"Legends of the dark night" ANIMATED SERIES, & eileen meehan's "holy commodity fetish, batman!"
In Eileen Meehan's essay, "Holy Commodity Fetish, Batman!", Batman is described as not only a comic and tv hero, but as a business project. It was interesting to read into the Batman world in terms of the media and production, and how it is clouded with experience and emotions in order to be sold.
This article, in a way, kind of made me upset. There are many good stories out there that may deserve to be told but don't have something that can be sold to a target audience. However, as Eileen explains, that is the 'show business'.
Watching "Legends of Dark Night" in class, I can see exactly what Meehan is saying. The Dark Night imagined in Frank Miller's story was much darker, a dystopian society where the real image of Batman is seen. In the cartoon, everything is 'kid-ified', which, in term, makes the feel very different. However, the cartoon played with different drawing styles to introduce the feel that the comic gave, but I can see what Meehan means in terms of a target audience and production. It was obvious that this animated series was targeted more to kids. Then, there are Batman video games, like Arkham City, with much more mature content that really is catered to the gaming industry, and not only is the Batman concept cool, but the actual game controls are fun as well. Batman is an idea, a concept that is a big money maker and therefore can be sold in different mediums knowing that Batman, himself, will sell if he is printed on and in these different mediums.
Speaking of Batman with friends is, as Meehan states, a cultural experience. But she dives deeper, claiming that this cultural experience is not continued or driven by the puffy emotions, but rather the business and profit-oriented gain behind it. Very interesting article. Kind of upsetting to think about, in terms of business being more important than emotional resonance, but that's reality I guess.
This article, in a way, kind of made me upset. There are many good stories out there that may deserve to be told but don't have something that can be sold to a target audience. However, as Eileen explains, that is the 'show business'.
Watching "Legends of Dark Night" in class, I can see exactly what Meehan is saying. The Dark Night imagined in Frank Miller's story was much darker, a dystopian society where the real image of Batman is seen. In the cartoon, everything is 'kid-ified', which, in term, makes the feel very different. However, the cartoon played with different drawing styles to introduce the feel that the comic gave, but I can see what Meehan means in terms of a target audience and production. It was obvious that this animated series was targeted more to kids. Then, there are Batman video games, like Arkham City, with much more mature content that really is catered to the gaming industry, and not only is the Batman concept cool, but the actual game controls are fun as well. Batman is an idea, a concept that is a big money maker and therefore can be sold in different mediums knowing that Batman, himself, will sell if he is printed on and in these different mediums.
Speaking of Batman with friends is, as Meehan states, a cultural experience. But she dives deeper, claiming that this cultural experience is not continued or driven by the puffy emotions, but rather the business and profit-oriented gain behind it. Very interesting article. Kind of upsetting to think about, in terms of business being more important than emotional resonance, but that's reality I guess.