Is Batman a good shot?

[Nintendite]

One of those "don't worry, it's just a comic book" questions that has always bugged me is this: Batman hates guns. Batman is said to be an expert with just about every weapon on earth. So is he good with guns but merely doesn't use them?

[Kid Kyoto]

IIRC in Batman year 2 he does use guns and none other than Joe Chill says "you're a good shot". Or was it Alfred? Someone definitely says he is.

So yeah. It's all hand-eye coordination after all.

[Doom]

Well in a Batman guide book I have (written by Bat-writer Scott Beatty) it shows the Bat-cave has a firing range and says that even though Batman doesn't use guns he does sometimes train with them, useually firing guns so he can conduct Ballistics tests.

So I imagine that's why..

[a-spidey]

good question, never thought about it.

Never saw him at shooting stand :D

[Mr Blinky]

I remember a Batman story from the late 90's, something about Deathstroke being hired to assasinate a guy on a ship that was coming through Gotham harbour...something like that...:confused:

Anyhoo, Batman takes down Deathstroke (which is awesome) but notices that there's another assassin onboard ship, about to kill the mark. With no other option, Batman takes Slade's rifle, and takes aim...

"You can't do it from here!" says a badly beaten Deathstroke, from ground level, "It's an impossible shot!"

BAM! Bats puts a round through the killer's shoulder, dropping him and allowing the intended victim to overpower him.

As we find out later, when Bruce studied with the manhunter Henri Ducard, Ducard made regular gun training a condition of the tutelage - pretty much purely because it made Bruce uncomfortable. :evilsmile

So, yeah, he's a hell of a shot; it's just a skill he has little use for.

[fallout boy]

He even trained Dick when he was still Robin how to fire weapons. That's why he was such a pro when he joined the BPD even though he downplayed his abilities.

[Nintendite]

Thanks. That question always was bugging me. I was thinking he'd be a great shot simply because A) he's Batman and B) he often has to aim his equipment such as Grapple guns in a similar manner.

[satchmo the dragon]

And why not just use a gun with tranquilizer bullets?

[Kid Kyoto]

"And why not just use a gun with tranquilizer bullets?"

He did in Batman the Cult. But generally it's an image thing, he just HATES guns.

And (just to bring in some realism) tranq darts are really not that good. They are very slow (they have to go slower than bullets otherwise they're just as deadly) and can't penetrate much.

[zeroEDGE]

I think he is a good shot even though he hates guns, never know when he might actually use one.

[satchmo the dragon]

Yeah he is Batman so he probably learned to be an expert marksman just in case of emergency, he can wound someone if it is the only option.

[mgs]

although understandible with his parents, it's kinda silly he's got such a stance against guns, not like he has to use them to kill someone. and sides, he's no pacifist. I mean, anyone who will gladly beat you to a pulp, break all the bones in your body, but be like, 'gun!' oh no, that's just wrong!, is kinda weird.

[Eliseu Gouveia]

The question should be:

What ISN´T Batman good at?

[wes_rk]

The question should be:

What ISN´T Batman good at?
people skills
just kidding.


I remember a Batman story from the late 90's, something about Deathstroke being hired to assasinate a guy on a ship that was coming through Gotham harbour...something like that...:confused:

Anyhoo, Batman takes down Deathstroke (which is awesome) but notices that there's another assassin onboard ship, about to kill the mark. With no other option, Batman takes Slade's rifle, and takes aim...

"You can't do it from here!" says a badly beaten Deathstroke, from ground level, "It's an impossible shot!"

BAM! Bats puts a round through the killer's shoulder, dropping him and allowing the intended victim to overpower him.

As we find out later, when Bruce studied with the manhunter Henri Ducard, Ducard made regular gun training a condition of the tutelage - pretty much purely because it made Bruce uncomfortable. :evilsmile

So, yeah, he's a hell of a shot; it's just a skill he has little use for.

Do you happen to know which book, issue, etc. was this? I want to look for it and read it, because it sounds amazing.

[The Batman]

http://www.batmannews.de/gotham_city_central/batcave/pics/grappling_hook_2.jpg


Also, doesn't he have to be a good shot for that grappling gun thingie he uses?

[dancj]

although understandible with his parents, it's kinda silly he's got such a stance against guns, not like he has to use them to kill someone. and sides, he's no pacifist. I mean, anyone who will gladly beat you to a pulp, break all the bones in your body, but be like, 'gun!' oh no, that's just wrong!, is kinda weird.
The only people in the world who can shoot at people without a danger of killing them are the A-Team.

IIRC Pre-Crisis Batman had a psychological block which meant he couldn't use guns at all. I've got some story where he's undercover as a policeman and when he has to go to the shooting range he gets out of it by throwing something (possibly the gun itself) at the target.

[Captain Jim]

The question should be:

What ISN´T Batman good at?


people skills

Good one ! :D

[Xanrn]

His grappling hook in the Comics is never drawn as very gun like at all.

It's sort of a T shape held in the hand with the vertical bar sticking out between his fingers and the grapple is attached and firing from that.

Dude has a serious serious gunphopia or something.

[Mr Blinky]

Do you happen to know which book, issue, etc. was this? I want to look for it and read it, because it sounds amazing.

Fortunately, I remembered that the other assassin involved was Gunhawk: one google later...


Issue Detective Comics 708
Subtitle The Death Lottery part one: Heart of Glass
Date April 1997

Writer(s) Chuck Dixon
Artist(s) Graham Nolan, Bill Sienkiewicz


Turns out I was actually thinking of part three of this story (Heart of Ice), but I figured you'd rather start with part one, yeah?

[Kristofer]

http://www.batmannews.de/gotham_city_central/batcave/pics/grappling_hook_2.jpg


Also, doesn't he have to be a good shot for that grappling gun thingie he uses?

that was actually from Tim Burton's Batman and Batman Returns.
the comic books used more along the lines of Batman TAS type of grappling gun.

I'm sure he was trained to be a good shot in order to get away quicker...understanding the mechanics behind it all, ya know ?

[wes_rk]

Fortunately, I remembered that the other assassin involved was Gunhawk: one google later...


Issue Detective Comics 708
Subtitle The Death Lottery part one: Heart of Glass
Date April 1997

Writer(s) Chuck Dixon
Artist(s) Graham Nolan, Bill Sienkiewicz


Turns out I was actually thinking of part three of this story (Heart of Ice), but I figured you'd rather start with part one, yeah?

thank you very much.

[dupersuper]

although understandible with his parents, it's kinda silly he's got such a stance against guns, not like he has to use them to kill someone. and sides, he's no pacifist. I mean, anyone who will gladly beat you to a pulp, break all the bones in your body, but be like, 'gun!' oh no, that's just wrong!, is kinda weird.

Also, some one who dresses like a bloody bat and fights crime all night...most of whose friends and colleagues dress in colourful tights...who keeps training teens to dress up and fight crime...who has a virtual arsenal of non-lethal weapons and fleet of high-tech vehicles hidden in a cave underneath his mansion...may be considered kinda' weird...

[dupersuper]

The only people in the world who can shoot at people without a danger of killing them are the A-Team.


This made me laugh. I thank you. :D

[Buried Alien]

He even trained Dick when he was still Robin how to fire weapons. That's why he was such a pro when he joined the BPD even though he downplayed his abilities.

Similarly, Batman trained Jason Todd in the use of firearms back when Jason was Robin (which interestingly enough, dovetails nicely now with Jason's Red Hood career). This training came into play back during the MILLENIUM crossover, when Batman was being attacked by a Manhunter robot disguised as Commissioner Gordon and Robin had to bail him out with a well-placed shot from a 12-gauge. Batman reflected that Jason was a "good shot," whom Batman had personally trained to shoot so well.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[CYOTI]

Do you happen to know which book, issue, etc. was this? I want to look for it and read it, because it sounds amazing. Detective Comics 710 by Chuck Dixon with Deathstroke appearing in a blue suit and the 2nd adventure with Gunhawk.

[Choppa]

In BW:Murderer, Bruce is shown to have a fear of guns. Yet he is still highly trained to use them.

[Doom]

although understandible with his parents, it's kinda silly he's got such a stance against guns, not like he has to use them to kill someone. and sides, he's no pacifist. I mean, anyone who will gladly beat you to a pulp, break all the bones in your body, but be like, 'gun!' oh no, that's just wrong!, is kinda weird.


It actually made sense to me. You see for most of the Post Crisis Batman universe, Batman had no idea who was responsible for his parents murder. (Since Infinite Crisis, he knows it was Joe Chill and he put him away.) However all he could remember of the night is parents were killed was them, then the iconic image of the gun being pointed at his parents, his mother's necklace being broken, his parents being shot and them dieing.

I suppose, since Bruce was so young he couldn't remember who shot his parents (which in part explains why he does the Batman thing. He could never catch the man who killed his parents, so he lashes out at ALL criminals.) he could only remember the gun. And that's why he refused to use guns. It's the one thing he remembers that killed his parents.

On a tangent, in Batman Year Two (a story that went out of continuity, but I think has gone back in.) Batman is shown as having recovered the gun that murdered his parents and he used that during that story line.

[GRANT!]

I thought this post was about his basketball skills.

I'd totally read a Batman vs. the Harlem Globetrotters comic.

[SMMM]

I thought this post was about his basketball skills.

I'd totally read a Batman vs. the Harlem Globetrotters comic.

Throw in a ghost and it sounds like an ep of Scooby Doo.

[Jmacq1]

Actually the Gunhawk feat was even more impressive. He didn't shoot Gunhawk in the shoulder...he shot the guns out of his hands, IIRC.

At the range he was supposedly at, that's darn near a Deadshot level of skill.

So yeah...he's not just a good shot...he's a really good shot.

And for some reason I have the mental image of Batman firing handguns on the in-Batcave shooting range (probably for ballistics tests), wearing ear protection and glasses. For some reason I'm also thinking it was during the O'Neil/Adams days (or maybe it was Infantino). But the memory is vague.

[Choppa]

^Also I'm pretty sure they showed a bunch of guns in the cave during Murderer

[Slortex]

Actually the Gunhawk feat was even more impressive. He didn't shoot Gunhawk in the shoulder...he shot the guns out of his hands, IIRC.

At the range he was supposedly at, that's darn near a Deadshot level of skill.

So yeah...he's not just a good shot...he's a really good shot.

And for some reason I have the mental image of Batman firing handguns on the in-Batcave shooting range (probably for ballistics tests), wearing ear protection and glasses. For some reason I'm also thinking it was during the O'Neil/Adams days (or maybe it was Infantino). But the memory is vague.

There's a scene like that from Year Two, where Alfred comes down, sees Bruce at the range, practicing with the gun that killed his parents. It always did bug me about that series that Bruce ended up with the gun.

[filthysize]

Which comic was it where Batman's fighting some villain, and he gets thrown through a wall and accidentally stumbles into a gun smuggling operation? He just looks around really angry and goes, "Do you have ANY idea how much I HATE guns?" and then goes batshit and beats everyone up?

I always thought that was really funny, but I can't remember where I read it.

[satchmo the dragon]

Which comic was it where Batman's fighting some villain, and he gets thrown through a wall and accidentally stumbles into a gun smuggling operation? He just looks around really angry and goes, "Do you have ANY idea how much I HATE guns?" and then goes batshit and beats everyone up?

I always thought that was really funny, but I can't remember where I read it.

I feel bad for those criminals. Running a nice succesful operation and of all people Batman suddenly gets thrown through the wall?

[mgs]

The only people in the world who can shoot at people without a danger of killing them are the A-Team.

</p>
what if it's a really, really small gun, like a bb or paintball gun? ;P But I mean, really, there are non-lethal guns out there and with his skill, it's actually more likely he'd kill someone using his physical attacks than any weapon.

[mgs]

IIRC Pre-Crisis Batman had a psychological block which meant he couldn't use guns at all. I've got some story where he's undercover as a policeman and when he has to go to the shooting range he gets out of it by throwing something (possibly the gun itself) at the target.

haha! that's awesome, I wonder what issue that was? :)

[dreyga2000]

Which comic was it where Batman's fighting some villain, and he gets thrown through a wall and accidentally stumbles into a gun smuggling operation? He just looks around really angry and goes, "Do you have ANY idea how much I HATE guns?" and then goes batshit and beats everyone up?

I always thought that was really funny, but I can't remember where I read it.

Part Three Bruce Wayne fugitive where Bats saves Cain from being killed by Deadshot.

[Rupertmetal]

And why not just use a gun with tranquilizer bullets?

Cus you could poke an eye like that haha.

I'd just give him the benefit of the doubt and say he is good with guns because his super power is basically that he is above average at everything besides people skills, which wes_rk said haha.

If the question was can Batman bake a bad ass cake I'd say yes. He is THE Batman haha. I'm sure he has a long lost, ancient recipe that is the best in the world haha.

[mgs]

Cus you could poke an eye like that haha.

I'd just give him the benefit of the doubt and say he is good with guns because his super power is basically that he is above average at everything besides people skills, which wes_rk said haha.

If the question was can Batman bake a bad ass cake I'd say yes. He is THE Batman haha. I'm sure he has a long lost, ancient recipe that is the best in the world haha.

haha!! LOL!!! :D

but I disagree with you on the poking an eye out thing. I think the 'real' Batman, not the kid friendly one, is kinda psychotic and true to his modern-self in that he is definitely not above maiming/crippling people, only killing them outright.

[PrimalScream]

Probably best to ask robin how good a "shot" batman is.hehehe.my apologises:D