Smart Pop Classics: Holy Signifier, Batman!

In the Smart Pop Classics series, we share greatest hits from our throwback essay collections. In “Holy Signifier, Batman!” from Batman Unauthorized , Nick Mamatas argues that Batman only works as Pop art, and that of the many iterations of Batman that exist, the campy TV Batman of the 1960s is the most compelling version of the Caped Crusader of them all.

Batman, as one of the most iconic and enduring of comic book heroes, is ultimately nothing more than a bundle of images that have proven thems...