WARNING: Spoilers ahead for Batman: Urban Legends #8
The Dark Knight is famous for his strict “no killing” policy, but when it comes to other DC Comics vigilantes, Batman can’t seem to hold them to the same consistent standard – and it’s seriously damaging his reputation. While the notoriously strict Batman may refuse to take anyone’s life, the same can’t be said for some of the other members of the Bat-Family. After all, Red Hood and Azrael are known followers of the Bat with a penchant for more violent crimefighting methods.
Although they claim to play by Batman’s rules, they’ve both stepped over the line on more than one occasion. With his overly controlling nature, fans would expect Batman to treat these slip-ups as harshly as possible. But recent issues of Batman: Urban Legends prove that isn’t the case.
In Batman: Urban Legends #1, Red Hood shoots and kills a man at point-blank range as part of the “Cheer” story arc by Chip Zdarsky, Eddy Barrrows, and more. While Batman is far from approving, by the end of the story, he equips the Red Hood with a new suit and sends him on his way after Jason tells him that he’s giving up his guns. Meanwhile, in the “Dark Knight of the Soul” story by Dan Watters and more in Batman: Urban Legends #8, he takes a similar approach when he suspects Azrael of killing gang members. Jean-Paul is innocent and says as much, but the overly suspicious Batman still lets him off with little more than a simple, “I mean it, Azrael…no more deaths.” For someone who’s known to hold his partners to impossible standards, these are very lax reactions to suspected vigilante killings.
Jason Todd has killed before and Bruce has definitively taken him to task for it. But in these recent appearances, the Red Hood as crossed the line and killed with Batman essentially letting him off scot-free. Readers may argue that this is simply because of the strained father/son relationship he has with Jason, but that doesn’t explain why he allows Azrael to cross the very same line. Jean-Paul may be a member of the Bat-Family, but in the current continuity, it’s a strained and loose affiliation at best. There’s no reason for Bruce to let Valley off with little more than a stern talking-to if he genuinely believes that Azrael has been leaving behind a body count. Although Valley is innocent, Batman’s less-than-trusting nature has gotten the better of him more than once, so it’s a surprise that he’s simply taking Azrael’s word even if he really is innocent.
These interactions set a dangerous precedent of a two-strike policy for Gotham City heroes killing their enemies. The last thing fans would expect would be for Bruce Wayne to allow his proteges one free kill each, but he clearly isn’t as strict as he used to be. While Batman could just be giving Red Hood and Azrael space to find themselves as DC Comics heroes, he’s doing so at the cost of less-than-innocent lives. And unfortunately, he may end up tarnishing the symbol of the Bat in the process.