Bruce Timm's Excuse For Batman Having Sex With Batgirl Is That He's A "Bad Parent"

"We were aware that it's a little risky. There's definitely some stuff in that first part of the movie that's going to be controversial. Here's where we came down on that specific issue: It was really important to us to show that both of the characters make some pretty big mistakes. I mean, his parental skills aren't that great. Maybe never having had any kids of his own, he doesn't realize that if you tell a kid to not do something, they’re going to want to do it even more. And then she makes some mistakes and then he kind of overreacts to her mistakes and then she overreacts to his overreaction. So it's very human; it's a very understandable story. It's tricky because it's messy, because relationships are sometimes messy. But to me and to Alan and Brian, it was all very fascinating to us to explore that angle."

Bruce Timm on Origins of 'Risky' Batman-Batgirl Sex Scene in "The Killing Joke" | Comic Book Resources

So uh yeah... make of that what you will.

Talk about digging yourself deeper...

lol. Just lol.

This makes the whole thing even worse.

People are thinking too much about that one scene...

I'm losing respect for him now

I didn't have any problem with Bruce/Barbara pairing. I can see Bruce as a father to the Robins and Cass but not Barbara and Stephanie. But yeah Timm is just making up excuses now. I haven't watched it yet, I just hope it's good.

What a lame straw man excuse..lol..And anyways How old is Barbra supposed to be in that movie? Havent seen it yet.

I'm sort of baffled as to how bad of a job Brian Azzarello and Bruce Timm have done trying to explain that scene.

The pairing is just wrong in my opinion.

@dernman: Beyond did it first!

I hear that Azzarello called an audience member who didn't like it a pussy.

That would be Brian Azzarello.

edit: Brian Azzarello then, in typical form went onto twitter and dug himself deeper.

I know it did. It wasn't any better there either. After all the things he had to take from that he had to take the one thing most Beyond fans hated.

What are you people mad about? Why are you surprised?

Batman.is.a.weirdo.

He's not the apple pie American choir boy some derps think he is. The dude has problems, and he's more interesting because of them.

@youknowwhattodo: sigh, of course he did...

Devil's advocate here. It was a Bleeding Cool writer who threw out an accusation and ran away before he got a response and refused to repeat it. From what I understand he didn't fully hear the question but he got the tone.

@dernman: Yeah, I thought it was weird even as a kid. Really don't see why they felt it necessary to do in the Killing Joke.

I understood Azzarello's justification but it was still weak.

So was the movie good?

Why is Batman having spontaneous sex with his younger student anyways?

He's supposed to be a cornerstone of will power and self control, not a college professor from a porno.

That's what he says, but I have another theory: Timm sees himself as Batman and he wants to bang Barbara.

I'd say it's good once you get past the Batgirl prologue. This is coming from a guy who never read the comic before.

@xwraith: Nailed it. Especially considering this weird fetish goes back to TAS, lol.

I don't know about that. Yeah he's repping DC so he should act like a professional but I ask you this. If you're up on a panel defending something you did and some writer from a site that loves taking digs comes up to the mic and says something in a negative voice and walks away refusing to repeat himself, how would you react?

I might call him a pussy also. Then again it would be different if I was a professional which he's suppose to act like.

I don´t recall an specific age but she said she was a child when she heard about the joker

i'm not gonna say people are overreacting about the scene but I personally didn't see anything wrong with it outside of batman's role over her as a mentor figure. I never saw him as a second dad to her like he was to the robins. it was still a little creepy and weird to me sure but i'm not really upset by it like many other people are. and besides they both regretted doing it afterwards and Barbara even quit being batgirl altogether because of it.

I'm not quite sure what I would have called the person, may have sweared at them, but since I've never called someone a pussy...I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be that.

The thing is Brian Azzarello and the rest of the creative team behind TKJ adaptation were accused of portraying Barbara Gordon in a sexist way, so if there was ever a time in his life when he should't have been using a gendered-slur at someone...that would've been it. But since he did so, it would have been imperative for him to apologize, not justify.

Azz was talking about how they tried to make Babs seem stronger in the movie and the Bleeding Cool reporter shouted from the back "Yeah by making her pine after Batman for half the movie" and Azz asked "What was that?" and he didn't repeat so Azz called him a pussy. Or something along them lines.

lol

Yeah I don't follow PC or "right think".

What I heard was Azz was talking about Batgirl having more power and the BC writer said "yeah with sex" then walked away.

I follow "Common Sense" and had Brian Azzarello done the same, he would have been in a much better position.

He is making it worse, people's main argument in favor of this, is that Batman wasn't a paternal figure to Barbara and that Barbara is an adult. Now it seems that Timm intended it to be an almost pedophilic relationship.

Batman can be a parent and a sex-buddy at the same time. It isn't a new concept. Talia was both a parent figure and a lover to Robin.

I agree Bruce is a bad father (until he got to Damian... and even then he let him die) but that's no excuse

Good Sense > Common Sense

It might have saved him some trouble short term but I find not bowing to the control of modern PC "right thinking" culture something worth it.

Now having said that. I repeat he's a professional and should have acted like it. Even it the writer from BC didn't

Dick move...

@xlr87t3: So the king of will power and self control gives in to one of the most base and primal drives just because a young lady falls on top of him? Give me a break. Any sex outside of Catwoman and maybe Talia is OOC based on Batman's skills, and those two only get a pass because they are legitimate love interests.

Who cares it Talia did it, it's still dumb af.

@slayz:

So having self control and willpower means you're celibate? lol

No, Batman wanted to have sex with Babs. It has nothing to do with his leet skillzzz.

@slayz: I haven't seen the movie so I ask where did it happen? If it wasn't in private then that makes his loss of control all the more worse.

@dernman: She basically just tripped onto him and they started banging on a rooftop.

@sprior93: <----- A person with no degree of self control or willpower over his basic instincts and drives

And yes, it's a negative against Batman. Any rational person like him would have known the ramifications of having spontaneous sex with his younger student on a rooftop in the middle of Gotham. It's completely OOC for everything Bruce represents.

A rooftop? Geez

Sarcasm incoming. It's so like batman to leave himself exposed like that. Could only be made better if he took off his mask.