The superstitious and cowardly may fear the bat, but the ladies love billionaire playboy, Bruce Wayne. Admittedly, Bruce Wayne is a handsome, rich, and mysterious guy, but writers have made the hero notoriously hard to love. Typically, his parental trauma, the solitude of his mission, and his self-serious attitude are the go-to excuses keeping him single. Yet, what if I told you, Batman is not only relationship material, but should be a husband. Let’s discuss it below!
Batman #33 (Volume 2) – “Savage City Part Four”
Batman Can’t Be Happy
Bob Kane and Bill Finger chose to characterize Batman in 1939 as a solo bachelor devoting his life to crime fighting. Over the decades, the character would go on to date and hook up with numerous women. This includes sharing his bed with jet setting femme fatales and dashing heroines like Kathy Kane. However, Batman always had issues sustaining his relationships. Infamously, this led to decades long debates about the character’s sexuality. Notably, the scathing criticisms of Fredric Wertham’s Seduction Of The Innocent and Grant Morrison’s offhand assertion in Playboy that Batman’s lifestyle is utterly “gay.”
At the very least, a lot of fans prefer Batman as a monk-like crusader tortured to live in solitude as a sad asexual himbo. So much so that some fans and writers resent the Bat-Family altogether. Part of what fuels that belief is the idea that Batman can’t be happy. From a writing perspective, it gives the character a reliable status quo and keeps him a blank slate for the audience, regardless of sexuality. Yet, from a character perspective, it makes him look like an attachment avoidant, excitedly having intercourse whenever he wants while unwilling to commit. Moreover, Batman can be happy, but being in a relationship doesn’t automatically heal his childhood trauma.
Image from Batman #122 (1940)
He Has Married Before
A sentiment repeatedly written in the comics is the notion that marriage will be the end of Batman. Admittedly, in their defense, he has married before and that was the end of Batman. For one, he has married Catwoman several times on other earths, particularly Earth-2. In most of those versions, he ends up retiring and having children. Consequently, the idea of marriage somehow ages Batman in the reader’s eyes more than his growing legion of bird themed orphans. Still, other interpretations such as Tom King’s Batman/Catwoman, paint marriage as adding to Batman rather than taking something away. So, with the right partner, Batman will continue with all new challenges and support.
Most importantly, the character experiences several close calls as well. Particularly, love interests like Julie Madison, Selina Kyle, Talia Al Ghul, and Silver St. Cloud arguably getting the closest. In cases like Julie or Silver, the mantle of Batman gets in the way of him being able to meaningfully dedicate his time to a relationship. In contrast, Selina and Talia know and love both Bruce and Batman. During 2018’s Prelude To The Wedding Saga, Tom King explored the working challenges of marriage for Batman. Although they didn’t end up tying the knot, it showed that the right woman could easily become Mrs. Batman.
Image from Batman – Prelude to the Wedding – Robin vs Ras Al Ghul 01 (2018).
The All-New Bat-Family
So, how would exploring the dynamic of a married Batman work? Arguably, similar to the way Superman, Green Arrow, Flash, or Black Lightning deal with their spouses, but better. Due to her long-standing romance with Bruce, Catwoman is the obvious lead choice. From the engagement leading to Batman #50, to her leading the family in Ram V’s Detective Comics: Gotham Nocturne Interlude or Chip Zdarsky’s Gotham War, she is already in position to become the matriarch of the Bat-Family. Despite Catwoman’s fears of domestication, the vacuum of Alfred’s passing presents a rare narrative opportunity for a woman to take care and control of the household. At the same time, the safety net of Bruce’s wealth and Bruce allowing her to have independence could prove interesting. In fact, she’s the only option where fans, writers, and DC could have their cake and eat it.
Imagine storylines of Catwoman with all the money she could ever want, caring for Bruce, consulting Wayne Security around the world to catch international thieves or stealing from other supervillains. At the same time, because Selina is self-driven and independent, writers can still easily write solo Batman adventures. As for his happiness, Bruce and Selina can be an amazing couple, but would still butt heads like real couples. With a stepmother, Damian in particular could have plenty of narrative runway for conflict and growth. It would help Bruce immensely as a father to have support in leading the family and dealing with things. Alternatively, framing Batman as a perpetual single, non-committal bachelor with children is getting ridiculous.
Tom King’s Batman/Catwoman (2018)
We Can’t Pronounce You, Batman & Wife
In conclusion, the most attractive thing here is potential for growth and evolution. Characters like Flash and Superman have been around for decades and can comfortably balance their heroic lives with a consistent significant other. Somehow, finding a romantic partner instead of emotionally unavailable hookups seems to only signal the end of Batman. Similarly, Spider-Man has had a relationship with nearly every female in his series, but Marvel won’t allow him to be a husband. If DC allows Batman to be a father, then letting him be a husband should be no problem. It’s time to turn the page and enjoy the complex adventures of Batman & Wife!
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