Five Worlds of Batman

I've written at least a couple of times that The Hayfamzone Blog is intended to be a reader's blog, and that's why I choose not to embed images in the postings. Sometimes I do massage the edges of the phrase "reader's blog" a bit by giving you links to videos, but to date only one Hayfamzone Blog reader has registered a complaint with me that I hadn't been providing him with enough to read (and, on the other hand, more than one reader wrote in thanking me for the recent links to the vintage Fox and Crow cartoons).

So you might wonder if I get in trouble when my blog post consists mainly of video links rather than my usual thought-provoking and well-reasoned treatise on some interesting aspect of the world of comics. Emphatically, the answer is NO! In fact the Board of Directors of the Hayfamzone encourage me to jettison the boundaries of the format on any occasion when I believe that doing so will be in the best interest of the blog's (ahem) readers.

What I feel the need to share with you at this time are five interrelated videos having to do with the upcoming Batman movie, The Dark Knight. Maybe you've already seen the trailer for it in theaters, but I would ask you to devote 2 minutes and 7 seconds to watch it again because this video provides the baseline of comparison for the four that will follow. To give it a name, I'll call this video The First World of Batman.

It's nice. I like it.

Some other people with a lot of time on their hands like it also, and they altered that trailer in interesting ways to create new videos. Each of these individuals kept the exact same audio track, but paired the audio with different video images.

Creator I used clips from Tim Burton's 1989 Batman film, including Jack Nicholson as The Joker. Please watch The Second World of Batman.

Creator II used clips from the 1966 Batman TV show and film, including Cesar Romero as The Joker. Please watch The Third World of Batman.

Creator III used clips from 1992's Batman The Animated Series (one of my favorite television cartoons of all time, by the way). Please watch The Fourth World of Batman.

Creator IV did something a little different, and this video is my favorite of the bunch. What could it be? Please watch and enjoy The Fifth World of Batman.

And let's see if I can't get back on the horse and give you something to READ the next time you visit!