Batman & Robin: 25th Anniversary

General Discussion Movies & TV
21

Fun Fact: None of those puns are in the movie’s novelization. I read it during my Homeroom class in my Freshman year of high school (which began in fall of '97, so B&R was on my mind then), and I thought “No puns, but this would have made for one heck of a better movie.”

Also, don’t forget some of Ivy’s better lines, especially “I’ll help you grab your rocks.” Who knew Ivy was such a rockhound? :smirk:

On a different note, my earliest memory pertaining to Batman & Robin goes back to late 1995 when I was watching an episode of Extra.

In it, they reported that Batgirl was going to be in the next Batman movie (which wasn’t yet publicly known as Batman & Robin, just “the next Batman movie”), and as a big Batgirl fan, I was ecstatic to hear that news.

In 1996, rumors swirled online of Julia Roberts and Patrick Stewart playing Poison Ivy and Mr. Freeze. “Cool!” teenage me thought. I was a fan of Roberts then, and Poison Ivy hadn’t yet been in a LA production. Jean-Luc Picard is unequivocally the best commanding officer in Star Trek history and I loved Freeze from the Adam West Batman series and BTAS, so hearing Stewart could be a Batman heavy was exciting. “Batman & Robin is shaping up to be a pretty neat movie.” I thought.

Then there were rumors of Poison Ivy and Batgirl having a big, epic fight scene. “This movie is getting better and better!” I thought, in late 1996.

Batman & Robin is very likely the first comic-based movie I read rumors and news for online, to the extent of where my expectations for the movie were substantially high as a result of said rumors and news, only to be letdown by the final product.

In the 25 years since Batman & Robin came out, there have been many movies I’ve read about online and got excited for, only to ultimately be disappointed in (looking at you, Star Wars prequels), but Batman & Robin was the first of the “Based on what’s been said online, this movie is going to rock!” and “Man, that movie sucked.” class.

You never forget your first.

2 Likes
22

Same. This, Steel, and Spawn were the first I remember reading about online first.

2 Likes
23

Independence Day is the first overall movie I read about, and got excited for, online.

The hours I spent at the public library in early 1996 as I conducted “Independence Day movie info” searches on Infoseek (still the GOAT search engine)…good times.

The toy lines based on all three were also heavily discounted at Kay-Bee Toys, which is where I bought my first Batman & Robin figures, as Kay-Bee was the first place I found them at.

Sure, they were $7.99 a pop (as opposed to the regular $5.99 at other stores) but dang it, I was excited to see Batman & Robin toys on the shelf, and I had a decent amount of money from my grandparents, birthdays, allowance and what have you saved up that 14-year-old-me went ahead and happily paid two bucks more on each of the six figures I bought that late spring day in 1997.

2 Likes
24

Critically 1997 was the worst year for comic movies. I quite like B&R corniness these days. None of these films hold even a 20% on RT. Spawn was, to me, just bad. The hellscape effects were so awful.

2 Likes
25

Yeah, but as heavily flawed as they are, Batman & Robin and Steel are still fun.

Spawn? Well…it got points for trying. The scene where Spawn breaks through a glass ceiling, then descends into a crowd as his cape unfurls all over is still pretty cool.

While Steel, Batman & Robin and Spawn were missed opportunities, we at least got STAS for a better representation of Steel, Batman & Mr. Freeze: Sub-Zero for a better movie with everyone but Ivy and Bane and the Spawn TV series.

The best comic-based movie of 1997 in my four eyes was, and is, Men In Black.

“Get a decorator up in here, cuz damn!”

2 Likes
26

MiB is classic. It’s weird how many comic movies have been coming out for so long now. As a child, I was so disappointed in the output. Now I have no time, and have to be selective.

2 Likes
27

They’ve been coming out for as long as I’ve been into comics (33 years). I know not a world where comic movies are uncommon.

2 Likes
28

There were much fewer in the 80’s. Batman got things rolling. I’ve been a Kryptonian since I was just two.

2 Likes
29

Fate was most kind when it saw to me becoming a DC fan in '89, as the movies have always been part of my overall fandom.

What were you before? A clone? Be honest, now.

1 Like
30

I really did enjoy watching reruns of Batman TV series and its movie in the 80s, that was a huge deal for me, and the Superfriends as well. :grinning:
As for Christopher Reeves Superman, love watching it, General Zod was a scary Villain! :laughing:

2 Likes
31

Superman 2 was my movie as a kid. I loved it. Superman 3’s ending scared the hell out of me.

2 Likes
32

Gordon used to be like that?

I never read the comics of “Men In Black”, couldn’t find any.

2 Likes
33

I’ve never read them either, despite an occasional back issue bin dig while on the hunt for other books.

When it comes to toy lines based on comic movies released in 1997, Men in Black was the worst.

The figures were hideously pre-posed, looked nowhere remotely close to the actors and, perhaps the most egregious offense of all, Linda Fiorentino’s character didn’t get a figure. WTH, Galoob? :man_shrugging:t2:

Kenner made multiple Batgirl and Poison Ivy figures in their B&R line and Sparky in their Steel line, while McFarlane Toys made Jessica Priest in their Spawn movie line.

Bad form Galoob, bad form.

1 Like
34

Funny, the only thing I ever like about both Batgirl & Poison Ivy are the toys from this movie. :slightly_smiling_face:

1 Like
35

I was 14 when Batman & Robin came out, so while I wasn’t a fan of the characterizations of Batgirl and Ivy in the movie, teenage me found plenty of other things to enjoy. :wink:

Fun Fact: Kenner’s basic Batgirl figure was based on her initial costume design, which included a cowl.

By the time the suit had been changed for the movie, the figure was too far in the production process to be changed, so Kenner let it go as originally designed, much the same as what happened with the Transforming Dick Grayson figure in their Batman Forever line, two years prior.

1 Like
36

Until the 1970s, Gordon was very much like that. I would recommend reading a wonderful story from 1947, “Commissioner Gordon Walks a Beat!” Not only is it the first time that the poor Bat-Signal gets axed (literally), but it’s a pretty decent example of the kind of Gordon stories you could expect in the first few decades.

Patrolman Gordon

1 Like
37

I’m surprised there are no graphic novels of MiB.

Quite messed up there.

I’m still wait for an issue with DCUI to be fixed

2 Likes
38

I watched it the other day, and honestly, didn’t hate it on the rewatch.

Yeah, the puns are bad, but at least it was entertaining.

2 Likes
39

With all these comments, I’m starting to think Joel Schumacher didn’t really need to apologize for making such a entertaining film.
Sure it was bad, it did have some good moments, but it’s a ok movie. :chill:
It’s a shame that he passaway, not knowing that us fans are giving it another chance.
:thumbs_up_batman:

2 Likes
40

I’m curious. What don’t you like about Batman Begins?

1 Like