We’ve got Batman ’66 coming out from DC Comics, and now Francesco Francavilla – one of our favourite artists on Behind the Panels – is introducing us to Batploitation with his fun concepts for Batman 1972.
The artist is known for his pulp-inspired artwork, most notably on his creator-owned Dynamite series The Black Beetle, and more recently on issues of Hawkeye. He has, of course, previous contributed to the Bat universe on Detective Comics with Scott Snyder and Jock.
The artist explains what inspired him on his Tumblr page:
I have been tinkering recently with a ElseWorlds story/take on Batman set in that 70s styling. So, from the pages of PULP SUNDAY, I give you BATMAN 1972!
To keep him in “the part”, my Batman smokes, wear a leather coat and a turtleneck, and drives a cool 70s BatMobile (an OldsMobile maybe? 😉 I still need to decide on brand and model.
Of course, as usually it happens in these cases, I start to flesh out all the other characters/stars of the story. Pictured above we have Selina Kyle, aka Foxy CATWOMAN, Lieutenant Jim Gordon (with period appropriate ‘stache ;)) and Ed Nygma AKA The Riddler.
Yes, you are witnessing the first case of BATPLOITATION. Hope ya dig it.
Are you watching DC? This needs to happen in a big way. In fact, why haven’t Batman and Gordon been chain smoking this entire time? It seems so obvious now.
Click on images to embiggen
