Catwoman has borrowed one of Batman’s classic tactics, but she isn’t using it nearly as responsibly as the Dark Knight ever has.
Batman and Catwoman are one of DC’s most complicated couples. Whether they’re friends or foes, they have constantly existed within similar spheres throughout their tenure in Gotham City. While Batman operates as the dark vigilante who brings the scum of Gotham to justice, Catwoman exists as a force of chaos, doing what she pleases as she pleases to do so. Her devil may care attitude has put her at odds with not only Batman, but also countless other criminals and thugs.
No matter how different their agendas may be, Batman and Catwoman do share one uncomfortable similarity: they have both used children to further their goals. While they may not recruit children en masse, Batman and Catwoman still put children in harm’s way — albeit for very different reasons.
In Catwoman #27, by Ram V and Fernando Blanco, Catwoman uses a gang of children to distract a motorcade of vehicles transporting drugs across Gotham. While she doesn’t tell any of the children to attack the thugs transporting the drugs, or even to handle the drugs at all, she still decided to pit them against armed men with narcotics.
Catwoman has always seen herself as a guardian of sorts to those that society has forgotten in Gotham. She herself grew up on its mean streets; she holds the memories of those days close to her heart and it’s what makes her protective of the weak and downtrodden.
Rather than allying himself with a multitude of children, Batman has taken the role of mentor and father-figure for one boy at a time. The title of Robin was given first to Dick Grayson, then Jason Todd, then Tim Drake, and most recently to Batman’s own son, Damien Wayne. The boys that Batman has mentored have had difficult pasts. Dick lost his parents in a tragic accident; Jason was a street rat that Batman took in, giving him a home and a chance at a good future; and Damien was his own son, mothered by Talia Al-Ghul, raised to be a fierce fighter. Tim was the only one to be recruited under different circumstances: he was able to learn Batman’s true identity, and in doing so, convinced Batman to recruit him.