Superheroes are made in many different ways. Some through training like the Green Arrow, others through circumstance like Spiderman’s bite, and others by being absolutely and ridiculously wealthy, like Batman.
So if you don’t fancy an extensive training program, didn’t fall to Earth from a different planet and you can’t seem to get a radioactive insect to bite you no matter how hard you try, your only option is to become disgustingly rich and buy a lair full of gadgets in order to become the superhero you know you were born to be.
But just how rich would you need to be to become a superhero like Batman, with all his cars and gadgets as of "Dark Knight Rises"? Well, comic historian Thaddeus Howze has come up with a pretty specific answer.
$682,450,750, to be exact.
That astronomical figure takes into account the Batcave-Mansion combo, and if you remove the cost of rebuilding Wayne Manor and the Batcave (although you obviously couldn’t be Batman without the Batcave), you could become your childhood superhero for a mere $83 million... far more achievable! That figure includes the suit, training, equipment, gadgets, and, of course, a trusty manservant.
So how did Howze calculate that figure? Let’s break it down.
The Suit
Batman's suit alone costs a wedge – made from Nomex materials, the suit is insulated, padded, fire-resistant and bulletproof (but only against small firearms). This high-tech piece of equipment would set you back about $1,058,600.
The Vehicles
You won't catch Batman driving anything but the best and newest of rides, so how much would his vehicles set you back in your quest to become a millionaire hero?
The Tumbler alone would set you back a cool $18,000,000 – a military bridging vehicle equipped with weapons and capable of stealth mode operations, a ride like this doesn’t come cheap.
The Batpod, a motorbike-like vehicle that is essentially an escape pod from the Tumbler, is steered solely by shoulder movements and capable of turning 90 degrees almost instantaneously. It would cost you a reasonable $1,500,000.
And, of course, The Bat. A high-tech, top-of-the-line innovation, The Bat is a hovering vehicle capable of vertical take-offs and landing and is as agile as a helicopter. The estimated cost of such a craft would be as high as $60,000,000.
The Gadgets
Arguably better equipped than Mr. Gadget himself, Batman has a vast and varied range of dangerous and creative weapons in his arsenal. However, top-of-the-line can only mean one thing – top prices.
His Humble Abode
So here’s the kicker – after Wayne Manor, its grounds and the Batcave were destroyed in "Dark Knight Rises," the biggest cost you’re going to incur is rebuilding it back to its former glory. But not just rebuilding it, also hiring security, reinforcing the Batcave, installing the systems and supercomputers, keeping the workers quiet, building medical facilities and labs and the rest of it. All of that will set you back a cool $600,000,000. But hey, if you’ve got that kind of money laying around, what better to spend it on, right? Add in the cost of your ever-loyal manservant and, well, it's beginning to look a little pricey.
The Training
If you've got all these cool toys, cars and labs, you're going to need to be pretty well educated to use it, so you'll need to factor in a few engineering degrees, special firearms training and military pilot training too.
So I don't know, maybe we could start a CrowdFund?
Check out the full infographic here.
[H/T: Gizmodo]
