Hopefully this is not out of scope for what James wanted with the readings, but I think it will be of interest to any of you with even a passing interest in storytelling, visual storytelling, animation, or... um... Batman. (Hey, the animation thing relates to the Time theme for Project 2! I just thought of that.)
Batman: the Animated Series was developed by Bruce Timm & Eric Radomski and ran from 1992 to 1995. It set Batman in a Gotham City was that was sort of outside of time -- Art Deco architecture, Prohibition-era style gangsters, and a near-complete avoidance of any mention of pop culture that would ground it in a specific time period (although the technology seen in the series indicates it's all modern). For me, at least, this series remains the "definitive" Batman.
This IS a 153 page document, but there's really not a ton of text in it, I swear!
What a terrific resource!
This is the way I think of Batman as well.
It has the best cast of any Batman in media. Kevin Conroy managed to make Batman and Bruce Wayne distinct without being laughable like Christian Bale. Mark Hamil's Joker is also the best representation.
It was great reading the Writer's Bible and thinking about how the actual aired episodes changed. It always amazes me that silly characters like Mr. Freeze were invested with such pathos in the cartoon.
We should have a movie night and watch Mask of the Phantasm or if pressed for time, Heart of Ice!