The way I see it this is the Golden Age of action figures.
I mean, never in my wildest childhood dreams did I ever
think I would see a Tars Tarkas figure. Or how about the Mole Man. Or the return of the 12
inch GI Joe. Or Moff Tarkin. Or...
You see my point.
We're living in a toygeek paradise with even the most
obscure characters getting thoughtful treatment in plastic and vinyl.
But what I really never thought I'd see is a character I
helped create get turned into not one but FOUR action figures!
When Graham Nolan and I started work on Vengeance of Bane
#1 we had the same wish for popularity for the big guy that any creator has for one of his
creations. And there was additional pressure on us in this instance because Bane was the
catalyst for the events that would take place in Knightfall; the biggest Batman crossover
that had ever been done. He would be the pivotal character that set in motion two years of
continuity on all the monthly Batman books.
If Bane didn't win the hearts and minds of the readers
then the whole deal was going to fall flat. And you loved him. You really loved him! He's
become a star in Batman's rogues gallery and certainly will be the most lasting
contribution I ever make to comics.
After more than ten years in the comic business I still
get giddy when I first see the xeroxes of my words turned into pictures by all the
talented artists I've had the good fortune to work with. But thanks to Bane I've seen
something I had a part in animated on the small screen and larger than life on the big
screen. And all of that is a kick.
But seeing him hanging in a blister pack at K-Mart tops all of that.
When my boys watch cartoons there's commercials for Bane;
commercials every bit as dopey as the ones that ran when I was a boy. My boys actually get
to play with something that first lived only in my mind. My eldest son, a five year old,
has taken to running around the house wearing one black glove and a tanktop proclaiming to
be Bane. At this point in his life he has no idea of his dad's connections to Santa
Prisca's most famous prisoner. He justs thinks Bane is "cool". I leven my pride
with the knowledge that he'll have to be dissuaded from choosing Bane as a role model.
And beyond the pencillers, inkers, letterers, colorists
and editors that are involved in the comics medium, Bane has been interpreted by
animators, sculptors, screenwriters, special effects technicians, directors and a small
army of other artisans.
All of this was a private joy for me. I felt like the toys
and trading cards and movies were something only Graham and I were aware of. I didn't
consider the fact that something we worked on is being thrust into popula culture as part
of a multi-million dollar publicity campaign.
Then I saw the trailer for "Batman and Robin"
when I went to the movies last March. It's toward the end of the trailer and a big
musclebound freak is deadlifting the Batsignal from the Police HQ roof a kid in the back
of the theater shouts out, "It's Bane!"
That's the first time I suspected that he might become a
household name somewhere other than my house.