AbsoluteBatmanreveals his hardcore superhero training, making a major change to the Dark Knight’s lore. This dramatic reinvention of the character comes with overhauls to nearly every aspect of Batman lore, and these changes also include the way Bruce Wayne prepares for his war against crime.
Absolute Batman #1by Scott Snyder, Nick Dragotta, Frank Martin, and Clayton Cowles introduces readers to an all-new version of Bruce Wayne,one who still became Batmanwithout being born into wealth. As a result of not being born wealthy,Bruce Wayne can’t travel the globe and train with experts to prepare for his mission as Batman. However,Absolute Batmanmanages to introduce a new teacher into Batman’s lore, and in doing so gives this new version of the character a deeper connection to Gotham than even his mainstream counterpart.
Bruce’s training is reimagined to take place entirely within Gotham City, and the city itself serves as Batman’s newest teacher.
Absolute Batman’s New Gotham-Based Training, Explained
The City Becomes His Training Ground
This Absolute version of Bruce is already smart, excelling in his schooling days and attending college in-state on an athletic scholarship before faking an injury in order to save his body for being Batman later on in his life. While in college, Bruce studied anything he’d need to knowin order to be Batman, such as applied mechanics and criminal psychology. Finally,Bruce made it a point to work in the city, working on the power grid, sanitation, the water department, and policy in city hall to fully understand Gotham, learning about the cityfromthe city in order to be more effective as Batman.
Staying in Gotham Gives Batman a Deeper Connection to His Home
Absolute Batman Doesn’t Need to Travel to Train
Because all of his training took place in Gotham and even involved elements of the city,this new version of Batman has a deeper connection to Gotham than his mainstream counterpart. Gotham City isn’t just home to this Batman; it’s also the very place that prepared him to be Batman. In addition, the fact that Bruce has never left Gotham makes his rage feel even more justified, as he surely would have seen Gotham gradually get worse, whereas the DCU’s Batman had some distance between himself and Gotham while he was training.
Batman’s New Cape Is the Closest Thing DC Has to a Symbiote
Symbiotes are one of the best things Marvel Comics has, and now it seems that Batman’s new cape is the closest thing to a symbiote DC will ever get.
Even one issue in,Absolute Batmanis reinventing nearly every aspect of the mythos surrounding the character, and his training has proven to be no exception. Bruce’s new training within Gotham itself casts the city as his ultimate teacher, and gives him a more meaningful connection to Gotham. The Absolute Universe has promised itself to be a major reimagining of DC’s most iconic characters, andAbsoluteBatmanproves that the line fully intends to deliver on that promise.
Absolute Batman#1is available now from DC Comics.
Batman
One of DC’s most iconic heroes, Batman is the vigilante superhero persona of billionaire Bruce Wayne. Forged by tragedy with the death of his parents, Bruce dedicated his life to becoming the world’s leading martial artist, detective, and tactician. Recruiting an entire family of allies and sidekicks, Bruce wages war on evil as the dark knight of his hometown, Gotham City.
