6 Characters You Never Knew Pretended To Be Batman

During Grant Morrison's epic multi-year Batman arc, he introduced Damian Wayne into the series by referencing an originally out-of-continuity storyline from a graphic novel called Batman: Son of the Demon from 1987. At the conclusion of that story, Talia gives away her newborn baby to an orphanage, never telling Bruce that he has a son.

In 2006 Damian Wayne became the new Robin, with more of a penchant for murder and violence than his father, thanks to his mother's influence. This reversal of roles, with Batman being the less grim of the Dynamic Duo, was a hallmark of Morrison's run, culminating in the pairing of Dick Grayson's even lighter Batman alongside Damian's Robin, after the disappearance of Bruce in Final Crisis.

But in 2007, slap-bang in the middle of Morrison's Black Casebook story, he decided to deviate for #666, to commemorate the demonic numbering, and showed the son of the demon himself, Damian Wayne, as the Batman of the future, with Barbara Gordon also taking over her father's position as police commissioner.

It is revealed that Damian was granted some sort of healing powers thanks to a Faustian pact with Dr Simon Hurt, and is much more at odds with the GCPD than his father was, thanks to his less forgiving nature, and the suggestion that he may have been responsible for the death of Jim Gordon. While it has never been officially stated if this story is in-continuity or not, the 666-future has been revisited several times, suggesting it's more than just an alternative universe. It's bleak, where the hopefulness of Bruce's Batman has been usurped by Damian's anger, as the result of Bruce's lack of foresight in keeping his friends close, but his enemies pregnant.