Invisible Republic writer Gabriel Hardman found himself on an unusual side of a creator/fan interaction Tuesday when he criticized Hulu's Bill Finger documentary, Batman & Bill. The documentary's description reads:
For years, Bob Kane has been credited as Batman's creator. As time passed, rumors swirled that the Caped Crusader had another father. Who was this man? Batman & Bill tells the story of the uncredited creator of Batman, and a crusade to bring him justice.
Hardman had a problem with the way the doc focused on Marc Nobleman's contributions to that crusade, tweeting:
So this filmmaker set out to tell the real story of Bill Finger's contribution to Batman by making himself the most important character.
— Gabriel Hardman (@gabrielhardman) June 6, 2017
Not saying there's nothing of value in the doc, just that the framing is dubious.
— Gabriel Hardman (@gabrielhardman) June 6, 2017
Some fellow comic book creators agreed:
https://twitter.com/edbrisson/status/872166967041335296
https://twitter.com/edbrisson/status/872168713360875521
While others offered some counterpoints:
Fair enough. The decision is still a real problem for the film.
— Gabriel Hardman (@gabrielhardman) June 6, 2017
Don't disagree, all of that is good. The fact that it's about giving credit yet framed by him taking credit is tone deaf for me.
— Gabriel Hardman (@gabrielhardman) June 6, 2017
I don't think the problem is framing it as his investigation. It's more about certain choices they make along the way that don't play well.
— Gabriel Hardman (@gabrielhardman) June 6, 2017
But things became a little bit confrontational when Nobleman himself joined the fray uninvited, even though he wasn't tagged in the discussion. Where would Nobleman have ever gotten the idea that this was okay?! In any case, it must have been uncomfortable for all involved:
Batman & Bill? Darn, I was looking forward to watching that.
— Matt Singer (@mattsinger) June 6, 2017
1 of 2 Thx for watching. With no known footage of Bill, the focus had to be the 10-year fight to restore his legacy. It's ALL about credit.
— Marc Tyler Nobleman (@MarcTNobleman) June 6, 2017
I'm not arguing nor am I the filmmaker. As I said, thanks for watching!
— Marc Tyler Nobleman (@MarcTNobleman) June 6, 2017
Nobleman also debated with others in Hardman's thread:
"Look at what I uncovered" sorta stuff? Ugh.
— Ron Marz (@ronmarz) June 6, 2017
That's not who I am.
— Marc Tyler Nobleman (@MarcTNobleman) June 6, 2017
Even tagging in Bill Finger's granddaughter, Athena Finger:
Everything I did was to help the family. How is that exploiting? @AthenaFinger
— Marc Tyler Nobleman (@MarcTNobleman) June 6, 2017
And thanking those who agreed with him:
Thanks Dan.
— Marc Tyler Nobleman (@MarcTNobleman) June 6, 2017
The experience didn't sit well with Hardman:
Ugh.
— Gabriel Hardman (@gabrielhardman) June 6, 2017
Who offered some advice that many could stand to learn from:
Twitter searching your movie then arguing with somebody who had problems with it: the height of class.
— Gabriel Hardman (@gabrielhardman) June 6, 2017
Fanboy Rampage was a blog by Graeme McMillan dedicated to the funniest, most ludicrous and most inappropriate comic book back-and-forths online. McMillan has moved on now, becoming a proper journalist but he gave permission to Bleeding Cool to revive his great creation.