Krang threatens the multiverse in Batman/TMNT III No. 2
By Alex Widen
In Defense of Baby Blues Batman!
James Tynion IV appears more involved in the writing of this third installment of the crossover than he was in the second. Ryan Ferrier started co-writing Batman/TMNT II midway through, which may have contributed to it having a different “feel” than the original crossover from 2015-2016. On the other hand, sequels are tough, while by a third installment it is easier to get a handle on a franchise. This time around there is an influx of imagination in merging the universes as well as a healthy heaping of nostalgia, and respect, for the past.
Image by DC Comics & IDW Publishing
The appearance of the Silver Age Batman is a piece of this. For what has seemed like an eon, the character of Batman has been defined, inspired, or shaped by The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller, which many mark as the unofficial end of the “silver age” of comics. Many times that era of Batman is confused with the hammy 1966 TV series, and while it is true that the Silver Age included that interpretation, it arguably included a Batman not many shades removed from the 1992 animated series incarnation that gets so much acclaim.
Image by DC Comics & IDW Publishing
By the early to mid-1980s, the camp from the end of the 60s was over. While Batman was still wearing his “baby blue” cape and cowl many times, he also was engaging in many thrilling capers underwriters such as Denny O’Neill. Batman had achieved balance between being a grim vigilante willing to kill when he began in 1939 and a costumed superhero who had at least two teenage partners and engaged in sunlight super-heroics with the Justice League or Outsiders. He had a sense of humor and an encyclopedic mind, but also knew about getting things done.
Image by DC Comics & IDW Publishing