Batmans Legacy Is Compassion 

the return? great video by the way

to quote OSPs Red "if you cant imagine your batman comforting a dying child your not writing batman"

I gotta say I completely agree with your take on Batman. Someone who tries to rise above tragedy and ensure better lives for the people around him

My favorite part of this moment with Ace is how it reconstructs Batman's code. With all his other villains, there's a constant moral conflict to how Batman's refusal to kill them indirectly leads to far more death. But by refusing to kill Ace, he helps her find peace in her last moments and saves millions. It goes to show there is a point to sticking by his code, if anyone else had gone through with Waller's plan the situation would've been far worse.

Batman does care which is why a lot of the newer ones not caring that much hurts. The animated series showed him using his money to help people, to build halfway homes to help former criminals change their life around, to have the man in a bat costume sit on a swing with a dying girl. A dying girl that could end the world, kill everyone, and ending her quickly would make no difference in the end than letting her die naturally... And yet he sat on the swing with her and stayed with her to the end because it mattered. Maybe not to the world, not to those around them, or even the end result... But it mattered to her and thus it mattered to him. Compassion was his greatest strength you saw from time to time... It is a shame it seems to be viewed as a weakness or something to be mocked.

Greatest batman is when he is portrayed as a Hero instead of anti-hero. Someone who got hurt, and decided: Never again, not for me, not for anyone else.

heroism isn't about beating the bad guy, it's about helping people. this batman understands that to one of the greatest degrees.

The Batman 2022 at the end where he realizes he needs to be a symbol not of Vengeance but of Hope, and the person is so afraid of being lifted by the helicopter they hold onto Batman until he makes them feel safe. 😭

... This Batman always stops by to see Harvey in the Asylum. Because Harvey is his friend. And I love that.

I agree, This is Batman He embodies vengeance upon everyone who has been wronged But the man behind vengeance, is a sad individual who wants to ensure no one could ever go through the same pain that haunts his soul But together, Batman inspires pain into positive change He will fight the irredeemable and try to help.

That’s why (in my opinion) the best Batman heir is Dick Grayson. Not only is he a happier Batman but he’s also a character not defined by the tragedies of his life but defined by compassion he has for others and the compassion shown to him at a young age.

A child forced to face the darkness of the world too early, this is both ace and Bruce's lives somed up.

my batman will always be a batman that cares, a batman even as his alter ego of bruce wayne is doing everything he can to make sure no one goes through what he did

I always liked the line where someone is yelling at Batman that he took Dick Grayson under his wing, and helped him take down his parents killer so he could be just like him. And Batman responded, “No, I did it so he wouldn’t.”

Overly Sarcastic Productions put it best: If you can't write a Batman that can comfort a scared child on the worst day of their life, then he's not Batman. He The Punisher wearing a silly hat.

I said it once and I’ll say it several times again but that scene with Batman and Ace is the definition Batman scene.

"I've been hurt, so I will help those around me" The ultimate rule a Batman should have.

Yeah, since the Burton era, media had kinda boxed him in as dark and brooding character, strictly a symbol of fear, an isolated individual, an indifferent, calculating monster. When in reality, he has more in common with the optimistic, compassionate Superman than he does the cynical, self-serving Luthor. It's easy to forget that, in his own way, he loves Gotham. Most people have given up on the city, but Batman hasn't.

subbed. You get it, who the best Batman is and why. How Batman is supposed to be. He’s not an edgy, hateful playboy, he’s a deeply hurting kid who lost his parents and just wants to help other people who hurt like he does, or prevent them from ever having that hurt. He’s the representation of the phrase, “ I wouldn’t wish this pain on my worst enemy” and it shows because he has compassion for even the most vile criminals.

People often dismiss the episode because of Terry being related to Bruce but they fail to see that even without that connection, he still put on the cowl and he decided his destiny on his own. The conflict is how he feels about being Bruce’s seed and what that entails for him before ultimately coming to the conclusion that there’s always a need for a Batman but the wearer does always have to bow down to the mask like Bruce had done.

when people say "why doesnt he kill his villains" misses the point of him. He tries to help his villains to become better. And that is what his character is about.

You know, everyone talks about Epilogue, and they talk about Batman, and Ace, and Terry, but what I don't hear people talk about is this was the best Amanda Waller we probably ever got or ever will get. Cadmas was originally supposed to be the clear bad guys, but the writers realized while they were doing bad things their intentions of having weapons against literal gods was not a bad thing. Nowadays, Waller is just the most toxic person in modern depictions. This old age Waller who would actually comfort Terry for what she did but still stand by it? We'll probably never see it again.

Like Bruce told Harley once after her bad parole day, giving her the blouse she actually bought legally. "I had a bad day too once..." Harley answered: "Good guys like you shouldn't have bad days." He understood, and Harley in her addled state of mind showed genuine compassion for his efforts. Ace was having the ultimate bad day, and Bruce was there doing what her could. That's who Batman is for me, he is the masculine idol. He is violence in the name of order and protection, but he's is also the wall that takes the brunt at his own cost so you don't have to.

There's a reason why Batman volunteered to get to Ace when Waller wanted to use a weapon on Ace, but Batman never intended to use that weapon on Ace. He knows that Ace suffered enough already. He sat down with her until her time came, and yet, the world was saved in the end. All because of Batman's compassion to Ace. The best part about the Ace scene is that it led to Waller creating Bruce's future successor: Terry McGinnis (Is that how you spell his name?). One of the biggest W's in Batman's history.

More examples: his approach to Victor Fries, Mary Dahl, Pamela Isley´s plant clone, Robert Kirkland... And even in BotF, he showed enough compassion when the situation deserved it. And Terry learned from his parents and from him, he offered redemption to many of his foes.

Even a 9 minute video like this can be draining to edit, it was very worth it! Good job, very much enjoyed it

Kevin Conroy was an amazing guy he was an outspoken ally for the LGBT+ community, a sponsor of programs for at risk children, and volunteered as a cook for rescue workers during the aftermath of 9/11

Lore of Batmans Legacy Is Compassion momentum 100

The episode was The Return. But yes we all like a badas Batman but we need the Batman that offers his hand. Why beyond hating the actor for a few reason, I refuse to count Hackflex as a man to don the cowl. The version Zack Snyder used is a childish bully. Kevin knew the weight Batman carried and how his goal was no child suffering in fear and lose. The way Bruce talks to young Richard when we see Robin's origin story is great for that. And how Alfred reminds Batman that maybe what young Dick needs isn't Batman but the kindness of Bruce. Young Justice got it a bit too with Batman wanting to avoid Dick being like him. And even Lego Batman a story I like but don't feel it's a great Batman learns kindness.

Batman is a driven, hard man but even for all his stoicism & willingness to do what must be done he's still a hurt 8 year old who wants to see the best. His mission is to help people so even if it's comforting a child he will take it on himself. As much as Bruce will think he's just a shell for Batman, he will never let go of the desire that Bruce Wayne has to make the world safer

I miss waller being the wall, unstoppable, determined, but she does whats right. She genuinely wants a safer future for everyone. Not some hero hating monster who throws lives away by the thousand.

"I've never known anyone who cared more about his fellow man than Bruce Wayne." - Amanda Waller, Justice League Unlimited

My favourite quote I’ve heard about Batman is “if you can’t imagine your Batman comforting a dying child; you’ve not written Batman, you’ve just written a bad Punisher”

5:00 that's always a gut punch to me😭

Growing up with TAS, as a Batman fan, and now a dad with children the episodes always make me cry.

one of my favorite quotes is "if you can't imagine batman being kind your just imagining the punisher in a silly mask"

I grew up obsessed with Batman and I have questioned why he doesn’t kill the villains. I realized that what makes Batman’s villains so great is that they aren’t completely bad, they all have so much depth to them and I now get why Batman tries to rehabilitates them.

Been through my fair share of pain and batman has helped me deal with alot of things in my life Rest in peace Kevin Conroy you are still missed. Great video by the way.

I have a fuzzy memory of this episode, and it hits different now. Even after everything he's been through, he still continues to extend out to those who need his understanding. Pain comes in different forms, but in the end. It's all pain.

I always admired how the animated Batman was too. Whenever I felt cheated or angry at the world I would think maybe I should just give up and be the bad guy since it's so much easier. But then this character who not only had every excuse to be a villain decided to be a hero instead. Still giving his everything even for the ones that give him grief and trouble. It kind of gave me the strength to not fall into the darkness til I eventually became a cartoonist :D

I just realized. Batman is always presented as being able to protect his mind from being read, especially after meeting Martian Man Hunter. When Batman approached Ace he could have easily protected his mind from being read, but instead he chose to be open about his intentions.

⚠️ EPILEPSY WARNING ⚠️ THIS VIDEO CONTAINS FLASHING LIGHTS ⚠️

Batman’s greatest virtue is his value for human life.

I remember another clip where two henchmen are searching a building, and one opens a door to find batman. The two look at each other before the henchmen just closes the door and walks away. "Did you see anything?" "Nope." Somehow, I can't imagine fun moments like that happening in the dark and gritty modern versions.

I wish the live action media understood this. I really hope James Gunn can give us this version. He seems to be on the right track with Superman, so fingers crossed. Yeah, he can be dark and gritty, but if you don't balance that with the empathy and compassion, he becomes boring. One of many reasons why I dislike the DCEU, and the Snyderverse specifically. He did both Batman and Superman so badly. And Wonder Woman. 6:43 That's Amazo in the background. I had to look up the episode name, Tabula Rasa.

Epilogue is my favorite JLU episode; bar none. I know exactly how the scene with Ace goes and still cry every single time I watch it

This is one point about Batman that many writers and artists forget when trying to push forward Batman's mega-bucks kick-assery. He would NOT BE Batman, if he didn't CARE. Ultimately he's out there NOT for revenge, but because he NEVER wants another child to experience HIS pain.

The word you are looking for is heroic Batman is a hero.

If you can't imagine Batman sitting down to comfort a child Then it's because you're imagining The Punisher with a cape and cowl.

Anyone who is going to make a Batman movie or show needs to watch this episode several times. We will never have another Kevin Conroy. But we should definitely honor his version as the true Batman.

Rewatched On Leather Wings the other night. It was refreshing how Bruce didn't send Kirk to prison or Arkham. Instead he just returned him to his wife at the end after giving Kirk an antidote he managed to make.

One of my favorite moments in the comic is Batman catches a kid about to shoot the man who killed his brother. Rather than attack, Batman tells the boy he lost his family to guns and that while they can't bring them or his brother back, they can stop the cycle of violence. The boy puts down the gun as Batman embraces him

To paraphrase something I once read, the true hero tries to save also the villain.

This episode of the future is now the past. I'd love to see writing like this again. A scene like that.

i think it was said best, "if you cannot envision batman sitting down and comforting a child, you arent writing batman" dont remember who said it. but its a powerful sentence

The TAS version of Batman was the premier time when Batman was a Hero. Since then, some have scratched at the surface, but none have even understood what the term "Hero" means.

Yo bro you are growing fast! Count me as one of the first subscribers when you get famous lol

It breaks my heart that this version of Batman doesn't exist anymore

I've been looking for your video! I agree! Batman should be able to comfort a crying child if he doesn't you've written the punisher

In the Batman: The Animated Series episode The Trial, the inmates of Arkham, Batman's Rogues Gallery put Batman on trial for creating them and being the true villain. Said villains force a prosecutor who HATES Batman to defend him. At the end of the episode, when said prosecutor tells Batman that she's still going to work for a world that doesn't need a Batman, his reply is "So will I.". Batman has ALWAYS cared, and it's not simply about vengeance, but also about protecting people as much as possible.

We all need a batman like that

Batman is the personification of the superman. The ideal man we all wish we were, but feel we can never be.

Batman TAS made me cry all the time.

Many readers get it wrong and think Batman is a symbol of vengeance, which is wild to me. Batman is a symbol of hope. Not just any hope, but a beautiful, irrational hope. To the people in the DC universe who do not know Batman is Bruce Wayne, Batman is a symbol of vengeance, and Batman clearly cultivates this perception. But the reader (and certain comic book characters) know that Batman is also Bruce Wayne, and thus can piece together that the vengeance thing is an act and that he's really about hope. Or as you put it, compassion. See, Bruce Wayne is a successful businessman. A critical skill for any businessman is knowing when a particular project or even department is a lost cause and shutting it down as quickly as possible to avoid losing too much money. Failure to do this will result in a swift trip to bankruptcy court. You have to know when something is just not going to work out, and stopping the bleeding as soon as possible by getting rid of it. So we know that Bruce Wayne must have this skill. He would not have so much money if he did not have this skill. And yet, Bruce Wayne spends millions of dollars trying to redeem the most irredeemable villains in the DC universe. He has to know that trying to reform those particular villains is extremely unlikely to be successful, and yet he spends substantial amounts of money year upon year upon year trying to do exactly that. The people in the DC universe only know about Batman obsessively attacking those villains and dragging them back to prison or Arkham Asylum over and over and over, so for them, Batman is a symbol of vengeance. But the reader sees Bruce Wayne spend all that money trying to redeem people that he should know are irredeemable. He is an atheist who is obsessed with the idea that everyone can be redeemed. Like I said, he's not just a symbol of hope, but it is a beautiful, irrational kind of hope that will never bend to reason. That gives a lot of context to his rule against killing. He cannot bring himself to kill anyone, because it is always possible that the person he killed could have been redeemed and/or cured of their mental illness.

I remember watching that episode and it stuck with me as an adult. I have always admired heroes who have deep empathy to pain and anguish. And when I became a doctor, a pediatrician to be exact, I had a patient who knew he was dying and all I could offer was a lending ear. We watched this same episode and after all of that, when he died a few days later, I couldn't help but cry. I was a mess in the office. It was a good thing no one saw me that day.

Batman!! He literally is the hero we deserve

Excellent essay. Could not agree more.

what makes Batman so incredible is his compassion and kindness towards others who were wrapped up in unfortunate circumstances like Ace was. Baby Doll was another victim like Ace because she stopped growing at a certain point and was unable to get more roles in movies and on TV. Batman showed that while he has no problem knocking a hardened criminal out, he shows love towards those who wanted a normal life. the difference between Joker and Ace is Joker kills for the fun of it while Ace just wants to be a kid. this is what makes Batman a hero

I agree, with the statement, that every version, of heroic Batman, should genuinely care. It’s his compassion, and capability to forgive, and to add his moral-code, is what makes him a great masked hero.

DCAU Batman solos every live action version his humanity is what made him so iconic.

I have hope that the batman movie with the theme of vengeance,and riddler as the villain will build up to being like this batman.

We may never get another batman like this.

Great video man!

People really need to learn that Frank Miller’s Batman isn’t a good Batman, especially in ASBAR, that Batman is a sociopath. That’s not really Batman

I think I love this take of vengeance because it’s really more so a promise of vengeance to the evils of the world to Dave these crooked people in the time where they have no one

Super heroes are suppose to be symbols of hope, of justice. life is dark and its fine and great to put them in dark stories but a truely great superhero story is ultimately one of hope, no matter how dark, no matter how hopeless, the heroe will always hold out hope and inspire it in others. To me, this is always what my favorite super heroes have ment, and batman as my favorite super hero is the peak of that, a normal man useing everything in him, good and bad to ultimately do good even in a world of literal gods like super man and wonder woman, he stands shoulder to shoulder with them as beaken of hope and justice.

This is the ultimate version of Batman. While other versions of Batman may be good, the one portrayed by Kevin Conroy in the DCAU is as close to perfection as it gets (at least to me).

The comics only occasionally remember to make Bruce philanthropic or caring, but when it does happen ("Be good, Ellie") it never fails to remind me of the animated series. One thing Waller got right was that Batman's greatest strength was his heart.

One of my favorite moments from the animated series was when Two-Face learns that Bruce was paying for a procedure to be done to help him. He doesn't know that Bruce is Batman, of course, but it reveals some of the more subtle ways that Bruce tries to help his rogue's gallery.

It's almost as if superheroes are supposed to be HEROES. Not just crime-fighters.

It's this. It's the idea that Batman cares. He's not Hulu he's not above anyone he is just as much in the shit as any other regular person is. The idea that he is compassionate enough in his future in what we see as now to know that he is failure of the ideology he posited. All he does is continue to protect and continue and basically just perpetuate this cycle of evil coming back from an infinitely powerful source of other evil who uses his evil and the evil spawned there within as resources. He knows that someone like Nightwing is the best version of himself, someone who is truly compassionate that doesn't respond to love with anger or derivement but instead a genuine acceptance of it a compassion that someone like Nightwing only gets from seeing more than just Bruce, from learning from The Flashes being a good person from Clark. A good Batman is a Batman who cares enough to know he's wrong is compassionate enough to know he's gone too far. Even though it took a lot and it was deeply sad to see in the way in which it affected his character Beyond is a very accurate representation of it. He's someone who knows he failed but in this timeline more than any other because there is no Nightwing there is no one that is the ideal. What we have now in the modern day is a bad man who has it the best he could possibly be because he knows there's someone better. He knows that he's okay with it he is proud of it. That's real compassion. Not just being nice for the sake of making people think you're nice but being nice so that you can make sure that people who are watching you and learning from you learn to be nice because it's the right thing to do. For no return and for no prize. Because it's the nice thing it's the good thing. It's the compassionate thing.

The best representation of batman hope is nightwing Nightwing mantle is what batman wanted his mantle to be but gotham wasn't that kind of city fear was required justice is a must

honestly i much prefer his compassion being the reason he never kills over his paranoia. the man knows the absolute value of a life and couldn't bare to inflict the pain onto others, cause even if the villains themselves deserve it, the families don't. obviously the jokers existance is a complete rebuttal to the ideology but that's what makes him such an interesting villain, he is the obvious rebuttal to batmans ideology and that's the point. plus you know character flaws make characters interesting, there's a reason mary sues are despised, perfect decision making simply doesn't create any drama.

This is why the BTAS Batman will always be my Batman.

Batman TAS is amazing. There's only one problem with the good guy Batman theory. A man who is sane, well adjusted, and full of compassion isn't going to put on a Batsuit and go out at night to throttle punks. He isn't going to ignore people's civil rights and the rule of law.

I'm someone who does not like the fact that Terry is the descendant of Batman. The main reason for that is because the series shows that anyone can wear the cowl, and with the proper guidance and tutelage, they can take the mantle of the dark knight. But making Terry into a descendant kinda takes away those achievements, since he's basically a clone its to be expected of him to excel at being a fighter. Though I will give the show credit for how it handled the retcon so I won't be too critical. But that is something I do believe.

Reached the end and you're absolutely 100% right about Batman. He's better when writers embrace the empathetic side of his character along with the vengeful side and that's something that the Ben Affleck/Snyder films lacked in spades. Batman isn't and shouldn't just be this violent angry edgelord with no mention of the good he tries to do, he should try to show empathy to the villains who deserve it and be a symbol of hope AND justice. It's so wild to me that DC hasn't been able to capture that in their films when they have the perfect blueprint in the 90's DCAU. Those cartoons have some of the peak portrayals of these characters and there are so many lessons to take from them. A Batman who cares, one who takes the time to recognize that not every villain is irredeemable and some just had one bad day. A superman who grew up with the love of two adoptive parents, neither taken by cheap emotional tactics like a tornado and whose simple lessons formed the hero he is. A wonder woman who finds that her island's teachings doesn't have to color her interactions with the rest of humanity and that there is good and allies to be found out there. A green lantern who, despite having his own set of problems, can use his experiences to keep his planet, and others out in the galaxy, safe in his own way. A flash who is, much like Batman and Superman, just as empathetic behind his goofy persona and is willing to sit and talk with a villain, to promise to visit him. A martian manhunter who goes through hell but comes out of it with a new family, an entire planet that sees him in the same heroic light as the rest of the league. Like, there are so many good episodes in the DCAU that could form a template for a better Batman. Baby Doll, the Epilogue episode mentioned in this video, Harley's Holiday and the Two-Face episodes where he shows an endless desire to save his friend. Flash and Substance is also an amazing episode since it shows the Flash being just as empathetic towards his villains and how his care free persona hides this depth to his character. Batman Beyond too, since there's so much depth added to Bruce Wayne's character in that series. I guess overall the main point is that the 90's DCAU is very good and still holds up to this day and I encourage everyone to go check it out if you haven't already. I hope DC starts taking lessons from the characterizations in these shows, I'm not sure why they've had such a weird resistance to using them as a base for their films but maybe the new Superman film will be a step in the right direction since it seems Clark will, for the first time in a while, actually have both his adoptive parents alive and kicking. I can only hope so because there's so much potential there that has just been buried under edginess lol (The Batman 2022 was cool though, there still is room for edginess and I felt like that film captured a bit of the Arkhamverse in it's characterisations)

With how movies have become focused on becoming more cinematic, with their depictions of these characters, we lose stories like this. A story that says more through the animation than in words. Batman is the hero that wants to bring hope to Gotham, and we see this get touched on in The Batman movie. But the episode referenced in the video is the best form of Batman. Their is a trust formed as Batman is the only one allowed to approach Ace, as she read his mind. Instead of doing what needs to be done, he talks with her, and listens to her pains and fears that lead to this point. He is direct with her about her death and apologizes. I cry every time I see him sit on that swing and comforts the poor scared girl, whose about to die. He never says anything he offers his hand and they just sit. Their is no dialogue only music, and the next time we see the two Batman is carrying her. I will always point to this episode as showing who Batman really is. He is still the same Batman we saw in the original Batman Animated Series where he helped the poor woman who was stuck looking like a child whose life went to shit after her show was cancelled. Batman should never be the version we see in the All Star Batman comics, but the one we see here who believes in a second chance, just as he has given to those in his Bat-Family.

the scene with batman and ace always hits me right in the feels.

Another point to add- that you showed, is... That assassin that Waller hired to "create the new Batman"? That assassin understood that you cannot continue Batman's legacy via breaking the golden rule. He has a few rules, that he's known for breaking on occasion- even so far as using guns sometimes. He's failed to save some others. But, outright kill? That would've later on caused Terri to flip out if/ when he learned who was responsible and why.

It’s funny how people hate Batman and Superman being compassionate.

DCAU Batman one of my favorite fictional characters of all time

We could all learn a little something from this version of Batman

Cartoons with a moral lesson is gold.

Yes of course, the BatFamily will say something else...

Dude i was trying to watch a batman video not tear up, im actually in tears i don't know why but i get too emotional watching a sad video or animated movies or just movies in general like Forest Gump, Green Mile, In Pursuit of Happiness, Bridge to Terabithia, ect. but what i mean is just that this is an actual well made video that put and someone put a lot of work and effort into 🥲👍

This might upset some people but I personally HATE that Terry McGinnis is a clone of Bruce Wayne. Because being clone completely removes his relevance as separate character. I always said that "one does not need to be blood related to a hero someone to be a hero on their own." Why couldn't Terry just be a nobody? Just a nobody with a strong sense for Justice and bravery to stand up for what he believes in? That is what makes a hero. Not being a clone of someone. I think Batman of the Future was an excellent series and it was Terry's show I hate that he got downgraded in the ending of JLU epilogue.

He is Ruse Bane, and you grossly underestimate Bane's true power and cruelty.

The Phantasm going after terry’s parents but stopping before it, was her realising that killing Terry’s parents would be a stain on Batman’s Legacy.

There was a great comment on another batman video, that I sadly can't recall the name of, but it went something like this: "Batman is a man who isn't trapped in emotional hell, he stays there to help others out, because by him being there, there is literally less space in hell." He's a sad, damaged man who wants to make sure no one else goes through what he did. I compared him once to someone who had been shot. Yes, the wound is healed and its scarred over, but every time he moves he can feel the scar tissue and so he scratches at it, poking it so its always reminds him of what happened.