Bruce Wayne

"Bruce gave me a great piece of advice once. 'Grow into the person you needed as a kid.'"

- Kate Kane

Bruce Wayne (born February 19) is a well-known billionaire playboy, philanthropist, and former owner of Wayne Enterprises. He is the son of the late Thomas and Martha Wayne, the nephew of Jacob Kane, and the cousin of Kate and Beth Kane. As Bruce, he presents himself as an irresponsible playboy and womanizer, though that persona is nothing but a façade that he created in order to cover his double life; sometime after his parents' murders, Bruce swore vengeance against criminals, an oath tempered by a sense of justice for which he trained himself physically and intellectually to become Gotham City's protector, the vigilante known as Batman, or simply the Bat, stylized as the "Dark Knight".

In 2015, Bruce disappeared for unknown reasons, leading the local crime rate to rise higher than ever and the Bat-Signal to be finally switched off in 2018 to signify his permanent absence. After discovering his secret identity, Kate took on her cousin's mantle and became Batwoman.

Early life
"Nothing could be average with Bruce. Even had to have more dead parents than me."

- Tommy Elliot to Kate Kane

Bruce Wayne was born on February 19 in Gotham City into the esteemed Wayne family to his parents; billionaires Thomas and Martha Wayne. One fateful night, his parents were assaulted by a mugger who stole the pearl necklace Martha was wearing before murdering both of them, leaving Bruce traumatized as the sole survivor. After this tragedy, the only person he really trusted and was close to while growing up was Alfred Pennyworth.

Bruce had very few friends during his childhood, one of them being his best friend, Tommy Elliot.

Becoming Batman
"Batman brought out all the crazies in Gotham. If it weren't for him, there wouldn't have been a Joker."

- Jacob Kane to Kate Kane

Bruce swore an oath to rid the city of the evil that had taken his parents' lives and, years later, dedicated himself to protecting Gotham City and became Earth-1's first vigilante, crafting himself a bat-inspired persona to fight crime and strike terror into the hearts of his enemies. He eventually became known as Batman, though many considered his existence as a sort of urban legend.

Over time, Gotham began relying on Bruce to the point that the Bat-Signal, a projection lamp that cast the silhouetted shape of a bat across the sky when turned on, was created as a means of contacting Batman whenever he was needed.

At the same time, Bruce acted as the CEO of his family company, Wayne Enterprises, making it one of the most prominent multi-billion dollar corporations on the planet and becoming one of the world's richest men. At one point, after spending years searching for his mother's pearl necklace and spending $1,000,000 to repurchase it at auction, Bruce placed the jewelry in a square pyramid-shaped glass container in his office. The case also functioned as the entrance to an elevator leading to the underground base where he kept his Batman suit and gadgets. Bruce's younger maternal cousins, Beth and Kate Kane, with whom he was very close to, often visited Wayne Enterprises or tried to sneak into his office.

Batman's presence in Gotham City generated a new breed of criminals, no longer the simple thugs and gangsters involved in organized crime, but more dynamic personalities such as the Joker or the Riddler.

During his career, Bruce was associated with a number of individuals, notably Lucius Fox, who designed many of his weaponry, a young individual known to the public as "Robin", and Alfred's daughter, the spy Julia Pennyworth.

Kane family car crash
After having been Batman long enough for the public to be aware of him, Bruce was in pursuit of a school bus that had been hijacked by the Joker in January 2003. Through happenstance, the bus impacted a car that contained Kate, Beth, and their mother, Gabi, which caused the car to crash on a bridge. He tactically shot two hooks with his grapple gun at his family's car, which was about to fall off of the bridge, securing it to the bridge and allowing Kate to escape, then quickly left to save the 34 children on the bus that crashed into the Kanes' car, managing to capture Joker, leaving him to be tried the following month. However, the part of the car his grapple was attached to separated from the rest of it, causing Beth and Gabi to fall into the river below. Guilt-ridden over his failure to save his aunt and cousin, Bruce was left haunted for years and spent hours searching for their bodies, but try as he may, he was only able to find his aunt's. With Kate thinking that Batman didn't care about the rest of her family, most likely deepening Bruce's guilt, Bruce took it upon himself to comfort his cousin, which she greatly appreciated. However, Bruce never told Kate his secret identity.

Saving Tommy Elliot's mother
Two years later, in 2005, Bruce would save Tommy Elliot's mother from a fiery car crash that would claim the life of his father. Tommy would come to resent Batman for saving his mother as he was unable to claim his inheritance and would spend the next thirteen years being a nursemaid to her.

Hiring Luke Fox
Eventually, Bruce employed Luke Fox, Lucius' son, as the head of Wayne Security and shared his secret identity with him. However, presumably due to a violation of his trust, he once fired Luke, despite eventually reinstating him.

Last days as Batman
"Honestly? In his last few months, I think Batman was easier for him than being Bruce."

- Luke Fox to Kate Kane

According to Luke Fox, in his final months as Batman, Bruce found it easier to be his alter ego rather than himself. In 2013, right after his cousin Kate got expelled from Point Rock Academy and sent to travel around the world by his uncle Jacob Kane, Bruce asked his friend and ally Julia Pennyworth to watch over her when she was in London.

Disappearance
"Photos can be doctored. They could have put Bruce Wayne's head on that body. Has Bruce Wayne left Gotham to hang out in Star City recently? No."

- Oliver Queen

Around 2015, Bruce left Gotham City for unknown reasons, also leaving behind his identity as Batman. At some point after his departure, Bruce's board of directors accepted get-rich-quick deals, but were scammed, causing the Wayne Enterprises to go bankrupt, though its subsidiaries seemed to be all still running. His cousin Kate was left in charge of Bruce's properties in Gotham, while Luke remained responsible for watching over the Wayne Tower.

In 2017, Oliver Queen mentioned Bruce Wayne at a press conference about Green Arrow's identity, citing that a forger could put anybody's head on Green Arrow's body, even Bruce's. He then jokingly asked whether Bruce left Gotham to hang out in Star City recently, but then said that it hadn't happened, indirectly hinting at his absence from the city.

Batman's disappearance led to the local crime rate rising higher than ever before. His iconic symbol, the Bat-Signal, was finally switched off in 2018 by the Gothamites to represent the permanence of his absence. After Kate Kane started to operate as a vigilante, many believed that Batman has finally returned to Gotham, prompting his former enemies to sent intimidating messages to challenge him, until Kate decided to change the costume and act publicly as "Batwoman".

Crisis of 2019
During the Crisis of 2019, Bruce as well as everyone in the multiverse except for the seven Paragons, was killed in an antimatter wave by the Anti-Monitor on December 10, 2019.

Legacy
Batman's existence was never fully confirmed to the public, making him a myth. While most individuals (including Barry Allen) believed that he did exist, other individuals (like Oliver Queen) believed that Batman was never real, but in fact an urban legend created by the GCPD in order to scare the criminals of the city.

Personality
"You know, apart from my father and Lucius of course, Bruce Wayne never trusted a soul. Now I'm not judging his choices. I wasn't in his shoes, but... when you don't trust anyone, it means that you can disappear for four years without a single person on the planet having any idea where you are. Now, call me sentimental, but I don't think that's a good thing."
 * -|As a civilian=

- Julia Pennyworth to Kate Kane

According to Luke Fox, Bruce is a very caring and selfless individual, as he not only cares about protecting the citizens of Gotham City from criminals but also his remaining living family members as well, possibly due to the death of his own parents, Bruce also has a very close relationship with his cousin, Kate Kane, as he provided her with emotional support following the death of her mother, Gabi Kane and the apparent death of her sister, Beth Kane respectively, which she appreciated despite the latter's stoic personality. He is a very charismatic individual, quite popular to the press due to his very active social life (according to Kate he "slept with half Gotham") and well-liked by his fellow Gothamites as well as the majority of public opinion.

Although Kate described Bruce as being her "fun and irresponsible" big brother-figure, growing-up she has taken in great considerations and often remembering with nostalgia the many advices he usually gave her during the years, which prove that Bruce is also extremely deep and wise; Kate herself has the greatest respect for him.

According to Luke and Jacob Kane, Bruce achieved a lot with his life and shares many traits with Kate, while Tommy Elliot noted that "nothing could be average with Bruce", he also seems to have a great passion for theater and theatricality, as suggested by the bust of Shakespeare in his office and by his alter-ego's methods and whole figure, also, in order to cover his double life, Bruce puts up a fake façade of him being an arrogant playboy and womanizer; in order to avoid other individuals from suspecting that he is Batman.

According to Luke "(having) different women meant that he could use the same lies easily" but he too despised that attitude and deep down, felt "miserable". Julia Pennyworth has also described Bruce as distrustful. Despite Bruce's façade as an arrogant playboy and womanizer, he is still well-liked and respected by the majority of Gotham, to the point that many individuals preferred him instead of the extremely arrogant and snobby Tommy Elliot.

When Kara Danvers, Oliver Queen and Barry Allen were bailed from detainment by the Gotham City Police Department and, questioned on whether Bruce was the one who posted their bail, Kara stated that getting individuals out of jail like that doesn't sound like Bruce. Comparing Bruce to his Earth-38 counterpart, Kara mused whether trying to keep his private life from the public eye just got to be too much for Bruce and he broke, in both universes.

Despite Bruce's stoic personality, he is slightly sentimental. As noted by Julia Pennyworth, Bruce would be happy to know that Kate kept Dino (his toy dinosaur) in the Batcave and he also kept a collection of liquor (referred to by Luke has his "good stuff").

Bruce is well-read, as indicated by his full bookshelves in his office.

"Did it ever get to you, Bruce, the loneliness? Did you ever let yourself trust anyone? How'd that work out for you?"
 * -|As Batman=

- Kate Kane

As Batman, Bruce is described by Kara Danvers and Kate Kane as being a very heroic, yet no-nonsense and blunt individual; he is very stoic and committed to helping Gotham City to the point of seemingly being cold and detached enough to have a reputation of prioritizing capturing powerful criminals over saving civilians, which he even extended to his own family members, as he risked their lives by only attaching their car to the bridge rather than immediately saving them in order to capture the Joker, which led to Gabi dying and Beth becoming insane and left Kate bitterly for fifteen years of her life believing that he didn't care of what happened to her mother and sister.

Indeed, Bruce has even earned a reputation for being fully capable of being borderline brutal and violent, willing to torture enemies to the point of breaking them to get information and striking terror into the hearts of criminals and "play by his own rules". Some Gothamites, such as Jacob Kane even went as far as to consider him a "nutcase" stating that it was his presence that "brought out all the crazies in Gotham" and that if it weren't for him, there wouldn't have been so many deranged criminals in the city.

However, despite such negative reputation, Bruce's great heroism and efficiency as Batman, which according to Luke Fox; far exceeded that of Kate, ultimately triumphs over most of it, as he is well liked by some vigilantes, such as Barry Allen, the latter who states that he would never compare himself to a "total badass" like Batman and the majority of Gotham City has remained loyal and faithful that he would eventually return.

Despite his brutality and reputation, Batman has a strong moral compass, as he follow a stringent moral code and is against the use of lethal methods. He even refuses to take his enemies' lives regardless of the circumstance, holding himself to this oath with every fiber of his being in order to be better than the criminals he fights.

Abilities
"I don't know how you did it, Bruce. You spent night after night in these same shadows, prowling, hunting, hiding, and you did it in secret all alone."

- Kate Kane

"I would never compare myself to a total badass like Batman."
 * Peak of human physical condition: As Batman, Bruce is in extraordinary physical condition, having an incredibly powerful physique from intense years of strenuous training as well as fighting crime in Gotham City for over a decade, his physical prowess has garnered such a reputation for being "a total badass" that has left even Oliver Queen jealous of him, with Barry Allen noting that not even with Oliver's abilities he would compare himself to Batman, implying that Bruce's physical condition surpasses that of Oliver's. Luke has also noted that Kate is an inferior vigilante compared to Batman and Tommy Elliot noted that "nothing could be average with Bruce". Bruce's infamous physical strength is such at an inhuman level that, after seeing Kate lift and throw around full-grown men with ease, Kara Danvers stated that she's really like him; he is fast enough to enter and exit a room unnoticed, his reflexes and agility can throw or catch a batarang with tremendous accuracy and even striking before armed foes can fire at him in point-blank range. Bruce's durability and resilience are also remarkable as the Batsuit he wears doesn't completely absorb the pain of close-range bullet shots.
 * Acrobatics/Free-running: As Batman, Bruce developed free-running skills and can fall from a height of several feet without hurting himself, chase and outrun enemies through various terrains with no wasted effort or time or running from rooftop to rooftop with ease. His abilities allow him to dodge and attack with fluidity from different directions without losing balance.
 * Honed senses: Bruce has sharp hearing and sight, as well as keen skills of perception. He is able to pick up an incoming danger and react extremely quickly. Luke Fox stated that Bruce's senses are so heightened that he doesn't require night-vision goggles to see in the dark.
 * Swimming/Free-diving: Bruce is an impressive swimmer and endured long periods of free-diving without proper equipment or stopping for air, he also designed the Rebreather to further increase its diving performance.
 * Genius-level intellect/Great business acumen/Master tactician/Leader: Bruce is an extraordinarily intelligent individual and an expert tactician, as he was able to fight against crime in Gotham City for several years with tremendous efficiency - that according to Luke far exceeded Kate's when she took up his mantle - all without exposing his real activities to the public or his remaining living family members, to the point that when she found his cave, Kate was deeply shocked by his secret identity. During his missions, he can think fast and seamlessly calculate the variables of every situation in his head to predict the results of his actions and quickly react as he sees fit with tremendous efficiency, with Luke Fox noting at one point that almost all of his calculations were perfect, with the only exception being the one slight miscalculation of the faulty engineering of Gabi Kane's car and the angle of the grappling hooks he fired to secure it when he tried to save her, Kate Kane and Beth Kane from a car accident caused by the Joker, which while saving Kate, tragically failed to prevent Gabi from being killed and nearly killed Beth as well. Bruce's tactical abilities are so thorough that he planned contingencies for his contingencies should his plans go awry, as he not only designed a rail gun to penetrate his suit if it fell into the wrong hands, but he also designed a disruptor to neutralize the rail gun and incorporated it into the suit's gauntlet. He is also an exceptional businessman and leader, as he was able to successfully run and oversee Wayne Enterprises' daily activities for years, effectively acting as it's CEO and maintain it's status as a multi-billion dollar corporation despite his heroism, without any perceivable difficulty. Bruce accumulated such a significant amount of wealth that even after his disappearance, he still maintained a reputation for being the wealthiest man in the planet, which took Tommy Elliot, with his own company Elliot Estates, years ("half his life") to finally surpass, although it was only because Bruce had not been present in Gotham for over three years.
 * Master of deception/Manipulator: Bruce is an extraordinarily skilled master of the arts of deception and manipulation, as he managed to successfully keep his identity as Batman a secret for many years, not only from the public, but also from his remaining living family members as well, he also puts up a fake façade of him being an arrogant playboy and womanizer; in order to avoid other individuals from suspecting that he is Batman, the only individuals who are aware of his secret identity are Alfred Pennyworth, Lucius and Luke Fox, Mar Novu, Kate Kane, a "riddler", Tommy Elliot, Julia Pennyworth, and Ray Palmer respectively, with Kate only discovering his secret due to finding his cave by accident while Tommy only found out from the riddler and Ray learned from Novu. Furthermore, even the highly intelligent Oliver Queen doubts the existence of his alter-ego, Batman, dismissing him as an "urban legend concocted by the Gotham City Police Department to scare criminals", the former continued to believe he was a myth even after seeing the Bat-Signal and hearing a confirmation of his existence by Kate. However, in Oliver's case, his refusal to acknowledge Batman's existence is out of jealousy; due to the fact that he is not the first/original vigilante. Kate has noted that Bruce's deception skills are far superior to her own skills.
 * Master engineer/Gadgeteer: Bruce is an extremely skilled engineer, having been able to develop technologies that would be deemed by both Luke Fox and Kate Kane as the best on the entire planet, along with being exceptionally skilled in the use of gadgets, effectively carrying and using tons of them to fight crime, he fired two grappling hooks to secure Gabi Kane's car, because he knew it would go over the bridge, even the highly intelligent Luke, as well as the intuitive Kate, don't know how to operate most of Bruce's gadgets, indeed, his engineering skills are proven to be even greater than that of Lucius Fox's, as he was able to built a rail gun capable of penetrating military-grade kevlar woven with enriched carbon nanotubes of the latter's design, which is considered to be the most lethal weapon he ever designed. He also built a disruptor designed to stop the rail gun. It should also be noted that it took Hamilton Dynamics years to develop a device with similar capabilities.
 * Master interrogator/Torturer: As Batman, Bruce has had a history of torturing his enemies in order to get information out of them. He also used to bring prisoners to the Batcave and torture them for several days.
 * Expert driver/Pilot: Bruce is capable of driving multiple vehicles, such as cars; as Batman, he utilizes the "Batmobile" when out on patrol.

- Barry Allen to Kate Kane

"Sitting at that desk, staring out that window, watching this city that we grew up in rot at it's core, you find a way to not break. Bruce didn't leave Gotham without a fight."
 * Master hand-to-hand combatant/Martial artist: Due to years of fighting crime in Gotham City for over a decade, Bruce is an exceptional hand-to-hand combatant and martial artist, which led him to having a reputation as being, as described by Barry Allen, as a "total badass" as Batman that made even the likes of Oliver Queen jealous, with Barry noting that even with Oliver Queen's extremely advanced combat prowess, he could never compare his skills to Batman's, implying that the Dark Knight's combat skills are even superior to Oliver's; the latter who had been trained by Ra's al Ghul himself and had his capabilities described as "astonishing" by Vandal Savage. Luke has stated that Bruce's combat skills are also superior Kate Kane's. As a result, Bruce is (possibly) one of the most deadly combatants in the entire multiverse.
 * Master stick-fighter: Bruce is a greatly accomplished stick-fighter, having an expandable baton among the weaponry he carries as Batman.
 * Master knife wielder/Knife thrower: Batman has great accuracy when he threw the batarangs, his signature non-lethal weapon, to his enemy.
 * Expert marksman: As Batman, Bruce possesses an almost infallible aim, as proven when he uses his grapple gun, both for transportation in order to ascent rooftops, as well as to pull individuals or objects, such as Gabi Kane's car.

- Kate Kane to Kara Danvers


 * Indomitable will/High tolerance for pain: A driven and determined individual, Bruce is nearly fearless and almost never gives up under most situations. He remained in Gotham City after the death of his parents, fighting crime even as he witnessed the putrefaction of the city he grew up in, all while following a strict non-lethal code. Hence, he "didn't leave Gotham without a fight". He never stopped looking for Beth Kane's remains after he failed to save her and her mother, and he never stopped searching for his mother's pearl necklace until he found it at an auction and purchased it back for $1,000,000. Bruce's will is strong enough that it astounded even Kate.
 * Master of stealth/Infiltration/Escape artist: Bruce is extremely secretive, being able to approach other individuals without being sensed. He can quickly vanish from sight after performing his heroic deeds and managed to be a vigilante for over a decade with very few individuals having actually seen him. He is also a master escape artist, able to free himself from various confinements, such as handcuffs, as after witnessing Kate performing such deed, Luke stated that he could now see the resemblance between the two cousins.


 * Intimidation: As Batman, Bruce commands an intimidating presence, to the point where many criminals fear him; even Beth Kane, a dangerous psychopath, is visibly terrified of the idea of crossing paths with him, which was demonstrated when she initially mistook Batwoman for the Dark Knight. According to Kate Kane and Luke Fox; what made Bruce so terrifying is due to the fact that he played by his own rules, which scared criminals and citizens alike.
 * Network: According to Luke Fox and Kate Kane; Bruce had access to the best technology on the entire planet. Due to heading Wayne Enterprises, it is conceivable he possessed technology very few individuals on the planet had access to, which is backed up by his own equipment, which greatly aided Kate in her crusade as Batwoman.

Former equipment
"Guy had the best tech on the planet."

- Kate Kane to Luke Fox


 * Batman suit: Whilst fighting crime in Gotham, Bruce wore a protective black suit stylized like a bat designed to both terrify his enemies and hide his identity from them. After his disappearance, he abandoned the suit and it was later redesigned by Luke Fox and utilized by Kate Kane as Batwoman. The suit cost $10.8 million to create, is comprised of military-grade kevlar braided in enriched carbon nanotubes, making it completely bullet-proof; also it can blend into the darkness, is equipped with a remotely activated defibrillator, can adapt the wearer's body temperature to the surrounding, has a cape that allows glider-like capabilities, and a cowl with infra-red visors that fit perfectly on its eye-slits, as well as a direct comm link to the Batcave.
 * Batmobile: Bruce uses a vehicle dubbed as the "Batmobile", when he is out on patrol as Batman.
 * Bat-Belt: As Batman, Bruce carries with him a utility belt consisting primarily of a strap and buckle, that houses many pouches or cylindrical cartridges attached to its outside each containing one of his various gadgets.
 * Batarangs: Batman uses a roughly bat-shaped throwing non-lethal weapon. The batarangs serve as instruments of disarming, distraction, confusion or simply to warn his would-be adversaries that Batman is present.
 * Recording device: Bruce has a special Batarang with an audio-recording device built inside in order to listen in on his suspects during investigations.
 * Grappling gun: As Batman, Bruce uses a length of monofilament wire attached to a spool. It could be used to make a quick ascent to a rooftop or offensively to pull people or objects.
 * Subdermal transmitter: Batman uses a subdermal tracking device the size of a microchip in order to locate and pursue some criminals.
 * Voice filter: Bruce uses a voice filter to disguise his voice; whenever he is talking to individuals who do not know his true identity.
 * Expandable baton: Bruce has an hi-tech baton; that can be extended to the size of a bo-staff.
 * Laser saw: The device can cut through anything. Bruce had previously used it as Batman.
 * Rebreather: As Batman, Bruce would use this device to breath underwater without needing an oxygen tank.

Batwoman
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Trivia

 * Given that Bruce began his career as Batman before 2003 and continued for 12 more years, he is the first known vigilante on Earth-1 and is one of the most experienced superheroes in the known multiverse (aside from J'onn J'onzz).
 * Other challengers for this title as of 2015 are his doppelgänger from Earth-99, Clark Kent of Earth-38, who had been Superman for at least 12 years by then, and Oliver Queen of Earth-1 for 7 years,
 * Bruce doesn't have a middle name.
 * Bruce owns a plethora of books: The Joys of Wine, Degas, The Golden Bible, and many more. He keeps them in a bookshelf in his office at Wayne Enterprises.
 * It is possible that Batman has met Rip Hunter; in the episode ​​​​​​, Rip remarked that he had seen "Dark Knights fall", which is a reference to the classic Batman: Knightfall story.
 * Similar to Clark of Earth-38, Bruce is the earliest known vigilante/superhero of Earth-1 and has a cousin who acts as a vigilante, inspired by his heroic acts.
 * Oliver does not believe in Batman, thinking he is a myth created by the GCPD to scare criminals. Ironically, the Arrowverse version of Oliver takes many traits after Batman, albeit initially in a more violent and murderous way, prior to the former's many promises of refraining from taking lives.

Behind the scenes

 * In the main DC Comics continuity, Bruce Wayne is a vigilante superhero known as Batman, the protector of Gotham City, a man dressed like a bat who fights against evil and strikes terror into the hearts of criminals everywhere. He is also a former mentor of Dick Grayson/Nightwing, who is the protector of Blüdhaven. He is also an occasional ally of Oliver Queen/Green Arrow, Barry Allen/Flash, and Clark Kent/Superman, the latter of whom is his most frequent ally.
 * Unlike his version in the Arrowverse, the main version of Bruce Wayne has a middle name, Thomas, making him Thomas Jr. in relation to his father. In certain coninuities Thomas Wayne Jr. is a separate character: a brother of Bruce on Earth-3, who became the Owlman; or a spiritual essence of the Batman in Batman: Creature of the Night. Another Owlman, Lincoln Marsh, also claimed to be Thomas Jr., although the nature of his claim is ambiguous.
 * In the original script for, it was not Bruce Wayne but some other unrelated person's name on it. Stephen Amell himself suggested Bruce Wayne's name on the script after receiving approval from Warner Bros. Entertainment CEO Kevin Tsujihara, Greg Berlanti and DC Entertainment executive Geoff Johns.
 * The bust of William Shakespeare seen in Bruce's office in is a reference to the 1960s  TV series where it has a button to the entrance of the Batcave.