Batman has always been compared to an unbeatable hero but DC has confirmed that he is indeed a liability when it comes to the biggest Justice League battles.
Why is Bruce Wayne a liability?
Since the very beginning of Justice League, readers have found a huge gap between the capabilities of superheroes like Flash, Wonder Woman, and Martian Manhunter and the capability of the Dark Knight. Being someone who has not been blessed with superhuman abilities, Batman has to rely on his intellect, martial arts, and gadgetry. This has only further emphasized his skills and despite lacking supernatural powers he has always proved to be an integral and important part of the team. However, this doesn’t mean the Caped Crusader is flawless.
Strange Adventures #9 which is written by Tom King with art by Evan “Doc” Shaner and Mitch Gerads, tries to bring to the forefront, the conversation of Batman being a genuine liability on the league. Amidst the massive battle involving aliens known as “the Pykkts”, Adam Strange confronts Batman.
When the Dark Knight gets shot, Adam immediately runs to seek medical help for the injured. Here we do not see Adam making an assumption that the superhero will make it out alright since “ he is Batman”. Instead, he treats him like any normal person. This trend of showing Batman as a powerless hero has been more prevalent in recent times and it glosses over the idea that his reputation invalidates any potential threat against him.
How Batman is different
Although being a hero more grounded in reality, there have been rare instances where Batman takes a shot and is distinctly affected by it. However, there have been situations where Batman got tired of fighting criminals, showing his more humane side, like in Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns or Dennis O’Neil’s Knightfall but these situations are extremely rare in current continuity.
Batman has an ability to see danger from miles away, all thanks to the combined strength of hisinvestigative detective skills, physicality, and innovative high-tech tools. But in the above mentioned case Adam Strange catches him off-guard.
Should Batman stay in Gotham?
It is not bad to believe that Batman is a better fit for the shadows of Gotham and taking down humane criminals rather than taking part at the end of the world battles. While on one hand, it is undoubted that Batman is a one-man war on crime and is capable of single-handed taking down rogues like The Penguin, Scarecrow, and the Riddler. On the other, we must also accept that when it comes to fighting out worldly forces, Batman is not just a vigilant hero fighting crime, he becomes a soldier with the same weaknesses as any other normal human being.
This vulnerable and humane aspect of Batman’s character is what makes him resonate the most with fans. Bruce might occasionally suit up to fight alien invaders with Justice League, but he has to remember that he has much more to lose than his peers.
