Batman's Helpers by Lawrence Block

Originally published 1990 in Playboy, this edition 1995

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Collected in: Hard-Boiled: An Anthology of American Crime Stories (ed. Bill Pronzini & Jack Adrian)

MA15+

Considered unsuitable for persons under 15 years of age; legally restricted

(L, D, S)

Coarse Language {MA15+}

Drug Use / References {PG} {alcohol}

Representations

Gender:

A single mention of a black woman as receptionist is all the presence of women in this story, alongside a character claiming he knows a woman who'll like a purse he stole.

Sex:

Implicit 'people will think you're gay' joke, came across as more banter than malice, but the same character later says he thought of Batman and Robin as 'fags' and speaks derisively of S&M.

Race & Ethnicity:

Main characters all white (unmarked). First character we see is a black woman in an incidental role as receptionist. Content of story mainly features confiscating unlicensed Batman merchandise from Senegalese, Pakistani and other mostly PoC street vendors. Two characters refers to black people by a slur.

Disability, Physical Diversity and Health:

No mention

Awards

None found.

Notes

Here's one with no murder, in fact with only the threat of violence at a couple of points. Superficially light piece with darker undertones about copyright enforcement on the streets of New York. Apparently this story features one of his major series characters (who turns out not to have the heart for this work), which I did not realise the first time around.