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Bat-Mite

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Bat-Mite
Bat-Mite as depicted in World's Finest Comics #113 (November 1960). Art by Curt Swan.
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
First appearanceDetective Comics #267 (May 1959)
Created byBill Finger (writer)
Sheldon Moldoff (artist)
In-story information
SpeciesFifth Dimensional Imp (Zrfffian)
Place of originFifth Dimension
Team affiliationsJustice League of Mites
Supporting character ofBatman
Abilities

Bat-Mite is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Bat-Mite is an imp similar to the Superman villain Mister Mxyzptlk. Depicted as a small, childlike man in an ill-fitting copy of Batman's costume, Bat-Mite possesses what appear to be near-infinite magical powers which could be considered nigh-omnipotence, but he actually uses highly advanced technology from the fifth dimension that cannot be understood by humans' limited three-dimensional views. Unlike Mxyzptlk, Bat-Mite idolizes his superhero target and thus he has visited Batman on various occasions, often setting up strange and ridiculous events so that he could see his hero in action. Bat-Mite is more of a nuisance than a supervillain, and often departs of his own accord upon realizing that he has angered his idol.[1]

Bat-Mite has appeared in various media outside comics, primarily in association with Batman. Paul Reubens and Lou Scheimer voice the character in Batman: The Brave and the Bold and The New Adventures of Batman respectively.

Publication history

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Bat-Mite made his first appearance in Detective Comics #267 (May 1959) in a story titled "Batman Meets Bat-Mite", and was created by writer Bill Finger and artist Sheldon Moldoff.[2]

Bat-Mite was retired from the comic in 1964, when editor Julius Schwartz instituted a "New Look" Batman that shed some of the sillier elements in the series.[3]

Bat-Mite appeared in a self-titled six-issue miniseries which lasted from June to November 2015.[4]

Fictional character history

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Pre-Crisis

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Cover to Detective Comics #267 (May 1959), the first appearance of Bat-Mite, art by Curt Swan.

Bat-Mite regularly appeared in Batman, Detective Comics, and World's Finest Comics for five years. Bat-Mite and Mr. Mxyzptlk teamed up four times in the pages of World's Finest Comics to plague Superman and Batman together, as well.[5] In 1964, however, when the Batman titles were revamped under new editor Julius Schwartz, Bat-Mite vanished along with other members of the Batman extended family, such as Batwoman, Bat-Girl, and Ace the Bat-Hound.

After this, only three more Bat-Mite stories were published in the pre-Crisis DC Universe: two more Bat-Mite/Mr. Mxyzptlk team ups in World's Finest Comics #152 (August 1965) and #169 (September 1967) (which were not edited by Schwartz, but by Mort Weisinger),[6] and "Bat-Mite's New York Adventure" from Detective Comics #482 (February–March 1979), in which the imp visits the DC Comics offices and insists that he be given his own feature in a Batman comic. This story featured protestors with picket signs shouting "We want Bat-Mite!" outside the Tishman Building (where DC's editorial offices were located at the time), and was accompanied by an editorial comment that this story was published specifically to acknowledge real-life fan requests.

Post-Crisis

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Following the Crisis on Infinite Earths continuity reboot, Bat-Mite is largely removed from the Batman comics canon.[7] He appears in the Elseworlds special World's Funnest before being restored to the main continuity in Superman/Batman #25 (2006).[8][9] Furthermore, Bat-Bite appears as a hallucination that Batman suffers after losing his sanity during Grant Morrison's run.[10][11][12][13]

Powers and abilities

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Bat-Mite, as a fifth-dimensional Imp, has nigh-omnipotence, which is shown as near-infinite magical power. Bat-Mite has powers and skills identical to that of Mister Mxyzptlk (but not his weaknesses), such as the ability to manipulate spacetime. He has access to various bat-weapons like his hero, Batman.[14]

Publications

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2015 series

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  • Bat-Mite (2016-02-17): Includes Bat-Mite #1-6 and a sneak peek story from Convergence: Supergirl: Matrix #2.[15]

In other media

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Television

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Bat-Mite, Batman, and Robin from The New Adventures of Batman.

Video games

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Reception

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In Handbook of Comics and Graphic Narratives, Matt Yockey writes, "Bat-Mite pointedly represents the intersection of utopia and trauma in the superhero genre and he signals that the mastery over trauma is an essential step toward realizing a utopian ideal. His home in the 'fifth dimension' and his magical powers locate Bat-Mite in the utopian realm, yet he turns to Batman as his ideal, suggesting that contact with trauma is in fact indispensable to the expression of a utopian desire."[22]

References

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  1. ^ Beatty, Scott (2008). "Bat-Mite". In Dougall, Alastair (ed.). The DC Comics Encyclopedia. London: Dorling Kindersley. p. 39. ISBN 978-0-7566-4119-1.
  2. ^ Detective Comics #267 (DC, 1937 Series) at the Grand Comics Database
  3. ^ Wells, John (2015). American Comic Book Chronicles: 1960-64. TwoMorrows Publishing. pp. 167–169. ISBN 978-1605490458.
  4. ^ "DC Entertainment Announces New Books, New Creators, Broader Focus for the DC Universe". dccomics.com (Press release). February 6, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2020.
  5. ^ Fleisher, Michael L. (1976). The Encyclopedia of Comic Book Heroes, Volume 1: Batman. Macmillan Publishing Co. pp. 134–140. ISBN 0-02-538700-6. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  6. ^ Greenberger, Robert; Pasko, Martin (2010). The Essential Superman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. p. 25. ISBN 978-0-345-50108-0.
  7. ^ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; et al. (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 25. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
  8. ^ Ross, Alex (2003). The DC Comics Art of Alex Ross. Pantheon Books. ISBN 978-0375422409.
  9. ^ Superman/Batman #25 (May 1, 2006)
  10. ^ Batman #672 (February 2008)
  11. ^ Batman #674 (April 2008)
  12. ^ Batman #680 (October 2008)
  13. ^ Superman/Batman #52 (October 2008)
  14. ^ Bat-Mite Vol. 1 #1-6 (August 2015-January 2016)
  15. ^ "BAT-MITE". Archived from the original on 2017-04-09. Retrieved 2020-11-17.
  16. ^ "A History of Batman on TV". IGN. Archived from the original on 2012-03-27. Retrieved 2010-08-16.
  17. ^ "The New Adventures of Batman". DVD Talk. Retrieved 2010-08-16.
  18. ^ a b c "Bat-Mite Voices (Batman)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved May 11, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
  19. ^ "Batman: Brave and the Bold features Wii/DS connectivity". Engadget. 15 July 2016. Retrieved 2021-04-03.
  20. ^ Eisen, Andrew (October 4, 2013). "DC Characters and Objects - Scribblenauts Unmasked Guide". IGN. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  21. ^ Eisen, Andrew. "Characters - LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Guide". IGN. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  22. ^ Yockey, Matt (2021). "The Golden Age: Batman". Handbook of Comics and Graphic Narratives. De Gruyter. p. 326. ISBN 9783110446968. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
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