The seventh appearance of The Batman took place in the November 1939 issue of Detective Comics. Batman, complete with what appears to be a gun holster on his belt appears on the cover. We finally, after six previous issues, get an origin story for Bruce Wayne’s transformation into Batman. It is the now familiar story of the murders of Thomas and Martha Wayne following a movie with their young son Bruce looking on.
We then see Bruce Wayne physically training, lifting weights, and studying to become a scientist. In Detective Comics issue 33 we also get the now famous explanation of why Bruce Wayne chose a bat as his avatar stating, “Criminals are a superstitious cowardly lot. So, my disguise must be able to strike terror into their hearts. I must be a creature of the night, a black terrible… a, a, BAT!” The third panel of the series then show a striking an iconic pose of Batman on a rooftop flanked by bats.
We are then dropped directly into a wild story where aliens called The Scarlett Horde in a zeppelin-like craft swoop down on Manhattan (not yet Gotham) and begin destroying buildings and announcing to the terrified onlookers that they are taking control, and the people should not resist. The text tells us thousands are dead. Bruce Wayne, on the other hand, has a different suspicion. He has read in the newspapers that the insane Dr. Kruger, who we are told has a Napolean complex, has been released from the Asylum (not yet Arkham) and is working on a death ray (which obviously sounds like a bad idea and legally questionable).
Batman travels to the home of Dr. Kruger via his special car (not yet the Batmobile) and his combination Batplane/Batcopter which we have previously seen in earlier issues. Batman spies on Kruger who looks exactly like Napolean and who is telling his henchmen that they will build more dirigibles and fit them with death rays.
Batman then announces himself and throws a Baterang at Kruger only to find that Kruger has a sheet of thick glass protecting him. One of Dr. Kruger’s henchmen hits Batman and ties him up but Batman manages to escape just before Kruger’s hideout is blown up.
The next night Batman pays a visit to one of Dr. Kruger’s henchmen and scares him and tells him to let Dr. Kruger know that he is still alive and will be paying Kruger a visit. Batman, true to his word, then raids the secret base where Dr. Kruger is hiding his ships and uses knock out gas to infiltrate the hanger and destroy the ships. However, Dr. Kruger is able to hit Batman with his death ray and apparently turn Batman into a pile of ashes!
We discover, however, that Batman has again managed to escape and returns home where he works on a chemical formula for use against Dr. Kruger. Batman again confronts Kruger in an airplane and a sky battle takes place. Ultimately, Batman manages to climb onto the wing of Kruger’s plane, pitch a knockout gas pellet into the cockpit which knocks out Kruger causing him to crash his plane and die. Batman kills again and this issue of Detective Comics is a stand alone story.
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The Batman Timeline and Chronology:
03-30-1939: 1st Appearance of The Batman & Commissioner Gordon. Detective Comics issue 27.
06-1939: Batman swings from building to building with a rope for the first time. Detective Comics issue 28.
07-1939: The Utility Belt is used for the first time.
09-1939: Fiancée Julie Madison is introduced. First Bat-Copter / Bat-Plane
10-1939: Batman uses a gun to kill The Monk.
11-1939: Batman kills Dr. Kruger by causing his plane to crash after knocking him out with gas.
Batman Kill Count: 5
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