Warning! Spoilers ahead for Titans season 3, episode 5
In Titans season 3, Bruce Wayne (Iain Glen) steps down from the role of Batman and while several characters are being set up to potentially work as his replacement, it’s not clear which of these choices the show will use. Batman has disappeared or been incapacitated multiple times in the comics. The power vacuum that this leaves in Gotham often leads to gang-wars and another hero (or villain) stepping in to wear the cowl.
While being ostensibly about the Titans, season 3 has borrowed heavily from specific Batman comics with its introduction of Red Hood. Episode 1, “Barbara Gordon,” sees an accelerated and simplified version of the events of “Death in The Family” as Jason Todd (Curran Walters) is beaten to death by the Joker. Unlike the main timeline of the comics, in this timeline Bruce Wayne snaps and murders Joker in retaliation before fleeing Gotham as a wanted man and asking Dick Grayson (Brenton Thwaites) to be his replacement as the city’s protector.
While Jason remained dead in the comics for around a decade, in Titans he is resurrected almost immediately by Scarecrow through the use of a Lazarus Pit. This allows for his return within season 3 as Red Hood. Jason’s plans and manipulations around Gotham’s gangs and Bruce Wayne’s telling him to step down from being a hero in the flashback episode “Lazurus” seem to be influenced by the aftermath of the comic “Batman R.I.P.” The comic saw Jason being told by Batman’s will that not helping him with his mental health was Bruce’s greatest failure and that putting him in the role of Robin had only brought Jason danger. As in Titans, Jason is angered to hear that Bruce sees him as an unsuccessful Robin and it pushes him over the edge.
Season 3 has also introduced Tim Drake (Jay Lycurgo), who was originally Batman’s next Robin after Jason Todd. The presence of Dick, Jason, and Tim, along with the absence of Batman sets the show up for a season 4 adaptation of the comic “Battle for the Cowl.” With Batman gone, Gotham needs a new protector, so how are the candidates set up, and who should replace Titans’ Batman?
Dick Grayson As Batman
Dick Grayson might, at first, appear to be the most obvious choice. The opening of Titans season 3 sees Bruce Wayne ask Dick to “be a better Batman,” and while he has responded to that call in spirit, he has shown no inclination to wear the cowl, continuing to fight as Nightwing. When he raises Bruce’s comment with Barbara Gordon (Savannah Welch), she comments on how problematic and manipulative the ex-Batman’s request is.
In “Battle for the Cowl,” Dick works to cover the power vacuum caused by Batman’s absence in a similar way. He refuses to take up the mantle and instead calls on Batman’s allies to help keep the peace in Gotham. The story eventually ends with Dick being the one to claim the mantle long-term, but not before others have had tried it out. Titans has already shown that it is happy to draw on the comics while making large changes to the results, so there’s no guarantee that this original plot will mean that the Titans iteration of Dick is set to become Batman.
Jason Todd As Batman
Titans is currently exploring Jason’s first stint as Red Hood, a role that he will presumably set aside at the end of season 3, either through remorse, imprisonment, or death. Through the first 5 episodes, Red Hood’s actions have been somewhat erratic, and it is hard to tell which elements of his plot are driven by his own motives, and which reflect Scarecrow’s (Vincent Kartheiser) puppetry over Jason. However, his initial violent threat to control the gang bosses of Gotham tracks with the violence depicted in Jason’s early appearances in season 1 where he doesn’t question using force against foes like Nick Zucco.
This, again, is a perfect setup for “Battle for the Cowl,” in which Jason has escaped from prison and seeks to don his own version of Batman’s mantle. In the comic, Jason wears a Batsuit, operates out of Gotham’s subway system, and uses lethal tactics in his war on crime, including two handguns similar to those currently used by Red Hood in Titans. While Bruce Wayne’s Batman had become a symbol and a public figure within Gotham, Jason seeks to take on the role of an urban legend, terrorizing the criminal population of Gotham and leaving notes that he is Batman behind at his scenes. The comic culminates in a fight between Jason and Dick with Jason apparently falling to his death and ending his tenure as Batman and with Dick finally taking up the mantle. After being manipulated by Scarecrow, Titans could easily have Jason graduate to being the primary villain in Titans season 4, wearing this villainous version of the mantle that would be true to the ruthless nature the show has demonstrated Jason to have against criminals.
Tim Drake As Batman
Titans season 3, episode 1 only gave viewers a brief glimpse of Tim Drake as he heads back to his family's restaurant and hears about Robin’s death from the news. While the character is not mentioned in episodes 2 through 5, he is expected to make a larger appearance soon and is shown prominently in promotional materials. While the show might be setting him up to start training for the next Batman’s Robin, it is entirely possible that Titans could put Tim in the Batsuit himself.
Before Dick hunts down Jason’s Batman in “Battle for the Cowl,” Tim Drake, who has already served a long tenure as Robin, tries it by himself first. As shown in Titans, Tim really believes in Batman as a protectorate and a force for good in the city. He is appalled by Jason’s use of lethal force as Batman and dresses in his own Batsuit in an attempt to show how Batman should really act in his idealized image of Gotham’s vigilante. When Tim finds Jason, the two fight and Tim is seriously injured. After Dick took on the role of Batman, he saw Tim as his equal and declined to have him as a Robin, instead taking on Damian Wayne (who has not appeared or been mentioned in Titans) and Tim left in search of Bruce, eventually becoming a new iteration of Red Robin.
Azrael As Batman
There is one very different route that Titans could take, a direction very subtly hinted at in season 3. While the plotline is not part of “Battle for the Cowl,” Jean-Paul Valley’s Azrael takes on the mantle of Batman after Bruce Wayne’s back is broken by Bane. In an echo of the Jason-Tim issue within “Battle for the Cowl,” Azrael quickly becomes overly aggressive leaning into the use of lethal force. Tim challenges him on this and is largely unconvinced that Jean-Paul is a good successor to the mantle.
Tim’s presence in the series and his purist view of what Batman means to the city could imply that this angle could be taken in season 4. Additionally, a small background easter egg in Titans season 3, episode 2 could hint at the character's inclusion. Azrael is often depicted in attire similar to that of a medieval knight or a crusader. During an argument between Hank and Dawn, a knight’s helmet can be seen in a prominently lit display case in the background. While this could be a clue to Azrael’s inclusion, it could also be a reference to the chess themes that permeate the early episodes of the season or intended to assure viewers that Azrael won’t be appearing as Bruce has already dealt with him and claimed his helmet as a trophy for his collection.
Who Should Replace Batman In Titans
One of the biggest criticisms levied against Titans season 3 has been that it focuses too much on Batman-centric stories rather than the Titans team. Titans’ Gotham needs a new figure in Batman’s place, and if the whole Titans team were to stay to protect Gotham then it would likely continue to draw the focus towards Batman narratives and the show would need a new name. For this reason, a purer version of Azrael might be a good fit as it would allow the rest of the Titans to depart the city and leave it in his hands. However, his lack of inclusion so far could lead that transition to feel rushed and unsatisfying.
The best choice for Titans would be for season 4 to see news of a new Batman in Gotham that could be revealed to be Jason, initiating a fight with Tim in a similar way to “Battle for the Cowl.” However, because Dick Grayson’s Nightwing has become the primary protagonist of the Titans show, rather than have him take on the mantle at the end, Tim Drake should remain as Batman within this universe. This would allow the Titans to avoid becoming a purely Batman-focused show. More importantly, Dick has spent the first 2 seasons distancing himself from Batman and redefining himself as Nightwing. To have him wear the Batsuit so soon would undo a lot of his character progression and undermine a lot of the messages the show has tried to impart. Tim Drake is the character best positioned, with training and mentorship, to “be a better Batman.”
Titans releases new episodes every Thursday on HBO Max.
