Batman's 9 Greatest Failures

9. Batman's Hubris Causes A Crime War

Stephanie Brown has one of the most storied histories of any DC character. From her humble roots as Spoiler - the daughter of two-bit loser, the Clue Master - all the way up to taking on the mantle of Batgirl. She has been "dead", pregnant and a Bird of Prey, but perhaps her most memorable moment came when she was, briefly, Robin.

When Tim Drake's father finds out about his son being Robin, he forces Tim to choose between him and Batman. Tim sides with his father and Bruce does not take the news well, and he swings into full "spoiled little rich boy" mode. Batman turns around and offers the mantle of Robin to Tim’s on-again/off-again girlfriend Stephanie Brown; someone who Batman had refused to sanction up until then.

The whole thing goes badly and, almost as quickly as Stephanie becomes Robin, Bruce fires her. A hurt and confused Spoiler then steals Batman’s plan to destabilize organized crime in Gotham and attempts to execute it. Stephanie’s ignorance of Bruce's alter-ego Matches Malone, a key component to the scheme success, results in an all-out gang war that tears Gotham apart.