A couple of days ago I decided to finally watch the special features on “The Dark Knight Rises.” While many of the featurettes are quite good, my favorite special feature was the Batmobile documentary. Seeing all five Batmobiles in one room was something special, and I even learned a thing or two about the creation of each car. For instance, I never noticed Vicky Vale takes off her shoes to get in and out of the car in 1989’s “Batman” because she chipped the paint. Or how during pre-production Batman’s ears were too long and got caught when he closed the canopy. The documentary is filled with tons of interesting information every Bat-fan should know.
I was also very happy the filmmakers interviewed comic book creators to talk about the Batmobiles in the comics. They talk about the classic Batmboile with the giant bat face on the hood, and how the tv show in the 1960’s influenced the car in the comics. They even mention Frank Miller’s version of the car in Dark Knight Returns, Which makes sense, since Miller’s design is so close to the Tumbler used in Christopher Nolan’s films. However, I was disappointed that my favorite version of the Batmobile was not included in the documentary.
I started reading comics in the late 1980’s, but the Batmobile in those days was a dull copy of the Adam west ride. But when I saw t the car pictured above, I was amazed. The early 1990’s version of the Batmobile was designed by artist Norm Breyfogle, who by the way, is my favorite Batman artist. There’s a couple of versions of the car, but this one was always my favorite. It looked like a spaceship on wheels, and I thought “Now that’s the car a billionaire would drive.” The Breyfogle car stuck around for a few years, until AzBats destroyed it during the KnightsEnd storyline. I was very sad to see it go, and none of the cars that have followed, have come close to matching this one.