Batman is one of the greatest superheroes of all time. He is a fascinating character because of his genius-level intellect, athleticism, and martial arts skills, all while lacking superpowers most of the time. Moreover, with his impressive Bat-gadgets and wit, Batman is hailed as the world’s greatest detective. There have been a few times when Batman has gained superpowers. That being said, Bruce Wayne has also given up the mantle due to multiple reasons. Either way, each version of Batman has cemented the mantle as a cultural icon, though not all of the versions share the same strength, both in powers and character.
Updated on October 29th, 2021 by Scoot Allan: There have been quite a few different versions of Batman over the years, as Bruce Wayne has changed and grown or even passed on his cowl to others. The DC multiverse has also introduced a number of different takes on the Dark Knight that have resulted in some of the most powerful but also tragic versions of the character. Here is a look at a few more versions of Batman that highlight some of the most powerful versions as well as some of the weakest.
15 MOST POWERFUL: Batman Was Corrupted When He Gained Superman’s Abilities During “Super/Bat”
Batman and Robin had many adventures together as the World’s Finest which was chronicled in a few different series like Superman/Batman. The “Super/Bat” storyline saw their powers switched by a magical curse from Silver Banshee, resulting in a human Clark Kent and a Kryptonian-powered Bruce Wayne.
Batman was corrupted by his powerful new abilities like flight, super-strength, super-speed and heat vision and nearly became an unstoppable villain, though a Batsuit-wearing Superman and the Justice League were able to reverse the power switch and return him to normal.
14 LEAST POWERFUL: Batman ’66 Relies More On Bat-Gadgets & His Intelligence Than Fighting Skills
While the Adam West version of Batman first appeared on television in the 60s alongside Dick Ward as Robin in one of the most recognized versions of the Dynamic Duo, the pair debuted in the comics in 2013 with a continuation of the series called Batman ’66.
The Caped Crusader wasn’t exactly known for his incredible strength or fighting prowess, despite the graphic effects that occurred every time he landed a punch or poorly-delivered kick. This version of Batman was more focused on Bat-gadgets, Anti-anything sprays and his own wits, not to mention the iconic Batusi.
13 MOST POWERFUL: The Batman Who Laughs Is A Joker-Infected Bruce Wayne From The Dark Multiverse
A new villain threatened the multiverse during the Dark Nights: Metal event, which introduced The Batman Who Laughs and his team of Dark Multiversal Dark Knights. The Batman Who Laughs was actually Bruce Wayne, who had crossed the line in his reality and killed the Joker during one of their battles.
This unleashed a transformative Joker Toxin that infected Bruce Wayne and he became a dark hybrid of Batman and the Joker that featured the same cunning and over-preparedness as the Dark Knight along with the ruthlessness and insanity of the Clown Prince of Crime.
12 LEAST POWERFUL: Policeman Elliot Ness Became A Bat-Wielding Masked Vigilante Known As Bat-Man
Batman: Scar of the Bat was an Elseworlds tale that took place in Prohibition-era Chicago and starred as an alternate take on real-world FBI agent Elliot Ness, who might be best known as the leader of the police squad known as the Untouchables who were focused on taking down gangster Al Capone.
Scar of the Bat‘s Ness was forced to operate under police restrictions, so he created a masked vigilante costume to operate outside of the law. His costume was inspired by the 1959 movie The Bat (much like Batman’s creation) and he became known as the Bat-Man after he debuted using a wooden bat, though he ultimately upgraded to an era-appropriate Tommy Gun.
11 MOST POWERFUL: A Mourning Bruce Wayne Stole Barry Allen/The Flash’s Speed To Become The Red Death
Another Bruce Wayne from the Dark Multiverse who worked with The Batman Who Laughs was known as the Red Death, and he first appeared during the Dark Nights: Metal event as well. Stricken with grief after losing all of his Robins in his fight on crime, he decided to steal The Flash’s speed as he felt he could put it to better use.
He took out Flash’s rogues and stole their gear so he could capture Barry Allen, and then he merged his Batmobile with the Cosmic Treadmill and drove it into the Speed Force with The Flash strapped to the hood. The Red Death used Allen’s super-speed to kill his own rogues, though he’s still forced to deal with Barry Allen’s conscience that is trapped in his brain.
10 MOST POWERFUL: A Multiversal Batman Was Transformed Into A Vampire In Order To Fight Dracula During Red Rain
In Batman and Dracula: Red Rain, Batman was investigating the murders of Gotham’s homeless. The victims were slashed on their throats by an unidentified homicidal maniac. Through investigation, Batman discovered that the murders were committed by a family of vampires led by Dracula.
Tanya, Dracula’s once-loyal vampire helped Batman in taking down Dracula, though she did it by biting Batman to give him the power needed to match up to Dracula’s strength. Batman acquired hypnotic powers, flight, enhanced strength, and enhanced senses to take on the vampire threat, though the curse ultimately consumed him and he began to murder off his rogues.
9 LEAST POWERFUL: Batman Gained Destructive Echolocation Powers From The Amazo Virus That Almost Threatened To Kill Him
The Amazo Virus was a synthetic plague created by Lex Luthor in his lab that was accidentally released. The outbreak of the virus affected the people of Metropolis in large numbers, including most of the League members. Batman soon fell prey to the virus when his hazmat suit was damaged and he was exposed.
While he lost his vision, he was able to create sound waves and use destructive echolocation bursts, much like a bat. Although he developed metahuman powers for a brief period of time, death by the Amazo Virus was all but inevitable until a cure was found by the unafflicted League members.
8 MOST POWERFUL: Batman’s Hellbat Armor Was Forged By The Justice League And Gave Him A Superpowered Edge
In Batman and Robin #33, the Justice League came together to forge the Hellbat suit for Batman so he could fight the forces of Darkseid. His son Damian Wayne/Robin was killed by Heretic and the corpse was taken to Apokolips by Darkseid’s forces.
Wearing the Hellbat armor, Batman descended on Apokolips to reclaim his son. The Hellbat armor granted Batman powers of flight and near-invulnerability that allowed Batman to take on Darkseid’s Parademons and Kalibak head-on. Unfortunately, the suit was very draining and he could only wear it for limited amounts of time.
7 LEAST POWERFUL: An Elderly Bruce Wayne Was Forced To Wear An Exo-Skeleton In The Futuristic Kingdom Come
The miniseries Kingdom Come takes place in an alternate future where Batman’s identity is no longer a secret. He’s endured years of physical abuse from fighting the big bads. His armed robots named Bat-Knights keep Gotham safe for him. With Bruce’s identity out in the open, he was rendered particularly vulnerable.
Years of the fighting took a toll on Bruce’s health. He grafted a special armored exoskeleton onto his body to help him move around. When Superman visited Batman, he learned that Bruce is only able to walk through the exoskeleton, though he eventually created an armored suit that lets him get back into action.
6 MOST POWERFUL: Bruce Wayne Was Resurrected To Become The Powerful But Short-Lived White Lantern
While Batman was originally chosen to be a White Lantern during the Blackest Night event, it wasn’t the only time he gained the upgrade. In Batman Universe #5, Batman was shot to death by Vandal Savage in Crime Alley. He was resurrected by an ancient White Lantern ring and he wielded healing abilities and gained dominance over the emotional spectrum.
For a brief moment, Batman became one of the most powerful beings in the universe. To Batman, wearing the White Lantern ring felt interesting but didn’t alter his personality like some of his other power upgrades. Though the ring let him go eventually, he was able to use it to defeat Vandal Savage.
5 LEAST POWERFUL: Batman Beyond’s Terry McGinnis Is One Of The Least Experienced Dark Knights Despite Advanced Technology
The critically-acclaimed Batman Beyond was a futuristic tale that saw Bruce Wayne succumb to old age, forcing him to retire. He turned over the cape and cowl because his body was worn out due to multiple injuries sustained from fighting. His legacy was carried on by a young protege named Terry McGinnis who relied on a host of things to fight crimes, including new-age technology.
In the beginning, he was trained by Bruce Wayne and gradually made allies with Barbara Gordon, Max Gibson, and Dick Grayson. Terry and Bruce didn’t always agree upon things, but Terry eventually proved to be a worthy successor of the mantle. However, just based on mere experience, Terry was one of the weaker iterations of Batman.
4 MOST POWERFUL: Bruce Wayne’s Will Overrode His Green Lantern Ring To Become Dawnbreaker
The Batman known as Dawnbreaker first appeared during the Dark Nights: Metal event that introduced the Dark Multiverse. The story begins the night Bruce’s parents were murdered by Joe Chill. Bruce was chosen by a Green Lantern ring, which he wanted to use to kill Chill despite the ring’s mandate against lethal force.
He overrode the ring’s programming with his willpower and murdered Joe Chill. In doing so, he violated the first law of the Green Lantern Corps. The Corps was forced to travel to Earth to stop the Dawnbreaker. However, he successfully wiped the entire Corps out before joining with The Batman Who Laughs and his Dark Knights.
3 LEAST POWERFUL: The Dark Knight Returns’ Batman Was Older And Slower But Still Got The Job Done
Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns is set in a possible, alternate future where Bruce has given the mantle of Batman up. In his absence, a violent gang named The Mutants wreaked havoc in the streets of Gotham. The story is depicted as Batman’s last adventure as he came out of retirement to restore order.
This led to Superman being dispatched by the government to take down Batman, which forced him to equip himself with exoskeleton armor, sonic blaster, and synthetic Kryptonite to fight Superman. Batman was still seemingly killed by Superman in the battle when his heart gave out, though it was later revealed that he had faked out Superman to continue his operation in secret.
2 MOST POWERFUL: He Became The New God Of All Knowledge When He Sat On Metron’s Mobius Chair
The Mobius Chair is a time-space/dimensional vehicle created by the New God Metron. During the Darkseid War, Batman was aided by Wonder Woman in taking the chair from Metron. When he sat in the chair, he became the God of All Knowledge. This led him to seek answers about the Anti-Monitor to help turn the tide of war.
The Mobius Chair allowed Batman to fly and teleport anywhere in the time-space dimension and unlocked previously unknown mysteries like the murderer of his parents and the secret identity of the Joker. Batman was corrupted by the power of the chair and began to think of himself as “an absolute Batman dealing absolute justice.”
1 LEAST POWERFUL: Detective Comics’ Original Batman Had A Long Way To Go To Become The Protector Of Gotham City
Detective Comics #33 (1939) is a fairly simplistic version of “where it all began for Bruce Wayne.” It is the story of Batman and how he came to be. The legend of Batman began the night Bruce’s parents, Thomas and Martha Wayne were shot by the mugger. A few days later, Bruce decides to spend the rest of his life warring against criminals.
He became a master scientist, perfected his body, and adopted the disguise of a bat. Bruce donned the cape and cowl to become the Batman, and he used a few minimal gadgets and vehicles. In spite of Bruce Wayne’s chronicled journey to becoming Gotham’s main vigilante, this simplistic version of Batman pales in comparison to other versions in terms of power.
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