This article contains spoilers for Detective Comics #1037.
Batman's latest one-liner may well have blown his secret identity. The Dark Knight has always had a taste for melodrama. Indeed, that lies at the heart of his mystique; he loves nothing more than sweeping out of the shadows in order to terrify the criminals of Gotham. What's more, though Batman likes to act taciturn, he's never been able to resist a good one-liner.
As Batman well knows, the right words can turn a situation around. They can make him the center of his opponents' attention, drawing their focus away from everything else. It's a smart way of ensuring he is the center of their world, even if it does tend to cause lasting problems - Batman's enemies tend to become utterly obsessed with the Dark Knight. Unfortunately, in Mariko Tamaki and Viktor Bogdanovic's Detective Comics #1037, his latest one-liner is most unwise - because it's potentially blown his secret identity.
Bruce Wayne has been blamed for the death of his friend Sarah Worth, and her father - one of Gotham's wealthiest and most privileged citizens - wants justice not revenge. The issue sees Mr. Worth pay police officers to evacuate the station Wayne is held in, and he then blows it down with a rocket launcher. Bruce survives, escaping into the sewers - pursued by Mr. Worth. "Where are you, Wayne," Mr. Worth calls out as he stalks through the tunnels. He has no idea who he's truly dealing with - and he's unwittingly given Bruce a chance to get to his newest Batcave. Unfortunately, unwisely, Batman can't resist a one-liner as he emerges from the shadows to fight back. "Here," he replies, as though speaking as Bruce Wayne.
The Dark Knight means his words to serve as a distraction, encouraging Mr. Worth to forget about Wayne and stop searching the tunnels, so he will simply believe the former billionaire Wayne has escaped. But instead, the one-liner could well serve the opposite effect; Mr. Worth was calling out for Bruce Wayne, and instead he has found Batman. At the very least, he could begin to ask why Batman is always being found prowling the sewers right now, rather than swooping through the skies, leading him to have the sewers searched - and potentially exposing the new Batcaves. At the worst, he could remember Wayne Industries was responsible for Batman's equipment - technology that was stolen by the Joker during the "Joker War" - and begin to ask just how closely connected Wayne really is with Batman.
This is the problem with jokes and one-liners; sooner or later you speak a little too quickly, a little too easily, and you don't quite think your words through. That is what has happened to Batman here - and, as a result, he can only hope Mr. Worth isn't especially smart. If he's wrong, then Batman has just blown his secret identity.