Dark Knight Trilogy Revisited

Nolan Batman Trilogy Revisited.

Here thar be spoilers.

         The DC Cinematic Universe inexorably lumbers forward, and a new Batman is on the horizon, but lest we forget, the Christian Bale trilogy was an amazing self-contained Batman tale, worthy of the following recap. Foremost among the trilogy's strengths is that it had a beginning, middle, and end, all solid contributions to the mythos. We got a solid telling of Bruce's journey from shattered childhood to Gotham's protector.

The First Step Program

First Step Program

The entire purpose of starting up this page was to either communicate with other comics enthusiasts, or create new ones. If you happen to be an "adult" who thinks comics are for kids, don't. Most comics are aimed towards adults. In fact, children's comics is really more of a subgenre. So I decided to help newbs by providing a jumping on point. Fortunately the renewed Superhero Movie craze has given nerds common ground with the cool kids, so that's where I'll start. Superhero movies are often based on certain story arcs in comics, so below I'm going to connect those dots.

Lets start with,

THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY!

Nolan's films drew heavily on certain books. For instance, Batman Begins takes a lot of plot lines from BATMAN:YEAR ONE by Frank Miller as well as the duology, THE LONG HALLOWEEN and DARK VICTORY, by Jeph Loeb. Year one has Batman fighting the well established criminal element in Gotham as well as the corrupt police force, and details his early challenges as he settles into his role as Gotham City's protector. It also introduces us to his first allies, Lt. James Gordon and Harvey Dent. The Long Halloween picks up with Batman still early in his career, and tracking a serial killer called Holiday. Dark Victory ties in to the Dark Knight and shows us the growing relationship between Batman and Dent, and also shows us the transformation of Dent into the psychopath, Two-Face. The Dark Knight Rises takes some plotlines from Frank Miller's THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS and also from the KNIGHTFALL SAGA, though I don't recommend either of these for a first time read. The Dark Knight Returns shows us a retired Batman getting back into his musty old tights to resume his war on crime, and also shows us his losing fight with younger enemies, though Bane does not make an appearance (If you're interested in this, DC released a 2 part animated movie adaptation). The Knightfall Saga is where Bane made his first appearance, and we see concepts like the prison where Bane grew up, and Bane beating the living crap out of Batman, as we saw in the movie. That said, the Knightfall saga is super long, and though it pains me to say it, just run to the library and grab the novel by Dennis O'Neil instead of the huge trade paperback.

If I get even one like on this article, I'll publish a followup. Research nerds unite!

Nerd News Report

Nerd News

New Thor: The Dark World trailer shows Thor battling what appears to be a Kronan. Long time fans will recognize the Kronans from Thor's first appearance in Tales to Astonish. They reappeared more recently in Planet Hulk and World War Hulk. I like how they seem to be digging up older concepts to put in this new movie, and leaning more heavily on the actual Norse mythology, bringing in the Dark Elves. Also, take a look in the background when they show Loki in the Asgardian prison, and you'll notice someone in the other cell wearing a horned helmet. The first person I thought of was Kurse, also known as Algrim the Strong, another Dark Elf, and already confirmed for as a secondary antagonist to Malekith the Dark Elf.  In addition, we know that the characters from the first movie will be back, and the trailers thus far have hinted at a partnership between Thor and his imprisoned half-brother Loki. Thor indicates that Loki may be the only person with knowledge about the returning threat of the Dark Elves. Catch Thor: The Dark World in theaters November 8, 2013.

Kurse

First appearance of Thor and Kronans

Malekith the Accursed