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This article is about the comic book hero. For alternate meanings, see: Batman (city), Batman River, Batman (army)

Batman is a fictional character, a comic book superhero created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger in 1939. He first appeared in the title Detective Comics, and is currently the lead character of a number of comic books published by DC Comics. Batman and Superman are DC Comics' two most popular and recognizable characters.

In most versions of the Batman mythos, Batman (also called the Batman) is the alter-ego of Bruce Wayne, a millionaire playboy industrialist. Bruce Wayne was driven to fight crime after his parents were murdered by a mugger named Joe Chill when he was a child. He wears a bat-like costume to frighten his enemies, holding the opinion that criminals are a "superstitious lot." The details of the costume have changed with each new incarnation of the character, except for its most distinctive element: a dark cape and cowl with a pair of pointed ears. He also wears a stylized bat emblem on his chest.

Batman operates in Gotham City, a fictional city modelled after New York City. He operates from the "Batcave", a cavern located beneath Bruce Wayne's manor which contains his vehicles, crime lab, gym, computers and trophies.

Unlike most superheroes, Batman does not possess any superhuman abilities. Instead, he fights with martial arts, high-tech gadgets, custom designed vehicles, esoteric weapons, and (especially) brilliant detective skills and a well-trained mind. The equipment often shares a common design theme of being dark coloured as in black or deep blue and have some element of design to suggest a bat. Examples of this include his car, The batmobile, which often depicted as long, black coloured and having large tail fins to suggest batwings and his chief throwing weapon, the batarang often looks like a bat. He keeps most of his personal field equipment in a signature piece of apparel, a yellow utility belt. It typically contains items such as smoke bombs, batarangs, fingerprint kit, a cutting tool, explosives, a grappling hook gun, breathing device etc. As a rule, Batman has an aversion to carrying a sidearm (being the method of his parents' execution), though some stories forgo this plot element and while other stories have him make an exception to this rule by arming his vehicles (although their use is usually only to disable vehicles or remove obstacles). He is also typically portrayed as a brilliant tactician and detective, but typically flawed with a humourless personality obsessed with seeking justice.

Nicknames for the Batman include The Dark Knight, The Caped Crusader, and The World's Greatest Detective. This last phrase comes from the fact that in addition to his James Bond-styled arsenal of gadgets and weapons, Batman is also a brilliant detective, criminal scientist, tactician, and commandr. His best stories have almost without exception been ones where he has displayed intelligence, cunning, and planning to outwit his foes, even more so than merely out-fighting them. His deductive skills put him on par with Sherlock Holmes, and in several stories he has even met the "Great Detective" himself, proving him to be a worthy successor to Holmes. Batman is the mastermind behind the Justice League of America, offering brains and tactical skills to guide the raw power of the other members of the team. He has also been briefly affiliated with other superhero teams, including a short-lived team he founded in the 1980s called "The Outsiders."

Batman uses his keen intelligence to maintain his secret identity of "mind mannered" Bruce Wayne. He guards his secret so well that his true identity is known only to a handful of individuals, including Superman.

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