Why is Batman who laughs so strong? A deep dive
As a passionate DC fan and content creator, I wanted to provide a comprehensive, insightful analysis on why the Batman Who Laughs is considered one the most powerful and terrifying Batman variants in the entire multiverse. This deadly fusion of Bruce Wayne‘s genius with the Joker‘s unrelenting psychopathic immorality makes him stand out even amongst cosmic titans like Perpetua and Dr. Manhattan.
He gained absolute power by absorbing Doctor Manhattan‘s abilities
The Batman Who Laughs‘ immense powers originate from forcibly integrating his mind into an alternate Bruce Wayne who had already absorbed the abilities of Watchmen‘s Dr. Manhattan. For context, Dr. Manhattan is essentially a god with complete control over matter and energy, unfathomable cosmic power, teleportation, and clairvoyance.
By bonding his consciousness with this figure during Dark Nights: Death Metal in 2020, the Batman Who Laughs gained:
- Nigh-omnipotence: Ability to manipulate all matter and energy at a cosmic scale
- Immortality and invulnerability: Cannot be killed by any mortal methods
- Teleportation: Can teleport himself instantly across time and space
- Flight: Ability to defy gravity and self-propel at tremendous speeds
This makes the Batman Who Laughs one of the most powerful beings in the entire DC multiverse. He can destabilize space-time, override the laws of physics, and has enough reality-warping capabilities to go toe-to-toe with cosmic deities.
Comparative power scale
| Character | Power Level | Key Abilities |
|---|---|---|
| Batman Who Laughs | 100 | Nigh-omnipotence, cosmic manipulation, genius intellect |
| Doctor Manhattan | 98 | Molecular reconstruction, perception across time, near omniscience |
| Anti Monitor | 95 | Consume universes, alter reality, time manipulation |
| Darkseid (True Form) | 88 | Omega beams, size-shifting, telepathy, immortality |
| Perpetua | 87 | Create/reshape reality, multiverse manipulation |
| The Spectre | 73 | Magic, reality warping, cosmic awareness |
As this table shows, the Batman Who Laughs after absorbing Doctor Manhattan‘s powers exceeds even cosmic titans like Perpetua and The Anti-Monitor in raw power and reality-shaping capabilities.
He succeeded in defeating the entire Justice League
Very few villains in DC‘s extensive rogues gallery can claim to have single-handedly defeated the legendary Justice League. The Batman Who Laughs shockingly accomplished this incredible feat in his own twisted universe, systematically killing the Justice League one by one. This proved he has both the cunning and power to take down some of DC‘s most iconic and mighty heroes.
The twisted deaths of Earth‘s greatest heroes
- Superman: Infected with Black Kryptonite causing him to murder Lois Lane. The subsequent guilt kills him.
- The Flash: Uses Still Force energy to stop Flash‘s speed powers, then kills him.
- Green Lantern: Uses psychotic Batman Robins to drive GL insane with fear.
- Wonder Woman: Tricks her into killing a brainwashed Billy Batson, driving her into exile.
- Aquaman: Drives his subjects into a frenzy, forcing him to watch them destroy Atlantis.
This macabre elimination of the Justice League one-by-one proves why the Batman Who Laughs deserves to be feared even amongst god-like beings. He combined psychological warfare, exploitation of weaknesses, and fiendishly clever planning to accomplish what Lex Luthor, Deathstroke, and other masterminds failed at.
He uniquely has Batman‘s genius with the Joker‘s utter immorality
| Batman Who Laughs | Batman | Joker |
|---|---|---|
| Genius intellect | ✅ | ❌ |
| Strategic mastery | ✅ | ❌ |
| Obsessive preparation | ✅ | ❌ |
| Lack of morality | ✅ | ❌ |
| Chaotic disposition | ✅ | ❌ |
| Fear induction | ✅ | ❌ |
This comparison table highlights why the fusion of Batman and Joker‘s traits produces such a uniquely dangerous villain. He has Bruce Wayne‘s obsessive need for preparation, genius-level intellect of 195 IQ, and mastery of strategy. But he combines it with the Joker‘s ultimate lack of morality, sadistic bloodthirstiness, and talent for inducing terror.
He can outsmart and outmaneuver almost any opponent
While many powerful DC characters overwhelm enemies with pure strength or speed, the Batman Who Laughs relies on fiendishly clever planning to outsmart adversaries. This is best evidenced in Dark Nights: Death Metal when he manipulated the cosmic deity Perpetua into giving him ultimate power.
He succeeded because despite Perpetua‘s incalculable reality-warping abilities, she remained vulnerable to cunning and deception. This showcases how the Batman Who Laugh‘s greatest asset is his unmatched strategic thinking.
His core strategies
- Preparation: Spends months or years infiltrating organizations and identifying every possible weakness
- Manipulation: Deceives allies and enemies alike to lower their guard
- Misdirection: Fools foes into wasting resources fighting imaginary threats
- Exploiting emotions: Targets emotional vulnerabilities like love or pride to create openings
- Unpredictability: Willing to utilize any tactic no matter how twisted to win
This methodology allows him to compete with and often defeat ridiculously overpowered foes like Dr. Manhattan who can see the future or cosmic titans like Perpetua who created entire multiverses.
While the Batman Who Laughs‘ powers make him formidable, it‘s his willingness to combine these with ruthless cunning that pushes him over the top into godhood. After all in DC‘s multiverse, even omnipotent figures have emotions that can be manipulated as weaknesses.
My take: The Batman Who Laugh‘s marriage of Bruce Wayne‘s unmatched intellect with the Joker‘s relationship-exploiting immorality is what supercharges him beyond any other Batman variant we‘ve seen so far in DC lore. I predict writers will continue escalating his cunning brain and power-set to pose bigger and bigger threats in events like 2023‘s Batman vs Robin.
