Gotham City is a busy place, with a lot going down each and every week. In this monthly column, Joshua Lapin-Bertone helps you stay on top of it all by letting you know what you should be paying attention to within the Bat-Family…and why.
 

When Batman plans ahead, heroes prevail. When Amanda Waller plans ahead, heroes crumble.

If you’ve been reading Absolute Power, then you know that Amanda Waller has more or less beaten every hero in the DC Universe. Waller (and DC) have been planning this for years, and nobody saw it coming, not even Batman.

Public sentiment has turned against superheroes, all the metahumans have been depowered and Waller has been placed in a big government role that requires no oversight.

She’s won.

There’s an interesting moment in Absolute Power #1 where we see the realization wash over Batman’s face. As all the heroes lose their powers, a shell-shocked Batman realizes that he should’ve seen it coming.

“I…how did I not…how could I possibly have missed it?” Batman wonders. “I made a massive miscalculation! All this time, I thought Waller was playing chess! That I could outwit her if I was just clever enough!”

Absolute Power: Origins #1 goes back to Amanda Waller’s origins, showing us how she rose to power in a world of superheroes. If you aren’t familiar with her backstory, Amanda Waller lost her husband and some of her children to crime. These details aren’t new, but in Absolute Power: Origins #1 writer John Ridley draws a parallel between Waller and Batman. We see a split screen page of Joe Chill killing Thomas and Martha Wayne as the Candyman murders Waller’s daughter. We see Batman bring Chill to justice as Waller’s husband takes the law into his own hands and kills the Candyman.

Amanda’s husband Joe loses his life in the confrontation. The police have no sympathy for Waller, viewing her husband as a lawless vigilante. It doesn’t escape Waller’s notice that Batman’s vigilantism is celebrated. The line Ridley draws between Batman and Waller is an interesting one, and it got me thinking. Batman and Waller are currently in the midst of a big conflict, but the two of them aren’t all that different.

If you think about it, Amanda Waller could have been a really good Batman. She’s smart, she’s resourceful and she’s always six steps ahead of everyone else. Plus, she’s been able to stare down some of the DC Universe’s most powerful figures without blinking. Does this remind you of anyone?

Imagine how far Batman could go with someone like Amanda Waller by his side. Picture Amanda Waller as Batman’s Alfred, Lucius Fox or Robin. With the two of them working together, there would be no limit to what they could accomplish. They could be unstoppable.

The plan Waller is enacting in Absolute Power isn’t far off from some of the contingency plans Batman has developed. For example, in the classic Justice League storyline Tower of Babel, we learn that Batman has secretly developed plans to take down all of his superhero allies.

The difference, of course, is that Batman had no intention of using those plans unless his allies turned evil or fell under some kind of mind control. He certainly never intended on putting innocent lives in the line of fire. Waller is different. However, it’s interesting to note that she and Batman have a similar pattern of thinking.

For what it’s worth, Waller seems to recognize the value of Batman. That’s one reason why she has Failsafe on her team. The android gives her the Dark Knight’s brain without any of his humanity. It allows her to finally have Batman on her side without having to compromise her worst instincts. But it’s Batman’s humanity and belief in ideals like hope, justice and human potential that make him a hero. Without that, he wouldn’t be Batman. He wouldn’t be the Caped Crusader of Gotham, who’s won the trust of people the world over.

Without it, Batman would be Amanda Waller.

And that’s the tragedy here. Both Batman and Waller want to save the world, they just have a different idea on how to do it. In another universe they could have been the best of friends, both benefitting from what the other had to offer in pursuit of their noble cause.

Instead, they’re at odds and the world’s a much darker place for it. Batman may not have seen that coming, but now realizing all that we do about him and Waller, perhaps the rest of us should have.
 

Joshua Lapin-Bertone writes about TV, movies and comics for DC.com, is a regular contributor to the Couch Club and writes our monthly Batman column, "Gotham Gazette." Follow him on Twitter at @TBUJosh.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this feature are solely those of Joshua Lapin-Bertone and do not necessarily reflect those of DC or Warner Bros. Discovery, nor should they be read as confirmation or denial of future DC plans.