The Batman inhabits the same dark, surreal-yet-familiar universe as 2019's Joker, not as a direct extension, but the influence is unmistakable: the blurring of the lines between good and evil, the humanization of the heroes and villians, the turning of the volume way down on comic book flash and hyperbole.
For this reason it will.get mixed reviews, but I call it superb, a well-timed deconstruction of the super-hero/super-villian mythos, delivered in a slick film noir package.