Anyone who reads this column knows that Batman is my favorite comics hero! I’ve been trying for years to understand exactly why, and I think I’ve finally figured that out!
The first comic story I ever read featured Batman in England. He had built a glider and strapped it to his back, then was flying around a castle to defend it. I had a similar reaction to what Frank Miller described as his first experience with the Dark Knight: I fell in!
It didn’t hurt that his last name was the same as my first name—Wayne. I also liked that he didn’t have superpowers. He was just a human being who found himself in unusual circumstances, and yet he prevailed!
Ever since that day, Batman has been my guy! He’s been in comics, on TV, in movies, and on just about every piece of merchandise imaginable, from underwear to stickers to computer games. He also drives my favorite vehicle of all time—the Batmobile!
No matter which creative team was bringing him to my attention, I was literally “drawn” to this hero (pun intended). He went through all kinds of transitions, from a crime fighter to a detective to a space traveler to a dad to a creative of the night to an adventurer to anything else I saw, and still I supported him by buying his comics, his statues, his toys, and the copies of his various stories and adventures on any kind of disc or tape.
If it had Batman in it, I wanted it! Still do, in fact! Of course, I wasn’t able to get everything I saw with him on it, but I sure have tried!
But what is it about Batman that makes me such a fan? I have literally spent years trying to figure that out, and I think I have finally arrived at the reason!
THE MANY BATMEN
I have always been intrigued by the wide variety of Batmen I’ve encountered. Every time a new creative team takes over one of his comics, it can feel like we’re getting a new spin on the Caped Crusader (or the Dark Knight, if you prefer).
There have been far too many of them for me to list here, but I have to point out that whenever Scott Snyder writes Batman, it’s magic. I enjoyed his New 52 run with Greg Capullo, and his new Absolute version, usually with Nick Dragotta, has also been terrific. Neal Adams’ art worked well with Batman, but I have often found the character brings out the best in many artists.
Then, too, Batman has been different based on who he surrounds himself with. The Bat-family is often great at bringing out different aspects of Bruce’s character, but he has worked well with Superman, the Justice League, the Outsiders, and even many other “brave and bold” heroes over the years.
His romantic entanglements have been fascinating to me, with the Earth-2 version marrying Selina Kyle, something almost repeated on “our” Earth until, at the last moment, the two jumped off into the night away from each other. I was actually interested in seeing a married Batman, something I hadn’t read very often before. However, I do personally think that Catwoman is not the best match for him—I prefer Wonder Woman, as seen in the Justice League animated shows from Bruce Timm and company.
THE DETECTIVE
For a long time, I thought Batman’s reputation as “the world’s greatest detective” was the main draw of the character.
I remember thinking he could solve mysteries that no one else could. I read one story where Batman had to solve a murder mystery, the biggest clue coming from the victim’s own hand. As he lay dying, he wrote “-Q” on a paper he found nearby. I couldn’t figure out what that meant, but Batman realized that the most likely place being referred to was the telephone dial at the time. There literally was no letter “Q” there. One of the suspects had a last name of Dial, so Batman confronted him and got him to confess to the murder.
That kind of thing always impressed me, so I really worked hard at being more observant and more analytical.
That was close to my goal, but I realized recently that there was one more step I needed to take to understand my admiration for Batman in all his various incarnations.
THE BUGS BUNNY OF SUPERHEROES
Yes, you read that right! To me, Batman is truly the “Bugs Bunny” of superheroes.
What do I mean by that? Well, Bugs has always been able to shine when he is the most challenged. He seems to look at each time he comes against a difficulty that he needs to outdistance or outperform his challenger rather than pound that person into the pavement. Sometimes that means outsmarting someone, sometimes it means outmaneuvering another, but he always comes out on top when faced with someone considered smarter than he is (Wile E. Coyote, for instance), stronger than he is (the Bull or the Wrestler), or even faster than he is. He uses his wits and abilities in any way necessary to survive and even thrive. (Of course, I like Bugs, too!)
Batman functions very similarly to that. It doesn’t matter if he has the “dadbod” of Adam West, the older and more seasoned approach of Ben Affleck (my personal favorite), or is in the younger/earlier part of his career in The Batman with Robert Pattinson (my least favorite). Batman always figures out what needs to be done, and he makes it happen. If he needs Bat-gadgets and gizmos, he gets them ready. He plans ahead, he works out the possibilities, and prepares for every possible situation. His biggest superpower is his ability to look ahead and to be ready!
And that’s what I admire most in Batman. In my own life, I try to emulate those qualities. I hope I will continue to grow in those areas, and I hope I will one day be able to tackle the challenges in life with the same tenacity and the same preparedness that Batman exemplifies, no matter what the problem is!
I see this ability to take on the greatest threats and to persevere as the reason I have always enjoyed and admired him! It doesn’t matter who is telling his stories or if Batman is in Gotham or even outer space, as he was recently—I want to be more like Batman!
About Author
