Warning! Spoilers ahead for Batman #110 ahead!
Many fans may assume that Batman’s greatest strength is his superhuman will, detective abilities, or even his physical endurance. These are all good guesses, but Batman #110 illustrates that Batman’s true greatest strength is really his judgment and ability to keep a clear head under stressful circumstances.
In Batman #110 by James Tynion VI and Jorge Jimenez, the Magistrate have executed their plan to consolidate control over Gotham and pave the way for DC’s dark fate as seen in Future State. As Batman faces off against Peacekeeper-01, his allies scramble to support the Caped Crusader and do damage control as the Magistrate carries out their first operation sanctioned by Gotham’s mayor. As Batman is overpowered by Peacekeeper-01’s cybernetic enhancements and power armor, the Dark Knight cuts his losses and decides to escape the losing battle and live to fight another day.
While there is something undoubtedly heroic about charging into a battle as an underdog, picking losing fights is unwise at best and foolhardy at worst. Batman’s original aim when entering Saint Industries in Batman #109 was to press Simon Saint, the man behind the Magistrate, for Scarecrow’s location. As his interrogation is cut off by the appearance of Peacekeeper-01, Batman engages the cybernetically enhanced villain in a brutal fight. It eventually becomes apparent to the Caped Crusader that he cannot overpower Peacekeeper-01 with his conventional use of gadgets and hand-to-hand abilities. Rather than try to power through the fight in the hope of an eventual victory, Batman chooses to ignore Peacekeeper-01’s catcalls and taunts, keep his ego out of it, and retreat.
This behavior is fairly common for Batman and has proven pivotal to his success as a crimefighter as his rogues gallery and his Bat-Family grows. In Batman #597 by Ed Burbaker and Scott McDaniel, Batman demonstrates his sound judgment and ability to put his ego aside when faced with the photo-reflexive assassin, Philo Zeiss. Philo Zeiss spent a lot of time learning Batman’s style so that he could destroy the Caped Crusader in a fistfight. When Batman eventually comes face to face with Zeiss, rather than engaging the studious assassin, Batman simply asks Batgirl to step in, which throws Zeiss’ game off completely. Zeiss subsequently calls Batman a cheater, to which Batman replies, “All I wanted was to put you down… you’re the one with his ego tied up in it.”
Batman inevitably wants to be the best crimefighter he can be, and his self-reliance in and of itself is a feat in a world where most of Gotham’s problems could be solved by metahuman intervention. Batman is very sharp and has the ability to keep his ego away from his decision-making process when it comes to facing his foes. Batman may be famously headstrong and insular, but his ability to know when to ask for help, and when to make a tactical withdrawal against a villain has given him survivability most superheroes can only dream of. Batman’s physical and mental abilities are pivotal to his success as a superhero, yet neither is the singular trait that allows him to succeed against his stronger foes. In the end appears that Batman’s true greatest strength is his judgement and ability to know when he is in over his head.