Batman is no doubt one of the greatest superheros of all time. He’s the rich smug asshole that everybody loves to hate (and wants to be), but underneath he is just a troubled man who wants nothing more than to protect strangers from the horrors he experienced. So basically he is already awesome. Throw in some unbelievably evil nemeses, the sneakiness of a ninja, some cool toys to play with, and then BAM, you’ve made yourself an icon that everyone will love.  He has a fantastic (recently finished) movie Trilogy in The Dark Knight Saga, an unbelievable couple of video games with Arkham City and Arkham Asylum, and a new children’s TV show (Beware the Batman). The Caped Crusader looks to be at the peak of his current popularity, but last time this happened in America they gave us Batman Forever. It seems like it can’t be long before this generation’s metaphorical Schumacher is revealed, and there are already 2 suspects.

1. Batman: Arkham Orgins- Until the trailers came out people were terrified of this game. Were they right to fear?
2. Ben Affleck- Daredevil is dead. Must I say more?

Now I hope that these don’t hurt the series (I’m super excited about Orgins), but ignoring the possibility is just not being careful. If Batman goes down we will have to catch our fix somehow. Here are some characters that we can turn to if we lose the bat.

Ironman

Tony Stark portrays everything that we love about Bruce Wayne. He’s a rich smug asshole, He gets beautiful women any time he wants, he spends his money to make sure strangers are safe, and he’s still a rich smug asshole. He’s perfect to replace this quality of Batman.

X-Men

The X-Men have some of the best Villains of all-time! Think about it; Magneto is a holocaust survivor who just never wants to be oppressed again, Juggernaut was given his strength and then (from his point of view) trapped in a cave by his brother for years, Mr. Sinister- is an insane man wanting to experiment on people to take what is special about em. That’s not even mentioning that they battle Apocalypse!

Green Arrow

Could you imagine how great a Green Arrow video game (in the Arkham series format) would be? It would have the feel of Grand Theft Auto, but with the stealth of Hitman. Not to mention his personality is fun to watch. With the world introduced to him more through Arrow and Injustice: Gods Among Us, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him in a new game.

Green Lantern

Want cool gadgets that can get you out of tight situation? What about a ring that can materialize what ever you feel is the right thing for the job. It’s a all in one kind of thing. Batman can grapple, blow things up, and throw Batarangs all he wants, Green Lantern can make all those, and more!