There is, at this point, enough Batman media to cover every tone, genre, theme, character interaction, and concept tangentially connected to the franchise in great detail. With that vast ocean of content, the upcoming and never-ending influx of new additions to the Caped Crusader’s mythos have plenty to pull from.
After the overwhelming success and excellent reception of Matt Reeves' new filmThe Batman, sequels, and spin-offs are on everyone’s mind. There have been two spin-off series announced so far, one centered onColin Farrell’s take on the Penguin, and the other which was originally set to focus on the Gotham City Police Department.
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Reeves recently detailed the ways in which the supposedGCPD series has been retooledto focus on a different element of the Batman mythos. The series will now center on Arkham Asylum, the famed mental institution which is the typical home of most of Batman’s rogues gallery. Most big-time superheroes have a dedicated bad guy storage facility or two. The minor criminals of Gotham head to Blackgate Penitentiary, but those who are considered mentally unwell are sent to Arkham. The facility has rarely been depicted as a well-functioning or particularly empathetic organization. More often than not, it’s a place of torture rather than anything resembling a medical institution. Arkham wascreated by H. P. Lovecraftbefore it was adopted by DC Comics, and the newest film renamed the famous locale Arkham State Hospital.
Arkham is a key part of the Batman lore, but its place in the big-screen adaptations has been very minor. Most of the directors who got their hands on Batman took a brief detour to the Asylum, usually just to drop off a defeated bad guy, but they rarely linger.Batman Beginssaw Scarecrowperforming his experiments when he was a psychiatrist at Arkham, spending a fair amount of time in that grim establishment. The upcoming series will almost undoubtedly be the most in-depth exploration of the location on-screen thus far. Reeves' take on Arkham will almost certainly be new, but he has notably taken from anumber of comic book sourcesforThe Batman. He’ll likely draw from more favorites to bring his Arkham series to the screen, but of the million options, there’s one that would be the perfect source.
Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earthwas released in 1989, written by comic book legend Grant Morrison and illustrated by Dave McKean. Morrison is extremely well-respected amongst comic fans for works likeAll-Star SupermanandAnimal Man. McKean is a multitalented artist who has workedextensively with Neil Gaimanand directed films likeMirrorMask. Perhaps the best-selling and most well-respected graphic novel of all time,Arkhamis considered one of the fundamental pieces of the Batman canon. Among the mountains of praise, the work has received and earned, it’s unquestionably the most striking portrayal of Arkham Asylum ever created. The big problem with the work is that it’s popularly considered unadaptable.
The hit gameArkham Asylumis loosely based around the graphic novel, as were aspects ofBatman Begins. The reason that those adaptations are very loose, is that a strict adaptation is essentially impossible. The story is emotionally devastating, raw, harsh, well-delivered, but ultimately heartbreaking. It’s a no-frills descent into the madness that illuminates everyone’s favorite superhero.
The plot is fairly straightforward: Joker calls up the Bat and informs him he’s taken the staff hostage and won’t release them unless he comes by to visit. Joker and a cast of fellow villains haunt the halls as Batman uncovers the dark history of the Asylum and the darkness of his own soul. A strict game adaptation of the text would feel more likeAmnesiathan any superhero action title. A strict film adaptation would be a haunting psychological horror story that tangentially features DC Comics characters. Luckily, it seems like that’swhat Reeves is going for.
The artwork ofArkhamcan be described simultaneously as beautiful and revolting. The harsh colors, the lack of concern for human shape, the maddening panels, the nightmarish redesigns of every character all blend to create something wonderfully unpleasant. Translating its particular design work and McKean’s mad sensibilities to the screen would be a Herculean task. The thing Reeves and company need to take fromArkhamisn’t the design, and it certainly isn’t the narrative. It’s the tone, the symbolism, the psychological elements, and the unapologetically horrific presentation that this show needs.Reeves' take on Gotham Cityand Batman has likely been the darkest that film audiences have seen. Borrowing fromArkhamwould be a new level, even for him.
Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earthis an excellent piece of the Batman mythos and fans everywhere would be ecstatic to see an on-screen work heavily inspired by it. Hopefully, the creators can continue to find the best parts of the source material and elevate it beyond its bounds.
