There's no plan of attack he hasn't studied. No strategy he doesn't know. But more than this, he knows you. Because he was you. When he was that boy on Santa Prisca. Fighting his heart out. Planning, building, strategizing. For what? Peace? No more. Alfred Pennyworth
The man known only as Bane is the Joker's lead enforcer.
History
Origin
Bane's home country, the Caribbean island Santa Prisca, had been in a state of perpetual war for over a hundred years at the time of his birth. Throughout the last century Santa Prisca had been colonised by multiple foreign powers, each time the indigenous population would revolt and throw out the occupiers, but soon enough someone else would come to plunder the resource-rich nation. Bane's father was the leader of one of the country's oldest rebel groups, Cielos Libres, as his own father had been before him. Bane was born on a battlefield and grew up in the militia, learning war from his first moments.
Cielos Libres' symbol was a white quetzal on a black background; and Bane's father told him that one day Santa Prisca would be free like the bird when they had won peace. He would ask his son if he saw his vision of the bird; Bane could not but lied to his father and said that he did. He once took cohoba in the hopes of seeing his father's vision, but instead he saw a nightmare of a white bird with a screaming skull for a back.
When Bane was a young man, he planned a successful capture of the capital city, but three days later foreign troops moved in and crushed the rebellion. Bane and the other survivors of Cielos Libres were sentenced to life in prison in Peña Duro, a notorious prison of Santa Prisca's coast. Every night the cells would flood, forcing the men to hang from the bars of the cage roof and struggle for air. Bane had to eat rats to survive, pick parasites from his skin, and kill men who tried to kill his father, blaming him for their suffering. Then, after eleven years, Bane lead the successful breakout. Using weapons made from the bodies of the sea creatures washed into their cells, they took the prison, then broke through the walls and seized the boats used to transport supplies and prisoners to Peña Duro. Just before they set off from the beach, Bane's father gave him a mask made from their flag and told him that he was the quetzal of his vision. Bane donned the mask and they set sail for Santa Prisca.
However, on the beach they found no army waiting for them, just a western man dressed all in white: The Joker. The Joker addressed Bane by his real name and asked to speak with him privately, out of earshot of his father and the others. The Joker told Bane that his father's plans to seize Santa Prisca by force hadn't worked before and wouldn't work now because too many outside forces wanted what Santa Prisca had; that even if they successfully took the country and established peace war would inevitably come back to their shores. Bane acknowledged that this was true and so the Joker offered him a deal: he would use his wealth and power to ensure that Santa Prisca would be forever independent, prosperous and safe; and in return Bane would serve him. Bane agreed and the Joker departed from the island never to return, however as a test of loyalty he ordered Bane to kill his father. Bane returned to the others and embraced his father. He asked him if he could see his dream of peace come true, and when his father replied that he did, Bane crushed him in a bear hug.
From there Bane became the Joker's lead enforcer, conducting assassinations and acts of terrorism around the globe to advance the Joker's interests. Bane also submitted to tortuous medical experiments and treatments with the super-steroid Venom which enhanced his body and mind far beyond human capabilities. In return the Joker kept his word to Bane, keeping foreign influences away from Santa Prisca and providing millions of dollars in investment that transformed the war-torn country into a safe and prosperous advanced nation. Bane married and had children, returning home whenever he could to visit his family and his father's grave. To the people of Santa Prisca he was a great hero, the man who had saved their country and made it thrive.[1]
Although the effects of the Venom on him were permanent, in the field Bane would often carry a backup supply to temporarily boost his strength if needed. Over the years Bane would bring fighters who had impressed him back to the Joker's scientists so they could attempt to replicate the process they had used on him. He did this in the hope that they would be able to create a worthy successor to him, so that the Joker would allow Bane to retire to Santa Prisca.[2] Most of the subjects would die, and of the few that survived none were able to withstand the full suite of procedures that Bane had. However, they did create several lesser operatives such as Deathstroke and KGBeast.[1]
Abomination
Bane was dispatched by his employer to Bialya to sabotage peace talks between the warring nations of Kahndaq and Qurac, as it was in J.K. Holdings' interest for their century-long war to continue. He murdered the leader of Khandaq and intimidated the leader of Qurac into claiming responsibility for the killing and then escalating hostilities. As soon as he was done he received a call to report to Gotham City to deal with Batman.
Batman snuck into J.K. Holding's black site prison Ark M in an attempt to rescue his friend Waylon Jones, an experimental subject in Ark M. However, Bane was waiting for him. Bane allowed Batman to attack him to demonstrate that the Bat could not hurt him; then systematically paralysed Batman's limbs with nerve strikes. Even with only one working leg, Batman remained defiant, claiming he would beat Bane no matter how "juiced" he was. However, Bane revealed that his immense strength and size was not due to the backup supply of Venom in the tubes. He activated the steroid, growing to monstrous proportions; and carried Batman away, saying that he needed to be prepped for surgery.[3]
Batman, who was revealed to be Gotham resident Bruce Wayne, made multiple escape attempts. Each time he was stopped by the hideously mutilated experiments throughout Ark M; and each time Bane would come to knock Batman unconscious and return him to his cell, mockingly telling Batman he was close to getting out and encouraging him to try again.[4] Batman endured ninety-one days in Ark M and multiple tortuous surgeries, the first subject since Bane to withstand the full suite of procedures; including implantation of a Venom delivery system in his brain and spinal cord.[1] Batman appeared to be psychologically broken, but Bane and the lead researcher Doctor Arkham suspected he still retained some resistance. To test him they placed his equipment in his cell to see how he would react. As they anticipated, after some hesitation Batman donned the costume and escaped once again.
Bane cornered Batman in an area of Ark M known as the "Langstrom Experiment", which was filled with mutated human/animal hybrids. Bane casually killed the hybrids and attacked Batman; but he was in turn attacked by Waylon Jones, who had been mutated into a crocodile-like creature. Jones overpowered Bane and he and Batman escaped into the sewer tunnels. Arkham asked Bane if he was excited for the final phase of the experiment and Bane replied that he was, because now he got to truly break Batman.[4] Because Bruce had proven resistant to their usual techniques, he tracked down and kidnapped Batman's remaining friends, planning to break him by breaking them.[1] Bane brutally beat Bruce's friends in ways that would leave them horribly mutilated and disabled for life, but not kill them. For his own cruel amusement, he did so in ways that would be ironic.[5]
Batman hacked the broadcast channels to challenge Bane to a one-on-one fight in Gotham's old Veteran's Arena. Batman told Bane that if he won, Batman would willingly go back with him to Ark M to complete the transformation.[2] Bane answered the challenge and arrived at the arena at the appointed time. Although there was supposed to be a media blackout, Batman's allies the Red Hood Gang flew a fleet of camera drones over the arena. broadcasting the battle to the entire city.
Batman began the fight by collapsing a skyscraper on top of Bane, but he infused himself with a huge quantity of Venom, growing to a gigantic size and shrugging off the impact like it was nothing. Batman and the mutated Jones repeatedly attacked Bane, inflicting devastating damage, but Bane just continued to infuse Venom and heal. He tried to goad Batman into activating the reserve of Venom that had been implanted within him and become the replacement Bane wanted, but Batman refused. Eventually Batman managed to slice open Bane's back, paralysing him and exposing his Venom delivery system, then mocked him for killing his father. In a rage Bane infused even further, regaining the use of his limbs and causing his muscles to prolapse out of the broken skin on his back. Bane furiously rained down blows on Batman, screaming that he gave everything so his people and home could be safe, but it's Batman's turn now. He smashed his fist down on Batman, screaming at him to use his Venom. He began to mutate from the extreme amounts of Venom in his system, with eyes and teeth growing out of his chest.
Suddenly, Batman's ally Catwoman fired multiple hypodermic darts filled with Venom extracted from Batman into Bane's exposed delivery system. The additional Venom finally overloaded Bane's system and he grew to fill the stadium with jets of liquid Venom spouting from him. He then exploded into a pool of flesh and gore. Batman dumped Bane's remains into Gotham Harbor, believing that he was dead.
However, due to the changes to his physiology Bane's consciousness had survived despite the complete disintegration of his physical body. Doctor Arkham retrieved his brain, eyes and a portion of his spine from the water and transferred them to a storage tank in Ark M. The Joker made a video call to Ark M and told Bane that he considered his defeat at Batman's hands to be a minor setback. However he then said that he believed Bane would not be happy in retirement as he loved war too much and so, as Bane's "friend", he had decided to help him. The Joker forced Bane to watch as he nuked Santa Prisca, and told him that he was now "free" of his distractions and could focus on what really mattered.[6]
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Venom Enhancement: Bane underwent a series of grueling surgeries and treatments with the super-steroid known as Venom - a mixture of acids, proteins, compound activators, and cytokines. This gave him total control over his own muscles, allowing him to bend his cells to his will, enhancing his body and mind far beyond normal human capabilities.[1] During his final fight with Batman he infused more Venom than what was thought possible for the human body to process. He grew to a gargantuan size and every cell in his body mutated to become something akin to embryonic cells.[6]
- Enhanced Intellect: Bane's use of Venom most notably enhances his mind, above all aspects, essentially unlocking his mind from its natural limits of retaining knowledge.[1]
- Eidetic Memory: Bane has an immense capacity to absorb and retain knowledge, ranging from entire books and libraries, fighting methods, weapons and battle tactics, and even ancient strategies of warrior kings, and the most current algorithmic doctrines.[1]
- Superhuman Strength: Bane possesses strength far above what any normal human could achieve through training. He is able to easily lift an adult man off the ground and crush his skull with one hand,[3] as well as easily smash through metal doors and send Batman flying several feet in the air.[1]
- Superhuman Durability: Bane is capable of resisting tremendous kinetic impact forces that could easily crush or kill a human, without suffering any serious external or internal injuries.[1] He showed no pain when he was stabbed in the chest with Batman's "bat-thumbs".[3]
- Accelerated Healing: Venom enables Bane to recover from otherwise fatal injuries almost instantly, such as being run through with the Batmobile, or having his spine and limbs severed.[6]
- Regeneration: Bane is even capable of regrowing organs as complex as an eyeball within seconds after Batman pulls it out.[6]
- Enhanced Intellect: Bane's use of Venom most notably enhances his mind, above all aspects, essentially unlocking his mind from its natural limits of retaining knowledge.[1]
Abilities
- Demolitions[1]
- Historiography: Bane has an extensive knowledge of history and often peppers his speech with quotations from historical figures.[3][4][6]
- Intimidation[3]
- Leadership[1]
- Martial Arts: Alfred Pennyworth claims that Bane knows every fighting style ever developed.[1] He was able to recognise the various disciplines that make up Batman's unique fighting style. Despite his immense size and strength he utilised precise nerve strikes in his fight with Batman to systematically paralyse his opponent rather than simply overwhelm him with brute force.[3]
- Medical Science: Bane's understanding of human anatomy allowed him to horribly and painfully mutilate Bruce's friends without killing them, including breaking every bone in Ozzie's body while not damaging any of his vital organs or major blood vessels.[5]
- Peak Human Condition: Even before his enhancements, Bane had trained his body to the peak of human potential. He was strong enough to kill a man by hugging him, before he had ever been experimented on.[1]
- Psychology: Bane was able to psychoanalyse each of Bruce's friends at a glance.[5]
- Stealth[1]
- Tactical Analysis: Bane has memorized every battle strategy ever utilized in human history. Even before the Venom expanded his mind he was a skilled leader and strategist.[1]
- Weaponry: Alfred claims Bane is a master of every weapon known to man.[1]
Weaknesses
- No Physical Body: Bane's physical body collapsed after he overdosed on Venom, reducing it to a lake of gore and meat. Only his brain, eyes and a portion of his spine survived. His remains were transferred to a storage tank, still alive and conscious.[6]
Paraphernalia
Equipment
- Venom: Bane carries a backup supply of Venom connected into his body by tubes which he can utilise to temporarily increase his already immense muscle mass and strength.[3]
Weapons
- Various Knives: During his assassination jobs, Bane would frequently use various types of knives to kill his targets.[1]
Notes
- Bane was created by Dennis O'Neill, Chuck Dixon, and Graham Nolan, first appearing in Batman: Vengeance of Bane #1. However, the Absolute Universe version of Bane first appeared in Absolute Batman #9 by Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta.
- However, he was first mentioned in Absolute Batman #6.
Related
- 7 Appearances of Bane (Absolute Universe)
- 17 Images featuring Bane (Absolute Universe)
- 2 Quotations by or about Bane (Absolute Universe)
- Character Gallery: Bane (Absolute Universe)
Footnotes
  Batman Villain(s) |