So far, Fox's Batman prequel series is missing a crucial bit of the character's backstory — or maybe it should be "bat-story," amirite? When will Bruce Wayne procure his fear of bats on Gotham? This is why he becomes Batman instead of, I don't know, Orphan-man or Money-man. He becomes the thing that he fears the most. Besides Detective Jim Gordon, Gotham is mostly an origin story for the Rogues in Bruce's future vigilante life. It's a Batman show that is not really all that much about Batman. However, Gotham's pilot episode provided us with one iconic moment in Batman's backstory, the robbery gone wrong that took Thomas and Martha Wayne's lives. We may not see Bruce Wayne become Batman on Gotham , but he is still an important figure in Gotham City and it goes to reason that we will be privy to this aspect of his transformation.
According to the TV Guide description for the upcoming episode "The Scarecrow," Bruce Wayne will "take a treacherous hike." Could this be the incident that we've been waiting for? There are plenty of dangers in the manor woods. Selina Kyle was attacked, and I wouldn't be surprised if Alfred had a few enemies of his own. He could pull a punch! However, I suspect that there are bats in the woods. Bruce has been showing some moxy and character development over the last couple of episodes. It would serve his hero's journey to get knocked down by fear, even if it's only temporary.
The phobia of bats is crucial to Batman's origin story and we've already seen its origin play out a few different ways. Here's a refresher so that when and if it happens on Gotham, you'll recognize the significance.
To The Window
In the comics, the fear came from a bat crashing through a window at Wayne manor as he was debating his crime-fighting angle. The bat was a sign. You might even call it a signal. However, I doubt that this is how we'll see Bruce's phobia play out on Gotham. That show is much too action-packed to let a piece of lore fly by as a fateful accident. Plus, Bruce is still a child on this show. His brooding is not that cerebral yet. It's going to take more than a bat, a window, and an opportune moment to turn him into the caped crusader.
To The Well
In the Christopher Nolan film Batman Begins, young Bruce fell down a well filled with the winged creatures. He actually seemed more afraid of the well than the bats. He was playing with Rachel, who was written specifically for the film and has not appeared on Gotham. Also in the "Nolan-verse," that well became the Bat Cave, and the imagery was repeated later with one of R'as Al Ghul's trials. I don't think we'll see R'as on Gotham any time soon. He's already causing enough trouble on Arrow and even though the two shows aren't connected, it could get confusing. However, the Nolan version of Batman is likely the most familiar to Gotham's audience. If we're going to see the "bat incident" on the show, I bet that there will be a well, or something similar, involved.
Images: Warner Brothers; Giphy
