Absolute Batman #25 Sets Up A Very Different Take On DC's Damian Wayne

Spoilers for "Absolute Batman" #25 follow.

"Absolute Batman" #25 concluded "The Straw Man" arc with Bruce Wayne suffering from major defeats at the hands of Jack Grimm/The Joker (who may have an even wilder history than we thought). Bruce is only saved from being devoured by the timely arrival of Barbara Gordon, who now joins him patrolling Gotham City as "The Bat." The final page of the issue hints Barbara isn't the only new member of the Bat-Family; Bruce's long-distance girlfriend Selina Kyle shows back up at his door, pregnant.

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"The Straw Man" introduced many of the classic Robins, but reimagined as a squad of Jack Grimm's wards assembled to hunt Batman. The most prominent Robin excluded was Damian Wayne, who in the classic DC continuity is Bruce's biological son. You can't really explain away Damian as having been adopted by Grimm, and this Bruce Wayne is only in his early 20s. "Absolute Batman" writer Scott Snyder had teased (back in June on the ComicPop Returns podcast) that he had an idea to bring Damian into "Absolute Batman," but the book wouldn't be getting there until at least 2027. "Absolute Batman" returns from hiatus in January, so it looks like this was the idea Snyder alluded to.

Debuting in 2006 in "Batman" #655, Damian Wayne was created by Grant Morrison and Andy Kubert. Taking on the identity of Robin, he became a centerpiece of Morrison's ongoing run on "Batman." (Batman and Damian have also been announced as the co-stars of DC Studios' in-development movie "The Brave and the Bold.")

Now, traditionally, Damian is the son of Bruce and Talia al Ghul — daughter of Ra's al Ghul — not Bruce and Selina. Is "Absolute Batman" about to change this?

Damian Wayne's maternal lineage is an essential ingredient of his character. For one, it's the culmination of Ra's long-standing desire for Bruce and Talia to wed so that Batman can succeed him as leader of the League of Assassins. Damian was raised in that League by Talia and Ra's. When he first joins Batman, he's arrogant and violent, having been trained to kill and believe the world is his from his birth. 

But "Absolute" Ra's al Ghul and Talia were the villains of "Absolute Superman," instead. Kal-El even absorbed the classic plot of "Ra's wants his heroic adversary to become his heir." ("Absolute Batman" already has an immortal villain, the Joker, so Ra's would be redundant.) "Absolute" Selina has been established since the first issues as Bruce's childhood girlfriend.

If "Absolute Batman" is making Damian into Selina Kyle's son, that wouldn't be unprecedented. "Batman: The Brave and the Bold" episode "The Knights of Tomorrow!" featured a possible future where Bruce and Selina are Damian's parents. It's worth noting that, in DC Comics history, Bruce and Selina have had a child together — but a daughter, not a son. In 1977, DC Comics' "DC Super Stars" #17 revealed that the Batman and Catwoman of Earth-Two had a daughter, Helena Wayne, who grew up into the superhero The Huntress.

It's possible Selina is pregnant with Helena, not Damian. But Selina's spin-off series "Absolute Catwoman" has already introduced the Helena Bertinelli Huntress, who was part of the "Calicos," Selina's old childhood burglary crew. That either makes Helena Wayne redundant, or even more plausible (i.e. Selina naming her daughter after one of her friends). But considering Scott Snyder previously teased introducing Damian Wayne, I'd still lean towards the baby being him.

"Absolute Catwoman" also complicates the timeline here. The last time Bruce and Selina saw each other was in "Absolute Batman" issues #12 through #14; they definitely slept together in #13, so that seems like the only real window here. Selina isn't showing any signs of pregnancy in her book, which was also recently extended from six to 12 issues. This only raises further questions of how Selina's pregnancy could factor in. 

There's another big question. The daughter of poor Cuban immigrants, Selina made herself into a master thief and one of the wealthiest women in the world. Scott Snyder has even noted that "Absolute" Selina's wealth and globe-trotting, ironically, makes her more similar to classic Batman than "Absolute" Bruce is. So how does having a child figure into those plans, or Bruce's double life for that matter?

We'll have to wait and see how Bruce becoming a father plays out, but it brings "Absolute Batman" full-circle conceptually. Snyder has said the whole book was inspired by his own sons; he wanted to make a Batman story that affected them the way "The Dark Knight Returns" did for him in the 1980s. A big part of that was making Batman confront things the current generation is anxious about: "Absolute" Bruce Wayne lost his father in a mass shooting, his greatest enemy is an evil billionaire, and "The Straw Man" reimagined the Scarecrow as a master of disinformation campaigns and mass paranoia. 

Making Bruce Wayne a father now gives him similar anxieties as Snyder himself, plus an even more personal stake in his fights. Batman won't be only trying to make a better world in his father's memory, he'll be doing it to leave something good for his son, too.