Warning: Spoilers for Outsiders #8!
Summary
- Batwoman breaks the Bat-Family’s no-guns rule to save Jinny Hex from a cursed weapon.
- Kate Kane sacrifices her peace to save a young girl, showcasing guns’ versatile role in the DC Universe.
- This decision adds complexity to the Bat-Family’s narrative around guns, impacting Batwoman’s future stories.
The Bat-Family’s biggest rule is broken by Batwoman, albeit for a good reason. Stemming from Batman’s childhood ordeal with gun violence, which took the lives of his parents, the Dark Knight has ingrained in his sidekicks and partners to never use a gun under any circumstances. The no-guns rule is just as strict as the Bat-Family’s no-kill rule, if not more so.
Batwoman finds a loophole to justify using a gun in Outsiders #8 by Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly and Robert Carey. Batwoman breaks the Bat-Family’s rule by picking up and using a gun, but only to save someone else’s life.
When Batwoman first meets Jinny Hex, DC’s modern day western hero, she learns that the gunslinger is being hunted down by ghosts from the Old West. She soon discovers from the ghost of her great-great-grandfather, Jonah Hex, that this gun is cursed, and every man that Jonah killed with that gun in his heyday will haunt whoever picks it up next for the rest of their lives. Instead of leaving Jinny with the cursed weapon, Batwoman takes Jonah Hex’s mysterious gun for herself.
Related
Batwoman Admits She No Longer Sees Batman as a Hero – & Won’t Work with Him
Batwoman may be Batman’s family, but after the events of “Gotham War”, Kate Kane is swearing off working with the Dark Knight and moving on.
Batwoman Adopts a Gun to Save Jinny Hex
A Good Bat Takes the Curse Away from Jonah Hex’s Great-Great-Granddaughter
Batwoman recognizes that this is too much of a burden to weigh down on a child, and thus, she chooses to take that burden away, thrusting it upon herself. What Batwoman is forced to go through in this issue speaks to not only the heroism that Batwoman showcases through her sacrifice, but how guns actually can help as much as they hurt in the DC Universe.
Batwoman’s sacrifice puts a twist on the Bat-Family’s classic narrative around guns.
This decision to burden herself with this cursed gun is going to significantly impact Batwoman and her stories forever if she’s not able to correct her dilemma sooner rather than later. Otherwise, a ghost is going to be at her doorstep every waking moment. Whether she’s forever cursed or she finds a solution remains to be seen, but in either case, Batwoman sacrifices her sense of peace to save a young girl’s life. It’s one of the most noble decisions Kate Kane has made in her history on the page.
Batwoman Showcases the Versatility of Guns in DC’s Universe
Can Guns Help as Much as They Hurt?
Guns are a controversial subject in the Bat-Family, so much so that using guns has put member Red Hood at odds with his own family for the longest time. However, Batwoman’s sacrifice puts a twist on the Bat-Family’s classic narrative around guns. More often than not, guns exist to end lives, but in this scenario, Batwoman saves someone’s life by using a gun, and it’s the only way she’s able to save Jinny’s life. It’s not likely to change the Bat-Family’s stance anytime soon, but Batwoman’s decision adds a new complexity around a weapon that’s been villified over the years.
Outsiders #8 is available now from DC Comics.
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Batwoman
Batwoman follows the story of Kate Kane as she returns to Gotham City after years away and takes up the mantle of the titular character in the absence of her cousin Bruce Wayne, who abandoned the city three years prior. However, Kate quickly learns that her twin sister Beth is alive and has become the terrifying villain Alice, who believes she was abandoned by Kate and their father, Jacob Kane, and wants nothing more than to see them dead. You can buy the seasons for $9.99 on Prime Video for Prime Day.
