The Reason I Love Batman Is Because His 1 Real Fear Is Genuinely Relatable

Warning: Spoilers for Batman #149!

Summary

• Batman’s biggest fear revealed: growing old and dying slowly, challenging his immortal image.
• Batman’s struggle against a rapidly aging clone leads to confronting his fears about death.
• Batman’s relatable fear of losing control and physical decline humanizes the iconic character.

Batman’s biggest fear is his most relatable. I think I speak for everyone when I say we all wanted to be Batman at some point. Who wouldn’t? He’s Batman. But if you’re like me, you stopped striving to be Batman a long time ago because the goal seemed unattainable. After all, he’s virtually superhuman and isn’t afraid of anything. How can I be Batman?

Color me surprised when I read Batman #149 by Chip Zdarsky, Michele Bandini, and Steve Lieber, and I found out what Bruce Wayne’s biggest fear is: mortality. That’s right, the guy who leaps over tall buildings and fights gods among men is afraid of dying. Shocking, I know. But more specifically, Batman is afraid of growing old and eventually dying a slow death.

Shocking as it may be, it’s painfully relatable. It certainly is to me, and something tells me that other readers agree. This fear allows Batman to be the one thing he rarely is to readers: relatable.

Batman Is Afraid of Growing Old

And Eventually Dying… Slowly

Previously, Batman combated his evil “personality,” Zur-En-Arrh, who managed to clone his own Robin made from Bruce Wayne’s DNA. When Zur is defeated, Bruce must race the clock to save his clone (essentially, he must save himself), as he’s rapidly aging until he’s expected to die of old age within weeks, officially taking Red Hood’s spot as most tragic Robin. The closer the clone inches to death, the real Bruce must confront his own fears about death, leading both versions of Bruce Wayne to talk about the idea of slowing down until death nears.

To me, death signals two things: it means venturing into the unknown, whatever lies ahead of us in death, and it means my body slowly failing me.

Both versions of Batman end up expressing fears of getting old and slowing down. It’s clearly somber for them to think of Batman (as a concept) going from being swift, agile, and effective to becoming much slower, and slower, and slower over time. Until, one day, Batman gets so slow that he’s not just less effective; he actually stops moving, as we all do in death. Batman likens it to losing control – what he’s fought his whole life for – while his clone is fixated on death meaning never being able to make a new memory.

This Fear Is the Most Human Batman Has Been in Years

Finally, Batman Is Relatable Again

Not to sound like a tough guy, but there’s a select few things that I’m afraid of. At the top of that list is dying. To me, death signals two things: it means venturing into the unknown, whatever lies ahead of us in death, and it means my body slowly failing me. This fit, capable body of mine will one day rust out like an overused car part. Running, walking on my own, holding a pencil – all of these basic things I take for granted will one day become impossible in old age. That’s terrifying to me, and oddly enough, it’s terrifying to Batman, too.

Not everyone can relate to a billionaire who leaps into action at a moment’s notice (if he’s dressed as a bat), but many of us can relate to what he’s afraid of. It’s such a human fear for someone who’s often depicted as being more than a man, a fear we all relate to. Rather than feeling out of character for Batman, this fear feels like a previously untapped layer to Batman that reveals more of his character to readers. For a character that’s difficult to relate to, this fear of death gives Batman a character trait beyond being a brooding creature of habit.

Batman #149 is available now from DC Comics.