It is Batman. Please live with it. Be better than this, NYT Readers. Of all things to be angered about in the news, this is not one.
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If only George Gene Gustines had been able to write the Oct 31, 2016 NYTimes article titled, "Investigating Donald Trump FBI Finds No Clear Link to Russia."
Americans could have used that spoiler.
So...Batman and Catwoman finally got married? Not exactly earth-shattering news. These two characters have been dancing around each other for 80 years. I should know, because I collected comic books in my mis-spent youth. Their less-than-subtle flirtation always left me thinking, "Geez, you two, get a room already!"
This development opens up some interesting plot-lines for the writers. Selina Kyle is walking into a "blended family" situation that would terrify anyone. Not only does she have to deal with Bruce Wayne's emotional baggage (parents murdered in front of him when he was young), she has to figure out his adopted sons: Dick Grayson (Robin I, now Nightwing), Jason Todd (Robin II, killed by the Joker but magically resurrected as the Red Hood), and Timothy Drake (Robin III, now Red Robin).
Add to that Damien (Robin IV), Bruce's illegitimate son by Talia al Ghul, who does not feel the warm fuzzies towards Ms. Kyle. He was raised to be an assassin, and he's not adapting well to Batman's "superheroes do not kill" rule.
Then there's Alfred Pennyworth, the butler. He's the calmest one in this group of damaged souls. I'm sure he's happy that Bruce finally found someone, but he's probably also worried that sooner or later Selina will betray him. After all, she's a career criminal--a burglar and a thief. Has she really reformed, or is she playing "the long con" on Bruce? Stay tuned!
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New York Times Is THAT Friend
Your friend goes to a movie, and as his conversation starter says: "I just saw this movie where Bruce Willis plays a child psychologist who is also a ghost! It's called The Sixth Sense. You should go see it."
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I don't read comic books anymore, but they are a form of narrative entertainment, and why would you gratuitously spoil something like that, in a headline no less? You do realize why they're called "spoilers," right? Because they spoil the suspense and entertainment?
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Who was upset by a comic book spoiler? Children? Adults, who should have been over comic books for years now should be able to take this "upset" in stride.
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That's easy to say when you're not a retailer. DC Comics runs a co-op/cost sharing ad scheme with online and brick and mortar retailers for promoting DC titles. Imagine retailers paying for ads to get the fans into stores for this "wedding special," only for the NYT spoil the whole thing before it went on sale. The comic book industry is struggling, especially on the brick and mortar side. These retailers rely on these types of special story arcs: weddings, births, deaths of major characters, etc. to boost traffic in stores among casual fans like myself who seldom buy comic books. Revealing a major plot spoiler before release is going to affect sales. DC is already responding by allowing their co-op retailers to recoup their ad costs for Batman #50 to try to ward off law suits.
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It’s a comic. After decades, do you not think it’s time for a marriage
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What about Sluggo and Nancy?
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Did Catwoman sense something that Batman and his Boy Wonder partner of 80 years are in denial about?
Is the role of journalism to further the ends of the entertainment industry?
"Spoilers" exist only in entertainment, there are no spoilers in real life, there is just the existential inevitability of reality whether or not you are aware of it, whether or not you want to know.
And the inexorableness of reality is that Robin is never going to move out of Wayne mansion, and the Batcave was always going to be the private sanctuary of the Dynamic Duo.
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I must say, the NY Times is one of the worst publications ever when it comes to spoilers. I don't even read your movie reviews anymore because your reviewers seem to be incapable of reviewing a film without giving away every single plot point. A review and a summary are not the same thing!
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Reading this column the other day I mostly felt bad for all the people who wrote in to the NYT weddings section asking the Times to cover their wedding and got back a form letter: "No, sorry, there isn't enough space or reporter time available to feature your nuptials, but you may purchase an ad if you like."
And then those people open up the Weddings page on their wedding weekend just out of curiosity to see who else made the cut and, it turns out, Batman not getting married is more important than them. Ha ha, I'm guessing you lost a few subscribers there.
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