The Dark Knight has been referenced several times throughout the Arrowverse. Whether it be through easter eggs or direct references, it’s safe to say he’s lurking the shadows of Gotham off the screen.
With the new Batwoman CW show giving a first glimpse at Batman, one is left to wonder just what the Arrowverse Batman would look like and how the CW would portray him. Would he take the place of Green Arrow as the mentor of the younger heroes? How long would a CW Batman show last? Here are 10 things that we could expect from a CW Batman Show.
A Grizzled Veteran
Batman has never been one to play with others, especially in his later years as the dark knight, post-Jason Todd. If the CW were to create a Batman show with the current line up, without messing with any story arcs, their best bet is starting Batman off with some years under his belt.
This would put him at a little more experience then Oliver Queen, and he can serve as a mentor to Batwoman as she begins her journey in Gotham. This Batman and Bruce would also be able to serve as a big help to the rest of the superhero community with his experience fighting all the types of crazies Gotham attracts.
Bat Family
With the CW doing a good job at creating the superhero world, bringing in several characters from DC lore, including ones that aren’t very popular, could be a good idea. Batman, at the forefront of his show, would have a lot of great characters, including having one of the best rogues galleries in comics and his team.
The show would definitely see characters like Dick Grayson, Barbara Gordon (whos already been hinted at in Arrow), Jason Todd, and many more. Similar to Team Arrow in Arrow, the Batfamily would work together to stop crime around Gotham City and face some of the worst villains, including one big bad that torments the Dark Knight throughout the season.
Best supporting cast
We’ve seen great teams in the Arrowverse including Team Flash and Team Arrow, that all have great talents that help their superhero, but none work quite as well as Batman’s supporting cast. With Alfred, the loyal and knowledgeable butler and Lucius Fox, the genius engineer behind a lot of Batman’s gadgets.
Similar to the Batfamily, they work to help their hero and save their city from the constant turmoil. Add in Commissioner Gordon, who is arguably one of the most important supporting characters in the Batman comics, each season would have interesting twists and turns with Batman working in secret with the police to save Gotham.
Introduction of major characters never before seen
For a guy that doesn’t like working with a team, Batman is part of a lot of teams. He knows his limits as a human and often recruits or joins others that can help him solve his mysteries. This would bring several characters the Arrowverse has never seen, including members of his Justice League Dark (Deadman, Etrigan, Zatanna), and members of his own city like Catwoman and Cyborg.
It would be amazing to see how they would design Catwoman’s costume or how big a role Zatanna can play in the Arrowverse since she is a complex and powerful character. Similar to the rogues, these characters could change the landscape of the Arrowverse as a whole.
Darker/Complex Storylines
For the past eight years, Arrow has brought a lot of dark and tragic storylines for its main character and has had fans in a roller coaster of emotions. With Batman’s whole persona being based on tragedy, we would see much of the same with Batman comics having some of the best but darkest and edgiest stories.
Imagine a season is dedicated to telling the Killing Joke or Death in the Family. Although it would be fun to see, it would also be very tough to watch. The writers would be able to create an entire world just using the Batman lore stories and adapting them to the Arrowverse.
Gadgets & Gear
We’ve seen a lot of high tech gear on The Flash as well as on Arrow. With Batwoman introducing a lot of Batman’s gadgets, we can safely assume it hasn’t even scratched the surface to the limit of his gadgets.
With ever-famous gear like his grappling hook and utility belt along with his signature Batmobile, seeing this brought to life in the CW would be amazing and interesting to see the design. Although the CW has nowhere near a budget as the blockbuster films, their Batmobile design wouldn’t fall short and still introduce something that hasn’t been seen in the Arrowverse yet.
Bat Suits
Similar to the Arrowverse heroes, Batman would definitely be due for a costume change every season. With thousands of different suits to draw inspiration from, including various color schemes and overall designs, as well as complexity, we might see some of the best iterations of the bat suit.
We’ve already seen a version in Batwoman that looks very similar to the ones in comics, so it is safe to say the design team behind the Arrowverse show would do the Dark Knight justice. Combine it with his gear, and the Batman show might give The Flash a run for its money as the most popular show.
Justice League
With Batman completing 1/3 of the trinity in the Arrowverse and one of several confirmed Justice Leaguers, it could push the CW to finally bring a small version of the team in a crossover event. According to some fan theories, the Justice League would most likely be formed Post-Crisis, but with Batman, maybe we see a Justice League earlier, making for more compelling crossovers.
Imagine all the funny moments between the Dark Knight and the Flash, or the awkward tension with him and the Green Arrow. Not to mention the frenemy moments with the Man or Woman of Steel.
A smaller role for Green Arrow
The Green Arrow is arguably and jokingly considered the Batman in the Arrowverse. A former billionaire playboy turned vigilante who doesn’t play well with others and takes justice into his own hands is a very similar role to Batman in the DC universe.
With Batman taking the role of brooding, expert vigilante, we might see a smaller part for Oliver in the Arrowverse. In the comics, its Batman who acts as a mentor for Barry Allen as they both share a similar backstory and love for investigating. So it’s very possible he might take Oliver’s place as Barry’s mentor, which would mean fewer crossovers with the Arrow and more with the Dark Knight.
Rivalry with Oliver Queen
Since Oliver is used to giving orders and taking control of the younger heroes, there would no doubt be a rivalry with Bruce, who is used to doing the same thing. With Oliver being intimidated by the very mention of the Dark Knight, the crossovers could show some very heated exchanges between the two with Supergirl or the Flash playing mediators and reminding them of their goals in the matter.
Although we see them reconcile with the Future Newspaper claiming their companies made a merger, it could be a very long time before we see it. In the meantime, it would be a lot of back and forth and perhaps some fighting between the two vigilantes.
