1. Bruce Wayne... Dead Or Alive?
For my money, this was the greatest shot of The Dark Knight Trilogy. Bruce Wayne finally happy, victorious, and free of the burden of being Batman. To top it all off, he was enjoying his retirement with the lovely Selina Kyle. Could there be a better possible outcome for him? This image was the first thing I thought about when I first heard the news about Bale and Nolan returning for Justice League. Then the thought hit me that the joy I felt for a character I have loved since I was six years old, was about to change. But will it change for the better? I don't know. Bruce Wayne is dead. Apparently during Bane's occupation, like so many other of Gotham's upper class citizens, he met his "demise." His will was executed, his mansion was donated to the city of Gotham to be used for the housing and care of the orphan population. All of his possessions were sold and the remaining funds were given to Alfred. Bruce Wayne is not dead. There are only three people that know for sure that he is still alive, Alfred, Selina, and Lucius. Some could say that Gordon knows as well but how do we know that Bruce didn't fix the batsignal before he flew the bomb out of the city? So at the most, four people know that Bruce Wayne survived and so did Batman. Undoubtedly, those people will remain quiet about what they know. As far as the public is concerned, Bruce Wayne will stay dead. But will he? I believe that the public persona of Bruce Wayne is not needed in a Justice League film. If it is made public that Bruce Wayne is still alive then even more questions will arise and more exposition will be required to answer them. If the continuity of The Dark Knight Trilogy is brought into Justice League then the status quo of Bruce Wayne being dead, should remain intact. Obviously that decision is not up to me but I feel that if Bruce Wayne comes back alive, it will create more problems than it would solve. Without a doubt this will be the most important continuity question that must be answered by the filmmakers of Justice League. However, there is one way to answer all ten questions at once. Christian Bale could reprise his role as Batman but with a completely new continuity. In other words, Batman will be re-cast with a new storyline being played by the same actor. That may cause some of you to scratch your heads in confusion but there are
some rumblings around the internet that this is being considered. Obviously that is to be taken with a huge grain of salt; however, it would remove all of the continuity issues while carrying over the creative team and main star of the most successful superhero movie franchise in history. While this list of questions may seem significant, I do believe the creative team behind this Justice League film are more than capable of answering them. When it comes down to it, five to ten minutes of exposition could align The Dark Knight Trilogy continuity with the storyline of Man of Steel. It can be done and from the sound of it, it will be done. I wasn't entirely sure how I felt about Nolan and Bale returning once again to the world they said goodbye to just eight months ago. Now that I've had time to let the news settle, my imagination has gone into overdrive with the possibilities of seeing Henry Cavill and Christian Bale on screen together as my two favorite superheroes of all-time. It's difficult not be excited about that and frankly, it's a great problem to have.