Comics are awesome.

[Shockwave]

It's easier to trace Wayne to Batman by following the money. Any investigative reporter worth their salt will be able to figure it out. "Oh, look here, Bruce Wayne shelled out half a million for a jet engine and it's listed as car parts. And according to the receipt, it was shipped to Wayne Manor. Why would he need that unless that's where the Batmobile is which means Wayne IS Batman!" Or scenario B: "Wayne Enterprises was working on a bulletproof suit, but shortly after the prototype and testing phase it was scrapped and delivered to Wayne Manor."

The point is that by announcing that he's funding Batman, it opens the door for people (be it reporters or Batman's enemies) to do the necessary investigating to essentially tie Bruce Wayne to Batman. All they really have to do is follow the money. At some point, it's gonna prove that he's Batman. For the scale that Batman's been operating it would be impossible to hide everything. There would be records of something, somewhere that would ultimately prove that Wayne is Batman.

I'm still not going to read this because I don't even like Batman anyway. Some rich kid's parents get killed and he spends all his time and money on revenge. W did pretty much the same thing when he focused on invading Iraq.

[Sparky Prime]

It's easier to trace Wayne to Batman by following the money. Any investigative reporter worth their salt will be able to figure it out. "Oh, look here, Bruce Wayne shelled out half a million for a jet engine and it's listed as car parts. And according to the receipt, it was shipped to Wayne Manor. Why would he need that unless that's where the Batmobile is which means Wayne IS Batman!" Or scenario B: "Wayne Enterprises was working on a bulletproof suit, but shortly after the prototype and testing phase it was scrapped and delivered to Wayne Manor."

The point is that by announcing that he's funding Batman, it opens the door for people (be it reporters or Batman's enemies) to do the necessary investigating to essentially tie Bruce Wayne to Batman. All they really have to do is follow the money. At some point, it's gonna prove that he's Batman. For the scale that Batman's been operating it would be impossible to hide everything. There would be records of something, somewhere that would ultimately prove that Wayne is Batman.

You don't give Bruce enough credit. Remember, he is the worlds greatest detective. He's smart enough not to leave a trail, or at least cover his tracks pretty good so that no one could easily even find those clues. Not to say it's impossible, but it would take someone in the same league of brilliant detective skills (such as Tim Drake), not just any ol' investigative reporter. There is no way he'd ship something for Batman to Wayne Manor. That would be way to easy for someone trace. Rather, they have explained in the comics that a lot of items have had a bad habit of mysteriously disappearing from Wayne Enterprises inventory over the years. Following the money isn't going to lead someone to figure out Bruce is Batman.

Bruce is just that good at hiding his secret identity.

[Dominic]

That is like saying "Bruce Wayne is magic". Nobody is *that* good. If somebody wrote a new character like that, they would be (rightly) accused of creating an over-powered gaming character.

Items mysteriously vanishing is not going to cover anything if somebody is looking for something that they have every reason to believe is actually there.

[Sparky Prime]

That is like saying "Bruce Wayne is magic". Nobody is *that* good. If somebody wrote a new character like that, they would be (rightly) accused of creating an over-powered gaming character.

Well Batman has actually been shown to know a few magic spells... Seriously though, I really don't see it as so unbelievable or power gaming. A brilliant detective like Bruce is going to have the forethought and skills to cover his trail. But like I said, that doesn't make it impossible. There have been a few, like Tim Drake, who have figured out Batman's secret on their own.

Items mysteriously vanishing is not going to cover anything if somebody is looking for something that they have every reason to believe is actually there.

Items are bound to get mislabeled, and/or misplaced occasionally. And then this is Gotham City where crime is all too common...

[138 Scourge]

That is like saying "Bruce Wayne is magic". Nobody is *that* good. If somebody wrote a new character like that, they would be (rightly) accused of creating an over-powered gaming character.

Well Batman has actually been shown to know a few magic spells... Seriously though, I really don't see it as so unbelievable or power gaming. A brilliant detective like Bruce is going to have the forethought and skills to cover his trail. But like I said, that doesn't make it impossible. There have been a few, like Tim Drake, who have figured out Batman's secret on their own.

If it was a new character, yes. But Bruce has been at it for awhile. Besides, it's in the character's description: "World's Greatest Detective".

[Shockwave]

I can see both sides of this actually. On the one hand it's bullshit because we all know in the real world he'd have been busted by now so the whole "follow the money" thing works as a legitimate argument. And even in context, Tim Drake apparently did it, so by publicly announcing that he's funding Batman, Bruce has just made it that much easier for others to do what Drake did. Maybe not easy exactly, but easiER. I can also see the other side of this that Batman's been around for what, like 60 some odd years and so far Drake is the only who figured it out? Either the residents of Gotham are really stupid or Batman is actually really good at hiding everything. I just think it's stupid for someone operating that way to make things easier for anyone to make that connection.

[Dominic]

I might even had made sense in the 30s or 40s, maybe even the 80s. But, now, with a 24 hours news cycle and modern investigative tools, it would be hard enough to keep the identity secret even without announcing it publicly.

As far as Bruce being the world's greatest detective, there is a world of difference between knowing investigative techniques and being able to counter them effectively.

Dom
-has picked up and read comics this week.

[Shockwave]

I picked up the latest issue of Buffy. Haven't read it yet and given that the latest ish of TF comes out today I'll likely pick that up and read that first.

[andersonh1]

JSA Special #1

In which the Golden Age heroes and legacy heroes take on the dark age. More or less.

What we actually have in this JSA special is the last two issues of Magog, cancelled due to poor sales. The character in his current form first appeared during the "Thy Kingdom Come" storyline in the Justice Society monthly series. He's gone from somewhat sympathetic to a complete jerk, and has apparently become quite unpopular. I liked the character back when he was David Reid, but not so much later on.

So, the plot: the cult of Gog has decided that Magog must be controlled and used to change the world as they think Gog would want it to be. The Justice Society get involved when they stop some apparently random super villain, who turns out to be powered by a piece of Gog. One of the admittedly nice things about this book is seeing some of the All-Stars back with the older guys, which we haven't seen since the very large Justice Society split up into older and younger teams, some time ago. And of course, the JSA go after Magog, convinced that he's behind the trouble.

There are some nice touches to the book. Jay tipping his hat to the military is one, and Alan's debate with David Reid is another. Some of the dialogue sounds like the way these characters might have spoken in the 40s or 50s, lending a nice retro feel to this partially retro team. And then after all of their conflict and distrust of David Reid, the JSA help him fight back against Gog and finally defeat him.

My only real complaint about the book is that I don't know anything about the supporting cast and plot threads that originated from Magog's own series, and the issue doesn't explain them very well, if at all. Particularly the final few pages, where someone is offering Magog the chance to rule somewhere, and I have no clue who this is or why it's important.

Overall: not bad if the reader is familiar with "Thy Kingdom Come" and Magog, but the story isn't self-contained enough for anyone not following Magog's series. I can guess at most of what's going on and work it out, but a few questions remain. Still, I enjoyed the story.

[Sparky Prime]

And even in context, Tim Drake apparently did it, so by publicly announcing that he's funding Batman, Bruce has just made it that much easier for others to do what Drake did.

Tim figured it out by being extraordinarily observant though. He recognized a quadruple somersault Robin pulled off as being exactly the same as the Flying Graysons pulled off (having been in the audience the night Dick's parents died). Realizing Dick was Robin, he was able to conclude Bruce was Batman.

Maybe not easy exactly, but easiER. I can also see the other side of this that Batman's been around for what, like 60 some odd years and so far Drake is the only who figured it out?

Tim was just the example I was using that some have figured it out. There are a select few other characters who have deduced Bruce is Batman as well. But again, Bruce is smart enough not to leave a money trail to suggest he is Batman. If anything, by publicly announcing he's been funding Batman would make it easier for him to pass something off as a donation or some such to Batman, not easier for someone to figure out he's Batman.

As far as Bruce being the world's greatest detective, there is a world of difference between knowing investigative techniques and being able to counter them effectively.

Bruce is the type to know something forwards as well as backwards. Besides, part of being a good investigator is getting into the criminals mindset to figure out how they pulled off the crime.