Batman/Characters/And Bat Family: Difference between revisions

As years went on, Bruce has joined many superteams in the fight against crime, most notably the [[Justice League of America]] and the Outsiders. Unfortunately, due to the growing cynicism in the DC Universe, Batman began to distrust others more and more, which was ultimately addressed in [[Infinite Crisis]], where the Brother Eye satellite he created was responsible for the creation and control of the metahuman-hunting cyborgs, the O.M.A.C.s. Following his [[Heel Realization]], Bruce [[Fifty Two|took off for a year]] in order to rebuild Batman. Recently, [[Grant Morrisons Batman|he was the target of the villainous organization]], the Black Glove, who wished to break him utterly and kill him. Barely escaping, [[Final Crisis|he was tortured by the New God Darkseid to be used as a template for new soldiers]]. After an attempt to kill Darkseid, Bruce Wayne was ultimately 'killed' by the Omega Sanction {{spoiler|which sent his soul into [[Fate Worse Than Death|an endless loop of lives, each one worse than the last]].}} As expected of as popular a character as he, he came back, and he decided to make the Batman idea an international organization called Batman, Inc, while leaving the title of Gotham's Batman to his first Robin Dick Grayson. After the [[New 52]] reboot, Bruce is back to being Gotham's Batman.

 

 

* [[The Ace]]/[[Broken Ace]]: While Bruce stands head and shoulders above the greater majority of heroes in the DCU, it's fairly obvious that in doing so he's not the most well-adjusted or emotionally mature individual, has great difficulty forming close relationships, and frequently experiences friction with people whom he is close to. This is also occasionally [[Lampshade Hanging|acknowledged]] by Bruce himself; in one instance, Nightwing laments over the belief that he can never match up to Bruce, who assures him that despite living a very similar life in the same line of work Dick hadn't allowed it to mess him up as much, having a much more positive personality and maintaining a good relationship with just about every fellow hero he knows, and as such [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|was already better than him]].

* [[Belligerent Sexual Tension]] / [[Unresolved Sexual Tension]]: With Catwoman, mostly. And, even though he hates to admit it, he thoroughly ''enjoys'' it. So does she.

* [[Berserk Button]]: Don't hurt [[Papa Wolf|his sidekicks. Or any children]] in front of him.

* [[Bruce Wayne Held Hostage]]: [[Trope Namer]].

* [[Building Swing]]: Goes hand in hand with his [[Grappling Hook Gun]].

* [[Characterization Marches On]]: To be expected with over 70 years of comics. It may be particularly jarring for some readers though, upon seeing some of his earlier incarnations. The 60's version with [[Camp]] springs to mind, but even further back, in his first published adventures, Batman ''killed'' people, and had no problems whatsoever using a gun. While it is understandable, given both the time period, as well as that this was just the first incarnation of the character, it's still a far cry from the Batman known by most people today.

* [[Charles Atlas Superpower]]: Like you wouldn't believe.

* [[The Chessmaster]]: One of the most intelligent superheroes and an utterly brilliant tactician. If you don't have a superpower then improve your smarts instead.

* [[Clear My Name]]: occupational hazard of having dubious PR, plot of the major storyline ''Bruce Wayne: Murderer?'' and ''Bruce Wayne: Fugitive''.

* [[The Comically Serious]]: Especially in storylines featuring the JLA.

* [[Cool Car]], [[Cool Plane]], [[Cool Boat]], and [[Cool Garage]]

* [[The Cowl]]

* [[Crazy Prepared]]: A good thing for the most part, but unfortunately this led him to create the rogue program [[AI Is a Crapshoot|Brother Eye]].

* [[Death Glare]]: Quite famous for using these.

* [[Death Is Cheap]]: {{spoiler|Bruce's set to return in ''The Return of Bruce Wayne'' and it was recently revealed in the tie-ins to ''[[Blackest Night]]'' that the corpse Superman found and was buried was an [[Ax Crazy]] Darkseid-created clone.}}

* [[Doesn't Like Guns]]: Post [[Golden Age]]. Missiles, lasers, and other things, particularly weapons systems mounted on his vehicles, seem to be fair game, as long as they don't resemble pistols. {{spoiler|He'll also pick up a gun under extremely dire circumstances, such as shooting Darkseid in order to save the universe.}}

* [[Double Consciousness]]

*** And [[The Cowl|instilling pants-crapping fear and dread into evildoers.]]

* [[Jerkass]]: Four words - [[Frank Miller|I'm the Goddamn Batman!]]

* [[Lantern Jaw of Justice]]

* [[Latex Perfection]]: He's ripped off masks to reveal his entire costume underneath, ears and all.

** Indeed, the overwhelming popularity and critical acclaim of ''[[The Dark Knight Returns]]'' was one of the major influences on the rise of the [[Nineties Anti-Hero]] in the first place (As well as [[The Dark Age of Comic Books]] in general).

* [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]: His guise as Bruce Wayne pretty much demands it.

* [[Offhand Backhand]]

* [[Offscreen Teleportation]]

** To drive the "linchpin" comment home: remember, this was one of the major reasons DC Comics Editor-in-Chief Dan Didio wanted to kill off Dick--because his death would send the biggest shockwave throughout the DCU. The other editors/writers convinced him to keep Dick alive, but the idea of how close he came, especially in light of what Dick's been doing lately, makes one shudder to think what would've happened if the decision had been pushed through. You really want to shatter the DCU? You don't target Superman or Batman or Wonder Woman--you target Dick Grayson.

** Further lampshaded in one issue of ''[[Teen Titans (Comic Book)|Teen Titans]]'', where various Titans band together to take on a more dangerous Dr. Light. In Superboy's inner monologue, he marvels at how when Nightwing shows up, no one questions his leadership and everyone automatically follows his lead.

* [[All Up to You]]

* [[Badass Biker]]: As both Robin and Nightwing, he often rides a motorcycle alongside the Batmobile, though recently, he has received his own [[Cool Car]].

* [[Dual-Wielding]]: His [[Weapon of Choice]] as Nightwing is dual Escrima Sticks.

* [[Mr. Fanservice]]: It's blatant and unrepentant, and it ''works''.

* [[Fan Nickname]]: Fans refer to Dick as Batman only as [[Dick Bats]], since as noted above, THE Batman is Bruce.

** And yet when Bruce came back, the fans still supported [[Dick Bats]].

* [[Unknown Rival]]: Shrike, a member of his Nightwing [[Rogues Gallery]] who claims to be his [[Arch Enemy]], but isn't even considered a threat.

* [[What Could Have Been]]: Was going to be [[Killed Off for Real]] in ''Infinite Crisis''. For the same reason that [[The Heart|saved him in fact]]. See his entry in [[The Ace]] above. Considering how much emotional weight came from [[The Flash|Barry Allen's death]] he could have been gone a while...

 

=== Robin II / '''Red Hood II''' / Red Robin I (Jason Todd) ===

* [[Back From the Dead]]: <s>Sloppily</s> Explained as an effect of Superboy-Prime punching the source wall.

* [[Black Sheep]]

* [[Darker and Edgier]]: Jason stands out from the rest of the Bat-Family thanks to his willingness to take criminals' lives.

** After the Crisis, his origin was revised to make him different from Dick Grayson. Specifically, a criminal.

* [[Domino Mask]]: It seems to be a requirement for Robins.

** Most depictions even show his wearing the mask ''under the Red Hood mask''.

* [[Fire-Forged Friends]]: When Jason originally became Robin II, he didn't have a very good relationship with Dick. This is changed when the two end up in a situation where they save Alfred's life.

** Fast becoming this with his Outlaws, Roy in particular.

* [[Underwear of Power]]: Just like Dick, Jason wore tightie-greenies for his Robin costume.

* [["Well Done, Son" Guy]]: This is Jason's biggest flaw, the need to be approved of by a parental figure. First as Robin, then when searching for his mother, his resurrection, to becoming Red Robin on Earth-51, to ''Battle For The Cowl'' where because he couldn't deal with Batman's death, Jason decided to take his place as "Batman's successor".

 

=== Robin III / '''Red Robin III''' (Timothy "Tim" Drake) ===

At age nine, Tim was able to deduce both Batman and Robin I's identities, but kept it to himself, until years later, when Dick went solo and Jason died. Realizing how deeply Jason's death had affected his idol, Batman, Tim tried to convince Dick to reprise his role as Batman's partner. Although he agreed, Dick would only do so as Nightwing, despite Tim's insistence that Batman needed a Robin.

 

 

* [[A Man Is Not a Virgin]]: Averted.

* [[Badass Biker]]

* [[Badass Bookworm]]

* [[Celibate Hero]]: Whether this is an intentional editorial decision or many writers independently not wishing to age the teenage character is a matter of [http://www.comicsalliance.com/2010/11/11/tim-drake-celibacy-icon/ some debate]. He's certainly had opportunities, though not as many as [[Anything That Moves|Robin I]].

* [[The Chessmaster]]: {{spoiler|How he defeated Ra's Al Ghul. It was such a victory that Tim himself earned the title, "Detective." ''That'' was something Ra's reserved ''only'' for The Goddamn Batman! Goes to show you how much the boy matured once Bruce Wayne... left.}}

* [[Heterosexual Life Partners]]: With both [[Superboy|Conner Kent]] and [[The Flash|Bart Allen]].

* [[Informed Ability]]: His supposed leadership skills with the [[Teen Titans (Comic Book)|Teen Titans]].

*** Hell, even when Wonder Girl took over leadership, everyone still treated Tim like he was the one in charge.

** To put this into perspective, the cover and solicit for the ''Batman: The Dark Knight'' tie-in issue to the May 2012 ''Night of the Owls'' crossover featured him prominently. {{spoiler|He is in all of '''ONE''' panel. And he doesn't even have dialogue!}}

* [[Legacy Character]]: The third Robin, obviously. Following ''Battle for the Cowl'', Tim has taken up the role of ''Red Robin'' like Jason before him, now that the General is in jail.

* [[Underwear of Power]]: Averted; Tim was the first Robin to actually wear a decent pair of pants. ''[[Memetic Mutation|"Solomon Grundy wants pants too!"]]''

** It's been [[Retcon]]-ned that Dick wore the revised version of the costume (or something very similar to it) for winter missions.

* [[Wholesome Crossdresser]]: In ''Batman'' #626, Tim, in order to get to a dead body held at Gotham General Hospital, briefly took up the identity of Caroline Hill. Despite his complaints, the disguise is [http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g108/ladymirth/Batman626Pyrate-DCPpg10.jpg pretty] [http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g108/ladymirth/Batman626Pyrate-DCPpg11.jpg effective], [http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g108/ladymirth/Batman626Pyrate-DCPpg12.jpg alright]. [[Attractive Bent Gender]], indeed.

 

*** Plus, bigger islands, [[Where Does He Get All Those Wonderful Toys?|cooler toys.]]

* [[Hope Spot]]: "Batman vs. Robin" sets him up for several of these in a very, very cruel fashion. To illustrate: wow, Damian, your father might still be alive, but wait, does that mean you'll lose your place as Robin? That's all right, the man you've come to respect believes in you and is excited to have you helping him solve an old school mystery complete with secret passages and ancient clues! Isn't that wonderfu- {{spoiler|SPINE HACK!!!!}}

** Damian drops most jerkass tendencies when Dick either impresses him or is in trouble. The greatest example of this is when he tries to save Dick during 'Batman and Robin Must Die!' arc.

* [[Karma Houdini]]: Hey, remember the Spook? The D-list villain who Damian ''decaptitated?'' Neither does anyone else, apparently...

* [[Lamarck Was Right]]: He's been trained from early childhood to kick ass; Talia leaves Damian with Bruce to just enhance it.

* [[Leeroy Jenkins]]

* [[Luke, You Are My Father]]: More like "Batman, I'm your son."

* [[Multi Melee Master]]: As the 99 Fiends find out.

* [[My Dad Can Beat Up Your Dad]]: Fine, when your dad is '''Batman''', you ''can'' have bragging rights.

[[File:OracleYO.png|frame|<ref>[[File:BatgirlBarbara4_31.jpg|frame]]</ref>]]

 

 

Unlike [[Batwoman]] and Bat-Girl (characters introduced during the [[Silver Age]]), who were merely female counterparts to the Dynamic Duo, Barbara was completely independent of male superheroes, being a representation of the feminist movements of the 1960s (she even had a PhD; however, she was only allowed to be a brown belt in judo).

* [[Cute Mute]]

* [[Defusing the Tykebomb]]: She defused herself.

* [[Dodge the Bullet]]

* [[Dragon Lady]]: Not only does she Monologue in Navajo, she starts to flirts with Robin.

* [[Parental Substitute]]: Bruce and Barbara.

* [[Phlebotinum Rebel]]

* [[The Quiet One]]

* [[Retcon]]: The [[Author's Saving Throw]] is obvious, so let's discuss her origins. Despite the fact that her entire upbringing was a neverending training from hell, she did love her father, and yet she ran away from him. The reason was that her first kill was the very first time she had witnessed death up close and due to her body-reading abilities, she thought it to be very, very, scary. Thus she found out her upbringing was evil. Now enter the last issue of Adam Beechen's miniseries about her where it is revealed that she hated her dad all along, and that she had actually witnessed her father committing murder up close many times before her first kill.

* [[Groin Attack]]: She's pretty fond of it - she's done it at least three times.

* [[Kid Sidekick]]: And sometimes, she's the Kid Sidekick ''to'' the Kid Sidekick.

** Fourth Batgirl is working out for her.

** You jinxed it.

Before you ask, no, [[Batwoman]] was not Batman's wife. Not even in the [[Silver Age]] (no matter what that one comic cover on Superdickery.com says). Kathy was, however, designed to be a possible romantic interest for the Dark Knight (mainly to dispel the [[Ho Yay Shipping]] between him and Robin), as well as an attempt to cash in on the popularity of [[Superman]]'s "family members", such as [[Supergirl]]. As a rich heiress and a former circus performer, Kathy's life was rather untouched by tragedy, and she mainly became a crimefighter because of her attractions to Batman. Eventually, her niece Betty joined in on the fun as well, as Robin's love interest Bat-Girl.

 

 

Come the [[Modern Age]], Kathy has been revamped as Katherine "Kate" Kane, a lesbian and a Jew who is much less of a [[Distaff Counterpart]] to Batman. During the [[Fifty Two]] weeks following ''Infinite Crisis'', she filled in for the Caped Crusader while he went on his self-discovery journey. In the wake of {{spoiler|Batman's recent death}}, she has become the star of ''Detective Comics.'' The first issue sold out despite the notoriously low popularity of female-headed superhero comics and [[Hide Your Lesbians|the old claims that gay characters don't sell.]]

 

 

 

[[File:15164_400x600_2017.jpg|frame]]

In his crime fighting, Terry usually has Bruce's help via radio as well as quite a few advanced toys in his combat suit, including flight, limited invisibility, enhanced strength, and a whole lot more. Unlike his predecessor, Terry likes to talk and rile his opponents. He is decidedly less cynical and jaded and has a far healthier view of the role of Batman. Terry sees being Batman as an active redemption for his past sins as a criminal and a "bad kid". But he's also not afraid to enjoy the perks of the job and how it can be the coolest thing in the world.

 

 

These adventures, however, only took place in the alternate world of Earth-12 of the DC multiverse. Terry has since been adopted into the current mainstream DCU continuity where he is the fifth known incarnation of Batman (after Bruce, Jean-Paul, Dick, and Damian) and is now under the guidance of Damian Wayne instead of Bruce. The poor kid.

* [[Deadpan Snarker]]: "A huge smoking hole. Could be a clue."

* [[Delinquents|Delinquent]]: Terry used to be a criminal when he was a kid, but seemed to be scared straight by juvie hall.

* [[Genre Savvy]]: Terry has the advantage of knowing a lot about the past Batman's history and is sometimes pretty [[Genre Savvy]] because of it. At one point in the ''Batman Beyond'' comic, he was happy to learn that he had his "own Catwoman".

* [[Hannibal Lecture]]: Terry pulled one of these over on the ''Joker''.

* [[Secret Legacy]]: Thanks to DNA replacement therapy Warren McGinnis unknowingly went through, Terry is actually Bruce Wayne's son.

* [[Shiny Midnight Black]]: One of the biggest signs that he was really Bruce's son given that his mother was a redhead and his father had nut brown hair.

* [[Troubled but Cute]]: Following the trend of the Bat-family, if the not the entire comic book genre, Terry is a handsome guy with a troubled past.

* [[You Fight Like a Cow]]: Terry likes to talk when he's kicking your ass.

{{quote| '''Ma Mayhem''': This is getting old, Batman.<br />

'''Terry''': Look who's talking. }}

 

 

Ahh, the [[Silver Age]]. In this era of lightheartedness, sidekicks were abound, both human (or at least humanoid) and animal. Over in the Superman titles, Krypto the Superdog had made his debut, so a question was raised, "Why can't Batman have a canine sidekick as well?" And so Ace the Bat-Hound was born.

 

 

* [[Multiple Choice Past]]: Each time he's adapted to a new continuity, his origin is heavily revised to justify Batman having a dog. Did he help Batman anytime his owner kept him at Bruce's care? Batman got him from a Native American? Was he a dog trained for illegal fights who escaped and was found by Bruce?

So, anyway, Jean-Paul Valley was just an [[Ordinary High School Student|ordinary postgraduate student]] in Computer Science at Gotham University, when his father stumbled into his dorm, bleeding to death. Just before he died, good ol' dad informed him that he was actually the most recent in a long line of enforcers/assassins who worked for [[Church Militant|the Sacred Order of St. Dumas]]. So, after a series of misadventures involving a trip to Switzerland, training with a [[Old Master|short old guy]], allying with Batman, and defeating the weapons dealer [[You Killed My Father|that killed his father]], Jean-Paul had learned that every Azrael was trained by being subjected to a series of subliminal messages (known as "the System," this training was "programmed" into an individual, and remained latent until activated by hypnosis) since childhood. Inspired by Batman, he rejected the Order of St. Dumas and saved the Caped Crusader from death. He even filled in for Batman for a while during the ''Knightfall'' arc, while the Dark Knight was incapacitated. Unfortunately, [[Fan Nickname|Azbats]] went crazy due to the System, and made a suit of armor to replace the Batsuit, which included adding a frikkin' flame-thrower and ''claws'' to it. The whole point of the arc was to show fans who wanted Batman to be more like [[The Punisher]] what would happen if that want became reality. Anyway, when the fan reaction was largely negative, they had Batman reclaim the title in a battle where he outwitted Jean-Paul, who finally came back to his senses when he took off the Azbatsuit's helmet.

 

 

Also, word on the street is that Azrael will be appearing in ''[[DC Universe Online]]'', though it remains unknown whether it's Jean-Paul Valley or Michael Lane. [[Lying Creator|No one seems to have found either of them yet]].

* [[Dirty Old Man]]: Subverted for [[The Shrink|Brian Bryan]], though he has stated concerning Lilhy, "If I were twenty years younger..."

* [[Canon Dis Continuity]]: Jean-Paul Valley stated at the end of the ''Batman: Sword of Azrael'' mini-series that he and his father shared the same name. However, according to Azrael: Year One, his father's name was Ludovic Valley. This could be explained as simply Jean-Paul being mistaken, considering his [["Well Done, Son" Guy|somewhat strained relationship with his father]]... [[Brutal Honesty|or the writer forgot]].

* [[Dual-Wielding]]: Jean-Paul Valley had two [[Flaming Sword|flaming blade things]] on his wrists. See picture.

* [[Exiled From Continuity]]: Mostly because the book only had one creative team for its entire run. To [[X Ray|this troper's]] knowledge, Jean-Paul Valley has never appeared in another book aside from his own that was not a Bat-book, with the sole exceptions of ''[[Blackest Night]]'' #1 & #4 and the frankly obscure ''Plus'' #1. Also partially because a lot of people hate him for some reason.

* [[Offscreen Afterlife]]: When Jean-Paul dies in the final issue of his series, he says "It looks just like the earth." And he was sporting his famous smile, so that's a good thing.

* [[Oh Crap]]: Not only are the Azraels good at instigating these, but it occasionally happens to them too. For instance, Jean-Paul is going about in a run-down part of town as Azrael in issue #32 of his series. He's just been fixed up by this old woman, when he realizes that he left his car unattended. His [[Oh Crap|sudden realization]] and reaction to this are priceless.

* [[Outdated Outfit]]: After a [[Incredibly Lame Pun|fashion]]. Ludovic Valley's decidedly more crusader-esque costume was one of the factors that contributed to his death.

* [[Our Angels Are Different]]: Apparently, the residents of the DC Universe's idea of an angel is either someone dressed up in crusader armor or someone dressed up, well, like in this entry's picture.

* [[Suck Sessor]]: Jean-Paul Valley to [[Batman]] during the ''[[Knightfall]]'' arc. The whole reason it ever happened was to show fans why Bruce Wayne's Batman ''wasn't'' a brutal [[Anti-Hero]] like [[The Punisher]].

* [[Take Up My Sword]]: [[Batman]] (Bruce Wayne) appointed him as his [[Suck Sessor]] after [[Knightfall|Bane broke Bruce's back]].

* [[Temporary Scrappy]]: Jean-Paul Valley was promoted as this when he turned into Azbats and the majority of the fans were not pleased.

* [[Tragic Hero]]: At varrying points in his series, though most significantly in the end.

* [[Tyke Bomb]]: Apparently, Jean-Paul was subjected to subliminal messages and other mental conditioning since he was a little kid.

* [[Vitriolic Best Buds]]: With [[Nightwing]].

* [["Well Done, Son" Guy]]: Played straight. Jean-Paul had ''terrible'' issues with both his real father, Ludovic Valley, and his adoptive father figure, [[Batman|Bruce Wayne]]. The elder Valley had always been distant from Jean-Paul, and rarely even saw him, let alone had extended interactions with him. Even in Jean-Paul's "system" induced dreams and visions, Ludovic is condescending and unsatisfied with Jean-Paul's actions. But then again, it was revealed in Azrael: Year One that Ludovic was actually trying to get him to safety, away from the Order of St. Dumas when he mentioned the instructions, so maybe he wasn't such a bad father. And then there's ''Batman.'' Imagine if ''your'' father was Batman. (Maybe Jean-Paul could identify with Damian) Indeed, their relationship has been compared to a very athletic father looking down on an intelligent but physically lacking son. On the other hand, Jean-Paul's father issues led him to [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|identify with a lot of the villains he fought]].

* [[Will They or Won't They?]]: Jean-Paul Valley got this with Sister Lilhy a lot.