This article contains spoilers for the Justice League Annual 2020.
The Justice League has told Batman how to beat them. The Dark Knight has never exactly been one for playing well with others, still less for trusting people. That's frequently led him into conflict with friends and allies, especially members of the Justice League. Batman has been particularly well known for his frequent sparring matches with Superman.
At times Batman has crossed the line beyond paranoia, putting together strategies he believed would allow him to take out any other superhero. These may have seemed like good ideas at the time, but they often go badly wrong, and quite a few enemies of the Justice League have figured out they just need to hack Batman's systems in order to beat the whole team. Still, for all that's the case, this week's Justice League Annual shows the most original trick on Batman's part to date.
When Batman constructed the latest iteration of the Hall of Justice, it seems he worked closely with the different members of the Justice League in order to ensure none of their villains could break in. The Zod Protocol would flood the Hall of Justice with red sunlight in order to depower Superman's nemesis; the Thawne Defenses apply randomized molecular vibrations through the walls in order to prevent Reverse-Flash phasing through them; and the Sinestro Failsafe deflects emotional spectrum energy. The members of the Justice League all helped Batman construct these defenses, but there was one thing they didn't figure out; most of these villains are twisted mirror-images of themselves.
When Superman helped Batman build a defense against Zod, he was designing a system that could take him out as well. When Barry Allen figured out how to prevent Reverse-Flash's speed phasing, it also neutralized his own. And the Sinestro Failsafe is very much effective at locking down a Green Lantern, as well as a Yellow one. There can be no doubt Batman was aware of this fact. Of course, it all goes wrong. The Hall of Justice systems are compromised, and soon the Justice League are struggling to break out of their own headquarters. It's a hilarious twist, and it demonstrates the fact Batman just does not learn. Once again, his suspicious and over-analytical nature has unwittingly created a system that could take out the entire team.
Fortunately, one thing acts in the Justice League's favor; each of these programs was designed to run separately. The Hall of Justice's defenses can deal with any one of them at a time, but they cannot handle teamwork. And unlike their enemies, the Justice League are a team - granted a fact Batman would do well to remember.
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October 01, 2020 at 05:04AM
