who could he defeat then? or would he go down to a rabid teacup poodle like a little girl vrs a grizzly?
You always have to prepare Batman first. I prefer him prepared in a cheese sauce, but garlic butter is traditional.
Robin would slap him around.
Alfred would be given a stern talking-to, perhaps even threatened with dismissal.
On a more serious note, almost every superheroes and supervillains in the DC universe that has an actual superpower would kick his butt. If unprepared, all he has are his wits and physical skills. And while both are at the peak of human potential, they are still human.
If, for instance, someone were to get the jump on him (let’s say they shoot him with many tranq darts when he’s at a public function as Bruce Wayne,) strip him naked, and make him do a cage match versus Superman, he’d be dead at the first punch.
Well, no, there’s a lot of low-level powers, and Batman’s one of the world’s top-level fighters, and extremely adept at thinking on his feet. Not every meta is Superman.
Off the top of my head…
Heroes: He could probably hold his own against Black Canary. Gypsy would give him a workout, but who would win would come down to luck. Vixen could take him if she was clever enough, but he could take her if she was having a bad day, or he was especially sharp.
Villains: Double Down would hurt him, but has gotten owned by much lesser heroes. Mr Freeze rarely gives him too much trouble. Icicle and other similar characters would likewise prove little trouble. Poison Ivy rarely gives him problems, any longer.
I disagree with bouv, but only insofar as Superman wouldn’t kill.
Becaus of this, Bats might actually have an advantage against multiple simultaneous opponents. He could strategically manipulate them into attacking each other, then pick off the last one left standing. Certain adventures of the Teen Titans (or, if we’re allowed crossovers, the X-Men) where heros got served until they thought of better tactics spring to mind.
Ah, but he is Batman. Therefore, he would undoubtedly be prepared for being unprepared. The guy is so paranoid that he has multiple contingency plans for going to take a leak. (Of course, “being prepared for being unprepared” often seems to consist of running away like his ass was on fire. :D)
To make sure he’s unprepared, you would have to isolate him in an unbroken shell of effectively indestructible material (what’s the DC equivalent of adamantium, again?) with nothing in it but him. That means taking away all of his stuff, which probably requires exploratory surgery. Then you could put opponents in, one at a time, to see how he does. (Oh, make sure that none of his opponents are capable of breaking the shell in any way, and don’t teleport them back out again for any reason, or he’ll find a way to use that against you.) Also, don’t watch or listen, so he can’t play mind games with you. Record it for later review.
Under those conditions, bereft of his Power of Plot, most major powered heroes and villains would pwn him mercilessly in the cage match. As others have suggested, he could give a good fight to any of the unpowered characters, and beat most of them. He could probably take a fair number of the single-power characters, especially the ones whose powers require targeting (like Black Canary). Anyone higher up the scale, he could only beat by messing with their heads. I would not care to be in the position of a psychic character facing him.
There’s also Inertron.
I’m actually flicking through Arkham Asylum right now… towards the end, Bats is jumped by an member of the asylum staff, just a Doctor, no powers, no nothing. Taken by suprise, Bats is overthrown, and gets pinned down on the ground, with the doctor strangling him. Batman actually has to call on a nearby staff member
" Help me! For God’s Sake, Do SOMETHING!!!"
If said nearby staff member was not present, seems that Bats would have been pwned.
I was seriously wondering if Aqua man would give him a run…on dry land…with no amphibians around to talk to.
but I did forget about the good chance that hes prepared for the unexpected to the nth degree.
damn bats
In an early outing in July, 1939, a “giant Indian” got the drop on The Batman and shot him. The B. tear-gassed him. But I wouldn’t call that being “prepared,” exactly. Prepared would be tear-gassing the guy before he shoots you.
Oh, yes. Yes, indeed he would. Assuming Aquaman (whichever Aquaman we’re discussing) isn’t near the end of his hour on dry land.
Aquaman, aside from the ability to breathe air, briefly (or, in AJ’s case, the ability to breathe water, replacing his ability to breathe air), and ability to communicate with/command sea creatures, is super-strong and super-durable (not Superman level, but well, well above Batman), and near the end of his tenure Orin had the ability to control water (before that he had the harpoon-hand, which is a bit of an ace), and had been demonstrated to have developed his telepathy to the point that he can effect the primitive portions of humans’ brains, allowing him to induce seizures.
He’d probably take AJ, on skill, as the kid is a newbie, has been trained to fight while swimming (which is a different skill-set than a stand up fight or grapple on the ground), and is rather likely to be awed by meeting the Bat. (Edit - Oh, and he has fewer powers than Orin - no water hand, and he’s only just developed the telepathy.)
I dunno about that… Batman might be able to avoid direct confrontation for an hour. If he can spend all that time ducking, weaving, and running, he could win by default. Aquaman doesn’t have superhuman reflexes or speed, does he? On land, I mean: I’m sure he could beat Batman in the 100-meter freestyle.