From Gotham City to NYC

For 75 years, Batman has lead Gotham City’s crusade against injustice and the tyranny of villains. In the aftermath of 9/11, is it possible the Dark Knight could also save the United States; this time for real? 

Is Batman real? You’ll either scoff or raise an eyebrow at that question. If you’re a research academic, however, your response may come in the form of another question: What do you mean by ‘real’?.

PhD candidate Chris Comerford is asking (and attempting to answer) this question through his research. The young academic and graphic novel enthusiast is exploring whether the Batman franchise may offer a more realistic and nuanced view of America than other popular culture.

Comerford explains, “Batman offers a realistic portrayal, or a gothic mirror and representation of the real-world United States – a nation fuelled by fear and responses to criminality, that sometimes resorts to extraordinary measures to ensure security.”

In his research, Comerford explores critiques of America's 'imperialism’ in response to multiple attacks, including on the Twin Towers, on 11 September 2001. With no shortage of academics and pop-culture examples to draw from – Batman stories appear in comics, video games, television shows, movies, web clips and more – Comerford argues Batman offers an implicit critique worthy of more attention.

“There are no Batman stories that directly engage with 9/11, in contrast to Captain America who does have stories like that. There are stories where there are links to these problems but articulated through the superhero story genre. My thesis is teasing out those elements.” 

Comerford's desk. Photo by: Shane Lo

As an example, Comerford cites stories where the Riddler takes control of all the cameras and screens in the city, drawing parallels with issues of increased domestic surveillance in the United States.

Though a self-described prolific reader, Comerford says it was Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster hit, The Dark Knight, which first enticed him to explore the world of Batman.

“I only got heavily into comics when I saw The Dark Knight. Most of my Batman experience until then had been really trashy. I was watching it going, ‘This is a really good film, this is a really good Batman film and this is a really good film even if it didn't have Batman in it.'”

Part of the appeal, he says, was the representation of shades of grey in Batman’s moral decisions. “One of the things that's always defined Batman as a character is that he is not easily transfigured into a binary; he has always been a bit ethically questionable. Even though he does all these things with good intent, he shirks the law and there's always this grey area.”

While there are other notable ‘Batman experts’ who have taken a critical look at the franchise, Comerford’s parallels with domestic horrors after 9/11 is bringing a new angle to the conversation.

“Batman comics look at issues of domestic surveillance, international efforts against terrorism, curtailing of civil liberties, without attacking them. These stories engage with them in a complex manner and that’s in direct contrast to a lot of contemporary pop-culture that seeks to dilute a lot of the conflict into a binary ‘good’ or ‘bad’.”

It’s this ‘shades of grey’ approach to topical issues that Comerford argues makes Batman a realistic reflection in pop-culture of the state of post-9/11 America.

As a finalist in last September’s UTS Three Minute Thesis competition (3MT), it’s perhaps unsurprising that Comerford hopes the implications of his research will reach beyond the academic realm. “I like that comics are able to do some things that novels can't in being able to use visual shorthand to convey ideas.

“I'd like people to start thinking about some of those issues within the popular culture they are consuming and not just blithely consuming it because it is popular. I’d like them to consume it, in part, because it has greater sub-textual and critical value.”

It’s something Comerford, a Casual Academic in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, brings into his Language and Discourse classes.

“A lot of the ideas we are dealing with work really well when synthesised with pop-culture. The students really engage with popular culture examples as conveyors of meaning and that really seemed to prove what my research is saying.”

It’s also one of the reasons he enjoyed competing in the 3MT. “It was very fun and very helpful having to synthesise my research into a three-minute presentation.

“I've been writing this draft for 14 months and it’s easy to get lost in your research and what your thesis is meant to look like. You can follow ideas and lose sight of the bigger picture. Doing the Three Minute Thesis, I got the sight of the bigger picture back again.”