Is Batman Incorporated part of the current DCU continuity?

[Conway]

Besides, Batman hasn't been operating for six years, he has only been publicly known for that long. Before that he was operating as an urban legend.

Even with the added years from the "urban legend" bump, it's eight at the most. There is no way in the current continuity that Batman was a big enough pain to R'as that he would choose Bruce as a successor 12 years ago. So the entire origin of Inc. is out of continuity.

The rest of the books are talking about the "hit" on Damian and how he isn't allowed out, so Inc. is happening right now. Yet in Inc. Alfred is there, everyone is still mad at Jason, and Morrison could care less about what Snyder is doing (it's part of the reason I like it).

[InformationGeek]

It exists in its own pocket universe like someone said. It connects to both worlds, I like to think, affecting each other in different ways, but not always the same.

[Seattle Freeze]

Perhaps the events of Inc happened before Joker's return. That would certainly explain Jason being in the Batcave.

As to how long Batman operated before he was known to Gotham, that is all speculation on both sides of the argument.

[JasonTodd428]

.The rest of the books are talking about the "hit" on Damian and how he isn't allowed out, so Inc. is happening right now. Yet in Inc. Alfred is there, everyone is still mad at Jason, and Morrison could care less about what Snyder is doing (it's part of the reason I like it).

There is clearly a disconnection there and while other writers are trying to tie it into the N52 continuity their attempts fail because Morrison is not making any such attempt for all that the cover of Inc. says NEW 52 on it. DC has plenty of books that are out of continuity as far as the N52 is concerned and they should have just allowed Morrison's Inc. to remain outside of continuity with whatever characters would have been needed for it. Then there wouldn't be any need to try and manufacture a connection where one cannot even established in a way makes sense. Personally, it's easier to just say it's happening outside of N52 continuity or in some pocket universe as someone has suggested and be done with it then it is to try and make it fit.

[jgiannantoni05]

For
-tons of things making it clearly in this new continuity

Against
-small things that are twisted into supposed clear conflicts that they aren't



But it all doesn't really matter for such a great story.

[Captain Jim]

I don't think it fits well with the other Bat books but it is part of this continuity. Other books have referred to Batman Inc. The events of all the Bat series don't always have to happening at the same time anyway. It takes several month for one arc to happen so in the course of several months, events of the different series could happen one after the other.

Besides, Batman hasn't been operating for six years, he has only been publicly known for that long. Before that he was operating as an urban legend.

Bingo. Add to that the fact that you will never make the post-reboot continuity totally fit in any of the DC titles.

[Retro315]

I don't think it fits well with the other Bat books but it is part of this continuity. Other books have referred to Batman Inc. The events of all the Bat series don't always have to happening at the same time anyway. It takes several month for one arc to happen so in the course of several months, events of the different series could happen one after the other.

Besides, Batman hasn't been operating for six years, he has only been publicly known for that long. Before that he was operating as an urban legend.

Yeah I never got that about continuity-hounds. You're lucky if one year's stories in a particular title take place over more than a couple of days - thinking of Blackest Night, which was literally 8 issues, 3/4 of a year, that took place in "One Single Night". And then there were references to it that were 'Post-Blackest Night', and chronology locks up nicely. It's far easier to organize TPB collections because you just go; "Well, Night of the Owls comes before Talon Volume 1".

As for trying to reconcile Batman's long history into the New 52's 5 public years, a few before secret years thing, I think it's relatively in my eyes. 80 years = 8 years. It even syncs up with what they've been doing. Jason dying '2 years ago' and '2 decades ago'.

[godisawesome]

For
-tons of things making it clearly in this new continuity

Against
-small things that are twisted into supposed clear conflicts that they aren't



But it all doesn't really matter for such a great story.

Yeah, I'm still putting this book in continuity in part because of how messy it is. I don't really have that much faith that the five year only timeline will really survive in the Bat-verse. Damian's far too popular (which is one of the reasons I don't want him to die in Batman Inc.) and no editorial edict is going to be as popular as Morrison's run. In ten years, if we haven't had another reboot and this continuity is still here, people will still be talking about Morrison's run. Writers will not be held to the five year timeline, at least in part because it's already being overwritten in Gotham City.

We've got Damian as the fourth Robin and I can't be the only one who noticed that the Robin-centric zero-issues came off a lot lamer if they each have only a few months in the mask. For the sake of quality in Batman continuity and in the family in general, I hope someone takes the cracks allowed in Batman, Inc and sticks it up the five year timeline's rear.

Also, no Cass and no Steph should only be justified in Inc. because of a new continuity.

[JasonTodd428]

As for trying to reconcile Batman's long history into the New 52's 5 public years, a few before secret years thing, I think it's relatively in my eyes. 80 years = 8 years. It even syncs up with what they've been doing. Jason dying '2 years ago' and '2 decades ago'.

I haven't thought about it in awhile but I had the same thought a few months back and you're right it does appear to sync up when it's looked at that way.

[The Nuke]

I don't think it's really supposed to matter. To me this is still the same continuity as when Morrison started his run. The ties and references into other comics are nothing more than an attempt to tie it into the New 52 in order not to confuse people. This is Morrisons ending to his Batman run, that's all. Atleast that's how I see it. I think we're just supposed to keep quiet and play along as if it's apart of the new 52.

[ViewtifulJC]

It's canon to Morrison continuity. Which includes old man Gordon and then suddenly younger man Gordon

but since Morrison DCU is about the only one I really care about nowadays, here we are...

[bat39]

I don't think it fits well with the other Bat books but it is part of this continuity. Other books have referred to Batman Inc. The events of all the Bat series don't always have to happening at the same time anyway. It takes several month for one arc to happen so in the course of several months, events of the different series could happen one after the other.

Besides, Batman hasn't been operating for six years, he has only been publicly known for that long. Before that he was operating as an urban legend.

Unfortunately, even the whole 'urban legend' period has a limit.

The zero issues have established a pretty clear (and tight!) chronology for Bruce's early years and the start of Batman's career. Bruce only returned to Gotham from his travels abroad '7 years ago'. Then a few months later (a little over '6 years ago'), he's started operating as an anonymous vigilante. It is only around '6 years ago' that he first becomes Batman...and '5 years ago', people still believe that Batman is an urban myth, though Jim Gordon now knows of his existence and begins his alliance with Batman. '5 years ago' is also the period when Batman becomes involved with the JL, and also around the time Dick first became Robin, so it makes sense that around this time, his existence became publicly known.

What I mean is that Batman was an urban legend for about a year or so at most prior to JL # 1. At the time when Damian was supposed to be conceived (in a strictly chronological) sense, he was still traveling abroad during his training period.

[Batfan1971]

It is, but IMO the whole New 52 is so screwed up that i think we will get yet another reboot in the future. DC has a habit of writing themselves out of bad timelines whenever things get too mixed up so i expect another change. I figure a time traveler will figure out what happened in Flashpoint and attempt to correct the timeline and we will head down this road again. Don't get me wrong, i'm enjoying the stories, but i have kinda lost faith that DC can/will try to hold any continuity together, so i try to take it all with a grain of salt and just enjoy the ride.

[Seattle Freeze]

I agree that the timeframe issues are frustrating but don't kid yourselves and think that the nu52 is the only time comics or DC have neglected historical events or messed up chronology. Sure they should have better editorial controls these days to catch such things but they happen in every fictional series I follow.

[Coal Tiger]

Who cares? It's the only Bat-continuity I care about.