Batman: Bruce Wayne / Characters

Batman

Batman, The Dark Knight

Alter Ego: Bruce Thomas Wayne

Species: Human

First appearance: Detective Comics #27 (March 1939)

"Ladies. Gentlemen. You have eaten well. You've eaten Gotham's wealth. Its spirit. Your feast is nearly over. From this moment on — none of you are safe."

Batman: Year One

Bruce Wayne was born into the very wealthy Wayne family as sole heir to Martha and Thomas Wayne. One night, after seeing a movie (usually something to do with Zorro - if you know the background of Zorro, you'll know why that's important), they took a shortcut through a dark alleyway, with a mugger (named Joe Chill in most versions) shooting Bruce's parents dead.

The distraught Bruce was raised in current continuity by the family butler, Alfred Pennyworth. (pre-Crisis, Bruce was raised by his uncle Philip Wayne, with Alfred joining the Wayne household in Bruce's adulthood). Seeking to save others from the same pain he felt, Bruce would journey across the world to become the ultimate crime-fighter.

Years later, Bruce returned to Gotham, but realized that he lacked one element: fear. In his study, Bruce pondered what to do,when a bat suddenly crashed into a window. Reminded of a traumatizing incident with bats in his youth, Bruce adopted a bat motif to terrify criminals. Naming his alter-ego "Batman", his crusade against crime officially began.

As years pass, Bruce joined many superteams to fight the growing crime, becoming a core member of the Justice League of America and The Outsiders. Due to spreading cynicism in the DC Universe, Batman sometimes clashes with these teammates, such as in the story Infinite Crisis, which lead to the birth of metahuman-hunting cyborgs, the O.M.A.C.s. Following his Heel Realization, Bruce took off for a year in order to rebuild Batman.

Later, Bruce Wayne was targeted by the Black Glove, who wished to torture and murder him. Soon after, Darkseid kidnapped Bruce as a template for his new soldiers. Though fatally wounding the New God, Bruce 'died' from the Omega Sanction, which sent his soul into an endless loop of suffering. Per his popularity, Bruce was eventually resurrected, with a stronger outlook on life.

Learning that his ward Dick Grayson acted as Batman in his absence, Bruce decided to make an international organization called Batman, Inc, with Grayson continuing to operate in Gotham. After the New 52 reboot, Bruce is back to being Gotham's Batman.

Note that while Bruce Wayne is the most famous and most shown Batman, he is by no means the only one. Various other characters have taken up the mantle. But make no mistake: he is THE Batman. If anyone ever just refers to "Batman", they're referring to Bruce. Terry, Azrael, and Dick typically need an addendum to the name if you're talking about them.

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#-C

'90s Anti-Hero: Ever wonder why Azrael (AKA Batman II/AzBats) was brought in? It was due to Bats demonstrating way too much of this trope in the eighties (The Killing Joke is a prime example). Indeed, the overwhelming popularity and critical acclaim of Batman: The Dark Knight Returns was one of the major influences on the rise of the '90s Anti-Hero in the first place (As well as The Dark Age of Comic Books in general).
Abusive Parents: It must be stressed that this depends on the writer, but especially since 1986, Batman can be depicted as a terrible father (for an example, his manipulative actions toward Steph and Tim).
- At one point, he beat up Dick Grayson, who was grieving Damian's death, and recently been unmasked while suffering a near-death experience. This was to coerce Dick into going undercover at Spyral, all while deceiving almost everyone into thinking Dick died.
- While somewhat circumstantial, Bruce can still be really cruel to Jason in modern age comics. He has: made Jason relive his painful death and resurrection, clobbered Jason to near-death in anger, and once banned him from Gotham completely. Even worse is how these writers downplay Bruce's usual immense guilt for Jason's death, to the point of victim blaming. Jarringly, almost no one acknowledges such behavior.
The Ace: Batman is feared and renowned throughout the DC Universe from both heroes and villains for a good reason. His "superpower" is essentially being talented at everything he focuses on, bordering onto the absolute best.
Action Dad: He has five kids: three adopted sons, a biological son, and an adopted daughter. Also one of the most feared combatants in the DC Universe.
Action Hero: Batman is involved in plenty of action. He is a top martial artist who is trained in a variety fighting styles like Karate, Taekwondo, Muay Thai and Boxing with enough skill to take on numerous people simultaneously, even superhumans like Deathstroke and Superman (when mind controlled).
Aesop Amnesia: Batman repeatedly needs to learn about empathy so often that this trope might as well be called A Batman Family Aesop. Of course, that will happen with seventy-odd years of having been published. One of the things that really pisses off Batman fans (who have dubbed the phenomenon "Batdickery"), is that since the mid-'90s, Batman's character has been stuck in a cycle that goes 1) Batman acts like a paranoid asshole. 2) Horrible things happen. 3) Batman realizes he shouldn't act like such a paranoid asshole. 4) Return to step 1.
- Likewise, several comic stories depict Bruce and Jason reconciling with one another, only for another writer to inexplicably make them hostile foes again.
Always a Bigger Fish: Though often referred as the "pinnacle of humanity", Batman isn't always number 1 at everything. Given how stories would be less interesting if it were the case, this can be excused.
- The Waynes are among the richest known family to the general public, but others like the Al Ghuls have a far older and wealthier family fortune that Bruce Wayne could not compete with.
- Even when limited to non-metahumans, certain individuals like Dick Grayson, Jonah Hex, and Oliver Queen still surpass Batman in at least one physical skill, whether it is agility, gunslinging, or pure marksmanship.
- While Batman is one of the smartest people on Earth, he isn't infallible. For instance, Barbara Gordon is better at computing than Batman, while Veronica Cale and her assistant easily bypassed his security devices. Moreover, despite creating powered suits strong enough to fight Superman and Darkseid, Batman once admitted Ted Cord to be a superior inventor.
- In a match of hand-to-hand combat, Batman has been defeated by Dick Grayson and Lady Shiva. He has also acknowledged Cassandra Cain to be above him. To be fair, this was something established in more recent comics. Notably, prior to Flashpoint, Batman outfought Lady Shiva twice, as well as stalemated the likes of Richard Dragon and Captain America.
All Girls Want Bad Boys: Gender Inverted. Bats likes his women tough, dangerous and morally ambiguous. Hence his usual preference for villainesses such as Talia Al Ghul and Catwoman. He actually used this to figure out that someone was actually a villainess. In "Batman RIP" Bruce even realizes that the woman he was becoming attracted to was The Mole out to betray him to the bad guys - she was a bit too nice for him...
All-Loving Hero: Depending on the Writer. At times writers will show him as a revenge driven Anti-Hero. Other writers will characterize him as more compassionate, desiring to help troubled Anti Villains change and get better. Plus, he deeply believes in not killing his enemies and is a Friend to All Children.
Amazon Chaser: In some incarnations, when he's not taking interest in Talia or Selina, Bruce has shown at least some attraction and respect for Wonder Woman.
Ambiguously Christian: Oh boy, where to begin? His WASP origins? His dozen or so stories revolving solely around Christmas? Hanging out by the giant cross headstones of his parents? That one story where he becomes a Catholic priest? Him being the Caped CRUSADER? While many modern day writers option for the Secular Hero approach, others such as Frank Miller outright confirm that Batman was raised a Catholic/Christian/some denomination along those lines. Even when no mention of his religion is made, Batman’s connection to gothic Christian imagery is as undeniable as the bat on his chest.
Ambiguously Jewish: Only in the New 52 continuity. The Wayne’s, and Batman himself, have always been portrayed as WASP’s or some denomination of Christian canonically, but thanks to a retcon during the New 52 Bruce may share a matrilineal Jewish heritage with his cousin Kate Kane. Thomas is still confirmed a Christian, though, and Bruce was raised as such.
Anguished Declaration of Love: After Selina got badly hurt by Hush who was trying to get to him through her, Bruce visits her at the hospital, unmasked, and eventually confesses that she's the only woman to have ever held a place in his heart.
Anti-Hero: Generally a Knight in Sour Armor or a Pragmatic Hero. In his earliest days, he was an Unscrupulous Hero and actually killed criminals, a stark contrast to his Thou Shalt Not Kill attitude in modern times. Some depictions edge back into this such as Frank Miller's depictions of the character (though Crazy Steve is more of a Nominal Hero.) However, Batman's status as an anti-hero ultimately depends on who's writing or portraying him; many have leaned towards a more traditional idea of heroism. For example, it's really hard to describe Adam West's Batman as an anti-hero. Values Dissonance plays a big role in this. Back then, using a gun to fight criminals was considered standard in comic books, and no one saw it as "immoral" or "anti-heroic" in the slightest. In fact, Batman was portrayed as more of an Ideal Hero than he does nowadays, in most cases.
The Anti-Nihilist
- Of a sort. Bruce Wayne's tragic childhood essentially destroyed his established notions about the order of the world and own place in it. Becoming Batman created new meaning and imposed his own sense of order on a chaotic world. You would also think that someone jaded like Bruce would never trust villains to change, but he is shown more than willing to give them a chance when deeming their desires to be genuine.
- It's why Superman is often depicted as his best friend, because despite his superpowers, Clark chooses to endlessly do good instead. If a paragon like Superman can exist, then Batman will continue to fight and defend that ideal.
Awesomeness by Analysis: Part of what makes Batman such a great detective is how thorough he is in his detective work. He expertly examines every detail of a case no matter how small or large. As proof, he's discovered secret or hidden messages by examining things like paint thinner and random images that flash when he sifts through files on the Batcomputer.
Badass Cape: He wore his cape this way long before it was popular! That, and Batman's modern cape has several useful functions. It even changes size for dramatic appearances!
Badass and Child Duo: Batman and all of the other Robins and Batgirls.
- Currently, Bruce/Batman with Damian/Robin (who happens to be his biological son).
Badass Driver: The Batmobile is his preferred mode of transport and you bet that he can manouevre that thing like nobody else. As a wealthy playboy, flash cars are part of the lifestyle.
Badass Normal: The Trope Codifier for superheroes. Among his many skills, he is nearly unrivaled as a detective, scientist, martial artist and tactician. Those who underestimate Batman suffer badly.
- To note, Batman can disable each of his fellow Leaguers, with it stretched to ridiculous proportions.
- Even godlike beings acknowledge Batman's prowess. Elseworld Spectre has described him as "the zenith of human fortitude and ambition", while Superman stated Batman as "the most dangerous man on the planet".Harbringer also once referred to him as "the Scourge of all Evil."
  - Batman writer Grant Morrison themself stated that Bruce actually does have superpowers. What is his superpower? Being Batman. Heck, Neil Gaiman's Whatever Happened to The Caped Crusader? explains that Batman's reward for his crusade is to eventually be reborn again as Batman in another universe. This means death and the laws of creation themselves won't stop him from stopping crime.
Badass Teacher: Not only did he train the Robins and Batgirls, some of his superpowered colleagues, like Superman and Kyle Rayner, have studied fighting techniques under him.
Bash Brothers:
- On occasions, Batman and Robin. This trope could have easily been called "Dynamic Duo".
- Batman and Red Hood/Robin II: even after all the time that passed between Jason's death and his return, they're able to fall right back in to this and work together flawlessly.
- Also, with Superman. Examined in the World's Finest maxiseries; the first time they meet with the explicit purpose of working together, they're at a function as Bruce and Clark when the guest of honor, a world-famous plastic surgeon is kidnapped. They split up and both go after the kidnapper, which scares the hostage and gets him killed. When they compare notes they both observe that this happened because they didn't work together. The rest of the series is about their annual meetings to honor their failure and learn to work together until they're working as a well-oiled machine. Some of their guilt is mitigated when they learn that said hostage was actually the surgeon's body double, having kidnapped him to steal his fortune. The real reason he was so spooked was because he was afraid that Batman and Superman would expose his scheme.
Batman Can Breathe in Space: Trope Namer. Batman does this in one of the early issues of Justice League International (granted, it was a simulation of sorts designed not to actually harm others, but all the same). One issue of Justice League of America showed Batman training himself to survive the vacuum of space for a couple of seconds. The Martian Manhunter helps while wondering if he should.
Batman Gambit: Trope Namer. As the World's Greatest Detective, Batman frequently predicts his Rogues' behaviors to his own advantage.
Batman Grabs a Gun: Another Trope Namer. If Batman ever gets serious enough to not only grab a gun, but fight with the intent to kill, there is no force in the universe that can stop him. Darkseid found this out the hard way in Final Crisis.
Battle Boomerang: Batarangs are his signature weapons.
Battle Trophy
- Has a whole collection of them littered around his Mancav- *ahem*, Batcave, including the famous animatronic T. rex ^note, a giant penny ^note and a giant joker card. He also keeps all of his and his sidekicks' uniforms on display, with the Jason Todd Robin costume being a popular angst shrine. Despite being one of Batman's most eccentric yet strangely unspoken quirks, these trophies are rarely left out of any adaptations but are almost never explained. invoked
- Need we even mention the Midget Mansion from the Pee-Wee People of Tiny Town?
Becoming the Mask: Bruce Wayne adopted the identity of Batman as a means to fight injustice. This became concrete around the Bronze age. It's a strong contrast to the modern version of Superman, who always thinks of himself as Clark Kent regardless of the costume.
- In the new 52, Bruce outright claims his name to be "Batman" while holding the Lasso of Truth.
Belligerent Sexual Tension:
- With Catwoman, mostly. And, even though he hates to admit it, he thoroughly enjoys it. So does she.
- Happens between Batman and Talia Al Ghul, his on-and-off-again Love Interest and mother of his son, Damian. They are genuinely attracted to each other, but oppose on principle as a Thou Shalt Not Kill vigilante and the daughter of Ra's Al Ghul. How much this translates into their relationship at any given time is a matter of Depending on the Writer.
Benevolent Boss: Bruce Wayne supplies Wayne Industries' employees with top tier pay and benefits, frequently interacts with his workers and helps them out with their problems, personally ensures that there's no unethical actions in his offices and factories, and refuses to lay off anyone during economic downturns. He's also known to buy failing or abusive businesses in order to make sure that their employees are treated fairly and continue to receive steady pay.
Best Friend: Varies, usually between Dick Grayson and Superman. Their long history with Bruce and cheerful personality serve to keep him more stable.
Betrayal Insurance: The idea that Batman has a stockpile of kryptonite in case Superman ever goes rogue is extremely common. The idea that he also has plans to take down any other Justice League member he might have to is almost as common.
Big Damn Heroes: If he's the focus of the comic, expect him to swoop in out of nowhere when everyone else is in trouble to save the day.
Big Good: To the Bat Family, Gotham, and the DC Universe with Superman and Wonder Woman as a triumvirate. Whenever the Justice League faces a moral situation, Batman usually becomes an even more important Big Good for the DC Universe. Though Superman is the Chairman and public face for the League, Batman often calls the shots and provides the brains (and finance) to their operations.
Birds of a Feather:
- A parental version with Cassandra. The two of them share a Guilt Complex, which means they often understand each other better than other people do.
- Batman and Superman disagree often (since the 80s), but they respect each other greatly. Clark has powers that exceed most metahumans. Bruce has a fortune that he can squander forever in a life of luxury. But despite this, both continue to be heroes instead, and admire one another for it.
Blood Knight: Loathe as he is to admit it, there's a big part of Bruce Wayne that really, really enjoys the violence that comes with being Batman. It's also strongly implied by the Bronze Age that he uses this enjoyment of fighting as an anger release outlet so that he doesn't snap and kill someone.
Blue Blood: Or as close as one can get to royalty in the United States. The Waynes have been a highly wealthy and influential family since Gotham's founding.
Bomb-Throwing Anarchists: In Superman: Red Son. Also, he's been described as an "idealist anarchist" by Frank Miller. So did one of the actors who played him.
Brains and Brawn: Played with him and Superman. When working together, Clark's greater power slots him closer to brawn while Bruce's focus on tactics and technology fit him closer to brains. However, both men are fully capable of being both brain and brawn at the same time.
Brainy Brunette: He's normally depicted with black hair and is one the greatest minds of the DCU, excelling in detective work and forensic science alongside computer hacking, escapology and engineering just to name a few.
Broken Ace: While Batman is among the greatest heroes in the DCU, he is also this as well. Especially in modern comics which magnify his paranoia and emotional issues. Bruce acknowledges this as well; in one instance, he commends Nightwing for being more positive and maintaining a good relationship with fellow heroes, something Bruce himself struggles to do.
Brought Down to Normal: There are a number of stories where Batman is deprived of his fantastical gear and/or his money, forcing him to be more thrifty or do things the old way.
Bruiser with a Soft Center: He may be a shadow in the dark who uses fear to fight crime, but when it comes to victims, he will be very gentle to them. And that's not getting into Bruce's softer attitude towards his friends and family.
Building Swing: Goes hand in hand with his Grappling-Hook Gun.
Bulletproof Vest: Batman's costume has evolved into a suit of advanced lightweight armor with the Chest Insignia intended to draw fire to his thick chest piece.
Byronic Hero: He is incredibly charismatic, handsome, rich, and competent. He also routinely acts outside of the law, creates weapons designed to defeat his best friends should they go rogue, and uses fear to stop villains. Some iterations of Batman are also portrayed a Manchild who can't get over the trauma of his parents' death, being rude and demanding, if not outright chaotic and brutally insane.
Cain and Abel: If Lincoln March really is Thomas Wayne Jr, then Bruce is the Abel.
Can't Catch Up: Being an Honest Corporate Executive has it's limits. Those like Ra's Al Ghul will continue to be wealthier than Bruce as long as they continue to profit from misdeeds.
Captain Ersatz: On his first appearance, he was The Shadow in a bat costume. There's also quite a bit of Zorro in his DNA, which has been acknowledged in most recent versions by establishing that it was a Zorro movie he and his parents went to see on the fatal night.
Characterization Marches On: To be expected with over 80 years of comics. It may be particularly jarring for some readers though, upon seeing some of his earlier incarnations. Like the 60's version with Camp, 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.
- He also displayed a fondness for puns and cracked jokes during fights, not unlike what Spider-man would do later. IE, "Have a seat", while smacking villains with a chair, or, while beating the Joker "You may be the JOKER, but I am the KING OF CLUBS!" or "You played your last hand!".
- And, on more than one occasion, he referred to himself as "Poppa", in the third person, as in "Quiet, or Poppa spank!" or "Right into Poppas arms!".
- At the end of Catwoman's first story, he deliberately lets her escape, joking with Robin that it was purely because he thought she was hot. To note, it was implied in the story that Catwoman murdered a security in cold-blood^note.
- Since the Bronze Age, there has been an increased focus on Bruce's mental state. Before this period, Batman was portrayed as a fairly functional individual all things considered, even after his storylines once again became darker. Since the 1986 continuity reboot, however, and because of how influential Frank Miller's take on the character was, more modern interpretations of the character don't shy away from his obsessions, lack of social skills or his inability to "stop" being Batman.
- Pre-Crisis, the dynamic between his Bruce Wayne and Batman identities was a fairly conventional one, where Batman was the disguise and Bruce Wayne was who he really was. Post-Crisis, Bruce is Batman, all the time, and his Bruce Wayne persona is a disguise.
Charity Ball: Bruce Wayne, being a wealthy playboy, attends a lot of these.
Charles Atlas Superpower: Like you wouldn't believe. He seems to have miraculously avoided being shot in any way that could hurt him, recovered from having his back snapped in half with no ill effects (albeit with the help of a friend with healing powers), and constantly goes toe to toe with superhuman foes and triumphs, just because he's trained that hard. His various pupils, including all the Robins, show similar abilities.
- Batman has moved away from this; he wins battles less because of training and more because of tactics. One could say that Batsy's power is Awesomeness by Analysis to an amazing degree; he makes sure he can analyze any weakness as quickly as possible. You never see him fight an amazingly powerful superhuman straight on. More often than not, he avoids gunfire by staying in the shadows where Mooks can't see, wearing the best bulletproof suit millionaire playboy money can buy, and/or disabling enemies before they have a chance to shoot.
  - Grant Morrison is largely responsible for switching Batman's primary ability from Charles Atlas Superpower to Crazy-Prepared. Their Batman is still impossibly capable. Having tea with a monk, he reflexively swapped cups, assuming his was poisoned (it was). In the time it took the monk to blink.
- In The Batman Adventures #6, it was a plot point that Bruce Wayne is capable of an unassisted ten-foot vertical jump. The world record is four.
- In crossovers? He can fight Captain America one on one...and Cap does not win.
  - Cap doesn't lose, either. Every time they've fought it's either a draw, or they both choose to stop fighting because they recognize they're so evenly matched that it's pointless, and there's a common enemy to focus on. Still, Batman is evenly matched with a Super-Soldier.
  - There have been several times Batman was forced to fight Deathstroke (who was given the DC equivalent of the Super-Soldier Serum), and Batman has rarely lost.
- There have been studies equating comic book characters to real-life human capabilities, and it was determined that anyone who put themselves through the kind of training and crime-fighting that Batman submits himself to night after night, would wear out their body in less than two years. Even accounting for Comic-Book Time, it's implied that Bruce has been donning the mask for anywhere between five and twenty.
The Chessmaster: Genius level intellect and an utterly brilliant tactician, matching and sometimes exceeding characters like Lex Luthor. More often than not it's Batman that's calling the shots for the Justice League. The man is so brilliant he has superheroes following his orders and supervillains respecting and fearing him just for his genius, including demi-god powered beings like Superman, Darkseid, etc.
Chest Insignia: Either it's just a Bat logo, or the Bat logo in a yellow circle. Depends on who's drawing it. This was lampshaded in Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, where Batman admits that the famous bright yellow background is, obviously, a great big target. He then goes on to explain that he did it because he "can't armor my head".
- Some of the Silver Age stories have the bat-emblem used as a diamond-edged cutting tool.
- In some material it is explained that it is a big obvious target on purpose and the armour is the STRONGEST on the symbol itself.
- Zdarsky's run gives it a darker meaning: Bruce added it as a reminder of Zur-En-Arr's existence and potential threat.
Chick Magnet: Bruce Wayne personifies this trope. Over the years he's had at least 23 girlfriends and kissed at least 60 different women. His most prominent exes include Julie Madison, Vicki Vale, Selina Kyle (Catwoman), Silver St. Cloud, Talia Al Ghul, and Pamela Isley (Poison Ivy).
Chosen Conception Partner: Talia Al-Ghul is very keen on having children with Bruce. Eventually, this led to Damian's birth, which further complicates things between the Wayne and Al-Ghul families.
Clear My Name: Occupational hazard of having dubious PR, plot of the major storyline Bruce Wayne: Murderer? and Bruce Wayne: Fugitive. Notable because the Batfamily members were the ones doing the clearing up, while Batman considered that "Bruce Wayne" had just become a burden to be abandoned, even saying that "Bruce Wayne doesn't exist".
- In a bizarre reversal, Batman races against time to clear the Joker's name in The Joker: Devil's Advocate, as his insanity defense finally fails and he's sentenced to death, but for a murder he didn't actually commit.
Cloak of Defense: Bruce's cape is resistant to fire and bullets.
Clothes Make the Legend: You don't even need to see his emblem - Bats is so infamous and feared that he can be identified just by the silhouette of his cowl.
Combat Pragmatist: He is the DC's poster boy for this trope. Prepping gear to take down his fellow heroes even if there's almost no source of conflict between them? Check. Bat-googling thug medical records in the middle of a fight to find out how to hurt them most? Check. Using a high powered magnet to pin assassins wearing metal masks to the side of a train? Mega check. And finally, downloading the physical abilities of Stephen Hawking into the helmet of Prometheus, a super villain who gains martial arts skills via helmet hacks? Checkity check check check.
Huntress: Did I just see you cheating?
Batman: Winning.
- He does have at least two rules: no guns, no killing. Likewise, Batman will try not to cause too much harm, such as maiming street thugs.
The Comically Serious: Especially in storylines featuring the JLA. Anything can be made funnier by adding Batman as the straight guy. A rare exception is found in The Killing Joke, when The Joker tells him a joke that makes them both laugh. More typically: In "Hush", when Nightwing and Batman are in the Batmobile discussing Catwoman (well, Nightwing is discussing her... Batman is glaring off into the distance ignoring him):
Nightwing: If you don't want to talk with someone, why do you even have a passenger seat in the Batmobile?
Batman: Balance.
Nightwing: ...was that a joke? [pause] Of course not.
Confirmed Bachelor: Poses as The Casanova in his Bruce Wayne persona. Privately, his reasons are closer to a combination of Married to the Job and It's Not You, It's My Enemies.
Control Freak: A very common complaint from fans about how the modern version of Batman's character tends to be written, with his Crazy-Prepared actions doing them no favors.
Conveniently an Orphan: Thanks Joe Chill! While Alfred does his best to raise him as his own kid, he laments that he didn't do much to guide Bruce to have a normal life. It's also the reason why he adopted Dick, Jason and Tim (when his parents died) as he can relate to their plight.
Cool Car: The Batmobile in its various incarnations, has come to define this trope to the point where any character's cool car may be dubbed the (Character's Name)-mobile (real-world example: the famous "Popemobile").
Cool Plane:
- The Batplane, and sometimes Batcopter.
- Batman's small one-man copter, The Whirly-Bat◊ has its own legion of fans.
Cool Boat:
- Various incarnations of the Batboat. Especially the ones that turn into a Batsub.
- In the Captain Leatherwing Elseworld, Pirate Batman has the Flying Fox.
Cool Garage:
- The Batcave. In the Hush story arc, the Batcave has revolving racks featuring every Batmobile ever seen. Bizarrely, the it also came with its own resident genius, Harold, that nobody remembered until Hush got ahold of him.
- This Austin Metro Advertisement gives Batman a second garage with a compact car, for when the regular Batmobile is too big.
Covered with Scars: Since the 1970s, his body is often shown to be covered in scars from his multiple fights.
The Cowl: He was practically built this trope, or at least the way it is seen now, but is not the Ur-Example, and is not exactly the Trope Maker. The description describes the quintessential Batman Cold Open, emerging from the shadows and inducing fear in all the criminals his eyes meet. Most examples of the trope nowadays are at least partially influenced by the Dark Knight.
Crazy-Prepared: A good thing for the most part. Batman's got a plan for almost anything which makes sense considering he's a non-superhuman in world full of superhuman villains and other types of criminal geniuses.
- He apparently spends most of his time devising contingency plans to use in the event that he has to fight a given individual, to the point that it's widely said that Batman can beat anyone or anything "if he's prepared". For example, he carries a chunk of Kryptonite on his utility belt at all times, "just in case". Since the late 1980s, Batman also prepares himself to an unhealthy extent, such as regularly injecting himself with antitoxins and training most of the day. There are some thing you just can't ever see coming, like zombie Abraham Lincoln armed with an assault rifle.
- Scott Snyder's Heavy Metal storyline reveals that he built a cloning machine and memory implanting machine to create replacements of Batman after retirement. He ends up using the memory implanting machine to regain his skills to fight Mr. Bloom.
- Batman has attempted to be prepared in case of the inevitable superhero Face–Heel Turn, most notably in two infamous incidents. In the "Tower of Babel" arc of the Justice League comic, it was mainly confined to the League. The second was shortly after Identity Crisis (2004) where Batman decided to secretly tab every superhero/metahuman on Earth he could, so he built the Brother Eye program to monitor them. Both blew up in his face horribly (Ra's found and used the files and Brother Eye was hijacked by Max Lord and, later, Alexander Luthor).
- In an issue of Gotham Adventures, a criminal "artist" named Kim escapes from Arkham and begins leaving clues at crime scenes in a manner reminiscent of the Riddler. Riddler is furious that someone is stealing his gimmick and tracks Kim down himself. As they fight, Riddler asks what all the "clues" were supposed to mean. Kim reveals that they were actually references to an art film by a foreign director, and he was merely making an artistic statement. Riddler rants about how that is completely pointless, as nobody will ever understand such a reference, and the point of leaving clues is to give your opponent a fighting chance. Whereupon Batman shows up and reveals that he understood the clues just fine. When asked why he would watch random films and memorize the biographical information of their directors, Batman replied "In case I had to."
- In one issue of JLA, the Martian Manhunter has shifted into a Japanese woman using the name Hino Rei. Batman recognises J'onn instantly, and mentions that "the name is a giveaway". Yes, Batman knows enough about Sailor Moon to spot the name of Sailor Mars. Amusingly, this is because the author got pranked; he asked a friend for a Japanese woman's name that would translate out to 'Poet of Mars', thus establishing Batman's linguistics genius; instead his friend deliberately gave him the secret ID of Sailor Mars, and so the author inadvertently established Batman's otaku cred.
- Batman's crazy preparation is shown to an extreme in the Batman RIP storyline, in which we find that in case of psychological attack, he has created a backup personality known as "The Batman of Zur-En-Arrh". Said personality might actually be crazy, making this a literal example. This is not, however, not the first time he's done something like this. In a Gotham Knights story, Bruce uses a contingency plan that involves hypnotizing himself to essentially strip the Batman part of his identity and leave only the Bruce Wayne part, in case someone found out and he needed to take extra measures to convince them (and others) otherwise.
- Rather infamously in JLA 59 Batman engineered the defeat of Polaris to end with the JLA victorious, Superman's healing accelerated by the hole in the ozone layer and himself standing on a teleportation disk he had hidden in the arctic for just such an occasion. Appropriately he ends the comic with the words "always plan ahead".
- In an issue of Superman/Batman, it is revealed that Batman carries around a lead-lined mirror just in case Superman ever turns evil and Batman can't avoid his heat vision. Because, you know, that situation comes up so often. (although, considering the rate at which it happens in Superman/Batman, it may actually come up quite a lot...)
- During the Hush arc of Batman, it is revealed that if he is ever knocked unconscious, his helmet will release tear gas on anyone brave enough to reach for his mask, as well as his suit tasering anyone stupid enough to touch him.
- Lampshaded by Jaime Reyes, the Blue Beetle, in one of his teamups with Batman. An enemy has just ambushed them by essentially spawning an arctic blizzard ramped up above them, causing them to get buried in a few meters of snow. After Beetle breaks out and stops the blizzard by scaring off their attacker...
  Blue Beetle: Batman! Hold on! I'll find you and get you out! Can you break out the Bat-Snowblower or something?
  [minor explosion]
  [Batman digs his way out of the hole caused by the explosion]
  Blue Beetle: [in awe] Please don't tell me you actually have a Bat-Snowblower...
  Batman: Heating flare capable of melting through ice in a hurry. You'd be surprised what you pack after going up against Mr. Freeze enough times.
- Further demonstrated in an issue of Superman/Batman where the world is under the control of Gorilla Grodd except for Batman. Batman's arm is robotic and Superman is gone in space because the atmosphere has Kryptonite in it. By the end of some long convoluted that proves enough how Crazy-Prepared Batman is, it turns out that it was just a simulation of that potential scenario just in case and Batman reveals to Alfred that he does these all the time.
- There was an Elseworlds comic called JSA: The Liberty Files which had an alternate reality version of Batman, Hour Man, and Mid-Nite on a train in their civilian identities. They were simply eating dinner when they were suddenly attacked by a villain. Batman, as Bruce Wayne, opens his jacket and throws two grenades. One of the heroes remarks, "You brought grenades to dinner?" to which Bruce replied, "I needed them, didn't I?".
- In The Dark Knight Strikes Again, Batman is well prepared for Superman coming to pay him a visit. He has The Flash place small charges all over Supes, then the Atom shrinks down and messes with Supe's inner ear, brings part of the Batcave roof down on him, after which Green Arrow shoots him with a Kryptonite arrow, all before Batman then hands his ass to him with Green K gloves. Superman tells the Bat he only came to talk, to which Batman replies, 'We're done talking. Get out of my cave.'
- In one issue of Gotham Adventures, Harley Quinn writes a trashy romance novel that controls the mind of whoever reads it. Tim and Barbara were controlled while Bruce wasn't. Why? He wore leather gloves while reading it.
- Batman Does Not Like Guns, but he still takes his proteges to the firing range. When asked why, Batman explained that it's useful to know as much about guns as possible even if he doesn't use them.
- In one Brave and the Bold comic, Batman reveals that he keeps a one-way one-shot handheld teleporter preset to the vicinity of a black hole in his utility belt. Just in case.
- In Batman: Arkham Asylum, Batman reveals he has a second Batcave built under the Asylum. When asked why by an incredulous Oracle, he replies "It's me, remember?."
Crazy Sane: It's been suggested on occasion that being Batman helps keep Bruce stable; in the JLA arc "Divided We Fall", Bruce and Batman are split into two different people, and Bruce, denied the outlet for his anger Batman allows him, discovers he's slipping dangerously towards becoming Ax-Crazy.
Creepy Good: Some interpretations of Batman's membership in the Justice League are portrayed this way. Everyone has their seat at the table, and Batman's off in a corner being quiet (if you notice him at all). This crosses pretty well with his status as Crazy-Prepared. The rest of the League is creeped out that this guys has files on how to kill/maim/disable the rest of them. That, and being creepy is Batman's schtick.
- In some shorts, this overlaps with Determinator in how he takes up cold cases of unidentified murder victims, even if the only thing he can do is give their families closure.
Crimefighting with Cash: The Ur-Example.
- In an issue of Justice League Of America he managed to get mercenary villain-team-member Mirror Master over to his side simply by offering him a raise over what Lex Luthor was paying.
- Bruce is also a subversion as it is shown numerous times that he also uses his cash to give to charity a lot, and when he's not crimefighting, training, or bonding with other crimefighters, he's doing charity work through his Wayne Foundation, which has Lucius Fox handling the details. That way, Bruce can address social problems encouraging crime while helping victims of it in a way Batman can't. It is amazing to note that he built up a reputation for being somewhat of a reclusive lazy playboy despite the fact that he is arguably the worst workaholic on the planet. Then again, this is wholly intentional on Bruce's part.
- This trope has also been deconstructed with Batman in stories where he has lost his wealth or access to it. The loss does impact him and limit his effectiveness though he is resourceful enough to make do with just his wits and skills. Though without his wealth, he would never have been able to acquire said knowledge and skills in the first place.
Cruel to Be Kind: Modern Age Batman's Jerkass behavior often results in many of his allies slowly distancing themselves from him in many incarnation. However, this is partly done as a misguided means to keep them safe from harm. He does get called out on this method however.
The Cynic: One of the things that makes him so unique and popular in comparison to other heroes is how his general pessimism stands in contrast to more idealistic heroes such as Superman and the rest of the Justice League. In spite of that, he still remains a mostly heroic version of this trope.

D-I

Dark and Troubled Past: His parents were murdered in front of him as a child. He then used his massive wealth to fund his training around the world, acquiring the skills needed to fight crime in Gotham City. Depending on the continuity, some of his teachers during this time were not good people and serve to make Batman's story darker.
Darker and Edgier: Following the Silver Age, Batman and his stories had more emphasis on fear, alongside an insanely violent Rogues Gallery. The turning point of this was around the mid to late 1980s, where Batman was written as a harshly brutal figure, bordering onto cruel and insane. Strong shades of this still remain prominently in modern comics. Despite this, his strong moral integrity remains one of the most consistent in comics.
- Writers who have had the opportunity to write for both Superman and Batman tend to give Bruce the short end of the stick, even when these stories tackle similar themes/motifs. Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's Superman for All Seasons? An uplifting and beautiful set of heroic fables relating to particular seasons. Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's The Long Halloween starring Batman? A nightmarish and tragic gauntlet of horrors, with each issue based on a specific holiday turned garishly grim.
Dark Is Not Evil: He is often one of the best barometers of what the writer wants you to think is morally acceptable in all of comicdom, despite his black clothing, bat-motif, and fear-based methods. He has an especially stringent moral code and fights crime in Gotham to make sure that no one ends up an orphan like him but still scares the daylights of out most criminals.
Dating Catwoman: With the obvious, but also with Jezebel Jet, Lady Shiva (well, maybe that was more UST), Talia Al Ghul and a few others. He's well aware of his penchant for this trope and it's actually an important plot point in R.I.P.
- The Earth-2 versions of the characters actually married and had a kid, the original Huntress. Why bother stealing when you're married to a multimillionaire? The main versions became a couple too, and Bruce even revealed his identity to her and she moved into the mansion with him. The relationship didn't last, but they both developed a respect for each other and Batman mostly looks the other way when Catwoman does her thing.
- However, things got a bit more interesting with the two. Continuing to dance around one another constantly to the point of a nearly functional relationship, then to a distant one due to fear of repercussions from their knowledge of one another's identity, the couple have certainly reheated things a bit since Bruce's return to the present... long story. Regardless, she has even accompanied him on his international travels to establish Batman Inc. Maybe not a perfect relationship, but hey.
  - Unfortunately for those who may have enjoyed it, all that Character Development in their relationship has been set back to square one with the 2011 DC Universe reboot, in which Catwoman has no idea who Batman is behind the mask (although she suspects he knows who she is). Doesn't stop her from having costumed sex with him though.
  - In Gotham City Sirens, it was mentioned that Catwoman and Talia are probably the only two women Batman has truly loved. It's not surprising that both of them are villainesses.
- Very explicit in one standalone strip called "Date Night", Batman catches Catwoman in the middle of a robbery and chases her through various romantic locations including a flower stall and a fancy restaurant, all the while Catwoman is talking and flirting with him as if they were actually on a date. When he finally catches her, they briefly fight and she leaves him tied up and dangling upside down from a fire escape, kisses him goodnight, and runs away.
- In Batman the Dark Knight after the 2011 reboot, Bruce is attracted to Jaina Hudson, but becomes suspicious of her after new villainess White Rabbit issues the same "Catch me if you can" flirtatious challenge Jaina made in their first meeting. His suspicions are debunked when the White Rabbit shows up on the radar while he is on a date with Jaina. It turns out he was right after all, since Jaina has the power to split herself into two people — her normal self and the White Rabbit.
Deadpan Snarker: Whenever Batman (in any incarnation) isn't either moping around in Wangst or being The Comically Serious, he's generally one with a deadpan line. Or, as Jaime Reyes (Blue Beetle III) put it, "Batman's actually kind of funny, in a dry, scary way." Typically, Batman needs Superman as a foil if he's going to be funny.
Death Glare: Quite famous for using these, despite being a Technical Pacifist. A good example was during the "Contagion" arc. Other members of the Bat-family are trying to disperse an angry mob, to no effect. Cue Batman appearing, pointing a finger, giving a Death Glare to the entire mob, and stating: "Disperse. NOW." It worked.
Depending on the Writer: Having a seventy-year history will result in massive amounts of this. This is perhaps best represented in the Batman alignment chart◊
Determinator: Batman's immense willpower is arguably considered his greatest superpower. His discipline, morale, sense of duty, and sheer strength of will is nearly unlimited, and what forges him as a superhero. This goes double for him considering that there are several villains in his rogues gallery that test a person's willpower, like Scarecrow and Poison Ivy. Batman was also considered to be a candidate for a Green Lantern ring. Some works flip this around and deconstruct it: Bruce's stubbornness and self-sacrificing nature as a superhero means he often pushes himself beyond the limits of what's healthy even against the advice of others, and years of doing this again and again have take their toll on his body and psyche.
Does Not Like Spam: Spider-Man and Batman: Disordered Minds shows Bruce as having a hatred of finger sandwiches that dates back to childhood, as he tried to flush several down a toilet that Alfred spent three days unclogging.
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 it's used without killing. He'll also pick up a gun under extremely dire circumstances. The reasons vary from writer to writer. Originally, the idea that Batman hates guns was linked to his parents' murder when he was a child. There are practical and legal reasons, too—self-awareness that he's a vigilante and the knowledge that in being so he has no business killing, while guns make it much too easy to kill and much too hard to be nonlethal. In his original Detective Comic appearances, he frequently used firearms and lethal force against villains. The creators only removed his use of firearms when they worried that it would make him resemble the Shadow too closely. Today, most depictions have Batman bending enough to arm his vehicles to either disable other vehicles or remove obstacles. It's amazing how strict some Batman adaptations are about this, even when you'd think they'd ditch it. In Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Batman hospitalizes countless mooks, snaps the Joker's spine (paralyzing but not killing him), and has machine guns on his car. When he uses the guns, he internal monologues to the reader, "Rubber Bullets. Honest." In general though, Bruce usually only holds himself and the Batfamily to the rule, accepting that people without the training they have (such as the GCPD and Gordon) need them.
- After Dick became a Bludhaven police officer, Bruce admitted that he didn't like him wearing his service revolver around the cave.
- Final Crisis takes this to a symbolical level as Batman makes an "once in a lifetime" exception and "poisons" Darkseid with an anti-New God gun only to be "killed" by the villain's eye beams a mere second after pulling the trigger.
- In another Batman story by Grant Morrison, Joe Chill in Hell, a young Batman confronts his parents' killer, Joe Chill, and torments the man, depriving him of sleep, sneaking up on him in disguise, and generally just scaring the crap out of him for a month, all building up to the point where Batman drives Chill to commit suicide.
- In a particularly amusing inversion, in an early Detective Comics appearance Bats comments that he hates taking human life - immediately before machine-gunning a car full of baddies from his biplane. This blog has a good rundown on instances where he used a gun. In fact, in The Golden Age of Comic Books, he didn't even have the "dislikes guns" angle, and had a handgun that he wasn't afraid to use.
- While Batman's aversion to guns has generally grown over time, there are some situations in the older comics where Batman refuses to use a gun. In Detective 453 (the same series in which Batman fires a machine gun into a car full of bad guys), Batman is told to shoot a single bullet into the ground to prove he isn't really Batman, or be shot to death by a room full of criminals. He doesn't do it. This is probably due more to the inconsistency of older comics and a lazy writer, but it's probably the most extreme example of this rule.
- Batman's distaste for guns gets lampshaded in Grant Morrison's JLA/Wild C.A.T.s crossover, in which the League hooks up with the premiere heroes of Jim Lee's WildStorm line. At one point when both teams go up against Epoch the Time Lord, Batman asks the raygun-toting Grifter just how good he is. When Grifter brags that in his universe Batman would have been his kid sidekick, Batman then adds, "Then you won't mind doing this without the guns." Grifter pauses for a Beat, then quips, "Aw, why not? I'll try anything once!" The beginning of the crossover features an encounter with Epoch and Wally West while he was still Kid Flash, who sizes up his new foe's huge high-tech rifle by commenting, "One of the first things I've learned in the superhero game. 'Gun' equals 'bad guy'."
Don't You Dare Pity Me!: At times, Batman can be written this way. For instance, he tells what he thinks is just a dream of Wonder Woman in Whatever Happened To The Warrior of Truth that everyone who experiences trauma feel the same way, which means there is nothing special about him.
Doting Parent:
- Batman is definitely this in Pre-Crisis, being very caring towards to his wards Dick and Jason. One good instance is how he was willing to risk his family fortune to get Jason back in a custody war.
- Post-Crisis zigzags this trope. At times, it can even appear as though he does care about his children while also having selfish motives. For example, though Batman shows significant affection to Cassandra, he doesn't deny Barbara's accusation that he is trying to manipulate her decisions as a crime-fighter.
Double Consciousness: Billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne is a completely different identity than crime-fighting Badass Normal Batman. Which one is the real identity and which is the facade, however, depends from writer to writer.
The Dreaded: One of the most feared heroes in the entire DC Universe. Even those who don't fear Superman, have fear of Batman. To the point that a Sinestro Corps ring tried to recruit him. For those of you who don't know, the Sinestro Corps is the opposite of the Green Lantern Corps, and their yellow rings are powered by inspiring fear. Corps members are chosen on a planet-to-planet basis, meaning Batman is THE MOST FEAR INSPIRING THING ON EARTH.
Earn Your Happy Ending: Several possible futures show this, such as The Batman, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, and Detective Comics (Vol 2) 27.
- In each story, Bruce has reached a good age, near or after retirement as Batman. Despite this, he still looks after Gotham City, ensuring its future safety. Also, Bruce remains in touch with his loved ones, treating them in an openly friendly manner. It's likely that the two aspects are connected, since being completely alone in life is never a healthy thing to do.
Emerging from the Shadows: As trademark part of his Stealth Hi/Bye, he's often depicted stepping dramatically out of the shadows to show that he can very much be anywhere.
Encyclopaedic Knowledge: Batman is a polymath with expertise in a variety of disciplines. Detective work, forensics and its related sciences like biology, chemistry and physics are his specialties. He's also a master of various martial arts and is amazing when it comes to espionage and sleight of hand. All come in handy when facing down his supervillains which include a murderous clown and a crocodile man.
Escape Artist: Go find a collection of Batman comics and count the number of times he's successfully escaped a trap. We'll wait.
Eternal Hero: According to Whatever Happened to The Caped Crusader?, when he dies Bruce is just reincarnated as himself in another universe to become Batman again.
Expy: He started out as this to Zorro and pulp heroes as The Shadow and Sherlock Holmes. Fortunately, he evolved into his own unique character.
Everyone Has Standards: Depending on the Writer. Even when written as manipulative and selfish, Batman may show remorse if going too far.
Evil Is Easy: His justification for not killing any of his Rogues Gallery, and not even making making an exception for the Joker, when Jason Todd confronts him over it.
Jason: Your moral code just won't allow that? It's too hard to "cross that line"?
Batman: No. God Almighty... no. It'd be too damned easy. All I have ever wanted to do is kill him. For years a day hasn't gone by where I haven't envisioned taking him and spending an entire month putting him through the most horrific, mind-boggling forms of torture. All of it building to an end with him broken, butchered and maimed... pleading— screaming— in the worst kind of agony as he careens into a monstrous death. I want him dead maybe more than I've never wanted anything. But if I do that, if I allow myself to go down into that place... I'll never come back.
Familial Foe: Carmine Falcone and his crime family, which includes Carmine's three adult children, sister, niece, and nephew, several of whom antagonize Batman even after Carmine dies.
Family of Choice: There's a reason why it's called the 'Batfamily', what with all the adopted children, allies, and reformed foes he's collected over the years, not to mention his 'real' father in Alfred.
Fate Worse than Death: In Final Crisis, Darkseid blasted Batman with the Omega Sanction and puts Bruce in a loop of horrible lives.
The Fettered: He'll use any means necessary to take crime down, but he will never drift from his moral code willingly. Many of his enemies call him out for it.
Fiction 500: The example of this in DC Comics. He single-handedly financed the Justice League Watchtower, the most advanced space station on the planet and routinely spends millions on his fleet of Batmobiles, maintenance of the Batcomputer, and keeping up his arsenal of personalized equipment. To put this in perspective, he spends enough on Batarangs alone to hide the cost of a Batmobile being shipped across the country to California. His family members are also unafraid to dip into Bruce's pockets for their own escapades, but for the most part he rarely seems to mind.
Flanderization: Bruce Wayne was originally depicted as merely Comfortably Well-Off. Now, he's one of the two richest men in The DCU. Batman himself has become increasingly ultra-competent and nigh-infallible in the past few decades. The flanderization of Batman was necessary to keep him interesting in the context of the Justice League. He's one of the few characters without a true superpower, so the question of why they keep him around (aside from his wealth) needs answering. Having him be the World's Greatest Detective and greatest strategist in existence gives him a purpose and a reason for being one of the guys in charge.
- He's also now portrayed as the "brooding loner" of the Justice League. This is despite the fact that the "Bat-family" has more members than Superman's friends and allies, three of the five Robins have led the Teen Titans, one of those three also led Young Justice, the other is considered the most trustworthy man in the hero community, and Oracle acts as the Mission Control. Notably, during the Silver and Bronze Ages, he was depicted as a close friend to a lot of superheroes, and he regularly mentored the younger generation.
- The trauma over losing his parents was not as pronounced in the early years as it is now. Originally, Bruce was motivated by the death of his parents to use his wealth as a means to fight organized crime and crooks, similar to the Shadow or Zorro. These days, Batman is borderline obsessed with the death of his parents, and writers generally treat it as the moment he basically went insane with grief.
- Bruce's tendencies to lash out badly when faced with a personal loss have gone through this in recent years. Usually, when something like that happened, he acted harsher and more controlling and manipulative than usual, but he never did anything that could be considered unforgiveable and there were moments that showed that he still cared. Now, he's abandoned his first son, beaten the hell out of the second, smacked the third, and is basically neglecting the fourth, because Selina left him at the altar. What makes it worse is that he's acting like this is worse than when he lost his second son, and later his fourth, which (no doubt contrary to the writers' intentions), makes him look self-centered and abusive. It makes one wonder why the rest of the Bat-Family sticks by at all, unless counting the Idiot Ball held.
Freudian Excuse: He battles crime because his parents were murdered by a criminal. For some incarnations, it's also what causes him to become overprotective and shoulder burdens alone. In Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller, Alfred recalls a moment in Bruce's childhood where he was read a story that involved a criminal, and he wouldn't sleep until he was reassured that the criminal was swiftly punished.
The Friend Nobody Likes: In his meaner days when acting exceptionally anti-social, brooding, and rude, and paranoid. It's clear that the Justice League do not appreciate such behavior, with most members only tolerating this version of Batman for his reputation and wealth. The same for his own family, despite being their patriarch.
Friend to All Children: Kids don't fear Batman, and Batman is very protective and understanding of children. Batman hurts the bad guys, not kids. Every child knows this. Batman makes DAMN sure to never betray children's faith in him. In fact, if a criminal is about to hurt a child and the child says that Batman's gonna kick his butt... well, the criminal's tempting fate if he proceeds, cause Batman WILL show up and destroy him. They're so comfortable with Batman that they feel safer around him than with actual police officers. Sometimes this is deconstructed in that Batman resonates with children so much because he has never moved on from the trauma he sustained as a boy.
Frothy Mugs of Water: Inverted. Bruce Wayne doesn't drink, afraid that it'll ruin his edge; however, a socialite like himself must on occasion be seen drinking, to erase any suspicion of being Batman. Thus, he will often drink non-alcoholic beverages, usually ginger ale, prepared to look to others as though they are made with alcohol. He'll even go so far as to act drunk, usually as an excuse for slipping out to chase after criminals.
Gadgeteer Genius: Not his specialty but he designs and/or builds enough of his own gadgets to qualify. He's built a cloning and memory implanting machine in case he dies and was the lead designer in the construction of Hellbat suit with the help of the Justice League, enabling him to go hand to hand with Darkseid to retrieve Damian Wayne's body.
Genius Bruiser: He's one of the most intelligent heroes in all of comics and has a figure that can pass for Superman in a dim light, is one of the world's greatest martial artists and stealth fighters, and only seems lacking in a world filled with superpowered heroes and villains... all of whom he can figure out how to defeat.
Good Is Not Nice: He can be callous, rude, vicious, and fully employs nearly every trope in the Terror Hero handbook while crusading to defend the weak and innocent.
Good Is Not Soft: Sure, Batman won't kill anybody, but he's not afraid to hospitalize criminals who deserve it.
Good Parents: Again, this generally depends on the writer, but at his most benevolent, he's been an extremely devoted father to his adopted wards and his biological son, willing to offer them aid even well into their adult years.
Grandfather Clause:
- Probably one of the only characters to not get laughed at for placing "Bat" in front of his equipment. Though in more recent years he has done this a lot less. He refers to the Batmobile and Batcave as "The car" and "The cave", and it's his sidekicks who employ the funny names. He does still call his favored weapons "Batarangs", though.
- Related to this, Batman is one of the few mainstream superheroes (along with Green Arrow and Iron Man) who can still pull off many of the "billionaire superhero" tropes even after public perception of the upper class and capitalism have shifted negatively. The reason is that such tropes are so engrained in Batman's mythos that it is impossible for him to drop them, and that Batman helped inspire such tropes in the first place.
Grappling-Hook Gun: Batman also inspired Nighthawk from the Squadron Supreme in its many incarnations. Particularly in the "Supreme" series, in his own mini he uses it to blast through his analogue of the Joker, Whiteface, to create an anchor as he jumps after a baby he threw off. Then proceeds to kill him (Whiteface, not the baby!) by ripping out his guts with it. In Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Batman opts for a grappling-hook rifle. Of course, that was made before Batman's grappling gun was standard fare.
Grayscale of Evil: Inverted; this is how he appears to criminals.
Great Detective: In the DC Universe, Batman has been appropriately called "The World's Greatest Detective". His expertise in forensic science combined with his analytical mind and wide knowledge base enable him to excel in solving mysteries ranging from secret societies to mundane murders.
- When he was first trapped by the Court of Owls, he deduced his location and created an explosive that he later used to break out based solely on the tiles used in the Court's maze. The same storyline has him finding a secret message written in paint thinner because only he noticed that the smell of the paint thinner was unusually strong.
- The Hush storyline is basically one gigantic example of his status as the World's Greatest Detective when he runs a gauntlet of his supervillains led from the shadows by the new villain, Hush. How does he know Killer Croc is working for someone? Because the plan was too elaborate for Croc to think up. How does he know that Clayface was impersonating Jason Todd? Because he noticed that Clayface was copying Tim Drake's fighting style instead of Jason's and was slowly deforming in the rain.
- The Endgame storyline has him figuring out the source of Joker's new toxin ravaging Gotham. He remembers that the last time he fought Joker, it ended with the the Clown Prince falling off a cliff. Batman deduces that Joker must have ended up in the massive caves beneath Gotham and when he searches those same caves, he finds a pool full of the mysterious chemical ingredient in Joker's latest concoction.
Guile Hero: He's one of the sharpest heroes in DC universe of them all. If you lack superpowers, then make them up with wits and smarts. There's a reason why he's called the "World's Greatest Detective". Especially in group settings where his companions and adversaries have superpowers that render his gadgets and martial arts prowess less relevant. His habit of spinning victory from available resources have spawned the popular belief that he can take down any opponent with nothing more than "ample time to prepare."
Guy Liner: Every film incarnation since Michael Keaton invokes the Irisless Eye Mask Of Mystery by donning dark eyeshadow, which extends the black mask.
Handy Mouth: One of the gadgets Batman has is a small lockpick he keeps in mouth. This is for when he finds himself shackled to walls and such, and his mouth is at least good enough to let him free himself if he can get close enough to the locks.
Hardboiled Detective: Batman's got shades of this, having a traumatic past while working in a crime ridden city. He qualifies for this trope even more since aside from being a Great Detective with amazing powers of observation and scientific knowledge, he excels at navigating the underworld of Gotham's criminals in disguise.
Hero Protagonist: He's the titular main protagonist of his franchise and one of the most iconic and well-known examples of a hero in the history of comic books. In contrast to idealistic heroes such as Superman, he's rather cynical about it, though.
Hero-Worshipper: Downplayed because many incarnations of Batman are afraid of being seen as vulnerable, alongside his tendency to shoulder burdens alone, but Bruce genuinely looks up to heroes like Clark/Superman, Diana/Wonderwoman, and Barry/Flash, despite clashing with them from time to time. The feelings are mutual.
Batman: He has the power to tear the world apart. And he could. With a pinkie. It's not his world. We're not his people. We should be ants to him. Imagine that. Always being on the outside. The pain that would always come from being on the outside. And yet, he took that pain and became the symbol of hope. I'm just a rich kid from the city. I knew my parents, I knew who I was, who I had to be. I didn't have any choice but to become who I am. He had every choice...and became who he is. Every kid is inspired by him. He's a better man than I am.
Hero with Bad Publicity: He gets hit hard with this in the New 52 as Batman and as Bruce Wayne. Some people in Gotham actually riot because they think he killed the Joker — yes, the Joker is more sympathetic in the public eye. Bruce's attempts at urban renewal are also not being well received. Some people in Gotham do not see it for the act of goodwill it is and see it as a rich bastard tearing down historical buildings (read: run-down buildings in a high crime area they didn't care about before) to make a new skyscraper. Most versions of Batman actively cultivate this trope, because it lends credit to him being far more ruthless than he truly is, therefore scarier to most criminals.
Heroic Build: Subverted. Earlier in his career, he was lithe and agile. Nowadays he is very muscular and built like a weightlifter.
Heroic Sacrifice: In Batman: Superheavy, Bruce Wayne is brought back to life after his last clash with the Joker. From this, Batman lost all memory of his own experiences as a crime-fighter, including the emotional pain of his parents' deaths. At the conclusion of the arc, the "new" Bruce Wayne subjects himself to a procedure that restores him to his former self, effectively forgetting the memories and happiness he gained as a normal civilian.
Heroic Spirit: Usually, nothing will keep him down. It's notable that part of Bane's plan to actually defeat Batman involved running him completely ragged by basically hurling his entire Rogues Gallery at him all at once, while he was sick. And even so, Batman still basically tore apart everyone Bane tossed at him, refused to stop when he was ambushed at his civilian home by Bane's Quirky Miniboss Squad, and still put up a hell of a fight against Bane himself.
Heroic Willpower: His will is so strong, it's practically his only superpower. He's even been able to operate a Green Lantern Ring on occasion.
He's Back!: After his adventures to get back to the present, Batman is back in the saddle and ready to give Dr. Hurt a well-deserved beating.
Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Superman. While how much they initially got along varies, they are always each other's best friend in the present.
- He has also historically had this with Robin, especially Dick Grayson, though less so after Dick graduated to being Nightwing and found his own city to protect. Infamously, Frederic Wertham's book Seduction of the Innocent (which influenced the creation of the Comics Code Authority) accused Batman and Robin's relationship as being a little too close. This was, of course, completely exaggerated and misleading, but the writers hastily invented Batwoman and Batgirl to assuage concerns that Batman and Robin were gay and to ensure this trope was the dominant reading of their relationship.
He Who Fights Monsters: Batman's greatest fear is that he will become this, if he hasn't already. In fact, this is the way many other heroes see him, and they are not entirely wrong (depending on who's writing him).
- It's also why Batman so strictly adheres to Thou Shalt Not Kill: having that as a line that he never crosses is a barrier to slipping over the edge and becoming as much of a monster as the psychos he fights. Out of all his enemies, the Joker manages to be the one who makes him come very, very close to breaking his one rule...and that's because the Joker goes out of his way to make him break it.
  - Batman has had to be restrained more than once from killing the Joker in a few stories, like the Hush storyline when he thought the clown had murdered a childhood friend of his. In Under the Hood, Batman freely admits to the Red Hood that he actually fantasizes about killing the Joker every day, but won't do so because he believes if he starts killing, he won't be able to stop.
High-Altitude Interrogation: One of Batman's favorite methods for questioning mooks is dangling over a high ledge, with implicit threat to drop them if he does not hear what he wants to.
His Own Worst Enemy: A favorite way among writers to portray Batman in an edgy manner. At times, he will actively seek for misery, caused by survivor's guilt.
Historical Character's Fictional Relative: Modern writers have established that Bruce is a descendant of Revolutionary War general 'Mad Anthony' Wayne. This is also a Mythology Gag as Bob Kane named the character Bruce Wayne after Robert the Bruce and 'Mad Anthony' Wayne.
Honest Corporate Executive: His Bruce persona is generally portrayed this way. Some stories will give him potential tax evasion troubles, but for the most part Bruce Wayne is portrayed as giving charitably even when it does not produce good public relations.
Honor Before Reason: Alongside the laws in Gotham City, as well as every other character in the DC, Batman will never be allowed to murder popular villains like the The Joker, despite their growing unforgivable crimes.
- Batman takes this to another extreme when his alter ego becomes a juror at the trial of someone captured by him. When asked if there's any reason he shouldn't be a juror, Bruce Wayne tells the judge that he's Batman. He later tells Tim that he had to tell because he was under oath.
Hope Bringer: Even in the darkest and most cynical stories and adaptations, Batman is almost always portrayed as a symbol of hope to the people of Gotham.
Horrifying Hero: "I'm telling ya, man!! A GIANT BAT!!"
Hunk: Practically every modern version of Batman ever is built like a tank, acting as a sure-sign of his Charles Atlas Superpowers.
Identity Impersonator: He's probably done it as much as Superman!
In Harm's Way: He almost never retires, when he does its usually because he's too infirm to continue fighting crime, and even then he guarantees he has a replacement, and participates in crime fighting from the back lines. In fact, more than one story has all-but-stated that "The Batman" can never retire. Played with, in that the reason for Batman's drive is less that Victory Is Boring, and more that his end goal lies arthe eradication of evil. In other cases he also seeks for the resurrection of his parents and reclaiming his childhood (without harming anyone), which needless to say he's never accomplished.
- This is expanded upon in one story by Tom King, in which Clark tells Bruce that Bruce needs the justification to be Batman, implying that Bruce has to respond in some manner to the tragedy that shaped his crime-fighting life.
  Clark: Bruce, I love being Superman but I hate that I need to be Superman. You hate being Batman but you love that you need to be Batman.
Informed Kindness: A lot of this is caused by his Depending on the Writer status, as well as a case of Superdickery. Bruce is certainly not without his moments of care and empathy, but characters (and even writers) often tend to exaggerate his nobleness... even when readers fail to see it for themselves.
The Insomniac: Being Batman by night and Bruce Wayne by day often leaves him little time for sleep, especially since he almost always refuses to rest. Some issues depict Batman as practicing a form of meditative microsleep to supposedly give him a full night's rest in half an hour or carrying stimulant drugs in his utility belt.
Insufferable Genius: He's almost uniformly depicted as brilliant. Thus, when written as taciturn, Bruce can easily become this. Even—sometimes especially—to his allies. Particularly when he's in the cowl.
It's Not You, It's My Enemies: Has been forced to give up many a love interest because of this.
I Work Alone: Suuuure you do.^note His tendency to shoulder burdens often act as his one of his greatest weaknesses.

J-R

Jack of All Trades: If not presented as the best at some useful skillset, Batman will still normally be very good at it, reaching pro levels minimum.
Jerkass Has a Point: Even after his darker portrayal by the 1980s, Batman usually makes a good point. For example, the "Tower of Babel" arc has him pointing out that there needs to be contingencies if a superhero goes rogue (and considering brainwashing schemes happen pretty often, the others grudgingly agree with this). Too bad he didn't tell his teammates about these plans beforehand, nor apologize for what he indirectly caused.
Jerkass to One: His treatment of Stephanie Brown as Robin was very cold. He vocally put her on a short leash, and refused to let her know his identity. Even Alfred asks if this was a ploy make Tim jealous, which Bruce avoids answering. However, despite the rocky relationship, Bruce honestly tells Stephanie that he considered her a Robin when she seems to be on her deathbed, and was concerned with her safety, going from discouraging to more supportive.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Starting with the Bronze Age, while it fluctuates nowadays. Even when written as a paranoid Control Freak, Batman can show deep compassion; with many of his worst moments leaning towards Cruel to Be Kind.
Knight in Sour Armor: Especially in modern portrayals, Bruce is almost always this.
Knockout Gas: One of his standard tricks, Batman has used knockout gas from various sources: bombs, canisters, guns, etc.
Knows the Ropes: Made frequent use of this fighting style prior to Batman (1989) and subsequent adaptations making the Grappling-Hook Pistol his Iconic Item. Particularly notable in 70's-90's era Batman, where a batrope attached to a batarang (combining this trope and Battle Boomerang) was used both to facilitate a Building Swing when required, as well as to entangle and ensnare Bat-foes as needed.
The Lancer: Not in his own series. To Superman in the Justice League, but as the biggest and most recognizable superhero after Superman, he's effectively this for the entire industry.
Lantern Jaw of Justice: Almost always depicted with a powerful, square jaw.
Latex Perfection: He's ripped off masks to reveal his entire costume underneath, ears and all.
The Leader: Batman is both the leader to the Bat Family in Gotham and is co-leaders with Superman in the Justice League. Though Superman is the chairman and face of the league, Batman is the one that gives orders and you better believe that the League follows. Batman is one of the smartest men on the planet and a brilliant tactician.
Lethal Chef: Bruce is usually depicted as an absolutely awful chef - he even screws up tuna sandwiches. On the rare occasion he does cook something edible, he is typically shown having turned the kitchen into a disaster area. Strangely, he is shown to be capable of cooking while training to become a vigilante, at least enough to sustain himself.
Like a Son to Me: Alfred considers Bruce like a son and vice-versa.
Manchild: Somewhat. At least when ignoring the zaniness of the DC universe. Bruce does dress up as a giant bat to eradicate all crime, after all. More pronounced in stories regarding his loner attitude, as he seems to relate to young people (re: the Robins and Batgirls) better than to adults, with children showing no fear of Batman unlike criminals. This was Lampshaded in a Marvel/DC crossover with The Punisher, where the Joker muses that Batman must have had a similar tragedy to that of Frank Castle, but it was when he was a child — dressing up with nifty gadgets are more a child's ideas than Castle's skull motifs and machine guns. In Flashpoint, this is made more apparent. Nonetheless, Batman is still extremely down-to-earth and competent, compassionate, treats his duties with the utmost responsibility, loves his children and has a firm grasp on how others think..
Manly Man:
- Bruce Wayne has often been compared to James Bond, both in-universe and out (ironic, considering he predates Bond by a number of years), for being the man that guys want to be and that girls want to be with. He' s the absolute peak male specimen, both physically and intellectually. He's skilled in almost everything, has the best cars and gadgets, looks very handsome, fights crime for justice. Can't get manlier than that. Even in his foppish civilian identity, Wayne is known throughout Gotham as the upper class's most eligible bachelor.
- This can occasionally be Subverted or Played With. There's a frequent debate about whether Bruce "became a man" the night his parents got shot, or he never actually grew up. There's a strong argument for the latter that Batman is Bruce's adolescent power fantasy that got out of hand and, as he was born into massive wealth and luxury, he never had to face real hardship after that night. Even so, being Batman is undeniably a pretty great power fantasy.
Man of the City: Batman is Gotham.
McNinja: One of the best examples in Western media. Most works say he actually did train in Japan in the art of ninjutsu, and he's adapted their teachings in stealth and infiltration into being Batman, such as his usage of throwing weapons and smoke bombs. Of course, he does not use these techniques to be an assassin.
Misery Builds Character: Batman envelopes the very heart of this trope. Whether he himself believes this varies, especially towards his wards.
Mr. Fanservice: While his Fanservice status is not on par with Selina or Talia, Bruce Wayne is a very attractive and muscular man who spends a lot of time training in his private gym, with the audience usually getting a good look at his abs, biceps or ass.
Murder Makes You Crazy: More than one writer has cited this trope as a reason behind his Technical Pacifist stance. He fears he is so close to the ragged edge of sanity already that if he starts killing anyone, he will not be able to stop. In one alternate universe shown in Countdown to Final Crisis, he kills The Joker and then decides he might as well kill every other supervillain — and succeeds.
My Greatest Failure: Batman has an overbearing sense of responsibility in general, especially regarding innocent lives. Among the tragedies which occurred through his many adventures, the ones below will consistently remain a part of Batman's mythos.
- Since the mid 1980s, Batman's memories of seeing Thomas and Martha Wayne die reach obsessive levels, bordering onto Survivor's Guilt.
- Normally, Bruce is filled with extreme guilt and sadness over Jason Todd's death, being affected by it as much as (if not more than) his parents' demise.
- Likewise, darker incarnations sometimes show him playing a significant role in creating supervillains, such as The Joker; Two-Face; Brother Eye, the last of which led to the death of Ted Kord.
Nay-Theist: Depending on who is writing him, Batman is either this or an atheist. According to the Comic Book Religion database, he is a lapsed Catholic.
Never My Fault: Varies. Sometimes Batman will act in this manner. Countless stories instead show the opposite, hence his My Greatest Failure trope above.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Many of Batman's more extreme endeavors have backfired on him spectacularly. His contingency plans were discovered and weaponized against the League during the "Tower of Babel" arc. His distrust of the metahuman community led him to create Brother Eye, which in turn led to the onslaught of the OMACs and was a vital part of Maxwell Lord's and Alexander Luthor Jr.'s plans in "Infinite Crisis". By DC Rebirth, his obsession with studying the Dark Multiverse and the various special heavy metals (against the advice of basically every Justice League member) directly leads to Dark Nights: Metal.
No Badass to His Valet: Alfred is immune to Batman's fear-striking methods (as its occasionally put, being the one who changed his diapers will do that). In a black and white short story titled "Sunrise", an old woman finds him injured and is not amused when he attempts to brush it off.
Woman: You don't look fine to me. What on earth happened?
Batman: Look, lady—
Woman: Don't "look, lady" me! You're acting like a five year old.
No Sense of Humor: Batman is sometimes depicted as this, Depending on the Writer. Though even when he does have a sense of humor, it tends to be of such a very dry variety that people In-Universe have difficulty parsing it. Prior to the late 1980s though, he was actually quite fond of quipping, doing so to friends and foes.
Not Quite Flight: Instead of flying with a jetpack or some other form of technology, Batman chooses to have his large and dramatic cape resembling bat wings double as a glider in many incarnations. This helps him navigate Gotham's tall buildings while remaining stealthy and silent.
Non-Idle Rich: Despite accusations both In-Universe and in real life of Batman being a sociopath/psychopath who simply beats up poor people and/or mentally ill people instead of addressing Gotham's societal issues, anyone that reads comic books can see that this isn't true. Batman as Bruce Wayne has been shown funding genuinely charitable acts like renovating Gotham's most derelict neighborhoods, providing scholarships for his employees and has even used his own personal wealth to fund relief efforts in the wake of an earthquake with full access to all of his company's resources. Have a look.
Not So Above It All: It wouldn’t take long for him to have actual fun and enjoy himself while doing so.
Obfuscating Stupidity: His guise as Bruce Wayne demands it. Depending on the Writer, Bruce Wayne is still a well-respected philanthropist and (occasionally) scientist. It's just he's usually shown as an international playboy.
Offhand Backhand: A master at this, which he later taught to his successor, Terry.
Offscreen Teleportation: Chances are, if you're not looking at him, he's gone somewhere else and fast.
One Super One Powerset: Batman is the head of Wayne Enterprises, has fought against and alongside many superpowered beings that possess advanced technology, use magic, and have reliable and effective mutagens. Despite this, he has been, and most likely always will be, only a mere Badass Normal Crazy-Prepared genius detective.
One True Love: Defied. True Love Is Boring force writers to deny Batman this. However, in Gotham City Sirens, two woman are explained to have a secure place in his heart: Catwoman and Talia al Ghul. With Anguished Declaration of Love (see above), he clearly recognizes his feelings for Catwoman..
Orphan's Ordeal: He watched his parents die as a kid...
Papa Wolf: Don't harm his wards or biological son. He'll make you pay for it.
Pacifism Backfire: Arguably Batman's biggest problem, especially when portrayed to extremes. Many blame his Thou Shall Not Kill attitude as why Gotham continues to suffer from monsters like the Joker. Whether or not this is true oscillates between writers.
The Paragon: Depending on the continuity, he's probably the one aspiring heroes look up to the most after Superman.
The Paranoiac:
- Largely from Frank Miller's depictions, Batman is nowadays prone to being written as a paranoiac; with a grim attitude, Control Freak tendencies, use of terror and excessive violence to solve problems. Some stories even imply that his vigilantism is just an excuse to vent out frustration. He also has a grim view of society- not that the DC universe is a utopia, especially Gotham City. However, other times, he is fundamentally an idealist that trusts allies (if aware of significant dangers) and is overall noble in nature.
- The staff at Arkham Asylum seem to have some understanding of Batman's issues and follow either written or well-known-but-unwritten-rules about how to deal with him. Some of these rules seem to be: 1) Only one person should speak to him, either the most senior staff member present or whomever he came to see. 2) Don't start a conversation or try to engage in small talk. 3) Batman has very defined boundaries that he does not like anyone invading, so keep more than an arm's length of distance. 4) Stay in front of him. He does not allow anyone to walk behind him. 5) If he tells you to do something, no matter what it is, do it immediately. Particularly if he tells you to leave the area or leave him alone with someone. 6) Batman has extensive knowledge of medical procedures, psychiatric principles, and pharmacology, so no need to explain in layman's terms. 7) If you are under duress from one of the patients, he'll know immediately. 8) Batman is regarded as staff, and personal and confidential information about the patients can be discussed with him.
Parental Abandonment: HIS PARENTS ARE DEEAAAAAAAD!!!
Parents as People: While he loves his family, he isn't always the best at showing it. For reference, Bruce missed Damian's thirteenth birthday from working, leaving him alone with only Alfred as company. Combined with aloofness, Bruce can somewhat stimulate his children's angst and need for approval, receiving Alfred's chastisement on several occasions.
Parental Favouritism: Not to abusive levels, but it's hardly a secret that Dick Grayson is his favorite Robin, especially from the respect and trust Bruce gives him. Heck, in Infinite Crisis, Bruce argues against Golden Age Superman simply by citing Dick's good character. Even Brother Eye knows that Dick is Bruce's favorite and Bruce programmed Brother Eye!
Parental Substitute:
- Towards his sidekicks, as well as being biologically related to Damian.
- Alfred and Leslie Thompkins are both parental substitutes for Bruce. Bruce has explicitly said that Alfred and Leslie, more than anyone, are the ones who've kept him from going over the edge.
Pimped-Out Cape: In continuities where his cape has some gadgets built in. Virtually all recent iterations of the cape are bullet-resistant, fireproof, and double as makeshift hang gliders.
Plot Armor: Even outside his comfort zone, Batman can function efficiently because of this. He is often given the spotlight in situations where he shouldn't, which involves making him tougher than any none metahuman, or have everyone else around him act significantly dumber than they would normally be. Case in point, in most crossovers, members of the Justice League struggle to keep up with Batman's foes, but Batman rarely struggles against foes that are out of his League.
Power Copying: Batman tends to keep items from his defeated villains handy, such as a vial of Scarecrow's fear gas, and one of Mr. Freeze's guns.
The Power of Hate:
- In some of his incarnations, the hate for the villain that killed his parents drives him to be the Batman (other incarnations are more about justice, or protecting people). You could also say that he feels nothing but hate for the Joker. And after all the Joker put him through, you can't really blame him.
- Batman hates hates HATES murder (and violent crime in general) and injustice of the world itself and is therefore driven to don the cowl to exterminate these things or end up showing the world he died trying.
Pragmatic Hero: This is what makes him an AntiHero. He's willing to bend the law by becoming a vigilante to stop dangerous criminals. In doing so, he deceives police officers and some of his closest friends. He also cultivates a Terror Hero image which helps him scare criminals into going straight or giving him information at the very least. It's also important to remember how he's willing to bypass yellow tape at crime scenes and has created plans for taking out other super heroes in the event he has to fight them.
Precision-Guided Boomerang: Batarangs have got to be related to Captain America's shield.
Principles Zealot: He can sometimes fall into this, especially when it comes to why he doesn't kill the Joker (or at least allow him to die). He is adhering to Thou Shalt Not Kill, and is somewhat justified in being afraid of not being able to stop once he crosses that line, but how many people have died at the hands of the Joker, thanks to his principles?
The Proud Elite: Bruce is handsome, and, while charming, tries to be aloof enough that he makes people think he's a bit arrogant. However, when he catches criminals as Batman, he'll get them jobs at Wayne Enterprises.
Psychological Projection: Part of Bruce Wayne's drive to be Batman in the DC Rebirth continuity is that Bruce Wayne believes everyone who experiences what he did will become as grim, humorless, vengeful and mistrusting as he is. His vigilante streak is two fold, both to help prevent as many people from becoming like him and keeping as many people who already are out of harm's way by taking vengeance for them. In Whatever Happened To The Warrior Of Truth Wonder Woman tells Batman that everyone who witnessed the murder of their parents as a child does not dream about it every night without fail for the rest of their lives, but stops just short of telling him how unhealthy this is, given she'll be forced to keep experiencing his trauma with him until he starts feeling better.
Pungeon Master: In the 1930's and 40's comics, Batman would usually drop an on-the-nose pun every time he decked a bad guy. For one example of many, he tells two racketeers "two heads are better than one" as he smash their skulls against each other in Detectives Comics #43. This trait would fall out of favor over time, but it survived to carry over to the Adam West version.
Really Gets Around: As Bruce Wayne, this is to be expected, but Vicky Vale is the most well known. But as Batman: Catwoman and Talia to name a few.
Real Men Wear Pink: An issue of JLA (1997), written by Mark Millar of all people (he was pranked behind the scenes), had Bruce, who is usually depicted as out of touch with pop culture otherwise, know enough about Sailor Moon to recognize that the Martian Manhunter had based an identity on a character in the series (Rei Hino/Sailor Mars naturally) when introduced to "her".
Recurring Dreams: Whatever Happened To The Warrior Of Truth involves Wonder Woman in a Forced Sleep, trapped in the dreams of various friends and rivals until she can make each feel better, one by one. Some cases are easy, like telling Steve Trevor he just fell alseep during World War Two documentary and is in no real danger. Some are harder, but involve things she is well suited to handle, like "saving" Etta Candy when a nightmare of Cheetah invades Etta's dreams of having a peaceful picnic. Bruce Wayne is one of the harder cases, as every night without fail he dreams about the murder of his parents and insists that this is perfectly normal for everyone rather than admit that he's psychologically damaged, as that would be embarrassing. Having been through several people's psyches by the time she ends up in Batman's, Wonder Woman can tell him first hand this not how most people respond to trauma, but that still leaves her searching for ways to make him feel better about it.
Reckless Pacifist: On and off. Excluding incarnations that actually did kill people (or just refused to save them), The Bat has been known to get really, really rough with his enemies despite his Thou Shalt Not Kill policy.
Red Baron: The Batman has been known by the following nicknames: The Caped Crusader, the Masked Manhunter, the Darknight Detective which would evolve into his most distinctive title - the Dark Knight.
Relative Button:
- Never hurt his adopted and biological kids or Alfred in front of him, or even insult them when they're dead or else he will give the poor sod a beatdown. Just ask Joker. In fact, don't hurt any kid in front of him.
- Disrespecting Thomas and Martha Wayne in front of him, even when disguised as Bruce Wayne is the quickest way to piss Batman off.
Reluctant Warrior: Hates violence, but is prepared to use it to stop crime. Subverted by every interpretation since the dawn of the Dark Age, so Batman's mileage may definitely vary.
Renaissance Man: Plays this trope straight. Batman is "technically" not an expert specialist in most fields, but a generalist in nearly all fields of knowledge. From detective work and forensic science to martial arts to even acting and disguises, there are few things Batman can't do.
Reputation Apathy: In numerous incarnations, Batman not only doesn't care what the public thinks of his actions as a Vigilante Man, but actively cultivates the image of a Hero with Bad Publicity to make himself appear far more ruthless than he actually is, and therefore scarier to criminals.
The Reveal Prompts Romance: Batman has unmasked himself as Bruce Wayne to various women in various continuities. Neither the reveal nor the romance has ever stuck.
Rich in Dollars, Poor in Sense: In pre-crisis stories where it's shown he's clueless in grocery shopping or not knowing how to save money when he became broke. In one story, he only had thirty-seven dollars left on his account, and spent it all on a hot plate of food and some supplies in one day, even forgetting to buy a spoon to use.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Batman’s culturally well-known main motivation for fighting crime and being a superhero is his extreme, hateful desire for vengeance against the entire criminal underworld for the murder of his parents. After all, he is VENGEANCE, he is the NIGHT, he is the BATMAN!
Roof Hopping: One of his many specialties when he isn't using his Grappling-Hook Gun or glider cape.

S-W

Save the Villain: He has even saved the Joker of all people multiple times. In Batman: Cacophany, he explains that due to "one bad day", he can't bear to see anyone die in front of him if he has the power to stop it.
Science Hero: As the World's Greatest Detective, he excels in forensic analysis and regularly whips up cures for toxins created by his villains.
- In the Endgame storyline, Joker comes back with his most dangerous Joker toxin yet. When his cures for the different versions of Joker toxin are tested against it, none of them work despite Batman having developed dozens or hundreds of them. He later finds the esoteric chemical base for Joker's new toxin and synthesizes a cure in time to save Gotham.
- He understands biomedical science and performs an autopsy that helps identify a murder victim as a martial arts coach for assassins in the Court of Owls storyline. That same storyline has him capturing an assassin for the Court, figuring out how they survive cryogenic freezing and thawing thanks to having a conductive metal tooth to wake them up via electric shock.
- In case he ever dies, Batman's built a cloning machine and memory implanting machine. He uses the memory implanting machine to regain his training and experience to fight Mister Bloom at the end of the Superheavy storyline.
- The Hellbat suit. Designed and built by Batman with the help of the Justice League, it can draw power directly from Batman's metabolism but can also be powered by energy blasts including Darkseid's Omega beams.
Secret-Identity Identity: Bruce spends so much of his time as Batman that it's often difficult to tell whether or not he identifies himself Bruce Wayne or Batman. More recent iterations of the character lean towards the latter, going so far as to declare his name to be Batman while grasping Wonder Woman's Lasso of Truth.
Secular Hero: In Batman (Tom King) #53, he states that he used to believe in god, but no longer does and is an atheist.
Series Mascot: Of DC Comics, alongside Superman.
Sex God: Has been described as this by a couple of his lovers. Selina admits he's great in bed, Talia has described him as "magnificent" and Silver St. Cloud claimed he gave her eleven orgasms on their first night together.
Shadow Archetype: Of Superman. Most of his rogues are ones of himself.
Shared Family Quirks: A retroactive example, but in DC Rebirth's Justice League (2016) #22, he's working a holographic computer before shooing away a curious Jon Kent away with "tt" the way Damian would.
Shell-Shocked Veteran: It should be obvious. Seeing your parents shot can give you psychological scars but believing that dressing up as a bat and act all vengeance and justice will honor their memories sure is a given proof that you need help.
Shrine to the Fallen: Most famously Jason Todd's costume on display in the Batcave. Among all of Batman's allies that died (and came back to life), this is the one shrine that Batman will continue to keep without fail.
Signature Team Transport: Batman has plenty of Bat-vehicles, but the Batmobile is the most iconic.
Situational Sociability: Bruce Wayne generally presents himself as a Millionaire Playboy. In reality Bruce, or rather Batman, is stoic and serious. He cultivates the image to further blur any potential line between Bruce Wayne and Batman.
Small Steps Hero: How he views his job when fighting street-level criminals as Batman. Honestly though, you'd think with all the money he invests into infrastructure, social service programs, and technological advancements, Gotham City would be far less dangerous after several years.
The Smart Guy: When he's with the Justice League. Not so much on his home turf, where everyone he hangs out with is also a genius. While some of the other members might have similar or even superior intelligence, or greater knowledge on a particular subject Depending on the Writer, Batman's the one with the widest field of expertise and the greatest ability to utilize what he knows effectively.
Socially Awkward Hero: Social skills isn't one of his strong points as Batman. Whether this is the case as Bruce Wayne varies.
So Proud of You: Despite how he is usually depicted, Bruce genuinely feels proud of every sidekick that worked with him. Even Jason, despite his former villainy, was noted by Alfred to never have disappointed Bruce. Not once.
Spirited Competitor: Is well-known for not backing down easily. Nonetheless, Batman will be proud of anyone who outdoes him as a hero, while also seeing it as another challenge for himself. Also, a number of writers tone down this aspect, with one issue showing Batman nonchalantly admitting that he would lose to Cassandra Cain in a fight.
The Spock: Almost always occupies this role especially when next to Superman and Wonder Woman who may switch places between the The Kirk and The McCoy. His entries under Combat Pragmatist and Crazy-Prepared show that he's willing to make a ruthless but logical choice if it means saving the day.
Stealth Expert: Frequently sneaks up and vanishes on Superman, despite the latter's extremely refined Super-Senses. Partly because Superman chooses to humor Batman.
Stealth Hi/Bye: Batman is a known master of this, possibly the Trope Codifier, to the point he has his own page on the subject. It's one of his two signature entrances/exits, the other being a Super Window Jump. He does this pretty reliably when talking to Commissioner Gordon or his other allies. In fact, whenever he doesn't it's usually a sign to Gordon that it's an impostor, or at least that something's wrong.
Step into the Blinding Fight: Often invoked by Batman with his use of shadows and smoke pellets to scare criminals. It disorients his enemies and make them easier to pick off one by one.
The Stoic: Added to his The Comically Serious, usually, though he does have bouts of anger or other emotions.
The Strategist: He has no peer as a combat strategist and plan-maker in The DCU. Quite simply, if Batman cooks up a plan, it's probably the BEST plan. Batman usually defacto commands the Justice League when the situation requires it.
Strong and Skilled: Zigzagged. Since Batman lives in a world filled with sorcerers, demons, superhumans, and several other forms of science-fiction, he's a Weak, but Skilled hero; in terms of regular humans, he's this trope, being one of the greatest fighters and genius known.
Strong as They Need to Be: Can struggle against scraggy thugs or be strong enough to casually lift heavy objects. Likewise, some writers depict Batman being one-shotted by individuals such as Bronze Tiger and Lady Shiva, while other times he's skilled enough to fight metahumans like Captain America, Hawkgirl, and Aquaman.
Stupid Good: Arguably. His Thou Shall Not Kill policy alone is obviously ineffective against psychopaths like Scarecrow or the Joker. What exactly would be the perfect solution for this issue is debatable.
Sugar-and-Ice Personality: His usual demeanor aside, Batman often acts more aloof towards strangers, unless they're children or can't handle unkindness. Once you earn his trust though, he will at least try to be more affable.
Superhero Sobriquets: The Dark Knight, the Caped Crusader, the World's Greatest Detective, the Dark Knight Detective.
Superheroes Wear Capes: There's a reason why he's called "The Caped Crusader".
Superheroes Wear Tights: Nearly every iteration of Batman ever has worn tights or something resembling them.
Super-Reflexes: Acquired through training.
Survivor Guilt: Bruce/Batman's ENTIRE LIFE revolves around the guilt he felt at his parents' murder. In fact, the classic story, "To Kill a Legend," has The Phantom Stranger give Batman a chance to get it out of his system by sending him to a parallel Earth to prevent it from happening to that version of the Waynes.
Sympathy for the Devil: While it can end up Depending on the Writer, Batman is most commonly shown having some form of sympathy to his rogues gallery, even if they have committed some heinous crime, often because they are a victim of tragedy themselves. As such, if a villain claims they're trying to do better, he'll keep an eye on them, but he sincerely does want them to get better. When they slip back into their old ways, he's not happy or eager to beat them up, he's usually just as disappointed as they are. Of particular note are cases of Harvey Dent and Harley Quinn, he'll spend just as much time trying to convince them to give up their life of crime as he does fighting them.
The Team Normal: In superhero ensembles, most notably the Justice League. Of the iconic members, he's the only one who's a Badass Normal.
Technical Pacifist: By the Dark Age, Batman is this. He enjoys beating up criminals to a pulp, but it takes a lot to get him to cross the line and outright kill someone.
The Protagonist: Naturally in his own series. Sometimes unofficially in media containing multiple superheroes and the Justice League, especially DC animated series and films. Batman is given more screentime and attention. One can argue its partially due to the fact that Batman is a Badass Normal and thus the most relatable to the audience and gives a good frame of reference. His sheer popularity helps, too.
The Teetotaler: Bruce will not drink to keep from losing his edge, but he pretends to drink with disguised glasses of ginger ale for the sake of his secret identity.
Terror Hero: Batman seeks to put enormous fear into anyone he goes up against. Given that he's one of the most dreaded heroes in comics, even among superpowered villains despite having no superpowers himself, he is very good at it. There are criminals who have no fear of guys like Superman that are scared shitless of Batman.
That Man Is Dead:
- One popular depiction of Modern Age Batman is that he no longer sees himself as Bruce Wayne, who, according to him, died along with his parents. In Wonder Woman Annual #1, when he and Superman grab the Lasso of Truth, he claims his true name is Batman. Another quote comes from a new 52 issue where he says, "I'm Batman with or without Bruce Wayne." In recent years, Bruce is typically shown that Batman and the millionaire playboy persona are not actually the real man. The real Bruce is when he's with the people he's closest too like his family (Alfred, the Robins, Batgirls, Leslie Thompkins etc.) or close friends (Diana, Clark, etc.) who know who he really is and Bruce is with them in a private casual setting like the manor or at a dinner. The real Bruce only comes out when he doesn't have to put on either facade in an environment he's comfortable with. (Like Clark, Jon, Damian and himself going out to cut down a Christmas tree privately and getting ready for a Christmas celebration)
- A variation of this occurred in Superheavy when Batman sustained fatal injuries in his last battle witht he Joker and was brought back to life by a process that basically rebuilt his brain. As Alfred observed, this new man could still walk, talk, and understand the essential details of human society, but he had no actual memory of his own past because those neural pathways had been lost, and it was therefore impossible for him to be Batman again even if he tried to train himself because he lacked the necessary emotional investment in the training. The arc concludes with Bruce deducing who he used to be and willingly subjecting himself to a process that would erase his memory of the last few weeks to restore his original identity as Batman.
Thou Shalt Not Kill: The poster boy for this. He is adamant about not killing his enemies, and makes it clear about despising any kind of slaughter. A very good way to piss him off is to end someone's life with him around, at times even if it was self-defense. Nearly every version has this, while others may not try to kill the villain, but also has no problems with their deaths. What Measure Is a Non-Human? is in full effect.
- Other exceptions include immortals such as Solomon Grundy or Clayface, considering that they can come back from even the worst of blows. If Batman exchanges blows with omega-level foes like Darkseid, he understandably tries his best to harm them as well. He's even willing to pick up a gun to stop Darkseid from ending all life in existence.
- In general don't ever kill an ally or close friend of his — if you do you'd better hope he keeps his no-killing rule. Batman's done this twice with The Joker; first when the Joker killed Jason Todd, and second when Batman thought the Joker killed his childhood friend Thomas Elliot (since the Joker's the trope namer for Joker Immunity, he survived both attacks).
Took a Level in Jerkass: And how! Despite the darker storylines, Bronze Age Batman was still a good man and a team-player. Come the late 1980s, where writers such as Frank Miller began depicting Batman as a brutally insane figure. This led to his extremely obsessive and controlling nature in future story arcs such as the "Tower of Babel" arc and Identity Crisis (2004).
Took a Level in Kindness: Silver Age Batman is definitely this, becoming nicer and outright heroic. Likewise, the New 52 did this with Batman as well, at least for a while.
True Love Is Boring: One of the major reasons why Bruce will probably never be allowed to settle down.
Two First Names: Bruce and Wayne are both perfectly viable first names.
Uncle Pennybags: Bruce has had quite a few moments of this.
Underestimating Badassery: Done constantly by superpowered villains who have never faced him before. After they do fight him, they figure out why he's one of the most feared heroes of them all.
Underwear of Power: Just like Superman. Batman is one of the older examples, though nowadays (Post-Knight Saga and then Post-Return) his Underwear on the outside is usually either absent, not shown, or the same color as the rest of him (and thus hard to see).
Unstoppable Rage: He might not show much emotion, but his attack on the Joker in Hush is one of the few times that he does. And it's not pretty to look at (the art itself was gorgeous, though).
Upper-Class Twit: Bruce Wayne is the poster boy of superheros pretending to be one... or was, rather. It used to be common for Bruce to play at being a useless, self-centered fop, but nowadays Bruce is usually portrayed as a competent (if secretive) businessman who does as much good for Gotham as Batman.
Uptown Guy: In regards to his romance with Selina Kyle aka Catwoman. He's Gotham's richest man, she's a poor orphan street kid turned criminal. In the original comics, she was a Classy Cat-Burglar who stole for the thrill and had the identity of a prominent socialite in her civilian life. In modern comics, she was made poor to give her a Just Like Robin Hood motivation, to add spice in her dynamic with Bats. She's the only major Love Interest for Bruce who comes from a poor background (most of his Girl of the Week being rich heiresses, models, and so on, while Talia Al Ghul is basically a Princess) and their dynamic often invites Batman realizing how privileged he really is from his more street-smart and grounded girlfriend.
Used to Be a Sweet Kid: A rare heroic example. Numerous writers show that had his parents not been killed by a mugger in the alley, Bruce would not spend his adulthood terrorizing criminals as Batman.
Vague Age: For a while, when DC attempted to make Bruce younger. It's always been possible to vaguely guess at Bruce's age, especially post-Crisis, where he explicitly became Batman when he was 26-years-old (by the end of the post-Crisis continuity, he was clearly in his 40s). However, post-Flashpoint, this has varied. He was made Younger and Hipper but his age was never stated, only that he'd been Batman for 6 years at the start of the New 52, but never when he started being Batman or how long he trained for. Rebirth allowed him to be older, with Damian Wayne being explicitly 13-years-old, and this would place him somewhere in his 30s or early 40s. Finally, once Year One was brought back into canon, his age became more apparent — Bruce is now in his 40s at youngest and there's no attempt to paint him as young anymore.
Villain Killer: It comes and goes Depending on the Writer. Sometimes he's trying to do his damnest to make sure even the worst of people survive, other times he allows circumstances to happen where their lives are taken. The general rule Post Crisis is that Batman will save the villain if he can, if he succeeds is another matter entirely.
Vitriolic Best Buds: Batman and Superman are sometimes depicted this way, as both Type 1 and Type 2 — while they respect each other and acknowledge there is a need for both of them, they would rather have as little to do with each other as possible.
Weak, but Skilled: Charles Atlas Superpower aside, he's a normal human in a universe full of Physical Gods (with one of them able to punch hard enough to break the universe and reform it). He's still one of the best superheroes in the DCU, and one of the big three of the Justice League.
"Well Done, Son" Guy: Originally, he was very supportive of Robin(s) and Batgirl, acting as a good father-figure. By the Dark Age, Bruce usually only praises Dick, Barbara, Jason, and the others when they've been perfect as his agents.
What the Hell, Hero?: Whenever written as more flawed, he gets this a lot from others. For one particular instance, when Damian temporary died, Bruce's progressive Sanity Slippage caused every single member of his family to call him out.
World's Best Warrior: Among non-metahumans, Batman was a strong candidate for this in the DCU until Flashpoint. By Rebirth, writers often downplay this, at least for simple hand-to-hand combat, and even then he's still considered one of Earth's greatest martial artists. Regardless of the continuity, it's a fact that Batman is considered the most capable of DC's peak human characters, often because if he needs to win, he will win, and if there's a problem, he will solve it.
- In a battle of pure martial arts, he rivaled Bronze Tiger^notein Detective Comics #485, outfought Lady Shiva^note, and stalemated Richard Dragon^notein Brave and the Bold #132.
- Combined with cunningness and determination, Batman's skills were enough to match Captain America^notein DC vs Marvel #3, narrowly defeat the Sensei^notein Batman #671, and technically outmaneuver Karate Kid^noteJustice League Of America Volume 2 #8.
Willfully Weak: Most incarnations of Batman distain murder or causing irreversable harm, so this is to be expected. Some writers also show this to be one reason why he limits using more high-tech arsenal (ex: in "Batman: Gotham Knight", Batman stops using a bullet deflector when it accidentally injures a mobster.)
- Several parallel worlds show that if Batman were to forsake his concern for others, he would be capable of taking down all the criminals on Earth, or even the Justice League (if partly via an ambush).
Would Hit a Girl: Well, not first but if she's coming at him with the intent to fight or kill him, she's fair game.
Wouldn't Hurt a Child: A good way to make him pissed off for real is to hurt or threaten children in front of him. That said, this works against him when the villain he's going after happens to be one.

Alter-Egos

"Matches" Malone

Matches Malone

"I'm like true love and nuclear war— there's no way to prepare for 'Matches'."

In theory, a small time arsonist, nicknamed partly for his habit of holding a match in his mouth like a cigarette or lollipop; in reality, Batman's go-to persona when infiltrating a criminal enterprise.

Adaptational Early Appearance: Pre-Crisis, Batman turned to Matches for help in taking down Ra's al Ghul, only for the real Matches to end up killing himself in an attempt to kill Batman with Bruce then taking on his identity afterward. Post-Crisis, it was established in "Close Before Strking" that Bruce confronted Matches and started impersonating him before he'd adopted Dick and while Harvey Dent was still DA.
The Atoner: Batman muses at one point that he views using Matches' identity as him essentially acting as this on behalf of the original having come to realise over the years he spent posing as him that Matches wasn't a bad person but had done a lot of things he still needed to atone for.
Back for the Dead: Post-Crisis, the real Matches returned to Gotham briefly, only to die shortly thereafter. Pre-Crisis he was already dead when Bruce started posing as him.
Blackface: Not Matches himself or even when Bruce impersonates him, but "Close Before Striking" established as one of Bruce's failed attempts at a deep cover identity before he started to impersonate Matches was this of all things, trying to pose a black man to infiltrate the Joker's gang — only for it to also end in failure.
Dead Person Impersonation: After either Malone is dead or believed to be dead (depending on the story), Bruce takes over the identity to spy on criminals.
Dies Differently in Adaptation: Pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths, Matches accidentally killed himself in a confrontation with Batman when a bullet ricocheted at a bad angle. Post-Crisis, Matches faked his death, only to get wind of the rumors about "his" actions thanks to Bruce appropriating his identity and heads back to Gotham to confront them — only to be gunned down by Scarface, who'd just recently suffered a setback thanks to Bruce's use of the "Matches" identity to find out about about a scheme of his.
Driven to Suicide: Not Matches himself, but his brother, Carver, shot himself in the head over the guilt of the two accidentally killing a homeless man. That said, when Matches's attempt to save Carver's reputation by making it look like a random robbery gone bad resulted in Matches accidentally framing himself for Carver's "murder", he fakes suicide using the corpse of the homeless man to escape the heat that was on him.
Faking the Dead: Post-Crisis, the real Matches faked his death shortly after arriving in Gotham, only to be surprised when he returned to Gotham years later to hear of "his" accomplishments.
Failed a Spot Check: When Batman learns that Matches faked his death years ago, he blames himself for doing this; he was essentially so eager to assume Matches' identity as his "in" to the criminal underworld that he didn't take the time necessary to confirm that the body was actually Matches (it was in reality the homeless man Carver and Matches had accidentally killed, who was of a similar build to Matches; the real Matches assumed the body would pass muster long enough for him to get out of Gotham).
Godzilla Threshold: This persona is the lynchpin of a very desperate contingency plan to force the various mob bosses of Gotham to consolidate all control of Gotham's underworld to Matches.
Gone Horribly Right: Matches attempted to protect his brother Carver's reputation after Carver killed himself by making it look like Carver was murdered, but did such a good job that he essentially ended up framing himself for his brother's death. Bruce's own impersonation of Matches led to the real Matches coming back to Gotham because of the resulting rumors of "Matches" ratting out criminals, leading to the real Matches's murder by Scarface.
Legacy Character: Matches Malone was a real person; a New Jersey mobster who "died" (as far as Batman could tell) shortly after relocating to Gotham, after his brother died.
My God, What Have I Done?: Both Matches and Carver were horrified that they accidentally killed a man, but whereas Matches objected to Carver's desire to tell the GCPD about what they'd done, Carver's guilt was so great, it drove him to kill himself.
Never Suicide: Inverted Post-Crisis: The death of Matches's brother, Carver, was suicide, having been driven to it by the guilt he had over him and Matches having accidentally killed a homeless man during one of their arson scams. Matches tried to make it look like a murder to save face for Carver, and ended up making it look like Matches himself had killed his brother to squeeze him out of their racket.
Only One Name: No first name has ever been given for "Matches" in the comics.
Technical Pacifist: Claims to have sworn an oath of non-violence. Doesn't stop him from hiring goons to do all his fighting for him.

The Batman of Zur-En-Arrh

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fay_ah_wqaa5isp.jpg

"Let me in, chum. You don't have to do anything. Bruce Wayne, the doctor's son, his hands clean, his conscience pristine. It's so easy."

First appearance: Batman #113 (August 1958)

In The Silver Age of Comic Books, Batman was once transported to the alien planet of Zur-En-Arrh, where he met a resident scientist named Tlano who decided to become his own planet's version of Batman after monitoring Bruce's activities. After the adventure however, Batman was left wondering "was it All a Dream?"

It was later revealed that indeed it was. At one point in time, Batman participated in an isolation experiment that caused intense hallucinations. One of the scientists overseeing the experiment, Black Glove leader Dr. Simon Hurt, took advantage of Batman's psychological vulnerability to implant the phrase "Zur-En-Arrh" (based on Bruce mishearing some of his father's last words, "Zorro in Arkham") into his mind as a hypnotic trigger phrase. However, as we all know Batman is Crazy-Prepared, and the subtle attack on his subconscious birthed the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh, an emergency "backup personality" that will take over in the event of a psychological attack.

This identity would eventually enter the limelight when the Black Glove began its attack on Bruce Wayne, emerging to retaliate against Bruce's enemies as a particularly unhinged and violent version of Batman who saw things Through the Eyes of Madness and was counseled by none other than Bat-Mite.

And Then What?: Bruce tries to pull this on Zur-En-Arrh in an attempt to dissuade him from taking control, only for Zur-En-Arrh to retort that killing their enemies ends when they're all dead.
Antiquated Linguistics: Downplayed. Chip Zdarsky gives him a speech pattern based on slang and mannerisms from the Silver Age. This serves to make him extremely creepy.
Art Shift: When he appears in Bruce's mind pleading to be unleashed, he's drawn as if he's in a Silver Age comic.
Batter Up!: Wields a baseball bat while fighting crime. It proves dangerously effective.
Brain Uploading: He hops out of Bruce's subconscious and uploads himself into Failsafe, fully becoming a separate entity.
Crazy-Prepared:
- His entire existence is a result of Batman being Properly Paranoid; a "backup personality" to counter any psychological attack on Bruce's mind.
- Zur-En-Arrh also created Failsafe in the event of Batman himself turning evil, and went to the effort of repressing his memories so he couldn't be called upon to deactivate it.
Enemy Within: Becomes this to Bruce during the Chip Zdarsky run.
Godzilla Threshold: He's the one who comes out when Bruce's psyche is pushed too far to the brink, but his violent tendencies and disconnect from Bruce's humanity makes it clear that his appearances are purely for emergencies lest too much damage is done.
Go Mad from the Isolation: Weirdly enough, Zur-En-Arrh seemed to have been created to prevent this happening to Bruce during the experiments.
Good Colors, Evil Colors: Zur-En-Arrh swaps out Batman's stealthy monochrome (sometimes blue instead of black) for a loud mishmash of purple, red and yellow. His justification to Bat-Mite is that he's taking after Robin's own disregard for subtlety in favor of bright confidence. And since Zur-En-Arrh is Batman without Bruce Wayne, the very human trait of self-preservation ends up lost in someone who is insanely focused on the "mission".
Greater-Scope Villain: He created Failsafe, the main antagonist of the first story arc in Chip Zdarsky's run.
Face–Heel Turn: Zur-En-Arrh's appearance in Morrison's run was violent and insane, but otherwise served his purpose as an emergency alter by setting up the Bat-Family's proper counter attack against the Black Glove, then disappearing when his purpose was done. When he returned in Zdarsky's run, his entire character was expanded to become a Knight Templar that Bruce needed to rein in, ultimately failing when the personality goes out of control, infecting an entire multiverse of Batmen by giving them their own Zur-En-Arrhs and then attempting to fully turn Batman into a murdering vigilante.
Knight Templar: Unlike Bruce, he has no qualms about killing his enemies, and symbolizes Bruce's subconscious desires to put a permanent, fatal end to crime in Gotham.
Leaning on the Fourth Wall: He claims to be able to see the "grids" that Gotham City is composed of. It’s heavily implied that he's seeing the comic book panels that Gotham exists in.
Painting the Medium: His speech balloons are blue with scratchy white text, suggesting an otherworldliness to him likely as a reference to his original version as an alien Batman.
Pet the Dog: Despite being a Batman without Bruce Wayne, Zur-En-Arrh reacts badly to memorabilia of the currently deceased Alfred being endangered by Failsafe.
Slasher Smile: In Zdarsky's run, Zurr-En-Arrh appears in a Silver Age art style in Bruce's mind, so he has the appearance of the "friendly" Batman that was present during that era. Only he's permanently smiling as he tries to convince Batman to let him loose, and at one point it stretches to the point of him crying tears of blood. And when he's finally unleashed, Batman sports a wide grin as he prepares to fight the Joker.
That Man Is Dead: Deconstructed. Zur-En-Arrh seems to have been reinvented for the purpose of critiquing the "Bruce Wayne is the mask" interpretation of Batman.
- Somewhat literally, Grant Morrison explicitly had Zur-En-Arrh describe himself as Batman with "Bruce out of the equation". What you get is a Knight Templar and Blood Knight who seems more focused on inflicting pain on criminals than saving lives or making Gotham a better place. So Zur-En-Arrh ends up being Batman without any of the humanity or compassion that Bruce Wayne brings to the identity, and what's left is a disheveled snarling maniac talking to thin air.
- Chip Zdarsky took it further in his run by having Zur-En-Arrh refer to his sidekicks not as his adoptive/surrogate children, but rather soldiers in his war on crime. This treatment of the people Bruce literally raised does not make Bruce happy. And later parts of the run shows a Batman without Bruce Wayne as just another murderous thug born from Gotham City.
Through the Eyes of Madness: He speaks with Bat-Mite, hears stone gargoyles talk to him, and sees the "grids" that make up Gotham City.
The Unfettered: He's Batman without Bruce Wayne to anchor him to his humanity. Anything that makes him a more efficient crime fighter is justified, morals be damned.

Characters / Batman: Bruce Wayne

Batman

Alter Ego: Bruce Thomas Wayne

Species: Human

First appearance: Detective Comics #27 (March 1939)

Alter-Egos

Matches Malone

The Batman of Zur-En-Arrh

First appearance: Batman #113 (August 1958)

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Characters / Batman: Bruce Wayne

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Batman

Alter Ego: Bruce Thomas Wayne

Species: Human

First appearance: Detective Comics #27 (March 1939)

Alter-Egos

Matches Malone

The Batman of Zur-En-Arrh

First appearance: Batman #113 (August 1958)

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