Todd, Matt :: Batman Unmasked

The Batman Unmasked by Dave Johnson

Artist: Dave Johnson (Penciller)

2 Comments - 1,169 Views - 4 Likes

The Batman Unmasked by Dave Johnson Comic Art

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Artwork Details

Title:	The Batman Unmasked by Dave Johnson
Artist:	Dave Johnson (Penciller)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Commission
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	1,169
Likes on CAF:	4 5
Comments:	2
Added to Site:	8/8/2022
Comic Art Archive:

Description

Dave Johnson The Batman Unmasked

I was very fortunate to make Dave Johnson's commission list at Baltimore Conic Con 2021. He unfortunately was unable to complete the piece by the end of the show. He more then made up for the wait with this Piece. It is no surprise to anyone that I was looking forward to The Batman just like I do every Batman movie. When Matt Reeves was announced as the director of The Batman I was thrilled. Reeves is a great director who impressed the hell out of me with Cloverfield and his Planet of the Apes films. He is a director whose films capture a perfect blend of spectacle and drama. This film has been a long time coming. The last solo Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises was released in 2012. Since then we have only seen Batman as a supporting character in ensemble films like Batman V. Superman and Justice League. Matt Reeves was announced as director in 2017. Five years later, at the DC Comics Fan Screening held around the country on March 1st, 2022, I finally was able to return to Gotham City and see The Batman. I went into my first screening of The Batman with very high expectations which were not only met but exceeded. The Batman is a film that delivered a version of Batman I have most wanted to see on the silver screen. The creation of Bill Finger and Bob Kane. Batman is a character who has endeared himself to me from the very beginning of my four decades. The first toy I explicitly remember getting was the Kenner Super Powers Batman figure for my fourth birthday. Tim Burton’s 1989 film Batman, means the world to me. It was my first serious introduction to the character of Batman. But more importantly it was something I remember bonding with my dad over. My dad enjoyed movies, but he was not one to get overly or even overtly excited for a movie. I remember clear as day watching the trailer on TV and when the incredible Anton Furst designed Batmobile is revealed my dad said with pure excitement in his voice “Aw, wow we have to see this movie!” Fast-forward to June 1989 my own Batmania officially began. I still remember running into Showcase Cinema West with my dad to make the show time. From the first frame I was hooked. This led directly to me to picking up my first comic. Batman #442 off the shelf of Phantom of the Attic in Parkway Center Mall. The cover drawn by George Perez featured Robin (Tim Drake) swinging towards us with the Batsignal shining bright, perfectly framing the Boy Wonder. It’s an iconic cover and I can easily see why my five-year-old self picked it up of the shelf even though the issue was not a new release. The comic was drawn by the incomparable Mr. Jim Aparo (my favorite Batman artist). Jim Aparo’s unmistakable style is, was, and will always be synonymous with my favorite storytelling medium and my favorite fictional character. Aparo’s style was a no-nonsense superhero style. His Batman was built more like a gymnast than bodybuilder, which lent to how Batman would move and fight. Aparo’s action and storytelling is still my favorite and epitomizes what comics are to me.
Since 1939 with his debut in Detective Comics 27 Batman has shown he can be anything, a pulp avenger, a dark knight detective, urban combat general, a batusi dancing pop icon, and everything in between so malleable he is practically indestructible. I have loved things about every live action Batman movie…. Batman Returns is my favorite of the Keaton movies, in this film Keaton felt more comfortable, and I felt he inhabited the character much better than the original. Val Kilmer was a good Batman and I would love to see the Schumacher Cut of Batman Forever. Even Batman and Robin has its charm. If you watch it as an updated reimagining of Batman ’66 it works surprisingly well. I would have loved to see Clooney in a more serious take on the character as I think he was well cast. Chris Nolan and Christian Bale’s Dark Knight Trilogy is a masterpiece. Then there is Ben Affleck, his take on an older Batman and Bruce Wayne akin to Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns was amazing and one of my favorites takes on the character. I would have loved to have seen him continue in the role and I would have been thrilled to see the version of The Batman he would have written and directed (DC Comics is leaving money on the table if they do not turn that script into a graphic novel). Later in 2023 we will see both Ben Affleck’s Batman take his final bow and Michael Keaton return for an encore run in the Cape and Cowl via The Flash and Batgirl. The Batman wears its influences on its cape, Reeves film is a modern horror noir in the vein of Seven, Zodiac, Chinatown, The French Connection, and LA Confidential. Matt Reeves masterfully constructs a film that has everything I ever wanted in a Batman story, regardless of the medium. It honors many of my favorite creators who worked with the character. I am so grateful to Dave, and Jason at Essential Sequential for all their great work.

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	Matt Todd Premium Gallery Owner
Joined:	August 2014
Last Login:	September 2025
Country:	UNITED STATES
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Earl Hamilton
Member Since 2009

Posted on 8/8/2022

GREAT PICK -UP and the narrative was such a treat to read as I have loved Batman as my favorite charecter for over 50 years. Thanks for sharing your commission and your words.

F M
Member Since 2005

Posted on 8/9/2022

Excellent!

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