In your opinion, when has Batman acted out of character?

[Spider-Kurt!]

Comic books only over the last twenty years or so, what particular stories do you feel that Batman didn't handle a situation like he characteristically should have?

Also, how do you think he should have handled it?

 

[Mee]

Off the top of my head, All Star Batman. Just about everything he's done/said. But that's not in continuity, so it doesn't really count I guess.

 

[Fledermaus]

The last issue of Gotham Knights. And during IC when he had a panic attack. Batman doesn't f**king have panic attacks.

 

[CConn]

Let's not leave out those wretched handful of hours we all wish we could get back from watching the Schumaker movies. God what a *****e bag.

Technically, those interpretations of Batman were quite in tune with the lighter Batman comics of the 50s and 60s.

 

[bestever23]

lol he had a panic attack? ***** I wanna see that

 

[bestever23]

yeah honestly batman doesn't have panic attacks. He's better then that

 

[Motown Marvel]

uh....considering batmans mentality, and everything he feels responsible for, the weight on his shoulders....im pretty damn surprised he hasnt had a panic attack before. batman isnt immune to everything folks...specificaly, biology. whats next, batman is immune to aids? geez....he's batman! not chuck norris.

as for the topic, the end of death in the family when he leaves the joker to die when he could have saved him was out of character. batman would never leave anyone, no matter who they are and what they've done, to die when he has the chance to save them.

 

[MaskedManJRK]

uh....considering batmans mentality, and everything he feels responsible for, the weight on his shoulders....im pretty damn surprised he hasnt had a panic attack before. batman isnt immune to everything folks...specificaly, biology. whats next, batman is immune to aids? geez....he's batman! not chuck norris.

as for the topic, the end of death in the family when he leaves the joker to die when he could have saved him was out of character. batman would never leave anyone, no matter who they are and what they've done, to die when he has the chance to save them.

Right, like no one has ever abandoned their morals out of anger before...

 

[Motown Marvel]

Right, like no one has ever abandoned their morals out of anger before...

batman gets angry a lot.....but never has it caused batman to leave others for dead when he was perfectly capable of saving them....its not something he would do.

 

[MaskedManJRK]

batman gets angry a lot.....but never has it caused batman to leave others for dead when he was perfectly capable of saving them....its not something he would do.

Eh, I can kind-of see it still. I mean, he just killed his partner, and now thanks to some strange-ass deal with the UN, is getting away scott-free for that and every other crime he's commited. I would be pissed off beyond normal too.

 

[Parker]

The end of DKSA when he was trying to impersonate Deadpool or something. So not Batman.

 

[bestever23]

everything in DKSA is out of character, he killed freakin dick grayson

 

[Parker]

everything in DKSA is out of character, he killed freakin dick grayson

Except for the part where he constructs those kryptonite gloves and beats the silly putty out of Superman, then tells him to get out of his cave. Can't get much more in-character than that.

 

[Gilles de Rais]

There is nothing wrong w/ the interpretations of Batman in 'DKSA' or 'All-Star' per se, there's just a disconnect between Miller and the reader. Batman has been reinterpreted to the nth degree for the past damn near seven decades, Miller is doing his, and as of recently, he's just not on his A game (I personally like Batman in 'All-Star', it's the book as a whole that's not really working).

If you want out of character, then I'll posit Batman, "one of the greatest martial artists in the DCU", allowing himself to get knocked on his ass by a test pilot in 'Green Lantern: Rebirth'.

That was lame.

 

[Lt. Figgnuts]

If you want out of character, then I'll posit Batman, "one of the greatest martial artists in the DCU", allowing himself to get knocked on his ass by a test pilot in 'Green Lantern: Rebirth'.

That was lame.

I assume you mean Hal? I'm having a vague memory of that scene.

Hal is hell of a lot more than just at test pilot.

 

[Gilles de Rais]

Batman, "one of the greatest martial artists in the DCU" got flattened by a roundhouse punch that, based upon what we know about the character, he should have seen coming from a mile away.

I don't dislike Green Lantern, but Geoff Johns tacked on that bit in a needless attempt to bolster the resurrected Jordan, and on top of that had the other JLA members just stand about w/ their thumbs up their asses when this went down.

I know he tried to make it up in a subsequent issue, but he jumped the shark with that nonsense, simple as that.

 

[Buttman]

Hal is hell of a lot more than just at test pilot.

He ain't Batman though.

Not nessicarly out of character, but I don't like the way he handled Gordon being shot in New Gotham Vol. 2. He's a complete prick to Alfred. I don't care how bad everything is, no one screws with Alfred.

I basically just don't like him when he's a prick to his "Apprentices" and allies, like Dick. I don't mind how he is with criminals, but I didn't like it when he payed absolutely no respect to any of them.

*Pads up for an anal raping* I also didn't like the end of Killing Joke. I can accept that Batman refuses to beat him, because he wants to do it Jim's way in respect to what him and his daughter have gone through, but sitting down and cracking jokes with one another? Tbh, I'd rather Joker told the joke, then Batman cracked him in the jaw outcold or something, with a cool line.

Tbh, by no means am I one of these "Batman should kill" I'm the complete opposite infact, but when reading Death Of, I felt Batman was perfectly justifiable by leaving Joker on the chopper. He even admits a panel later he knows The Joker survived it. It wasn't an absolute definiate "you will die here" situation either, not like he took a seat and watched the army cork him with bullets or something.

 

[Prognosticator]

Well, I thought it was out of character to leave Harvey D*** Dent in charge of Gotham for a YEAR, but no one seems to care about that one???

And he didn't use Bat-protection, and had a baby with a MiddleEastern Terrorist...everyone seems to look the other way on that one too.

 

[Buttman]

Well, I thought it was out of character to leave Harvey D*** Dent in charge of Gotham for a YEAR.

Forgot about that. *Agrees*

 

[War Lord]

Any Christmas story starring Batman will have him doing nice things in his own way.

Batman isn't supposed to be nice, ever.

 

[Lt. Figgnuts]

Not nessicarly out of character, but I don't like the way he handled Gordon being shot in New Gotham Vol. 2. He's a complete prick to Alfred. I don't care how bad everything is, no one screws with Alfred.

I don't know how long ago New Gotham was published (I've never read it), but they did use Batman's total ass-hattery that he'd developed leading up to Infinite Crisis as a plot point in the mini. He's totally like, "Alfred, you're such a piece of ****" and Alfred is like, "Yeah, well, **** you."

It didn't go down exactly like that, but, hey...

Well, I thought it was out of character to leave Harvey D*** Dent in charge of Gotham for a YEAR, but no one seems to care about that one???

I wasn't too fond of that one either. I did like, however, that they at least used that to make Two-Face more formidable to Batman, physically.

But really, Batman - even lighter, "I realize how much of a dick I'm being" Post-IC Batman - would never just assume that Harvey is healed. Maybe his face is okay now and he seems to be fine and the doctors say he's fine and he thinks he's fine, but Batman wouldn't just be like, "Okay, yeah, you must be alright. Let's train, 80's-montage-style!"

There's another thing. Batman only trained him for like a month? I would suppose that wouldn't be much more time than he would've made Robin train before letting him loose, but still. "Welp, you trained pretty well, and we went out on patrol one time - I think you're ready to defend Gotham City all by your lonesome. See ya! I've got a boat to catch!"

IMO, the whole "Face the Face" storyline was pretty underwhelming. It had it's moments, but it didn't feel like like an psuedo-epic comeback story, like Superman's "Up, Up, and Away" did.

I think a big reason it bugged me was the fact that Batman is back and suddenly he's channelling Adam West. He felt waaaay too "Good work, chum!" for my tastes.

/rant

 

[Spider-Kurt!]

Thanks for the feedback guys! From what I've read myself here, the Killing Joke ending(I love the rest of the story by the way) and the Face the Face OYL storyline stand out the most. This is closely followed by the DKSB and All Star Batman but since they are more like What If/Elseworld types of stories I won't put them in the same category.

I also agree that Batman over the last decade or so (until recently) treated his surrogate family like trash way too often. Right or wrong,it makes sense for him to lash out at those closest to him in trying times...just not every ****ing day over nearly every ****ing thing!!!

As for the panic attack, I'll have to read it before I can form an opinion of it.
What about making Azreal the new Batman? From what I know of Jean Paul's past, that seems a bit odd for Bruce to have chosen him as his successor.

Any others?

 

[Andy C.]

I personally prefer the new post-IC Batman. I mean, before that, he was being such a prick to more or less everyone he met that I often wondered why anyone bothered hanging around with him at all. I know, I know, Batman's not supposed to be "friendly," but I've always felt that that was just supposed to be a front that he used to scare criminals. Making him just constantly unpleasant and unfeeling all the time makes the character less complex, and less believable that anyone would ever consider working with him.

 

[Motown Marvel]

Thanks for the feedback guys! From what I've read myself here, the Killing Joke ending(I love the rest of the story by the way)

i understand why people b!tc# about the ending of the killing joke...but the difference between that moment and other 'out of character moments' is that ending totally works with the story at hand, and more importantly supports the underlying themes of the story. plus it wasnt anything real blasphemous, in terms of out of character....like he didnt decapitate the joker or nothing.

 

[Nepenthes]

Whatver happened to that Doctor Lesley Thompson (?) biitch that let Spoiler die. Batman shoulda had her jailed no?

Just because she knows his identity shouldn't help her escape. Batman always has plans. Mindwipe her, trick her or something.

EDIT: I really, really liked the end of TKJ. Partly because it does seem oddly out of character but as MM says it really drives home the point of the joke and the Bat/Clown relationship. Also the last panel shows Batman kind of violenty shoving or grabbing the Joker, I always figured he gets the gut punch right after.