Monday, December 5, 2011

Ask The Answer Manic Monday #9--How Big Is Batman?

OK, this might seem like a trivial question from "Taco-Clark (??)," but as per usual, it's made me think too hard:

The Answer Man sort of blows this one off (in Secrets Of The Haunted House #22 (1980)), so I put my mind to it.

Sure, Batman has pushed himself to the peak of his body's potential for physical fitness. But that wouldn't necessarily make him taller.

Whereas Captain America, he's been altered by the Super-Soldier Serum and Vita-Rays. Clearly Steve Rogers is taller than he was. Doc Erskine's work didn't just push him to his body's peak, it pushed him, more or less, to the (non-super-powered) human peak.

So, easy answer...Cap used steroids, so he's taller.

But wait. This is Batman we're talking about. Bruce Wayne is the most obsessed guy on Earth--why in the world wouldn't he use steroids to help pump himself up, if that made him better in his fight against crime??

I mean, if you're Batman, and somebody was killed because you hadn't done everything humanly possible to make yourself the ultimate anti-crime weapon, you've failed, right? At least from his viewpoint. He's all about the mission. And can we believe that a man who would sacrifice any vestige of a personal life, who goes days without food or sleep, who refuses to get proper medical care when there's something going on in Gotham...are we to believe that this man wouldn't ask Leslie Thompkins to shoot him up with some anabolic steroids? He's not worried about being a role model for kids or going to the Hall Of Fame--he's got a mission, he's driven, and he sees any failure as a betrayal of his parents. So again...how could he not juice up?

Chime in, peeps.

Oh, yeah, and discuss whether Cap is taller than Batman, if you're still worried about that...

5 comments:

  1. Captain America's Physical Attributes (according to Marvel.com)

    Height
    6'2"

    Weight
    220 lbs

    Eyes
    Blue

    Hair
    Blond

    More on Marvel.com: http://marvel.com/universe/Captain_America_(Steve_Rogers)#ixzz1fgV7hEUU

    Do you have a copy of DC's Who's Who with Batman in it? I can't find anything official online.

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  2. I can see a Taco-Clark, Taco-Superman book.

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  3. Who's Who lists Batman at 6'2" as well, but at a trimmer 210 lbs. Steroids'll do that to you.

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  4. Didn't Bats shoot up venom one time and roid out on the Penguin and then smacked around some women?

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  5. In the Batman/Captain America crossover book that came out in the mid-90s Batman is depicted as being the taller of the two. Granted it's an Elseworlds book, so that might not apply to the mainstream continuity.

    Bucky's taller than Robin in that book in case Taco was wondering.

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