Last week saw a round of speculation that Batman may show up in the world of The Flash, Arrow, and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. But he does not need to.
Wayne Enterprises and Gotham City had been referenced with hidden references to Gotham in The Flash and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. Even Bruce’s alter-ego, Batman, had been name-dropped when Rip Hunter had told Legends that he had seen “Men of Steel die and Dark Knights fall.”
Bruce’s name coming out of Oliver’s lips felt like something new and The CW knew that, as they released the scene online before Arrow aired.
There have been rumors that Batman and/or Nightwing may show up on one of these superhero shows although now that Titans is in the pipeline and The Batman is in development, it is less likely than ever.
Some have been insistent that the bat-shaped Easter eggs are unfairly leading the fans on if they do not add up to anything,
The case for Batman
To understand why we do not need Batman to appear in these shared DC Universes we should remind ourselves why there is a persistent call for Dark Knight to appear.
In the comics, the DC Universe cannot exist in the way it does without Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. They are popular and old and have been around for every story the company has told.
But there is an understanding that superheroes are to an extent or another, a riff on one of the three.
There is a sense that without Batman, the DC Universe is not the DC Universe.
There is an argument to be made that Batman is the most successful character at DC especially in other media, where he had a few of the highest-grossing and best-reviewed movies.
We saw this in action with the short-lived NBC sitcom Powerless, in which the main characters worked for a company in the first draft, but that was altered for air to be an R&D division for Batman’s Wayne Enterprises.
On the other hand
When the company had tried to downplay the 3 main characters to build up others, it goes wrong and when those characters are changed, there is backlash.
The CW’s DCU is not the DC Universe of the comics and has not been constructed around Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman.
If there are 3 pillars of the DC/CW Universe, it may be Green Arrow, The Flash, and Supergirl. There is the reality that the shows are doing well for The CW; each show has been successful enough and they have decided to take a chance on another DC show. Black Lightning is waiting in the wings for a January airdate while Project 13 is in development for next TV season.
While Batman may be a boon to ratings, the boon is not speaking necessary now.
Superman serves a different purpose than Supergirl because of the world they built from the pilot forward: Superman was an inspirational and aspirational figure for Kara and other characters in the world.
There is no reason for a similar relationship to exist between Oliver Queen and Bruce Wayne, or between Batman and Green Arrow.
The Arrowverse
The Arrowverse has got so far with Oliver standing in as Batman and this tends to rankle a few fans because they like Batman or believe there must be something differentiating his story from Green Arrow’s.
This does not mean that it is a bad idea to bring him in. Fans will go nuts and cast members of Gotham and Arrowverse shows have said that they may like to see it happen.
Batman does not need the Arrowverse and the Arrowverse does not need Batman. There is an argument that as long as tehse shows are good and ratings are solid, The CW is better off using characters who do not have the same kind of household recognition.
Supergirl airs on Monday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT. The Flash airs on Tuesdays at 8, followed by DC’s Legends of Tomorrow at 9. Arrow airs on Thursday nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT. All four shows air on The CW.
