Publishing alongside the world premiere of Christopher Nolans third Batman film The Dark Knight Rises" Will Brookers new book explores Batmans twenty-first century incarnations. Brookers close analysis of " Batman Begins" & " The Dark Knight" offers a rigorous accessible account of the complex relationship between popular films audiences & producers in our age of media convergence. By exploring themes of authorship adaptation & intertextuality he addresses a myriad of questions raised by these films: did " Batman Begins" end when " The Dark Knight began? Does its story include the Gotham Knight DVD or the Why So Serious viral marketing campaign? Is it separate from the parallel narratives of the Arkham Asylum videogame the monthly comic books the animated series & the graphic novels? Can the brightly campy incarnations of the Batman ever be fully repressed by " The Dark Knight" or are they an intrinsic part of the character? Do all of these various manifestations feed into a single Batman metanarrative? This will be a vital text for film students & academics as well as legions of Batman fans."