It seems like literally every day, Batman he has to fight tooth and nail to protect Gotham City from the ridiculous villains that inhabit it. That’s why, at first glance, it seems so surprising that there’s a villain Batman would trust with the city’s well-being. But considering the history between Batman and Two facesit’s really obvious that Bruce Wayne would let Harvey Dent protect Gotham City in his absence.
Harvey Dent is chosen as Gotham’s surprising protector in Detective comics #817 by James Robinson and Leonard Kirk. This problem occurs during DC’s One year later arc, during which the DC Universe timeline moves forward one year after the massive events of the timeline Infinite Crisis crossover event. Some heroes set out after a major defeat to train and become stronger, including Batman and Robin.
Following Jason Todd’s return as Red Hood, Batman and Robin go on a year-long training expedition. While Batman is gone, he needs someone to look after Gotham City. While some fans assumed Batman would leave it up to one of the Bat-Family members, he actually had none. Batgirl was unavailable because she was shot by the Joker, Huntress was on bad terms with Batman, and Nightwing and Robin were dating him – leaving Two-Face as Gotham’s sole protector.
Batman can only trust Two-Face in Gotham City in the Dark Knight’s absence
Detective comics #817 by James Robinson, Leonard Kirk, Andy Clarke, John Kalisz and Travis Lanham.
At this point in the DC timeline, Harvey Dent has probably been completely cured of the Two-Face personality. He had had surgery to repair his face and appeared to be legitimately trying to make amends for the crimes he committed. Batman himself points out these developments when Harvey tries to reject the offer. It says a lot about how Batman feels about Harvey Dent that he not only names him Gotham’s sole protector, but also trains Harvey in how to fight so he can effectively protect Gotham.
Batman has always been open to forgiving his villains if he thinks they’ve truly changed.
Batman has shown repeatedly over the years that he is open to working with his villains if he believes they have been rehabilitated. Batman once invited Clayface into the Bat-Family and supported the Riddler when he tried to become a hero. Batman has always been open to forgiving his villains if he thinks they’ve truly changed, and he especially has reason to believe this in regards to Harvey Dent. Although characters like Clayface and the Riddler had to prove that they had changed and could be good men, Batman met Harvey Dent when he was a good man.
Batman has known Harvey Dent since childhood, making his story genuinely fascinating
Harvey Dent even helped create the no-killing rule
Many fans may not know that Harvey helped create Batman’s no-kill rule, as seen in Batman Star #3 by Scott Snyder and John Romita Jr. In this story, concerned about Bruce’s murderous fantasies about Joe Chill, Alfred sends him to Arkham’s summer home for disturbed children, where Harvey was also present. Originally, Bruce and Harvey intended to kill each other’s attacker, with Harvey killing Joe Chill and Bruce killing Harvey’s abusive father. But After Harvey forgave his father, Bruce considered trying to see the good in people too.
Two-Face fans are in luck! Harvey Dent will star in his first solo series as part of DC’s All In Storytelling initiative throughout 2024 and 2024. Two faces #1 by Christian Ward and Fabio Veras will be available on December 4, 2024 from DC Comics.
This decision with young Harvey was a incredibly important moment in Bruce Wayne’s life. It completely changed the way he saw people and helped him form his no-killing rule. Even after this meeting, Harvey continued to be an important person in Bruce’s life. During the events of Batman: Dark Victory by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, Batman considered revealing his secret identity to Harvey Dent and bringing him in as his first true ally before Robin. Ultimately, this partnership didn’t work out due to Harvey’s transformation into Two-Face, but Bruce was actually thinking about it at the time.
For an entire year in the DC timeline, Harvey Dent was Gotham’s sole protector
Without the Bat-Family, it was just two faces protecting the city from Batman
THE One year later The story isn’t the only time Batman entrusted Gotham City to Harvey Dent. In the recent book of Ram V Detective comics After Batman is driven from Gotham City, he relies on Harvey Dent and Two-Face to try to prevent the city from falling completely under the control of the Orgham Family. When Batman finally returns to retake his city, Two-Face plays a pivotal role in defeating the Orghams and freeing Gotham from their hypnotic control. Batman truly believes in Harvey’s capacity for heroismand in the most dire situations, Batman knows he can trust Two-Face as much as he can trust Harvey.
There are few people Batman truly trusts – his immediate Bat-family and Superman, that’s pretty much it. But this story, which isn’t often talked about, proves that Batman completely and completely trusted Harvey Dent. Even after evidence emerges suggesting that Harvey murdered Gotham’s criminals, Batman still maintains his innocence and is ultimately proven right, despite Harvey returning to his Two-Face identity. While it’s unlikely that Batman and Two faces will become true allies again, it is clear that Batman I desperately wish they could be.
Detective comics #817 is now available from DC Comics!