Absolute Batman Makes the Ultimate Callback to the Dark Knight’s Most Important Story

Absolute Batman is one of the best things to happen to the Dark Knight in the past several decades. This new universe has brought Batman back to square one in a way that’s never been done before. This series has taken away Bruce Wayne’s fortune and world-traveling skills, making him into a working-class hero fighting to start a rebellion against a system ten times more corrupt than the mainline Gotham could ever hope to be. All of his enemies have become the arbiters of Gotham’s broken ruling body, while Batman struggles against their horrors, even when they seem fully beyond his comprehension.

Batman’s newest Elseworld adventure has been rocking the comic book world for two years now, constantly topping sales charts and getting a whole new generation of fans into reading comics. It’s been a slam-dunk success so far, and it’s not showing any signs of hitting the brakes anytime soon. In fact, issue #25 promises to be the culmination of the biggest, baddest arc yet, but what we’re here to talk about isn’t what this run does on its own, but what it does in relation to Batman’s older stories. Issue #24 just gave us a callback to Batman’s most important story, and it altered it in the most Absolute way possible.

The Culmination of an Absolute Character Arc

“The Straw Man” arc so far has covered a ton of ground, but the most important focal point for today is how it has presented Bruce both in the past and present. In the present day, we’ve seen Bruce slowly lose his mind as Scarecrow’s Fear Toxin and lies have shattered his faith in himself and his mission. He went so far as to attack his own mother, demanding answers about what he thought was a major conspiracy involving the Court of Owls. Meanwhile, we saw Bruce pay his debt to Falcone by going to prison, then becoming his enforcer. At first he did it reluctantly, but he eventually fell into just doing what he was told, without question. In both the past and present, Bruce lost himself.

That all came to a head in issue #24. Bruce overcame his doubts in the present, while we saw his decision to become Batman in the past. At his lowest point, he fled back to the zoo where his dad died, only to find that, even though it was long abandoned, the bats still lived there. He remembered his mom’s note and promised her that, alright, he would become a bat. This scene is an obvious callback to the classic “Year One” moment, where a bat burst through Wayne Manor’s window, and Bruce promised his dad that, yes, he would become a bat. “Year One” is Batman’s most important and influential origin, and seeing Absolute Bat’s version was beyond hype, but the changes it made go much deeper, showing us exactly what the Absolute Universe is at its core.

A Celebration and Evolution of Everything We Love

The Absolute Universe is a fresh take on the characters we love, but at their core, these are still very much the same characters. The aesthetics and world around them are different, but the same principles drive them to fight for justice. Batman is still someone who wants to keep anyone else from going through what he did, and the decision to use bats as his symbol is a major stepping stone on his journey. The Absolute version of that scene is reminiscent of the original, but clearly takes its own path. For one, Bruce dedicates this choice to his mom, and the bat’s arrival is much less violent. Importantly, it’s not in his manor at a moment of near death, either, but at a solely emotional low point in the place where his father died.

All of these choices are very intentional. For one, this Bruce’s will is a lot less solidified, meaning that he needs more outside validation and support to bolster him. His mother fills that role, becoming his driving motivation, which is normally filled by the idea of his dead father. The zoo is also just as important to Bruce as Crime Alley, but Bruce making his decision there is specifically important because it reflects where he was emotionally. In “Year One,” he was a man with all the skills but without a direction, and he was willing to die if he didn’t receive inspiration. It was a showing of his dedication. In this issue, Bruce is a broken mess of a man, just like he was when his dad died there. He needed to pull himself out of that mess physically and emotionally. Batman’s entire journey is about stepping outside of that zoo room.

This issue didn’t make these changes arbitarily, instead choosing to use what the original universe established and evolve it to highlight what makes this take on Batman so effective. That philosophy is at the core of the Absolute Universe’s success. Everything is different, but the people leading the charge are still so familiar that everything is a joyride that every fan can enjoy. The Absolute Universe is designed from the ground up to take everything that works about DC and modernize it, stripping away the fat or non-essentials. This new origin for Batman is exactly that. It shows how much the team loves Batman and how this new Batman operates. It’s the ultimate showcase of why the Absolute Universe excels.

Absolute Batman #24 is on sale now!