Original artwork, not a still
Yes, father. I shall become a bat.
— Batman: Year One · 1987
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
This is the point the whole Batman myth turns on: a grieving man's decision to turn his fear into a symbol. Miller restages the 1939 window-bat origin as a quiet, almost prayerful scene, addressed to a dead father, and it became the definitive modern telling. Fans quote it to mark the moment of commitment, and later films and games echo the same image of a bat in the manor window.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Batman: Year OneShow the scene
The line closes the first chapter of Batman: Year One (Batman #404, cover-dated February 1987), written by Frank Miller and drawn by David Mazzucchelli. Bruce Wayne has returned to Gotham after twelve years abroad and knows he is not yet ready to fight crime. At the end of the issue he sinks into a wing chair in the study at Wayne Manor and stammers his father's name, feeling he has let his parents down. A bat then crashes through the open window, and Bruce takes it as a sign and promises to avenge his parents by becoming one. The idea echoes the original 1939 origin in Detective Comics #33, where Bruce sees a bat at the window and declares he shall become one.
Sources (3)
- DC Database: Batman Vol 1 404Quotation and SynopsisReference checked
- Wikipedia: Batman: Year Onelead and PlotReference checked
- Batman Wiki: Window Batinfobox and quoteReference checked
Context reviewed
