When it was announced late last year that The Dark Knight Rises would take place eight years after the events of The Dark Knight, I wrote about how such news lent itself to tremendous viral marketing and hype-generating opportunities, primarily in the form of prequel comics that could tell stories of events that took place between the films. While that never materialized the way I hoped, DC Comics just announced the launch of a new app that does indeed offer a “prologue” comic to the film. But there’s a catch. Hit the jump to find out more.
The Dark Knight Rises: Prologue is a brand new app launched by DC Comics and available exclusively on select Nokia phones. That’s right, Nokia. Not Apple products or Android-powered devices. Nokia. Does anyone even own a Nokia phone?
Now, I’m half joking, because I understand that a marketing partnership between the two companies existed dating back to before the film was released, and the notion of exclusive content is an understandable consequence of such a deal (we’ve covered previous examples of their partnership), but I remain dumbfounded. To offer a prologue comic to a film a month after its release, on a provider with an assumedly small market share seems, well, pointless.
Then there’s the app itself, which is seemingly forgotten when considering how it is offered. Judging by the provided screenshot of the motion comic, it appears this story takes place literally minutes before the film opens, leaving me to wonder just how impactful and revelatory it can really be. But then again, I wouldn’t know. I don’t own a Nokia.
Much has been said over whether or not Christopher Nolan’s Batman story would continue on film. I personally prefer to let it stand alone as one of the greatest trilogies ever. Still, I think DC Comics possesses an incredible opportunity to creatively fill in the gaps over what happened during those eight years. And now that we have all seen the film, the possibilities are genuinely intriguing. What was Bane’s arrival to Gotham like? How did James Gordon evolve after his ethics were compromised at the end of The Dark Knight? How about some stories chronicling rising police star and eventual Batman heir John Blake? I contend that there’s not only potential to expand the Nolan Batman universe in comics form, but people would eat it up. Think Before Watchmen, but without the controversy and Alan Moore loyalists.
Do you own a Nokia phone and would like to offer your thoughts on The Dark Knight Rises: Prologue app, since most of us won’t be able to check it out? Post your review in the comments section below.