Wow, that green lizard-like coloring on Harvey's bad side is just abhorrent. A fleshier pink/red/purple tone might have worked as the pencil's aren't too bad, but the color just looks goofy beyond anything I can appreciate.
How would you feel about Cyborg being replaced with Batman in this story? While there would have been some practical issues to overcome, I feel as if that would have given the story a stronger emotional core as well as more mainstream recognition. It also would make much more sense for Harvey to try and teach Batman lessons in moral nihilism than the epitome of randomness that is rigging a super elaborate, constantly monitored scavenger hunt for freakin' Cyborg from scratch in just a few hours... Just replace Cynthia with someone from the Bruce Wayne Back Catalogue of Dating and focus on Batman's status as a probable urban legend with a doubtful status as threat or menace among Gotham's citizens instead of Vic doubting his place among humanity (which, with the metal face and all, I'll admit is a lot closer to Harvey's situation though) and I think it could work.
The thing is, though, Batman already knows what it's like to scare everybody. He's used to it. Moreover, he wants it - even in the Bronze Age, intimidation was still a major part of his thing. Furthermore, he is also really good at not being seen if he doesn't want to, whereas Two-Face's whole plan here revolves around Cyborg being a bit clumsy when it comes to breaking into places, given that he's a newby at it. Bats could do that whole thing with no more than a whisper of his cloak, and the plan wouldn't work at all. Also, there's a thematic match with Cyborg that you don't get with Batman. Beyond the obvious fact that Cyborg has half his face missing while Batman doesn't, Vic Stone is, like Harvey, a guy who's gone through disfiguring trauma and come out the other side changed by it - only while Harvey became an insane criminal, Vic became a clean-cut and well-loved superhero. Sure, Two-Face has some deep thematic links to Batman; that's what makes him such a good Bat-villain, but in terms of this particular story, he's trying to show a man who is superficially very similar to him that his own path is better. Cyborg fits the bill in that regard much better than the Bat would. And so far as randomness goes, surely Two-Face is all about the randomness? He doesn't make rational decisions; he makes irrational ones based on his coin - random chance is behind just about everything he does. He would therefore strike me as exactly the guy who'd set up a plan this elaborate based solely on a chance similarity between him and a guy he's watching on TV - if the coin tells him to do it, he'll do it.
Batman doesn't have the same self-image issues to overcome that Victor does, though, nor does Bruce particularly want any attention at all, especially not adoration from the public. In this story, Harvey forces Cyborg to live in the shadows and to terrorize people by letting their imaginations run wild. Batman THRIVES in that environment.
Now, that's not to say that this story couldn't be done with Bruce, but it would be very different in execution and only barely recognizable with this one. Harvey would probably have to strike at the heart of Batman underneath the cowl, to somehow exploit Bruce's own duality and double lives, and play with the idea that the tragedy in Bruce's life might--under another set of circumstances--have resulted in him being no different than Two-Face.
Of course, it would be damn hard to do this story without Harvey discovering that Bruce and Batman are one and the same. Otherwise, it might be too hard to pull off without it turning into Batman: Jekyll & Hyde all over again, and no one wants that. Well, except maybe Paul Jenkins.
How would you feel about Cyborg being replaced with Batman in this story? While there would have been some practical issues to overcome, I feel as if that would have given the story a stronger emotional core as well as more mainstream recognition. It also would make much more sense for Harvey to try and teach Batman lessons in moral nihilism than the epitome of randomness that is rigging a super elaborate, constantly monitored scavenger hunt for freakin' Cyborg from scratch in just a few hours... Just replace Cynthia with someone from the Bruce Wayne Back Catalogue of Dating and focus on Batman's status as a probable urban legend with a doubtful status as threat or menace among Gotham's citizens instead of Vic doubting his place among humanity (which, with the metal face and all, I'll admit is a lot closer to Harvey's situation though) and I think it could work.
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Also, there's a thematic match with Cyborg that you don't get with Batman. Beyond the obvious fact that Cyborg has half his face missing while Batman doesn't, Vic Stone is, like Harvey, a guy who's gone through disfiguring trauma and come out the other side changed by it - only while Harvey became an insane criminal, Vic became a clean-cut and well-loved superhero. Sure, Two-Face has some deep thematic links to Batman; that's what makes him such a good Bat-villain, but in terms of this particular story, he's trying to show a man who is superficially very similar to him that his own path is better. Cyborg fits the bill in that regard much better than the Bat would.
And so far as randomness goes, surely Two-Face is all about the randomness? He doesn't make rational decisions; he makes irrational ones based on his coin - random chance is behind just about everything he does. He would therefore strike me as exactly the guy who'd set up a plan this elaborate based solely on a chance similarity between him and a guy he's watching on TV - if the coin tells him to do it, he'll do it.
Reply
Now, that's not to say that this story couldn't be done with Bruce, but it would be very different in execution and only barely recognizable with this one. Harvey would probably have to strike at the heart of Batman underneath the cowl, to somehow exploit Bruce's own duality and double lives, and play with the idea that the tragedy in Bruce's life might--under another set of circumstances--have resulted in him being no different than Two-Face.
Of course, it would be damn hard to do this story without Harvey discovering that Bruce and Batman are one and the same. Otherwise, it might be too hard to pull off without it turning into Batman: Jekyll & Hyde all over again, and no one wants that. Well, except maybe Paul Jenkins.
Reply
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