The world of the Arrowverse is set to expand even further, with a standalone Batwoman series currently in development at The CW.
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The pilot episode of the series, which will focus on the fan-favorite lesbian superhero Kate Kane, is rumored to begin production early next year, after Kate debuts in this winter’s Arrowverse crossover. While details are still relatively slim about Batwoman‘s debut, the notion of her character arriving in the Arrowverse – and bringing a wholly unique take on Gotham City along with her – has been delighting fans quite a lot.
So, which established DC Comics characters could factor into Kate’s journey? We have a few in mind…
Colonel Kane
It’s no secret that the Arrowverse’s shows have family at their core, with the parents and siblings of main characters usually playing some sort of large role. With that in mind, it’s pretty easy to see Colonel Jacob Kane being one of Kate’s closest allies.
Colonel Kane – and his various military exploits – has played a major role in his daughter’s life, especially once she takes on the mantle of Batwoman. To an extent, Colonel Kane becomes Kate’s “guy in the chair”, helping remotely lead her on all of her different missions.
Having Colonel Kane fill his comics-accurate role as Kate’s command center, while simultaneously playing against the Arrowverse’s existing tropes about that job, would be a pretty interesting set up. Plus, it’d be delightful to see Colonel Kane give characters like Cisco Ramon and Felicity Smoak a bit of a run for their money.
Red Alice
Another way that Batwoman could take the Arrowverse’s family tropes into a new direction would be the arrival of Kate’s twin sister, Elizabeth “Red Alice” Kane.
Early on in Kate’s life, Elizabeth and her mother are presumed dead after a terrorist kidnapping gone wrong. Years later, as Kate is working as Batwoman, she crosses paths with Elizabeth, who has since become one of the criminal leaders within Gotham City. Elizabeth, now mentally broken after the trauma of her youth, molds herself after Alice from Alice in Wonderland, and ends up being a pretty formidable foe for Kate.
Not only would Elizabeth be one of the most stylistically-interesting Arrowverse Big Bads yet, but the longform storytelling of television would allow her and Kate’s conflict to be taken into some interesting places.
Flamebird
Bette Kane, a.k.a. Flamebird, rounds out the Kane family members that we’d love to see on a Batwoman TV show.
In the comics, Bette is an overachieving tennis star, who adopts the mantle of Flamebird as a way to meet Dick Grayson/Robin. While Bette’s attempts at connecting with the sidekick are unrequited, she eventually realizes that she has a knack and a love for superheroics. Bette eventually joins the West Coast Titans, helping them quite a bit before returning to her normal life.
Having Bette be involved with Batwoman would provide a nice connection to the BatFam and the Teen Titans, without having to introduce more prominent DC Comics characters. At the moment, though, it’s unclear if and when Flamebird could make her way to Batwoman, as a character with that same mantle is expected to appear on the second season of Krypton.
Whisper A’daire
There certainly is no shortage of Gotham-set characters that Batwoman could draw inspiration from, but we think Whisper A’daire is one of the most interesting possibilities.
Whisper was once an agent of Ra’s al Ghul, who gave her immortality and the ability to shapeshift. She uses these powers to create a small legion of shapeshifting men, and to ultimately become a major ally of Intergang.
Whisper has a skillset and M.O. that would fit the longform storytelling of a typical The CW season, while also giving the show a unique and intimidating female villain.
Bruno Mannheim
Of course, you can’t have Intergang factor into the world of Batwoman without Bruno Mannheim playing some sort of role.
In the comics, Bruno is one of the most well-known leaders of Intergang, helping give the group access to various forms of alien technology. Besides that, Bruno is just a pretty darn ruthless crime boss, who crosses paths with Batwoman in a weird (but particularly spoilery) way.
Intergang has had a weird sort of tenure in the Arrowverse thus far, getting a fleeting mention on last season of Arrow, while still not appearing within Supergirl‘s Earth-38. Regardless of where Batwoman ends up being set, this certainly leaves a lot of potential for Bruno and his group to make their grand entrance.
Mad Hatter
As we’ve already mentioned, it’s pretty safe to assume that Alice will factor into Batwoman at some point. And come on, Alice has to have a Mad Hatter.
Jervis Tetch is a scientist with various mind-controlling abilities, whose aesthetic and persona draws inspiration from Alice in Wonderland‘s “Mad Hatter”.
As fans have seen within Gotham, Mad Hatter’s M.O. can get pretty creepy at times, while also working within the storytelling confines of television. But since a version of the character has yet to debut in the Arrowverse, we can’t help but wonder how he would factor into Batwoman.
Lucius Fox
One of the biggest burning questions surrounding Batwoman’s Arrowverse arrival has been how the show will reference the rest of the BatFam, and what other existing characters will be in Kate’s orbit. Granted, it’s way too early to tell the answer to that question, but Lucius Fox seems like an interesting possibility.
Lucius is easily one of Bruce Wayne’s most trusted allies, playing a major financial role with the dealings of Wayne Enterprises. Lucius grows to play a unique role in Bruce’s sort of double life, something that (to an extent) extends to the rest of the BatFam.
Even if Bruce Wayne doesn’t physically make an appearance to Batwoman, Lucius Fox would be an easy way for the series to bridge those two worlds, and possibly create an entirely new iteration of the character than what’s been seen in the Dark Knight trilogy.
Maggie Sawyer
To an extent, the notion of a Batwoman series is arriving at a pretty interesting time, with regards to Kate’s potential love interests on the series. Renee Montoya is expected to play a role in the upcoming Birds of Prey film, and Floriana Lima has already brought Maggie Sawyer to life in a pretty lengthy (and essentially finished) arc on Supergirl.
But honestly, we still think having Maggie as a love interest for Kate would work in some very particular ways. If Batwoman does end up being set on Earth-1, the show could easily cast a different actress in the part, and just brush it off as being a result of the multiverse.
Having Maggie factor into Batwoman would not only honor one of Kate’s most beloved romantic relationships, but it could tell some of the stories that Supergirl didn’t get a chance to bring to screen.
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What DC Comics characters would you like to see in a Batwoman TV series? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
