Absolute Batman is larger than life; a 6 foot 9 inch wall of muscle, trained in a variety of martial arts and fighting styles. His cape seems to twist and contort in the shape of a demonic bat. He is the traditional Batman with all the dials turned up to eleven and, frankly, given some of the villians he is up against – it is needed.
Absolute Batmobile: first appearance
With all that said, not everyone was a fan of the design when the Batmobile debuted in Scott Snyder’s Absolute Batman #2, where Batman and Pennyworth use it to escape the Black Mask’s goons. Like Batman, the Batmobile has been amped up to maximum. It is a behemoth; larger than a house and capable of easily ploughing through other vehicles. This is a far cry from the sleek designs we have generally been more used to in other comics.
What it does have in common with the more traditional Batmobiles, is the technology. Glossing over how he funds it, Bruce Wayne is able to rig the giant vehicle to collapse into a smaller, albeit still very large, speedster version that helps him escape the Black Mask. On top of that, it is aquatic, fires electrical charges, and has a deployable ball and chain.
Origin of the Absolute Batmobile
In DC’s Absolute Batman Annual #1 (written and illustrated by Daniel Warren Johnson), we saw how Batman acquired the Batmobile. On an errand to pick up non-lethal supplies, Bruce Wayne heads out of Gotham to Swamp City, where he stumbles on a large group of racists, many of them in what look like Professor Pyg masks. After witnessing their violence against a mother and child, and learning of their plot to oust more families from the city, Batman takes the fight to them.
Though violent, none of the lowlifes can stand against Batman. There is a satisfying moment where their leader Deejay is brutally incapacitated after doing a fascist salute. Others receive similar treatment at the hands of the Dark Knight. The racists do have an advantage over Batman in sheer numbers but they do have to retreat to regroup after such an attack.
A flash of lightning reveals the perfect tool for Batman to continue his pursuit of the white supremacists; a gigantic haul truck, tattered cover billowing in the storm. Using this behemoth, Batman smashes into their headquarters and destroys the building, leaning Batman to mop up the rest.
The fact that Absolute Batman is not a billionaire has been raised by fans as a minor inconsistency in the series. Bruce is able to acquire a lot of materials to make gadgets, without necessarily having the capital or resrouces to back it all. Having requisitioned the massive haul truck at least helps explain how he got it, if not how Bruce got it into Gotham, but that is just comics.
Buy Absolute Batman Annual second printing, Daniel Warren Johnson foil variant – Forbidden Planet UK (I earn a commission)
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