When Grant Morrison introduced the concept of Batman Incorporated, they changed how people in the DC Universe viewed Batman forever. Before, Batman had been a concept that was between fact and urban legend. But when Bruce Wayne made his first appearance after disappearing for months, he came with a major announcement.
He explained that going forward, he would franchise the Batman name, allowing for multiple new superheroes around the world to be employed under the Wayne Industries' branding. It was meant to be a way of taking Batman's fight against crime global, answering the problem of Batman being obsessed with Gotham once and for all.
8 Bruce Made It Harder To Discover His Secret Identity
One of the coolest things about Batman Incorporated was that it gave Bruce Wayne a tie to Batman without explicitly revealing his secret identity. In the initial press conference upon revealing himself to the world, he explained that he had been funding Batman's weapons and vehicles for years. He lost his parents to crime, and decided when Batman appeared that he would support his efforts. This is exactly the kind of reasoning someone might use to throw people off of any connection of Bruce Wayne to Batman.
7 It Gave Jason Todd A New Identity
During the original Batman and Robin run, Morrison brought back Jason Todd, turning him into an antagonist for Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne. The character operated as Red Hood for an entire arc before being locked up for his murderous actions. Bruce, on the other hand, believed that Jason Todd deserved another chance, giving him an entirely new identity when he invited him to Batman Incorporated.
In the group, Jason would become Wingman, the identity of the Batman of Sweden. He would operate as Wingman briefly until the battle against Leviathan, where he realized Bruce hadn't changed from his old self and broke away from the Bat-Family once again.
6 It Made A Few Small Changes In The New 52
In the middle of Morrison's massive, several year epic, DC had their own epic plans with The New 52. The New 52 was originally marketed as a "refresh," where all of DC's main characters would be young enough to be in their 20s again. Several years of history had been completely erased, but certain things remained to finish off storylines like Batman Incorporated.
In The New 52, many of the same elements of the original story remained unchanged: Batman R.I.P., Dick and Damian's time as Batman and Robin, and The Return of Bruce Wayne all remained the same. The only thing that had changed was that Stephanie Brown had been retconned out of continuity, when she was playing her own role on the team before the reboot.
5 It Has A Lot Of Legacy Characters
Batman Incorporated didn't rely solely on existing characters. Morrison pulled from a ton of older ideas and introduced a bunch of newer characters that were based on legacy ideas from the Silver Age. Characters like Knight and Squire, the English version of Batman and Robin, were given entirely new versions and made integral to the existing storyline.
Meanwhile, other heroes like El Gaucho became more serious versions of themselves to be able to handle crime in their countries. This was a way of introducing characters who weren't already well-known by Batman fans, characters who had never had their own comics before.
4 It Introduced A Completely Different Batwing
One of the few brand-new characters that was introduced during this time period was Batwing. But the Batwing that people know now is completely different from the first Batwing. Originally, Grant Morrison intended for Batwing to be the "Batman of Africa," and the first character was David Zavimbe. This character was actually given his own ongoing in The New 52.
But it didn't last long, as David was replaced by Luke Fox in the second half of the series, becoming a new Batwing. If David was tech-reliant, Luke was even more so despite being a far better fighter. His suit is far more technologically advanced than Batman's to make up for him not having quite the training that Bruce does, and because Luke is more comfortable relying on technology.
3 Cassandra Cain Became The Batman Of Hong Kong
Cassandra Cain had problems fitting into the Bat-Family for years as it continued to expand. Originally Bruce's secret weapon, the character was eventually pushed further and further into the background, especially as Bruce faced bigger threats in Morrison's run.
But the character was given a brand-new identity just before The New 52 began when they made her into Black Bat, the Hong Kong representative of Batman Incorporated. This was an identity Cain continued using until the reboot erased her from continuity.
2 Batman Inc Failed At Their Original Goal
Interestingly, Batman Incorporated actually failed at their original goal. Batman formed the group to battle against Leviathan, Talia Al Ghul's own secret organization that had already infiltrated several levels of society. The last volume shows both sides squaring off against one another, but Bruce's side takes heavy losses. He loses his son Damian, and Bruce finally faces off against Talia in the Batcave.
But Bruce has been all but outmaneuvered here, and it's Kathy Kane who comes in and saves the day, using her resources in the spy organization Spyral. In the end, though Batman Incorporated put up a strong fight, it's Spyral that shuts down Leviathan and kills Talia.
1 The Team Is Still Around
The Batman Incorporated idea pretty much vanished the moment that Morrison stopped writing about Batman. The new writers made Batman a much smaller character, as he solved the mystery of the Court of Owls, an organization which only affected Gotham City. But with James Tynion leaving Batman after "Fear State," DC Comics is revisiting Batman Incorporated again.
This time, Bruce Wayne doesn't have the resources he had during that era, and as such Batman Incorporated has an entirely new benefactor. Batman will have to learn to get along with that benefactor, particularly since Bruce seemingly stopped dealing with the organization he created years ago, leaving all these crime-fighters he brought in to fend for themselves.