He may very well be the best hero in the DC Universe, butBatmancould easily be its ultimate villain. For the last near-century, Bruce Wayne has kept Gotham and the greater DCU safe from all manner of threats, from the vileantics of the Jokerto the insidious plots of the New God, Darkseid.
Despite the valiant behavior, however,Batman has had numerous momentsthat make him seem less heroic than one would hope. Sure, he’s fought alongside and even led the Justice League in some of its greatest battles. ButBatman has also been the brains behind some things that have seriously threatened the heroes of the world, such ashis robotic contingency Failsafe, or the spy satellite Brother Eye. Bruce may be a warrior for good, but his determination has taken him to some dark places over the years. Read on to see 10 moments that prove he could be DC’s ultimate foe.
10Created Zur-En-Arrh
Happened in:Batman #678
During Bruce Wayne’s travels, he met a teacher named Daniel Captio, who taught Bruce how to build alternate personas in his mind. Using these teachings, Batman created the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh,a Batman that lacked Bruce’s morality and willingness to hold back. While designed as a backup in case of intense psychological stress, Zur-En-Arrh eventually broke out of Batman’s head and assumed a body, only to take Gotham by storm in a matter of days. It’s scary to think how something with all of Bruce’s assets could be a serious threat to Gotham if they really wanted.
9Found a Way to Kill Darkseid
Happened in:Final Crisis #6
Granted, this sounds like a good thing since, inFinal Crisis, Darkseid had seized control of Earth and all its people.Batman managed to use a bullet infected with Radion, a substance toxic to New Gods, and gravely injure the Darkseid-possessed body of Dan Turpin. Few would shed tears over the loss of Darkseid, but one must consider how absurdly powerful Darkseid is. Even though it wasn’t Darkseid at his peak form, he was still incredibly mighty. If Batman could fell Darkseid, there’s really no being in the DC Universe the World’s Greatest Detective can’t take down.
8Carries Around Kryptonite at All Times
Happened in:Batman #612
Speaking of taking down incredibly powerful people, Batman almost always has kryptonite on his person with the intent of using it on Superman should the need arise. To be fair, in many continuities, Superman is the one that gives Bruce a silver to use against Clark if he ever goes out of control. But rarely, if ever, is Superman actually too far gone to come back. But that doesn’t stop Batman from holding onto the kryptonite in a lead-lined pouch,ready to deploy it if Superman seems slightly different from normal.
7Created Failsafe
Happened in:Batman #125
Bruce can’t seem to help himself when it comes to making contingencies that backfire. To keep himself in check, Batman (or rather, the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh) created Failsafe, an android designed to put Bruce down if he ever took a life. While Failsafe was made with Batman in mind, he also came loaded with anti-metahuman weapons, including kryptonite spears to harm Superman. Worse, Failsafe took total control of Gotham to search for Batman (not to mention taking Barbara Gordon hostage). It’s pretty unsettling to see how many things Batman creates cause both city and worldwide panic.
6Is Willing to Let His Enemies Die
Happened in:Batman #420
Batman might be criticized for not killing the Joker, but the truth is, Bruce has gone over the line and done things to lead to his enemies’ deaths. When Bruce went toe-to-toe with KGBeast, his confrontation with his rival ended with Batman sealing the assassin in an underground cavern with no food or water. While KGBeast lives today, it was pretty shocking to see Batman actually walking away from an enemy knowing they’d likely die. It’s even worse when one recalls howBatman has said he’d never stop if he crosses that line and actually takes a life intentionally.
5Nearly Became a Sinestro Corps Member
Happened in:Green Lantern #17
Batman is terrifying and everyone in the DC Universe knows it. In fact, the fear he instills is so well-regarded, he managed to be invited into the Sinestro Corps during its debut. The invitation was actually more like coercion, and he was almost abducted into the Corps. Thankfully,Batman managed to rid himself of the Sinestro Power Ring. Still, the fact that he was sought out by a Corps primarily geared towards villains says a lot about the Dark Knight’s character (especially when the next person on the list wound up being Batman’s demented nemesis, Scarecrow).
4His Worst Doppelganger Destroyed His Earth
Happened in:Dark Knights: The Batman Who Laughs
Many fans recall that the DC Universe was invaded by an army of evil Batmen from the Dark Multiverse, a broken dimension full of unstable worlds. The worst of the bunch was the Batman Who Laughs, a Bruce Wayne who gave in and killed the Joker, only to be turned by Joker Venom into a twisted amalgamation of the two. The Batman Who Laughs was completely unhinged and, in a matter of days, completely managed to destroy his world. Granted, Bruce isn’t his doppelganger,but the Batman Who Laughs showed what kind of damage Bruce could really do.
3Dissected a Hero and Justified It
Happened in:Batman and Robin #19
Every hero acts a little off when they lose someone, but what Batman did was beyond the pale. When his son Damian died, Bruce went off the deep end while looking for a way to bring Robin back to life. During that journey, he actually kidnapped and dissected Frankenstein, believing he held the secrets to resurrection within him. While Batman promised he’d put him back together (a promise he admittedly fulfilled), Bruce couldn’t see how crazy he was acting.Batman’s a determined person, but that determination is an extremely dangerous thing, especially when Bruce isn’t in a good mental state.
2Created Brother Eye
Happened in:OMAC Project
Batman was justifiably paranoid afterIdentity Crisis, when he discovered his friends and allies had mind-wiped him and never told him. But his response to such a betrayal was to build a giant satellite to keep an eye on them. That overreaction would have been bad enough, but it was worse thanks to anti-metahuman villain Maxwell Lord seizing control of Brother Eye and using it as part of an elaborate plot to destroy the superhuman community. For whatever reason,Batman just can’t help himself from creating things that wind up doing heroes way more harm than good.
1Created Anti-JLA Contingencies
Happened in:JLA: Tower of Babel
Nothing showed Batman’s dark side worse than what he did in the “Tower of Babel” arc. Ra’s al Ghul stole sensitive files Bruce had on the Justice League and used them to take all of Batman’s team down one-by-one. Granted, it was Ra’s that actually attacked the League, but Bruce made it possible and because of the contingencies he created, the League was nearly destroyed.While Batman never intended to use these contingencies, creating them and keeping them from his allies was a betrayal to the Justice Leagueand an underhanded act worthy of a supervillain.
