Posted by morph at proxy3.denver1.co.home.com on November 18, 2001 at 19:02:02:
Alex Ross had asked a question in a conversation about his excellent piece "Batman-War on Crime", (I'm paraphrasing) 'Would there be a Batman if Bruce Wayne had not had the resources available provided by his wealth?' It was a very interesting question that I thought would open up the floodgates to reasoned debate and a few wonderful Elseworld offerings. Alas, it seems the only answer that came was a half hearted one shot by Stan The Man that reduced the Dark Knight Detective to a misunderstood and wrongly jailed street tuff with the lamest of character development. The story of an Elseworld's Batman that is Black could have been so dynamic and sweeping. It could have answered the question Alex Ross asked without forgetting that Batman is more man than vigilante, more detective than muscle and much more concerned about justice being served than vengeance being doled out. I have a few ideas and would like to talk about this subject with anyone who has an interest.