Love the idea that Gordan has known Bruce’s identity for years now because he is a detective afterall and arguably you don’t need to be as good as Batman to figure it out. So he’s just known and kept it to himself and he pretends for Bruce’s sake. I don’t think Gordon is an esp good actor but he’s very good at evading things he doesn’t know how to approach. When Bruce does finally reveal himself Gordon’s lack of reaction is suspicious and the truth comes out.

(this is based off 2022 Batman but can be applicable other places) Going along with this thought I also really like when Gordan and Bruce are friends simply because they’ve worked together for so long, and indirectly Bruce has let him in on a part of his life only his immediate family sees (that part being Batman). While in costume Bruce can hide most of his humanity but there’s always going to be small things that can’t be hidden. Gordon has seen him investigating enough to know his patterns and see beyond the cowl (metaphorically). Esp when Bruce was first starting out, Gordon is already a fairly seasoned detective and it only took a few investigations for him to pick up that this guy was young and that was the first time Gordan truly saw Bruce as human.

Neither would realize they were actually friends until embarrassingly late. It would take like a throw away comment from Dick.

still not super sold but magical girl au batman is on his way (wip)

I’m so sorry but I feel this in my soul… Bruce is a boy dad. That’s what he was built for. He loves Cass ofc he does but his mentality towards her and the rest of his kids is “they can handle themselves,” except maybe Damian. Bruce is saying things like “walk it off” and that’s boy dad behavior. I truly think he would be so awkward if he had to raise a household full of girls. Not sexist just awkward. Bruce has a hard time socializing (on a deeper level not stuff for the press) with people he doesn’t see himself in. Which is why he gets on fairly easy with Cass. However I think if he had the time he would be a fierce PTA parent. In another lifetime the school faculty loved and feared him. Versus Gordan who wanted so badly to be a boy dad, was forced to be a girl dad, and was converted over time.

I feel like something a lot of people miss when discussing DC canon is context.

(Warning: Mentions of canon sexual assault scenes)

Batman Magical Girl Au alterations

I think the batkids have a running ranking of all Bruce’s romantic partners: not so much the people they think are good for Bruce, more so what they personally get out of him being in a relationship with them (this list also extends to people that he hasn’t dated)

This rank is not something that they agree on so there is a lot of back and forth bickering however there are a few generally agreed upon placements on the list (ex: they all agree harvey is low on the list but can’t ever be the lowest)

For years Damian always insisted Talia should be number one and was always shot down (out of pity and bc she’s one of the better options they always agree to put her in the top five)

Dick and Jason have been in a fight since the beginning over whether Selina or Clark should take the number one spot: Jason votes Selina, Dick votes Clark, and it has everything to do with how cool they think their respective choice is

They try to drag Tim into their debate but Tim always comes in with a wildcard answer that changes every time/ when really pressed about it he sides with Jason but out of solidarity for Kon (he still hasn’t fully forgiven Clark)

I think Cass has an answer but keeps it close to her chest 1) because she thinks it’s more important that Bruce be happy and she doesn’t want her brothers to use her as a weapon against that but more importantly 2) to incite chaos by not telling them (it’s a fun game for her)

These are some of my favorite batkids tropes in superbat fics:

Damian hating Clark fairly unprovoked (bonus if he’s friends with Jon to really rub it in)

I know it’s canon that Dick really looks up to Clark but I love when Dick makes this super obvious to Bruce and either accidentally or purposely makes Bruce jealous and Clark is like “wait isn’t this a good thing tho that your son likes me???”

Clark not knowing what to make of Tim and trying and failing to relate to him it’s awkward but it’s endearing (bonus if there’s drama surrounding Clark’s relationship to Kon and Clark is trying to win back Tim’s respect)

This is my official Batfam Magical Girl AU Masterpost (everyone clapped)

(image updated: 9/21/24)

I’m going to do a brief overview and then go into more details for those interested.

Bruce being from old money (and apparently being connected to Camelot) inherited a mysterious mineral with unknown properties. In its raw form it’s very unassuming, but when cut like gemstones and added to accessories it can be harnessed into a tool. By altering the mineral into a wearable item it allows the magic within to be channeled. The magic of the mineral connects with its wielder to create an outfit and (typically) a weapon. These outfits do not grant the wearer special abilities outside of the transformation and the weapon, but when worn the wearer is granted (what is basically) hammerspace and a nearly impenetrable outfit. The uniform granted is not something they can alter the appearance of but will change gradually overtime to reflect how the wielder has grown.

This mineral will henceforth be known as Arcanium. It operates on Kryptonite logic in that it’s— allegedly— super rare but also shows up whenever the plot needs it. (I’m aware it shares a name with a card game, but I wanted my Kryptonite spoof)

Martha Wayne unknowingly started the cycle by turning— what she thought was a rare gemstone— into a brooch. She died shortly after having it made and Alfred held onto it in her memory. Like canon Bruce goes on his journey of self-exploration to train. When he comes back he enacts his plan the way he does in Batman: Year One, where he goes out in basically just make-up, and it goes poorly. He wanders his manor trying to formulate a strategy and is drawn to his parent’s room and finds his mother’s brooch. Cue the first magical girl transformation. From there he alters the brooch to fit his bat aesthetic and the Batman Brooch is born.

Dick comes into his life the same way as canon. Bruce takes him in as a ward, Dick tries to track down Zucco on his own, etc. Bruce decides to use the other raw sample of Arcanium to turn into a second magical artifact. He lets Dick pick the theme, and thus the Robin Pendant is born. The rest is history.

One thing that I think is funny in DC identity porn fics is that Bruce will go so far out of his way to keep his identity a secret from the JL but esp Clark. Like “I can’t let the alien know too much because I have no idea how much of a threat he is.” There’s so much emphasis on Bruce being paranoid early into knowing Clark about whether Clark’s abilities allow him to know his identity vs J’onn…..

With J’onn it’s like Bruce didn’t even bother. He’s like “Oh that’s just J’onn. Say hi J’onn.” He literally knows less about him and is aware that J’onn is aware of his identity and he’s just fine with it. Like that’s the necessary evil, whelp time to get back to devoting ridiculous amounts of time to keeping my identity from my other coworkers.

It’s just funny that these fics accidentally imply a level of trust between J’onn and Bruce that I don’t think they intend to. Which I don’t mind, I actually enjoy it a lot. But it’s funny.

batman and his merry band of robins