The Golden Age Batman is rarely ever discussed compared to the other members of the Justice Society of America. Because Bruce Wayne was Batman on both Earth-One and Earth-Two, fans believe his stories have always been contiguous. But they aren’t: Earth-Two Batman’s first appearance is Detective Comics #27, while Earth-One Batman (who would go on to be the main Batman appearing in the Post-Crisis universe) made his first appearance in Superman #76 in 1952.

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But how different can the two versions of Batman be? Quite a bit more than most fans might believe, with some stark differences occurring as Earth-Two was allowed to develop to be its own thing.

10 Raised By His Uncle Philip

Uncle Philip Earth Two Batman

When the concept of Batman was first introduced, there actually wasn’t a version of Alfred in Bruce’s backstory. The character was introduced later, and at first it isn’t mentioned how he was raised at all. It isn’t explained how this version of Batman was raised until ages later, during a Secret Origins storyline where it’s revealed Bruce’s uncle Philip watched over him for a time. Philip Wayne is actually a Silver Age creation, first introduced in Batman #208.

9 He Got Into Acting

Earth Two Batman Likes To Act

Bruce went on to college, where he excelled in all of his classes, while he continued to train for something without realizing what the goal was. Bruce also finds a passion for acting, constantly plunging himself into roles as part of further preparation, learning how to do great disguises. It’s mentioned he excels at acting, but Bruce specifically talks about preferring to play smaller character parts, probably because it means he can learn how to blend in to the background.

8 His First Love Was Julie Madison

Madison

The original Bruce Wayne’s first love was Julie Madison, a young woman he might while in college. The two of them bonded over a passion for acting, but while Julie would try to become a proper actress, this was a goal that Bruce could never go for, never trying to draw too much attention to his civilian life.

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Though they were engaged at first, Julie eventually broke the engagement because she believed Bruce wasn’t doing anything with his life.

7 Wore A Disguise While Attempting To Be A Detective

Earth Two Batman Wanted To Be A Detective With A Disguise

Bruce Wayne graduated college and intended to become a detective working for the Gotham Police Department. But because he wasn’t sure about taking the job because of how it would affect his relationship with Julie, he chose instead to try something different. It was only meant to be temporary, but Bruce suited up in a costume to avoid anyone recognizing him while he tried to go onto the streets to go patrolling.

6 His Costume Was Made By Theater Costume Makers

Earth-Two Batman Hired A Pair Of Costume Makers

It was Bruce’s passion for theater that caused him to choose to wear a costume in the first place. But as for how he had the costume made, he employed a pair of the best costume designers to meet him at a hotel in Gotham. The two of them were paid handsomely not only to build the costume, but to remain quiet about it, and without knowing, created the costume of one of the greatest crime-fighters.

5 His Batplane Looked Like A Bat

Detective Comics #33 Batman

Hilariously, when Batman was introduced into Detective Comics, the character’s various modes of transportation hadn’t yet been worked out. So the character drove a fairly low-key vehicle for the Batmobile.

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But for the Batplane... it was literally designed like a giant bat. It could fire out smoke to make it hard for anyone to see, but he was taking the gimmick far more seriously than he should have, even considering he was named Batman.

4 His First Attempt Fighting Crime Was An Embarrassment

Earth Two Batman First Time Fighting Crime

Bruce’s first time tracking down a criminal didn’t go so well. The character tried to hunt down a common thief, and while he was able to capture him fairly quickly, this version of Bruce was quite naive. The criminal pretended to be injured, and when Batman checked on him, the criminal attacked him and got away. The same criminal would later capture Batman in a net and tie him up— this was definitely not a moment the character would think back on fondly.

3 Was Known To Use A Gun

Batman wields a gun in Year Two

This version of Batman didn’t quite have the same aversion towards guns as the Earth-One version. The original Golden Age version of Batman carried a gun with him early on, stopping after Robin joined him. But the Batman of Earth-Two would often keep a gun with him even while working with Robin, showing he wasn’t nearly as traumatized from the weapon as he was from the events themselves.

2 His Daughter Is Huntress

Earth-Two Huntress

Perhaps one of the coolest things about Bruce Wayne in this world is that he was allowed to grow up. His daughter was Helena Wayne, the daughter of both Bruce and Selina. She had a great life for the most part, until one day her mother was killed by a former criminal associate of hers. Because of that, Helena would become a superhero, and as the Huntress she would bring her mother’s killer to justice.

1 This Batman Was Killed By A Random Criminal

Earth-Two Batman Adventure Comics

Bruce’s death is one of the bigger stories for Earth-Two. One day, after he’d long given up being Batman, he ran into a common criminal known as Bill Jensen who demanded he turn himself over for framing him for a crime he didn’t commit once he became commissioner of Gotham. The criminal in question had incredible magic powers granted him by the magician Frederic Vaux— they allowed him to defeat the entire Justice Society, forcing Batman to appear. Rather than run from this threat, Bruce tackled the enemy as Batman and Jensen took himself and Wayne out in an explosion.

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