Batman’s newest enemy, the White Bat, shows The Dark Knight just how dangerous a double life can be in Batman: Black & White.
Warning: The following contains spoilers for “Dual,” in Batman: Black and White #2, by Dustin Weaver and Todd Klein, on sale now.
One of Batman’s defining characteristics is his duality. There’s a very sharp divide between Bruce Wayne, billionaire socialite, and the Dark Knight. However, Batman’s most recent foe, the White Bat, takes this duality to a dangerous new level.
The White Bat appears in the story “Dual,” in Batman: Black and White #2. Batman is seen tracking the smoke emanating from Gotham’s streets, believing it to be linked to the mysterious White Bat. For the past six nights, the Caped Crusader has been hunting this new vigilante, having heard rumors of the White Bat’s escalating violence. The White Bat has beaten petty criminals to death, attacked people in their homes, trapped the homeless in the zoo and even euthanized hospital patients who were on life support.
At the scene of every crime, the White Bat leaves behind bundles of cash. For some odd reason, Batman can never catch up to the White Bat in time. The Dark Knight notes how it’s almost as if “like the same poles of a magnet, a repulsive force kept us apart,” as he puts it.
Batman also points out the shocking similarities between the White Bat and himself. Apparently, this new vigilante looks identical to Bruce Wayne and wears Batman’s costume. The only major difference between them is that the White Bat’s costume pale white and he has “soulless” white eyes. In a literal and figurative sense, the White Bat is a pale reflection of the Dark Knight. The White Bat looks and acts like a much more violent Batman.
The calling card that this vigilante leaves behind is a white bat painted on white paper. While investigating the card, Alfred discovers that the bat is painted on an old business card from Wayne Enterprises, back when it was called Wayne Co. The business card is traced back to Ewan Bryce, an individual that has no record, except that his name was surreptitiously added to Bruce Wayne’s bank account.
Using a white version of the Batplane, the White Bat is able to tap into Bruce’s communications frequency. The White Bat makes the mysterious claim that he wants the four walls of his house and all of the rooms inside. Although Batman tries to shoot the White Bat down, his own engine blows and a massive aircraft approaches.
The White Bat’s engine also blows, crash-landing him on the larger craft. Deep inside the ship, Batman finds another version of the Batcave. Inside sits a decaying old man who welcomes Bruce home. Evidently, the old man is a Thomas Wayne.
It’s quite unclear as to who the White Bat is exactly. Still, there is a lot of symbolism to be read from this character. Perhaps the White Bat is an embodiment of everything Batman could be if he gave in to his anger and pain. the White Bat is excessively violent and cruel, possibly acting out the pain that Bruce experienced when he lost his parents.
It also seems that this White Bat is clinging to the past. For example, his business card belonged to Wayne Co., a much older version of Wayne Enterprises. While Batman forges ahead with Gotham and looks to the future, it appears that the White Bat is a version of Batman that hasn’t moved on from the Gotham of his past, not terribly unlike DC’s villainous Flashpoint Thomas Wayne.
In this dream-like tale, the White Bat is who Batman could become if he truly never let go of his parents’ death. This continued grief is apparent from the massive ship, into which the White Bat crashes. The fact that Bruce’s long-dead father is holed up inside of this ship indicates how destructive Bruce’s grief could be if he let it consume him.
While he might be clad in light, the White Bat is ultimately a dark reflection of who the Dark Knight could easily become.
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