Allusions to Batman
From Smallville Wiki
This article describes various allusions in the American television series Smallville to DC Comics character Batman, also known as Bruce Wayne. Although Batman has yet to appear on the series, there have been several references to the character and his universe.
The notes on this page are generated by viewers and comics fans, but not necessarily verified by the show's producers or writers.
Contents |
[edit] Bruce Wayne
Bruce Wayne is the Chairman of Wayne Enterprises. In the future, he becomes the protector of Gotham City under the guise of Batman, around the same time Clark Kent becomes Superman. In the future, he becomes a constant ally and friend to Superman, although the two have drastically different views of justice and crime fighting. In the DC Universe, Batman is essentially the most elite human being alive. With a genius intellect, intimate knowledge of most martial arts, near-unlimited resources, and deft skill, many believe that he is very close to unstoppable.
Batman's role in the world of Superman is rarely merely as a supporting character. As founders of the Justice League of America and as friends, they oftentimes rely on each other. Superman once said of the Dark Knight, "I place myself in situations that would kill a human being because it's very difficult to hurt me. Bruce places himself in those same situations knowing full well he could be killed instantly. For that, I will always admire him." On another occasion Superman described Batman as 'the most dangerous man on Earth'.
Although some view Batman as paranoid and methodical, his care for humanity runs very deep. He attributes this to his father, who was a doctor, as well as his mother, who was a crusader against child abuse. He prefers that Batman be known as an urban legend instead of actually existing.
[edit] Why he has not appeared on Smallville
Due to Batman's restarted film franchise, Bruce Wayne has not appeared on Smallville because the film division of Warner Bros. (DC's parent company) is working with the character. When planning for a hopeful appearance in the early seasons, Alfred Gough and Miles Millar saw Bruce as a rival for Lana's affections, but when they were disallowed the use of the character, Bruce was replaced with Adam Knight. The creators of Smallville were actually thinking of making a Bruce Wayne TV series before the idea of a Superman-oriented show ever came about, but it was never realized. Alfred Gough recently said that an appearance of Bruce Wayne on the show is unlikely.
- Appearing at the Los Angeles Comic Book and Science Fiction Convention at the Shrine Auditorium on Sunday [February 10, 2007] afternoon, the show's creators said they have tried several times to get Bruce Wayne, but they've moved on from that pursuit.
- "Sadly, no," Gough said with a smile after the first of several Batman/Bruce Wayne questions during the panel. "It's not our fault. We've tried and tried, but because of the feature-film franchise, they've made that kind of off limits. Unfortunately."
- "It's a very clear statement: You can't use Bruce Wayne," Millar said. "We've got over it and we're moving on. There are plenty of other characters we can exploit." [1]
[edit] Allusions
Bruce Wayne/Batman has yet to appear on Smallville, however the writers of the show have made many allusions to the Dark Knight on the show. These include:
[edit] Season 1
Episode - Pilot: Clark Kent & Bruce Wayne both have something in common their mothers share the same first name Martha. [Martha Kent] [Martha Wayne]
[edit] Season 2
Episode - Insurgence: Maggie Sawyer A future Metropolis/Gotham City police officer is introduced.
[edit] Season 3
Episode - Resurrection: Lazarus Serum- May be connected with future bat villain Ra's Al Ghul's Lazarus Pits.
[edit] Season 4
Episode - Run: Bart Allen is introduced , he is a close friend of Tim Drake in the Teen Titans .
[edit] Season 5
Episode - Aqua: Aquaman is Introduced, He is a member and apart of the original seven of the Justice League and a close friend of Batman .
Episode - Thirst: Clark attended a costume party disguised as Zorro, (In the Batman mythology Dr. Thomas Wayne and his wife Martha had taken their eight year old son Bruce to see the film "The Mark of Zorro" one night, on that same night on their way home from a movie theater. Bruce witnessed the murder of his beloved parents before his very eyes by Joe Chill.)
Episode - Vengeance: Angel of Vengeance - She is a character who has the same view of crime and justice as Batman, and if you listen carefully, you can hear the first few notes of Danny Elfman's Batman theme.
Episode - Cyborg: Cyborg is introduced, He is a member of the Teen Titans in the comics and has had the pleasure of working under the leadership of both Robins, Dick Grayson & Tim Drake .
[edit] Season 6
Episode - Wither: Gloria was an alien woman who had control over plant life with the intention of taken over the planet earth with her plants. This character has a lot in common with Batman's Villainous vamp eco-terrorists Poison Ivy. Ivy is obsessed with plants, botany, and environmentalism. She uses toxins from plants and her female seduction techniques for her criminal activities,
Episode - Arrow: Oliver Queen- Similar to Batman in the sense that he has no powers, future JLA member alongside the World's Finest as the Green Arrow. Oliver and Lois's relationship in Smallville resembles the relationship between Bruce and Lois in the Superman/Batman animated episode "World Finest". Also Green Arrow bore strong similiarities to Batman in his early years and Batman has frequently appeared in Green Arrow monthly titles.
Episode - Reunion: The first mention of Gotham City- Batman's hometown.
Episode - Static : Martian Manhunter is introduced, Future Justice League member and apart of the original Seven . In his civilian Identity as John Jones he's a Detective just like Batman .
Episode - Hydro:Linda Lake- She says that she can see Gotham City from her office, establishing that Batman exists in the same universe as the show.
Episode - Justice: Justice League of America- Also known as the "JLA." The team that Batman, along with Superman and Wonder Woman, would help form.
[edit] Season 7
Episode - Veritas: Lionel Luthor refers to Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen as the "Dynamic Duo", one Of the common nicknames of Batman & Robin.
Episode - Siren: Super heroine Black Canary is Introduced, In the comics Black Canary has lived in Gotham for many years and has partnered with him before. The two of them have kissed more than once. Dinah also has connection to another member of the Bat-family the former and original Batgirl (Barbara Gordon) who became Oracle the leader of The Birds Of Prey team which Dinah is apart of .
[edit] Season 8
Episode - Hex: Zatanna Zatara- is a powerful sorceress, stage magician, and member of the Justice League of America. She is also a childhood friend of Bruce Wayne in the DC comics. Her father John Zatara taught Bruce how to become greatest escape artist during the years in which Bruce was traveling the globe before he became Batman . Zatanna and Bruce have a working friendship in the comics, with Bruce calling her for assistance from time to time. Zatanna's standing with Batman seems positive, even proposing that they start a relationship before Bruce tells her he cares too much about her to bring her into his world.
Episode - Stiletto: Lois Lane's super heroine alter-ego Identity, Had quite a bit of reference to character of Batman.
Chloe Sullivan Saying that they can't just call Stiletto by putting a spiked heel over a spotlight, homage to the BatSignal
Episode - Eternal: Tess Mercer-"It's like keeping bats around to wipe out the parasites that prey on the city." is a homage to Bruce Wayne's alter ego Batman.
[edit] Season 9
Episode - Savior: Clark as the Blur is now dress in a Black outfit , and he watches over the city of Metropolis high above the city tower. This is a very common attribute of Batman more so than of Superman. Batman is known for using the darkness as a means to conceal himself while being a silent guardian, a watchful protector of Gotham City .
The Watchtower which is Chloe new H.Q. shares a striking resemblance to Oracle's Clocktower headquarters in Gotham city & Metropolis in the comics. Chloe's role as watchtower is Identical to that of Barbara Gordon aka : Oracle, The leader of The Birds of Prey which Black Canary is a member of.
Episode - Crossfire: Oliver takes on a protégé named Mia Dearden she is the second one to bear the name of Speedy, the sidekick of Green Arrow . Batman is known for having a team of sidekicks [Robin], [batgirl] , & [Nightwing] assisting him on his war on crime in Gotham .
In the same episode. Crossfire, Chloe refers to the hacker Stuart Campbell as a "Boy Wonder"
