DC Has Now Made 10 Batman Shows That… Aren’t About Batman?!

DC has made several Batman TV shows that are not actually about Batman. Batman has been DC Comics’ most popular character for a while now, which is proven by just how many movies, shows, and video games centered on the Dark Knight there are. However, there can only be so many Batman stories happening at the same time, especially because the caped crusader is often saved for the big screen. As a result, DC has found different ways to use Batman’s mythos in other adaptations, even though Batman himself is not always involved.

Apart from the 1966 Batman show and the many Batman animated series, Batman usually does not appear on TV shows. Still, at a time when so many superhero stories are being told on TV, ignoring the Batman universe entirely is not an option. Here are 10 times DC made a show about Batman or Batman’s universe without actually using the Dark Knight.

10 Gotham

Gotham can be compared to Smallville in the sense that they both explored a major DC superhero before they actually became a superhero. However, whereas Smallville was very much Superman’s origin story, Gotham was more about the city than about Bruce Wayne. Gotham’s pilot takes place right after the death of the Waynes, meaning that Bruce Wayne was very young when the story began. Bruce was initially a supporting character in Gotham, whose focus was always on Jim Gordon. Gotham also explored Batman’s Rogues Gallery, although it had to make some significant changes to the usual DC Comics lore so that timeline would work.

Bruce Wayne was still learning from Alfred how to throw a punch when most of Batman’s most famous villains were already terrorizing the city. Gotham took a lot of creative liberties when it comes to Batman’s mythos, mostly because it tried to tell famous Batman stories without Batman. As Gotham advanced and Bruce Wayne grew older, the character became closer to what audiences know as Batman, but still far from being the actual DC superhero. A full-fledged Batman only appeared once in Gotham’s final episode in a flash-forward.

9 Batwoman

After years in which the CW DC Shows avoided any connections to Batman, the Batwoman TV show finally brought Gotham into the Arrowverse. Following the character’s introduction “Crisis on Infinite Earths,” Ruby Rose returned as Kate Kane in Batwoman season 1. Despite taking place in Gotham City, Batwoman never actually featured Batman, although it would often reference the Dark Knight. Batwoman established a lot of things about the Arrowverse’s Batman, at least post-Crisis, including that he killed the Joker and disappeared. Batwoman always existed in her own corner of the Bat Family, which is why a Batwoman series without Batman was never a problem.

8 Titans

Even though the Titans are a major DC Comics team who have operated on their own for decades, their stories will always be tied to Batman on some level. Dick Grayson, Batman’s first Robin, was the foundation for the Titans, after all. A Nightwing TV show centered on a post-Robin Dick Grayson was in development for a while, but it eventually became a Titans show. While Dick was still Robin when Titans begin, the Boy Wonder no longer worked with Batman. As such, Titans season 1 only referenced the Dark Knight and never really used Batman. Batman only appeared from behind in a dream sequence during Titans season 1’s finale.

Related: Every Bat-Family Member In Titans

Game of Thrones star Iain Glen joined Titans season 2 as Bruce Wayne, a surprising addition considering that season 1 did not use Batman at all. However, Bruce Wayne never suited up for battle in Titans season 2, only serving as a background character in the stories of Dick Grayson and the Titans. Titans continued to introduce members of the Bat Family, including Barbara Gordon and Tim Drake. Nightwing, Red Hood, Oracle, and Tim Drake exemplify how much Titans revolved around Batman’s mythos, even though Batman himself never played a significant role in the show.

7 Gotham Knights

Whereas Titans dealt with some of the most popular Bat-Family members such as Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon, Gotham Knights is focused on both lesser-known Batman sidekicks and original characters. Despite being a CW DC show, Gotham Knights is not part of the Arrowverse, nor it has any connections to a wider DC Universe. Gotham Knights’ premise is simple, and it explains why Batman is not on the show – Bruce Wayne was murdered. Led by Turner Hayes, Bruce Wayne’s adopted son, an unlikely team of young characters has to discover who killed Batman. Similar to Gotham, Gotham Knights takes many creative liberties, and it is another Batman show without Batman.

6 Birds Of Prey

Far before Gotham Knights or the Arrowverse, DC had a Batman-related TV show without Batman, Birds of Prey. The short-lived Birds of Prey series took place in a version of Gotham City that had been abandoned by Batman, leaving the door open for other heroes to rise up. Birds of Prey was centered on former Batgirl Barbara Gordon, now operating as the Oracle, and Helena Kyle, the Huntress. Helena Kyle’s surname was not a coincidence – Huntress was Batman and Catwoman’s daughter. Birds of Prey also featured Harley Quinn, Alfred, and other Batman-related characters. Birds of Prey’s Batman only appeared in promotional materials and flashback sequences.

5 Pennyworth

Pennyworth is perhaps the biggest example of just how massive the Batman IP is, as almost every aspect of Batman’s lore can sometimes be adapted into a movie or a TV show. Created by Bruno Heller, who also created the Gotham show, Pennyworth was about a young Alfred Pennyworth. Set decades before Alfred became Bruce Wayne’s butler, Pennyworth followed its titular character’s adventures in London with minimal ties to the wider Batman lore. Pennyworth was based on the idea that Alfred’s life was quite agitated even before he started working with Batman, which comes from comics such as Batman: Earth Zero. Interestingly, Pennyworth is officially a prequel to Gotham.

4 The Batman’s Penguin Spinoff

Batman may be reserved for the silver screen, but the world of The Batman is coming to the small screen with the Penguin spinoff show. Matt Reeves revealed very early on that there were plans to expand The Batman’s universe with spinoff series set in Gotham City, one of which is the upcoming Penguin show. Colin Farrell, who played the Penguin in The Batman, is reprising his role as Oswalt Cobblepot for the spinoff, which is set after the events of The Batman. Whether Robert Pattinson’s Batman will appear in the Penguin show is difficult to say, but the project is centered on Cobblepot and the world of Gotham City.

3 Teen Titans

The Teen Titans were led by Robin, yet the classic DC animated series never once used the words “Batman,” “Bruce Wayne,” or “Gotham City.” Teen Titans season 5, episode 10, “Go”, revealed the Teen Titans’ origin story, including the first night Robin fought crime alone. However, while the criminals Robin faced mentioned that the young hero was from another city and used to work with another vigilante, the actual words “Batman” and “Gotham” were not said. Teen Titan kept its Batman connection to a minimum and instead focused on lesser-known DC heroes and villains. Curiously, Teen Titans Go! featured Batman, although the series is not canon to Teen Titans.

2 Arrow

Arrow was not a Batman show, but it might as well have been. Arrow’s first two seasons were heavily inspired by Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies, especially Batman Begins. The idea of a billionaire returning home to fight crime and save his city after years of training fit Oliver Queen’s story, but it was thematically very similar to Batman Begins. Instead of the funny, quippy character from the comics, Oliver Queen was now a broody figure always operating at night. In addition, Arrow used several Batman villains, including but not limited to Deadshot, the Royal Flush Gang, Anarchy, and Ra’s Al Ghul.

1 Harley Quinn

The Harley Quinn animated series is, of course, about Harley Quinn. However, as a series about a former Batman villain set in Gotham City, Harley Quinn feels like an extension of Batman’s universe. While Batman appears in Harley Quinn, the show never made the mistake of making Batman the central character. Instead, Batman feels like a “special guest actor” during his Harley Quinn appearances, adding to the worldbuilding of the series. Still, Harley Quinn is another example of just how large – and popular – Batman’s lore is.