"Perchance to Dream" - birthday blog for 2018

I recently had one of those “Wow, I’m getting older” moments.  Last year, the classic TV show, “Batman: the Animated Series” celebrated its 25th anniversary.  It was in 1992 that this amazing show debuted.  I remember with fondness when this show was first on TV.  One website was spot-on when they said: “Over the last 25 years, there have been six Batman movies, multiple cartoons, dozens of toys, at least one massively successful video game franchise, and countless comic books.  But it was Batman: The Animated Series – which premiered Sept. 5, 1992 – that provided this era’s definitive version of the Dark Knight” (Source: http://ew.com/tv/batman-animated-series-episodes-ranked/).

This article goes on to showcase their list of 25 best “Batman: the Animated Series” episodes.  Several websites have similar lists of their favorites.  Every single one of the lists I came across mentions an episode called “Perchance to Dream”.  Rightly so, this is an excellent episode.  It is in my top 5 of best “Batman: the Animated Series” episodes ever made.

 

In the episode, Bruce Wayne wakes up to find that his life is completely different.  His parents are alive; he is engaged to Selina Kyle; and someone else has taken on the role of being Batman.  In essence, he is trapped inside a prison of a life of his heart’s desire.  But he refuses the fantasy, and he escapes (quite ingeniously, I might add).  The same article I cited from earlier has an intriguing comment on this episode.  He states, “Bruce doesn’t give into this temptation and rejects this world, choosing his dark crusade instead, which is one of the most heroic and heartbreaking things we’ll ever see him do on the show” (http://ew.com/tv/batman-animated-series-episodes-ranked/#6-perchance-to-dream-season-2-episode-1).  I wholeheartedly agree.

Today is my birthday.  Thinking about this marvelous Batman episode made me stop and ask myself this question: What would I do if I were introduced to a dream world like Bruce Wayne was in that episode?  Would I have the character to reject the fantasy and choose the harder life?  As I think about my life, I won’t sugarcoat it: sometimes my life is difficult.  The unexpected passing of my father almost three years ago changed my life.  I was the one that needed to pick up his torch and to shoulder the responsibilities he carried.  In short, my life has turn out differently than I ever could have imagined.  But I want to live this life because it is the life God has for me.

Kevin