Review: 40386 Batman

@bananaworld said:
"
Would it be more interesting if it were primarily very, very dark grey?"

Yes!
I think a whole slew of different versions would be interesting, kind of like the infographic of 35 different Batmen in this article that I just quickly found. It's from nearly 10 years ago, so there should be even more now. https://geeksofdoom.com/2011/12/22/batman-infographic-covers-a-lot-of-bat-suits

Cool concept. Good execution. Lego that isn't coupled to the minifigure. All of these are positives.

I'm not interested enough to buy but it's different.

I love these sets. As long as they’re affordable, I may collect them.

This looks cool in it's Batman way.

I agree it's a bit bland but it captures the character well, especially the original Animated Series version. I especially like the ears extending beyond the top of the piece...and now that I mention it I notice the Joker's hair does so as well. A nice touch. Given the bland / simplicity criticisms they could have paired the Joker and Batman pieces together for a twin pack at a slightly lower price point.

I don't think I'll be getting any of this round (maybe BB8 to go with the eventual R2 and C3PO).

I want to see if they do an iron man but using the same gold finish as they have for the helmet released yesterday

This is bland compared to The Joker from yesterday, sure. But I still like it!

@CCC said:
"There is an existing R2-D2 design, I don't think there is a C-3PO though."

I assume both are forthcoming because...money.

As a Batman fan, I really like this one. I see your points about it being a bit bland, comparatively, but I can't see anything wrong with this. I really like that they give you the option of using the stand or hang it. I'm hoping these are $10 like the BrickHeadz.

I reverse-engineered this in Studio and can't seem to buy the parts for less than @$30, so the $20 price point might be accurate

I like these but not sure the rumoured price will make them worth it. Probably will pick up at least the Joker.

I'm DC & Batman fan, but will not buy this, Brick Sketches

Looking at this they seem more like something thats been thrown together from spare parts.

As much as I love Batman, I'm not going to be buying these.

If you're a Batman fan, you're _also_ probably going to buy the Joker to go with this...unless you're a Joker-hating Batman fan. Such things do happen these days, as Joker's image has been a bit tarnished by his relationship with one Harley Quinn (who is arguably more popular at this point). I mean who'da thunk that people would actually end up hating a beloved, psychopathic, murderous clown?

@ledmouse:
I've actually got that graphic saved somewhere. There's an interesting comparison built into this, in terms of Batman minifigs. On the third row down, third from the left is the 1989 Burton/Keaton Batsuit, with the triple-tail design, which just got released as an official minifig last year. On the fourth row down, second from the left, is the Troika outfit, which matches _perfectly_ the black/gold Batman from the first wave of Batman sets in 2006, which everyone thought for years was the Burton/Keaton Batman.

I think they will look good togehter on the wall. I'm not into busts or portraits like this in Lego, but just saying...

@PurpleDave: Thats kinda the problem with Joker these days. Rather then being the 'Clown Prince of Crime' they've made him into a mass murdering psychopath who treated Harley, the supposed 'love of his life' as little more then garbage and a tool for his schemes.

And thats without mentioning the stupidity in the comics with the whole 'having cut his own face off' storyline and the supposed 'there are three of them' dreck that further ruined the character for fans.

zusammengebaut confirmed the 20$ / 20€ price tag for all 4 Brick Sketches which makes them way too expensive for 170 pieces or less and no printed parts. Nice idea but there is a limit for everything and I am not prepared for yet another BrickHeadz like wave of 100+ sets, which will probably not happen anyway due the 2x price tag.

@GrizBe:
In all fairness, the Harley bit came from the very people who created the character. Originally, it wouldn't have ever been a problem. The only reason they ever created that character was because there was a scene where Joker was supposed to jump out of a cake. He couldn't really do that after pushing the same cake into the room, so someone else had to be inside the cake. Paul Dini was good friends with Arlene Sorkin (the original voice of Harley), and borrowed a scene she'd performed for some soap opera. And that was supposed to be it, with a one-and-done appearance. The character proved so popular with both the production team and the viewers (myself included, as I watched her debut episode live, not realizing that everyone was seeing her for the very first time) that they had to write her into the series permanently.

Later in the series' run, the very people who created her realized they'd put her in a toxic relationship (which, again, wouldn't have mattered much if we'd never seen her again), so they started writing episodes where she splits with Joker, calls him out for his horrible treatment of her, and eventually starts teaming up with Ivy (and at some point Catwoman joins the group).

At the same time, B:TAS' Joker was the defining portrayal of that character for a huge number of viewers, supplanting even Jack Nicholson's very recent performance, and even holding its own against Ledger's Oscar-winning take. But it was really probably a combination of the '89 Batman and B:TAS that moved Joker into a darker direction. Before that he'd basically just been the Riddler without any riddles, committing crimes that didn't make any sense (like robbing music stores).

@PurpleDave: I'm very aware of Harleys origin, I grew up watching the animated series too afterall.

But you've pretty much made my point here. The Animated series was peak Joker for most fans, and its after this point where his popularity starts to drop. Even then they realised that the Joker Harley relationship wasn't good, yet they still continued to push it which just kept damaging Joker, along with moving Joker away from being a prankster to a sociopath.

If anything, Harley is a better joker then Joker himself is.

@GrizBe:
They didn't really push that relationship as much as you might think. Yes, it's what everyone immediately thinks of when they think of Harley, but a lot of that has to do with that being how most people were introduced to her. In terms of publication history, she's probably spent more time in a relationship with Ivy than Joker.

And if anything, ditching Joker's goofy history only served to make him more popular. That started _before_ B:TAS, though. For that you have to go back to the 80's, with titles like The Dark Knight Returns, The Killing Joke, and the regular series run that would become known as A Death in the Family. All of these predated Burton's two films and B:TAS. The Dark Knight and Joker have basically proven that darker is what people want in the Joker. It just doesn't work for a Joker/Harley relationship. This is why they could get away with pairing them up for TLBM without anyone batting an eye, but things didn't go so smoothly with Suicide Squad.

@GrizBe said:
" @PurpleDave: Thats kinda the problem with Joker these days. Rather then being the 'Clown Prince of Crime' they've made him into a mass murdering psychopath who treated Harley, the supposed 'love of his life' as little more then garbage and a tool for his schemes.

And thats without mentioning the stupidity in the comics with the whole 'having cut his own face off' storyline and the supposed 'there are three of them' dreck that further ruined the character for fans. "

Honestly, I have to disagree (other than the three Jokers, which is completely dumb). Harley was never the “love of Joker’s life”. When she was introduced in the phenomenal animated series, she was always meant to be merely a tool (& *** toy) for the Joker. This was made to show the darker, more sociopathic and manipulative side of the Joker, along with serving as an allegory for domestic abuse. The relationship is almost pitiful and Shakespearean (Harley loves Joker but Joker doesn’t like her). It really fleshed out Harley’s character. If you disagree, I would highly recommend you watch the episode “Mad Love” or read the comic “Mad Love”. It is an amazing story and cemented the character in my top five favourite bat-villains.

On a side note, I never got the people who say that Joker should be a prankster. In fact, Joker was always meant to be a sociopath NOT a prankster. His introductory comic is peak Hannibal Lector! In fact, the prankster version from the Silver Age is the most outdated and blase version. I haven’t met a single comic-reading person who prefers the Silver Age version over the Modern Age. Personally, I think these people are just nostalgic for the ‘66 Adam West show and have never actually picked up a single Batman comic in their lives.

P.S: I am not saying that Joker should not retain any prankster traits, but he should be primarily a psychopath. I’d say 90% psycho, 5% prankster, 5% Batman-boyfriend is a good split. The Animated Series is a prime example of this done right.

And yes, I don’t get (and hate) the people who say that Batman was better in the 60s because he was more child-friendly and superheroes should be childish. Anybody trying to throw that crap at me should buy a Deadpool/Punisher/Watchmen comic for their three-year-old and see the reaction. There are lighter-hearted superheroes like Superman and Spider-Man, and there are darker ones like Batman. Let Batman be Batman - the DARK Knight, not a rip-off Paw Patrol (which is a stinking pile of hot garbage).

@TheRightP_art:
No, when Harley debuted on B:TAS, they really had no long-term plans for the character. Her entire purpose was to pop out of a cake. It was only after they decided to keep her in that role that they realized that they'd painted themselves into a corner, hence the messy breakup (he _did_ try to blow up Gotham and knowingly left her behind to die with everyone else). There was also never mention of any potential bedroom activities between them, since B:TAS was ostensibly supposed to be a kid's show. The production team were able to deliver something geared more towards adults, without making it inappropriate for kids (mostly). I do agree, though, that Mad Love (in either form) is excellent.

The trick with Superman is that it's possible to write the character as light-hearted and optimistic, but still put him in a fairly dark setting with potentially devastating consequences (indeed, with his over-the-top power set, you almost have to if you don't want to bore your audience). His rogues gallery includes two of the most powerful DC villains in Brainiac and Darkseid, and certainly neither of them are bent on committing the perfect themed caper. S:TAS was able to keep a lighter tone than B:TAS, but JL/U had some weighty episodes (and yet in the middle of that run, he could go home and gripe about lead wrapping paper making it impossible to peek at the contents of his Christmas presents).

@PurpleDave said:
" @TheRightP_art:
No, when Harley debuted on B:TAS, they really had no long-term plans for the character. Her entire purpose was to pop out of a cake. It was only after they decided to keep her in that role that they realized that they'd painted themselves into a corner, hence the messy breakup (he _did_ try to blow up Gotham and knowingly left her behind to die with everyone else). There was also never mention of any potential bedroom activities between them, since B:TAS was ostensibly supposed to be a kid's show. The production team were able to deliver something geared more towards adults, without making it inappropriate for kids (mostly). I do agree, though, that Mad Love (in either form) is excellent.

The trick with Superman is that it's possible to write the character as light-hearted and optimistic, but still put him in a fairly dark setting with potentially devastating consequences (indeed, with his over-the-top power set, you almost have to if you don't want to bore your audience). His rogues gallery includes two of the most powerful DC villains in Brainiac and Darkseid, and certainly neither of them are bent on committing the perfect themed caper. S:TAS was able to keep a lighter tone than B:TAS, but JL/U had some weighty episodes (and yet in the middle of that run, he could go home and gripe about lead wrapping paper making it impossible to peek at the contents of his Christmas presents)."

Great points! And yes, Superman can be involved in really dark situations and so can the Justice League (looking at Tower of Babel and the Cadmus Conspiracy). However, Superman is, at his core, a more light-hearted superhero than Batman and thus is easier to write into more child-friendly comics.

As for bedroom content, in Mad Love, Harley says “Do you want to rev up your Harley” and countless other innuendoes are dropped in the show. The comic version takes it a bit further in Harley’s college life. I believe the showrunerrs always wanted her to have a more ****** relationship with the Joker, but they had to evade the censors and came up with the innuendo-dropping compromise.

And yes, originally she was just meant to push a cake, but after she got so popular (and Paul Dini liked her so much), their long-term plans were to develop her abusive relationship with the Joker.

Other than the above, you have some really sound arguments. Happy to meet another DCAU fan!