Batman has a lot of gadgets and gizmos up his sleeve, but one of his most classic and oft used ones has just been shown to be a brutal weapon as well.
Warning: Spoilers for Batman: Reptilian #3!
When it comes to being the “King of Gadgets”, Batman is DC Comics’ go-to hero, and now he’s proven that one of his oldest ones — his smoke bomb — is way more brutal than it initially seems. Good thing Batman carries a bunch on him at all times though, because he’s going to need them if he’s to continue with his attempts in tracking down a new monstrous threat that even he can’t put his finger on.
Shown in the third issue of the DC Black Label limited series titled Batman: Reptilian, by Garth Ennis and Liam Sharp, Batman is doing his best to get to the bottom of a recent string of murders by a reptilian monster that’s as dangerous as it is mysterious. Taking the lives of nearly all of Batman’s villains while avoiding any kind of real detection, this unknown monster is giving Batman a run for his money as Bats can’t seem to find out what’s plaguing his city, let alone how to find it.
Believing Batman to be responsible for unleashing this monstrosity on him and his fellow deranged co-workers, Joker, in his terrified stupor, has taken hostages at the local botanical gardens and threatened to kill them if Batman doesn’t show. Arriving at the location, The Dark Knight assesses the situation and utilizes his contact within their inner circle to thin out the goons surrounding the hostages. Moving in to take out the last of Joker’s henchmen, Batman proves that while his trusty smoke bomb is often considered a non-offensive weapon, it can still be used in a way that takes out enemies in a flash.
Disarming the final goon with ease, Batman barely puts a second thought into shoving a smoke pellet down the guy’s throat, cramming it into the henchman’s mouth with enough force to almost choke him out. And as the bomb pops open, smoke begins to billow out from the goon’s mouth, making him gag and hold his throat in sheer terror, confusion, and pain, effectively neutralizing the final hurdle in saving the nearby hostages with a gadget that most heroes wouldn’t even think of using in this particular way.
A staple in Batman’s ever-changing utility belt from almost day one, Batman’s smoke pellets are most often used as a tool of distraction, misdirection, defense and escape during his nightly adventures. An integral piece of bat-tech that’s simple and elegant in its design while being clear in its use, Batman and his extended Bat-Family have utilized these tiny devices in obvious ways over the years, only now being proven to be a weapon that can also take out baddies when needed.
So while Batman most definitely has a wide range of other, more fancy, and high-tech gadgets at his disposal, it’s fun to see him find a new and interesting way to use his oldest one in a totally different way. Batman might pop smoke whenever he needs to confuse his enemies or steal away into the night, but this classic gadget is actually way more versatile than fans could have ever thought.
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