Batman has defended the helpless people of Gotham City against the Joker, Two-Face and the Penguin with his unmatched intelligence and shiny Bat-a-rangs. However, in 2007, Batman may be headed to Afghanistan to fight none other than Osama bin Laden in a graphic novel by graphic novel legend Frank Miller. The project will be titled, comically enough, "Holy Terror, Batman."
Batman is not the first to track down real life villains with his superhero skills. Superman and Captain America defeated Adolf Hitler in their novels. These heroes were our patriotic avengers against tyranny abroad. They could defeat any foe without much of a problem. They gave a fictional escape from the horror of World War II.
In real-life, however, we are having a problem finding our arch-nemesis, even with stealth technology and many lives lost. Osama bin Laden may be the conniving and heartless villain of the American world, but Batman will not be vanquishing him any time soon. The comic book can potentially be an oversimplification of events, trivializing a painful memory of Sept. 11, 2001. As 'emotionally raw" as Frank Miller wishes to make it, it is still a fictional character taking out a living, breathing human villain that represents evil for many Americans. Osama is not a figment of peoples' imaginations that can be defeated with some cool gadgets - he's a harsh American reality.
The theme of terrorism should not be swept under a rug when it comes to comic books altogether. Graphic novels are an important form of political commentary and satire. But Sept. 11 and Osama bin Laden are an undeniable part of many Americans' consciousness. Frank Miller should represent these themes with subtlety and respect. Batman has been able to fight terror groups in the past when their leaders have been named Ra's Al Ghul and the Joker. The Dark Knight doesn't have to head to Afghanistan to fight our true enemy in order to address the hidden wishes and inner turmoil of his fans.
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