Meet NOCTURNA - Batman's "Vampire" Girlfriend?

[@PainMonkey]

Slinky cat burglar who flirts with Bruce to rob him blind? Turned white due to an industrial accident? They just combined Batman's two biggest love interests.

[@joeyjoey5393]

Bursted laughing 🤣

[@kstormgeistgem461]

... [confused] Catwoman and Joker?

[@mslightbulb]

kstormgeistgem yes.

[@andreworders7305]

Well, among other things, The LEGO Batman movie was a Rom-Com about Batman and the Joker

[@cassiedevereaux-smith3890]

**Talia al Ghul has entered the chat**

[@Swenglish]

Batman: "An original motive..." Penguin: *cries in self-entitled bird man*

[@Swenglish]

@@toshomni9478 Oh, you say that now, but he'll be turning heads at the ball.

[@talentlesshack397]

🤣 "Batman also collects orphans"

[@dragowolf268]

Well there is his actual son

[@VerneditheSnail]

@@dragowolf268 And daughter Helena in Pre-Crisis.

[@mishthefish82]

And all/most at least once.

[@zxfullgrand2535]

Nightwing- if Solomon Grundy was his Father: gray Dick, son.

[@eastsidepeezy7514]

No bap he a steppa

[@bajan71683]

I don’t know why but when Sasha as Batman says, “Damn her, damn the night”, I break out into a laughing fit.

[@trevorwooten9485]

Her rendition and the fact that Batman probably wouldn't have said that.

[@Luanna801]

I've never read a Nocturna comic in my life so I don't know if anyone went this route, but I feel like her origin has genuine potential and *could* be sympathetic, if they just leaned into the idea that her motivations aren't just "Ooh I want the shiny" but represent the lost life she had with her adoptive father, and her complicated feelings about him. From this origin story, we know that she had nothing, and then suddenly after Charles Knight adopted her, she didn't just have material wealth, but also stability and love for the first time. I think there's a lot you could play with psychologically with those things becoming inextricably linked on a subconscious level for an impressionable kid. Then suddenly her adoptive father is gone, and she loses all of it. On top of that, she learns that the man she loved and probably idealized for "saving" her wasn't who she thought he was, that all these wonderful changes in her life were built on crime. It not only makes her feel somehow complicit in her father's crimes because she enjoyed the wealth his crime brought her, it also makes the love and stability and happiness feel tainted. But if she admits that to herself, then she's truly lost everything. So instead she goes into overdrive denying that her father did anything wrong, and stepping into his shoes to continue his crime empire (or whatever). She'll do anything to maintain the life she once had, not just because she wants nice things, but because it's the only way she can hang onto that sense of stability, as well as her rose-colored image of her father. I think this interpretation also works with the fact that the whole Nocturna character feels kinda fake and over-the-top. Because in a sense, it's simply a persona she's putting on, the cool amoral femme fatale who isn't bothered by anything and only cares about glitter and glitz. Underneath it, there's the shattered orphan girl who lost everything and is desperately trying to maintain the fiction that she didn't.

[@thegrayshaws]

The "oh" of a co-worker that got more of an answer than he bargained for....that has definitely happened to me.

[@ProfessorCrumBerries]

Nocturna definitely have some potential. NOT UNTIL CRISIS ruined it. Thanks DC! Actually i liked her being a poison ivy-esque character, she is really provocative against batman and she has no intentions of killing him somehow. Sadly i feel bad for pre-crisis natalia...

[@jongaulthero]

OMG! Who the hell wrote Nocturna's dialog??? Holy shit, that was awful!! Hearing her and Bruce "flirt" was physically painful! Who the hell talks like that?? It was like listening to a couple of goth theatre kids trying to hook up. Great vid, Sasha!

[@drpac9164]

"It's a waste of a perfectly good storm off" That mental image made me laugh. Thanks for that, lol

[@mr.goodcat3025]

Nocturne, Poison ivy and Harley Quinn, on the Harley Quinn series would be perfect..... Just saying. Personal opinion.

[@CHEESEPUFF_7]

An obscure Batman character I haven't heard of?! My God! I must watch this video.

[@Dougeb7]

Never encountered Nocturna in my spotty history of Batman consumption. She seems a like a character with great possibilities, but seriously underutilized. Regardless, your videos are always fun, whatever the focus. Thanks!

[@anthonywebb7890]

I like hearing you over explain things, you really care about comics. You make a difference. The people who are in to this hobby owe a debt of gratitude to you, keep it up honey!

[@HeroicNerd]

Isn't wanting nice things and then stealing them and also being romantically linked to Bruce a Catwoman thing?

[@travishimebaugh8381]

So basically albino vampire Catwoman with a slightly creepy relationship with Jason Todd

[@scribescholar]

"Elegant Night Crimes" sounds like late night Cinemax

[@CasuallyComics]

lol it really does, something with lots of saxophone.

[@joeyjoey5393]

@@CasuallyComics and jazz piano

[@ikecarr5989]

I'd watch it.

[@jrcarter9175]

Gotta slip in the word "erotic" somewere.

[@CountOrlok22]

"Batman: Mask of the Phantasm" is a masterpiece. I would love to see all the censored storylines and episodes from TAS done in a new show or a collection of short films.

[@psiaura1]

IMO there was a lot of potential in Nocturna, but they shot themselves in the foot with inconsistent and weak characterisation. I do like that they established that she did have a good side (especially where Jason was concerned), and I like the angle that she is especially alluring to men of darkness like Bruce because she’s characterised as a sort of embodiment of the Night and all its elegance, and there’s all sorts of symbolism and character exploration you can do with that in theory. But her motivations are just… kinda bland, and she’s not really that compelling as a supervillain because her crimes, despite being ***elegant night crimes,*** didn’t have much to them. She just likes stealing nice stuff, or at least getting guys to steal it for her, and later she has a jealous ex that wants to kill her. At the very least I can say that the issues with her were entertaining because of how unrelentingly melodramatic she and the Nightslayer were literally all of the time, but purple prose about the beauty of the night alone does not an interesting story make.

[@agypsychild]

🤣”that’s the “oh” of a man who has just asked a question and got moved up to a level of colleague he was just not ready for”🤣 I was laughing so hard it took me 10 minutes to write this comment.

[@lionboi2]

Nocturna was a very hard sell on the part of DC, who wanted a fresh villainess love interest since Catwoman wasn't about to go straight with her Q rating so that relationship was a dead end. When Mayfair Games got the RPG rights to DC, Nocturna's entry for such a minor character in Batman's gallery was more filled out than the Joker's. There was a definite push on DC's part to render her as a major player despite not having the chops. One of those characters the publisher wanted more than the fans.

[@MolotovFolktales]

As someone who just ordered the KGBeast from Mezco and the Ten Nights of the Beast, I also remember the story-arc where she was going to adopt Jason Todd. Good pull from the longbox.

[@thefoodstampsband3848]

She'd always been my favorite villain...especially in her hot air balloon!!! Fun fact: she was the model for Morganna Macabre from Darkwing Duck!

[@Bolsonaro_em_Haia]

Batman #381 was one of the very first comics that I read in English. Pre-Crisis Nocturna feels to me like a tool for a Jason Todd plot. There is very little to the character that does not directly relate to Night-Slayer or Robin, and what there is is nearly undistinguishable from Catwoman on a day of little characterization. On the other hand, she is a very effective tool for making Jason and Bruce feel a bit more developed and convincing as characters. Interesting how Bruce Way used to be a better character than Batman before Frank Miller.

[@mslightbulb]

5:50 this reminds me of when 12 year old me wrote at the end of a character description “she, is a closed circle”. To this day I have no idea what it means. Ah, edgy preteen.

[@lunamalfoy7]

I see your Cable and Deadpool in the background. I'm always up for some Cablepool videos...just saying.

[@getpaidblackman9859]

Batman was like everybody catch this invite by mail whether there my girl or not.

[@GalaxyfullofStars]

Sasha: "Tell me what kind of time you think you'd have with "The Nightslayer-" Me: *uncontrollable wheezing*

[@DrawnByLaserLove]

I can't get over with your batman voice, it's really distracting when I have to stop the video and laugh for half a minute every time batman speaks, I love it so much.

[@davidfountain6607]

The cover picture of them fighting under the stars has them on top of a star field projector in a planetarium, which is not something you'd want in an observatory. To observe the night sky, you want as little ambient light as possible.

[@johnmascola3403]

I love your character voices for the comic characters. Amazing.

[@mercuryman1250]

Nice video. I'm glad you separate Pre-Crisis Earth-One characters from Post-Crisis and Prime Earth from each other. Modern readers and non comic book readers always think its always been one character for years. That annoys me

[@d1p]

I was really on board with Nocturna's attempted reboot in the Tim Drake Robin era. I loved the psychic aura of drama she had. It was so much more interesting than just another vampire. I wish she had been recurring... as a villain in a series about Spoiler. She was an interesting foil to Stephanie, behaving a lot like how Bruce and Tim sometimes seemed to see Spoiler. However, in their interactions, it shows that Stephanie wasn't a vigilante for fun, but to help people, including Natalia AND the man who seemed to be trying to kill her.

[@williambethea8703]

Great video Sasha. I enjoy your reviews because the majority of them highlight comic book titles and/or issues O have not read. Your comments spark my interest and have me either read the comic reviewed or check out the history of the character or storyline with a Google search. You are a great storyteller. Thank you and keep reading comics.

[@jimgillespie6109]

I'm 3/4th's of the way through this video and you have reminded me of everything I loathed about this period in Batman's history, so... THANKS?!

[@juanm.rodriguezgallarzo9287]

Best Batman/Bruce Wayne voice ever...

[@maxalaintwo3578]

Kevin Conroy who?

[@blkbrdmntrvimes6438]

@@maxalaintwo3578 you mean the guy who guarantees that mark Hamill's voice will be the joker's?

[@TheLobstersoup]

I laughed, but I also thought she makes him sound like a sore Trump.

[@juanm.rodriguezgallarzo9287]

@@TheLobstersoup but way less orange.

[@maxalaintwo3578]

@@juanm.rodriguezgallarzo9287 what does orange sound like?

[@journaliry464]

You always pick out the most amazing things from comics that I've never heard of or seen before, wonderful video as always

[@PuffyCloud_aka_puffeclaude]

Nightslayer is a supergroup consisting of Dave Lombardo(drums), Kerry King(guitar) and Jack Blades(bass/vocals). When they added Tommy Shaw they called it Damn Nightslayers.

[@GabePuratekuta]

And they fought Nightcat.

[@DetroitAlan01]

At the 15:10 mark, Batman looks more interested in having a “vogue-off” than a fist fight. It would be rather difficult to take him serious in that pose.

[@ThePthompson41]

I love these character breakdowns on the obscure

[@stuntranger74]

Shasha, I love your nocturna/Batman voices!!! You need to do this more often! 🥰

[@briandaleske5139]

This classic ComicBook story that was just shown introducing the first ever appearance of NOCTURNA; It was quite interesting, weird, I noticed it had some drama in it, and it was a bit enjoyable to have viewed along with learn about the female character thief (NOCTURNA).

[@Libertyfudge]

I love your Batman voice but I LOVE your Nocturna voice

[@rufunnyrob]

I keep looking at the wall behind her and thinking "Is it covered in blood?" LOL!

[@dem0n0maniac]

I love your Batman voice so much. Absolutely SLAYS me

[@Jezee213]

The Batman voice gets me every time.

[@eugeneflorence4355]

I love the Sasha Batman voice. Hilarious as hell. If she did that more, I would like and subscribe.

[@desmonddesjarlais2697]

Regardless of how dated it looks, this visual style gets me. I grew up reading my neighbours old books.

[@barry-allenthe-flash8396]

Look, I don't care if I'm commenting on this video over a year after it was posted; its always a good time to tell you that your Batman voice is _superb._ I love it; it is so entertaining, especially when busted out for Bruce Wayne during fancy events. Bruce Wayne has zero chill, lol. Can you give a voice a _*chef's kiss?_ Your Batman/Bruce Wayne voice really deserves some kind of kudos :)

[@davidesterley3163]

Did I mention I love that hair? My Harley sense is tingling

[@flashfrozen64]

My God, I enjoy your Batman voice and Batman storytelling too much, please do more 😊😊👍👍

[@bebecranney8740]

She seems kind of cool and aesthetic but definitely not very sympathetic. I'd be interested in seeing how her character changed after that, though to be honest even though I know that its technically dumber I kind of like that the vampirific was less literal thought it sounded more original. Cool vid man

[@pauljohnson271]

I urge you, in the strongest way, to check out James Robinson’s “Starman” when he was Jack Knight. You may well love it-a lot. He is right up your alley. And Neil Gaiman’s “Sandman.” Which will blow your mind.

[@Hum0ng0us]

5:07 You and Kevin Conroy have the best Batman voices. I'd love to see you and dub the Bale Bat and Kevin Smith dub Bane in a recut of The Dark Knight rises.

[@smkolins]

A wee detail I dont see people mention in a brief review - it isn't an observatory. It's a planetarium. That big thing with lines radiating away is the projector for a planetarium. Back in the day it looked like that. Few of them are left as most are computerized now.

[@smkolins]

Actually I think it is even possible it is a specific Zeiss projector but it would require more digging to find it.

[@smkolins]

BTW observatories that the public access often are paired with planetariums.

[@Hum0ng0us]

That's an awesome BG!! I wish my guitars looked like that!! And my drawring table and animation desk!!

[@violaivy]

Yeah it's not that deep but sometimes people just want nice things I guess? :D I'm here for vampire comic villains and Nocturna could be interesting if handled well. Having her as a Batwoman villain wasn't a bad idea but basically everything they did with it was. Her appearance on the Batwoman show was cool though and there she had a better backstory but without the problematic stuff from the New 52.

[@knotenoslavename3246]

Your commentary is funny as hell you put your all into it.

[@fernandoorozco3751]

Thanks Sasha. You are my new fav comics KZbinr. Keep up the great work!

[@daviddaniels1487]

Excellent job on Nocturne's voice, Ms. Sasha. 😊

[@trevorwooten9485]

As a long-time Batman fan, this was a period that I missed out on. I hadn't heard of Nocturna before now. It seems, from your reading that the problem with her may have been with the writer (I don't think you named him/her). I can see the character working, but not with that dialogue. And Batman seems out of character when he speaks as well. Still, I appreciate learning about this character here and I can see why she could have caught on, if she'd had more appearances.

[@dennismason3740]

O.k., reframe (busy background) previous comment - if I am to brucify (detectivize) your scenario...well done. Too many vids. Kidding. So much better. Thank you. Virgos can't help themselves.

[@wasgreg]

As good as you are with your Batman voice, Keven Conroy is still my number one voice for Batman. Though I would love to hear you speak about Astro City.

[@Fenris30]

Batman's Villain's are all Dark reflection of Him so Nocturna is a Dark Reflection of his Playboy millionaire lifestyle.

[@bendewalt5560]

"A level of collegue he was not ready for." HAAAA ahahahaha...ok you got me with that one...practically spit out my soda laughed for like three-ish minutes...had to pause the video. Haaa, oh man. That was great.

[@archam777]

Your Batman voice is hilarious.....(good way), cracks me up. >.

[@charlie2640]

The cover shown at 4:00 is odd, for an observatory. Sorry but kind of an astronomy person here. The thing shown on the cover is clearly an old school planetarium projector. Observatories generally don't have them, they are installed in museums.

[@MisterUnlikely]

This is why Ambush Bug needed a romantic foil.

[@mercuryman1250]

I agree with you. She does look good like that

[@Dabeef64]

It is always awesome to learn about a new villain(?) in the life of Batman. I will need to put this one on my list to get my hands on. I must say though, that cover is pretty bad & the interior art didn't look that great either. I don't think you missed anything, her back story is anything but original, I mean, it's one of the reasons why people steal. The whole story feels like either a rush job or maybe they were just too lazy to put any effort into it. Still, I can see a lot of potential in a vampire love interest for the Bat. :)

[@bhbailie]

I think I now understand why I never understood a single time when girls were flirting with me...

[@sixdollarman1362]

I know you were just talking aboy the story, but I have to say that I'm a big fan of the Don Newton and Gene Colan art from that era.

[@MC2THEXPROJECT]

You are very funny and knowledgeable . Loved the spiderwoman hair episode where ya mention farscape. Ah, the memories...You make me ok with being old and a big nerd. Keep it coming 👍🏾😁

[@hairspray242]

Sasha I ADORE your batman voice

[@LizAnneOswalt]

Cool vid. I always liked Home girl as she was in the 80s. Another Vamp charter in Bats comics... glad they didn't go there. Maybe they can bring her back with this old story and just update it next time.

[@danieldishon688]

Natalia is addicted to having luxurious things and Catwoman is addicted to stealing things. If the teamed up they could enable each others addictions....but Natalia has nothing she can offer Catwoman.

[@monthly.girls.digital8728]

Catwoman is bi. Nocturna is hot. They can figure it out

[@plantainsame2049]

​@@monthly.girls.digital8728sesbian lex

[@mrbruce307]

wow...Thanks for this video......You are such a joy to listen to

[@brianroma2042]

Love these episodes. Have you considered episodes with a book club format? I would love to read the issues as you Doug through obscurity.

[@CreativeTakeover-f4i]

I love the research you do on these characters..

[@T4N7]

Batman's "original motive" line came off as sarcastic to me

[@MAMoreno]

I love the pre-Crisis Doug Moench run, but Anton threatens to ruin all of the Nocturna stories. Like, Natalia/Bruce stuff is absurdly melodramatic itself, but Night-Slayer knocks it up a notch too far. The highlight of the entire run is Jay Todd, who eventually starts partnering up with Bullock when Batman turns his attention to chasing Selina again.

[@frogmouth2]

I get the sort of “haves and have nots” theme but ya it just doesn’t hit. Maybe if they went all the way with either how petty her motives are or her heartlessness by having her use people as pawns could work. Maybe there could be some commentary about how unsustainable her methods and extreme spending are idk. Overall I just feel like they just didn’t carve out a specific niche for her very well, just a bunch of attributes that kinda but don’t compliment eachother well.

[@kld2009]

LOL!😁 I love the voices you do in reading the comic. Especially the Sasha's DEEP Batman's voice . 😋😋

[@RabbiJoeInJerusalem]

This was one of the few Batman comics I bought, back in the day (I was into Superman, Flash, GL). I couldn't figure out who Nocturna was supposed to be.

[@Spare_Sock]

Night slayer is really intense, either in a theater kid in edgy makeup way or a dark cultist sort of way. You can't tell the difference until they talk.

[@colinjansen9346]

I think Matt Reeves should make a sequel for The Batman with Nocturna as the main villain.

[@WhiteRaven696]

Nightslayer sounds like a Jigsaw/Jack the Ripper combo, and it’d be one crazy rodeo.

[@ellucky7852]

This is my new favorite channel

[@justinedwards5047]

I think that cover is supposed to be inside a planetarium, and that thing shooting out the beam effects is the projector putting the stars and planets on the ceiling

[@grantnewton4230]

Just recently discovered this channel and gotta say it’s some koala tea khan tent

[@BlackLaval]

Awesome video. I love your Batman voice. XD

[@1bruceeric]

Love your Batman voice. Christian Bale is so jealous right now.

[@dreamlandnightmare]

15:11 - What's with Batman's arm in this panel? It looks like he has two different biceps and two elbows.

[@Hum0ng0us]

3:40 When I was a kid, I got plenty of Batman and barely any Detective. I have piles of just story beginnings or endings. It's weird.

[@peterpaul7760]

Hi Sasha. On 2:40, you mentioned Fox did not like the storyline. Fox TV? Don't you mean WB? I have never known Fox to be involved with the show. Thanks.

[@jhornacek]

Batman the Animated Series aired on Fox Kids.

[@altalia07]

I read the comic where she adopted Jason, I really liked it😆 I love Batman romance stories so that extra added to my enjoyment haha

[@kdisley]

8:50 She was brought across in 1228... (shout-out to the half-dozen people outside of Canada who get that reference... lol)

[@aquatroy]

I discovered Nocturna while filling in my Don Newton issues of Batman and Detective. Newton draws her beautifully. So, I didn't pay much attention to the story.

[@josi-elaine]

Thanks Sasha! I’ve gotta catch up on my Batman reading....

[@cookieDaXapper]

you KNOW we LOVE the "Bat-voice" even for poor Bruce Wayne,......it just seems appropriate you know? the 80's were not kind for DC and Batman, and i was not particularly a collector, so Nocturna is an unknown entity to myself, but your retrospective/examination of her is fascinating, and "illuminating"; i can understand why some later writers decided to make her a vampire (of sorts, they seem to lack a supernatural source for their condition, but i might be wrong,........i'm wrong hunh?). anyways, Thank you for: sharing, all of your hard work, being AWESOME, and ............being...... Casually Comics! that's right, saying "comics" 4 times in an intro is rather casual, right? PEACE dear sister, and God bless.

[@gothnerd887]

Woah, I want all of Nocturna's goth points🖤

[@chrisanderson2204]

I read she was going to appear in Batman TAS but due to Fox Kids censors,it was scrapped.And I'm still wondering how Spiderman TAS got around the no vampire rule

[@OreoBrawl]

He was a “living” vampire and drank plasma

[@Mecharnie_Dobbs]

This is the lowest point I can scroll the comments down to.

[@jhornacek]

Morbius on Spider-Man TAS drained plasma, not blood. Plus he had suckers on the palms of his hands which he used to drain plasma instead of biting people.