What you described being played straight and with him as the hero, is what makes it's "inherently childish". He's Zorro. A child fantasy. You can get into the meta if you like, but the meta only exist because we play it straight. How many Batman stories not only question Batman as a concept, but then lead to him being thrown in jail, locked up and never let back out on the streets again?
- He's a superhero.
- He's incredible rich.
- a skilled hand to hand fighter.
- He's fancied by multiple women, who happen to also be superheroes.
- His origin is that of so many kid's stories. The orphan who lost his parents to tragedy.
That's Batman. And I love him. But that's who he is.