Warning: Spoilers for Batman: The Brave and the Bold #19There are so many amazing Batman villains that it’s easy for a lot of the older ones to get lost in the shuffle and not get the attention that they deserve. But occassionally DC remembers that there are villains other than Batman’s A-Listers, and sometimes these older characters even get to return with a brand-new look, as Killer Moth just did.
Usually, when a villain gains a new set of armor, it’s portrayed as a big deal, but that’s not the case in the story “Robin Season, Part 2” by Brendan Hay and Marco Santucci from Batman: The Brave and the Bold #19. One of Batman’s most underrated villains, Killer Moth, quietly gets a major upgrade without anyone really noticing. While Killer Moth is usually a throwaway villain who is never taken seriously, his new outfit makes him surprisingly deadly.
Killer Moth’s new outfit seems to be a significantly more armored design than what he usually wears, along with his wings becoming armored. He ambushes and captures both Tim Drake and Damian Wayne to prove what a new threat he is. While the two Robins were distracted, that he was able to capture them at all is still a major feat.
Gotham’s Killer Moth Debuts a Wild New Armored Redesign
Batman: The Brave and the Bold #19 by Brendan Hay, Marco Santucci, Luis Guerrero, and Carlos M. Mangual
Killer Moth has been a Batman villain for quite a long time, but despite this seniority, he is rarely given the respect that he deserves. Several stories explore how Killer Moth has nearly beaten Batman, such as the time he outsmarted Batman by using trained attack bears when Batman was just starting out. Killer Moth has only upgraded his gear since then, becoming more powerful. While it might seem hard to believe, Killer Moth has the potential to be a real threat, if not to Batman, then certainly to some other Bat-Family members – like Red Hood.
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Throughout this two-part story, Killer Moth expresses his desire to get revenge on Robin, but considering how many Robins there are, there’s some confusion about who he actually wants revenge on. Killer Moth eventually realizes that it’s the second Robin who he wants to kill, which would make Killer Moth the perfect rival to Red Hood, especially since they’ve interacted fairly recently. In Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing by Matthew Rosenberg and Carmine Di Giandomenico, Red Hood actually steals Killer Moth’s gear, which he certainly wouldn’t let go easily.
Killer Moth Would Be a Perfect Rival for Red Hood
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One of the best parts of being an underrated character is the ability to surprise people. Everyone is always excited when the Joker gets a new toy or Mr. Freeze invents a new type of freeze gun, but Killer Moth can truly surprise readers. Everyone, including the Bat-Family, has written Killer Moth off as some nobody who isn’t a threat to anyone. But back in the day, Killer Moth was a persistent threat to Batman, and it’s possible with this new gear and a new rivalry with Red Hood, this Batman villain might just surprise fans again.
Batman: The Brave and the Bold #19 is available now from DC Comics!
