Top 5 Myths About Batman

It’s a sentence we’ve all heard before - “that’s not the REAL Batman”. However, as explored by author Glen Weldon in his book “The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture,” Batman’s history is too varied for a “definitive Batman” to exist. Even “dark and gritty” can be subdivided into different variations. Sometimes he’s a gothic noir figure of vengeance, other times a stoic but grounded man of scientific logic. In Frank Miller’s All-Star Batman & Robin, he’s arguably a violent psychopath. In reality, Batman’s identity is a diverse cycle of reinvention, one that includes everything from his debut as man thwarting robberies against the rich to the kitschy, fun Adam West Batman of the 60s.

Without his massive fortune and the extensive reach of his company, Bruce Wayne couldn’t have possibly become the Batman we know today. That being said, it’s foolish to assume that wealth is the only factor. Give the average person, even within the pages of a comic book, the same resources as Bruce and they still couldn’t don the cape and cowl. Though Batman may be a mantle taken on by a mortal man, we’re talking about a human with incredible intellect and willpower. He is the world’s greatest detective, the man with a plan for any and all situations, and the drive and determination to get the job done against insurmountable odds - that’s his superpower.

Batman regularly wields an assortment of weapons, with the notable exception of firearms. In his early days, he used them with abandon, but he quickly developed an outspoken aversion to guns, which seemed a good fit considering his parents were shot to death. The thing is, guns have found their way into his hands many times over the years. Aside from his Golden Age days, he used guns a few times in The Dark Knight Return. In the Year Two story arc, he wielded the gun that killed his parents, and in Final Crisis he consciously broke his rule in order to put an end to Darkseid.

Fans were furious about Batman’s total disregard for human life in “Batman V. Superman,” and understandably so. The hyper-violent approach to crime-fighting he takes in the film makes it seem like he’s actively trying to kill bad guys, which seemed like a major deviation from the character’s core principles. The thing is, as with guns, Batman’s long history reveals that his adherence to this rule is murky at best, both on film and in comics. Burton’s Batman killed, so did Nolan’s – even if he’d like to think he didn’t. In the early days, countless Bat-foes failed to survive beyond their introductory issue, either dying at the hands of Batman, or as a result of Batman neglecting save them. So much for the “no-killing” rule.

For the longest time, Bob Kane was credited as the sole creator of Batman, much to frustration of anyone familiar with the real history of Batman’s creation. You see, while Bob Kane played a significant role in the character’s development to warrant a co-creator credit, Batman would never have become the pop culture icon he is today without Bill Finger, a man who made equal, if not greater, contributions to the design of Bruce Wayne, his alter ego, Robin, and even the Joker! Bill Finger died on January 18, 1974, and finally got the credit he more than deserved in 2015.