Concept Art: Mr Freeze (and Bane, Batman, Batgirl) costumes

Last set of concept art for a while. First up we have some Mr Freeze costumes. Interesting to note that the initial idea seems to have been to cover his whole head in a glass helmet unlike the finished film.

NThen we have a quick sketch of one of Mr Freeze's goons.

Next up we have a sketch of Bane by Wil Rees.

Then another picture by Wil Rees of Batgirl wearing the slightly different "Ice" suit from the end of the film which included a cowl/helmet when she rode the bike.

And finally Batman in the "Ice" suit again by Wil Rees. Kind of looks neater here than it does in the finished film. Maybe having it been glossy and shiny like this would have improved the look slightly.

Concept Art: Poison Ivy costumes

This week we're taking a look at some of the concept art for Pamela Isley aka Poison Ivy. 

First up in a nice black and green design by Tim Burgard. 

Followed by a wild, spiky (and kinky) design by Miles Teves that would have surely caused a lot of parental complaints!

Then two by Wil Rees that more closely resemble the finished film (though I don't think Uma's nipples were that prominent).

And finally two entries by Susan Zarate. I really like these alot. The framed basque cleverly recalls the kind of trellis work you get in gardens. Again, maybe just a tad too sexy for a kids film.

Magazine Article: Sci Fi Universe July 97

Another magazine article this week. Apologies Sci Fi Universe has insanely small font but there's some good stuff in there including Val Kilmer explaining why he didn't come back for Batman & Robin.

Bizarrely the article finishes with a fictional chronology of what the Bat franchise would do in the then future of 1998, 1999, 2000 and beyond.

Concept Art: Batgirl costumes

Batgirl was a new character for Batman & Robin and there were some questions about what her costume should look like. The task was given to costume concept artist Miles Teves who produced these four wonderful and wild designs. 

In an interview even he admitted the boob window on the second was maybe a step too far. Obviously the cowl was dropped for the finished film in favour of a domino mask like Robin.

Those who are disappointed by the lack of yellow should check out the 2002 TV series Birds of Prey which sports the exact same costume with yellow highlights and a cowl.

Also Tim Burgard designed this costume that is also super interesting. It looks like he was going for a mix of leather, latex and (possibly) spandex. I particularly love the goggles over the eyes.

Book: Batgirl To Dare the Darkness by Doug Moench

Following on from the previous post I also have a scanned pdf of Doug Moench's tie in novel Batgirl: To Dare the Darkness.

For those who aren't aware Doug, like Alan Grant, was a writer on the DC comics Batman titles throughout the 80s and 90s. Together with Chuck Dixon and Graham Nolan he is credited with creating the character of Bane (I wonder what he thought of the film's loose interpretation of the character) and also wrote many classic stories including big chunks of the Knightfall saga and the popular Elseworlds story Batman & Dracula: Red Rain.

The story picks up after the events of the Batman & Robin movie and sees Barbara Wilson leave Batman and Robin and set up on her own in Gotham City feeling that she isn't needed or appreciated by the dynamic duo. She considers leaving the Batgirl persona behind (much like Robin did in Facing the Enemy) before reaffirming her vigilante commitments and going up against Black Mask (another character Doug created) and the False Face Society.

Enjoy!

https://archive.org/details/batgirl-to-dare-the-darkness

Book: Robin Facing the Enemy by Alan Grant

One of the cool (pun not intended) bits of spin off merchandise for Batman & Robin were the two novels Robin: Facing the Enemy and Batgirl: To Dare the Darkness that gave us a glimpse of what happens before and after the movie. 

Robin: Facing the Enemy was written by Scottish writer Alan Grant who was a prolific writer at DC. During the 90s he wrote almost every issue of the Batman: Shadow of the Bat title (which lasted 96 issues!). 

The story picks up shortly after the events of Batman Forever and sees Robin fall out with Batman (*groan* again) and leave Wayne Manor to live in Gotham City. He gets a job at a diner and ends up having to take down a wannabe villain who rather unimaginatively dubs himself " The Enemy". 

It's a fun, brisk story (98 pages) that reminds me of the Nightwing comics of the early 00s. If you want to give it a read, here's a link to a pdf:-

https://archive.org/details/robin-facing-the-enemy

Miscellaneous content: Batman & Robin Style Guide illustrations part 3

 This is a final batch of illustrations by José Luis García-López for the Batman & Robin Style Guide.