How come Batman and Barbara are not together in Prime's Caped Crusader? There's a fine line between rebranding The Dark Knight and retconning Bruce Wayne's love interest in previous projects. Here's why Batman: Caped Crusader is doing the right thing, though.
Bruce Wayne and Barbara Gordon are NOT Together in Batman: Caped Crusader
In previous animated Batman shows, Bruce Wayne and Barbara Gordon have always had tension. Not just in the context of fighting criminals side by side, but even in moving beyond their mentor-and-mentee relationship.
However, Batman: Caped Crusader changed the course of history by merely having Batman and Barbara as platonic co-workers on Prime. Why is that?
This had been confirmed by showrunner Bruce Timm in response to a fan on animesuperhero.com, "The Batman/Barbara relationship in Caped Crusader is purely platonic. Honest!"
Timm added that one of their executive producers was actually excited to see Batman and Barbara become romantically involved in the early development process.
To that, Timm said, they were "unaware of the uncomfortable history of that particular topic" and firmly stood his ground, "I said we weren't going to be doing that, and explained why. I'm not stepping on that third rail again."
To the uninitiated, brace yourselves on the problematic history behind the Batman / Batgirl relationship.
Exploring the Problematic History of Batman and Barbara Gordon's Romantic Pursuits
From their superhero alter-ego alone, any fan could probably understand why they appear romantically compatible. However, their relationship had always been too complicated to work long-term.
Bruce Wayne had always been working with Barbara Gordon's father, Gotham City police commissioner James Gordon.
Imagine working with your longtime best friend only to stab them in the back by kissing or sleeping with their daughter.
Not to mention, the huge age gap between the two heroes. While Batman is usually depicted in his early thirties, Batgirl is usually presented in her twenties.
Get this: there are other far worse iterations of the redhead's relationship with Bruce. In Batman Beyond 2.0, Bruce and Barbara have a fling and ended up impregnating her. Although she loses the baby during battle, it still paints Batman in a darker light.
For early DC fans, it would be best to avoid certain animated adaptations of the Bat-ship in The Killing Joke and Batman Beyond, both of which Bruce Timm was involved in and where the prior relationship was established between Batman and Barbara.
As of now, Caped Crusader viewers couldn't be happier with the platonic arrangement, even if it seems the show has altered Barbara to be the same age as Bruce Wayne:
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Any thoughts on the retconned romance of Batman/Barbara? Share them in the comments below! In the meantime, DC fans can check out all episodes of Batman: Caped Crusader streaming on Prime Video.
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