Every so often, groups find that some of their members are drifting away. That seems to be happening a lot in the Bat-family these days!
WHAT’S GOING ON?
For a guy who likes to do things on his own, Batman sure has collected a big supporting cast! That includes the various Robins, Batgirl (Barbara Gordon), another Batgirl (Cassandra Cain), Signal (apparently a diversity hire), Catwoman, Commissioner Gordon, and various others who move in and out of Batman’s sphere of influence.
Right now, however, some characters are on the “outs” from the team.
Alfred—Being dead doesn’t exclude you from the Bat-family, obviously. Bruce is still talking to his murdered butler these days. (I still miss Alfred, though. Being deceased is only a temporary thing in the comics, of course! Just ask Ma and Pa Kent!) BRING BACK ALFRED!
Barbara Gordon—Just like the Robins, the Batgirls (there have been three of them recently) kind of fade in and out of the books. Stephanie has taken a step back for the moment, but Barbara Gordon has received her own ongoing title as she faces life in a Supermax prison! This all reminds me of when Dick Grayson became a “secret agent” for a while. I expect this will remain in place until sales start to dwindle.
Tim Drake—What do you do with all the Robins? The Absolute Batman title is having fun with that right now. Honestly, I always liked Tim as a Robin, but since he became more “open” with his relationships, it seems like the Bat creators haven’t known what to do with him. So, he recently announced that he has given up being one of the gang. I expect this will also be a temporary fix until someone comes up with a good idea of what to do with him.
Commissioner Gordon—Since he has been replaced by Vandal Savage as the police commissioner, Gordon has been relegated to being a private investigator. Again, when people find something more interesting to do, he’ll be back! Just don’t kill him, like they have in the Absolute Universe!
Poison Ivy—While she is a baddie who has been mollified by her relationship with Harley Quinn, she’s currently the mayor of Gotham! She’s working with and against Mr. Savage in her title. Honestly, her book is one of my least favorites in the Bat-family, so I expect she’ll get back to fussing with plant life again in the very near future.
Harley Quinn—For someone who had really been popular among Bat-fans, Harley has basically been relegated to her own title when she hasn’t been teaming up with Elvira, of all people! Now that she has apparently finally severed ties with “Mistah J,” her “independent woman” phase seems to be ending. But what do you do with her now? That’s something creators will have to sort out soon. Also, with Poison Ivy holding down a political job. She doesn’t seem to have much time for Harley now.
Damian Wayne—Here’s another Robin who has fallen on hard times! He used to have his own title or sharing one with Batman, but these days, he’s faded into the background. Let’s face it—His shtick as a grumbling foil for Bruce has played out, so what’s next for him?
Jason Todd—He’s another “Robin” who is in the background currently. We’ll see if they come up with anything for him to do besides his previous “outsiders.”
Wayne Manor—Yes, their home has always been a significant part of the Bat-lore over the years, but they recently blew up the place! Of course, it can be rebuilt when Bruce gets his cash back, so I look at this to be a temporary change—but aren’t they all? Even when Bruce boarded up the Batcave when Dick went off to college, they found their way back home! I expect it will return sooner rather than later!
Of course, Batwoman is back in her own book, but I don’t think she’s really a part of the Bat-family! And Cassandra Cain’s Batgirl is like the X-Files of the Bat-family, doing weird, supernatural stuff!
MORE BAT–FAMILY TALES!
I still think the best “book” that juggled all these various Bat-family moving parts was the Wayne Family Adventures on Webtoons. I haven’t seen much going on there recently, but I hope to read more from them in again! Great characters that each had a separate role to play in the team, so I want more!
I truly was glad when Chip Zdarsky left to write Captain America back at Marvel because I just didn’t feel like he “got” Batman and his team. He turned Batman into a sci-fi guy with a robot hand and all. All that has conveniently been forgotten now!
All this makes me wish we had a Bat-family title that would give each character a chance to shine. I think this is a missed opportunity for DC. All this reminds me of when the Bat-family was really extended—Bat-Mite, Ace the Bat-hound, more Superman interaction, and the like!
Given the “Bat-guy’s” continued popularity, I think this splitting apart of the Bat-family is truly only going to last a short time.
Of course, having people around him doesn’t mean Batman can’t take on missions by himself when needed. I never understood why some people felt he had to drag along the sidekick EVERY time. Hey, I have my own individual things to do as well as group gatherings!
Maybe it is that, in my own personal life, I’ve usually been part of smaller groups while looking longingly at the big families who have more opportunities to interact with others, so I can understand why Batman would gather so many people to his side! An old adage goes something like this, that more hands make lighter work. Perhaps having more people on your side helps Batman maintain his humanity. Works for me!
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