Batman: 7 Moments We Would Like to Forget

While Batman is one of the superheroes who has had some of the best adaptations, it is clear that some also offer their share of scenes that are painful to read or watch. So here's a quick look back at some of the most embarrassing moments in the history of the Batman universe.

#7 Batman's anatomically awkward armors are embarrassing (Batman & Robin 1997)

There's a lot that can be said about the Batman saga, but if there's one subject that consensus, it is the laughable aspect of the armors in Batman Forever and Batman and Robin. These 1990s films, directed by Joel Schumacher, marked a visual turning point that left more than one viewer perplexed. The heroes' costumes did not simply opt for a “tactical” or “effective” design as one might hope for a crime-fighting vigilante. No, they have instead become a festival of anatomical exaggerations and questionable aesthetic choices.

The most famous of these faux pas remains the famous “bat-nipples” on Batman's armor. Why a superhero would need nipples on his costume is a mystery that remains unsolved. Add to that a massive crotch and a prominent zipper on the rear end, and you have moments of pure discomfort. Faced with the ridiculousness of such choices, nervous laughter guaranteed, but maximum embarrassment imagining the heroes jumping from rooftop to rooftop in their evocative outfits.

#6 Batman mistreats Robin (All-Star Batman and Robin, the Boy Wonder 2005)

You all know that “meme” where Batman slaps Robin to stop him from repeating banalities to him? Well, despite the obviously comical aspect of this image, two of the greatest geniuses of comics, Frank Miller and Jim Lee, thought it would be a good idea to make it a central part of the Batman and Robin relationship. In All-Star Batman and Robin, the Boy Wonder #2 (Frank Miller, Jim Lee), released in 2005, DC Comics attempted to reinvent its iconic heroes with the All-Star line.

While this series has left its mark for many (bad) reasons, it is above all Bruce Wayne's treatment of Robin that has proven to be one of the most surprising errors. In this version, Batman adopts a cold and abusive attitude towards his protégés, whom he sees only as soldiers in his war against crime. This dehumanizing behavior somewhat distorts the essence of the Dark Knight's character, without really bringing anything relevant to the story. Poor Robin therefore finds himself here an orphan, a child mistreated by his guardian, then a juvenile vigilante mistreated by Gotham's criminals in the space of a few months. Hard…

#5 From sub-Shakira for the film music (Batman and the Mysterious Batwoman 2003)

The series Batman: The Animated Series of the 1990s is simply one of the best adaptations of the adventures of the Gotham vigilante. Better yet, the series even gave rise to one of the best existing films on the subject, Batman vs. the Masked Phantom, which continues to inspire many artists working on the Batman universe today. However, these magnificent successes have also led to other projects that are much more complicated to defend, the worst of which is undoubtedly the catastrophic Batman and Harley Quinn of 2017 (which we discussed in detail here). The third film in the series, Batman and the Mysterious Batwoman, is not without its flaws either.

This animated feature film from 2003 offers a new version of Batwoman.The central mystery revolves around three women, suspected in turn of being potentially behind the mask. If the film is not a disaster, it remains all the same kindly dispensable, especially since this new Batwoman has never been seen again in the DC animated universe. No, the real problem lies in an extremely embarrassing sequence, where, to sell a very “girly” single,The Penguin welcomes a singer who looks like a sub-Shakira into his bar. The latter will set the pace for the scene with a song that is completely off-topic, and even appears in the end credits. A bonus feature on the DVD at the time proudly highlighted this “product” called Betcha Neva, sung by an artist named Chérie.

#4 Bad guys' crappy puns (Batman films & series)

Yes, we get it, thanks. The bad guys in Batman are colorful characters with names that are at the very least suggestive, but… it's not useful for the bad guys to only express themselves in sentences that allow puns on their identity every two seconds. It all started, of course, with the popular and parodic series Batman from 1966. While the light-hearted tone of the series allowed for many excesses, the series also opened the way to all the authors lacking imagination but fond of lousy puns.The principle of double-meaning jokes about the identity of the bad guys made its big comeback in Batman Returnsby Tim Burton. However, here, the bawdy jokes and puns based on birds and cats, even if some may find them too heavy-handed, serve the purpose and underline the deeply sexual and liberated aspect of Catwoman, so why not… On the other hand, it is with Batman Forever that things go wrong.

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Indeed, Joel Schumacher's films present villains who are nothing more than unintentional (or not?) parodies of their characters. In Batman Forever, Two-Face becomes a pale copy of the Joker who would make jokes about his split personality without ever really suffering from it and must have everything in two colors in his business. In Batman and Robin, a line is crossed again, and we end up wondering if the film is not in fact a comedy that advances masked (damn, it's contagious). Mister Freeze makes all the possible puns with the cold and, for her part, Poison Ivy suggests to the heroes that they come and take care of her bush. Classy…

#3 Change Harley Quinn's origins to make them anything

Harley Quinn's origins are incredibly effective.Originally, she is the Joker's psychiatrist, but his madness contaminates this professional who ends up falling in love with the psychopath. She frees him and becomes his sidekick, in an increasingly unhealthy relationship, until she finds the strength to free herself and fly on her own. However, it seems that this story is considered too simple for some, because Harley regularly finds herself rewritten, and rarely for the better. It all starts with the TV series The Night Angels,where Harley retains much of her initial origin story, but she also holds a grudge against the city, as the Joker was locked up before they had time to have children together…

Then comes the animated series The Batman, where Paul Dini, the inventor of Harley Quinn himself, proposes new origins. Harley is here a TV presenter fired after having made a very “prank” to Bruce Wayne, which pushes her to become a criminal. In addition to this rather risky rewriting of the character, Paul Dini reiterates in the series Cape Crusader, where Harley's origins become more or less similar to those of Doctor Hugo Strange: a very gifted psychiatrist, but with a penchant for crime. Finally, one of the most catastrophic rewrites of the character is seen in Joker 2, where Harley is now a simple patient of Arkham fascinated by the Joker from the start.

#2 The Joker is not Fred Astaire (Joker folie à agrave; deux 2024)

In the DC universe, trying to make a musical comedy with the characters is not impossible, but complicated. The idea is not impossible: the episode The Music Master of Batman: The Brave and the Bravesucceeds brilliantly in this exercise, combining humor, rhythm and a solid plot. However, it is essential to think carefully about your project, which is clearly not the case with Joker: Folie à Deux. In this film, the musical pieces seem to be inserted at random, without any real connection to the story or the internal logic of the universe.

At times, the numbers seem like moments of madness set in a barely altered reality. At other times, they feel like gigantic daydreams, with flamboyant sets straight out of Broadway. These creative choices are perplexing. Singing songs is cute, but telling a story is better. If the Joker is not Fred Astaire, it is perhaps because he needs a real common thread to express his madness. The musical can work, but it is still necessary to capture its essence and integrate it in a coherent way into this universe so rich and complex.

#1 Catwoman's Squashed Cat Costume (Catwoman 2004)

From her first appearance in the comics to her graphic redesign by artist Jim Lee, Catwoman has had many different costumes. Sure, not all of them were in the best taste, but none were ever as disastrous as the one in the Catwoman movie,directed by Pitof and released in 2004. Obviously, the film is not good, but concretely, it was not the first disappointing film in the DC universe, and there have been many others since. However, if there is one element that immediately comes to mind when we think of this shipwreck, it is the heroine's costume. Vulgar, badly made, not really justified, this Catwoman costume is symptomatic of everything that goes wrong in the film. While Anne Hathaway's costumes in The Dark Knight Rises and Zoe Kravitz's in The Batman haven't really taken any real risks since then, they have at least prevented Catwoman from looking like a run-over cat, and that's already a lot.