With an origin that’s been retold so many times that it’s almost become a joke every time a movie cuts to Martha Wayne’s pearls, Batman probably has the most recognizable backstory in all of comics. That might be what makes the Flashpoint Batman origin such an effective twist and a valid pick for the most harrowing comic origin of all time.
In 2011, the DC Comics event Flashpoint created a universe-wide window into an alternate world where Bruce Wayne perished that fateful night instead of Thomas and Martha Wayne. What comes from this is one of the most tragic, but satisfying retellings of who would end up donning Batman’s cowl. In this alternate reality’s wake, comic readers are left with DC Comics’ largest universal reset in the form of The New 52 and an unclear status quo about just who could show up from DC’s most well-known stories. Edgier and lacking hesitation to take out wrongdoers, the Thomas Wayne version of Batman from the Flashpoint reality is among the darkest origin stories out there. Here’s a breakdown of how Thomas Wayne became Batman and the universe-shattering events that followed.
1. Thomas Wayne Fatally Beats Joe Chill With His Bare Hands To Avenge His Son
As one of the many unintended ripple effects of Barry Allen going back in time to prevent his own mother’s demise, Bruce Wayne ends up Joe Chill’s target in Crime Alley. Thomas Wayne uses his medical skills to try and resuscitate his son while Martha Wayne runs to find help, only to come back after her son has already passed.
Taking a radically different approach to justice than his Prime Earth equivalent, the Thomas Wayne Batman embraces lethal force as a vigilante. The Batman of Flashpoint goes out of his way to eliminate all offenders, even those who commit minor wrongdoings, to clean the streets up, all while running a casino empire to fund his crime-fighting efforts. The first crook to receive this brand of justice is Joe, the man responsible in both the Prime Earth and Flashpoint realities for setting their respective Waynes on the path to becoming the Dark Knight.
2. Martha Suffers A Mental Breakdown And Becomes The Flashpoint Joker
While Thomas’s response to the demise of his son involves a newfound bloodlust and hunger for justice, Martha’s grief manifests in a different way – not in depression, but madness and a desire for revenge against the very city that took her son away from her.
While Thomas seeks out Joe, Martha gives herself a graphic version of the Joker’s signature grin, positioning herself as the unhinged counterpoint to her husband’s vigilante role.
3. Martha’s Joker Captures Judge Harvey Dent’s Children
Martha’s modus operandi is a simple one: revenge through fear. Revenge against a city and its weak justice system. Revenge against the officials in place that seemingly do nothing to rid the world of offenders.
One of the Joker’s first targets is Judge Harvey Dent. Dent in the Flashpoint timeline is the judge who failed to sentence Joe, leaving him on the streets to cross the Waynes’ path in Crime Alley. Instead of hitting Dent directly, she nabs his children, making him feel the same pain that drove her mad.
4. The Joker Takes Out Jim Gordon After Tricking Him Into Shooting Dent’s Daughter
While waiting to be discovered by the authorities and her husband, Batman, after taking off with the Dent children, the Joker disguises Dent’s daughter as the Joker, complete with firearms strapped to her hands and a wide grin painted over her duct-taped mouth.
When Jim Gordon enters her hideout, he ends up slaying the child instead of Martha. Martha then slits Gordon’s throat, reinforcing her crusade against Gotham City’s failed justice system and cutting off another of Batman’s lifelines.
5. Thomas Confronts His Wife With A Plan To Change The Timeline
Following the slayings of Dent’s daughter and Gordon, Batman tracks his wife down on the outskirts of Wayne Manor. He tells her about Barry, the original timeline, and their opportunity to change reality so their son gets to live in their place.
The one moment that radically changed their lives and the welfare of millions in Gotham City has the opportunity to be reversed with both mother and father willing to sacrifice their very existence so their son might have a chance to live again.
6. Martha Takes Her Life After Learning Bruce Becomes Batman In The Original Timeline
Upon learning about exactly what Bruce’s future holds, Martha’s grief and overwhelming emotions take over, motivating her to leap off of the cliffs surrounding Wayne Manor.
Martha was Thomas’s last connection to his old life before he donned the mantle as the Knight of Vengeance. Her demise in a way allows Thomas to steel his resolve and fully back Barry’s plan to reverse his timeline tomfoolery, no matter the cost.
7. Batman Takes Out The Reverse Flash In The Middle Of A Huge Clash Between The Atlanteans And The Amazons
One of the interesting things we get to see with this version of Batman is exactly how much Bruce takes after his father. They both share a near genius-level intellect and are master tacticians. Not only does Thomas help re-create the experiment that manifested Barry’s metahuman powers, but he helps gather a task force of metahumans and powered individuals. This includes the attempted rescue of Kal-El from a secret government facility housing “Project Superman” with the help of Cyborg and the Shazam Family. All of this is in the effort to stop the impending conflict between the Amazons and the Atlanteans that will likely wipe out the remaining portions of society.
During the final clash between the Amazons and the Atlanteans, Thomas delivers the ultimate blow to the Reverse Flash/Professor Zoom, who was trying to stop the Flash from fixing the timeline. This scene highlights the critical difference between Bruce and this version of his father. A man with the chance to bring his son back to life has the will and drive to do anything and everything, whether it is physically possible or “right” morally.
8. Thomas Leaves A Letter With The Flash When He Goes Back To The Prime Timeline
Facing the destruction of his reality, Thomas sends a letter with Barry to deliver to Bruce in the Prime timeline. This ends up accomplishing two things, unbeknownst to both parties. First, it provides some much-needed closure to Bruce, taking a chip off his shoulder that he’s carried for 20-plus years. Second, it, along with the Button that will come up later with Wally West’s return from the Speed Force, provide tangible links to timelines and realities other than their own.
These two objects could very well act as anchors for a number of other events that will happen in the future, involving both Thomas’s return and the revelation of Watchmen’s Doctor Manhattan crossing over into their greater DC Universe.
9. The Prime Bruce Gets To Visit Flashpoint While Investigating ‘The Button’ With Barry
A few years after the conclusion of the Flashpoint miniseries, science bros Batman and the Flash come across a peculiar button that came out of the Speed Force when the original Wally escaped. This button resonates with frequencies similar to that of the letter Thomas gave Bruce from the Flashpoint reality.
Bruce and Barry decide to investigate, utilizing the Cosmic Treadmill to travel to the reality where the button originated from. Surprisingly, this journey leads them to the Flashpoint reality, a reality that shouldn’t have existed in any capacity following Barry’s return to Earth Prime.