Most people who know me know that I'm a Batman fan. To folks who follow comic books, I'm a step up from a casual fan. That makes me a huge fan in most people's opinion. I've seen all the movies (even the really bad Schumacher ones), most of the TV show episodes (which I don't consider to represent the "real" Batman), and read a lot of the comic books and associated material. I like Batman.

A friend just sent me a short piece from telegraph.co.uk claiming that the upcoming issue of Batman is going to kill him off. Or rather, kill Bruce Wayne off, opening the door for a new character to take up the mantle. Or maybe Bruce will just retire?

Batman to be killed off after 70 years

'Batman RIP' will see "the end of Bruce Wayne as Batman", according to Grant Morrison.

There are rumours that Batman will suffer a gruesome end when his sidekick Robin goes over to "the dark side" and destroys him in a terrible betrayal.

Batman, alter ego of Bruce Wayne a wealthy industrialist, operates in the American Gotham City.

Others speculate that Wayne may either retire from his duties or be killed by a mystery villain known as the Black Glove.

His fate will be revealed in the latest issue of DC Comic's Batman, published on 26 November.

Read more....

OK, I haven't read Batman in several years -- I quit reading shortly after the massive No Man's Land storyline. I have absolutely no idea about what's currently going on in the Batman Universe. So, at some level, I really don't have a leg to stand on when I complain here.

But. Seriously? They're going to kill Bruce?

I'm angry.

My friend is betting that it's a marketing trick. Maybe so, but if it is, I'll probably be even angrier. And as unhappy as I am about the thought of them killing off Bruce, if they do that an subsequently bring him back (see Aunt May, Superman, e.g.), I'll be really angry. Regardless, as a marketing trick, it's going to work. I'll be stopping by the comic book store on my way home from work tomorrow to see if they've got the issue yet.

*sigh*

Heath Ledger is dead.

I know this because my IM client became overwhelmed with messages from from some my Batman friends.

I'll look into the details, etc. when I have a chance.

Number of times drmellow has seen Batman Begins since it was released: 2

Amount that Batman Begins totally rocks: 3.14 x 10^bazillion.

Far and away, this is my favorite Batman movie. It's the only Batman movie I've seen in the theater more than once. And I already want to see it again. Both times I saw it, as soon as the credits started rolling, I said "I want to see it again!" If I see it in the theater again, though, I'll be sticking to matinee showings. I gotta save up my money for things like The Dukes Of Hazzard.

Anyway, back to Batman.... They did everything right in this one. Going into it, I was concerned that they wouldn't have enough time to properly explore the real origin story (Bruce Wayne as a kid) while telling a "modern" story (Bruce Wayne invents Batman and fights Bad Guys^TM). They partially solved that problem by releasing a 141 minute film. They also solved it by doing a great job of weaving the two stories together.

The use of lesser-known villians was also a treat, as was having Gordon be a regular cop working his way through the force. And they nailed Gotham. I'm really looking forward to future installments. They have a chance here to do a good job of telling the Batman stories that are closer to the dark/edgy versions of the comic books, and doing it well.

I enjoyed the movie so much that, even though it was after midnight on a work night, I went to the basement and pulled out some of my old comics and trade paperbacks after I got home last night. I'm going to read Year One again soon, and if I can find my copy of Dark Knight Returns, I'll read it again, too. Oh, yeah -- and all of the stuff from No Man's Land, too! And Knightfall!