#Bruce Wayne: fugitive

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

I hate his dramatic ass this is literally him ending a zoom call. bitch.

[frogaroundandfindout]

Batman congratulates Cass on winning against Lady Shiva (Batgirl #27)

[havendance]

(JLA: Welcome to the Working Week)

Narrator: So I spent the evening watching the Bruce Wayne: Fugitive TV movie. They made Gordon Puerto Rican, but I'm always happy to see Luis Guzman in anything.

I love the little details writers include. In the DC universe there was a direct to TV movie 'inspired by real events' that documents that one time Bruce Wayne got framed for murder and broke out of jail. I bet Dick, Tim, and Barbara all had fun with that one.

[tarucore]

My shipping googles are on but it’s so funny that that you’ve got flashbacks to the ends of bruce’s torrid love affairs, and then on the same page it’s just, dick. leaving for college.

[cleromancy]

AUGHUGUGHGUGH. AUGH

this issue is sosososo good... the guilt! the interplay btwn doubt and faith through the investigation/re-enactment! the determination!! :elmofire:

i love watching cass and dick work together toooooo they make such a good team... like 3x now she's just made like. a one or two word comment and dick would be like "? --oh you mean bc x? good thinking batgirl"and then explains her meaning for the audience... its so good theyre so good

[heroesriseandfall]

Bruce not being able to cook is a common theme in comics, enough that it’s evidently canon in at least post-Crisis. I’m sure he could make something that would stop himself from starving (because you’re right, he’s got survival skills), it would just taste terrible. Survival food is not necessarily good, tasty food.

Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if part of Bruce’s inability to make good food is that he doesn’t want to, because the only reason he’d make food for himself at home is when Alfred is gone—and he hates when Alfred’s gone.

Bruce also has a laser-focus for learning new skills. Most of the time, I think he’ll only learn something well to the extent that it helps him solve crime; if cooking doesn’t solve crime, he won’t put much effort into learning how to do it well.

Detective Comics #685 — Bruce can’t even make a tuna sandwich for Tim, after Alfred quit and moved to London

Batman: Shadow of the Bat #35 — Bruce fails to understand washing machines and orders pizza while Alfred lives in London

Batman #512 — Dick can cook, Bruce has to order Chinese while Alfred’s gone

Batman: Shadow of the Bat #42 — Alfred returns from London and finds Bruce’s pile of fast food packaging trash

Detective Comics #758 — Bruce can make coffee…chunky coffee, while Alfred’s staying with Tim at boarding school

Nightwing (1996) #68 — Bruce ate off paper plates when Alfred had quit and moved in with Tim at boarding school

No, see, because Dick is the funniest result of being raised by Bruce and Alfred in that he can cook (like Alfred can) but he chooses to eat weird fast food and takeout on purpose (like Bruce does only because he can’t cook).

Thus, we get comics where Dick will cook an actual, quality meal for a hungry sibling but then his apartment is full of pizza boxes in weird flavors and he once ate abandoned popcorn from an empty sports stadium.

I’m also 98% sure that it’s Dick’s fault that Tim’s favorite type of pizza is Canadian bacon and artichoke hearts. But if Tim wants then Dick will hand him a thermos of warm home made soup. Older brother who can meet any of your food needs!

[laufire]

see, though it's funny to compare the arc to tim's believing in helena's innocence during cry for blood and I've done it before (she wouldn't be that sloppy!!) I think tim was right to say "well let's pause and carefully examine the evidence" in bruce wayne: murderer?/fugitive because here's the thing. if bruce kills someone it is gonna be sloppy. it's NOT going to be a perfectly planned murder, it's going to be bruce losing control of his temper and going too far against a criminal, as he often does. usually "too far" means cruelly brutalising them because he's in Too Much (Man)Pain and Has Been Pushed Too Far.

like he does in an issue of gotham knights I read today (#42), where alfred is sick and his life is in danger, and he beats up the riddler long after he's given up. like tim knows he did after jason's death. like when he fucks up the case against the dumpster slasher by going to his home and breaking his jaw. like the way he's come close to killing the joker a few times (hush comes to mind). or like in under the red hood, where he uses lethal force against jason and very much does kill him (comics' comicness aside).

so, yeah. bruce is far, far more likely to completely lose control and commit (in)voluntary manslaughter than premeditated murder. and tim sure knows it well.

[planetoflovers]

As a Jason liker why am I in the anti Jason Todd tag but you’re so real for the “citizens see red hood as more effective than Batman” hate. Loathing. 13 year old kids seeing the guy that killed their uncle Anthony but it’s okay cause dealers won’t sell to their 16 year old sister who’s either now doing even shadier shit to get drugs or being forced through withdrawal. Okay. If you want to fanon jason stays in crime alley area and Jason really puts the fear of god into criminals by killing them -> generation of kids growing up with red hood related ptsd from their extended family and neighbors being killed by this dude. Like. Why are so many people in this fandom obsessed with theory posting about things they don’t know anything about.

It just does not make any sense to me. There are so many examples of goons with families in Batman comics. I’m currently reading Batgirl 2000 and this is a recurring archetype amongst the criminals she fights. I just really dislike Jason stans’ hypocrisy surrounding some of the characters moral codes. Like they say Bruce is childish and weak for upholding his no kill rule and then say that Jason’s methods of killing with no due process or remorse is what Gotham really needs. It’s absurd.

Murdered are a dime a dozen in Gotham. For every drug dealer Jason kills there’s probably another guy out there glad that his competition is gone. Bruce’s whole thing is that he never wants another child to go through what he went through when his parents died, regardless of how morally upright those parents happen to be. Him going around killing criminals goes against that cause whether you want to admit it or not every criminal has someone that loves them.

It should be obvious to everyone by now that Gotham’s main issue is corruption. The reason crime runs rampant is because most of the policy makers and law officials are in the pocket of crime lords like the penguin and black mask thus preventing justice from taking place.

I’ve probably said this before but a lot of gothamites don’t even like Batman and his associates and he works within the limits of the law. With Batman you at least know that you’ll live to see tomorrow but with the red hood that guarantee is not there. Batman inspired hope in people that they can change and choose to do better. Some newer comics seem to have forgotten the heart of Batman but moments like this one from Batman: kings of fear show that Bruce is making a change

And anyways Jason’s whole thing seems more like a child rebelling and lashing out at his father than any real attempt at crime prevention 🤷🏾‍♀️

[burins]

(batman 605)

murderer/fugitive the comic that you are!!!!

[trust-and-jump]

Okay! Since you posted some Bruce Wayne thingie (about Batman being a mask), I have to ask: did you read "Bruce Wayne: Murderer?" and "Bruce Wayne: Fugitive"? If so, what do you think? (I have my own opinion, that is, by now, unchangeable; I'm just curious to see yours).

I'm asking because this event, affecting only bat-related comics, in my opinion, says the same thing as you. Well, maybe not exactly about the protection of his little vigilantes thing, but about the mask and all.

Now, now, wait, I know, it's not that special in comics, it was repeated more than once. But! What we see there is the fact that, due to some problems and odd metaphors (and also the fact that Alfred is being—well what do you call it... Er... Alfred is living the trope of that sage British mentor who will domesticate the poor, neglected American superhero and then ditch them and go back to Britain at the worst possible moment 😂sorry, not crying, just got Buffy the Vampire Slayer in my eye), Bruce himself has problems with remembering it. Which is very, very nice to see.

What I want to say is that.... Batman convinced even some writers, that he, Bruce Wayne, is actually only Batman.

and some writers are convinced he's neither.

And that means that we can't even tell what is his true face. And that's okay, we have different versions of this, it's actually nice. So you're not wrong that he's Bruce Wayne and they aren't wrong he's Batman, and others are not wrong he's just some random psycho, and others..... etc. you get what I mean.

I'm not even touching the subject of Brucie. Just. no.

So. Just wanted to post it, hxksjkslslaam

(also my friend is STILL salty about Sasha's fate and about the fact that the fics with her are almost non-existent. she said she will write one once she finishes the fic she's writing now)

peace

[ID: A single panel from an old Batman comic, depicting Batman escorting a man dressed like him away from the viewer. Batman is saying, “Let’s go, son. Let’s get you some help.” Around them are several narrative boxes, in two different colors. The green boxes, cumulatively, read: “But the avenger within the Batman co-exists with the compassionate man. Batman is indeed two people… and both are Bruce Wayne.” The single yellow box reads simply: “The End.” /ID]

Excuse me as I just leave this here…

[jalapainio]

I'm working on my personal Batman Timeline, and I've just stumbled into 90s-early 2000s comics. And wow, a lot happens here, doesn't it? Knightfall, Contagion, Cataclysm, No Man's Land, Fugitive, and War Games all happen in the same period of time. Not to mention Batman Hush and Under the Red Hood that happened soon after that. Batman really was put through the ringer, wasn't he?

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

Tim Drake said fuck nazis!!!!

[frogaroundandfindout]

Dick stands with Bruce as he grieves at vespers grave. When they leave Bruce apologizes for hitting dick and dick waves it off saying he hit Bruce first. Bruce insists that it was different because he deserved it for how he was acting. Dick concedes to that but maintains he shouldn’t have hit Bruce either. Bruce then asks dick if he wants to be the first to know what happened, seemingly as an extension of his earlier apology (Batman #605)

[havendance]

hello mem!! i just finished reading the entirety of no man’s land, and im trying to figure out where to go from there. online searching hasn’t really been helpful 😭 this is the list i found, im just not sure about the order:

- batman by ed brubaker vol 1

- new gotham vol 1

- officer down

- new gotham vol 2

- bruce wayne murderer/fugitive

- gotham central

- catwoman???? not sure which comics tho

where does vol 2 of batman by ed brubaker fit into this?? is this even the right order?? i’d truly appreciate your help 🥺

I'll do my best to straighten you out!

After No Man's Land, all of the Bat titles go their own way (before joining up back together for Officer Down and Bruce Wayne: Murder/Fugitive).

New Gotham Volume 1 collects Greg Rucka's run on Detective Comics between the end of No Man's Land and Officer Down.

(Following the end of NML, Batman was written by Larry Hama for a little bit, and all of those stories are just kind of fine and also not collected anywhere that I know of so don't worry about that. This bullet point is mainly to explain why Batman by Ed Brubaker does not cover the same span of time as New Gotham.)

The first four issues collected Batman by Ed Brubaker vol 1 take place BEFORE Officer Down. The rest take place afterward.

This was not on your list, but I do also recommend reading Gotham Knights: Transference which collects the first 12 issues of Gotham Knights. This also takes place between the end of No Man's Land and Officer Down. Gotham Knights is comic that does a good job of showcasing the Bats as an ensemble so if you like Batman working with his allies, this is the book for you. Also, Transference is just really good, and Gotham Knights as a whole contributes to everything leading up to Bruce Wayne: Murderer/Fugitive.

Catwoman does not have any collected editions for this period.

Officer Down goes here.

After Officer Down goes New Gotham Volume 2. This collects all of Detective Comics between Officer Down and Bruce Wayne: Murderer.

Batman by Ed Brubaker vol 1 also covers most of this ground. This is where things start getting a little (more) complicated though. The first issue collected in Batman by Ed Brubaker vol 2 takes place BEFORE Bruce Wayne: Murderer. It then proceeds to collect the tie-in issues of Bruce Wayne: Murderer/Fugitive that Brubaker wrote. I would honestly just skip this volume. The first issue is a christmas issue with like an evil (fake) Santa Claus or something and it's not that important. The other issues will be easier to read in other collected editions.

I also recommend you read Gotham Knights: Contested which collects the issues of Gotham Knights between Officer Down and Bruce Wayne: Murderer/Fugitive. The final issue of the does take place AFTER Bruce Wayne: Murder/Fugitive but the rest of it takes place before.

This is where you read Bruce Wayne: Murderer and Bruce Wayne Fugitive. I think there's a new omnibus collecting it all coming out soon, but I'm not sure how useful that is to you.

Gotham Central starts a few months or so after the conclusion of Bruce Wayne: Fugitive, but there's not really anything else you need to read before you can start this.

To look ahead a little after this, Hush starts to run in Batman and Brubaker start doing some other stuff in Detective Comics that doesn't get collected. And then (unfortunately) the next major event is War Games. But there's plenty of comics for you to read up to this point, so we'll stop here for now.

Other notes:

Catwoman does not really tie in to Bruce Wayne: Murderer/Fugitive but around the time that event is starting up, Brubaker is relaunching Catwoman. This is where she gets the black leather catsuit and this IS collected in Catwoman Vol. 1: Trail of the Catwoman. I have not read this, but I've heard that it's good. It's also getting reprinted soon I believe.

Robin does not really have any collected editions post NML. If you want to read him, you're going to need to do it some other way. His event tie in issues are collected though.

Nightwing DOES have some collected editions if you're interested in him though. Nightwing Vol. 5: The Hunt for Oracle overlaps with No Man's Land, but it also collects the start of what he's up to afterward. Following that, Vol. 6 collects the rest of the way up to Officer Down. Vol. 7 and the first 4 issues collected in Vol.8 collect the stuff between Officer Down and Bruce Wayne: Murderer/Fugitive.

Birds of Prey gets hooked in to events, but the comics themselves don't really contribute to the larger Gotham narrative going on. I still think they're fun though. Birds of Prey vol. 3 collects the Birds of Prey comics between the end of NML and Officer Down. There aren't any collected editions for the Dixon run after this though.

Batgirl! We can't forget Batgirl, it's very good. It does get roped into events, but most of it is standalone. Batgirl Vol. 1: Silent Knight collects the comics between the end of NML and Officer Down as well as Cass' Officer Down tie in. This volume is harder to track down/more expensive on the resale market, but if your library as Hoopla, it's available there. (Most of these trades that I'm mentioning are as far as I'm aware.) Vol. 2 collects the comics leading up to Bruce Wayne: Murderer and then a couple, and Vol 3 collects a couple of the tie ins for Fugitive I believe and then beyond. They can largely be read on their own terms.

I would be remiss if I didn't recommend that you also read Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood. This is a six issue mini-series takes place relatively shortly after NML and was recently reprinted as Birds of Prey: Huntress. Definitely read this! It is good! Also you can see what Helena's up to after NML.

Finally, at a point in time between Officer Down and Bruce Wayne: Murderer, Joker: Last Laugh happens which is the event where Dick kills the Joker and Bruce revives him. Every comic has a tie-in where they have to fight Jokerized villains and honestly that could be the extent of your engagement with this comic. The main issues of this event are theoretically collected but also I've never seen this trade anywhere and also it's not on Hoopla (which is how I read most of my trades) so that might prove an issue.

To summarize all of this (I'm using bolded entries to demarcate crossover events. You can jump around between entries in this list between them as they largely run concurrently.) (the exception being like Nightwing vol 5 and 6. The Hunt for Oracle Crossover between Nightwing and Birds of Prey is also collected in both Nightwing vol 5 and Birds of Prey vol. 3):

New Gotham vol. 1

Gotham Knights: Transferrence

Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood

Batgirl vol. 1

Nightwing vol. 5 and vol. 6

Batman by Ed Brubaker vol. 1 (first 4 issues)

Officer Down

The rest of Batman by Ed Brubaker vol. 1

New Gotham vol. 2

Gotham Knights: Contested

Batgirl vol. 2

Nightwing vol. 7 and Nightwing vol. 8 (first 4 issues)

Bruce Wayne: Murderer and Bruce Wayne: Fugitive

Catwoman Volume 1: The Trail of Catwoman (Running roughly concurrently with Murderer/Fugitive)

Batgirl vol. 3

Gotham Central vol. 1

Batman: Hush

etc etc

I think that's it, but I'm sure that if I missed anything one of my lovely and knowledgeable mutuals will point it out.

Clear as mud? But seriously, I hoped this cleared things up for you and please do not hesitate to ask follow up questions! If this list is overwhelming, I would say, Nightwing, Birds of Prey, Batgirl, and Cry for Blood (though as a Helena fan, I really do think you should read Cry for Blood) are less essential to the building Gotham plot that leads up to Murder/Fugitive, but I really do think you should read Gotham Knights. There's some really fun comics in this era, I hope you enjoy!

[tarucore]

Obsessed with this

[cleromancy]

:)

except now like.

AUGH.