Why Fans of Batman are Up in Arms over Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League
Batfans are very unhappy right now, and it’s due to the new video game Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. Announced back in 2020 by Rocksteady Studios, the premise intrigued people at the time. When Brainiac invades Metropolis and brainwashes the Justice League into becoming his instruments of death, the titular squad of criminals is ordered to take them down with lethal force. Then came the delays, the bugs, the issues with gameplay, and more. However, with the game now released, fans of Batman are upset about how the game treats its version of the Dark Knight and his ultimate fate. Rather than go out in a way befitting a legendary hero, the game sees Batman die a relatively realistic but ignominious death.
Fans’ anger and disappointment about the fate of this iteration of this Batman are two-fold. Gamers have followed this version of the Caped Crusader for fifteen years. In addition, many Batfans have spent thirty years listening to the same man voice their hero until his sudden passing, making everyone believe this to be his final performance.
It’s not, but the resentment remains palpable on social media, and those who know the story behind this version of Batman and the man who played him will know why.
Kevin Conroy, the Man Behind the Cowl
The story begins in the year 1992 with the premiere of Batman: The Animated Series on Fox Kids. In the wake of the 1989 Batman film by Tim Burton, Batman, whose popularity had been waning for years, experienced a rebirth. Gone was the campy hero of the Adam West film, and its place was the dark, edgy, and Gothically-inspired hero that fans came to know Batman as. The film proved so successful that it led to a sequel and the creation of B:TAS, with a new man playing him for a new generation.
Batman: The Animated Series proved to be a massive hit. The darker setting, animation style, and mature nature made it beloved by fans and critics alike. Many fell in love, though, with the people playing the hero and his most famous adversary, the Joker. While the Joker would be voiced by Mark Hamill (AKA Luke Skywalker), Batman would be voiced by a 37-year-old graduate of Julliard named Kevin Conroy.
The success of B:TAS would give birth to an entire animated universe. From 1992 to 2005, shows like B:TAS, The New Batman Adventures, Superman, Static Shock, Batman Beyond, Zeta Project, Justice League, and Justice League: Unlimited formed the DC Animated Universe. And Batman/Bruce Wayne, with Kevin Conroy voicing him, appeared in all of them. By the time the shared universe came to an end, Kevin Conroy was considered the voice of Batman.
Thus, it came as no surprise when Conroy returned to voice the Dark Knight again in a new series of video games.
The Dark Beauty of the Arkhamverse
In August 2009, a new Batman video game developed by Rocksteady Studios and published by Eidos Interactive was released on consoles. The game Batman: Arkham Asylum centered around Batman being trapped inside the infamous facility when the Joker takes control. Thus, players had to fight, sneak, and work their way through a madhouse filled with most of Batman’s biggest enemies. And the icing on the cake was that Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill reprised their roles as the Dark Knight and Clown Prince of Crime, respectively.
While it was a different iteration of the character, having Conroy and Hamill reprise their roles evoked the spirit of the previous incarnations they played. No longer being bound by the age restrictions of TV meant the story could be as dark as Rocksteady wanted it to be. The result was like a spiritual reincarnation of B:TAS, now grown up alongside its fans. The game proved to be so popular that it spawned multiple sequels, a prequel game, spin-off comics, and even an animated film. And while Conroy didn’t reprise his role in everything, he still remained the main voice of the Dark Knight right up to the big finale in 2015’s Arkham Knight.
Till Death Do Them Part
While he did play other roles over the years, time and again, Kevin Conroy would return to Batman. If he wasn’t playing a version of him in a show, movie, or video game, then he would be playing another character. By the 2020s, he had played Batman longer than anyone had in the character’s history; he was the definitive Batman. Which only made it harder when he was gone.
In November 2022, news broke that Kevin Conroy had passed away after a battle with cancer. Having kept it a secret from the public, his passing shocked Batfans everywhere. Social media was flooded with fans and colleagues alike mourning the loss of the voice of Batman. Then, Rocksteady released the first game footage for their next game, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. Taking place in the Arkhamverse, the game revealed that Conroy had finished recording his lines before he died, making it his (apparent) final performance as the Dark Knight.
Which is why so many Batfans are mad about what the game did to the Arkham Batman. Once the let’s plays started coming online and people saw Batman’s ultimate death in-game, the backlash came pouring in. Batfans not only called Batman’s in-game death disrespectful to one of the character’s strongest iterations in living memory, but they said it was a disservice to have this be Kevin Conroy’s final performance.
Thankfully, all is not lost. Days after Suicide Squad’s early access came out, news broke that the game wasn’t Conroy’s final performance. IGN recently broke the news that he had recorded lines for at least two more performances before his death. One of which would see him reprise his role as the DCAU Batman, bringing his career full circle.
Batman Lives On
So, while it might be too late for Rocksteady to salvage the Arkhamverse Batman, as Suicide Squad has post-launch content in the works, Batfans can rest a little easier. The fact that they’ll get to hear the voice of the man who played the Caped Crusader longer than anyone a few more times is a heartening thought. Had this truly been his final time donning the cowl, that would’ve left a sour taste in the mouths of Batfans everywhere.
Plenty of people have gotten to play Batman over the years, but only a few can say that fans call themselves the Batman. And while others will continue to take on the role of the Dark Knight, Kevin Conroy will likely remain the definitive Batman for years to come. The fact that so many fans are angry at Rocksteady for dropping the ball is a testament to how beloved the man was and how much they still miss him. For he was vengeance, he was the night, he was Batman.
