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Absolute Batman's artist warned Scott Snyder, ‘We're getting into Hulk proportions.’ Snyder told him to go bigger

Absolute Batman started out huge, and writer Scott Snyder told artist Nick Dragotta to go even bigger

Image of Absolute Batman
Image credit: DC Comics

Absolute Batman is an absolute unit, a massive, towering version of Bruce Wayne whose enormous physicality overshadows everyone around him. In fact, he's so big that series artist Nick Dragotta warned writer Scott Snyder that he was reaching a superhuman size - with the writer telling him to push the envelope even further.

"Scott had the initial idea to go big. And when I tell you, I drew him big initially, I did. And Scott saw it, and he said, 'No, bigger.' And I started, you know, going, 'Scott, we're getting into Hulk proportions now. He's massive," Dragotta tells NPR in an interview alongside Snyder.

Absolute Batman's impressive size is a bit polarizing for fans, though speaking personally, Nick Dragotta's rough and tumble take on a Dark Knight whose body is his own greatest weapon, above and beyond Bruce's skills and resources as an engineer, is one of the most engaging aspects of the title, setting it apart visually from every other incarnation of Batman on the stands.

"Then I really fell in love with it, and who this Bruce is. And then in the Absolute Universe, we like to push it - all the dynamics, pushed more and more," Dragotta continues. "So rather than the utility belt of old Batman, we have the utility suit. Every part of him can be used, and he's very much a DIY guy. He works in construction. He's a city engineer. You know, he's just using every aspect, and then we just look at bats and we look at all the different things a bat can do. But everything reflects the character."

Absolute Batman is all about pushing the antihero in a more extreme direction, in which he often takes on brutal physical threats, dishing out his own share of hardcore punishment, all against the backdrop of the slums of Gotham City, where Bruce grew up alongside the kids who would become Killer Croc, Penguin, Riddler, and Two-Face.


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George Marston

George Marston: George Marston is a media critic and journalist who has specialized in superheroes and comics for nearly two decades. Along with focusing on comics and superhero media at Newsarama, George has honed a critical voice exploring TV, movies, and video games with bylines at Total Film, SFX Magazine Online, Space.com, GamesRadar+, and more. During George's time at Newsarama, the site received the 2020 Tripwire award for Best Comics-related Website / Publication. (They/Them)

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