Alfred Pennyworth, Batman's Ally or a function of his incredible Wealth?

[jeff_wilson]

Originally Posted by Phantasm

Bruce can probably hire a butler with the same general skill set, true, but there's a level of trust involved with Alfred, who Bruce views as family, that Bruce could never allow himself to have towards any other butler, regardless of background or skill set.

I think most versions of Batman can still form something like healthy relationships with new people - the various Robins are examples. I could see Alfred declining with age to where another confidante must be relied upon, and eventually, a replacement would be found. The difficulty would be arranging for Alfred's successor to somehow have sufficiently strong emotional ties to Bruce to put up with him.

OR, someone with ties to Alfred, and have them bond sufficiently with Bruce that they stay around after the immediate crisis is over.