10 Terrible Mistakes That Almost Ruined Batman For Everyone

9. The Ridiculous Bat-Companions

Back before Julie saved Batman from apparent cancellation, the comic book property was bloated by superfluous additional characters who were adding an unwanted sillier edge to the property. Specifically, the worst offenders were the awful Bat-Mite and the almost comical Ace The Bathound, both of whom were thankfully dropped when Schwartz came on board to save the character from the ignominy of cancellation.

Batgirl was similarly cast aside by the New Look revolution, but she was by far the least offender, considering the sins committed especially by Bat-Mite. Ace was less of a crime, since he was clearly inspired by the success of Krypto (another regrettable decision) in a time when heroic dogs were all the rage, but that doesn't distract from the fact that he was a hyper-intelligent dog in a mask helping out the world's supposedly Greatest Detective.

And as for Bat-Mite, the forgiveness or understanding come a lot harder: he was an annoying abomination, clearly inspired by the same school of thought that added Scrappy Doo to Scooby Doo and The Great Gazoo to The Flintstones. All three focus groups who said yes to those tone-ruining clowns should have been stripped of their responsibilities entirely.

Imagine if Bat-Mite had been allowed to continue - he would have been just as culpable for the inevitable death of Batman - or the property's reduction to a laughing stock - as those other two annoying sidekicks were to their respective shows.