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How To Write Trauma Like The Lego Batman Movie

Using Batman from The Lego Batman Movie as my example. I will give you dissertation on how to write trauma whether that trauma is related to orphan shenanigans or not!

STEP NUMBER ONE: TRAUMA AIN'T COOL

This is the biggest thing that The Lego Batman Movie gets spot on! Batman, throughout the movie, behaves more like an emotionally-stunted comical manchild then the suave self-insert straight power fantasy we're used to seeing.

Not only is this more realistic then the countless power fantasy stories that romanticize traumatic experiences and shitty coping mechanisms but it serves the narrative.

And the movie is all the better for this since it's this character development which serves as the necessary emotional core for the movie. If Batman was the perfectly suave badboy then him learning to have a family wouldn't be emotionally groundbreaking.

STEP NUMBER TWO: Have The Trauma Impact EVERYTHING and do it uniquely pwease

From Batman's child-esque tendency to throw tantrums to his higly performative playboy appearance which seems more like movie then man to his edgy sensibilities, everything has been grown from Batman's infamous backstory of orphanry.

His childish and immature attitude give the sentiment that Batman has reverted back into the maturity of a child which is a common coping mechanism as it allows someone to return back to the good old days.

His playboy "stoic"/edgy mean sensibilities (when in public and as Batman) are designed to keep people away as his greatest fear is having a family only to lose them again.

I enjoy the mention of "reverting back into childhood memories" as a coping mechanism because it's a coping mechanism that's not widely explored because society tends to denigrate dependency as "weakness that doesn't deserve to be explored".

Most of the time it's just stoicism which is portrayed as cool and sleeping around which is portrayed as bad not because it's hurting the person but bad because of our puritanical values

Final Lesson: Flaws Are Only Flaws If They're Treated As Flaws

Alot of writers know they need to write flaws connected to a character's trauma because they read writing advice blogs (hey) but they don't want to write actual flaws.

So what is a guy(gender-neutral) meant to do?

Write fake flaws!

This tends to be what Batman as a legacy falls into. Batman is a sleazy capitalistic megalomaniac with control issues who has an obsessive relationship with criminals and every single emotionally unattached woman (and Joker) he can get his hands on.

But it's cool!!! Because it's philosophical, and hot, and power-fantasy worthy.

However, The Lego Batman Movie subverts this! Batman's fear of losing his family and his subsequent abandoning of Dick, Alfred, Barbara, and the Joker nearly lead Gotham to ruins.

It's only when he overcomes his flaws, he can succeed in his goal of protecting Gotham

TL;DR: Trauma isn't cool. Trauma causes a shit ton of issues that create so many different kinds of coping mechanisms from the admirablely unhealthy to the pathetically unhealthy. And the only time you should (cutely and sanely) ship Batman and Joker is in this movie universe.

I love you to the moon

And back

As you prance

My restless thoughts

Linger in my mind

A beautiful memory

Etched in my heart

Every bit of you

Oh relentless muse

Gracing the lines

Of my humble poetry

Your sweet smile

Voice that melts the ice

That hardened my soul

Everything that you are

The dreams you told me about

All unspoken wishes

Your love

Your flaws and all

Encompass the galaxy

I am beholding with pride

Baby you make

My dead heart

Wake to have

This one more chance

To walk with love again...

-Flaws and all (Walk with love again)

Katie, 01:00

"What We Did"

Happy very late veterans day!

𝐼 𝒶𝓂 𝑒𝓃𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽 𝒻𝓁𝒶𝓌𝓈 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒶𝓁𝓁