Kevin Smith. An excellent film maker, hilarious man. If you don’t know who he is, you should. Highly unrecognised as one of the best communicators of fandom ‘nerdgasms’ through cinema, he does so in a more subtle, charming and funny way than Whedon and co.

Christopher Nolan. A true master of the director’s chair. Highly recognised and respected for creating the trilogy that has an incredible cast, gorgeous visuals, and just general cinematic brilliance. And happens to holds two of the three biggest superhero films of all time. A shining example of the leaps and bounds the genre has come from its humble beginnings.

So imagine my despair when I listened to the Hollywood Babble-on podcast on THDKR. Whilst typically hilarious, Smith and Garman rip the movie to shreds. It was like two of my best friends had fallen out: I wanted Nolan and Smith to sit in a room and talk it out, or tell Kevin that Ralph was a bad influence. I love them both dearly through a screen; whether it the low-tech TV I saw Jay and Silent Bob through for the first time in Mallrats, or the exhilarating IMAX through which I jaw-dropped my way through every DK movie.

Now in light of recent announcements (Batman/Superman), it’s important to me that Nolan’s trilogy does not get lost in depreciation. For me, my love with superheroes has been mostly on-screen rather than paper. The only comics I read as a kid were the Simpsons and The Beano. We don’t get as much issue in the U.K. And, to my shame, I was obsessed with the Batman & Robin. Only recently have I begun to appreciate the joy of comics and graphic novels.

Until I further listened to the Babble-on, I was adamant that Rises was the best superhero film ever made. And then Smith points out the plotholes. There is a lot. But at no point does he say it’s a bad movie, just that it could be so much better. Garman calls some of the plot ‘cheap’ to the audience. I think he took it too personally.

Nolan did not come from a comic background like Joss Whedon did (I mention this third genius as they often draw comparison in the podcast). He came from raw love of cinema, film, making awesome shit go down. He most definitively has achieved that through his career, and super achieved it in the trilogy. My opinion is currently that TDK is far superior, of which Smith described the plot as “pretty f***ing tight”.

The podcast made me recall a conversation I had with a friend on Die Hard 5 (for the record, awful). My friend used the metaphor of food: “Sometimes I wanna Michelin star chef to cook me a premium steak, but sometimes I want a kebab at 4AM to enjoy it for what it is.” Still Hate Die Hard 5.

I see his point though. Sometimes you have to detach yourself from views to truly enjoy cinema; you have to become the target audience. For example, the blatant over-patriotic Watchmen by all accounts should be despised by me on the basis of political views. But for the gorgeous use of black and white, the storyline, the scene changing, the hunk that is Dr. Manhattan. Everything was wonderful. I’m not going to deny I enjoyed something because of a prejudice. Hell, I loved Mamma Mia!

Through Smith’s anarchic charm, he won me back over and all was forgiven. He even managed to ignite my cynic flame and make some of my own criticisms of Rises. Is Catwoman really necessary to the film, or is it just a set up for a spin off franchise? Mind you, I wouldn’t mind seeing more of Anne Hathaway in latex.

One thing is sure about the trilogy: It has one of the best casts ever assembled. Cain, Neeson, Freeman, as an old guard to watch over the young guns of Joseph Gordon Levitt and the future throne-barer of Kingslanding (the kid Rachel rescues in Begins is Joffery, swear down) does not get better than that.

So perhaps I can’t fully appreciate the anguish felt by those who might be considered true Batman fans like Garman and Smith. But if you weren’t lucky enough to experience the football stadium collapsing and “Mayor Eyelashes” getting blown to oblivion in IMAX, then you should get a couple of school buses, clown masks and guns to earn enough money to get a private screening of the trilogy. I will help you on the heist to feel that thrill of Batman crashing on a car from 8 storeys high.

The more subtle moments, like the flaming fire engine that marks the division of Joker’s territory. Or the sheer terror the first time you saw Scarecrows mask under the influence. These are the moments that mean the trilogy should not be lost in the wake of Warner Bros. new Justice League franchise. I’m not upset that the Nolanverse won’t be incorporated; Batman is the only hero that can fit into his super-realism.

Kevin Smith will always remain in my heart as an excellent example of a human being. Watch Jay and Silent Bob go down under, look for the part when Jason Mews talks about being clean from drugs. Kevin is brought nearly to tears. I can’t hate this man, but I hope he ditches Garman soon and hires Mews for Hollywood Babble-on. It’s Obama chilling in a hot tub with Kim Jong Un and defending it saying “we’re both politicians, so it’s cool if we hang out.” Mews may be a loose cannon, but the chemistry is far better between the two.

So no more Christian Bale voice changing. No more Michael Cain bringing more depth to a butler than ever thought possible. No more Morgan Freeman. But if this is remembered as a 4 a.m. kebab to Zack Snyder’s steak, then it is the finest kebab ever to spin on a stick.