Batman has had many epic team-ups in his years on the page and screen – but the new story of Batman #135 (aka the milestone Legacy issue Batman #900) may have set a whole new bar for what an “epic” Batman team-up really looks like!
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(WARNING: SPOILERS FOLLOW)
In the conclusion to Chip Zdarsky’s “The Bat-Man of Gotham” storyline, Bruce Wayne/Batman is fighting for the soul of Gotham City in a whole different reality. After a villain left him stranded there, Bruce found this multiversal variant of Gotham to be one where his presence of Batman was never felt, sending all the people in his life and superhero career touched down very different paths. At the heart of all the darkness in this new Gotham was Darwin Halliday – aka “The Red Mask” – a version of The Joker who never had the proverbial ‘One Bad Day’ that drove him insane. Instead of viewing sanity as an asset, however, Halliday viewed it as a weakness to be exorcised and built a machine that could transfer his mind into his own Joker variants, to relive the moment when their minds broke, and therefore achieve insanity himself.
In a massive twist, Halliday’s trip back to Red Hood’s moment of mind-breaking transformation during The Killing Joke is revealed to be the true origin of “The Joker,” as Darwin’s mental influence pushes the man under the Red Hood over the brink. Realizing he is the creator of Jokers, Halliday sets out into the multiverse to create as many Jokers as is needed to finally shatter his mind.
The Ultimate Batman Team-Up
When Halliday escapes into the multiverse, a maimed and injured Batman plans to use the portal to first go home and regroup, before pursuing the villain. Instead, the Selina Kyle of Halliday’s world betrays Bruce and tosses him into the portal without a control belt, forcing him to follow the tracker on Halliday wherever it takes him. Bruce ends up tumbling through the DC Multiverse to different realities where Halliday is creating and/or influencing Jokers.
Batman is left completely disoriented and out of his depth, which is why he needs all the help he can get from every Batman he meets in a new reality. Zdarsky brings back fan-favorite versions of Batman from the movies, TV series, video games, and popular comics storylines – each of whom makes a standout appearance. Some Bruce only meets for a split second (Michael Keaton’s Batman ’89); others give him inspiring (or grim) advice (Arkham City Batman), while others give him key tools to help him heal and or fight (Elderly Bruce from Batman Beyond).
In the end, Adam West’s Batman (1966) comes through in the biggest way, with some shark repellent spray that saves Bruce in a fierce battle with some Joker sharks, at the end of the multiverse.
Versions of Batman That Make a Cameo in Batman #900
Here are the versions of Batman (or Gotham) that make an appearance in the story of Batman #135/900. (NOTE: the list doesn’t include the versions of The Dark Knight that appear on the epic wraparound cover to the comic.)
- Batman ’89
- Bat-Man’s Earth 43 (from Batman & Dracula: Red Rain)
- Super-Friends Batman
- Batman: The Animated Series
- Batman: Arkham City Video Games
- Batman Beyond
- Golden Age Batman
- Batman: Gotham by Gaslight
- Kingdom Come Bruce Wayne
- Batman ’66
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
Batman #135 (#900) is now on sale at DC.
