DC COMICS: BATMAN

Current Events

Since being rebooted into the "New 52," Batman has more exposure than ever before. He is presently starring in six titles, as follows:

Batman - Has been trying to recover after the death of his son, Damian Wayne. He is less careful and gets wounded more often while Harper, a young girl living in Gotham, tries to help him. However, the return of Clayface may make things get even worse.
Detective Comics - Faced off against some new villains (the Dollmaker & Mr. Toxic). Now, Batman must deal with the Penguin, Gotham's new philanthropist, in order to honor his mother's name and save the city from a future disaster.
Batman and Robin - Bruce and his son, Damian, work together facing the threats in Gotham. Recently, Damian was killed and Bruce is currently mourning over the death of his son. The comics now are dealing with him teaming up with other members of the Bat-family.
Batman: The Dark Knight - Batman faces enemies in this series with a darker tone. He is tracking down a kidnapper of children that is revealed to be the Scarecrow. Enemies have included Clayface and Bane. A mysterious character, White Rabbit, seems to be manipulating events.
Justice League - In the aftermath of Atlantis's invasion, Batman is working on adding new members to the Justice League, however a hacking attempt and a robbery from his cave makes things even more challenging.
Batman, Incorporated - Focuses more on journeys around the world to recruit crime fighters into his crusade and Batman's war against Talia al Ghul who leads Leviathan, a secret terrorist organization slowly infiltrating not only Gotham City, but the entire world. Also, they battled for control of their sonDamian Wayne who was currently Robin at the time.

Batman has also been featured prominently in a story arc in I, Vampire and shows up periodically in Nightwing,Batgirl, Batwoman, Batwing, and Catwoman.

Origin

Young Bruce grieving over his parents' bodies

A wealthy philanthropist, Thomas Wayne, his wife, Martha, and their 8 year-old son, Bruce Wayne, were coming out of a movie theater at 10:47 p.m. As they stepped onto Park Row (now called Crime Alley), a thug named Joe Chill armed with a gun approached them from the shadows to steal the pearl necklaceMartha was wearing. With Bruce watching, Chill shot and killed Thomas Wayne in cold blood and then Martha as she screamed for help. Bruce, traumatized by the deaths of his parents, would never be the same. Afterward, Bruce was raised by his wise and loyal butler, Alfred Pennyworth, and inherited his family's vast fortune as well as his father's company, Wayne Enterprises. Standing at his parents' gravestones, Bruce made a solemn oath to avenge their deaths.

Despite fiscal security, happiness eluded Bruce. Young Bruce was comforted by Dr. Leslie Thompkins, who helped him to mourn his parents and find a purpose in life. At age fourteen, Bruce started a twelve year walkabout around the world seeking experts in many fields, training himself mentally and physically. From an academic standpoint, he studied at Cambridge in England, the Sorbonne in France, and other famous European universities. A Frenchman named Henri Ducard taught him man-hunting, a ninja named Kirigi taught him stealth, an African bushman trained him in the art of the hunt, and Nepalese monks taught him healing.

Bruce returned to Gotham City, where he became a vigilante. But despite all his honed skills, he knew something was missing. Bruce believed criminals to be a "superstitious and cowardly lot," and in order to ridGotham of evil, he needed to reinvent himself to become a terrifying symbol that would strike fear in to the hearts of criminals. While in his father's study, a large bat crashed through the window. Bruce saw this as an omen and recalled his fear of bats as a child. This would be his symbol; the Bat would strike terror into the Gotham underworld. Using his vast wealth, Bruce designed a costume and state of the art equipment, thus beginning a difficult double life: By day, he would be the billionaire playboy and businessman, Bruce Wayne and by night, he was The Batman.

Creation

Batman, one of the most influential comic book characters to be penned, was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, though Kane, who designed the character, often receives credit as the sole creator. After the success of Superman in early 1939, DC comics started requesting more superheroes for its titles. Bob Kane had an idea for a character called "Bat-Man." There is a large controversy that suggests Kane came up with a "Birdman" and Finger is the one who actually suggested the name "Bat-man." The character's alter-ego's name was influenced by the names of the Scottish patriot Robert the Bruce and revolutionary U.S. Brigadier General Mad Anthony Wayne (who in the comics is an ancestor of Bruce). For the character's costume, Kane drew inspiration from a flying device designed by Leonardo da Vinci: the ornithoper, a glider that had bat like wings.

Most of the Bat costume designs were suggested by Bill Finger. Kane initially drew Batman with a red and black costume, a domino mask, and wings. Finger suggested the character's costume be colored gray & black to make the character look more "ominous." He also suggested replacing the domino mask with a cowl and the wings with a cape. Finger also wanted Kane to change the way Batman's eyes appeared behind the mask and urged him to turn them into white spots. Later Finger admitted that he was influenced by the comic character The Phantom, who also wore a mask with no visible pupils. Gloves were also added so that Batman would not leave fingerprints behind.

Like Superman, various aspects of Batman's personality, character history, visual design and equipment were inspired by contemporary popular culture of the 1930's, including movies, pulp magazine, comic strips, newspaper headlines and even aspects of Kane himself. Notable sources of inspiration were two of Kane's favorite movies, The Bat Whispers (1930), the film was a screen adaptation of Mary Robert Rinehart's mystery novel that featured character named The Bat, a detective who has a secret alter ego known as the Bat. The other movie that influenced Kane was The Mark of Zorro (1920). One might point out that in the movies young Bruce Wayne is often shown to have seen a Zorro movie before his parents were murdered. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #27, published in 1939, and later became popular enough to spawn his own comics. Along with Superman and Wonder Woman, Batman has provided many of the core story arcs for the DC brand since his creation.

Batman is unique for the simple reason that he has no superhuman powers and is an ordinary human relying on intelligence, money, inventiveness, detective skills, martial arts, and fear to defeat his opponents. He currently makes the most money for a single publishing character and is widely considered to be one of the most popular superheroes in comics.

In the original version of the story and the vast majority of retellings, Batman's secret identity is Bruce Wayne, an American millionaire (later billionaire) playboy, industrialist, and philanthropist. Having witnessed the murder of his parents as a child, he swore revenge on criminals, an oath tempered with the greater ideal of justice. Wayne trains himself both physically and intellectually and dons a bat-themed costume in order to fight crime. Batman operates in the fictional American Gotham City, assisted by various supporting characters including his crime-fighting partner, Robin, his butler Alfred Pennyworth, the police commissioner Jim Gordon, and occasionally the heroine Batgirl. He fights an assortment of villains such as the Joker, the Penguin, the Riddler, Two-Face, Ra's al Ghul, Scarecrow, Poison Ivy, and Catwoman, among others. Unlike most superheroes, he does not possess any superpowers; he makes use of intellect, detective skills, science and technology, wealth, physical prowess, martial arts skills, an indomitable will, fear, and intimidation in his continuous war on crime.

Batman became a very popular character soon after his introduction and gained his own comic book title, Batman, in 1940. As the decades wore on, differing interpretations of the character emerged. The late 1960s Batman television series used a camp aesthetic which continued to be associated with the character for years after the show ended. Various creators worked to return the character to his dark roots, with varying results. The comic books of this dark stage culminated in the acclaimed 1986 miniseries The Dark Knight Returns, by Frank Miller, as well as Batman: The Killing Joke by Alan Moore and Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, among others. The overall success of Warner Bros.' live-action Batman feature films have also helped maintain public interest in the character.

Pulp Influences

Batman as a character was heavily influenced by Pulp magazines, cheaply-printed prose magazines that were a popular form of mass entertainment in the first half of twentieth century. Pulp genres varied from romance to horror, but mysterious heroes featured heavily. And as Bill Finger later said, Batman was originally written in pulp style. One famous Pulp character that inspired both Finger and Kane - in different medias - was The Shadow. Finger liked the magazine version of the character: a gun toting no nonsense crime fighter whose real identity was a mystery. Kane preferred the radio version of The Shadow: a wealthy playboy named Lamont Cranston who had the hypnotic power "to cloud men's minds," so they couldn't see him.

Character Evolution

Golden Age

During the Golden Age of Comics, when he was first introduced, Bruce Wayne was already the vigilante known as Batman. Batman's first appearance was in Detective Comics #27. InDetective Comics #33, the origin of the character was told. Bruce Wayne was the son of Thomas Wayne and his wife,Martha Wayne. His parents were wealthy philanthropists in the high society of Gotham City. Bruce grew up in Wayne Manorand experienced a privileged life until one fateful night. Bruce and his parents went to the movies and were walking home when suddenly they were confronted by a small-time crook carrying a gun named Joe Chill. At first, Chill demandedMartha's jewelery, but he ended up shooting both of Bruce’s parents. After the deaths of his parents, Bruce swore to ridGotham City of evil forever. He began an intense mental and physical training and mastered many skills including martial arts, criminology, and escape artistry.

Upon completing his training Bruce realized that his skills alone were not enough to do the job; he needed the criminals to fear him. That was when a bat flew through the window, scaring Bruce. He was inspired by the symbolism of the bat and used this to become Batman. Batman witnesses the death of the Flying Graysons, high-flying acrobats that were killed by mobsters after the owner of the circus refused to pay "protection money" for the crooks to be their bodyguards. Bruce takes in young Dick Grayson as his ward and trains him as his sidekick, Robin. Bruce and Dick first hunt down and defeat Tony Zucco, the crime boss that was responsible for the deaths of John and Mary Grayson. It is never stated why Bruce took in Dick, but it could be due to howDick lost his parents at a young age just like Bruce. Together the " Dynamic Duo" face off against many enemies such as the Riddler, Scarecrow, Penguin and the Joker.

Batman eventually becomes one of the founding members of the Justice Society Of America. Batman continued working with the Gotham City Police Department in fighting crime and is later legally deputized as a civilian police agent. Later Alfred Pennyworth is introduced and serves as his butler. Alfred eventually learns the identities of the Dynamic Duo and aids them in keeping their identity safe. Love interest Vicki Vale debuted during the 1940's as one of the numerous "flavors of the month" for Bruce Wayne. Vicki was created as a mirror of Lois Lane of Metropolis. She often spends her time trying to figure out the identity of Batman. Whenever she got close to figuring out Batman was Bruce Wayne, Batman would often trick her into believing he was not Bruce Wayne. This was a common occurrence in the golden age (secret identities nearly being found out.) Batman was first portrayed as a cold-blooded vigilante who was willing to use a gun and kill his enemies to rid the city of crime. However, DC comic's new editor, Whitney Ellsworth, enlisted a moral code for Batman, preventing him from ever killing or using a gun.

Silver Age

During the Silver Age DC Comics introduced the Multiversecontinuity to its characters. It established the fact that all the Batman stories told during the Golden Age actually took place on Earth-Two. The Earth-Two Batman marries Catwoman and fathered a daughter named Helena Wayne who grows up to be the Huntress. Earth-Two Batman retires to take the job as Commissioner of the GCPD. Dick Grayson of Earth-Two became a lawyer with his own practice and continued his career as the Earth-Two Robin. Eventually he dies during his final adventure against a criminal named Bill Jensen who had acquired superpowers. Batman's back story was expanded upon to include his uncle, Philip Wayne, who raised Bruce for a while after his parents' deaths. He also had an older brother named Thomas Wayne Jr. who had to be institutionalizes after the death of Thomas and Martha. In addition, it was revealed that his parents' killing had not been chance, but an assassination ordered by gangster Lew Moxon.

As a child, Bruce's father had worn a bat costume (similar to Batman's future costume) to a masquerade party, where he encountered and stopped the mobster. Moxon swore revenge against Dr. Wayne, and hired Joe Chillto orchestrate the "mugging" that would result in their deaths. At some point in Bruce's training, he wears a costume similar to the future Robin's and is trained by Harvey Harris, a Gotham City Police detective. During this time Batman would regularly team up with other heroes to fight evil (these adventures were published inWorld’s Finest Comics from the 1950's through the 1980's), and many of the team-ups featured Batman,Superman and, occasionally, Robin and led to the formation of the Justice League of America.

After Robin (Dick Grayson) sustains an injury, Batman insists on going without a sidekick. Dick leaves to attend college and moves out of Wayne Manor. Batman primarily works solo but occasionally teams up withRobin and Batgirl. It was during this period where Batman starts becoming a bit darker (partly due to the loss of Robin's presence, but mainly because times were changing in the real world). Violent crimes increase inGotham and the Joker returns with a darker, more sadistic nature (i.e. he was starting to kill his victims)

The Batman also comes face to face with Ra's al Ghul, the Demon's Head. Ra's has lived for over 600 years and is one of the few people who deduces that Bruce Wayne is Batman. Ra's saw their ideals as being the same, but the two became rivals quickly when Batman realized that Ra's did not value the lives of others as he did. During this time Bruce's older brother, Thomas Wayne, Jr., reappears. Thomas becomes an assassin, but his body was taken over by the anti-hero Deadman. Batman was able to remove Deadman from his brother's body, but Thomas soon dies trying to save his younger brother's life. Batman later quit the Justice League to form his new group called the Outsiders. Batman leads the group for a while, but he eventually quit the Outsiders as well.

Modern Age

After the story called Crisis on Infinite Earths, the Batman of Earth-Two was erased from history. DC Comics attempted to reboot many major characters' origins including Batman. The re-tooled history was recounted in Frank Miller’s run on theBatman: Year One story arc, or, at least the more serious, less campier sides of The Dark Knight. This made Batman darker and more believable and showed how much Batman dominates Bruce Wayne's psychology, so much so that Bruce has fully transformed into the Dark Knight, both physically and mentally. The character of Jim Gordon was portrayed in greater detail, and the corruption of the Gotham City Police Department was more pronounced, giving more of a reason for Gotham City to need Batman. Dick's back story remains the same, but Jason Todd's origin was changed, turning the boy into the orphan son of a petty crook, who tries to steal the tires from the Batmobile. Philip Wayne and Thomas, Jr. were removed from continuity and Bruce was raised by his father's trusted friend and butler,Alfred Pennyworth.

In addition, Batman was no longer a founding member of the Justice League. During the Son of the Demon story arc, Batman marries Talia, and she becomes pregnant with their child. When Talia was attacked, Batman nearly dies trying to save her. Talia concludes that she was a hindrance to Batman and pretends to have a miscarriage. The two annulled their marriage, but Talia delivered the baby and gave him up.

In the new continuity Batman found Jason trying to steal the wheels off the Batmobile. Unlike Dick, Jason would question and eventually defy Batman's orders. It would get to the point where Jason was becoming a danger to himself and others around him. Batman considers removing him as Robin, but Jason manages to convince him otherwise. Jason Todd eventually learns that the woman who raised him was not his biological mother and became determined to find his true mother. He travels to the Middle East, where he encountered Batman (who was searching for the Joker), and explained that he was searching for his birth mother. Batman saw the list of candidates and recognized one of the names on the list as Sandra Woosan: the assassin Lady Shiva.

After a brief fight Batman learned that she was not Jason's mother. Jason managed to find his mother, Sheila Haywood, and revealed his secret identity to her, but she turns him over to The Joker. Jason's mother was being blackmailed by the Joker, but as she had some shady dealings herself she did not want attention being drawn to her. Joker savagely beats Jason with a crowbar, then detonates an explosive that kills Jason and his mother. This was during the story arc Death in the family.

After this tragic event, Batman becomes even darker and more violent when he battled crime. Tim Drake, a young boy who witnessed the death of the Graysons, noticed the dark nature of the Batman after the loss of Robin. He had figured out that the original Robin was Dick Grayson and thus, Bruce Wayne had to be Batman. Tim knew that Batman needed a friend in his war and after being unsuccessful in convincing Dick to return to the role, Dick petitions Bruce to train Tim to become the next Robin, in order to keep Batman sane. After a grueling training regime, Tim finally becomes the new Robin.

In the Knightfall storyline's first phase, the new villain Bane paralyzes Batman, leading Wayne to ask Azrael to take on the role. After the end of "Knightfall," the storylines split in two directions, following both the Azrael-Batman's adventures, and Bruce Wayne's quest to become Batman once more. The story arcs realign in "KnightsEnd," as Azrael becomes increasingly violent and is defeated by a healed Bruce Wayne. Wayne hands the Batman mantle to Dick Grayson (then Nightwing) for an interim period, while Wayne trains to return to the role.

The 1994 company-wide crossover Zero Hour changes aspects of DC continuity again, including those of Batman. Noteworthy among these changes is that the general populace and the criminal element now considers Batman an urban legend rather than a known force. Similarly, the Waynes' killer is never caught or identified, effectively removing Joe Chill from the new continuity, rendering stories such as "Year Two" non-canon.

Batman once again becomes a member of the Justice League during Grant Morrison's 1996 relaunch of the series, titled JLA. While Batman contributes greatly to many of the team's successes, the Justice League is largely uninvolved as Batman and Gotham City face catastrophe in the decade's closing crossover arc. In 1998's "Cataclysm" storyline, Gotham City is devastated by an earthquake and ultimately cut off from the United States Government afterwards. Deprived of many of his technological resources, Batman fights to reclaim the city from legions of gangs during 1999's "No Man's Land".

Meanwhile, Batman's relationship with the Gotham City Police Department changed for the worse with the events of "Batman: Officer Down" and "Batman: War Games/War Crimes"; Batman's long-time law enforcement allies Commissioner Gordon and Harvey Bullock are forced out of the police department in "Officer Down", while "War Games" and "War Crimes" saw Batman become a wanted fugitive after a contingency plan of his to neutralize Gotham City's criminal underworld is accidentally triggered, resulting in a massive gang war that ends with the sadistic Black Mask the undisputed ruler of the city's criminal gangs. Other troubles come for Batman in the form of Lex Luthor (secretly behind the events of "No Man's Land"), who seeks revenge for Bruce Wayne cancelling all of his company's government contracts upon Luthor being elected President of the United States. Luthor arranges for the murder of Batman's on-again, off-again love interest Vesper (introduced in the mid-1990s) during the "Bruce Wayne: Murderer?" and "Bruce Wayne: Fugitive" story arcs. Though Batman is able to clear his name, he loses another ally in the form of his new bodyguard Sasha, who is recruited into the organization known as "Checkmate" while stuck in prison due to her refusal to turn state's evidence against her employer. While he was unable to prove that Luthor was behind the murder of Vesper, Batman does get his revenge with help from Talia al Ghul in Superman/Batman #1–6: not only does he bring down Lex Luthor's Presidency but also engages in a hostile take-over of Luthor's corporate holdings, bankrupting the villain in the process.

Meanwhile, with Tim Drake finally the new Robin, unknown to Batman, Jason Todd is secretly recovered by Ra's Al Ghul. While the resurrection was a success it also had repercussions. Jason Todd was alive, but he was without emotion and pain. When Ra's told Talia that the plan to bring back Jason was a failure; he told her to kill him. Growing an attachment to Jason, Talia decided to take drastic measures and dumps him into theLazarus Pit a second time. This time it brought back all of his memories, emotions, and pain back into his life. Talia decides to start training him to be ready to finally kill Bruce Wayne and the Joker. Jason is seen telling Thomas Elliot (better known as Hush) the true identity of Batman. Jason eventually fights Bruce and the Joker and fails to kill either of them. Also during this time side adventures of Superman/Batman were created. This had some connection to main Batman/Superman continuity, but always had its own stories.

Major Story Arcs

Some of the major story arcs of Batman have been Hush,Knightfall and No Man's Land. For a full list of Batman's key story arcs please visit the Batman story arc page. The story arc Knightfall was significant because it was the first time Batman was clearly defeated. His back broken by Bane, Batman relinquishes the cowl to another man, Azrael, who becomes Batman for a time. However, due to him being insane, Bruce Wayne has to intrust the Batman mantle to his ward, Dick Grayson, until he comes back fully recovered. Another major story arc involving Hush teases the return of Jason Todd -- though it was not him in the end. Created by Jim Lee and Jeff Loeb, Hush brought another deadly villain to Batman's doorstep, now literally since this villain actually knew Batman's secret identity. Batman and his friends were in grave danger because of Hush's attempts to always be two steps ahead.

Hush was revealed to be a childhood friend of Bruce's, Tommy Elliot. He wanted to ruin Batman's reputation so he could replace him as protector of Gotham City. For a time Bruce's personal life was greatly challenged when Jason Todd returns from the dead as the violent vigilante Red Hood with a personal vendetta against Bruce for letting Joker live in the story arc Under the Hood. Tim Drake's father is killed, which led to Bruce to adopt Tim a short while later.

Bruce also becomes more suspicious of other heroes, creating a super satellite called Brother Eye, which is stolen and eventually causes the death of Ted Kord. Things then hit a personal low for Bruce during the storyInfinite Crisis when he almost murders megalomaniac Alex Luthor. Bruce realizes his morality is at an all time low and decides to take a sabbatical from fighting crime. In recent years after cleansing himself of personal demons and returning to his role as Batman, he discovers he had a son with his old-flame-turned-enemy Talia named Damian. Soon Bruce is tested in new ways both by a conspiracy to kill him and a journey through timecaused by Darkseid. During this period Bruce is assumed dead leaving Dick Grayson and Damian to become the new Batman and Robin in his absence.

With Damian as Robin and Dick as Batman, Tim Drake decides to leave his Robin mantle and find clues to prove that Bruce was not dead, but lost in time. He proves his theory by becoming Red Robin, a mantle that was used by Jason Todd years ago. After surviving his journey of time trials, Bruce Wayne had returned with a greater sense of responsibility and decides to take his crime fighting mission on a global scale with an organization called Batman Incorporated while Dick and Damian remain protectors of Gotham and also dedicated members to Batman Inc. Over the course of this series, it has become clear that Bruce's reasons for forming an international army of Batmen has been to combat a old global brain washing terrorist force called Leviathan.

In August 2011 the series Batman Incorporated will conclude as part of DC's Revamp. That August, DC also cancelled the both the long running series, Batman and Detective Comics and relaunched both titles in new volumes as well as relaunchs of Batman and Robin and Batman: The Dark Knight. Batman, Inc. resumed its story in early 2012.

DC's New 52 Relaunch

DC Comics announced that starting in September 2011 a complete relaunch of all of their titles would take place. 52 new #1 titles would be relaunched throughout the monthly featuring several changes to the universe. Batman plays a key role in the relaunch, and one of the biggest changes in the universe is Bruce Wayne's return as Batman and Dick Grayson's return as Nightwing.

Batman headlined several of the relaunched titles including Batman, Detective Comics, Justice League, and Batman and Robin. He makes appearances in other books and was a team member in the new Justice League International title.

Part of the New 52 relaunch involved a condensed timeline of the DC universe, which has affected Batman's origin slightly. Sometime after the death of his parents, Bruce left Gotham City for four years to travel the world and receive his training, including a time at a monastery in the Himalayas. During his absence, Martha Wayne's family, the Kanes, actively sought control of the Wayne estate and fortune, including Wayne Enterprises. After returning to Gotham, Bruce moved out of Wayne Manor into a brownstone in Crime Alley where he operated as a vigilante (sans Bat-persona) for about a year. During the next year, Bruce would develop the Batman persona and build a relationship with Jim Gordon, resulting in Gordon's installation of the Bat-Signal. In this period, five years before the New 52 "present day," Batman is still a lone crime fighter when he meets other superheroes who will eventually become theJustice League to defeat the threat of Darkseid.

In the present day, on the anniversary of his parents' death, Bruce Wayne takes his son Damian, the currentRobin, for an important night. Bruce Wayne decides he wants to celebrate how his parents lived instead of how they died. He then goes crime-fighting with Robin. Damian makes the enemies go missing and has a short argument with his father.

After stopping an outbreak in Arkham Asylum with the help of Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne works on contact lens technology that integrates the bat database wherever he goes. Bruce Wayne then goes to attend a formal gathering with his family, Tim Drake, Damian Wayne, and Dick Grayson and announces his new plans for Gotham. He discovers Commissioner Gordon talking about a murder. After sneaking out as Batman, he discovers a plot to kill Bruce Wayne with evidence pointing to Dick being the killer. This story arc is intertwined with Dick Grayson's solo series Nightwing, which is weaving a incredible siege of events. This story has Batman and his friends fighting against the Court of Owls, which is a task force that has been killing off esteemed members of Gotham City since the 1600's.

Later Batman tries to stop the Court, but the upset Court lets out all of their Talons, beginning the Night of the Owls. The Court strikes every Bat member that has something to do with Bruce Wayne or Batman. They strike the cave first but Batman is able to hold them off and eventually defeat them with a robotic Bat-Suit. After that he tries to stop the next assassination in the Court's list, but he is too late. But after that he learns the truth behind the Court, and who is standing behind everything.

The person Batman was searching for is the Gotham Mayoral Candidate Lincoln March, who is trying to convince Batman that he is the lost brother of Bruce Wayne. Being the ultimate Owl and killing the Court, March tries to kill off Bruce, but Bruce escapes and leaves the ruins of the destroyed building over Lincoln March (Thomas Wayne, Jr.). Later he tells Dick that he had a brother, but he died right after birth, and if he managed to survive his parents would have told him.

After the events of the Court of the Owls the Joker has returned to Gotham City with the intention of taking on the Batman and all members of the Batman Family.

Death of the Family

After his return, the Joker broke into the GCPD to take back his face and killed 19 police officers while taunting Jim Gordon. He then proceeds to make a live broadcast saying that the mayor will die at midnight using the son of the first person joker murdered in Gotham : John Claridge. John couldn't take it anymore and begs Joker to kill him. Batman says that he'll go after him, the family offer help but batman points out that it's between him and the joker. Jim Gordon and several other police officers are at Mayor Hady's office. Hady points out that there's no way joker could have broken but Gordon says that these precautions are necessary. Gordon goes to re-check the elevators and there he finds batman who's keeping an eye on the mayor. Batman suddenly realizes that the mayor isn't the target but it's everyone else. He rushes in but it was to late, all the police officers are poisoned and fall dead. While examining the venom, batman learns that it contains three unnecessary ingredients whose initials spell A.C.E. Batman heads to the A.C.E chemical plant where the joker was disfigured. There he finds someone dressed in jokers previous identity "The Red Hood ". Batman realizes that it isn't joker and attacks but gets knocked over and falls into an empty vat that starts to fill with chemicals. The hood is revealed to be Harley Quinn who tells Batman that Joker isn't the same.

Batman manages to escape by blowing a giant hole in the vat. He goes back to Wayne Manor and learns of Alfred's kidnapping. He then finds a cassette tape bearing the brand "Gordon" that recorded the event. Batman later visits Gordon, determining he is the next target. Gordon begins to bleed uncontrollably, having been dosed with a powerful blood thinner by Joker; Batman uses a coagulant to help save his life. Knowing that the Joker is reenacting his previous crimes, Batman goes to the Gotham Reservoir, Joker reveals that Batman was too late and that he's killed several people, Batman becomes infuriated and attacks the Joker but he manages to immobilize him. Joker says that he knows who batman and his allies are but Batman believes that he's lying.

Lieutenant Bullock and the GCPD arrive at the reservoir , but the Joker's men stop them with explosives. Batman frees himself and attacks Joker, but is paralyzed by Joker venom, allowing Joker to escape. Batman is rescued by the Batman family and taken to the Batcave, where he confesses that after an early battle with the Joker, he discovered a joker playing card in the Batcave; he denies it is possible the Joker found the cave but the family remain convinced that it is how he knows their identities. Continuing his investigation, Batman interrogates an Arkham guard, who admits the Joker is waiting for Batman at the Asylum. Batman then goes to the asylum; his inner monologue reveals that the movements he had previously seen in Joker's eyes when they met indicated love.

Batman makes his way through the asylum, and is attacked by Mr. Freeze , Scarecrow and Clayface , whom Joker has labeled with their 'role' in Batman's 'kingdom'. He easily beats them and finds Joker with Two-Face,Riddler and Penguin , but before he can stop them, Joker shows him video of Robin, Red Hood, Nightwing, Batgirl and Red Robin captured. Joker orders Batman to take his place on his throne-an electric chair-to spare their lives, and Batman does so, receiving an electric shock.

Batman later wakes up to find himself in the Bat-cave. He is found sitting at a dinner table, alongside other members of the family. The Joker reveals that Alfred is alive, but poisoned by Jokers venom. Alfred then removes the curtains revealing that The Joker has preseumably cut off their faces and serving them as "dinner". The Joker then sets the table on fire, but Batman breaks free and manages to put out the fire, the joker escapes and Batman removes Damians bandages. It's revealed that it was all a sick joke and evereyone was fine. Batman goes after The Joker. After fighting for a while, Batman easily defeats the joker, and says that he's determined to finish their rivalry once and for all. Batman tells the joker that he's figured out who he is. The Joker denies it and commits suicide by jumping down. The next day, Batman says that The Joker didn't care who he was under the mask, because it would ruin his fun. In the Batman issue 19 we see Bruce Wayne pointing a gun at Jim Gordon and shooting him and running him over with his motorcycle and leaving the crime scene. It turned out to be Clayface by the name of Baslio Kaslio who was pretending to be Bruce Wayne and framing him for Jim Gordon murder. Jim Gordon survived and is in hospital recovering. Batman knew it was Clayface all a long covering the whole thing up.

The Loss of his Son Damian Wayne and his War with Talia.

After the events with the Joker in Death in the Family and in Batman Incorporated. Damian was killed in Batman Incorporated issue 8 by a clone called The Heretic and Batman was saddened over the death of his son, Damian. Batman lost two members of Batman Inc. Knight and Damian. Batman fought the clone the Heretic and blinded him in the eyes in a fight and after there fight at Wayne Tower he and the Bat Family left the battle and carried his son body out of the building. Bruce Wayne had a funeral of his son to attend to and in England the funeral of the Knight was on the same day and the Royal Family attended the one in England and Bruce Wayne attended Damian's funeral with the Bat family and told that he will get his revenge on Talia by himself. Bruce Wayne told Alfred to go on vacation. Batman went in the Batcave and put cream on his body to heal from his wounds and cried over the death of his son and bats where flying in the air when he cried and screamed.

Personality

Witnessing the death of his parents traumatized Batman. This experience shook him so greatly that Batman swore he would devote every breath for the rest of his life to eliminating crime and criminals from Gotham City. Although Batman is inventive, he refrains from killing as he believes that will make him no better than the criminals he puts behind bars. He also has an extreme distaste for firearms, and always tries to refrain from using them.

Personal Data

Physical Attributes

Height: 6'2"
Weight: 210 lbs.
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Black

Status

Identity: Bruce Wayne
Occupation: Vigilante, industrialist, philanthropist, owner of Wayne Enterprises
Citizenship: U.S.A.
Place of Birth: Crest Hill, Bristol Township; Gotham County
Education: Studied at various universities; extensive training in martial arts, criminology, forensics, chemistry, computer science, disguise, engineering, gymnastics, espionage, escapology, and other disciplines
Marital Status: Single
Known Relatives: Thomas and Martha Wayne (parents, deceased), Simon Hurt (ancestor), Alfred Pennyworth (former guardian), Damian Wayne (son), Dick Grayson (adopted son), Tim Drake (adopted son), Jason Todd (adopted son), Cassandra Cain (adopted daughter); Wayne Family

Powers and Abilities

Though he does not posses any innate superhuman abilities, Batman is considered by many (even Superman) to be among the most dangerous men in the world. Throughout the many years that he has been around, Batman has become one of the most powerful human beings in the DC Universe, despite having no superhuman powers at any time in his life. Starting at the age of 14, Bruce began to train with brilliant minds on the planet to learn about Science, Biology, Criminology, and other areas that would help him become the World's Greatest Detective.

Batman is also a master of stealth, disguise, and escapology. He has infiltrated high security strongholds and systems including Lexcorp. He has vanished in plain sight from regular humans and metahumans, such as Azrael. His stealth skills are so great that that even groups of superheroes such as theLegion of Super Heroes have been unable to locate him. To acquire all of these skills, Bruce needed money. When his parents died, Bruce inherited millions of dollars from the Wayne Fortune which he later turned into billions through investing. Bruce owns and runs Wayne International, as well as Batman Incorporated.

Batman is considered to be the "World's Greatest Detective," solving the biggest secrets with small or large amounts of data. He's also fluent in many different languages such as English, Spanish, French, Russian, German, Japanese, Chinese, and others. Bruce has vast knowledge in criminology,psychology,medicine, and anatomy.Batman is a excellent strategist,and is always steps ahead of his opponents.This incredible ability is due to the fact he studies his opponents, not only physically but mentally as well.

Batman has been said to be trained in every martial art known to man, and out of every single one of those forms of fighting he knows 127 that are deadly. These 127 are the main forms of fighting that make up his normal fighting style. He is known to change his styles in order to become unpredictable to his opponents.

Because of his training Batman has also mastered nearly all weapons known to man, even most firearms. Batman's combat skill surpasses most metahumans and normal men, and he even knows every pressure point and nerve strike in the human body, as well as dim mak ("death touch") techniques. These can cause dangerous pain to his enemies which can lead to dizziness, numbness, unconsciousness, temporary paralysis, disorientation, and even death.

Due to his intense training and diet Batman has accomplished feats that normal human beings might call superhuman. Batman is in peak physical and mental condition. Batman has displayed surprising strength, and is able to bench press weight of at least 1000 pounds, and has personally stated that his maximum leg press weight is 2500 lbs (over 1.133 Kg). However, as shown in Batman Odyssey # 2, Batman was able to overcome his personal record leg press, moving, with the strength of the legs, a stuck railroad car. In Gotham After Midnight # 2, Batman was able to hold up two golden sarcophagi with the approximate weight of at least 1 ton, for at least one minute. In addition, Batman is an accomplished gymnast and acrobat, though not quite at the level of Nightwing. Batman's training and peak condition mean he's very fast, both in combat and on his feet. This speed combined with his strength, make him phenomenally powerful; even the enhanced assassin Deathstroke has commented upon the power and skill of the Batman.

Weapons and Equipment

Gadgets

Batman is most notable for his use of gadgetry. Due to his wealth, money is no obstacle to the development of various gadgets and paraphernalia he uses in fighting crime. The most recognizable of these is the Batarang, a razor throwing weapon that has a returning ability similar to a boomerang. This was slowly replaced by his grappling hook as a favored gadget over time. Other items include smoke or flash grenades, caltrops, a re-breather, and various types of anti-venom. His heels have a sonic device which can summon a swarm of bats. This allows for dramatic escapes or diversions to keep his enemies busy. A Kryptonite ring was entrusted to Batman by Superman himself to ensure a defense in case Superman were to ever go rogue.

Bat-Suit

The Batsuit is a experimental military body armor that is too expensive for the military to produce. Various bat-suit designs have appeared over the years, but all maintain the fact that Bruce's suit is tear resistant, bulletproof, and immune to temperature extremes(will not melt if in contact with fire,etc.)

For more information, go to bat-suits.

Cape

Throughout many revisions, all the versions of Batman's cape still retain the scalloped wing design at the bottom of the cape. The cape is used to help conceal Batman in the shadows, and it has also been used as a sort of parachute/glider. But Batman has never truly been able to fly using any of the various versions of his cape, seeing that he is usually on the ground or in the shadows.

Utility Belt

Batman’s utility belt is one of his most iconic items of that he carries(alongside his bat symbol), and everyone in the "Batman Family" has the same designs on their utility belts. Batman had designed the pockets to be locked, and only he knows how to open them. His belt has a security device on it where it can electrically shock someone or detonate an explosive device to prevent anyone from tampering with it. It is made of a leather strap with a solid steel buckle. There are also compartments that hold collapsible "Batarangs." Other equipment Batman carries include various kinds of venom to stun his opponents in his utility belt and boots, as seen in Batman: Year One.

It is a crime fighting kit that batman has outfitted to contain only the most advanced of technologies. Its contents include batarangs, a grappling hook, forensics kit(used on crime scenes), and electronic communicators.

Vehicles

While he is in physical peak and has many gadgets, Batman has had numerous vehicles to help him get the jump on villains.Bat-cars, Bat-Planes, Bat-Boats, and other vehicles have been used by Batman to get to locations in record time. The most famous vehicle is the Bat-car or Batmobile. The Batmobile can drive up to mach-1. For more information on Batman's vehicles, view their individual pages.

Alternate Realities

Throughout the universe there is more than one Earth. This meaning that there are alternate timelines/futures and people that are unique in their own special way. From the events of the multiple Crisis, most of the Earths have been erased from history. Only 52 Earths remain in the entire universe.

Earth-11

On this gender-bent Earth, Batman is Batwoman. Her real name is Helena Wayne, whom is the daughter of Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle. She takes the place of Batman when he passed away.

Earth-2

On this earth, Batman retired as a police commissioner and married Selina Kyle (Catwoman). They had a daughter named Helena Wayne also known as the Huntress.

Post flashpoint, Batman on Earth 2 fought with Superman and Wonder Woman to fight the forces of Apokolips, and in the process died saving the planet. His daughter is transported to the main DC universe along with Earth 2's Supergirl, and there they take on the persona of the Huntress and Power Girl.

Earth-3

On this third Earth, Bruce Wayne is actually Thomas Wayne, Jr. He is the son of the wealthy/powerful Thomas and Martha Wayne. This Earth did have a Bruce Wayne in the family, Thomas Wayne, Jr.'s little brother, however after the multitudes of crisis that have happened in the DC Universe, he was erased from continuity. Instead Thomas Wayne, Jr. is the mirror reflection of Bruce Wayne/Batman of New Earth. Thomas Wayne Jr.'s parents died and he inherited their fortune. He decided to train with assassins, mercenaries and masters of various skills to be a force of evil. As an adult Thomas Wayne, Jr. finds out that his father survived and is the Commissioner of the Gotham City police force. Thomas Wayne, Sr. knows that his son is Owlman and has decided to dedicate his life at bringing his son to Justice. Thomas Wayne Jr. hates his father for this and wants to kill him. He is the founder/leader of the Crime Syndicate.

Earth-1

Retelling the story of Bruce Wayne and his transformation from billionaire playboy to Dark Knight, creator/writerGeoff Johns recreates Batman's origin to go along with the Earth-1 story line. Earth-1 is to not be considered the "main Earth" or New Earth as it is called, however Bruce will be traveling around the world in search for retribution for his parents death. This story came out in late 2011, with artist Gary Frank also working on the Graphic Novel.

This story begins with Batman chasing after a cop named Jacob Weaver on the rooftops because Batman thinks that Jacob is somehow connected with the murder of his parents, Thomas and Martha Wayne. Since Weaver is a great distance away, Batman uses his grappling gun to catch him. But when he fires, the spool of wire gets tangled inside the gun, making it useless. Agitated, Batman throws the gun on the ground and continues to chase after Weaver. Jacob manages to climb up a staircase but the screw break. He somehow manages to jump on the other rooftop opposite of Batman. When Batman tries to get across, he leaps towards the roof but didn't reach. Batman then falls straight towards the ground, landing on trash cans and garbage. When Batman leaves his alleyway he falls into, he sees a poor, old frightened woman. Batman pulls money out of a pocket in his utility belt, gives it to the old woman, and leaves. A flashback occurs when we see a younger Alfred standing outside Wayne Manor. Near him is a sign that says Thomas Wayne for mayor. When he enters the building, he is greeted by Thomas and Martha Wayne. Alfred talks to Thomas about the death threats towards him and how he thinks they were sent by Thomas' political opponent. Thomas called Alfred because he wants someone on security that he could trust. Then Bruce comes running right under the two and tells his father that they will be late for a movie. Alfred warns Thomas that he shouldn't be going out right now, but Thomas says they go out every week as a family since he wants Bruce to have a normal life. So Thomas, Martha, and Bruce leave to go to the movies. While the Waynes are getting to their seats, the power goes out. Even though Thomas and Martha want to leave and come back another time, Bruce insists on seeing the film at another theater tonight. He runs out of the back of the theater while Thomas and Martha chase after him. On his way pass an alley, Bruce bumps into a man wearing a hood. The man tells him to watch where he's going. Bruce replies by saying that he doesn't have to listen to anything he says since his parents are the richest people in Gotham City. The man stops suddenly and says to Bruce, "You're the Wayne kid". When Thomas and Martha finally catch up with Bruce, he's being held hostage by the hooded man. He demands for their money and jewelry. But when he gets impatient, he lunges at the Waynes and shoots them both, right in front of Bruce. The story cuts back to Wayne Manor, where the police tell Alfred that if the Wayne's ever died, Alfred would be Bruce's legal guardian. Alfred hesitates to do this job, but then accepts it. Alfred walks over to the table Bruce is sitting by and tells him that he has to eat something. When Bruce asks who he is, Alfred replies by saying that he is Bruce's butler.

Earth-31

On this Earth, Batman is in his late 50s or early 60s and has retired from fighting criminal scum. This Earth follows the basic tragedy of Bruce Wayne and his transformation to Batman, however it portrays Bruce much older and, having defeated crime in Gotham, has made his city really safe from other parallel Gotham Cities. However, crime crept it's way into Gotham once again and Bruce had to don his Batman persona once again. Fighting various criminals/friends from the good old days, Batman is equipped with a 13-year-old female Robinwho will help Batman in his war on crime. Bruce has retired twice in this world and has to always come back to clean up after the government and their mess. Earth-31's Batman is a much darker Batman.

Earth-43

On Earth-43, Bruce Wayne/Batman was bitten by a female Vampire named Tanya, to oppose the king of vampires, Dracula. Tanya was a vampire that refused to draw on the blood of humans, and only wants to protect them from Dracula and his vampires. Tanya bites Batman, but instead of drawing blood, she transferred him new powers. Batman grew a disliking of the sun and gained incredible strength, speed, and agility. He also had the ability to grow wings in human form and become one with the shadows. While not wanting the blood of others, he had to use Tanya's a substitute to control the hunger. Most of Batman's villains were drained of blood when Tanya's was no longer sufficient. When this occurred, Bruce had already morphed into a giant bat like monster with fangs. Part of Batman's psyche and detective abilities stayed, but he is starting to loose it slowly. Since he wasn't a full vampire, he is hit with a stake in the heart and changed back to human form. Batman of Earth-43 still stands guard over his Gotham, but with the mark of a vampire.

Flashpoint

In Flashpoint, the DC Universe's continuity thriller, the world has gone to hell. Barry Allen awakens to find that his beloved Earth is no more, and his friends/family have changed. Batman still protects citizens of Gotham from scum/villainy that will try to corrupt it, however Bruce Wayne isn't Batman.

Instead, Thomas Wayne became the Dark Knight when he watched his beloved son and wife get gunned down in front of him. Thomas Wayne isn't the Batman we all know and love, but rather he has torn up Wayne Manor and lives in the Bat-Cave based under it. Thomas isn't afraid to murder in this twisted version of Earth-1.

Zur-En-Arrh

On planet Zur-En-Arrh, Batman has superpowers. Near Batman's early creation, Ed Herron created this planet to give Batman abilities like Superman. Batman had all Superman's abilities and even a special weakness. In this comic, the Batman native to the planet was just a regular Batman like Bruce Wayne of Earth-1, with the name Kent Wayne (a combination of Bruce and Clark). He was raised by a rich family of farmers and when they eventually died, he became Batman. When Bruce Wayne came to his planet, Zur-En-Arrh Batman envied him because of how he was doing a greater job at Batman than he was. Eventually, Batman was weakened by a material on that planet, and Zur-En-Arrh had to remove his powers. After Crisis on Infinite Earths, this planet has been said to be erased from continuity.

Earth-5

On Earth-5, Bruce Wayne is only 8 years of age. Thomas and Martha Wayne are a rich family in Gotham City. Thomas is the legendary Batman with Martha as Batwoman. Bruce loves Batman and Batwoman and how they saved people. When he found out that his parents were his heroes, Thomas had no choice but to train him. With months of training, Bruce Wayne became Robin - The Boy Wonder.

Arkham City Earth

This Earth is similar to DC main continuity Earth-0 (New Earth); however, it differs from much of Batman's story. Still having his parents brutally murdered by a criminal, Bruce decides to devote his life to fighting crime in Gotham City. Years later, Batman finds himself in Arkham Asylum with Joker (and other Batman rogues) running the show; Batman locks himself in the asylum to stop Joker. Joker plans to create super thugs with the new Titan formula (a variation on the Venom serum). Batman stops a Titan-infected Joker, but the serum's effects make Joker very sick. A year later, Quincy Sharp, the former warden of Arkham Asylum and now the mayor of Gotham, closes the Asylum and places Arkham inside Gotham City. Batman is trying to prevent Gotham from destroying itself because of the Mayor's choice. This occurs in the Batman: Arkham City mini-series.

Earth-7642

This Earth, otherwise known as the Crossover Earth, is where DC main continuity coexists with the Marvel 616 universe. Spider-Man visits Gotham City after a psychologist, Cassandra Briar, believes she can cure theJoker of his insanity with a cranial microchip the same way she did Carnage. The insane duo eventually escape, and Batman is forced reluctant to partner with Spider-Man to save the city. This first meeting between the two occurs in Spider-Man and Batman.

Earth-9602

Otherwise known as the Amalgam Universe, this Earth is a combination of DC's New Earth (Earth-0) and Marvel 616. A head-to-head battle royale, which includes Batman defeating Captain America, results in the cosmic everyman Access creating Earth-9602. On this Earth, Bruce Wayne and Batman have been divided into two new characters: Bruce Wayne, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Dark Claw (Batman/Wolverine).

Batman/Danger Girl

In this miniseries and company crossover, the Danger Girl team goes to Gotham City after being informed thatDonavin Conrad is trying to sell a mind control gun to the Joker. Batman does not like the involvement of Danger Girl, but neither does he like the threat which they pose. The Joker does not trust Conrad and attempts to double cross him as he sends Harley and Conrad to retrieve the codes to use the device. Abbey andSydney come across Bruce Wayne, who invite them to a gala. The Danger Girl team faces the Joker but he manages to escape. Valerie finds a way to activate the bat-signal, but when Batman shows up a fight ensues between him and Sydney. They eventually reach a truce but only exchange information before parting ways.Johnny and Valerie have set up the villains to also attend the gala, hoping to catch them there. Johnny himself goes dressed as Batman and is unmasked before the real Batman arrives and stops the villains alongside the Danger Girl team.

Earth 30-Red Son

In this alternate reality Kal-El's ship lands in Ukraine instead of Smallville. Batman is a freedom fighter who's parents were killed by Pyotr Roslov for printing anti Superman propaganda.

Batman is labeled a terrorist by the government, and manages to escpae the police everytime. After growing jealous of Superman, Pyotr convinces Batman to work with him to take down Superman. Batman agrees but warns Pyotr that after Superman is taken care of, he's next. Batman lures Superman by kidnapping Wonder Woman. Once Superman was in position, Batman bombarded him with red sunlight in order to weaken him. After beating up the weakend Superman to a pulp Batman locked him in a cellar, unfortunately for him Superman managed to convince Wonder Woman to destroy her lasso and destroy the lamps. When his plan failed Batman told Superman of Pyotr's treachery and commited suicide.

This wasn't the end of The Batman, other men have taken up the mantle after his death and brought justice to the streets of Russia

Other Media

Film

You can find a full list of Batman's movies here. In 1943 The Batman made his debut in a film serial simply entitled Batman which starred Lewis Wilson as the Dark Knight and Douglas Croft as Robin. The film was made during WWII; there is in fact a villainous Japanese scientist named Dr. Daka (J. Carroll Naish in yellow-face) as the villain. Although critically bashed, the film series did introduce the concept of the Batcave as well as a thin Alfred, prompting DC to remake the comics version into the version known today. A second film serial series was launched, which followed Batman and Robin's battle with the mad scientist The Wizard. Other characters in these films include Vicki Vale, Alfred, and Commissioner Gordon. With a higher budget and more solid acting, it is considered superior to the previous serial, but it still had errors with equipment and continuity, like the previous serial. In 2005 Director Christopher Nolan brought Batman back to the big screen with "Batman Begins." This was followed by 2008's "The Dark Knight," which grossed over 1 billion dollars worldwide, making Batman a legitimate box office presence. Nolan is has finished shooting his third and final movie of the current Batman installment entitled "The Dark Knight Rises," which was released on July 20, 2012.

Television

The next notable Batman incarnation was the weekly television series starring Adam West in the title role and Burt Ward as Robin. The series was intended to be a lampoon comedy show because of producer William Dozier's initial loathing for comic books; this gave Dozier, who also narrated the series, the idea to "overdo" the series. The stories followed a format that was villain-driven and action-comedy heavy and tended to need two parts to complete. The first part usually involved a villain committing a crime with Batman and Robin attempting to stop the criminal, only to be caught and put in a death trap.

Animation through the 60's, 70's, and 80's

Through the years Batman has spent more years animated on television than in a live action series. Starting in 1968, Batman and Robin made their animated debut in an hour-long series called The Batman/Superman Hour. This program, a Filmation Associates production, featured Olan Soule as Batman and Casey Kasem as Robin. The Bat-Duo were featured in numerous animated shorts which had Batman and Robin battle various Batman villains, as well as teaming up with Batgirl. These shorts eventually were repackaged as a solo TV series titled Batman with Robin the Boy Wonder, which ignored other segments in favor of solo Batman and Robin adventures. Soule and Kasem would reprise their roles in the Scooby-Doo Movies featuring Scooby and the Gang meeting Batman and Robin while battling Joker and Penguin.

In 1977 running concurrently with Challenge Of The Super Friends was The New Adventures Of Batman, featuring Batman, Robin, Batgirl, and the creature called Bat-Mite, fighting the Gotham rogues, both classic and newly created villains. (This constituted the previously mentioned Batman segments of Tarzan And The Super 7.) Because of Adam West's and Burt Ward's involvements in the show, it could be considered a continuation of the 1960s Batman series. Due to copyright issues, however, Challenge Of The Super Friends had the use of the Riddler and the Scarecrow, making them off-limits to The New Adventures Of Batman, while this series had use of the Joker, preventing his use in Challenge as a Legion of Doom member.

DC Animated Universe

Starting in 1992 the critically acclaimed DC Animated Universe series of animated TV shows began, consisting of Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series, The New Batman/Superman Adventures, Batman Beyond, Justice League, Justice League Unlimited, Static Shock, and The Zeta Project; all of which shared continuity and actor Kevin Conroy as Batman. Throughout all these shows, a history of Bruce Wayne was recounted, from his childhood to glory days and dark times as well as him as an older man in retirement.

Many of the scripts of all the shows featured Bruce Timm, Alan Burnett, Paul Dini, Dwayne McDuffie, Stan Berkowitz, and Hilary Bader, creating a Batman that was very consistent in between all shows. All of the series have been met with acclaim due to the treatment of subject matter that told stories in a way that was child friendly but still attracted older audiences.

This is true especially for the treatment of Batman staying true to many versions of him and having stories lifted or inspired by the Batman mythos. The series also introduced Harley Quinn and Renee Montoya to the Batman mythos. Soon after Batman the Animated Series ended, Batman appeared (once again) in a guest spot for Superman: The Animated Series before starring in his own show titled The New Batman Adventures. In these adventures, Batman along with many other characters featured a new costume design many of which were recast including Batgirl who was elevated into Batman's partner. Dick Grayson left Gotham and soon used his Nightwing identity that was displayed in the comics. A new Robin came in the form of Tim Drake (who had Jason Todd's origin story). These new revamped episodes not only showed Batman fighting the same villains but new ones as well some created for the show itself.

Before the scenes in Return of the Joker, Batman was shown having many adventures with the Justice League involved in the creation of that team offering his own money and service but preferring to stay a reserve member. That did not stop him from developing friendships with Superman, Flash, Hawkgirl, and Wonder Woman, whom it is implied he shared a romantic attraction. Over the series Batman would often be the one of the critical members and often serve as a way to solve a problem showing his importance. Though Justice League is that last produced series in the DCAU, it chronologically takes place before Batman Beyond.

Batman Beyond

Batman Beyond is a continuation of Batman's legacy, the series is set in 2039, and follows a teenage Terry McGinnis as the new Batman. Many other characters that were seen in previous DC Cartoons also appeared. Bruce Wayne is seen as an elderly man, Barbara Gordon is Gotham's new commissioner of Gotham Police, taking after her dad, and Superman appears in a couple episodes, older but still active. Terry also time-traveled to meet the Justice League and also Static. Tim Drake appeared in Batman Beyond: Return Of The Joker. The series was so popular that Batman Beyond has its new ongoing comic series beginning in 2011.

The Batman

In 2004, another animated series was developed called "The Batman." This series ran from 2004-2008, and starred Rino Romano as the voice of the Dark Knight. This series follows the early days of Batman in the first two seasons (Batman was in his third year of Batman in his first episode), but was seen with Robin and Batgirl in the later two seasons, and even Superman; he also fought many villains, both of his regular rogues gallery and others'. The series was not connected to Batman: The Animated Series or the DCAU. The character designs were by Jeff Matsuda, who drew the character designs for Jackie Chan Adventures and an aborted Spider-Man series. The series was not as dark or gritty as Batman: The Animated Series, and it did not receive as much praise; the series, however, was successful.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold

Batman: The Brave and the Bold was aimed at young children and was not as dark as the previous Batman shows. Batman in this incarnation was voiced by Diedrich Bader; other versions of him were featured as well, including a manga-style Batman (voiced by Corey Burton) and a homage to the Batman featured in the show "The New Scooby-Doo Movies" (where he was voiced by Frank Welker). The show was also partially based off the Silver Age of Comic Books, and like the original "Brave and the Bold" comics, he teamed up a lot with other heroes, but did not include Wonder Woman or Superman (this mostly focused on minor A-list or B-C list characters).

Among the characters he teamed with include Green Arrow, Captain Marvel, Aquaman, Plastic Man, Red Tornado, and the Jaime Reyes Blue Beetle. The series ran from 2008-2011, ending with the fourth wall-breaking episode "Mitefall". The series also had Dick Grayson as Batman and Damian Wayne as Robin for one episode. This is the only Batman cartoon that featured Dick Grayson as Batman and Damian Wayne as Robin.

Young Justice

Batman plays a big role in Young Justice, as he is one of the main members in the Justice League and regularly makes appears as the show's answer to Mission: Impossible's Jim Phelps. He is voiced by Bruce Greenwood (who previously voiced him in the animated film Batman: Under the Red Hood). Although he is not the main character, he is vital to the show. His character model is based off the design from the animated movie Justice League: Crisis On Two Earths. This version of Batman is based on Earth-16. Batman and five other members of the Justice League were manipulated for sixteen hours by Vandal Savage, in this time the six league members may have committed crimes in a different part of the universe.

Batman: Gotham Knight (2008)

This anthology film explores Bruce Wayne's transition from his beginning as a tormented vigilante to The Dark Knight in a crumbling metropolis rife with criminality. Gotham Knight has six distinct chapters, but its intended to be viewed as a whole. Kevin Conroy reprises his role.

Justice League: The New Frontier (2008)

Justice League: The New Frontier was based off the 2003 Elseworlds miniseries of the same name by Darwyn Cooke. Batman's character design strongly resembled Bob Kane's original Batman design. He was voiced by Jeremy Sisto in this film. The plot follows a new generation of superheroes that must join forces with the community's active veterans and a hostile US government to fight a menace on Earth.

Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009)

Superman/Batman: Public Enemies is based off the first six issues of the 2003 Superman/Batman series. The story follows Superman and Batman stopping an asteroid from striking Earth, and stopping Lex Luthor, who has now become the President and has put a bounty on both their heads. Kevin Conroy again voiced him.

Justice League: Crisis On Two Earths (2010)

The story follows a good version of Lex Luthor from a parallel Earth who comes to the Justice League's dimension to help fight their evil counterparts. This movie is loosely based on Grant Morrison's 1999 graphic novel JLA: Earth-2. Batman is voiced by William Baldwin.

Batman: Under The Red Hood (2010)

This movie is based off the Judd Winick story arc Batman: Under The Red Hood, though it's slightly different. The story follows the Jason Todd Robin's death, and years later a new foe who uses the Joker's old alias wreaks havoc among Gotham City's organized crime, Batman finds him disturbingly familiar. Batman was voiced by Bruce Greenwood.

Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2010)

Supergirl and Batman in Superman/Batman Apocalypse

Superman/Batman: Apocalypse was based off the "Supergirl From Krypton" story arc in Superman/Batman. The story follows Batman discovers a mysterious teenaged girl with superhuman powers and a connection to Superman. The girl comes to the attention of Darkseid, the evil overlord of Apokolips. Kevin Conroy once again voiced him.

Batman: Year One (2011)

Batman: Year One is an animated movie based off the graphic novel Batman: Year One. The story will follow Batman's early days. It will have the work of Frank Miller on the movie as the writer and Bruce Timm will be working with Frank to deliver Batman's story. Batman is voiced by Ben McKenzie.

Justice League: Doom (2012)

When Batman's contingency plan to use only if the Justice League go rogue, is taken by villainous hands. Things get out of hand immediately. As it is up for Batman to save his fellow partners and friends from a threat he didn't possibly foresee in the beginning. Based on the story JLA: Tower of Babel and Justice.

The Dark Knight Returns: Part 1 (2012)

Having blamed himself for the death of Jason Todd, Bruce Wayne retires as Batman and allows Gotham City to sink into a cesspool of evil. Constantly living on the edge of life, Bruce eventually comes out of retirement with the revelation of Two-Face's return. After that, Bruce is joined by a new Robin a young girl named Carrie Kelly whom helps him battle against the Mutants that seek to control all of Gotham. This follows Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns issue 1-2. The movie was divided into two parts.

The Dark Knight Returns: Part 2 (2013)

Having come out of retirement, Batman sees it time to run out all the crime in Gotham. Armed with an army of ex-Mutants and theSons of Batman, not everyone is happy with the extreme measures Batman is taking to stop crime in Gotham. Joker returns and it pushes Batman over the edge and because of it Superman is sent by the U.S. government to take him down for good. This sparks an all out brawl between the Dark Knight and the Man of Steel. Follows Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns issue 3-4.

Video Games

Batman Arkham Asylum

Based on Grant Morrison's Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth. This is a brawler game created by Rocksteady.

Batman Arkham City

Inspired the Arkham City comic series, the complementing Arkham City Digital chapters, and the newestArkham: Unhinged that lead into the game and continue its story. It continues Arkham Asylum and is also made by Rocksteady, this time with more open world aspects.

Batman Arkham Origins

A prequel to the previously two video games titles of Arkham related story that has been released, this time the plot will revolve on earlier days of young Bruce Wayne to bring the justice as Batman. Unlike the previous entry, this game will not be developed by Rocksteady but instead it will be developed in house by Warner Bros. Games Montreal. The game set to be released worldwide on October 25th, 2013.

Injustice: Gods Among Us

Batman is set to appear as a playable character in Injustice: Gods Among Us, which will be released on the X-Box 360 and Playstation 3. Ed Boon and the team who worked on Mortal Kombat have created the game.

Lego Batman: The Video Game

The first Lego Batman game, it features three stories in which Batman and Robin have to defeat various criminals. It also has the same three stories playable from the villains' perspective.

Lego Batman 2: DC Superheroes

A sequel to the first Lego Batman game, this introduces many other superheroes from the DC universe and is the first Lego game to feature voice acting.

Books

Batman: The Ultimate Evil

While aiding a beautiful social worker in her crusade against child abuse, millionaire playboy Bruce Wayne comes to a shocking revelation about his childhood--knowledge that nearly destroys him. Desperate for answers, The Batman follows a twisted trail of perversion from Gotham City to Southeast Asia, where he faces The Ultimate Evil.

Written by: Andrew Vachss

Batman Begins

Based on the eagerly awaited new feature film–the exciting origins of the ultimate crime fighter!

Bruce Wayne is dead. The young heir to the Wayne empire disappeared seven years ago. His vast fortune has been given away, and the crime wave that began with the brutal murder of his parents has turned Gotham City into a living hell. The last holdouts against corruption–the cops who can’t be bought, the D.A.s who can’t be intimidated–are outnumbered and outgunned. They need help... fast.

A world away, in a dank Himalayan prison, a nameless, hardened man fights every day to survive. He has spent seven years scouring the globe, studying the criminal mind, looking for an answer to the ugly riddle of his childhood. But something has been looking for him, too. Here, in the darkest places of his own anger, Bruce Wayne will discover his destiny–and an ordinary man will become a legend.

Written by: Dennis O'Neil

Batman: Dead White

Who better than Batman to protect the dangerous city of Gotham, where even the cops are crooks? But the latest imminent terror might be too much for the burgeoning Caped Crusader, who is still carving out a place for himself in the minds of Gotham’s criminals.

There’s a host of deadly new weapons in Batman’s glittering, sinister city–in the hands of a psychotic mastermind called White Eyes. With his radical murder machine, the fiendish leader of Gotham’s racist Bavarian Brotherhood can move beyond dealing drugs and hot guns to pursue his real passion: the white supremacist takeover of America.

The homegrown terrorists’ first strike–at the heart of our nation’s capitol–is only weeks away. But first they’ll test out their killer toys on Batman, who is hot on the trail of White Eyes and his brutal militia. Ounce for ounce, muscle for muscle, Batman’s no match for the cunning villain and his wicked new firepower. At least, that’s how White Eyes sees it.

Batman has other ideas...

Written by: John Shirley

Batman: Inferno

Gotham’s never been so scorching, the Joker’s never been more despicable, and Batman’s never been in such grave danger.

With more than thirty fires raging out of control across the city, Gotham is indeed a hell on earth. But torching the population is small potatoes for the arsonist extraordinaire known as Enfer. The pyromaniac’s mad masterpiece is Arkham Asylum, blazing like a Roman candle and engineered to provide the perfect escape for Arkham’s most infamous inmate, the Joker. But the dire situation goes from bad to beyond monstrous when the archvillain’s path to freedom leads directly to the Dark Knight’s cave.

The Joker believes in striking while the iron is hot . . . and now it’s never been hotter. After all, the diabolical villain has devised the ultimate joke: launch the mother of all crime waves, masquerading as the Caped Crusader himself! With Gotham erupting in flames and its #1 crime fighter fast becoming its #1 enemy, the burning question is: Who’s going to get the last laugh?

Written by Alex Irvine

The Dark Knight

Following on from 2005's critically acclaimed "Batman Begins", Christopher Nolan returns to direct "The Dark Knight", where Christian Bale's man-behind-the-mask is joined by Heath Ledger as The Joker. Batman continues to fight crime on the dark streets of Gotham City, but when a crazed psychopath unleashes a fresh reign of chaos, it seems Batman has met his match in the ultimate crime lord, The Joker. The official novelization is essential reading for fans wanting the full story of this extraordinary movie, and is written by acclaimed comic book writer ("Batman", "Green Lantern/Green Arrow") and editor Denny O'Neill.

Written by: Dennis O'Neill

Batman: Fear Itself

Batman strikes fear in the hearts of criminals, but there’s a killer stalking Gotham who’s even better at inspiring fright–and his method just might be unbeatable . . . because it’s invisible.

Unbeknownst to the general public, a powerful new designer drug has hit the streets of Gotham, courtesy of an evil genius determined to turn the expression “scared to death” into lethal reality. Unlike the Caped Crusader, who petrifies only villains, this mastermind is targeting decent citizens–and he’s come up with the ultimate delivery system. After all, the public can’t refuse something they can’t see, hear, or smell. That’s the beauty of a terror toxin that is undetectable by the human senses. And with all of Gotham’s super-villains incarcerated, Batman must hunt down a mystery madman about whom he knows nothing.

Maybe the Dark Knight should be afraid . . . because there’s plenty to fear when you go head-to-head with fear itself.

Written by: Michael Reaves

The Dark Knight Rises

Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman and Morgan Freeman return in the thrilling and hotly anticipated conclusion to Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy.

The blockbuster movie will introduce new faces to the franchise as well, including Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway), Bane (Tom Hardy), John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), and Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard).

From the team that brought you Inception, The Dark Knight Rises is guaranteed to be the blockbuster hit of 2012. This enthralling official novelization will transport fans into a Gotham City once again under threat.

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Sunday, April 21, 2013

BATMAN