The first teaser trailer for The Batman gave the audience a glimpse at what the Riddler’s plans are, and underneath all the killing, he might be planning to be a better vigilante than Batman is. After a rough start that peaked with the underperformance of Justice League, DC’s Extended Universe is going through some big changes, including the proper introduction of the multiverse through the return of Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck as Batman in The Flash and the introduction of a new Caped Crusader in Matt Reeves’ The Batman, played by Robert Pattinson.
The Batman won’t explore the origin story of the title hero but it won’t feature an experienced Dark Knight either, as the DCEU previously did with Ben Affleck’s version in Batman vs Superman. Instead, the movie will focus on a younger Bruce Wayne who isn’t an experienced fighter nor a beginner either, but still has a lot to work on as both vigilante and detective. The Batman will include various villains, such as Selina Kyle/Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz), Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin, and Carmine Falcone (John Turturro), but according to Reeves, the movie’s primary protagonist will be Edward Nashton a.k.a. the Riddler (Paul Dano), as seen in the teaser trailer shared at DC FanDome.
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Though The Batman isn’t finished filming yet, as it had to be put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic, Reeves and company have enough material to build a teaser trailer that gave the audience a good idea of the tone the movie will have, along with a good, proper look at Pattinson’s Batsuit, Batmobile, and the aforementioned villains. At the front and center was the Riddler, who was shown killing a man and leaving a card with a riddle addressed to Batman. The Riddler’s intentions and plans remain to be seen, but judging by the footage in the trailer, his secret plan could be serving as a better vigilante than Batman has been to that point.
The Riddler’s Plan In The Batman
Gotham City stands out not just for having its own hero in Batman but also for being incredibly corrupt. This has been one of the main themes in the comics, TV shows, and movies about the Caped Crusader, and The Batman will address it as well. Right at the beginning of the trailer, the Riddler (looking very different than in the comics and previous adaptations) is shown killing a man in a very brutal way, and thanks to a board with various newspaper clippings, viewers can know that the man he just wrapped in duct tape and wrote “NO MORE LIES” over his face is Mayor Don Mitchell Jr. Based on the newspapers, Don Mitchell Jr. was re-elected for a third term, and there was surely a lot of corruption around that.
The Riddler, then, is going after police corruption, and won’t hesitate on killing (and torturing, if Don Mitchell Jr. was still alive underneath all that duct tape) the most corrupt people in Gotham. Of course, his reasons are currently unknown, but his violent actions might be triggered by Batman’s, which he finds not to be enough to fight the corruption that has plagued Gotham for so long, so he’s doing what the Batman is failing at.
The Batman Is Making Riddler A Better Vigilante
Vigilante by definition is a citizen who undertakes law enforcement in their community without legal authority, often because they find the legal agencies to be inadequate – the methods, however, depend on each person. Batman famously has a code of no killing (and no crime-fighting in the day), but that’s not a rule that vigilantes must follow, as seen with Oliver Queen a.k.a. Green Arrow in The CW’s Arrow. This makes it possible for the Riddler to be looking to become a better vigilante than Batman, and one who has zero rules about killing those he believes deserve some major punishment.
The Riddler, very well-aware of what Batman does and doesn’t do in his role as Gotham’s vigilante, knows where and how to strike, and so he goes after those the Dark Knight just won’t touch (for now, at least): politicians. The Riddler even says in the trailer “if you are justice, please do not lie. What’s the price for your blind eye?”, showing he’s not only taking matters into his own hands but he’s also challenging Batman, which could also explain the brutal fight with a member of a street gang, as a way for the Caped Crusader to show that he is the vigilante the city needs, not the Riddler.
How The Riddler Can Be An Inversion of Batman
Taking all this into account, fans have taken Reddit to share their theories on what the Riddler’s real plan in The Batman will be, and have come up with the conclusion that he will most likely be an inversion of Batman. One user points out a rumor that says Edward, just like Bruce, grew up as an orphan due to Gotham’s violence, but their upbringings were very different: while Bruce grew up in a mansion and with Alfred Pennyworth always looking after him, Edward grew up poor and most likely abused. As Batman isn’t doing his part well (to Edward’s eyes, that is) when fighting crime in Gotham, the Riddler would then start going on killing sprees targeting the most corrupt people in the city, while also taunting Batman through the riddles.
Matt Reeves made it clear that the Riddler in The Batman is one never seen before, and unlike the version prior to Dano’s (Jim Carrey’s in Batman Forever), it all points at it leaning more into his investigative skills and genius-level intellect, with a harsh backstory that has led him to commit a series of crimes. The Riddler would then be a dark mirror to Batman, having the same goal in mind (keeping Gotham safe and free of corruption) but by doing all those things the Caped Crusader has vowed not to do. If this turns out to be correct, it’s going to be interesting to see how the Riddler’s actions will impact Batman’s role as vigilante, who could be turning more violent as his work so far has made way for a serial killer. The Batman is definitely a different and darker version of the famous DC Comics character, and there’s a lot to discover about it and its characters, particularly the Riddler.
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