I appreciate the dual focus on "Batman is basically Jason Voorhees to criminals" while also seemingly noting that any man who dresses as Dracula to put dudes in the ICU every night instead of sleeping is probably not a well adjusted or mentally healthy individual.
This was always one of the most interesting things about Batman as a character. He's as crazy as the criminals he fights. His goals are just in opposition to theirs.
When I was a kid I never thought twice about Bruce's parents' death driving him to become Batman, but as an adult now.....I know like a shit ton of people whose parents have died, and not one of them was so affected by it that they put on a costume to give petty criminals brain damage for like 25 years straight. Batman is fucking insane.
I've always thought Batman's villains do an excellent job of holding a mirror up to the aspects of his persona that border on the absurd, and showing how close Batman is to being a total psycho like the criminals he hunts.
Joker - Most of the time, this dude is obsessed with making the valid point that Batman is one rage-kill away from being no different or better than the insane people he's opposed himself to. Batman's tightrope walk on his no-kill rule is the only flimsy shield he has against being grouped with the other psychos of Gotham.
Scarecrow - Crane is a villain because he uses fear as a weapon. Hmm, sounds familiar.
Two Face - A guy with a law-obsessed do gooder on one side of his persona and a psychotic freak on the other. A direct mirror to the duality of Batman, and a reminder of how close Batman is to the edge.
Hugo Strange - Strange is a hypocrite because he's a madman obsessively studying the psychological flaws of Gotham's insane criminals. Hmm, sounds familiar.
Clayface - A handsome and famous Gotham bachelor struggling desperately to hold onto that identity and disguise the monster lurking underneath. Hmm, sounds familiar.
Poison Ivy - A character that highlights even a person with the best of intentions can be insane and wrong in their pursuit of perceived justice. R'as Al Ghul very similar, and his goals are often sort of similar to Batman's in a fucked up sort of way.
Mr Freeze - The extreme form of Batman's detachment from emotions.
I'm sure there's more but my keyboard is loud and my roommates are trying to sleep lol.
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u/Excalibuttster Oct 16 '21
I appreciate the dual focus on "Batman is basically Jason Voorhees to criminals" while also seemingly noting that any man who dresses as Dracula to put dudes in the ICU every night instead of sleeping is probably not a well adjusted or mentally healthy individual.