Reading the various Batman Begins script reviews that have been posted on the internet recently, I paid special attention to what the reviewers thought of Katie's character, Rachel Dodsen. Rachel is not part of the Batman comics, so I had no idea what to expect, other than what the trades have said - that Rachel is a "childhood friend of Bruce Wayne" or the dreaded "love interest" in the movie. The review posted this morning at AICN made me very nervous. The only problem the reviewer had with the script?....the Rachel character. :( Then I read the review posted at the Trinity Comics Forum, and I felt much better. That review liked how the character of Rachel was handled in the script, so I contacted the author of the review and asked if he could give us some insight into exactly who Rachel Dodson is. Much thanks to Frank for replying so quickly and writing this up for us. As Katie is scheduled to start filming soon, I hope this helps us better understand the character of Rachel Dodson. :) Minor Spoilers ahead: The Rachel Dodson character is a childhood friend of Bruce Wayne's. She's the daughter of the Wayne's housekeeper, and subsequently she and Bruce grew up together. In a way, she grew up the way Bruce probably would have had tragedy not filled his life. As an adult, she's idealistic, strong, intelligent, feisty and honest. She wants so much to be able to bring order to the chaos that is Gotham, to fight for justice, but is hamstrung by the immense corruption around her. I've heard in several reviews that Alfred, Bruce's loyal butler and friend, is Bruce's moral center in this film, and that's largely true, but I also think Rachel is that as well, in a stronger way. When Bruce returns from Princeton to attend Joe Chill's parole hearing, he has revenge on his mind. When he returns from Bhutan, he acts the playboy in public. Rachel, who cares deeply about Bruce, is bitterly disappointed. It's partly due to her that Bruce goes through his journey and changes, realizing that vengeance and justice are not the same thing. It's her strength of character that helps bring about this change in Bruce, and her character is an important one as such. While reading this, I was really able to picture Katie Holmes in the role, and I can almost imagine Nolan/Goyer actually had her in mind during the writing process. She was the only actress offered the role, so that would seem probable. What I do know is that, Katie will be very well received when this film comes out. Rachel isn't a dumb "damsel in distress", nor is she a real love interest as such, despite her being described that way. Audiences will love her character, and the film, I have no doubt about that whatsoever. Thanks again to Frank for this wonderful character preview. Please visit his respective sites: The Wraith Online from Trinity Comics The Wraith: Eyes of Judgment Movie Website

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