Batman in John Byrne’s Man of Steel mini-series

[The Laughing Fish]

I read the 1986 Superman mini-series a while ago, including the chapter where Superman and Batman meet for the first time. This part of the story takes place eight months after Superman announces his presence to the entire world, and travels to Gotham to take down the mysterious Batman – who Superman regards as an outlaw. Batman is trying to hunt down a violent thief called Magpie, who has a crazy obsession with stealing museum artifacts. As the two heroes confront each other for the first time, Batman, staying true to his fully-prepared self, has covered his entire Batsuit in a force-field to make it impossible for Superman to peak at his identity with his x-ray vision. Batman shocks Superman by threatening to detonate a bomb that will kill a stranger in Gotham if Superman dares to penetrate through the suit's shield. But truthfully, Batman was telling only half the truth. He did have a bomb, but he kept it inside his utility belt; risking his own life instead. It was his way of tricking Superman and forcing him to work with Batman in tracking down Magpie.

I like John Byrne's reboot of Superman, and his team-up with Batman is one of the highlights of the series. The face-off between the two in the end of The Dark Knight Returns is always something that die-hard fanboys get excited about, but I prefer how things pay off here. I like how the conflict deals with the different viewpoints between the two characters instead of having them engage in an overblown fist-fight. Batman's bluff by threatening to kill somebody is his way to manipulate Superman. Not maliciously of course, but rather to test how considerate Superman is towards human life. The look on Superman's face is gold.



It also reaffirms what I always thought about the differences between the two heroes. Superman is more of idealistic  than Batman. He does seem a bit innocent when it comes to human nature because he prefers to trust the common man, except for Lex Luthor. In contrast, Batman comes from an uglier environment that gives him a more cynical and cerebral outlook on human life. When Superman pulled Magpie's wig off and looked on as she suffers a mental breakdown, he was startled that even a deadly criminal could be psychologically fragile. Batman shares his experience in dealing with criminals' psych profiles by explaining that Magpie isn't a truly evil criminal; she became an outlaw after years of psychological abuse and her obsession for art became deprived objects she longed for.



Superman does find Batman's methods of getting business done rather shady, but acknowledges that the two share a common goal in keeping up with the peace. In the end, Gotham is much more depraved than Metropolis and realizes that Batman is needed. Batman himself wonders that the two could have been close friends under different circumstances, which is a nod to how the two were usually portrayed before Crisis on Infinite Earths.

An enthralling chapter to a very good mini-series.

[The Joker]

I enjoyed this 1st meeting of the two in the Post-Crisis DCU. Having read it several times over the years, it just makes me wish that Byrne would have got a year or two run on Batman following his tenure with Superman. Unfortunately, it never happened, but similar to the aforementioned Batman appearance in 1986's Man of Steel, Byrne's Generations series was fun, as was the fantastic Elseworlds Batman & Captain America team up book.

[The Laughing Fish]

I found this podcast from Two True Freaks analysing this particular chapter, and how this together with The Dark Knight Returns changed the dynamic between Batman and Superman's relationship forever. The podcast is about two hours long, so if you want to hear the actual analysis, skip to the 26 minute mark.

Off-topic: according to these podcasters, John Byrne came up with the idea of a female Robin and encouraged Frank Miller to use it for TDKR. I didn't know that.

http://twotruefreaks.com/media/podcasts/byrne/mp3/TDBE10.mp3

[The Joker]

Thanks for the link, Laughing Fish. I'll probably check it out.

Off-topic: according to these podcasters, John Byrne came up with the idea of a female Robin and encouraged Frank Miller to use it for TDKR. I didn't know that.

It's true. If anyone ever buys The Dark Knight Returns Deluxe Edition on blu ray (it may be on DVD too), which combines parts 1+2 into one film, there's a new documentary included interviewing Frank Miller joining DC following his run on Marvel's Daredevil, and details his creating Ronin, and more specifically, his work on TDKR. Miller credits Byrne for the idea of a female Robin, since Miller himself was originally not going to include Robin at all. 

[The Laughing Fish]

I enjoyed this 1st meeting of the two in the Post-Crisis DCU. Having read it several times over the years, it just makes me wish that Byrne would have got a year or two run on Batman following his tenure with Superman. Unfortunately, it never happened, but similar to the aforementioned Batman appearance in 1986's Man of Steel, Byrne's Generations series was fun, as was the fantastic Elseworlds Batman & Captain America team up book.

A couple of days ago, I read a Batman storyline that Byrne wrote called The Many Deaths of the Batman? It's about all these dead Batman impostors popping up in Gotham City; Bruce investigates the connection to all the dead men and realises they were people who he knew from the past and trained him all the skills to become the man he is today. It turned out they were being murdered by one of Bruce's own trainers, who was paranoid over the remote possibility that he could be targeted by one of the rogue villains if they somehow learned of his connection to Batman. It was alright to read if you're passing time, but it isn't essential.

Looking back at how determined Superman is in hunting Batman down in Byrne's MOS, it's puzzling, in contrast, how he was rather lenient and gave Batman a stern warning during their first confrontation in BvS. Yes, he disapproved Batman's extreme methods and found it disturbing that he could run around the city with impunity. And I understood that it was supposed to be a one time moment of mercy for Batman to stop or face the consequences. But honestly, I would've thought Batman killing the LexCorp goons during the Batmobile chase would've been the last straw for Superman to handle.

What do you Joker?

[The Joker]

A couple of days ago, I read a Batman storyline that Byrne wrote called The Many Deaths of the Batman? It's about all these dead Batman impostors popping up in Gotham City; Bruce investigates the connection to all the dead men and realises they were people who he knew from the past and trained him all the skills to become the man he is today. It turned out they were being murdered by one of Bruce's own trainers, who was paranoid over the remote possibility that he could be targeted by one of the rogue villains if they somehow learned of his connection to Batman. It was alright to read if you're passing time, but it isn't essential.

Thanks for the info. You know, I'm not sure if I've ever read that story, so I'll keep a look out for it! 

Looking back at how determined Superman is in hunting Batman down in Byrne's MOS, it's puzzling, in contrast, how he was rather lenient and gave Batman a stern warning during their first confrontation in BvS. Yes, he disapproved Batman's extreme methods and found it disturbing that he could run around the city with impunity. And I understood that it was supposed to be a one time moment of mercy for Batman to stop or face the consequences. But honestly, I would've thought Batman killing the LexCorp goons during the Batmobile chase would've been the last straw for Superman to handle.

What do you Joker?

It is kinda jarring, but I can only assume that with Clark at the Daily Planet in Metropolis investigating Batman in Gotham, he obviously wasn't too enthused with Batman's methods, but at the same time, also understood that Batman's actions was never geared towards innocents, and perhaps Clark felt some reflection, though probably not a whole lot, to his own situation as Superman. In that the public perception being divisive on the Batman, and his methods, just as they were with Superman, his methods, and possible actions in the future. This, I think, might have possibly played a hand in Superman giving Batman a warning, rather than simply take him in to the authorities. Which could have easily happened if Superman truly wanted to go that route at that point.

It's interesting, cause the the whole Superman giving Batman a warning was something also featured in Byrne's MOS. Though it's not nearly as stern as it was in BvS, Superman gives Batman a notice in that he would continue to keep tabs on him before flying away, and Batman reflecting about the possibility of the both of them, in another reality, being friends. Which was a nice nod to their Pre-Crisis counterparts. I also enjoyed how their interactions in the story gave you a indication of their view points. As Superman states that he felt 'sorry' for for the villain Magpie, and Batman retorts with feeling sorry for her as well, but also feeling sorry for her victims as well.

[The Laughing Fish]

It is kinda jarring, but I can only assume that with Clark at the Daily Planet in Metropolis investigating Batman in Gotham, he obviously wasn't too enthused with Batman's methods, but at the same time, also understood that Batman's actions was never geared towards innocents, and perhaps Clark felt some reflection, though probably not a whole lot, to his own situation as Superman. In that the public perception being divisive on the Batman, and his methods, just as they were with Superman, his methods, and possible actions in the future. This, I think, might have possibly played a hand in Superman giving Batman a warning, rather than simply take him in to the authorities. Which could have easily happened if Superman truly wanted to go that route at that point.

As it turned out, the Ultimate Edition explored why Superman approached Batman the way he did. While investigating into Santos' death, Clark saw the newspaper cartoon sketch of the cop armed with a baseball bat, and thought the Gotham police force were endorsing Batman's actions.

How would Superman in the comics approach this scenario? On one hand, I can see him taking the John Byrne approach by intending the capture Batman, only if Batman himself became a fugitive. But on the other hand, I think he'd tread waters carefully if a darker Batman still had the backing of the entire Gotham police force. Fascinating.

[thecolorsblend]

I figured Superman letting Batman off easy in BVS was because he recognized Batman was legitimately doing good. He'd heard from members of the public who somewhat supported Batman in that they said he only targeted guilty people. In Superman's mind, maybe it's one thing that Batman is so violent. But it's probably another that he has tacit support from the police and vocal support from the public.

Taking him down publicly isn't a black and white issue for Superman so he decides to start easy by telling Batman to back down.

Really, what's mystifying is why Batman continued regarding Superman as so dangerous considering the kid's gloves he used in confronting him. If Superman was the bloodthirsty lunatic Batman feared, surely he would've ended Batman then and there. It's more telling that Batman didn't see the light then than it is that Superman went so easy on him.

I like this issue of Byrne's MOS. I think Byrne and Miller were ultimately harmful to the Post-Crisis Batman/Superman relationship. But in MOS and TDKR, it makes sense that the two would be so at odds with each other. It doesn't make sense after they've known each other for over a decade but I'll spare you all that rant.

[The Dark Knight]

"The bat is dead. Bury it."

Good luck with that. He's being doing this for 30 years and he's not going to stop just because some new kid on the block, powers be damned, tells him to. So that plays for me. Superman therefore represents another obstacle to his career. Bottom line, don't tell Batman what to do. It doesn't work well for anyone.

[The Laughing Fish]

"The bat is dead. Bury it."

Good luck with that. He's being doing this for 30 years and he's not going to stop just because some new kid on the block, powers be damned, tells him to. So that plays for me. Superman therefore represents another obstacle to his career. Bottom line, don't tell Batman what to do. It doesn't work well for anyone.

That, and Batman had tunnel vision when it came to Superman for two years now. You could tell that Bruce's state of mind was unhealthy when not even Alfred can convince him. Which makes the conclusion at the end of the Batman-Superman fight more crucial, where the "powerful" alien Batman had feared all along had some "humanity" after all.