Batcave

From DC Database

Batcave

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Official Name

The Batcave

Aliases

Wayne Manor slave train

Location Details

Universe

New Earth

Galaxy

Milky Way

Star System

Sol

Planet

Earth

Country

United States of America

State

New Jersey

City

Gotham City

Locale

Gotham County

First appearance

Unknown

History

Discovered and used long before by Wayne's ancestors as a storehouse as well as a means of transporting escaped slaves during the Civil War era, Wayne himself rediscovered them when he fell through a dilapidated well on his estate. Much like Superman's Fortress of Solitude, the Batcave serves as a place of privacy and tranquility where Batman can be himself.

Upon his initial foray into crime-fighting, Wayne used the caves as a sanctum and to store his then-minimal equipment. As time went on, Wayne found the place ideal to create a stronghold for his war against crime, and has incorporated a plethora of equipment as well as expanding the cave for specific uses. Often, Bruce Wayne is depicted as having discovered the cave as a child, falling into it during youthful exploration of the grounds. ^[1]

The cave is accessible in several ways. It can be reached through a secret door in Wayne Manor itself, which is located in the main study, behind a grandfather clock. The panel unlocks when the hands of the clock are set to the time that Bruce Wayne's parents were murdered: 10:47. Alternately, the study entrance has been shown to be behind a bookcase which slides to the side when a secret button is pushed, revealing the "Bat-Poles", which allow Bruce Wayne and his ward to change into their Batman and Robin costumes en route as they slide down to the cave. There is also an entrance under Bruce Wayne's chair in his office in Wayne Enterprises, as shown in Batman Forever. In Batman Begins the cave is accessible through a secret door disguised as part of a large display case and unlocked by pressing a sequence of keys on the nearby piano.

Another secret entrance, covered by a hologram or a camouflaged door, allows access to a service road for the Batmobile. Another alternate entrance is a dry well, highlighted especially during the Knightfall storyline. At one point, Tim Drake and Dick Grayson use the dry well to get into the cave, which they had been locked out of by Jean-Paul Valley during his time as Batman.

Characteristics

The Batcave serves as Batman's command center, where he monitors all crisis points in Gotham and the world.

The cave's centerpiece is a supercomputer whose specs are on par with any of those used by leading national security agencies; it permits global surveillance and also connects to a massive information network as well as storing vast amounts of information, both on Batman's foes and his allies. A series of satellite link-ups allows easy access to Batman's information network anywhere in the globe. The systems are protected against unauthorized access, and any attempt to breach this security immediately sends an alert to Batman or Oracle. Despite the power of Batman's computers, the JLA Watchtower is known to have more powerful computers (composed of Kryptonian, Thanagarian and Martian technology), and Batman does occasionally use them if he feels his computers are not up to the task; on occasion he also consults Oracle for assistance.

The Bat Computer is powerful beyond the realm of realistic computer systems, as Alfred Pennyworth is able to program a replication (his "brain algorithms") of himself that can be conversed with. ^[2]

Additionally, the cave contains state of the art facilities such as: crime lab, various specialized laboratories, mechanized workshops, personal gymnasium, a vast library, parking, docking and hangar space (as appropriate) for his various vehicles as well as separate exits for the various types, trophies of past cases, a large bat colony, and a Justice League teleporter. It also has medical facilities as well as various areas used in training exercises for Batman and his allies.

The cave houses Batman's vast array of specialized vehicles, foremost being the famous Batmobile in all its incarnations (mostly for nostalgia as well as for contingencies, as all are serviceable and in excellent working condition). Batman keeps a fleet of regular cars of various models and utility vehicles such as an ambulance as well when the Batmobile would be too conspicuous for a mission. Other vehicles within the complex include various motorcycles, and various air and watercraft such as The Batplane, a single occupant supersonic jet. Another vehicle found in the Batcave is the subway rocket, first used during the time when Jean Paul Valley was substituting for Bruce Wayne after Bane had broken his back. It let Batman get into Gotham City very fast, and could electronically clear a path via the Gotham Rail system. ^[3]

The cave is sometimes powered by a nuclear reactor, but most often by a hydro-electric generator made possible by an underground river.

Batman later incorporated safeguards against earthquakes and even a potential nuclear catastrophe, outfitting the cave as a virtual bomb shelter or an enhanced panic room. ^[4]

Rumor has it, that the world's last Lazarus Pit was constructed inside the Batcave, although the validity of this claim is suspect.

Miscellaneous

Memorabilia: Three memorabilia items often seen in the cave are a defunct full-size mechanical Tyrannosaurus Rex, an equally large U.S. penny and a Joker playing card. The T. rex comes from an adventure on "Dinosaur Island"; ^[5] the penny was originally a trophy from Batman's encounter with a penny-obsessed villain named The Penny Plunderer ^[6] Other "keepsakes" in the cave include Two-Face's original coin, Deathstroke's sword, the shroud of the Mad Monk, and over-sized bowling ten-pins.

There is also a glass case display of Jason Todd's Robin costume as a memorial to him, with the epitaph "A Good Soldier". Barbara Gordon's Batgirl costume also remains on display.

Residents

• Alfred Pennyworth
• Batman (Earth-Two)
• Batman (Earth-One)
• Batman (Earth-22)
• Batman (Earth-32)
• Batman (New Earth)
• Batman/Azrael (Jean-Paul Valley)
• Robin (Earth-Two)
• Robin (Earth-One)
• Robin (Earth-32)
• Robin (New Earth)
• Harold Allnut

Notes

• The Batcave was first envisioned and designed by writer Bill Finger.
  

Trivia

• There have been many critiques over the display cases in the comics; fans saying that Stephanie Brown's Robin costume should also be displayed beside Jason Todd's and Barbara Gordon's costumes to commemorate her death during War Games.
• It will be one of the fight arenas in Mortal Kombat vs. DC video game.

See Also

• Appearances of Batcave (Chronological)
• Appearances of Batcave (Unordered)
• Location Gallery: Batcave
• Fan-Art Gallery: Batcave

Links and References

• Movie Poop Shoot Article on Batman, including a Batcave section
• So When Did That Happen? from The BATMAN Magazine On The Web
• Batman Timeline from Bravepages.Com

This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Batcave. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with DC Database, the text of Wikipedia is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.