And he knows how to make a grand entrance!
The new Earth 2 Batman made his appearance in the recent Earth 2 annual and if there are any comic detectives out there they have figured out who he is.
But not me.
Not to sell myself short but all I can think of is the Thomas Wayne Batman from the incredible "Flashpoint" series.
There are similarities, particularly the glowing red eyes and propensity for meting out justice with "extreme prejudice". (That's an Apocalypse Now reference people.) The Bat logo is different on the chest but both utility belts are tinged in red.
The Flashpoint Batman lost his son in Crime Alley and took up the mantle of the Bat so who is to say that the Earth 2 Thomas Wayne, upon learning of his son's demise, didn't do the same thing? I know what you're thinking, "Too easy". You may be right. It does seem a little too easy but it would be a wonderful way to revisit the character and take a new spin on his vicious application for crime fighting. It would be difficult to top the twist of the Joker reveal in that series but I am game if they are.
Any other candidates? (Apparently, we still don't know who E2 Batman is after the publication of Earth 2 #13 although he does make a cameo.)
I had a theory that it would be Jason Todd after the tease came out in the form of the cover of "Red Hood and the Outlaws" #17. I figured Jason Todd would die in one universe and be "resurrected" in Earth 2. There was poetry in that.
But Jason Todd didn't die in "Earth 1".
That doesn't mean he can't be the Earth 2 Batman it only means that the poetic symmetry is lost. I can live with that.
The new Earth 2 Batman seems to be incredibly fit and obviously fearless. He even has the ability to travel the world at will, has the best tech and knows all about the new Earth 2 heroes.
That's not something you pick up overnight. You need some serious cash to pull that off. So is it Thomas Wayne? He should've been able to access his son's fortune. (Did his son have a fortune?) If the original E2 Batman was a billionaire wouldn't it be easy for his heir to inherit that fortune. Does Earth 2 have a Dick Grayson? How about this, Damien Wayne dies in the original universe and his doppelganger takes up the reins in the E2 universe.
Now that makes sense. Damien was no stranger to violence and was trained in a world of assassins. He was even a killer. We witnessed that when he took out the character of "Nobody".
So, the poetic justice I wished upon Jason Todd may come true in the form of Damien Wayne. At one time Damien Wayne was seen as the future Batman as depicted in this image taken from Batman #666.
This future version of Batman was a ruthless killer and he even used Gotham City as weapon rigging all the buildings with explosives. We don't know the E2 Batman very well but it doesn't seem as though he is willing to let Gotham burn, let alone the world, to see an end to his means. Still, if we were to transfer these attributes to the Earth 2 Batman then we may have deduced his identity as Damien Wayne.
Something is holding me back on this. The maturity of this E2 Batman for one. The Damien Wayne we knew was a child of ten years this new Batman is obviously way beyond that. Anything is possible in the comics yes but something just doesn't feel right. I can't put my finger on it but I'm going to lean towards Thomas Wayne or Jason Todd as the new E2 Batman.
Or it's their Azrael.
No, wait, it's Alfred.
