Replacing The Knight

 (SPOILER WARNING!!)

I have incredibly mixed feelings about "Batman: Arkham Knight", both as a standalone story and as the conclusion to the otherwise excellent "Arkham" series in the Batman mythos. Let me just get my positives out of the way first.

There were several fun side-quests, most of the alternate costumes were cool, I really enjoyed some of the new combat features like the Dual Team Takedown, the voice acting was still top notch for a majority of the cast, and the graphics did a great job of capturing the atmosphere and feel of Batman's portion of the DC universe. And if nothing else, it did what it set out to do; it wrapped up the narrative for the "Arkham" series.

However, those were all the superficial elements, as the primary aspects of any storytelling medium that should get the most attention and development is the story and the characters. Unfortunately, both elements fell flat for me; with the story being a confusing mess with no clear direction or theme, and the characters felt more like one-note versions of who they are meant to be. The biggest offence in this regard would be with the villains trying to overtake Gotham just being barebones evil and Batman being a stubborn jerk who refuses help from people.

But by far the biggest issue I have with this game is with the primary villains; Jonathan Crane, a.k.a Scarecrow, and the titular Arkham Knight. The former hardly does much in the game beyond just popping up on giant billboards and waxing philosophically about fear and how he'll destroy the legend of the Batman. He says it's out of revenge for Batman leaving him to die at Arkham Asylum, except Batman didn't leave him to die; Killer Croc attacked him and clawed at his face, which resulted in Crane surgically altering his appearance to look like a scarecrow. Croc was even the one who, unintentionally, stopped Crane from dropping his bag of Fear Toxin into the river, which would've been detrimental to Croc as well as the rest of Gotham. Thus, Scarecrow's whole motivation for his revenge scheme makes absolutely no sense.

But worse off out of this story is the Arkham Knight himself. Initially, it was announced that he was a completely original character with no affiliation to anyone in the rest of the Batman mythos. This, of course, was an absolute lie, as it was revealed at the end of the second act that the Knight was actually Jason Todd; a.k.a, the former 2nd Robin and currently the Red Hood. And Jason's motivation for wanting to go after Batman is actually worse than Crane's; he believes that Bruce betrayed him by leaving him to die at the hands of the Joker in the Asylum, and so wants to kill Bruce as revenge. This, however, not only doesn't gel with Jason's characterisation from the comics, but also brings up Jason out of nowhere for the first time in the universe. Before this point, we didn't even know if Jason existed beyond a one-off reference in a Riddler challenge where you play as Tim Drake's Robin.

Normally, in the comics, Jason is bummed that Bruce didn't save him from the Joker's clutches and replaced him as Robin with Tim, but he ultimately forgave Bruce for that. Jason is only mad at Bruce for his refusal to kill criminals like the Joker, if only because he believes that's what lead to the pair being separated. That's what normally makes Jason such an interesting foil for Batman; the ideological divide over whether it's more effective to kill criminals instead of locking them away. We saw this in "Under The Red Hood", both the comic and the animated movie adaptation, and other iterations of the character outside of the comics has this same ideology; a willingness to use lethal force instead of sparing criminals.

They don't even bother giving Jason a proper redemption arc once his identity is revealed; we just beat him in the lamest boss fight in the series since the encounter with Deathstroke in "Arkham: Origins", and then he turns up later to free Bruce from Crane's clutches due to a sudden and off-screen change of heart. It stinks. Neither Crane or Jason should've been the main villains of the game due to a lack of any compelling motivations as well as generally sloppy storytelling and characterisation.

I don't have a problem with Jason being in the game, but not as a central antagonist. If they wanted to use Jason in the story as the Red Hood, there are two easy ways to go about it.

1) Have him as a side-quest, replacing the Deacon Blackfire one as that was completely pointless to the game. Have him still taunt Bruce about his identity and put him to a challenge of saving convicted criminals, all culminating in Jason revealing himself to Bruce and reveal that he's kidnapped Harley Quinn and plans to kill her for being the Joker's sidekick. From there, just have the scene play out like it does in "Under The Red Hood"; Bruce is given the choice to either shoot Jason to save Harley or leave and let Harley die, but he makes his own choice that saves Harley and stops Jason. Jason then tries to blow up the building they're in, he disappears, and Bruce just takes Harley to jail. Leave it ambiguous as to what happened to Jason, and maybe have a conversation where Harley confesses that she wanted no part in Joker killing Jason; give Harley some actual humanity instead of leaving her as the ditzy blonde sidekick to Joker's antics.

2) Just have Jason help the Bat-Family on certain quests. Let's say that, instead of Tim, Jason is at the Panessa Studios keeping an eye on the people infected with the Joker's blood. It would make more sense, as Jason could easily overpower them if they tried to escape, and he has a personal connection due to how it was the Joker's actions that led to Jason becoming the Red Hood in the first place.

But that then leaves two big questions:

1) If Jason isn't the Arkham Knight, then who is?

2) If Scarecrow isn't the villain, then who is?

Thankfully, I have the change needed that would not only give the viewers a decent mystery as to the Arkham Knight's identity, as well as clear up some plot holes, but would also give the series a much more thematically satisfying conclusion. But instead of simply giving it away right now, I'm going to lay the ground works leading up to the change and how it affects the progression of the narrative.

So let's get started with:

The General Plot (And more):

The basis for the games story remains pretty similar; Gotham will be evacuated thanks to a threat that also results in Gotham's villains running rampant and taking the city for themselves. But instead of Scarecrow giving the threat while showing off his latest Fear Toxin formula, it'll be the Arkham Knight threatening to kill every single person in that city unless his demands are met, thus starting his military invasion whilst Gotham is still evacuating. This immediately raises the stakes, and forces Batman to call in everyone to help in getting people out of Gotham as safely as possible. He'll have Nightwing, Red Robin, Spoiler (Stephanie Brown), Batgirl (Cassandra Cain), Red Hood, Catwoman (why not), Nightrunner (Bilal Alsselah), and Batwoman (Kate Kane) going around Gotham fighting off the various gangs working for the super-criminals while also assisting in the evacuation.

We could also show the members of the Bat-Family doing most of the side-quests and allowing Bruce more time to deal with the main threat at large; just show the side-quests in flashbacks with the framing device of being the Bat-Family members giving their reports to Bruce, not too dissimilar to the MJ and Miles Morales missions in the PS4 "Spider-Man" game. This at least makes it more plausible that Batman is able to stop whatever the Arkham Knight has planned in a single night, while also giving the chance to spotlight the dynamics between the various sidekicks that he has. For example, Jason and Tim could take down Harley's thugs as they try to take the various Joker infected prisoners for themselves, or we can see Nightwing and Spoiler teaming up to take down Penguins weapons caches, or even have Batwoman and Batgirl take down Man-Bat and Firefly. Even have Catwoman and Nightrunner taking down the Riddler to give the rookie a chance to shine. Mixing and matching these characters helps to give more variety and showcases Batman as someone who explicitly trusts his allies to help him.

Regardless, we can still have that bit at Ace Chemicals where Bruce rescues the workers and encounters the Arkham Knight (albeit this happens during the second Act instead of partway through the first), and their talk can be more or less the same; the Knight taunts Batman about his identity and how he plans to kill Batman after destroying his legacy. But a disguised voice stops the Knight from killing Bruce right there, as they want him to suffer a little bit more. The Knight reluctantly complies, and the rest of the mission play out as is. Only this time, as there is no Scarecrow in this game (or at least not as the main villain), the worry isn't that there is a massive Fear Toxin bomb that could encompass the entire East Coast in a cloud of fear, but rather a threat of a nuclear device that will detonate and destroy all of Gotham. This, however, was a trap set up by the Knight and his mysterious benefactor to trap Bruce inside the facility. There is no bomb, the facility doesn't even blow up; Bruce is just trapped there with no way out, allowing the Knight and the Militia to finish taking over Gotham. This is done to make Bruce look like a failure, as well as allow the Militia the chance to outnumber the rest of the Bat-Family.

It also allows the players the break they needed from one of the most controversial additions to the game; the Batmobile. I personally didn't hate it, but I completely understand where people are coming from when they say that too much of the game relies on using the Batmobile to get from one part of the story to the next. And with the absence of the Batmobile, I'm also bringing in another change; no unmanned tanks. The Militia are mainly using firearms and sword-fighters as the bulk of their forces, while still having specified soldiers like medics and heavy hitters. I'll explain why later.

Eventually, once the next round of side-quests are complete, one of the Bat-Family (let's go with Red Robin, because why not) is able to get into the facility and gets Bruce out. Bruce has been keeping track of everyone's progress, and is proud of them for keeping Gotham safe as best as they can without him. Once they get out, however, Bruce learns that the Knight is bringing in an even bigger army who are all out to get him, and starts investigating who the mysterious benefactor could be. After all, it's highly unlikely that someone like the Knight, who is obviously obsessive and unhinged, would be able to build an army on his own without any outside help. This investigation can have Bruce work more with Barbara (who won't be kidnapped in this version, because that was straight-up dumb in the game) to try and figure out the benefactor's deal. And as the story continues and the Bat-Family take down more of the super-criminals (I would specifically have Catwoman help stop Harley from obsessing over the Joker and guide her into a cell with Poison Ivy, who doesn't die because that too was dumb), eventually the benefactor is found and revealed to be...

A teenaged boy that looks like a young Bruce Wayne!

Bruce is confused by this, and questions the boy, who reveals that his name is actually Damian al Ghul, the artificially created grandson of Ra's al Ghul. He's the one who inherited the League Of Assassins after Ra's was impaled in Arkham City, and explains that he was created by the League as a combination of Bruce's and Talia al Ghul's DNA, making him Bruce's biological son. Suddenly, everything starts to click into place in Bruce's head; the Militia is a completely re-organised version of the League of Assassins, and they're here because Damian wants revenge for his mother's death in Arkham City, having made a deal with the Knight to complete his goal.

Meaning that the one who has been supplying the Knight with the forces he needs is none other that the most recent Robin in the comics; Damian Wayne. And it's not like this is unprecedented; in Arkham City, Talia mentioned how she and Bruce shared a night in Metropolis, so she could've gotten a sample of Bruce's DNA (whether it's his sperm or a strand of hair) and was able to use the technology at the League's disposal in order to combine it with her DNA and artificially create Damian as a potential heir to the League. And then, while Damian is being watched by another sect of the League outside of Arkham City, news reaches them and they learn of both Talia and Ra's being killed. All they know is that Batman was there and that the Lazarus Pit had been destroyed. Since he doesn't have the full details of what happened, Damian thinks that Bruce himself killed them and wants to see him dead.

There. A much better motivation for someone to take revenge on Batman than just "you left me to die" as well as one that more or less matches how Damian would act when someone he cares about is hurt or killed. In "Son Of Batman", the animated movie that introduced Damian into the DC Animated Movie universe, Talia is shot by Deathstroke and Damian tries to kill him in retaliation, only stopping because of Bruce's rule to never kill their enemies. But since in my version of the game Damian hasn't been raised or taught anything by Bruce, he doesn't have that stopping him from trying to kill Bruce for his mother's death. He knows of Bruce's no-kill rule, but refuses to abide by it because of how he was raised by the League of Shadows.

Speaking of, the use of the League as the Militia actually explains how the Knight has his army. In the game, it's never really explained how Jason was able to build a massive army of soldiers and unmanned drone tanks, not to mention all of the mines and watchtowers set up throughout the whole city. Using the League, however, answers that question; Damian is now in charge of the League and allies with the Knight to fulfil the common goal of destroying the Batman's legacy, the Knight specifically training several League members in modern weaponry/combat and medicine.

Anyways, that's more or less Damian's deal in this game; he's not necessarily evil, just incredibly misguided by the teachings of his grandfather while not coping with the grief brought on by losing his mother. But it's through the commonality of their love for Talia that Bruce can eventually talk Damian down from his revenge scheme. And if nothing else, Bruce can see this as the chance to honour Talia's memory by directing Damian away from the path of the League.

But it's here, that the Knight decides to put his plan into motion as to close off the second Act; he makes a massive broadcast on every channel in Gotham (including the GCPD and various news networks) and tells Gotham that he's done delaying the inevitable, deciding that he's going to reveal who he is to everyone watching. He removes his helmet, revealing... Bruce Wayne!

The Knight:

So, a question that I've been avoiding for some time; who is the Arkham Knight? And to answer that, I'm going to breakdown the events of what might just be the worst side-quest in the game; "Friend In Need". This is a bit lengthy, so please forgive me if I take too long.

This quest starts with Batman entering Wayne Tower via the elevator, and enters his office as Bruce Wayne. He takes a seat, but can't seem to access the computer as it doesn't recognise his retinal scan. This is where Lucius Fox comes in, confused as to why Bruce is here, before Bruce attacks Lucius and uses his retinal scan to access the computer, transferring most of Wayne Tower's money to a separate bank account; all of this being caught on camera, which in turn is watched... by Batman. From here, we learn that the Bruce Wayne that we have been following is an imposter, a man wearing a surgically crafted mask that he created from the faces that he removed from his victims. The man behind the mask is the Identity Thief, otherwise known as the surgeon Thomas Elliot who also calls himself Hush. We actually met Hush at the end of a side-quest in "Arkham City", as he had done this as a revenge scheme to destroy Bruce Wayne. And what is Hush's plan to destroy Bruce and everything he stands for, despite years of knowing each other from childhood?

Steal Bruce's fortune.... and that's it.

In "Arkham Knight", Bruce just subdues Hush and knocks him out before saying he'll put him on trial for his crimes. There's basically zero resolution or impact from this side-quest; you could just ignore it entirely and nothing about the game would really change. This is an objectively lazy way to resolve the storyline building with Hush trying to kill Bruce, as he easily could've been one of the main antagonists. Hush is normally a master manipulator and strategist, being intelligent enough to not only figure out Bruce's identity as Batman but also get the villains to co-operate in order to kill Batman. That's virtually what he does in his first major story arc in the comics; has a bunch of Batman's rogues gallery join together in a massive game of deception to kill Batman, even using Poison Ivy's pheromone dust to control Superman and have him attack Bruce.

Thus, as far as I'm concerned, the Arkham Knight never should've been Jason Todd; it should've been Hush. He has the right training and the right motivation to go after Bruce, as he is normally Batman's darker reflection. They were both born into wealthy families, but the main difference was that Thomas's parents were less than noble; with his father being incredibly abusive, and his mother being frail and submissive. He actually tried to have the two killed so he could inherit the Elliot fortune, only for Bruce's father to save Mrs Elliot in surgery, sparking the hatred that Thomas would have towards the Wayne's for the rest of his life. He is obsessed with destroying Bruce Wayne and rendered a complete sociopath because of his abusive upbringing.

For this version of the character, he could play the same role he did when he first debuted; manipulating the villains, as well as Damian, to take Gotham for themselves while also killing Batman (though I will leave out him knowing Bruce is Batman). However, since Hush has put himself through plastic surgery as to resemble Bruce Wayne, he uses this as the opportunity to discredit Bruce's legacy; pretend to be the real Bruce in order to make Gotham distrust him and think of him as a villain. And it's through this that Bruce decides to make the only choice he has;

The Climax:

Something that was really missing from this game was a climatic final battle. In "Arkham Asylum", you face a giant plant controlled by Poison Ivy before fighting a TITAN infected Joker. In "Arkham City", you fight off against Clayface in order to get the cure while also stopping Joker from getting into the Lazarus Pit. But in "Arkham Knight", Bruce is just taken to the Asylum, has his identity revealed, overcomes Crane's Fear Toxin, and puts Crane in jail. We really needed to wrap up this series of games with one truly epic final bout between Batman and the main villain. And I've come up with one that's not only thematically appropriate, but still leaves the door open for potential continuation.

Batman decides to go out into Gotham; Hush has set up a challenge to fight him outside the GCPD building, which he had taken over and wants the world to see Bruce Wayne as someone to be hated and shamed. This is where Batman arrives, news helicopters flying around as Hush stands outside the building without his mask. The two are standing across from each other, though Hush is backed up by the toughest members of the League at his disposal.

And from here is an exchange I've written between Batman and Hush:

H: I said before that you were predictable. I would suggest not taking another step; you wouldn't want to see Gotham's finest hurt now, would you?

B: Enough of this, Elliot! You won't win this.

H: You truly are as blind as the creature you pretend to be. My name is Bruce Wayne, and it's time that Gotham sees you as the weakling that you --

B: I said enough! You are not Bruce Wayne; you are Thomas Elliot, a genius-level surgeon and heir to the Elliot fortune. You are wearing a mask made from the skin of your victims to resemble Bruce Wayne. Now you will let them go, or you'll regret everything that led you to this moment.

H: Even if I were who you claim I am with that outlandish theory of yours, why would you even care? One billionaire shouldn't be any different to another in your eyes.

Batman initially hesitates; Hush sees this as a sign of weakness, and turns to address Gotham, to whom he is broadcasting this event.

H: Exactly. You people have deluded yourself into thinking he is your saviour, the Dark Knight swooping in to save the day with some tacky gadget or an overwrought car with a cannon on the top. But now you see, that there truly is no saving this city; Gotham will perish, and the Batman's legacy will die with it.

Hush turns back around to Batman.

H: Now then; is there anything you wish to say before your legend dies?

By now, Batman's resolve has hardened; he clenches his fist.

B: I only have one thing to say to you.

He reaches behind his head, and removes his helmet; revealing his identity to both Hush and Gotham.

B: Take your best shot, Tommy.

The citizens watching are shocked, but more importantly confused. Which Bruce Wayne is the real one? Is he the Arkham Knight, or is he Batman? Hush briefly starts to panic.

H: N-no, no this can't be right! Bruce Wayne is a pampered, spoiled brat; he's never had to fight for anything in his life! You can't be-- I'M Bruce Wayne!

B: No. You're a murderer, a criminal; a coward.

Hush is furious, but he hides it as he puts on his Arkham Knight helmet.

H: It doesn't matter; now that I have the chance to destroy both Bruce Wayne and the Batman in one night!

B: That won't happen, Tommy. You've already lost.

H: Are you blind or just stupid? Look around you! You're completely alone!

???: I wouldn't say that!

Both Hush and Bruce turn to see Nightwing leap down and stand beside Bruce on the right.

N: Sorry I'm late Bruce; hit a little traffic.

Hush seems unimpressed.

H: One sidekick won't make a difference!

A shot is heard; one of Hush's soldiers falls to the ground clutching his shoulder in pain. From behind Bruce, Red Hood walks to his left while holding a smoking pistol.

RH: Good thing, then, that there isn't just one!

From there, the rest of the Bat-Family arrive. Batwoman swoops in with Batgirl by her side; Catwoman uses her whip and gymnastics to drop down from another building and is followed by Nightrunner; Red Robin and Spoiler then grapple in standing side by side; and finally, a red and black bike arrives on the scene, with Damian jumping off from it wearing his own Robin suit. All of the costumed heroes are standing across from Hush, but none of them are wearing their masks; they're standing together as one family and refusing to stand by in the shadows anymore. They've taken Bruce's example and showing that they are not afraid of the man standing across from them.

Bruce takes a small step forward.

B: For all of the things you say I am, Tommy, there's one thing you've gotten wrong.

H: And pray tell, just what would that be Bruce?!

Bruce looks at each member of the Bat-Family; they each all nod at him before he looks back at Hush.

B: I am more than just Bruce Wayne. I am vengeance; I am the night; I! Am! BATMAN!

By now, Hush has had enough; he and his soldiers charge forward, with the Bat-Family charging back. And from there, they fight.

The main thing I wanted to explore with this ending is the fact that Tommy and Bruce are near mirror opposites. Both of them are smart, are heirs to an incredible fortune, and have experienced how harsh the world can be. But while Bruce has channelled his inner demons to fight for the people of Gotham and become their saviour, Tommy allowed his inner demons to consume him and turn him into a murderous monster. And it's because of his demons that Tommy refuses to believe that Bruce has ever truly suffered, thinking that he had his riches handed to him on a silver platter while Tommy had to fight and climb from the bottom to have even a semblance of recognition or respect. They are mirrors of each other, because Tommy's very existence asks the question "what if Batman had none of his morality and chose to become a killer?" With this, not only do we get a proper final boss battle to close out the story, but we also have Batman rising against the worst version of himself.

Also, revealing Bruce as Batman to the public this way I feel is much more effective than how it actually happens in the original game for one main reason; Bruce is choosing to reveal himself instead of letting someone else doing it for him. In the game, you're basically forced to surrender and let Scarecrow reveal Bruce's identity to the public, which didn't really feel earned nor did it allow for better storytelling. It was basically an excuse to play as the Joker in Batman's head before he overcomes his fears and is inexplicably saved by Red Hood.

And of course the main reason as to doing this; it gives Hush something to do in the story. In the main game, if you were to remove Hush from the story, absolutely nothing at all would change. He comes in, takes Lucius hostage, is beaten, and is never brought up again. It's a complete waste for a character like Hush to just be relegated to an E-plot at best, especially with the set-up for him in the previous game. And with the establishment of the Arkham Knight character as someone who has a personal grudge against Batman and Bruce Wayne, on top of having the skills needed to go toe-to-toe with him and recruit the other villains to help, it would've made sense that this was Hush's grand scheme to kill Batman and ruin Bruce Wayne's legacy by masquerading as him. By having him as the Arkham Knight instead of Jason Todd, it is therefore challenging Bruce to defend his honour and fight for Gotham, which he can only do by showing that he is both Bruce Wayne, the eccentric playboy billionaire CEO, and Batman, the defender of Gotham and widely-feared vigilante; one cannot exist without the other and he is embracing both to save Gotham.

Anyways, fight scene ensues; Bruce is mainly fighting Hush, while the rest of the Bat-Family fight off Hush's thugs. We can use this as an opportunity to allow for banter between the members of the team, taking down enemies together with the Dual Team Takedown mechanic, show off everyone's unique fighting styles such as Damian with a sword or Jason with his pistols; go all out and have fun with it. And by the end of it, each member takes a shot at Hush, breaking his armour away until his helmet is destroyed; Bruce then comes in and uses his arm blades to slash at Hush's face mask, revealing the real face underneath and exposing Thomas Elliot to the rest of Gotham. By now, Elliot is panicking; everything that he has fought for has fallen apart and now he has nothing left. But as he tries to run, Bruce lunges at him and pins him to the ground.

H: N-no! NO! This isn't over, Bruce! I'll never stop hunting you until you're dead, you hear me?!

B: It IS over, Tommy; and you'll never win.

He knocks Elliot out, and the remaining League members try to retreat, only to be stopped by the Batmobile. Barbara's voice is then heard coming from it.

Br: I'd think twice if I were you guys.

With that, Bruce picks up Elliot and drops him off at the GCPD. Aaron Cash can be there to take him in, and he can still do the whole "I'll stick to Batman" joke because I actually really like that line. Only this time, Commissioner Gordon steps out of the elevator to see the whole Bat-Family, unmasked and exposed.

The Ending:

And from here, I've narrowed it down to one of two ways that the story can go. Firstly, it can go the game route with the Knightfall Protocol; Bruce blows up his mansion, apparently fakes his death, and everyone keeps on fighting in his place. I don't mind that as an ending to the story, but I also don't think that the game really earned it. And with the way that I've put my story together, it doesn't really gel with the main ideas that I'm going for.

But thankfully, I do have an alternative that could still work as a solid conclusion while leaving the door open for further expansion. With that said, I've written an exchange between Bruce and Gordon to help give you guys an idea of what I'm going for. It goes a little something like this:

CG: Bruce; what now? The whole world knows who you are; who ALL of you are.

B: I know, Jim.

CG: All of the scumbags that you've locked up won't ever stop coming after you. Cobblepot, Dent, Crane, Nygma; they'll be all the more desperate to see you dead.

B: That's right. And that desperation will be their downfall.

Gordon is visibly confused. For this next part, I'm imagining a montage of the GCPD going out and arresting criminals all across Gotham.

B: In all of these years that I've been Batman, one thing has remained true in my mind; criminals are a superstitious, cowardly lot. I had to be able to strike fear in their hearts. But the more that I let myself put on the mask and scare them into never terrorising this city again, the more that I lost sight of Bruce Wayne and who he is. And that idea, that I could one day lose who I am; that's what scared me tonight, Jim. I revealed who I was to the world, not just to prove my innocence; but to show that I am not just Batman or Bruce Wayne. One cannot exist without the other. And it's because of that, that anyone who comes after me or the people I care about will never win. That's why Tommy didn't win; because I am not afraid anymore. I've hidden away for too long; I'm stepping out of the darkness and coming into the light.

Now we're back with Bruce and Gordon. Bruce puts out his hand to Gordon; they shake hands, and Bruce puts his mask back on, the Bat-Family following suit. After, Gordon hears his radio go off, turns around to listen in.

R: All units, all units; reports of Julian Day and Victor Zsasz causing havoc in East Gotham. I repeat; Calendar Man and Zsasz in East Gotham. Please respond.

By the time Gordon turns back, the Bat-Family is gone. He scoffs.

CG: What a shock.

We cut to each member of the Bat-Family traversing across Gotham; ending with Bruce standing over Calendar Man and Zsasz with as thugs surround him. Each one is taunting him, calling him Bruce instead of Batman. But then, the Bat-Family all swoop or swing in and stand together, with Bruce leading from the centre with a smile on his face before they all charge in.

Cut to black, roll credits.

Conclusion:

And there we have it. A story with an Arkham Knight that has a real motivation; an ending that fits a stronger thematic than just "fear is bad"; a narrative that gave the other heroes a chance to shine; a Jason Todd who isn't a whiny contrarian; and finally, a look into the potential of having Hush as the villain standing toe-to-toe with Batman.

As for why I included Damian Wayne in this, it was mainly to wrap up the stuff with the League Of Assassins in this story. They had more or less been one of the core villains in the franchise, with Ra's' body appearing in "Arkham Asylum" and the group being responsible for getting Quincy Sharp elected as the Mayor, which in turn led to the foundation of Arkham City and Hugo Strange initiating Protocol 10. Having Damian in this story not only allows for Bruce to honour Talia's memory by guiding Damian away from the path of revenge, but also gives the game the chance to put an end to the storyline with the League that's been building in the background since the first game.

And at the very least, my version of the story wasn't just relegated to an unsatisfactory DLC with characters acting like morons.

Anyways, thanks for reading. If you enjoyed, be sure to leave a comment letting me know what you think. Please share on social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. Follow me on Twitter; my handle is @MediaHood23. Same with my Instagram; @mediahood23. And of course, please check out and subscribe to my YouTube channel; Media Hood Reviews.

But until next time, because there always will be one; this is Callum Lewis, the Media Hood, signing off!