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I don't know if this thread's ever been done, but it's certainly be said often enough how Batman has no powers. Technically, then, can he really be called a "super" hero? Even with his capacity to be prepared, we still acknowledge that this ability falls within human limits. So what makes him "super?" I suspect largely it's because he wears a superhero-type costume and he hangs out with the uberfolks.
Put another way, if any of us harnessed enough resources, trained our minds and our bodies well and wore our undies on the outside, we could be called superheroes. I mean, that is a major source of Bats appeal: that he is human and not super.

Superheroes depend on their powers to win victories. They lack intellegence and endurance. Batman has proven many times that supers mean nothing when you have a powerful mind. Many comic book fans think that superpowers=greatness. And thats rather weak. Physically you can do damage with your powers. But lose the powers and what are you left with? Nothing but your fists and feet to fight. Mind always wins over muscle.

ya exactly hes like the punisher now powers just really smart and nows alot of kungfu and bat man dosent fight super villians realli

Originally posted by WindDancer
Superheroes depend on their powers to win victories. They lack intellegence and endurance. Batman has proven many times that supers mean nothing when you have a powerful mind. Many comic book fans think that superpowers=greatness. And thats rather weak. Physically you can do damage with your powers. But lose the powers and what are you left with? Nothing but your fists and feet to fight. Mind always wins over muscle.


exactly why i like batman....exactly...he doesnt have superpowers n thus hes more believable..he doesnt have superpowers, but a strong mind, skillz that you put ur body and mind to the absolute limit, and yes, some badass gadgets supplied by Wayne Enterprises he wasnt just bitten by a spider and got superpowers like spideysense, webshooters, ect. or happen to be an alien from planet krypton that has super powers, or blessed by som1 to have powers....no none of that, he had to work to get all of his "powers" i guess u would call them

Well..Spidey made his web-shooters himself, but except for that I agree with you braz...and WD.....

But I think Batman has Superpowers...he is SUPER-COOL

i've always thought of Batman as a superhero by association, simply because he hangs around with so many of 'em. and is considered by most to be a 'superhero' despite the lack of powers.

he's super rich and super smart...so technically he's a super hero.

His intellect and strength of will could be considered superhuman.

By the point of view of the narrow minded who don't think Batman qualifies as a superhero, by their definition the following aren't superheroes either:

Iron Man
Green Lantern
Hawkman
Captain America
Steel
Blue Beetle

How come Batman is shunned for being human, but not these guys?

Originally posted by Mindship
I don't know if this thread's ever been done, but it's certainly be said often enough how Batman has no powers. Technically, then, can he really be called a "super" hero? Even with his capacity to be prepared, we still acknowledge that this ability falls within human limits. So what makes him "super?" I suspect largely it's because he wears a superhero-type costume and he hangs out with the uberfolks.
Put another way, if any of us harnessed enough resources, trained our minds and our bodies well and wore our undies on the outside, we could be called superheroes. I mean, that is a major source of Bats appeal: that he is human and not super.

I know, I think he should just be called a hero, because there is no "super" in him.

Originally posted by EsteemedLeader
By the point of view of the narrow minded who don't think Batman qualifies as a superhero, by their definition the following aren't superheroes either:

Iron Man
Green Lantern
Hawkman
Captain America
Steel
Blue Beetle

How come Batman is shunned for being human, but not these guys?

Because they indeed have something super on them.,...I mean yeds Batman has Gadgets too that don't exist but there are differences you can't really explain you have to feel them.....like a full exo-skelettong that couldn't puts you at hundred times the power of most huans is different as somreone in a kevlar cape jumping from rooftops and relyon his own wits....

Originally posted by EsteemedLeader
By the point of view of the narrow minded who don't think Batman qualifies as a superhero, by their definition the following aren't superheroes either:

Iron Man
Green Lantern
Hawkman
Captain America
Steel
Blue Beetle

How come Batman is shunned for being human, but not these guys?

lmao dude...iron man has like a suit that allows him to have like 80 or 90+ ton strength right??? the hulkbuster....lol thats pretty super if ya ask me...and like radiation laser beams on his palms...yea hes a superhero....and green lantern has a ring that makes force fields n energy blasts....hmm yea i dont know of ne regular humans that can do that....and captain america, true yes, isnt a superhero either IMO....and as for blue beetle, steel and hawkman i have no clue who they are

batmans uber awsome. thats why hes a "super" hero.

Originally posted by braz
lmao dude...iron man has like a suit that allows him to have like 80 or 90+ ton strength right??? the hulkbuster....lol thats pretty super if ya ask me...and like radiation laser beams on his palms...yea hes a superhero....and green lantern has a ring that makes force fields n energy blasts....hmm yea i dont know of ne regular humans that can do that....and captain america, true yes, isnt a superhero either IMO....and as for blue beetle, steel and hawkman i have no clue who they are
Captain America..as stupid as he may be he is a Superheroe because he got his powers from the Super Soldier Serum...true Batman is just as good as him without Steroids and Drugs, but well Cap is one anyways...it's kind of a feeling thing...I personally actually take Batman as Superheroe, for running around inn a cape and pawning Darkseid and others....but I can see how to argue the other side too...

really they should change his name or his atatus cause they have him doing some superhuman things.

I think if you don't have superpowers, you're not a superhero. Batman, IMO, is just a freak in a Halloween costume. His power is he's rich. I rather enjoy the fantasy of a superhero, a boy being bitten by a radioactive spider, a man getting exposed to a gamma ray.

The Punisher, on the other hand, is AOK in my book because he doesn't pretend to be a superhero. Just hero.

I think he is. I think its stupid to say that he isn't. What defines a superhero?

1. An incident in their life that has changed them into what they are. (IE radioactive spider bite, gamma ray exposure,

2. Abandonment usually (IE Uncle Ben's death, Krypton destroyed, Joe Chill killing Thomas and Martha Wayne)

3. Increased ability to (reflexes, durability, BATMAN'S INTELLIGENCE)

4. The lust for justice (Batman doesn't have that?)

5. More will power than everyone else in the world (you don't think Batman has more will power than say, mostly all of the superheroes out there?)

6. Costume (covered)

7. Fighting evil villains (covered)



Batman's super POWERS, albeit not derived from some freak accident, are his will power, his physical strength (I'm sure he can beat Captain America and he's considered a superhero) and training, his motivation, and his intelligence - which he proves many many times, is definitely up very very high on the scale out of both Marvel and D.C., if not the overall smartest (with still untapped potential).

I think its definitive to call him a superhero.

Batman is a superhero.
Anybody who doesn't know that is dumb.

At the same time, I don't like how he does superhuman feats and yet he is still classified as peakhuman.

They should change that part of his bio.

IT sickens me to ahve that up there.
He's only top level human like an olympic weight lifter or a master martial-artist who benches twice his bodyweight and can break through stacks of bricks, but "since he is batman", he can trip up flash, trade punches with darksied, thrash superman with no kryptonite, go toe to toe with wonderwoman, and do shit like kick down big thickass trees with one kick, or kick the shit outta hulk, but he's still just top level human(peakhuman).

No, that shit won't fly, man, they need to get their ass back on their job and change that part of his bio to read superhuman or at least low level superhuman.

Cause the shit he does is even way above inhanced human let alone peakhuman, so he should be classified as superhuman.

For the creators and writers to do otherwise is just stupid.

Who agrees with me?

Hell, if they are gonna do that they should just have alot of other people doing shit they can't possibly really do, like have spiderman lift 1 billiob tons with one hand, cuse having batman( a peakhuman) do shit like like shatter a thick tree with one kick or manhandle superman or get punched by darkseid and get back up is just as bad and just as much a showcase to bad(pot induced) writting skills as any.

he manhandled superman? wtf? without kryptonite? thats impossible...

when did this happen...

and yes I completly agree with you, basically batman should be able to do about as much as he does in Batman Begins, that was a believable batman

If some guy went around in a Halloween costume in real life, you'd call him a freak and phone the mental asylum.

But if that same guy turned into a green giant, was able to "see" you while being totally blind, started climbing smooth walls with just his bare hands, shot claws out of his knuckles, you'd think differently.

yeah call the mental asylum in the army

I'm a huge Marvel exclusive but I love Batman.

I think (and I know you'll argue here but i don't care) most DC heroes are stupid. A lot of DC is like, "My lord! THAT monster is an inch taller and can lift three more pounds than yesterday's monster! Who will save us!" It's almost like the Power Rangers. but Marvel people (and Batman) have limits. They're super not cause they can defeat every foe, but because they defeat every foe anyway and mostly without a stupid cop-out or last minute appearance by a guest hero.

Not only does Batman not have powers, but a lot of his villains don't haved powers (none of the villains from the first three movies did). He doesn't need no stinking powers. generally if he fights Superman fairly it's in a Superman mag, not Batman.

yes

He's way more than just a man...

A Superhero? I don't even consider Batman to be a " hero ". He's not Batman because he feels some great and altruistic obligation to society. He's Batman for one reason. Revenge. That's not what I think of when I think " hero ". Yes, his actions at times may be heroic but he's not ... Superman. He doesn't drink a glass of milk and tell you to brush your teeth. In the end Batman's just a vigilante. He does things by his OWN rules and refuses to accept the norms of society. Truthfully he can't even be defined. He does what he believes he has to do regardless of the outcome. Whether people love or hate him.

If you've read many comics, you'll know Batman himsef knows there's a HUGE difference between revenge and justice. he's out there to stop what happened to him and his parents, happening to kids, their parents and others! He's not an avenger, he doesnt want rteveneg, he's a protector, he wants JUSTICE! He knows that, i know that, you SHOULD know that

Ive always thought of Batman as a crimefighter....and hangs with Superheroes and his mind can take care of them if the need arises...

If Batman were only out for revenge, he'd be like Punisher, but Batman tries his very best never to kill, even at times telling the superheroes that are given a better reputation than him (Superman, Wonder Woman, etc) that they shouldn't kill either.

He comes across as a real s**t in the JLA stuff but he's the one who I can see as the last 1 to kill

Why's he in the JLA? Your guess is as good as mine...

Batman is not about revenge, he is the embodiment of justice.

He started out with vengeful aspirations, but that soon dissapated and evolved into a sense of justice. He is incredibly human, has made mistakes, learns from them, a man of experience and incredible wisdom. He has an incredible mind and is the key human element in the Justice League, without him, it'd be aliens and freaks running things. He provides a super human elemnt to everything he is in, adds credibility to many situations, and is truly essential in the crazy DC universe. He has a super mind both when it comes to philosophy and making sense of any given situaion and in the middle of battle, and has unbelieveable resolve. He is by far the greatest SUPER hero of them all.

Batman doesn't kill because he needs to perpetuate his psychosis. If he kills his adversaries he won't have a reason to be Batman.

Why do think bruce wayne became the batman?

What was his main motive for becoming batman?

Originally posted by Red Superfly
Batman is not about revenge, he is the embodiment of justice.

He started out with vengeful aspirations, but that soon dissapated and evolved into a sense of justice. He is incredibly human, has made mistakes, learns from them, a man of experience and incredible wisdom. He has an incredible mind and is the key human element in the Justice League, without him, it'd be aliens and freaks running things. He provides a super human elemnt to everything he is in, adds credibility to many situations, and is truly essential in the crazy DC universe. He has a super mind both when it comes to philosophy and making sense of any given situaion and in the middle of battle, and has unbelieveable resolve. He is by far the greatest SUPER hero of them all.
Iff he learns from his mistakes, how come all the OMAC crap happened even after Tower of Babel!

Exploitation. Hey, no matter how much you know someone, you've always gotta have a slight thought that they aren't you, and you're the only one you can fully trust - and even then...

Which brings a question to my mind. Do you think that Batman has given the JLA a "just in case I go rogue" plan to take care of himself? He's the type of a hero that would do that, I think, because he knows that it would eventually be a huge downfall of society if he used all his techniques against...everyone lol. Think about what he could do to society if he penetrated places with his ninja-like disappearing act he always does, uses all his resources for secret tech, blah blah blah. He'd be worse than if like, Wonder Woman went ballistic.

Yeah, but maybe he wouldnt be so effective under control because his no.1 skill is brainpower!