Wayne Manor

[thecolorsblend]

As a fan, one thing I've always loved about the Batman mythos is Wayne Manor. In its own weird way, I've always kind of considered Wayne Manor to be a silent member of the Wayne family.

And yet, one thing that I've kind of had my fill of is Wayne Manor as we've seen it in the live action films to date. I love English gothic architecture as much as (if not more than) the next guy. But how many times do you need to see variations on essentially the same thing?



In each of those films, Wayne Manor seems to be a foreboding, borderline haunted house. It's useful for symbolizing the darkness dominating Bruce's inner world. It's effective. But I don't think that's the only way to skin the cat.

Frankly, everything about Bruce Wayne The Public Figure is basically a lie. He's not who he pretends to be. Batman is who he is underneath all that. And when Batman pretends to be Bruce Wayne The Public Figure, he has to convey a certain image. He goes far out of his way to be underestimated.

If you ask me, Wayne Manor needs to contribute to Bruce Wayne The Public Figure's camouflage. Visitors and the public need to take one look at Wayne Manor and see a stuffed, pompous wannabe's house. A male Paris Hilton who LARPs as a corporate titan but is in fact just a vacuous, womanizing, effete dilettante.

On that basis, it's high time for the movies to give Wayne Manor a major league face lift and make it look a lot more like a modern luxury mansion.







Don't take the images above too literally. Obviously, there are no palm trees on Wayne Manor grounds and the estate is not located on a cliff face.

But still, those styles of mansions are how Wayne Manor should look these days. Superficially, there should be no reason to look at Wayne Manor and think Bruce Wayne The Public Figure has anything to hide. If anything, this guy flaunts his wealth and his status. He wears it all openly. Nothing is concealed, as far as most people are concerned.

The opulence, the gigantic pool, the glass walls, the hot cars, they should all serve a purpose: Namely, making the world think that what you see is what you get when it comes to Bruce Wayne The Public Figure.

But it's an all act. Bruce Wayne The Public Figure might host a lavish party on his estate, Bruce Wayne The Public Figure might disappear inside the house in the middle of the party, Bruce Wayne The Public Figure enters his study, Bruce Wayne The Public Figure disappears, Maskless Batman flips a switch, a panel opens in the wall, he descends some stairs and it's masked Batman down there in the Batcave, his guests above none the wiser. Batman zooms into the night, a backyard full of alibis barely even noticing that Bruce Wayne The Public Figure is nowhere around.

This isn't a knock against Burton, Schumacher, Nolan, Snyder or Reeves. I'm just saying I'm ready for a new aesthetic with Wayne Manor. I welcome your input.

[The Dark Knight]

The Wayne family came from old money and Bruce inherited everything when his parents died. As long as the original building remains standing I believe it should have grand mansion vibes. Snyder moved away from that aesthetic with the lakeside glasshouse, which was a completely seperate location that allowed for something new while leaving the old to rot. That was a good compromise, like having the penthouse in TDK. I think it's important to keep the old money roots intact as certain things go deeper than just Bruce and his current war on crime. How much do we alter before the character becomes something else entirely, and more akin to Tony Stark?

[GBglide]

Nah, that looks like someplace Tony Stark would live.

Wayne Manor should look like this.

[The Dark Knight]

It doesn't have huge floorspace, nor is it extravagant, but the lakeside glasshouse ticks the separation of identity box.



It communicates the idea I have nothing to hide. The size of the glasshouse isn't designed for hard parties, but for an individual who seeks solitude and maybe the company of one other person at a time. That's where Affleck's Bruce is at this stage of his life regardless. A younger, different incarnation may have opted for something more lavish.

Having the cave under here is not from the comics, but I think it's a cool creative difference and Snyder was revolutionary by taking this route as far as I am concerned. It allows his Bruce to transcend and be his own man, especially when you consider he's older than his father ever lived to be. This is his place.

If Wayne Manor is remodelled into a League of Justice meeting area in the Snyderverse it says the place now has something new to offer Bruce other than being a symbol of pain and defeat. Joker burned the place down, but I'm guessing the significance of Bruce's memories made demolishing it too hard to bear. So the scar remained.

Remodelling the place could represent the healing of Bruce's inner soul. He's not just doing it for himself but for new friends, otherwise he probably couldn't be able to justify it.

I'm keen to see the route Reeves takes with his Manor. I'm hoping for something old school Gothic.

[thecolorsblend]

It doesn't have huge floorspace, nor is it extravagant, but the lakeside glasshouse ticks the separation of identity box.



It communicates the idea I have nothing to hide. The size of the glasshouse isn't designed for hard parties, but for an individual who seeks solitude and maybe the company of one other person at a time. That's where Affleck's Bruce is at this stage of his life regardless. A younger, different incarnation may have opted for something more lavish.

Having the cave under here is not from the comics, but I think it's a cool creative difference and Snyder was revolutionary by taking this route as far as I am concerned. It allows his Bruce to transcend and be his own man, especially when you consider he's older than his father ever lived to be. This is his place.

If Wayne Manor is remodelled into a League of Justice meeting area in the Snyderverse it says the place now has something new to offer Bruce other than being a symbol of pain and defeat. Joker burned the place down, but I'm guessing the significance of Bruce's memories made demolishing it too hard to bear. So the scar remained.

Remodelling the place could represent the healing of Bruce's inner soul. He's not just doing it for himself but for new friends, otherwise he probably couldn't be able to justify it.

I'm keen to see the route Reeves takes with his Manor. I'm hoping for something old school Gothic.

Picture is broken.