Animated “Batman” blows beyond the competition: Why animated Gotham is the best Gotham

Batman will never die. Now that on its face is very untrue; Batman has died more times than you can say Arkham. But in regard to the media, Batman is one of those characters that seems to become more and more immortalized as time goes on, in no small part due to the breakout explosion of the superhero anthology of the 2010s. Which itself is the largest culprit for removing Batman from Gotham.

It seems like with more and more installments of the character, interest leans into portraying him less like a traumatized man fighting against and within a broken system, and more like what emo middle schoolers think they’ll grow up to be. Which is why, even after 30 years in the game, the animated “Batman” installments continue to be the best at portraying Gotham as a fully released concept. But how do they do this?

Thumbnail courtesy of Cait Jayme.

Bat History

Well first it’s imperative to understand the socio-political conditions that birthed Bruce Wayne. Fun fact: “Batman” first released, on the day, three months before World War II. America was in the very near shadow of the Great Depression and the Prohibition. Both of which caused crime to surge, and for intercity areas to become increasingly more and more dangerous to the public. However, fascinating enough, the same people who feared the increase in crime were also participating in the crimes. There was an increasing divide between the government and the public. They no longer felt as if their needs and wants were being acknowledged and felt the only option of regaining control was to take matters into their own hands. It was less of a political response, as an emotional one.

Men wanted a symbol of traditional masculine strength. Someone to reaffirm that everyday Joes do have control of how their world ticked. And the person to answer that call….the Film Noir genre. These were films about wise cracking, non-feeling, crime stopping every men. Guys who would work outside the law to get done what needed to get done. As well as always having the sexy, equally wise cracking, femme fatale fall hard for their rough exterior. These kinds of stories were giant hits. It wasn’t long before these took over not only film, but also literature. And by 1939, comics as well.

Bat Birth

So “Batman” started off as a detective story rather than a superhero one. His story from the jump was a lot more grounded. Gotham is a city where rich elites live lives off the backs of the lower class. This lower class then turned to crime and fought for their own piece of the pie, resulting in the elites now being those very criminals and the cycle repeats. Compare this to Clark Kent, also known as Superman, who after falling from a dying planet, becomes a small-town boy who moves to the big city and dedicates himself to protecting the great people of Metropolis. Bruce Wayne is a product of the same city that took his family away from him. In turn, he both fights against it and embodies what it and he have become.

This is illustrated so beautifully in the “Batman” animated universe. For one because this isn’t real, the visuals can capture the emotions of Gotham better. Intense shadows cover every corner to the point that even day looks like night. Everyone is towered over by giant skyscrapers, aside from Batman who stands at the top of them all. Characters are dressed in cool hues of every color to show how the warmth has been sucked out from this place. Speaking of characters, Batman’s baddies were less like aliens from other worlds, but rather everyday people. Random thugs with guns, mafia bosses, corrupted CEOs and common thieves. And even when we do meet Batman’s more iconic villains, such as Cat Woman or Two Face, we meet them as people. We see that their reasons for becoming villains is that they were failed by the same system that failed Batman. Forcing us the audience to identify that the thread that keeps Batman from being evil in the same way as them is forever thin and up to change. Also, this is where Harley was introduced, and she slaps, so boom. Win.