Batman: The Animated Series 10 Best Characters

Jim Gordon is literally one of Batman's oldest allies, having been introduced at virtually the same time as Batman himself. His position as the head of the Gotham City Police and his support of Batman's methods (usually) have created an alliance that, while often calling Jim's judgement into question, undeniably creates relative peace on the mean streets of Gotham.

Previous iterations of Commissioner Gordon (the Burton movies and '60s Batman, for example), had depicted him as more of a politician than a cop, someone who couldn't make a decision or take any action until he consulted with Batman.

B:TAS' Jim Gordon was different. A cop's cop, he had no problem being the first through the door at a crime scene or leading officers on a raid. He trusted his police officers and supported them when some outside agency or politician challenged their competence or results.

Jim was savvy, though, and smart enough to realize that no matter how good his people were, Gotham had some threats that simply couldn't be handled by the men and women in blue. That's when he would light the Batsignal and work with Bruce, eventually creating not only a working relationship, but a friendship.

On the other hand, if you want to see what an anti-Batman Jim Gordon is capable of when he's pushed too far, check out the excellent episode 'Over the Edge'.