Batgirl & Batwoman's 'Bright Knight' Costumes Finally Rejected Gotham's Darkness

Summary Batgirl and Batwoman embrace lighter costumes in a utopian Gotham scenario.

The Bat-Family envisions a brighter future for Gotham City in Detective Comics #27.

Batman, Batgirl, and Batwoman step out of darkness into hopeful, inspiring roles.

Gotham City is a dark and miserable place, and the easiest way for vigilantes to survive in such a bleak area is to blend in. That's exactly what Batgirl and Batwoman did when they joined Batman's mission, but one storyline showed readers exactly what would happen if Batgirl and Batwoman were able to embrace the lighter side of their mission instead, including thrilling and unique costumes.

Detective Comics #27 marks the beginning of the Gothtopia event by John Layman and Jason Fabok. This event also showcased plenty of new costumes for the Bat-Family, two of them being the Bluebelle outfit for Barbara Gordon and the Brightbat costume for Kate Kane. These outfits are a stark change from what they usually wear.

Instead of the Gothic, primarily black or dark gray outfits that the Bat-Family is known for wearing, Babs and Kate are seen wearing bright and hopeful colors. Since this version of Gotham is no longer the miserable and Gothic hellscape it usually is, the Bat-Family can wear costumes that are far more inspiring, which actually fits in with Batman's grand hopes for Gotham City.

2014's Detective Comics #27, along with including the beginning of the Gothtopia event, marked a major anniversary for the New 52 title, as the original Detective Comics #27 from 1939 featured the first appearance of the Caped Crusader himself: Batman.

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The "Bluebelle" Costume Is the Brightest Version of Barbara Gordon's Batgirl

Detective Comics #27 by John Layman, Jason Fabok, Tomeu Morey, and Jared K. Fletcher

Every member of the Bat-Family has joined because they believed in Batman's mission to save Gotham City from crime. While it seems like a completely insurmountable task, there's no doubt that every member truly believes in it. During the events of Gothtopia, every citizen of Gotham is under the effects of Scarecrow's fear gas. But instead of making them see their worst fears, they end up seeing their greatest hopes, manifesting in a vision of a utopian Gotham City. That the entire Bat-Family sees this utopian city means that this hopeful vision is what their true desire for the city is.

Batman's Bright Knight costume was created by Alfred for Batman on the day he finally saved Gotham City from crime.

While this can be hand waved away as just the hopeful, but unrealistic, desires of the Bat-Family, it's been revealed that Batman legitimately thinks this utopian future is possible. Batman's Bright Knight costume was created by Alfred for Batman on the day he finally saved Gotham City from crime. It was a touching moment that proved Alfred truly believed in Batman's mission, and considering Batgirl and Batwoman share the same hallucination of a perfect Gotham, they seem to truly believe in that mission as well.

The Bat-Family Will One Day Step Out of the Darkness

Batman Has Been Pushing Gotham Towards the Light for Years

The Bat-Family has been fighting for decades to bring Gotham City out of the darkness it's been trapped in. While it's unlikely they'll ever succeed, readers have gotten to see what the Bat-Family would look like if they did: Batman with his Bright Knight suit, Batgirl as Bluebelle, and Batwoman as Brightbat. It shows that while the Bat-Family is mostly made up of Gothic and dark members now, that doesn't have to be the case forever, and it's something that every member of the Bat-Family would truly love to leave behind.

Detective Comics #27 is available now from DC Comics!