The Batman Family: Damian Wayne, Son of Batman

Damian Wayne:

Damian Wayne had a seemingly troubled past before he met Batman. His mother was Talia Al Ghul, she had kept the child a secret from Bruce and went to Nanda Parbat where the league of assassin's Headquarters is. Her father, Ras Al Ghul would train this boy to become the ultimate soldier, a killing machine. When he was born his training started immediately, until he was the age of ten he was an
assassin. Until Deathstroke came and hunted the league of assassin's down, killing Ras and going after Talia and Damian. Talia called Bruce and gave him Damian, who was reluctant to say the least. Bruce took him back to Gotham and adopted him as his ward, (much to Damian's disapproval). It seemed only natural that Damian would become the next Robin, now that Tim was growing out of it. But Batman didn't wholly trust Damian, he would sneak out, and almost referred back to his killer instincts. "Justice, not Vengeance" he was taught as he became the new Robin.

Damian Wayne, from Son of Batman.

The Court of Owls:

In the Court of Owls comic book timeline we see the head assassin of the Court of Owls named Talon. He persistently tries to recruit Damian for his cause and let him be the successor to Talon's greatness. Batman, who had remained stubborn in not letting Damian kill people, and never really trusting him drove Damian to run away to Talon. Slowly they realized that he was just bait for Batman, Damian tried to fight, but all he could really do was wait for his father to come save him. When they pulled Damian's mask off and saw that he was Damian, they all realized the connection to Bruce Wayne, making the lure for Batman even greater. Talon, who was oblivious to the plan, didn't see eye to eye with the Court of Owls magistrate and wanted to free Robin. Talon kills the entire Court of Owls and tries to free Robin who protests, so he is knocked unconscious. Talon storms the Batcave with an army of talons. Batman is ready, he prepares a Bat-mech to fight them, and with the help of Nightwing and Alfred they fight the talons, and confront Talon, who kills himself.
Damian, thinking that Bruce would be angry started to walk away. But much to his surprise Bruce says: "Damian, I'm proud of you." and embraces his son.

Batman R.I.P. and Final Crisis:

After Bruce's seeming death, Tim left the family and Dick was the only one who could continue being the Batman. Jason Todd, (the Red Hood). Felt that he should become the next Batman. Dick stood aside and let him try, reluctant to take on the cowl.But the twisted version of the gun-toting Bat was scarring for Dick who eventually took on the cowl and defeated Jason for it. They became the new dynamic Duo and things worked out. And then things got confusing.

Clues Left In Time:

As Dick and Damian found out Superman was still alive after the Final Crisis on Apokolips, they began to hope Bruce was alive. Tim Drake was already on the case however. It appeared Darkseid's Omega beam had shot Bruce through time and space. Tim was picking up clues that Bruce was leaving clues in the past for the dynamic duo to pick up. Alfred notices a new chamber in the Batcave that wasn't there before, it had many portraits with a recurring Bat theme letting Damian believe that Bruce was indeed alive. As they search they run into The Joker and the Black Glove, they are seemingly outmatched when Bruce comes out of nowhere to help them defeat the pair of villians. It appears he used a hyper-adapter and found his way back to the future after absconding in the paleolithic era, 18th century Caribbean, and the Salem Witch trials. Batman is reunited with his son and Dick went back to being Nightwing.

The Batman family:
So this concludes the Bat-family. Of course there are multiple additions that I have chosen not to write about yet, (Such as: Carrie Kelly, Stephanie Brown, Bat-Wing, Ace the Bat-hound), and perhaps those will be written about in the future. But for now we have taken an in depth look at the most popular members of the Bat-Family.

The Batman Family: Tim Drake, The Red Robin

Tim Drake:

Tim Drake, is the only Robin that has both parents alive. He was a toddler when he attended the final flight of the Flying Graysons and remembers fondly taking a picture with his family and the Graysons. From then on he was inspired by Dick Grayson and would admire him forever. He witnessed the death of the Graysons and after the show saw Bruce Wayne consoling the saddened Dick. Feeling bad he sent the picture that they had taken with him.
Years later while watching footage of Batman and Robin apprehending the penguin and seeing Robin perform a quadruple front flip he thought "Only a Flying Grayson" could do that move. When he found out that Dick Grayson had become the ward of Bruce he deduced that both Bruce and Dick were the dynamic duo. For years he followed the team as well as Nightwing and when Jason Todd became the new Robin.












Robin to the Rescue:
After Jason's death Tim noted that Batman wasn't the same as usual. He became more reckless and almost psychotic. Batman was losing his sanity. Tim decided that Batman needed a Robin to restore his sanity. After tracking down Dick and helping him solve a case, he convinced Dick that Batman needed help, thus granting access to Batman. But sadly Dick didn't get the same idea that Batman needed Robin, but he needed Nightwing. So Dick left Tim to help Batman, unfortunately ending with them being captured by Two-Face.
Tim, realizing that both his idols were in peril, and with the help of Alfred, donned the Boy Wonder's garb at age 13 and saved his idols. And then Batman, extremely reluctant, let Tim become the next Robin, but not before being trained by Dick, Alfred, and Bruce before becoming the Robin.
Once he became Robin, Tim was overjoyed. He brought a much needed attitude of cheer and happiness to the dynamic duo.

The Red Robin:
After the events of Batman: R.I.P. Dick took up the mantle of Batman. A new Robin was bestowed and Tim wasn't convinced that Bruce was actually dead. Feeling hurt that Dick didn't offer to let Tim stay as Robin and the urge to find Batman he took on the cowl of the Red Robin in search for Batman. He cut his ties to the Bat-Family and found proof Bruce was alive and crippled Ras Al Ghuls association of assassins. Ras promises to destroy everything the Waynes have built after that and Tim rejoins the Bat-family and frequently joins the dynamic duo to fight crime, but he remains searching for Bruce evermore.

The Batman Family: Katherine Kane, The Batwoman

Katherine Kane:

The Batwoman remains one of the more obscure members of the Batman Family. Yet has become somewhat of a cult classic among fans. Katherine Kane inherited a large fortune from the Kane Family in Gotham. Whatever the Wayne's didn't own, the Kane's did. Katherine, who had entered into a relationship with Renee Montoya, (the second Question), was once confronted by her that she didn't have the good in her to do what was right, which prompted Katherine to become the Batwoman after their breakup. For a while she frequently teamed up with Renee Montoya and the First Question before finally meeting the Caped Crusader.

Meeting the Batman:

She wouldn't consider herself part of the Batman family, despite the likeness of their names, because she has had few encounters with him. But there is some history. After Bruce Wayne supposedly dies during the events of Final Crisis, and Dick Grayson become the new Batman, Batwoman became the lead of Detective Comics for a short period of time. When tracking a religious cult within Gotham she meets with the new Batman to discuss the growing threat from within Gotham. Reluctantly he gives the case up to Batwoman and focuses on other problems at the time. She tracks the leader of the Religion of Crime, called The Mad Hatter.
Following Bruce's seeming death the Justice League is ripped in half and she was instrumental in keeping contact between the two new leagues.
Another encounter, (and perhaps the most explicit) is when she is kidnapped by cultists in London. Dick Grayson, as Batman, tracks her down with a pair of British superheroes, (Knight and Squire). They fight their way out of the cult who appears to be followers of Darkseid, (the world destroyer from Apokolips), where they defeat a clone of Bruce Wayne and quite possibly save the world.

The Batman Family: Jason Todd, The Failed Robin

Jason Todd:
Jason Todd, son of a criminal father and a drug addicted mother, lived life mostly on the streets. Nobody was there to provide for him, so he made money stealing the tires off of cars and selling them. Not much of a living, but enough for one small boy living in Gotham. After stumbling upon the Batmobile one night, he thought he had hit the jackpot, and in a way he did. Batman caught him trying to steal the tires of the car and took pity upon the boy. Since Dick Grayson had recently left the role for Robin was vacant, and Bruce could use another one. Thus, Jason became the next Robin. Though he wasn't exactly like the last Robin. He had a very aggressive nature about him and didn't share the same cheery disposition as the former Robin. He could never understand why Batman would never just kill the Joker after all he had done, and had yet to do. . .

Jason Todd returns Red Arrow's gear to him.

Death in The Family:

Death in the Family.

One fateful night, Jason had had enough of the Joker. He went after him without Batman, who was previously occupied with Ras Al Ghul, (who had hired the Joker as a distraction). But Robin was no match for the Joker, who tied him up in a warehouse and senselessly beat him with a crowbar. Batman raced to save Robin, but was too late. The Joker had placed bombs in the warehouse, told Robin to be a "good boy" and left as the warehouse went up in flames, leaving Jason dead and Batman grief stricken forever. Batman had failed.

Joker beats Robin in Under the Red Hood

The Red Hood:
But like all comic book heroes, they can't actually be dead. This one wasn't such a happy occasion though. Ras Al Ghul, feeling terrible for the loss of Robin, decided never to make war with Batman
again and try to revive Robin. He stole the corpse and dipped him into the Lazarus pit, (a natural spring used to keep Ras Al Ghul alive for hundreds of years). The pit worked but left Jason's mind tattered and his face deformed, or so we thought. Jason made his way back to Gotham under a new guise, The Red Hood, (the former identity of the Joker). Angry at Bruce for not killing the Joker, he set out to control the crime in Gotham. "That's what you never understood, you can't fight crime. I'm controlling it." He said to Batman. After much conflict, Jason captures the Joker, then beats him senselessly with a crowbar, and then waits for Batman to arrive. He reveals his identity to Batman and confronts him. "Why. . .why on earth is this man still alive? I thought I'd be the last person you'd let him hurt. I'm not talking about Scarecrow, or Penguin, or Dent, I'm talking about him. . .because. . .because if it was you he'd killed, if it was you he'd beaten to a bloody pulp, if he had taken you from me, I would have done nothing but search the planet for this pathetic pile of evil death-worshiping garbage and sent him off to Hell." (Batman: Under the Red Hood). Jason holds a gun to the Jokers head and throws one to Batman. "If you want to save him, you'll have to shoot me right in my face." He said. Batman won't do either. Batman refuses, and Jason takes a shot at him, Batman dodges, disarms Robin and saves the day. But Jason thought ahead, he planted bombs in the old apartment where they were having this confrontation. Batman shields both the Joker and Jason from the blast, saving Joker and as the dust settles, Jason is gone.

Batman walks away from Jason and the Joker

The Red Hood Returns:

Jason, who had survived the blast, had a long run taunting the Batman and Nightwing. He would patrol New York, dressed as a murderous Nightwing, killing the criminals on the streets. Later he would give that up and start a new career in a new city, always killing his enemies, then he was finally committed to Arkham Asylum by Batman, (though he passes every sanity test). He is later relocated to Blackgate Prison where he continues to kill the criminal inmates in there and eventually break free. But I suppose a spark of good came over Jason. In the current comic book timeline he is trying to mend the damage he is caused and make up for his sins. He keeps the Red Hood, but now emblazoned across his chest is a red Bat-logo. He is once again a symbol for justice as he leads a team of wayward metahumans called The Outlaws.

The Batman Family: Barbara Gordon, The Batgirl.

Barbara Gordon:

Barbara Gordon, Young Justice

Daughter of the esteemed and overprotective police commissioner Jim Gordon, Barbara always had a keen sense for right and wrong. But when her father denied her application to become a Gotham City police officer she took to fighting crime under the radar. She had acute computer hacking skills and an eidetic memory making her a potent force when it came to getting into secure crime boss' computer mainframes, all while living a daytime life as the head of the Gotham City Library, (as she had a Ph.D in Library Science). Later being inspired by Batman to fight crime in a completely altruistic manner she designed her own suit, and frequently teamed up with Batman and Robin, (who turned out to be Dick Grayson, her friend, romantic partner and later husband). Batgirl became a very popular hero at the time she was invented (1960s), because she was a powerful female figure during a time where one was needed the most. She is widely recognized as the most popular female comic book hero during the Silver Age of comics.

The Batgirl

The Killing Joke:
Like most heroes, they tend to grow weary of crime-fighting. So too did Barbara Gordon. She retired being a vigilante and kept on with her job in the Gotham City Library. It was short lived. The Joker, who had previously kidnapped Jim Gordon, silently entered Barbara's apartment building disguised as a tourist. As she answered the door he shot her in the abdomen and through the vertebrae. The Joker proceeded to photograph her as she was dying in order to drive Gordon mad. Luckily she was saved, and Commissioner Gordon stayed sane. Unfortunately Barbara was forever paralyzed from the waist down and permanently confined to a wheel chair.

The Oracle:
Being confined to a wheelchair wouldn't stop Barbara though. Her encounter with the Joker would rekindle her spark for crime-fighting. But this time she would use her computer skills. She became The Oracle, Batman's personal "I.T. Department" as Joker puts it. With her skills to hack anything she has become a powerful ally to the Batman, and is frequently called upon by the entire Justice League to aid in their cause. She would remain happy as the Oracle, helping fight crime in the best way that she could no matter what the circumstances.

The Batman Family: Dick Grayson, The First Robin.

The Batman Family:
As we all know, Bruce Wayne hardly has a family. His parents were killed when he was very young, and for the longest time the only person he had to call family was his butler Alfred. Being Batman meant doing everything alone, having attachments lead to weakness and endangerment of those he cared about. But that didn't stop him. He may claim that they are all just part of the job and strictly "partners", but deep down Batman knows he has this family to call upon. \

Dick Grayson:
Richard "Dick" John Grayson was part of the circus group called "The Flying Graysons". Very adept at acrobatics and trained by his loving parents he was a highlight in their routine. But during one performance the net beneath them was removed by Tony Zucco as a threat to the circus manager. While Dick watched his family perform as their high wire snapped and his family fell to their deaths. Afterwords Dick was committed to Gotham's uncaring juvenile protection systems in which he was constantly bullied. Bruce, who attended the night of Dick's last performance, felt back for the young Grayson and adopted him as his ward. Dick would always be frustrated by the lack of attention he received from Bruce and the ambiguity of the disappearance of the safety net for his parents. So he snuck out of wayne manor to investigate his parents murder by Zucco. He runs into Batman who was also investigating their murder. Bruce, who sees a spark of himself in Dick offers to make him his sidekick and thus the first Robin was born.

The Original Boy Wonder

Robin as seen in Young Justice

NightWing:

For years they were the Dynamic Duo, fighting crime. The Dark Brooding Batman contrasted wonderfully with the cheerful disposition of Robin. But more and more Dick found himself wanting more than the life of a sidekick. Bruce constantly held Robin up to unrealistic standards, and he felt as if he was living in the shadow of the Batman. So he left to Bludhaven, (a neighboring city to Gotham) and became his own entity. After struggling with who to be, he was told by Superman a story of an outcast back on Krypton called Nightwing. So Dick took on the new persona as Nightwing and left Batman's side to fight villains such as Deathstroke in Bludhaven. Which didn't stop him from occasionally tracking cases to Gotham and helping Batman more as a new independent hero.

The Original Nightwing

Nightwing (New 52 Reboot)

AntMan: 5 Things You Should Know for the Movie

With Marvel's new Antman movie in theaters July 17th, it's good for one to know the comic background of this little bitty superhero. His name, what exactly makes him possible, and how he came to be. All for good comparison to this movie adaptation. So here is a list of 5 things, you need to know for the Antman movie.

1: Who is He for sure?
It's a bit confusing, because as far as I was concerned Antman was first and foremost Hank Pym only. This movie sees Hank Pym giving up his mantle as Antman to Scott Lang, (whom I had originally thought to be an MCU creation.) But it turns out there is comic evidence backing Scott Lang. Much like what we've seen from the movie trailer, Scott Lang stole the Antman suit while trying to provide for his struggling family. Hank Pym, the original owner of the suit pursued him under the disguise of Yellow Jacket to see what Scott would do with his suit. Hence we have the story of the movie.

Scott Lang, portrayed by Paul Rudd.

Hank Pym, portrayed by Michael Douglas

2: The Wasp?
The Wasp is kind of like a sidekick to Antman. The Wasp, or Janet Van Dyne, is not only the companion to Hank Pym as Antman, but also Hank Pym's wife. Will we see The Wasp in the upcoming movie? Possibly. If she is indeed Hank Pym's wife she would be at least as old as Hank Pym is in this movie, and we haven't seen any old Wasps in the trailers. What we do know is that Evangeline Lilly will be portraying Hope Van Dyne the daughter of Hank and Janet, who may be Marvel's way of reinventing the character as a love interest for Scott Lang. So it may be Hope Van Dyne is the Wasp instead of her comicbook portrayal as the Red Queen (arguably less cool and more obscure).

The Wasp, from Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes

Hope Van Dyne, portrayed by Evangeline Lilly.

3: Ultron Tie-in.
According to the comics and multiple other sources that came about before Avengers 2: Age of Ultron, it was not Tony Stark and Bruce Banner that created Ultron, it was in fact Tony and Hank Pym. Ultron was originally a kind of jailkeeper for the facility used by the Avenger's to imprison their enemies. It wasn't until a software patch was downloaded to Ultron that he broke free and became the utterly evil foe that they face today. Will there be a tie-in to the Age of Ultron in this movie? Part of me doubts it, but it would be fun to see.

The Creation of Ultron

4: Giant Man
This could be potential "Sequel" material for the Antman franchise, but it could be great material for some form of easter eggs. Hank Pym created the Antman by using what he discovered and calls, "Pym Particles" these can make a person shrink or grow to any size they want, which is how we get the Antman. But Hank Pym is also famous for using the Pym Particles to grow and become Giant man, greatly turning the tables on the previous situation.

Giant Man

5: Agent Carter and Howard Stark:
Something I find very intriguing is that Peggy Carter and Howard Stark will appear in the movie. Either as part of Hank Pym's past, or perhaps this movie is set in the early 70s and is being very sneaky about it. We know it's later in Peggy and Howard's life because the actor who plays Howard in the movie is not Dominic Cooper, who portrayed young Howard Stark in Captain America, but rather John Slattery, who we see portraying Tony's dad in Iron Man 2. It will be interesting to see how they play into the movie and tie all the other movies together.

Howard Stark, portrayed by John Slattery

Agent Peggy Carter, portrayed by Hayley Atwell

Consider yourself ready for the movie, either to knowledgeably catch the references, or critically scream at the movie for completely ignoring the comics. When I first saw that it was going to be a movie I thought, "Really? An Antman movie." I felt that they had missed their shot by not having him cameo in the Avengers or something. But after seeing the trailers I see the potential of this being a comedic heist film. Besides, it's Marvel, they aren't going to make a bad movie.