Adam West – if not the original Batman, surely one of the superhero’s most memorable incarnations – is now 86. But, just so you know, a fine 86. Calling from his home in Palm Springs, California, he is evidently in a good mood. “Let me go look at this full-length mirror for just a moment,” he jokes. In the four decades since he starred in the 1960s television series, West has seen the Batman baton passed on to Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, Christian Bale and now Ben Affleck – without ever quite leaving the shadows of Gotham city. He has reprised the role several times himself during his career, most recently providing his voice to the new Lego game Batman 3: Beyond Gotham. “I decided early on to embrace the character,” says West, who hasn’t suffered from typecasting, so much as owned it. “I mean how many actors are lucky enough to play a character that becomes iconic?” Outside of Batman, his roles more often than not riffed on his own life: a fading star whose glory days were spent as a TV superhero.
In fact, the actor has made a career from a part with just as much longevity as his first one: Adam West is now famous for playing Adam West. Recently – and when you’re close to 90 that means for the past two decades – West has appeared in a range of shows, from The Simpsons, Fairly Oddparents and 30 Rock to several Funny or Die videos, as himself. It’s come to the point where the screenwriters’ wiki site, TV Tropes, has even named a trope after him, Adam Westing, which it describes as a form of self-parody. “Some actors get reputations that just won’t go away,” the site elaborates. “Maybe they’re famous for being divas on the set. Maybe they’re famous for only playing certain roles — or even worse, only playing one role. Nobody will let them forget it. They can struggle mightily to earn a new reputation ... or they can resign themselves to their fate and make a career out of it.” True to form, in the new Lego game West appears both as himself and as the original 1960s Batman, complete with campy sound effects and the cartoon exclamations “thwack!” and “pow!”
In each level there are also hidden Adam Wests in peril, to be rescued. Of course, there will be those under 30 who will know West not from Batman but from Family Guy, in which he plays the maniacal and unhinged Mayor Adam West (whose name is always said in full). Show creator Seth McFarlane is a long-time fan of the actor, and can do a killer impression, imitating perfectly West’s deep, gravelly register. Is it surreal to have had so many different animators manipulate his persona on screen? “I love the way you describe that. Yes, it’s so fascinating to see what they do with me that I can’t take my eyes off myself or any screen on which I might be appearing! Like I said, I’m the luckiest actor in the world.” When I tell West I’m a big Family Guy fan, he replies “you’re too young – you mustn’t watch it.” I’m 31, I say. “Too young,” he says, adamant. West’s publicist is on the line and tries to wrap things up. But West hasn’t had enough and suggests we continue.
With no more questions lined up, I throw the floor open and ask what he’d like to talk about. “What are you wearing?” he growls. A little stunned, I laugh, incredulous. He quickly adds: “I gave you a little shot of the mayor!” With six more episodes of Family Guy wrapped and still to air, and hosting duties on a new travel show too, West has clearly not lost his appetite for work. “It’s better than the alternative,” he says. I say it’s possible to die, long before you start dying. “I know exactly what you mean,” he responds. “I see it around me and I resent that. I think those people need someone to talk to. You have no idea the people I meet when I do these Comic-Cons. When I go sign autographs and say hello to people, I see everything!” • Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham is out nowSaving the World One Brick at a Time Continuing on in the very popular LEGO series, the upcoming game LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham brings everyone's favorite Caped Crusader into outer space in order to stop the evil Brainiac from using the power of the Green Lantern's rings to take over the universe.
With over 150 DC characters in LEGO form, this game promises to be the biggest LEGO Batman entry yet, and it's going to be available on nearly every console. This is the first LEGO Batman entry to be available on the newest generation of consoles. Because of this, players can expect a smoother experience and a bigger universe than ever before. Epic space battles have already been confirmed, and players will have a variety of different worlds to explore with Batman and his various DC companions. Comic book fans will be happy to see there are a lot of familiar worlds outside of Gotham this time around, including the Hall of Justice, the Watchtower, and more. This game will have the most DC characters yet, with over 150 LEGO characters from the DC universe. Big LEGO figures like Killer Croc, Cyclops and Solomon Grundy will be making an appearance. The Justice League is also going to have a big role in this LEGO entry. Similar to Stan Lee in Peril in the LEGO Marvel Super Heroes game, LEGO Batman 3 will have an Adam West in Peril character to find.
The game is also going to have more vehicles than ever before, including several vehicles designed to help Batman navigate space. WB Games has already confirmed that there will be several different pre-order bonuses available for this game. There is also already digital downloadable content confirmed, and there will be a season pass available when the game officially releases. Six DLC packs have already been confirmed, each with new levels, characters, achievements, and more. Three of these DLC packs will be available for download on the release date for the game, while the others will be available at a later time. LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham releases on November 11 in North America and on November 14 worldwide for PC, WiiU, 3DS, PS3, PS4, Vita, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. Any fan of the LEGO games or superheroes will definitely want to check this one out and possibly preorder it at one of the six retailers offering a bonus. Nora has been writing for over a decade and playing video games for even longer.