Memorial Case Smashing: “Knightfall”

[jetblack927]

Well, in answer to the earlier request by Benicio127, I present a nine-page spread of Batman #497, part of the Knightfall storyline…
To summarize, Bane has broken out all the inmates from arkham, and is systematically setting up batman for the ultimate defeat. Batman has rounded up most threats, but is TOTALLY exhausted. He’s beaten 3 of Bane’s lead henchmen and returned to Wayne Manor where he finally finds…






The two exchange formalities, the fear and fatigue on Bruce’s face is haunting…





Despite the odds, Batman doesn’t back down, he cowls-up and engages Bane head on…the fight tears through the house and eventually into the batcave…





Which leads to the climatic case smashing…





Batman regains his footing, but it’s too much, too little, too late…The lack of sleep, chasing those villains down, the henchmen, Bane easily has his way…








Fans of the Animated Series will remember the same line used in the episode Bane was in…





And just like Buster Douglas knocking out Tyson…it’s done, the impossible happens, and Bane prepares for the finale…





The crack heard around the world…

Comments

[an-idol-mind.livejournal.com]

Especially considering the Bat-god that so many writers portray Bruce as now, it's pretty powerful to see someone beat Batman so thoroughly.

Knightfall was essentially one huge brawl, but this moment was a really great payoff. Too bad it was Az-Bats who got to take Bane out in the end instead of Bruce.

[terrykun]

Even before he went all crazy, Jean Paul was still in the stage where he'd go to measures that Bruce wouldn't.

[jetblack927]

I agree, bruce should have came back and took bane out via "Rocky III"...for someone else to take bane out was a weak cop-out...

[zechs80]

I never saw it as a weak cop out. It was merely the writers showing how the new gritter Batman beat Bane because unlike Bruce he played by rules that left Bane unprepared. Plus Jean Paul exploited Bane's greatest weakness during Knightfall.

Still, I always enjoy the scene in Knightsend when Bruce puts the cape and cowl on with Bane even realizing it miles away in a cell after being tormented by the defeat via Jean Paul.

Besides it sets up Bruce against Jean Paul and the whole gritter and meaner doesn't mean it works idealogy the Bat books have continued to play on.

[jaybee3]

As much as I like sane Bane in SS right now and I hate the idea of the Bat-God, I also wished to see a scene of Bruce getting payback for his broken back, showing Bane that mano-e-mano with no distractions and no venom that Bane was not his equal.

[thehefner]

I think you're right, and I think that actually makes this more powerful to read now than it did then. I've been revisiting Knightfall, and have been amazed how well this story I hated at the time has improved with age.

[benicio127]

Especially considering the Bat-god that so many writers Morrison portrays Bruce as now, it's pretty powerful to see someone beat Batman so thoroughly.

There. Fixed that for you. >;]

[shadowpsykie]

i really enjoyed Knightfall. Bane was an extremely intelligent AND physically strong nemesis. he attacked Bruce on two fronts. A mental attack (throwing villain after villain at him until he was mentally and physically exhausted) and his own straight up physical fight when he was at his lowest...

was it an honorable fight? no... he was a villain, he didnt have to be honorable, he only had to be smart.

(though that said, i much more enjoy the honorable Bane that Gail writes, but her writing is based on the roots of Bane)

[psychopathicus_rex]

Indeed - written correctly, he is a truly epic foel the more so because he was initially meant as a sort of evil version of Doc Savage. Just picture THAT for a second, and imagine the yet-unwritten things that Bane could do...

[starwolf_oakley]

"Evil version of Doc Savage" is very interesting, but it seems that makes him difficult to "adapt." The various animated series just make him a massive and skilled fighter with a "cut the Venom tubes" weakness. Which really makes him an "evil version of Captain America" to me.

[psychopathicus_rex]

Well, yeah, the appeal of Bane is difficult to translate properly, because on the outside, he's very much a brute. I mean, just look at the guy; he's a steroid-pumped behemoth. But the thing is, Bane is actually a clever subversion of the 'brute' persona, because while he IS a brute, he's a brute with BRAINS. I mean, here is a guy who can smash through walls, and does, but at the same time, he's a strategic genius who, at his best, orchestrates his schemes with military precision. His whole gimmick in his early days was the Venom that pumped him up, and yet he's been shown to be able to function just as well without it. This is a guy who was born and raised in Pena Duro, one of the worst prisons on earth, and yet managed to not only survive such an environment, but thrive in it, through the use of both brain and brawn. He's best known for breaking the Batman's back, yes - but in order for that to happen, he first had to conduct an extensive campaign of crime and terror in which he himself barely raised a finger. Yet at the same time, he's gained a healthy dose of respect for the Bat-clan over the years, becoming almost a distaff member of them at times - at the very least, he considers them worthy foes. He is, in short, far FAR more than just a hulking menace with a Venom addiction - and yet, unfortunately, that's the most prominent depiction of him. Outside of comics (and occasionally in), he's become more or less a thug for hire. 'Tis sad.
You know what just occurred to me would be interesting? A team-up between him and Poison Ivy. He was her dimwitted henchman in 'Batman and Robin' ("Bomb... Bomb... Bomb..."), but I don't think they've ever met in the comics. What would be REALLY interesting is if his use of Venom over the years has resulted in an immunity, or at least tolerance, to Ivy's toxins, meaning that she more or less has to face him on his own terms. I'm not sure which one would end up being the boss - they're both very crafty characters - but it would interesting to find out.

[benicio127]

Thank you, thank you!

I've never read any of Knightfall. Wait, that's not true -- I did read those Joker issues where he has a ponytail. Yeesh, Joker with a ponytail... My pettiness knows no bounds when it comes to the Joker and that hair style.

Man, this art is so 90s. And I've actually never seen this scene in full, either! Bruce looks so desperate and depleted. Bane seems a bit like that trope of "new villain comes on the scene and handedly destroys the hero."

[jetblack927]

Yep, Knightfall happened in late 93-94...I was just outta high school, I remember reading this is college with my roommates in my dorm and we were like, "Whoa, Batman got his ass kicked!!!"

[psychopathicus_rex]

Except that Bane had actually been around for a while here - the storyline was fairly drawn-out, so we'd gotten a feel for the character by then. We knew he was formidable because we'd SEEN him be formidable.

[aelflar]

Ye gods, the last pannel is haunting :| As someone who`s been slowly driven to exhaustion by the last couple of weeks I can definitely sympathize..

[omnipotent]

As soon as I saw this I was like, "Oh no, the page with Bane breaking Bats's spine . . ."

Scroll down and yup . . .

That page actually makes me cringe and clutch at my own spine. D:

[icon_uk]

I may still detest Knightfall for a host of reasons, but the art isn't one of them. This is a beautifully portrayed scene, with Aparo really making the moment genuinely HURT to read.

[ar_feiniel]

I agree re the art.

[jarodrussell]

This was actually one of my first Batman comics, but I don't think...being a DC noob who was weaned on Disney comics, and being really smitten with Jean Paul-Valley's gadgets...man, I wanted a pair of those gauntlets so hard...I really never grasped the full gravitas of the story.

*sigh*

Okay, so...after I collect the B&R trades, The Boys trades, and The Losers trades, I'll have to pick up the Knightfall trades.

[crinos]

I had a comic of Azareals stint as Bats where he fought Mr. Freeze sans his armor. I thought it was set in the future or something.

Course, this was back before I knew comics didn't work on the same timeframe as the real world. I also read the thor annual with the future Thor teaming up with the guardians of the galaxy and thought that was what all Thor stories would be like from then on.

That comic also introduced me to both Ego and Beta Ray Bill, so kudos on that.

[jcbaggee]

Yeah, same here. I was at an age where I didn't get the notion of seperate brands, and just assumed it was Batman 2099.

[starwolf_oakley]

I vaguely remember that. Freeze sees the Armored-Up Batman and says "What year did I wake up in?"

[stubbleupdate]

The important thing here is that you can do this in Lego Batman.

It does not get old.

[morgana006]

....I think that's the best thing I've ever heard.

[starwolf_oakley]

It seems they were setting up that something was "wrong" with Bruce before KNIGHTFALL "officially" started. That was why he was seeing Shondra Kinsolving.

I don't think they ever said *what* was wrong with Bruce at this time that Bane's mass Arkham breakout make worse. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome? The physical and psychological strains of being Batman catching up to him all at once? The flu?

[tsunamiwombat]

I can see Chronic fatigue or PTSD

[psychopathicus_rex]

As best I can tell, Bane had been stirring things up and keeping things hopping in Gotham for a little while before he broke open Arkham. He'd given the Riddler some Venom, and he'd shown up here and there to keep Bats on edge and overworked. Also, this was around the time of 'The Death of Superman' - Bats was wearing a black armband during the breakout, so presumably he'd only just returned, and was not in the best of moods. Basically, he was a tad overstressed even before everything went to hell, so he really had to struggle to maintain his edge.

[big_daddy_d]

Knightfall=One of my all time favorite Batman stories and made me a fan of Bane. I like that he's a villain with both brawn and brain.

[an-idol-mind.livejournal.com]

Bane is easily my favorite Bat-villain thanks to this storyline. I liked that he was smart enough to wear Batman down rather than confront him directly, and that he managed to deduce his secret identity by just observing body language. His destruction of Arkham Asylum was a little contrived, but worth it in the end.

Unfortunately, Bane spent a lot of time after this sucking thanks to writers who forgot that he had a brain and who wrote him as a big bad strongman. Thankfully, Gail Simone knows how to make him interesting, and has impressed greatly with Secret Six.

[psychopathicus_rex]

I'd like to see more of Bane as a solo villain and/or antihero, though. He keeps showing up in groups, and I think that dulls his edge - he's at his most impressive when he's the guy pulling the strings.

[retro_nouveau]

Well, after seeing dozens of references to this, it's weird to actually see the actual for the first time.

First thought is revulsion at the idea that Bruce is so obsessive that he would never ever call for an assist (just like I hate that Doomsday killed Clark while the dozens of wonders, lanterns, speedsters, magicians, other supers, etc. were all detained elsewhere). Second, I need to find out how Bane made it past security and got the drop on Alfred. Last, I'll have to search for why Bane (a) had discovered all the Bat secrets, (b) is still walking around today, and (c) has not yet called for the Legion of Doom to turn Wayne Manor into a radioactive crater.

[starwolf_oakley]

Legion of Doom to turn Wayne Manor into a radioactive crater

While it's not very clear here, Bane developed a sense of honor towards Batman (and maybe even Azrael) as a respected adversary. Bombing Wayne Manor (as Bane and Two-Face did in the backstory to KINGDOM COME) would be considered... gauche.

[aulayan]

The thing that everyone forgets though, regarding Doomsday, is that the JLA faced DOomsday before he made it to Superman. Booster was sent to the hospital. (In Hindsight, one of the more heroic Booster Gold things. Since he knew, or had an idea, what was going to happen and he tried to stop it)

[retro_nouveau]

That's so cool, I love Booster. And I guess the requisite hand wave was there. I should definitely read the originals before passing judgment from the reviews, summaries, flashbacks and remakes.

[aulayan]

That's what I don't like about the remakes. Because it does ignore everything else. And the JLA at the time trying to stop it and failing was great, and it showed the threat level.

I wish the DC Universe people would realize they have a Universe when making a movie, or doing a novelization. I understand the need to trim things, but it often makes it very dissatisfying

[an-idol-mind.livejournal.com]

First thought is revulsion at the idea that Bruce is so obsessive that he would never ever call for an assist.

Bats has always had an issue with that stuff...he's got an overinflated sense of ownership when it comes to Gotham. Not to mention that had Superman or someone shown up, Bane likely would have just gone into hiding until the time was right for him to return again.

Second, I need to find out how Bane made it past security and got the drop on Alfred.

I believe this occurred off-panel, but he had been planning this stuff for a while and doing surveillance while Batman was running his gauntlet.

Last, I'll have to search for why Bane (a) had discovered all the Bat secrets,

While Batman was locking everyone away in Arkham again, Bane and his lackeys were watching from afar, doing their homework. Bane eventually figured it out by watching Bruce Wayne's stance and body language, compared to what he saw with Batman.

(b) is still walking around today,

Because he's awesome.

(c) has not yet called for the Legion of Doom to turn Wayne Manor into a radioactive crater.

Because Bane has a warped sense of honor and actually sees himself as a good guy. He views Batman as an equal and, barring Knightfall, has not had a desire to kill him. Heck, even in Knightfall, it's questionable that he wanted Batman's death, since he could have finished the job and just chose not to.

[starwolf_oakley]

Heck, even in Knightfall, it's questionable that he wanted Batman's death, since he could have finished the job and just chose not to.

I never read all of Vengeance of Bane, but I think Bane saw Gotham City as a prison where everyone was afraid the toughest guy in the yard, namely Batman. (IMHO, certain criminals hate Batman too much to be afraid of him, but that's another topic.) By taking out the toughest guy in the yard, Bane would run Gotham City they way he ran the prison where he grew up.

[psychopathicus_rex]

To this day, one of the most epic battles Batman has ever been in, at least partially BECAUSE he's so far from being at his best. Sure, it's cool to see him kicking ass and taking names, but if you want to REALLY see the measure of a man, see him when he's weak as a kitten. Bats didn't stand a chance here, but he still fought, and that tells you just about everything about him that you need to know.