the dark ages , or something like that . Which actually makes perfect sense if you think about why anyone would live in Gotham , given how criminally dangerous it is . You could see living in Metropolis because the world ’ s most powerful superhero lives there . But , living in Gotham … the Joker lives there ! And your superhero is just a guy ! And all the villains there are super crazy . The superhero is just a human , and he only operates at night . That ’ s another thing , Superman is there all the time . Another thing about Gotham is its costumed villains , each of them has these sort of mental quirks , things that you associate with people that go crazy in the city . Obsessive compulsive disorder , anxieties around things that make them very dangerous , or just that they ’ re psychopathic . These are all things that people used to say would happen if you go to the city . It ’ ll drive you nuts . The nature of the nuts is embodied by these different characters . They are unable to love , they ’ re heartless and cold . Literally , you have Mr . Freeze . People in the city are crazy , Joker . People in the city get really twisted up and have really bad values , shit ... Poison Ivy .
Future Bear ( cover art ), image provided by Julian Chambliss
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That leads me to another question . In one of your articles , you talk about 20th century heroes that sprung from “ social exploitation , environmental spoilage , and urban disorder .” What kind of heroes spring from 21st century worries and issues ? I think you see heroes that are concerned with identi-
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