Batman: The Cult

A.J. Trillzynski
A.J. Trillzynski Members Posts: 2,270 ✭✭✭✭✭
edited August 2012 in Quite Comical
"The Dark Knight Will Yet Rise From the Ashes of Defeat"
- Batman: The Cult book 4: Combat

*spoilers*
there's been a lot of discussion and lazy articles posted around the internet lately about what comic stories influenced the Dark Knight Trilogy. they all cite Year One, The Long Halloween, The Killing Joke, Knightfall, The Dark Knight Returns and No Man's Land, obviously enough. unfortunately the one consistency i've noticed is that every one ignores possibly the most influential Batman story arc of all time after Dark Knight Returns - Batman: The Cult.

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it's everywhere now, too many damn so-called comic book readers faking the funk, not bothering to really know their ? , and it's a shame. any serious long time reader of Batman comics will tell you that The Cult is easily one of the most controversial and influential stories of all time. In addition to it's classic status in the comic mythology, The Cult has some obvious influences on The Dark Knight Rises, as well as the other two films. It's well known that Jonathon and Chris Nolan read a ton of Batman literature when writing each film, so it's highly doubtful that they didn't read this story.

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The Cult is the original Knightfall - the first time the Bat was broken, the Bane characterization from TDKR definitely had elements of Deacon Blackfire, the religious cult leader that takes over Gotham in The Cult. Maybe it's because The Cult is really that influential that it's too easy to just point to the stories it has influenced as the source material for the Dark Knight Trilogy - in reality No Man's Land is just a drawn out, watered down version of The Cult and The Killing Joke lifted it's theme of breaking a person's psyche and turning a good citizen insane from The Cult as a way to give The Joker his long overdue frightening, dark edge.

when this story was first released in 1988, written by Jim Starlin and pencilled by Bernie Wrightson, it was the most violent, disturbing and horrific mainstream comic ever published. The vast majority of these panels aren't found online and i wouldn't want to post them here anyway to spoil anyone. After reading Batman for more than 25 years though, i still can't think of a more horrific tale than The Cult - this was truly controversial for it's time, and highly influential in blazing a path for mature reading infused with the GOAT mainstream hero.

(this ain't ? , but only thing i could find to give you an idea)
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the Tumbler was not the first time Batman was depicted using a vehicle more closely resembling heavy armor than a Batmobile. when i first saw the Tumbler in Batman Begins, i thought of this:

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you're likely to not have any reason to care about Jason Todd, or his death and return, without reading this story. This was Jason's finest hour.
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In the story a seemingly immortal and highly charasmatic cult leader builds an army out of the homeless, druggies and criminals of the city in the sewers, capturing them and brainwashing them one at a time. he emerges into the mainstream diguised as a priest and gains support of about half of the city's media and population through his supposed efforts to eliminate crime, since basically overnight all the pimps, druggies, homeless and criminals turn up missing. before anybody knows what's really going on he blows up the bridges and siezes control of the city establishing himself as automous ruler of Gotham, although his secret wish is just to destroy the city forever. sound familiar yet? in the meantime Batman is captured undergound and completely starved, broken and brainwashed. he must escape Gotham in complete dispair before rebuilding himself and then must storm the city to single handidly take down Blackfire's army.

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i think that if there is one story that has the single most influence on the Dark Knight Trilogy it's The Cult - and so i encourage this to be read by fans of the films as essential reading. in Batman Begins the theme of fear and overcoming fear as the true origin of Batman has roots in The Cult. here's a quote:

"I've been fooling myself all these years.. always claimed I became the Batman to avenge the death of my parents .. to fight crime. That was a lie. I really did it to overcome the fear."

i won't give anything else away, and i've hardly given away anything at all - unfortunately i can't find any of the best scenes online - but you will see the influence of this story on all 3 films when you read it. and if you've read this classic story, well good for you, Batman fan - you're on your ? . let's discuss....

Comments

  • A.J. Trillzynski
    A.J. Trillzynski Members Posts: 2,270 ✭✭✭✭✭
    The Cult ….must read Batman stories …
    the-cult-6.jpeg

    By all appearances in 1988, Batman: The Cult was going to be a good, but standard, Batman tale. It begins with Batman abducted, a prisoner of charismatic Deacon Blackfire and his subterranean band of homeless followers. Kept hanging for weeks and barely fed, Batman slowly succumbs to Blackfire’s brainwashing. Yes, even the Batman can be broken and Blackfire does just that.

    Starlin makes certain we catch every moment of Batman’s indoctrination into the cult, for the explanation of how Batman’s will is being worn down to the Dark Knight’s vivid hallucinations. Blackfire preaches justice, speaks the same message as the Batman, but says that brutality is the only way. It takes time, but Batman comes to agree with that position. After all, how could anyone doubt Deacon Blackfire ?

    The controversy comes, in part, from the murder — the one Batman apparently commits. Armed with a machine-gun and hallucinating, Batman opens fire on what he thinks is the Joker. The dying man then changes to look like James Gordon and finally the truth is revealed. However, the murder is shown in such a fashion to one could argue Batman didn’t actually do the killing. But those are just the ? unable to accept the truth — Batman murdered a man while under the influence of a cult, incapable of controlling his actions or trusting his own senses.

    The Cult is a brutal, dark story, but it’s absolutely enthralling. There’s perhaps a bit too much reliance on talking head news reports that look and feel too similar to The Dark Knight Returns, but overall this is a well-told mini-series. Batman has rarely been pushed to these limits and it’s refreshing to see that it’s not some hokey plot involving people from Bruce’s childhood. This is Batman at his lowest and it takes a good 50 pages for him to recover even after he’s free of the cult.

    Interestingly, The Cult also features Jason Todd as Robin and is most likely the only Todd trade outside of A Death in the Family. For once he’s not annoying. This is certainly his strongest performance, one last hoorah before death.

    This is Starlin and Wrightson at their finest. While everyone clamors to read Year One and The Long Halloween, comic fans should take the time to pick up Batman: The Cult. This is easily one of the best Batman stories every told.
  • nujerz84
    nujerz84 Members Posts: 15,418 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited August 2012
    bow my head in shame...
  • A.J. Trillzynski
    A.J. Trillzynski Members Posts: 2,270 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited August 2012
    finally found an article referencing this connection to the movie.. and damn didn't even catch the Gordon scene in the hospital, that is almost directly out of the comic

    Comic Influences on The Dark Knight Rises
    Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises (2012) features many references to the Batman comics. In some cases these are elements adapted directly from the source material. In other instances they're elements subverted to manipulate audience expectations. What follows is an overview of some of the references we spotted in the movie. A more comprehensive analysis may be forthcoming once the film is available on DVD. But for now, here are some of the connections between Christopher Nolan's third and final Batman film and the source material that inspired it

    The film has parallels with The Cult (1988), most notably with regards to the villain recruiting an army of transients in the sewers beneath Gotham. The villains execute influential citizens and hang dead bodies in public as a warning to others.

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    Batman is captured by the villains and broken, both mentally and physically.
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    Bruce eventually escapes and leaves Gotham. He remains in exile for a prolonged period of time, leaving the city under the governorship of his enemies while he physically and mentally recuperates from his ordeal. He then trains himself in preparation to return, and we are told: "The Dark Knight will yet rise from the ashes of defeat."
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    The scene where Bruce visits Gordon in hospital might be another reference to The Cult.
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  • A.J. Trillzynski
    A.J. Trillzynski Members Posts: 2,270 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited August 2012
    so looks like people are starting to wise up, here's from an article posted on mtv.com just today:

    'Dark Knight Rises' Reading: 10 Stories That Inspired Christopher Nolan's Trilogy

    by Ryan Rigley

    In 2005, Christopher Nolan launched what is now considered the definitive Batman movie franchise with "Batman Begins." Now, with "The Dark Knight Rises" currently in theaters, Nolan's "Dark Knight" trilogy has finally come to end. But just because there won't be any more "Dark Knight" movies, doesn't mean that there isn't a ton of source material to start checking out!

    One thing that the Nolan-verse did so well was capture the gritty realism of the Caped Crusader that we all know and love, while remaining true to his comic book origins. In fact, it seems like Nolan and his writers did a pretty extensive amount of research in order to create three Batman films that fans of the comic books can actually appreciate as well. With that said, here's our list of the ten Batman stories that most influenced the "Dark Knight" trilogy!

    (#8) "The Cult"
    One of the bleakest Batman stories ever written, "The Cult" sees the Caped Crusader being beaten, captured, and brainwashed by a crazed clergyman called Deacon Blackfire. During this story, Commissioner Gordon is left to recover in a hospital after being attacked by Blackfire's followers and the class warfare that ensues in the latter half of the story is quite reminiscent of "The Dark Knight Rises."


    http://splashpage.mtv.com/2012/08/03/dark-knight-trilogy-christopher-nolan-comics/