The Consequences of Batman’s Actions
Batman’s mission is to rescue the innocent. But what happens after the rescue is complete? What happens if the innocent aren’t so innocent.
A crucial element of Batman’s moral code is his unwillingness to use lethal force on anyone. When it comes to villains like the Joker, this appears problematic. Wouldn’t it be better to end the Joker’s life and save the countless lives the joker will continue to sacrifice in his insane crimes?
A good discussion for another time. Especially when we have a more challenging question concerning the actions of the victims Batman saves.
Batman saves countless lives. Well, countless in the sense I don’t want to try and count. There have been many comics book stories where Batman is seen to keep track of all the victims he saves. It suggests a certain sense of responsibility, but also a little resourcefulness.
In Batman: The Detective, Batman has a database of people he has saved which he calls the Alliance of the Bat. While travelling across Europe and pursing an organisation wiping out the victims that Batman has previously saved, Batman calls on the Alliance of the Bat to help him out.
He is able to use his connections to gain access to resources (like a very impressive mobile Batcave), he is able to move across borders unimpeded, he is able to gain necessary intelligence on the action of his opponents. All in all, it seems like a worthwhile activity.
However, the more challenging question is about the actions of the people he saved. When he saves a man from an explosion, Batman could not know that the man would go on to be a drunk driver and cause an accident in which a family is wiped out.
It is clearly not Batman’s fault the man went on to cause the accident. At least it’s clear if you’re not involved in the accident. When the mother and wife of the family wiped out by the accident discovers that the man who killed her family was saved by Batman, she decides that she needs to take action.
She views Batman as an agent of chaos and decides that the people that Batman saved should not exist. And she’s not alone. In addition to saving many lives, Batman has put many criminals away. Including a British criminal whose father was put in prison and died. It is very easy to see that these people would view Batman as an antagonist who stood in the way of their happiness.
In Batman: The Detective, a criminal named Equilibrium rises with a criminal organisation of anti-Batmen to correct the balance. Viewing Batman as an agent of chaos means the people he has saved should not exist. In order to correct the balance, these people need to be wiped out.
Our usual expectation would be that criminals are motivated by personal interest and personal gain. Creating a group of highly proficient individuals who are united in a cause that they consider essential, but provides them with no immediate advantage, is creating a group of zealots with a cause.
The effectiveness of these group and their willingness to do whatever is necessary is evident from the first few pages of Batman: The Detective when the group of anti-Batmen load a plane with people saved by Batman and aim to wipe them out all in one go.
It’s shocking stuff, especially when the Batman of England, Knight is involved. Unfortunately for Knight (otherwise known as Berly Hutchingson), the organisation is willing to do whatever is necessary to achieve their goals.
Batman is so effected by the actions of Equilibrium and the anti-Batmen that he travels of England and teams up with Knight’s Squire, Amina Eluko, in a cross-Europe adventure that will have Batman addressing his personal loss, connection with other people and his own past.
For more on this Batman conflict with Gentleman Ghost, check out Batman the Detective by Tom Taylor and Andy Kubert (this is a paid affiliate link and as an Amazon Associate I will earn a small income from qualifying purchases, but won’t cost you any more).