DC: Batman’s Best Friends, Ranked
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Highlights
- Batman’s closest friends include Zatanna and Barry Allen, with whom he shares professional and personal bonds.
- Batman’s friendship with Commissioner Gordon is built on trust and loyalty, with Gordon being the only person in the police force that Batman can trust.
Batman is one of the most iconic DC superheroes of all time. Whilst many fans might think Batman prefers to work alone, the DC Comics have the character interacting, working, and sharing bonds, with some of the finest characters to offer. Batman has a great relationship with many heroes in DC, to those without powers, or those without secret identities. Bruce Wayne and Batman are one.
Batman’s best friends range from his wards, his friends in the police force, and even other heroes. Batman and Bruce Wayne may have a different public life from one another, but their friendships are the same, and most of Batman’s most trusted allies are his closest friends.
7 Commissioner Gordon
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Debut Comic:
Detective Comics #27 -
Creator:
Bill Finger & Bob Kane
There are few people as loyal and trusting as Jim Gordon, the Police Commissioner of Gotham City. Batman and Gordon have been through a lot together, including Joker’s sick and twisted crippling of Barbara Gordon, Jim’s daughter, and Batman’s ally Batgirl. Gordon is truly the only person in the GCPD that Batman can trust, and the two are great friends, professionally.
Outside of the current canon, The Dark Knight Returns features a retired Bruce Wayne and a retiring Jim Gordon as great friends, and they go to dinner, enjoy drinks, and share stories. This friendship is great, but Batman seems adamant about telling Gordon his secret until his retirement.
6 Zatanna
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Debut Comic:
Hawkman #4 -
Creator:
Gardner Fox & Murphy Anderson
Zatanna and Bruce Wayne grew up together, so it’s no surprise that they are close friends. The two know a lot about each other, and their superhero identities have the two closer than ever. It’s one of the rare friendships that started before Bruce’s parents were gunned down in Crime Alley, and the cowl took over his life. Their childhood friendship goes beyond their hero identities.
There were some instances in the comics where the friendship between Zatanna and Batman was tested, especially in the use of magic that stole Bruce’s trust from one of his oldest friends. This made their relationship tether slightly, making Zatanna not exactly Batman’s bestie.
5 Barry Allen, The Flash
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Debut Comic:
Showcase #4 -
Creator:
Robert Kanigher & Carmine Infantino
Barry Allen and Bruce Wayne have become close friends over the years, especially after the Flashpoint event that started the New 52. The Flash and Batman are a great duo, and they share a great level of intellect due to Batman’s detective skills and The Flash’s forensic science background. They share a mutual trauma, and a sense of serious nature when the situation calls to it.
What made the bond between Barry and Bruce so close comes when Flash returned from the Flashpoint timeline with a letter from Thomas Wayne, the Batman of Flashpoint, and the father of Bruce. This letter made Bruce cry and was one of the best gifts he could have received, and from The Flash, he’s one great messenger.
4 Wonder Woman
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Debut Comic:
All Star Comics #8 -
Creator:
William Moulton Marston & H. G. Peter
Wonder Woman is part of the most iconic trio of comic characters with the DC Trinity of Wonder Woman, Batman, and Superman. Wonder Woman and Batman share a close bond, although they do tend to argue about a few things during their time in the Justice League, and their mutual stubbornness. Whilst their bond hasn’t been a focus of DC Comics, they did share in something to make them inseparable in recent years.
Batman and Wonder Woman ended up trapped in a dimension of Hell, in which 24 hours in Earth’s dimension is years and decades in this Hell dimension. They spent almost 40 years together, just them two, so it’s no surprise that they grew close. However, the romantic tension between them may cause trouble for their friendship.
3 Nightwing
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Debut Comic:
Tales of the Teen Titans #44 -
Creator:
Marv Wolfman & George Perez
As Bruce Wayne’s first ward, Dick Grayson is both a son and a friend to Bruce and Batman. Dick Grayson was the first Robin and eventually forged his own identity as Nightwing. Whilst the two have struggled from time to time, and their bond as friends, and father and son has been broken, they always come back together. It’s always great to see Batman acknowledge Nightwing as his son and as his closest friend.
Bruce and Dick share a mutual trauma, since Dick watched his parents die, just as Bruce did at that age. Bruce has helped grow Dick Grayson into the person he could never be, and the layers to their friendship make for a brilliant pairing for these heroes.
2 Alfred Pennyworth
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Debut Comic:
Batman #16 -
Creator:
Don Cameron, Bob Kane, Bill Finger, & Jerry Robinson
Where would Bruce Wayne be without Alfred Pennyworth? Perish the thought, because Alfred and Bruce are inseparable. Alfred is the only family Bruce had left after the death of his parents, and he is the closest thing he has to a father. Bruce shares all his secrets with Alfred and sees him as his closest ally, who will always stitch up his wounds after a battle with deadly villains, offer advice, and be there for him.
They have known each other since Bruce was born, and their bond is inseparable. There are perhaps no characters as important to Batman as Alfred, who while may on the surface be his loyal butler, is in reality, his father, his closest friend who provides him with utter comfort in a world turned against him.
1 Superman
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Debut Comic:
Action Comics #1 -
Creator:
Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster
There’s a reason that the duo of Superman and Batman is referred to as the World’s Finest. The duo may have seen many clashes in animation and movies in recent years, but their comic versions are the best of friends. Superman’s beacon of hope, and Batman’s dark stature, make for a brilliant and contrasting dynamic that helps to make them the best of friends.
The two respect each other to a degree like no other, and they have shared in many adventures, both in and out of their costumes. Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent are great friends, as much as Batman and Superman are. The two are always there for one another, no matter what.
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