That's not what I'm speaking to in your post. Nolan's TDKr and Miller's TDKR are essentially the same storyline and the same Bruce Wayne. You like one you should have no problems with the other if characterization is your complaint.
In the Dark Knight Returns,
- Bruce has been Batman for decades
- Bruce quits being Batman for a decade and he's approaching his 60s.
- He quit because he's a vigilante and masked heroes and heroes in general are outlawed save for Superman. He didn't want to stop, he was forced to
- He returns when he can't take seeing the rise in crime and filth on television anymore and when the Batman persona reemerges. He shaves off his mustache without even knowing and becomes Batman for his own personal satisfaction. Crime rates drop dramatically
- Everyone are in awe over his return, since it's been a decade since his return. Senior cops, citizens and criminals alike remember him when he was in his prime decades and decades ago
- Alfred never leaves his side and dies along with Bruce's legacy
- Bruce Wayne "dies" after having a heart attack whilst fighting Superman
- He fakes his death and recruits members for his mission to still wage war on crime
In the Dark Knight Rises,
- Bruce has been Batman for a year, a year and a half tops
- Bruce quit being Batman for seven years he's approaching his 40s
- He quit after his friend Rachel died and took the blame for Dent's murders (even though he was an outlaw to begin with). He tried to quit before as well and live a life with Rachel but the Joker stood in his way.
- He returns when a criminal known as Catwoman steals his mother's necklace and a "mercenary" known as Bane is on the loose. Gotham appears to be fine until Batman shows up and messes everything up.
- People don't care that he returned, since it's been 7 years. A cop explains to his rookie that he's in for a show tonight, a nod to Frank Miller's "Dark Knight Returns". The senior cop, I guess remembered him when he was in his prime just a decade ago when he was fighting crime for just over 12 months and he built up his urban legend reputation that orphans everywhere talk about
- Alfred leaves him
- Bruce Wayne "dies" when flying over the sea with a Nuclear weapon
- He fakes his own death, lies for a second, even a third time (maybe more if you count every person he's lied to since TDK)
- Lives a life with the woman that stole from him, helped break his back in France, living out a poorly scripted dream that his "faithful" Butler had in a flash back
Yeah, they retire and come back, but that's pretty much the only similarity, character wise. As far as characterization goes, they're vastly different.
There's other similarities too, like the pneumatic mangler (except Rises uses it on his knee), the cops, some lines taken here and there, etc.
But that makes it good? That they take things directly from Miller's story but down play it?
I mean you have,
A Bruce that's been Batman for decades, quits for a decade, comes back because "Batman tells him to" and lives in a world of gangs, crazies and filth. "Dies" by Superman, continues what he was motivated to do, fight crime.
vs.
A Bruce that has reluctantly been Batman for about a year, quits for a second time. Lives in a clean world under some superficial script "Act" that's based on a lie (are we sure Gothamites wouldn't forgive Dent and claim his murders were a "crime of passion" after his fiancee was murdered, he was horribly scarred by a maniac and the hospital that contained him was destroyed. Surely they'd understand the murders?).
Then "dies" by lying again to live peacefully in Italy. Has a rookie cop take over for him, just because he was an orphan too.
Yeah, I should like TDKR because it's the same as The Dark Knight Returns. Good stuff.
