Wesley Nichols writes...

I read on one of youre answers that you are a huge batman fan. Did you see the Dark Knight and what did you think of the Joker? I feel that the Joker blew all the other characters away, but apparently some people don't like the interpretation. One person said that the Dark Knights's Joker is the best film version to date, but didn't approve of the interpreation, because of how sloppy he was and he considered Joker to be a neat freak.

Nelio writes...

While this isn't Gargoyles related, I did have a question about one of your other works. Today when I was researching the episode of "The Batman" titled "Artifacts", I was surprised to find out that you were the story writer. I checked some more and found that you actually worked on 7 episodes of "The Batman"; The Big Chill, The Rubber Face of Comedy Part 1, The Clayface of Tragedy Part 2, Meltdown, Strange Minds, The Everywhere Man, and Artifacts.

Coincidently, I've noticed that the episodes you worked on happy to be the higher ranking episodes for me in this show. Besides that, my question to you is how deeply interested / have you been in the Batman world? Did you read it a lot when you were a kid? Are you a big fan of Batman? Were these seven episodes just offered to you, or did you strive to get them?

I'm mostly curious, and look forward to your response.

kyle tonarella writes...

well i actually have seen the joker episodes you've written and they are tureley works of art a shame that they could not make joker like that through the rrst of the series oh well anyone on to a new question i've heard molten man will be in the show and we he actaully have connections to Liz Allen like the comics is he part of the firs or second arc of season 2

kyle tonarella writes...

i noticed you wrote a couple episodes of The Batman i wass wondering if you did a batman show how would you play the characters particularly joker

Antiyonder writes...

Some questions about The Batman I've been meaning to ask recently:

1. Which would you say is your favorite story that you produced for the show?
1a. Which episodes outside of the ones you've worked on did you enjoy if any?

2. Are you writing any episodes for the upcoming season?
2a. Have you been approached or had any interest in writing an issue of The Batman Strikes?

3. Concerning all of the episodes that you have written, have they remained intact or have any of them went through any major changes storywise?

4. Have managed to view The Batman VS Dracula yet? If so, did you like it?

5. What's your opinion on the appearance of the Justice League in The Batman? I myself find that it works for this version of Batman since it isn't as grounded in reality as the previous show.

A-Fan writes...

What are the chances of a crossover between Spider-Man and Batman for the two cartoons?

Todd Jensen writes...

This is also a comment, rather than a question.

I saw, not too long ago, the episode "Artifacts" that you wrote for "The Batman", and very much enjoyed it. My favorite part of it was the scenes where the archaeologists in the future are speculating about Batman's history and come to several wrong conclusions (such as that Thomas Wayne was the Batman and Bruce was Robin, or that the wheelchair that they found in the Batcave belonged to Alfred). It reminded me, incidentally, of my favorite part of Stoppard's "Arcadia" (which I read after you spoke highly of it in the Station 8 comment room some years ago): the part where the modern-day professor was convinced that the events in the Regency period of the play were connected to a scandal involving Lord Byron, and was deliberately ignoring all the evidence that didn't fit his theory!

Aldrius writes...

All right. Hi. I already posted a question, but it was kinda sucky, and I wanted to ask one of a more intellectual/character-oriented nature. Demona's character in "Awakening" reminds me much of the character Andrea from Batman: Mask of the Phantasm. (Which is my favourite movie ever, by the way.) Both were love interests to the hero in the past, indepentant, intelligent and strong-willed love interests to be sure... but still love interests.

At a certain point, the hero and the love interest part ways. (With the hero being mis-led in terms of the love interests' parting.) And continue on their lives seperately. Leading very different lives. Eventually, the hero and his love meet up again, and the woman is now a very different person than she was before. Leading the hero to believe nothing's changed, she eventually reveals her true colours at the climax of the series of episodes/movie. (Both hiding themselves from their lovers, knowing that they would never accept what they've become.)

I was just wondering if this was intentional in your thought process, or just a comparison I've dreamed up. As I am a big fan of both of the aformentioned characters.

(P.S. As a side-question, what were your thoughts on the character of Andrea, and the performance of her Actress Dana Delany?)

DrNick writes...

Batman

1) Why weren't you allowed to use the Scarecrow in the new animated Batman series?
2) In regards to the Batman cartoon were the plethora of mechanical gadgets such as the jet pack, batman exosuit and the anti-freeze suit for the specific purpose of marketing batman toys towards younger viewers?
3) What did you think of the Batman Begins movie by Goyer and Nolan? Did you think it succeeded in translating and telling the origin story onto the screen?

Todd Jensen writes...

Your use of the Batman analogy to explain Canmore's actions in "City of Stone Part Four" reminded me that I still hadn't commented on your Mr. Freeze episode ("The Big Chill") for "The Batman", even though I'd seen it a few months ago. Very remiss of me, so I thought that I'd give my thoughts on it here.

I'll start off by confessing that, since my previous knowledge of Mr. Freeze came entirely from his portrayal in "Batman: TAS", I had a little trouble accepting the new version of him in "The Batman". In "Batman: TAS", Mr. Freeze was a very poignant figure on account of his wife Nora; the Mr. Freeze of "The Batman", on the other hand, was a simple super-powered jewel thief with almost no complexity or depth to him. For an analogy, it'd be as if somebody else were to do a remake of "Gargoyles" and portray Demona as a simple Hyena-style psychopath without any mention of the thousand years of human persecution that she'd undergone or her suppressed guilt over the Wyvern Massacre. Of course, I suspect that it was the higher-ups who'd decided how the series would portray Mr. Freeze, and you weren't given much say in the matter.

The bit that I liked, on the other hand (and which does counter the characterization of Mr. Freeze) was the impact that the discovery of Freeze's origins had on Batman, making him wonder if he was making things worse for Gotham if his actions had led to the upgrading of a regular jewel-thief into a super-powered jewel thief. The especial highlight of it was his nightmare about the murder of his parents where Mr. Freeze became their murderer.

(I still feel a little spooked by how much Detective Yin physically resembles Elisa. I'd certainly like to ask the people in charge of character design on "The Batman" about it, and whether it was a deliberate hommage to "Gargoyles" or just a strange coincidence.)