Martha Wayne

Martha Wayne (

As a key figure in the origin of Batman, Martha Wayne has appeared in multiple forms of media. Notable portrayals of the character in live-action include Sara Stewart in Batman Begins, Lauren Cohan in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Carrie Louise Putrello in Joker, and Stella Stocker in The Batman. Emma Paetz also portrays her in the television series Pennyworth in a main role.

Background

Martha Wayne first appeared in Detective Comics #33 (November 1939) in a story by Bob Kane and Bill Finger which detailed the origin of Batman. Initially little more than a cipher whose death inspired her heroic son, later comics would expand upon her history.

Born Martha Kane (a

When Bruce Wayne was eight years old, his parents took him to a screening of a Zorro movie at a cinema in Gotham's Park Row. Returning to the car through an alley, they were confronted by a lone gunman, who attempted to steal Martha Wayne's pearl necklace, an anniversary gift from Thomas. In the ensuing struggle, the thief shot both the Waynes dead (Later versions of the story claimed that only Thomas was shot; Martha died instead from the "shock" of his murder due to her having a weak heart. This

The identity of the Waynes' killer has varied through different versions of the Batman story. Initially, he was said to be the criminal

In Jeph Loeb's Batman stories, Bruce feels responsible for his parents' murder because he advised Martha to wear the infamous pearl necklace the night she was murdered. Had she not worn it, the mugger might have not killed them, or even have been attracted to them. In Death and the Maidens she claims that the pearls were fakes, and that she wouldn't have worn real ones simply to go to the theater. As this experience may have been merely a hallucination, it is unknown whether or not this is true.

Alleged double life

Another mystery about Martha Wayne's final fate is unveiled in the Batman R.I.P. storyline, where it is revealed that the Kanes hired a detective to prowl about the circumstances of her death, always suspecting that Thomas Wayne married her for her money.

Many years later, the detective hired by the Kanes presents to

Streets of Gotham

In the series

After her father was tricked into a shady investment deal by a mobster named Judson Pierce, which drained the Kane fortune and made him suffer a fatal heart attack, Martha became involved with charity work focusing on Gotham's poorest citizens. One of her main projects was raising support for the free clinic founded in Gotham's slums by doctor Leslie Thompkins.

During an attempt to solicit support from Gotham's elite, she had her first encounter with Thomas Wayne. Aside from being a well-regarded surgeon, Thomas was also an infamous playboy and party animal. He affirmed this reputation by being extremely drunk in public and vomiting on Martha's shoes, causing her to storm off in disgust despite his apologies.

Leslie's clinic also became a new target for Judson Pierce after he deemed it a key point for taking over the surrounding neighborhood. Pierce attempted to prey on Martha's poverty by offering cash to shut the facility down. Martha accepted Pierce's money, but filed it as a donation to keep the clinic running. Enraged, Pierce arranged to have Martha and Leslie assassinated.

Martha met Thomas Wayne a second time after he had Alfred chauffeur him to the clinic so he could apologize again. That same evening though, Pierce's hitmen also decided to make their move. Alfred was able to subdue the assailants, but not before Leslie suffered a minor gunshot wound. While Leslie recovered from her injury, Thomas volunteered to work in the clinic alongside Martha. Thomas became content with the work there and it wasn't long before Thomas and Martha became romantically involved. By the time Leslie returned to work, Thomas became an official sponsor of the clinic and used his vast resources to keep it running. Thomas also distanced himself from his hedonistic past, citing Martha as his inspiration to change.

The New 52

In September 2011, The New 52 rebooted DC's continuity. In this new timeline, Martha Wayne is seen as a good, strong-willed mother worried about her child's future and the future of Gotham's children as well. It is revealed that when Bruce was three years-old, Martha was pregnant with a second child named Thomas Wayne Jr. Due to an accident orchestrated by the Court of Owls, the child was born prematurely and sent to Willowwood Asylum, although he is officially listed as having died 12 hours after his birth. After the murder of Thomas and Martha, the asylum ceased to receive proper funding and the staff started to abuse the children in their care. The Court of Owls offers to take a child who is possibly Thomas Jr. into their ranks, the child left in care after he was born premature with serious disabilities, and he is reborn as Lincoln March, a Gotham socialite and mayoral candidate. Thomas Jr/Lincoln blames Bruce for their parents' murders and the abuse he suffered, and becomes obsessed with getting revenge against his brother. Whether Lincoln really is Bruce's brother or a ploy set by the Court of Owls in order to enlist him in their ranks is left ambiguous; Bruce acknowledges that the evidence favoring March being Thomas Jr. makes sense, but is certain that his parents would have told him if he had a brother, and observes that every piece of evidence has an alternative explanation, but without a DNA test there is no way to be certain.

Other versions

Superman: Red Son

In Mark Millar's Superman: Red Son, Martha and her husband are anti-communist protesters in the Soviet Union. They are executed by the NKVD under Commissar Pyotr Roslov, which leads to their son vowing to overthrow the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

Batman: Dark Knight Dynasty

In Batman: Dark Knight Dynasty, Thomas and Martha are saved from death when 'Valentin Sinclair' — really Vandal Savage, a man who has a long-standing interest and admiration for the Wayne family despite the fact that they often end up opposing him when they learn about his plans — scared off Joe Chill, Sinclair becoming a partner in Wayne Enterprises, only for Sinclair to have them killed when they threaten to expose his plan to divert a meteor that gave him his powers back to Earth so that he can study it. Their deaths — triggered by Sinclair's fear-inducing henchman Scarecrone causing them to remember the mugging, driving them to flee Chill by running off their balcony — prompt Bruce to become Batman to investigate, Gordon having written their deaths off as an accident and Bruce unwilling to investigate as himself because of the risk to his new wife, Julie Madison.

Flashpoint

The alternate universe Flashpoint version of Martha Wayne is the Joker (and even resembles Heath Ledger's portrayal as seen in The Dark Knight). After Bruce Wayne is shot and killed by Joe Chill, Martha is unable to cope with her loss so she cuts open her cheeks to create a faux smile.^[5]

As Joker, she is the nemesis of

When the Flashpoint reality was restarted during the "Flashpoint Beyond" storyline, Joker was revealed to have survived the fall and started targeting anyone who had anything to do with time travel. She was revealed to have allied with Gilda Dent when she was incarcerated at Arkham Asylum. Batman figured out that Martha was still alive when he was told by Oswald Cobblepot that Dexter Dent went to go see Martha in prison. Batman finds that Joker had enlisted scientists to build a Time Sphere and gutted them once they have served their purpose. Joker tries to use the Time Sphere only for it to explode. The Flashpoint timeline stabilizes when both Batman and Joker come to terms that their reality would be better without Bruce. Joker was last seen in a special cell in the Batcave as Batman and Dexter as Robin head out to fight the Kryptonian invaders. She does offer to hook them up with a contact if they are in need of Kryptonite.^[7]

In the pages of "The New Golden Age", Martha was seen with Batman and Dexter at the time when Per Degaton was imprisoned in the Flashpoint reality.^[8]

Planetary

In an alternate universe ruled by the tyrannical '