One of the most inspiring aspects of Batman’s character is that he’s just a man. He stands shoulder to shoulder with super-powered beings and literal gods, and he’s able to keep up through the sheer power of human will and ingenuity. It’s an inspiring message and one that’s immensely important — but there are a few versions of Batman who have gained true super-powers.

Superman is an inspiration in that he represents an impossible goal that everyone can strive to match. The entire reason Lex Luthor hates him is because no one can reasonably live up to Superman’s example. Batman is different: while Batman is in peak physical shape and a billionaire, everything he’s achieved is technically possible through human means. Batman’s image as a hero is enduring because he’s an example of a true human hero. Naturally, some stories have wanted to play with this concept and so have granted Batman powers over the years, but he never gets to keep them.

15

Batman Became a Giant and Was Exiled from Gotham City

Detective Comics #243 by Edmond Hamilton, Dick Sprang, and Charles Paris

The silver age was a very goofy time for Batman, and he’d often find himself in ridiculous situations. One of the more bizarre ones was when Dr. Greggson, a skilled scientist, invented a maximzer, which could enlarge anything. Dr. Greggson worried his machine could be used for evil and wanted to show Batman; he was right to be afraid, as shortly after, a criminal tried to steal his invention. Batman was struck with the maximizer and grew to giant proportions, making him a literally huge threat to Gotham City. Thankfully, Greggson was able to use his minimizer and fix the problem, making Batman human-sized again.

14

Batman Has Had Many Lantern Rings through the Years

Including in Green Lantern #9 by Geoff Johns, Prentis Rollins, Ethan Van Sciver, Moose Baumann, and Rob Leigh

Batman has had countless different Lantern Rings over the years: he’s wielded a green, a yellow, and even a white power ring. Power Rings are one of the most powerful items that a hero can get in the DC Universe, and it’s always just plain cool when Batman gets to wield the power of a Lantern — but he never gets to keep it for various reasons.

For Green Power Rings, Batman would have to overcome the trauma of his parents’ deaths, which he simply isn’t willing to do. Yellow Power Rings belong to the Sinestro Corps, whose members zealously hunt down rogue ring wielders, meaning Batman can’t use a Yellow Ring much, despite his affinity for fear.

13

Batman Lost His Sense of Fear and Immediately Attacked Superman

Batman: The Dark Knight #5 by Paul Jenkins, David Finch, Joe Harris, Richard Friend, Jeromy Cox, and Sal Cipriano

Batman has always been a major symbol of fear for Gotham criminals. He relies on fear, both using it as a tool and feeling it himself. But when a mysterious poison begins transforming his villains and removing their sense of fear, Batman, of course, goes after Scarecrow. It turns out that Scarecrow and Bane have been working together, and they inject Batman with their new poison.

This newly injected drug transforms Batman into a massive muscle-bound monster due to the venom and also removes his sense of fear due to Scarecrow. When Superman arrives to help, Batman immediately attacks him with surprising strength, but thankfully, it wears off soon after.

12

Batman Became Immortal Thanks to Ra’s al Ghul

Superman & Batman: Generations #4 by John Byrne and Patricia Mulvihill

The story of Superman & Batman: Generations explored what Batman’s life would be like if he started being Batman in 1939. The four issues of Generations followed Batman and Superman and the adventures they went on together as they slowly grew older. Eventually, in #4, an older Batman faces off against Ra’s al Ghul in one final battle. Both Ra’s and Batman enter the Lazarus pit, but only Batman leaves. This final showdown grants Batman the power of immortality, and he spends two decades turning the League of Assassins into a force of good for the planet.

11

Batman Is Cursed by an Ancient Wizard and Immediately Attacks Superman

World’s Finest #109 by Jerry Coleman, Curt Swan, and Stan Kaye

Both Batman and Superman would often end up in absurd situations during the endearingly goofy Silver Age of Comics. Batman once found himself cursed by an 800-year-old wizard and was commanded to fight and defeat a dragon. If he didn’t do so, the curse would kill him. Superman then took Batman to the Fortress of Solitude, where the Man of Steel uses a device to give Batman superpowers. Superman then flies to an alien planet and grabs an alien that looks like a dragon, bringing him back to Earth. Unfortunately, this doesn’t work, but after Batman attacks and seemingly defeats Superman, the curse is broken.

10

Batman Became the Master of the Elements

Detective Comics #308 by Bill Finger, Dick Sprang, and Sheldon Moldoff

When a criminal steals an ancient relic and gains the power of all four elements, Batman and Robin are entirely powerless to stop him. It’s only when Batman finds another, similar relic and receives comparable element-based powers that he’s able to match the criminal in combat. Batman and the villain fight each other all over Gotham, using water, earth, fire, and wind to try and one-up one another. Thanks to some quick thinking from Robin, Batman eventually overpowers the criminal, removing his trinket and sending him off to prison.

9

Batman Gained The Powers Of A Vampire And Ended The World

Batman & Dracula: Red Rain by Doug Moench, Kelley Jones, Malcolm Jones III, Les Dorscheid, and Todd Klein

In one twisted Elseworlds universe, Batman is infected by a vampire to fight off Dracula. While Batman is successful and defeats Dracula, he eventually succumbs to his instincts and kills the Joker as well, drinking his blood. This unleashes Batman’s killer instinct, and he goes on a brutal rampage against his enemies, slaughtering all of them quickly and easily. He becomes so brutal that James Gordon and Alfred even team up to try and kill him, but they tragically fail. This version of Batman was completely devoid of humanity and even ended up killing a young boy’s parents in front of him — by feeding on them.

8

Batman Became DC’s Most Powerful Sorcerer

Batman vs. Robin #4 by Mark Waid, Mahmud Asrar, Scott Godlewski, Jordie Bellaire, and Steve Wands

During the Lazarus Planet lead-up miniseries Batman vs. Robin, Batman struggled to fight his possessed son Damian, who was under the control of the demon king Nezha. With no other choice, Batman became the next Doctor Fate, which granted him a huge and magical boost in power. The power of Fate’s helmet allowed Batman to fight Nezha evenly, at least for a bit. Eventually, Nezha would manage to get his hands on the helmet and destroy it, removing Batman’s magical abilities. While it wasn’t long-lived, only lasting about half an issue, for a moment there, Batman was the most powerful magic user in the DC Universe.

7

Batman Took on a Beastly New Form During Beast World

Titans: Beast World Tour: Gotham #1 by Chip Zdarsky, Miguel Mendonca, Mike Spicer, and Lucas Gattoni

When DC kicked off the Beast World event — about a year after Lazarus Planet — the entire planet was thrown into turmoil as heroes and villains alike were transformed into monstrous new appearances due to Garro’s beast spores raining down on Earth. One of the unfortunate victims was none other than Batman, who transformed into a wolf. Batman’s wolf form then goes on a rampage across Gotham, trying to protect the city, in his new feral way, from any criminals or rogue animals who’d cause it harm or destruction. While Batman was eventually cured, this is one of the few times Batman completely lost control of himself.

6

Batman Becomes a Monster to Kill Superman

Batman: The Devastator #1 by Frank Tieri, James Tynion IV, Tony S. Daniel, Danny Miki, Tomeu Morey, and Tom Napolitano

In the Dark Multiverse, Planet Earth-1, Superman ends up betraying all of humanity, killing Lois Lane, and going on a rampage across the planet. While it’s never explained exactly why this happened, some suspect a villain broke Superman’s mind, and others think a solar flare from the sun caused him to go insane. The darkest answer is that Superman was simply pretending to inspire hope, simply so he could rip it away. This forced Batman to transform himself into Doomsday to kill Superman. This new Batman form was specifically designed to kill Superman and has all the powers of Doomsday in addition to things like Kryptonite breath.

5

Batman Turned Himself Into Gotham City — to Never Leave It

Dark Nights: Death Metal #1 by Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo, Jonathan Glapion, FCO Plascencia, and Tom Napolitano

Many bizarre, multiversal versions of Batman joined the Batman Who Laughs in his invasion of Earth, including Castle Bat from Dark Nights: Death Metal. This version of Bruce eventually grew too old to be Batman and passed the mantle on to Damian Wayne. Despite Damian’s best efforts, Gotham fell into pure chaos and Bruce could no longer sit by and watch. Luring Damian back to Wayne Manor, Bruce murdered him as part of a sacrifice that would infuse Batman’s soul into every part of Gotham, allowing him to control every inch of the city in this shocking new form. From there, Batman hunted down every criminal, brutally killing them.

4

Batman Gained Perfect Powers after Being Exposed to the Amazo Virus

Justice League #38 by Geoff Johns, Jason Fabok, Brad Anderson, and Carlos M. Mangual

When the Amazo-Virus was unleashed, tons of people were infected. This involved them developing metahuman abilities before their bodies completely broke down and died. While investigating the source of the virus, Batman ended up being infected, resulting in Batman losing his sight but gaining increased hearing. He even gained intense echo-location powers that allowed him to see around himself. Not only was he able to still “see”, but he could also control sound waves, allowing him to unleash intense screams that were capable of knocking even Superman aside.

3

Batman Gained The Powers of Superman – and Immediately Became a Villain

Batman: Fortress by Gary Whitta, Darrick Robertson, Diego Rodriguez, and Simon Bowland

When Superman mysteriously goes missing during a worldwide blackout, Batman has no choice but to sneak into the Fortress of Solitude and try to find him. While it took a while, Batman does eventually find Superman, as well as the aliens who were looking for him. The aliens are hunting any survivors of the House of El due to war crimes they had committed.

While the aliens originally wanted to kill Superman, Batman and Superman are instead able to argue for Superman to simply be depowered. Superman then uses a machine that transfers his powers to Batman. After gaining Superman’s powers, Batman ominously promises to be far more involved in Earth and humanity’s choices than Superman was.

2

With the Mobius Chair, Batman Became the God of All Knowledge

Justice League: The Darkseid War – Batman #1 by Peter Tomasi, Fernando Pasarin, Matt Ryan, Gabe Eltaeb, and Dave Sharpe

During the Darkseid War event, several characters were granted powers beyond anything they’d had before — including Batman gaining access to the Mobius chair. This chair allowed Batman to gain knowledge of everything, including Joker’s identity as well as the identity and location of Joe Chill, the man who killed Bruce’s parents. With this power, Batman immediately becomes a bit of a fascist and starts locking up criminals before they’ve even committed any crimes. The power quickly corrupts Batman, who found it nearly impossible to get off the chair, only able to do it with the help of his friends.

1

Batman Transformed Into the God Atmahn, the Night Judge

Trinity #31 by Kurt Busiek, Mark Bagley, Art Thibert, Pete Pantazis, and Pat Brosseau

When a group of villains discovered that Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman were the keystones to the Multiverse, they immediately got rid of the three by sending them to an alternate universe. In this new alternate universe, the Trinity became literal gods — with dark powers. Wonder Woman became Diana Truthqueen, Superman was Kellel, and Batman became Atmahn the Night Judge. They were worshiped by the people of this universe and could alter reality. Even more concerning was that when the three returned to their universe, they retained the god-like powers, making this the most powerful version of Batman ever seen.