Re: The moment the willing suspension of disbelief died


Kurt Busiek wrote:
> On 2005-10-21 21:18:16 -0700, Peter Meilinger <mellnger@xxxxxx> said:
> > If movies count, I just re-watched Batman Begins today. Loved it
> > overall, but the Evil Plan (tm) was just wretchedly stupid. Our
> > Villains put a toxin in Gotham City's water supply, weeks in
> > advance of activating it. It's perfectly safe to drink, and only
> > affects people when it's breathed. Our Villains get it into the
> > air by activating a microwave emitter that instantly boils all
> > water in a block or two radius. They're standing right next to
> > the microwave emitter when it's turned on. Two problems here.
> >
> > 1) I'm certainly not a scientist, but I'm having a hard time
> > believing that they wouldn't be fried by the microwave emitter
> > like a poodle in a microwave oven.

We are, after all, fleshy bags of dirty water.

> > 2) This toxin has been in the water supply for weeks and affects
> > people when the water is boiled, but no one has been affected yet.
> > No one in Gotham boils water for tea? Pasta? This was presented
> > as some fairly nasty poison. Just leaning over the pot to check
> > on the spaghetti should've been enough for SOME kind of reaction.
> > Have that happen a couple dozen times a night, all over the city,
> > and I can't help but think someone might've noticed something was
> > up.

Well, it is *Gotham* we're talking about. ;)

> Here's an even more basic problem:
>
> 1. They tested the MicroToxinExplodoZapper on the ship. It works.
>
> 2. They then unload the MTEZ in The Narrows, and set it off again,
> making a whole neighborhood of Gotham go nutzoid.
>
> 3. The big plan, then, is to reload the MTEZ into a monorail and drive
> it to the Wayne Tower, where they can set it off for real.
>
> So, uh, what's Step 2 for?

Actually, their plan is something more like this:

1. Get Batman out of the way by killing him and burning down his
mansion.

2. Release all the prisoners in Arkham to draw essentially the entire
police force to the Narrows.

3. Unleash te MTEZ device in the Narrows... incapacitating all the cops
before the real riots even get started.

And their overriding goal is to execute their plan in a way that makes
Gotham's downfall look *natural*. Having the riots start in the Narrows
is believable; having the riots start in Gotham Tower is less
believable.

Of course, their plan goes wrong from the moment they underestimate the
hero. But that's a key feature of all villain plans. ;)

> I think it's an excellent Batman movie, in that it captures the
> character well, but not that great a movie, because there are so many
> story problems (another: Bruce refuses to kill a man, then blows up a
> building with dozens of people in it, including the man he's just
> refused to kill).

This one I canna help you with.

It's a pity, too. Without some of these plot gaps it would probably
have edged out Burton's BATMAN as the best Batman movie.

--
Justin Alexander
http://www.thealexandrian.net

.

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