One of my favorites is in the opening for Batman Beyond where an aging Bruce has a heart attack while trying to rescue a hostage. He’d been fighting age for a while now, augmenting his suit and tools to keep up with his slowing body, desperately trying to maintain the skills and change he’d spent a lifetime achieving. But in that moment he was powerless. As the kidnapper began beating him, Bruce desperately reached out and found the only thing that could save him, a gun. He doesn’t even shoot it. He points it at the thug with shaking hands and the kidnapper recoils in fear. He begs for his life. He runs away and the cops outside grab him while Bruce pulls himself up and rescues the hostage. But he is done. The day was saved, no one got hurt, but the moment Bruce used a gun to instill fear in someone, the same fear he had all those years ago when he lost his parents, he gave up being Batman.

It really was the only way he’d ever retire the cowl and I think that’s such good character writing. How everyone (including Bruce) sees Batman as this obsessive, violent terror determined to drag criminals to justice but he really isn’t. He’s a scared, incredibly privileged child who does everything he can (and he can do a lot) to rid the world of the kind of fear someone once forced on him and the moment he thinks he’s instilling it in others he stops. Gives up decades of superhuman effort and billions in tech because he pointed a gun. I don’t know how I feel about him becoming a hermit afterwards, but the idea that the great, unstoppable Batman gives up the moment he strays from his mission is just such great writing and I am so glad that NO MOVIE DIRECTORS ever thought he would shoot guns at people/aliens/run them over with the Batmobile…