In January of 1993, Chuck Dixon and Doug Moench introduced us to the Santa Priscan bone crusher known only as Bane in the 64-Page One Shot "Batman: Vengeance of Bane" (if you have not read my review of that comic, do so before reading this article please). In April of 1993, Dixon, Moench, and the rest of the Batman team got to work on the brilliant task of "breaking the bat".
Spanning from April of 1993 to August of 1994, DC Comics published what is still to this day one of the most popular storylines known as "Knightfall". Knightfall consists of a trilogy which includes "Knightfall", "Knightsend", and "Knightquest". This particular article will be exploring the first volume, "Knightfall" and will touch upon the last two volumes.
When we first met Bane in "Vengeance of Bane", we learned of his unique origins. We learned of how he spent his entire life from the day of his birth till the day he left Santa Prisca as an adult in prison. In that lifetime of imprisonment, Bane developed not only peak physical condition, but also an amazing intellect. All this was in preparation for the day that he would get to kill the Batman and take Gotham City as his own.
"Knightfall" opens with our favorite masked muscle head engineering the escape of Arkham Asylum's most dangerous and derranged criminals through the use of heavy artillary and sheer strategy. With all of Gotham's most wanted rampaging through the streets, Batman, Robin, and his team would be working around the clock to round them all up.... which was exactly according to Bane's plan.
For the past few months after his escape from the Pena Duro prison on Santa Prisca, Bane had been living in Gotham with his fellow former prisoners Bird, Zombie, and Trogg. While Trogg and the others created the easy, mechanical delivery system for Bane's Venom injections into his head, Bane studied Batman's every move. How he operated, what his strategies were, and the weapons that he had at his disposal. Through watching Batman meticulously, Bane was also able to deduce that Batman's identity was actually Bruce Wayne. When Bane learned everything he could about Batman, he ultimately came to the conclusion that Gotham belonged to Batman and that the only way to take it would not be to kill Batman, but to break him and humiliate him.
By releasing all the inmates at Arkham, Batman was forced to work around the clock to hold back the flood waters that Bane had released. Running raggid, Batman had several close calls. Perhaps the closest call was with none other than The Joker. Teaming with the Scarecrow, the Joker and Scarecrow kidnapped the mayor and threatened to kill him. Refusing any help, Batman went after the two criminals by himself which almost resulted in the mayor and Batman drowning after the Joker flooded the tunnels of a sewer.
Once all of the inmates were apprehended and returned to the Asylum, Batman returned to the cave, still unaware of who it was that had freed the inmates in the first place. After facing the likes of The Joker, The Scarecrow, the Mad Hatter, the Ventriloquist, and countless others, Batman was at his weakest, barely able to stand. It was after he walked up from the cave and into Wayne Manor that he saw the mastermind behind everything: Bane. Bane quickly attacked Batman, forcing him back down into the cave. Desperately trying to hold off Bane until Robin or Nightwing could come to his aid, Bane showed no mercy. He threw Batman every which way and beat on him mercilessly. Bane demanded that Batman scream his name for mercy, but Batman refused. It was then that Bane knew that the bat was broken mentally, now he needed only to break him physically. Then came one of the most iconic and forever remembered full-paged panels. Bane raised Batman over his head, then dropped him down on his knee, breaking Batman's back.
It was not until the next volume in the story, "Knightsend: Who Rules The Night", that Bruce's replacement, Jean Paul Valley, donned the Batman costume with a couple of upgrades and knocked Bane off his self proclaimed throne of Gotham. Many fans, I included, were disappointed that it was a different Batman who took down Bane, instead of Bruce reclaiming his honor himself. Later on through the "Knightfall" trilogy, Jean Paul Valley takes his duties as Batman too seriously, and begins to instill his own brand of justice. With Robin and Nightwing unable to stop him, Bruce is quickly forced to heal himself and go through extensive physical therapy in order to take the Mantle of the Bat back. Bruce even goes so far as to train under Lady Shiva to retrain his body and his senses back to their peak.
This is arguably one of the top 10 Batman stories ever told. It was a story that featured a brand new character who did what even the Joker hadn't been able to do in 50 years of publication: He broke the bat. However, a lot of fans felt cheated in some ways. It was a steroid enhanced villain who was already stronger than Batman, and on top of that, Batman was at his physical weakest and extremely fatigued. While I can't help but agree that the fans are right in the FIGHT ASPECT of the storyline, but I feel obligated to point out that here we have a villainous character who is not just strong, but extremely smart. He's seen Batman operate. He's seen the high level criminals Batman has beaten time and again. You have to at least acknowledge the argument that Bane knew Batman was extremely tough and that the only real way to beat him, was to exhaust him. Bane figured that Batman may be the toughest human being on the planet, but he is still human and still suffers from fatigued and exhaustion. But Bane also realized that Batman was far too determined in his mission to protect Gotham that he wouldn't take the time necessary to rest in between each criminal that he apprehended.
Overall, I think that "Batman Knightfall: Broken Bat" is a great read to prep for "The Dark Knight Rises". It provides a great example of Bane's strategic mind, while also showing his vicious, merciless nature. While we do not get much of Bane's background or plans for Gotham once he gets it, it is still a good Bane story. If not to prep for "The Dark Knight Rises", any and every Batma/Bane fan should read this story/trilogy simple for the sheer weight it carries in comics history and the great story it delivers. I give "Batman Knightfall: Broken Bat" a 4/5, and I give the Knightfall trilogy a 3.8/5