Bruce has plans to take out his friends, but has a hard time neutralizing his enemies.
Harley being a good person who was corrupted by the Joker rather than a bad person who was outplayed by a worse one.
Bruce has plans to take out his friends, but has a hard time neutralizing his enemies.
Harley being a good person who was corrupted by the Joker rather than a bad person who was outplayed by a worse one.
This may not necessarily be mainstream, since it varies a *lot* based on the creator, but I don’t think Bruce playing the playboy “all the way” with his numerous dates works or makes that much sense. I get the appeals of the idea, both in the more “logistical” (that it would sell the idea that he’s only a playboy harder than merely partying would) and the more escapist (that it allows some fans to have a James Bond-esque fantasy with the character)… but it actually brings up even more logistical issues than it ostensibly conceals, and character wise doesn’t fit Bruce that well.
Like, if Bruce is a mass of scar tissue that keeps odd hours because of being Batman, than he’s not going to be able to add a bunch of notches to his bedpost before way too many poeple know about his massive collection of acid burns, regular burns, bullet wounds, and suspiciously-claw-shaped marks.
And personality-wise, I think Bruce tends to work far more as a serious serial monogamist with a small handful of non-overlapping serious romances; it better reflects his mix of workaholic nature, empathy and compassion elements, trust issues, and the fact that at least two fo his romances are supposed to be seen as serious (Talia and Selina), while the only real way to make some other love interests serious is if there’s no real way to have them lost in a sea of “conquests.”
Like action, adventure, rogues, and outlaws? Like anti-heroes, femme fatales, mysteries and thrillers?
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The thing that bugs me today is, why would Bruce want to attract attention to himself with his playboy antics? Can't he just be one of those billionaires who are anonymous? Like, Lucius can be the face of Wane Industries but few people know what Bruce Wayne looks like. It happens in real life too, sure you have your Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Elon Musk and Richard Bransons but there are plenty of industrialists who avoid the spotlight. Can't 'billionaire industrialist' Bruce affect a persona similar to Tim Cook? Nobody can imagine that guy swinging between buildings.
All great points.
The way I see it, the whole playboy thing is something Bruce adopts when he's just starting out as Batman. It makes more sense in that context. When Batman first showed up, Bruce had just returned to Gotham after years abroad (in some versions, he was actually missing, presumed dead). There was a lot of media buzz and speculation about his return and his plans. Then, not long after, a masked vigilante shows up beating the crap out of criminals. Now who would have the resources to operate as Batman, as well as a strong enough motivation to go to extreme lengths to fight street crime? How about the billionaire whose parents were murdered by a mugger when he was a child and who, guess what, returned to Gotham after a mysterious sojourn abroad just before Batman showed up?
This is in fact more or less the train of thought Gordon follows in Year One when he's investigating Batman, and it makes Bruce Wayne his prime suspect almost immediately. You know what throws him off? Bruce putting on his playboy act, with a half-named girl lounging on his sofa during his meeting with Gordon (Jim isn't 100% convinced though and figures it might be an act...the point is there is room for reasonable doubt that a 'hardcore' playboy like Bruce could be Batman).
That said, I think as time passes, and Bruce becomes a bigger part of the Gotham social and business circuit, and begins his philantrophic work with the Wayne Foundation, he can slowly start to drop the playboy facade. Yes, he might have some long-term relationships with various women who don't know his secret (like Silver St. Cloud), and those may not end well, but I don't see him going out of his way to be seen as a playboy. Frankly, it makes it harder for him to be seen as a serious philantrophist or industrialist if that's what he's primarily known for.
I really liked the 70’s-80’s idea to portray him as spending his daytime at the Wayne Foundation as an almost purely philanthropist figure; I think hvaing Fox be the dude running Enterprises while Bruce focuses on charity and being Batman works better.
Plus, the Wayne Foundation building is awesome.
Like action, adventure, rogues, and outlaws? Like anti-heroes, femme fatales, mysteries and thrillers?
I wrote a book with them. Outlaw’s Shadow: A Sherwood Noir. Robin Hood’s evil counterpart, Guy of Gisbourne, is the main character. Feel free to give it a look: https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asi...E2PKBNJFH76GQP
Heh. It works. I don't like Tony because his arrogance, addiction and playboy persona is real. I much prefer the actor and ninja master of self control Bruce Wayne or the full hero figure of both Cap and Superman. That said, Tony is hilarious and have a much clearer character flaw, his flaw and heroism are pretty much even, so it makes him an entertaining character that won't be accused of being a Sue as fast as the pure good characters.
I don't view Harleen as ever being a bad person, at least not to the degree that she deserved to be corrupted by the Joker or would have been an infamous criminal if not for his influence.
But I do dislike the notion that she is blameless for her post-Harley Quinn actions just because of her tragic beginnings. I also dislike the idea that she 100% an abused doormat with no power in her relationships. Harley has dysfunctional, abusive relationships with both the Joker and Ivy, but has more power in both dynamics than she lets on. And that's how she likes it, she loves to play up her "dumb blonde" shtick so people underestimate her, and she knows how to subtly manipulate both of her partners to get what she wants while also allowing them to be domineering like they want.
I don't even think there's many versions where he's shown to go all the way with his playboy gimmick. Usually he just pretends and finds an excuse to not sleep with the women which in my opinion wouldn't actually work because they surely talk among themselves and people and the media would find out that Bruce was hiding something. He doesn't actually have to spend the night with them and Bruce with all his resources should have a way to deal with his scars. What happens when he's invited to pool party?
“…Okay, dude, on the one hand, we are all impressed that you somehow have not a six-pack, but an eight-pack. That’s… ludicrously ripped, Bruce. On the other hand… why do you have six bullet wounds, four stab wounds, two burn marks, and enough bruises that we thought you had a tanning bed accident at first?”
“…Polo.”
“Polo?”
“Extreme polo.”
Like action, adventure, rogues, and outlaws? Like anti-heroes, femme fatales, mysteries and thrillers?
I wrote a book with them. Outlaw’s Shadow: A Sherwood Noir. Robin Hood’s evil counterpart, Guy of Gisbourne, is the main character. Feel free to give it a look: https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asi...E2PKBNJFH76GQP
Wait he bedded the butler too?
One of my favorite Tumblr headcanon is people of Gotham thinking Batman and Bruce are lovers since Batman is Bruce's bodyguard through Batman Inc and Bruce doesn't bed the women he's with
So I sniggered when Bruce is interrogated about his relationship Batman in Batman The Detective and he responded with "what you mean like lovers?"
Last edited by Restingvoice; 07-26-2021 at 11:43 PM.