With the advent of Rocksteady’s highly anticipated finale in the Arkham trilogy, Batman: Arkham Knight, just around the corner, it’s time you got ready to suit up and let Gotham’s night engulf you. And, what better way to prepare than watch, read up, browse and play through everything ‘Dark Knight’. So we have for you some of the best narratives revolving around Gotham’s Knight. Read on, and prepare to dance with the Devil by the pale moonlight!
Many forms of media have told the tale of the Dark Knight. Though Bob Kane’s original comics introduces the billionaire turned vigilante to the world, various others have been lured in to the world of Gotham and the stories that come out are endless. Comics, movies, graphic novels and video games have been churning out great legends about the Caped Crusader.
Not the first, but possibly the finest adaptation was Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Returns, presenting to us an older, rougher, and weary Bruce Wayne, no longer driven to root crime off the streets of Gotham. And, this is one of the best stories about Batman, packing a solid punch, and introducing some of the best characters from Gotham in a refreshing new light. A female Robin and a government driven Superman were the perfect ally and the ultimate end fight. And Joker did what Joker did best. Chaos. At the age of 58, Bats had to make the most of his wits, as brawling didn’t come as easily to his tired bones. Oh, and that final fight!! Batman vs Superman will never be done better!!
And deriving directly from the graphic novel, the animated movies, The Dark Knight Returns I and II, were top notch, delivering precisely the same tense and gritty vibe. And the sound track was no lesser than those in the Nolan movies (we’ll get to those in a moment). With incredible voice acting, the graphic novel was rendered so accurately and is a must watch for any fan of the World’s Greatest Detective. Plus you get to see that metal suit again, and it’s so badass, it makes Iron Man look like golden-red butterfly.
Many would fondly remember the early 90’s on screen adaption, Batman: The Animated Series. Much acclaimed for setting a darker tone and a lengthy complex plot line, this would be probably the most known expansive narrative (other than the many comics, of course) of Gotham and its denizens, both caped and otherwise. It was heavily influenced by Tim Burton’s Batman movies, and is credited directly with innovating the character of Harley Quinn.
Another excellent adaptation are Christopher Nolan’s movies, which sensationalized and popularized the Dark Knight, making it every teenager’s day dream. Telling a cohesive story from Wayne’s childhood, training and rise as the Dark Knight, the movies were a smash hit. And Joker, oh man, Joker!! Ledger set a whole new bar for villains in movies the world over. Nolan used the original source material to create a fully realized Gotham and its inhabitants. Though the final movie in the trilogy fumbled a little bit, but only so that I wanted the movie to be longer and the characters to be more fleshed out. It’s not a major complaint, and only goes to show how well written and intriguing the plot and the characters were.
And then came Rocksteady, who decided to not just give us more stories, but to put us in Batman’s suit, and gave us a vision of Gotham so perfect, the streets so brutal, and the night’s embrace so delightful. It felt just right to suit up and become the Night. Pulling off combos, beatdowns, solving Riddler’s puzzles, closing up on numerous leads and all the while soaring across rooftops. The game is a true Batman fantasy, and is a must play for any Dark Knight fan. So far, the story has held up brilliantly, with the final installment in the series, Arkham Knight, set to release this summer.
Well, that was a small recount of some major adaptions of everything Dark Knight. We hope you enjoyed the read, and found something new to feed that ‘Batman craving’. Let us know if we missed anything, and what your favorite adaptations are.
