Summary
Warning: Spoilers for Batman ‘89: Echoes #3!No one is more addicted to being a superhero thanBatman. It’s no secret that Batman is obsessed with his war on crime.His lifelong mission may never succeed, but that makes it all the more jarring for how he’s so overly dedicated to the cause. Comics have depicted him ignoring the need for sleep, eating, andeven being Bruce Waynein an effort to focus on Batman duties.
Batman ‘89: Echoes#3 by Sam Hamm, Joe Quinones, Leonardo Ito, and Carlos M. Mangual. The series is anexpansion on Tim Burton’s cinematic universe, where now,the Michael Keaton version of Bruce Wayne has become a Batman that’s far too addicted to the job to ever walk away, as badly as he once tried.
While this depiction directly refers to the Batman of the Burtonverse, the same logic can apply to Batman of the main DC Comics canon, and always has.
Batman ‘89 Just Added Gotham’s Most Disturbing Villains to Michael Keaton Continuity
The world of Michael Keaton’s Batman just got a little darker and more disturbing with the introduction of some of his earliest villains ever.
DC’s “Burtonverse” Comic Continuation Equates Batman’s Crimefighting Campaign To An Addiction
Batman ‘89: Echoes#3 – Written By Sam Hamm; Art By Joe Quinones, Leonardo Ito, & Carlos M. Mangual
[Bruce] equates putting on his Batman costume as the actions of an addict, saying he had been"clean"of it for two years before a proverbial relapse put him into detective mode.
This series was preceded byBatman ‘89, a series that ended with Bruce Wayne opting not to"go out"into the night after witnessing Catwoman kill Two-Face in his Batcave.Echoestakes place two years later, after Bruce has suddenly gone missing, to the concern of Alfred anda Robin based on Marlon Wayans. When Drake Winston’s Robin tracks Wayne down to Arkham Asylum, masqueradingas Robert “Firefly” Lowery, Bruce explains that he’s been investigating the death of Dr. Hugo Strange.
While his investigation compelled him to impersonate an FBI wanted fugitive, his first resort saw him put on his Batman costume,which Bruce reveals was the first time he’d done so in two years.What’s most interesting is that he equates putting on his Batman costume as the actions of an addict, saying he had been"clean"of it for two years before a proverbial relapse put him into detective mode. He also adds that Strange’s investigation was a gateway entered from him following the Firefly controversies out of boredom.
Bruce’s dedication to his heroic cause is often depicted as commendable, but DC has also been known to elaborate on the dark downside of it. One of the more infamous examples is the storyline “Bruce Wayne: Murderer/Fugitive,” where Bruce tried to discard his civilian identity entirely to be Batman full-time. All it did was fracture both his psyche and his relationship with his Bat-Family. That storyline is a cautionary tale of what happens when Bruce doesn’t keep his Batman addiction in check.
Addiction Is A Powerful Metaphor For The Caped Crusader’s Neverending Fight
Batman Is Compelled To Put On The Cowl
[Batman’s] entire mission is wrapped in trying to save Gotham. Such an ambitious goal demands dedication, but being overly fixated on the mission could potentially cause Bruce Wayne himself more harm than good.
The equation of Bruce Wayne’s drive to be Batman with addiction is a potent one; it started out with falling into old habits because he was restless, then falling headfirst back into the addiction itself. In a sense, being Batman is just as much a drug for Bruce Wayne as “venom” is for his rogue Bane.Multiple stories in DC’s Multiversehave depicted Bruce Wayne in this way; given his obsession with crimefighting, Bruce usually opts to be Batman well into his old age. However,Batman ‘89: Echoes#3 drives this point home directly with its addiction analogy.
An addiction this deep for a superhero, especially Batman, complicates their mission to stop crime. This is especially a problem forBatman, whose entire missionis wrapped in trying to save Gotham. Such an ambitious goal demands dedication, but being overly fixated on the mission could potentially cause Bruce Wayne himself more harm than good. It’s already harming him, if he’s comparing his urge to fight crime to an addict’s urge to use substances; if it affects his approach to crime negatively, then aBatmanwho can’t manage his addiction isn’t helpful to anyone.
Batman ‘89: Echoes#3 is on sale now from DC Comics
Batman
One of DC’s most iconic heroes, Batman is the vigilante superhero persona of billionaire Bruce Wayne. Forged by tragedy with the death of his parents, Bruce dedicated his life to becoming the world’s leading martial artist, detective, and tactician. Recruiting an entire family of allies and sidekicks, Bruce wages war on evil as the dark knight of his hometown, Gotham City.
