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The Evolution of the BatMobile
The Evolution of the BatMobile
Batmobile
It all started with a simple red car with no special powers or cool gadgets. It was just your average automobile used for transporting your average super hero. That was way back in Issue #27 of Detective Comics… the very issue with the first Batman story.
By the time Batman #5 rolled off the presses, the Batmobile had grown fins, turned a much darker color and was featuring a large bat hood ornament.
The 1966 TV version was actually a 1954 failed Ford Concept car called the Lincoln Futura. The car was so old that it repeatedly overheated, suffered through dead batteries and blown tires. Not exactly up to the cool car image projected on the campy TV Show.
For the Two Tim Burton directed Batman Movies, a revised version of the Chevy Caprice and Buick Riviera was used. Mr Burton also insisted that every gadget on the car be fully operational including the rocket boosters.
What a Car!
By the time Batman Forever hit the screens the cost of the BatMobile had risen to $1,000,000 and the speed decreased to a maximum of 30 miles per hour. Due in part to the increased weight and outlandish design.
The beginnings of the tank design arrived with Batman, the Dark Knight Returns. This armor plated BatMoblie came complete with rocket launchers and tank treads instead of tires.
BatMobile Tank
Although never officially referred to as the BatMobile, The Tumbler appears to be the ultimate in BatMan transportation. More along the lines of the Dark Knight Returns tank then the earlier outlandish car designs, it was built from scratch in the United Kingdom.
The Tumbler was designed to resemble a crouching bat and is by far the most versatile of all the previous Bat Vehicles. Without a front axle it was supposedly built using a prior military design.
One thing is clear, as times change and new movies are released with new Directors at the helm, the Batmobile will also continue to evolve and change.
If it follows the same vein as the Batman Beyond animated series, then we should be in for a real treat, as that series featured a flying BatMobile.
Regardless of the many flaws, the legend of the Batmobile will continue and it will remain on the all time Cool Cars of Movies list thanks to the fantasies of 10 year old boys everywhere.