, a young street urchin named Jason Todd, a troubled youth who looked set to live a troubled life, in fact the first time Batsy met the wayward juvenile, he was in the middle of boosting the tyres… from the Batmobile!
And so, a new Robin was born, as Batman took the teen terror under his (bat)wing and attempted to instil a sense of righteouness and discipline into his new ward. Unlike the previous Boy Wonder, who was an amiable, affable and grounded individual, Jason was an angry and splenetic young man, and though, over the years as Batman’s sidekick, he seemed to mellow slightly, his anger at the injustices life had wrought unto him, never really went away. Until one day, in an ill fated meeting with the jester of genocide himself – The Joker, Jason lost his life after a savage beating by crowbar and ultimately a bomb placed beside the bloodied and bound young crimefighter, Batman arrived mere minutes after the devastating explosion, and, unable to save his life, spiralled downwards into uncontrollable grief and anguish. Surprisingly though, not too long after this, Jason, somehow, returned, but this time he was… different.
Eco-terrorist – Ra’s Al Ghul, who felt partly responsible for Jason’s untimely demise, because of his own dealings with the Joker at the time, exhumed his corpse and bathed the body in the life giving waters of the Lazarus Pit, which brought Jason back, meaner, madder and with a vengeance streak a mile long. Jason returned to Gotham under a new guise – The Red Hood, and with lethal force began tearing down the mad machinations of the various Supervillains and crazies, whereas an encounter with The Batman would, at worst, end with a visit to the hospital emergency room and six months in traction, a similar confrontation with ol’ Hoody would mean a handgrenade in the mouth and a ten inch blade buried in the head!
After a violent second encounter with the clown prince of crime (this time, Jason came equipped with the crowbar!) and a soul searching, yet brutal fight against his former mentor, Batman, Jason is once again caught in a calamitous explosion from a device set earlier by the Joker, which sends all three antagonists plummeting into Gotham Bay. Surfacing sometime later, Jason returned as the vilified vigilante, but toned down his murderous side to some degree, and would partner up with many other of DC’s popular heroes and anti-heroes under the guise of the super-team – Red Hood and the Outlaws, and in due course mended his broken trust and friendship with his mentor and surrogate father – Bruce Wayne.
Precinct1313 highly recommends both the Under The Red Hood, and, Batman: Death In The Family movies for a further deep dive into Jason’s tragic upbringing and eventual death and vehement rebirth.
Daily Dose Of DC…
2023 marks the eightieth anniversary of the very first live action appearances of the Dark Knight Detective – Batman and Boy Wonder – Robin, whose dynamic debuts were in the 1943, 15 chapter serial series: The Batman, directed by Lambert Hillyer and starring Lewis Wilson as Batman/Bruce Wayne and Douglas Croft as Robin/Dick Grayson.
Batman & Robin are copyright: DC Comics.
Comic Cover… Of The Year!
Felicitations, fellow fans of fantastic festive fiction, and welcome to our astonishing award for the most outstanding comic cover of space year 2022!
That’s right, the magical mansion of mystery – Precinct1313 has re-materialised back unto your physical plane after an extended stay in the Phantom Zone, where it lay unfettered as it recharged it’s mystic batteries. And, phew! we’re back just in time to share our absolute fave comic cover of the year, and with so many cool and compelling covers released this annum it’s been a rather difficult decision, but we ultimately landed on this pictorial piece of perfection, the Batman #1066 watercolour variant by the dynamic Colleen Doran.
This absolutely astonishing piece of art from Colleen recreates Herbert Draper’s classic oil painting – The Lament For Icarus – the opulent oil painting, first unveiled in 1898, depicts the deceased Icarus surrounded by lamenting nymphs and currently resides in the Tate Gallery, UK. Colleen’s vivid and vivacious variant of this cover is exquisite, re-creating Draper’s original vision perfectly, depicting a dying Batman surrounded by a bevy of Batgirls – Babs Gordon, Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown.
Many congratulations to Colleen for this year’s standout cover, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t, at least, provide a visual tour of some of our other fave covers from this year that were considered for the coveted title but didn’t quite match the ingenuity of Colleen’s standout piece.
Harley Quinn’s Plundering of DC Comics’ Past…
Bruno Redondo’s Outstanding Run On Nightwing…
DC Comics’ Pride 2022 Covers…
Happy Holidays!
(All art and imagery copyright – DC Comics)
Happy Batman Day!
Nana, nana, nana, nana, Batma… oh hey there, my bodacious bat-brethren, do please excuse my reciting of the classic Batman theme from Adam West’s sixties extravaganza, now that was a time when the curmudgeonly creature of the night actually enjoyed fighting crime, he even joked and (unbelievable I know) SMILED!
Of course, the swinging sixties was very much a different time and place, in fact Silver Age Batman smiled, joked, cajoled and inherently enjoyed being the Caped Crusader, this variant of the character was a million miles away from the grimdark version of the Dark Knight. Though, sixties Bats was an anomaly caused by the Comics Code Authority that cracked down hard on the various adult storylines contained within comics such as Batman and Detective Comics.
When the sensational seventies hit, ol’ Batsy was reinstalled back to his rightful place as the creepy creature of the night who revelled in hunting down vile villains, and thrashing the dastardly and deadly denizens of Gotham to within an inch of their lives. Yet, there have been a number of lightheated and fun moments since his return to the despair and darkness that envelops his being, so for this particular anniversary post, let’s turn Batman’s frown upside down and celebrate his cute and cuddly side…
Not Sure If Superman Forcing Bats To Smile For A Selfie Counts, Yet Here We Are!
Ah Yes, The Legendary Bat-Smirk, This One Is Particularly Delightful ‘Cause He Just Managed To Relieve Green Lantern Of His Power Ring, Without Him Realising!
Yeah, That Would Creep Me Out Too!
Aww, Harley Loves Batsy Really, Look at Her, Sharing The Cupcakes…
He’s Just A Cuddly Costumed Vigilante Really, He Even Keeps Lollipops In His Utility Belt!
See, He’s Not Scary At All… Unless You’re A SuperVillain, And Then You’re Gonna End Up In Traction For Six Months!
Ok, This One Genuinely Made Me Laugh Out Loud, Maybe Bats Should Take Up Stand Up Comedy!
Love This Exchange Between Batman And Black Orchid From The Justice League Dark Animated Movie, Pure, Dry Batman Brilliance!
Sure, Joker May Be Laughing Right Now, But Just Seconds After This, Batman Kicked The Crap Out Of Him… Again!
So there you go, fellow Bat-Fans, a lighthearted look at the Masked Manhunter in celebration of Batman Day! That said, as jovial as he seems here, one thing you should never, ever do is criticise his choice of transport, he hates that!
Happy Batman Day!
We Can ‘Harley’ Believe That It’s Been 30 Years Since Ms Quinn’s Debut…
That’s right, it’s been three dynamic decades since the psychedelic psychopath of print was first unleashed onto an unsuspecting comic book universe, much to the chagrin of The Batman, but conversely to the delight of millions of comic book fans, for Harley truly is… one of the greatest comic-book characters ever conceived, and if you don’t agree, then her beloved mallet would like to have a word with you!
Former psychiatrist, Dr Harleen Quinzel was originally an Arkham Asylum intern who, after prolonged psychology sessions with crazed clown The Joker, was coerced into thinking that Batman was the ultimate cause of Joker’s insanely murderous high jinks. Slowly falling in love with the irascible psychotic, Harleen eventually aided the mirthful murderer to escape the asylum and joined him on his insane crusade to dispense madness, murder and mayhem on the populace of Gotham City.
Ms Quinn was created by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm and actually made her first ever appearance outside of the comic book format, on the critically acclaimed Batman: The Animated Series, in an episode titled “Joker’s Favour” which aired on the 11th September 1992.
Actress Arleen Sorkin was Paul Dini’s original inspiration for the clown princess of crime, after he caught her appearance in an episode of Days Of Our Lives, in which she appeared in a dream sequence wearing a Jester outfit. Dini and Sorkin had been friends since college, and he even incorporated certain facets of Arleen’s personality into the character (and, of course – Arleen/Harleen)
Though initially brought in as a throw away character, Harley proved so massively popular with the DC fanbase that she was ultimately ushered into DC Universe continuity in the 1994 graphic novel “Batman Adventures: Mad Love” which recounted her wild and wacky origin tale, written and drawn by her original co-creators Paul Dini and Bruce Timm.
Harley of course has, since that time, become a fantabulously fun force to be reckoned with both on and off the comic-book page, starring in both animated and live action movies, and is also without a shadow of a doubt, THE most most popular choice for depiction amongst cos-players across the globe.
Harley and Ivy Discuss… erm, Beavers!
Enough Already! My Ribs are Beginning To Ache!!
And So, Happy 30th Anniversary To That Marvellously Maniacal Mistress Of Mayhem – Harley Quinn!
*Please Note: No beavers were hurt during the production of this post, just tossed, stuffed, kidnapped (beaver-napped?) and made fun of… so that’s alright then!*
Comic Cover Of The Week: Wonder Woman #790
Well hey there, fellow fans of fantastic fiction, and welcome to yet another cool, compelling and creatively compulsory – Comic Cover Of The Week. The star of this week’s post is none other than Canadian artist supreme, the great Yanick Paquette and his rather stunning JG Jones homage for this months Wonder Woman #790.
JG Jones much loved cover classic was the first image that greeted Wondy fans when they got their fevered mitts on the fantastic 2002 Greg Rucka penned graphic novel – Wonder Woman: The Hiketeia. The Hiketeia was a standalone story by Greg Rucka and JG Jones that weaved the tale of a young woman named – Danny Welles invoking the ancestral rite of “The Hiketeia” which found Diana honour bound to protect and care for Danny by ancient Amazon tradition.
But, when Wonder Woman learns that Danny has sought out and killed the drug dealers who murdered her sister, it casts her into a tumult of indecision, which gets even worse when that curmudgeonly creature of the night – The Batman – turns up to bring Danny to justice. Wonder Woman is now faced with breaking her sacred oath to protect Danny or turning her back on injustice.
Though, ol’ Batsy made a huuuuge mistake when he came gunning for Wonder Woman, as he notoriously gets a bit too big for his Bat-boots, and Wondy unceremoniously puts him in his place – face deep in the mud! Moral of this tale – don’t upset the overtly powerful, millennia old demi-god, even if you are The Batman!
precinct1313 