Absolute Batman Just Got Superpowers (and It’s Turning Him into Bane)

Absolute Batman has been in the toughest fight of his life with Bane. After their first encounter, the Absolute Dark Knight was trapped inside of the human experiments-focused underground of Ark M, where he was put through horrific surgeries and tests to prepare him to become exactly like Bane. He was their prisoner for months, only escaping with the assistance of his friend-turned-monster Waylon Jones. He’s on the streets of Gotham City once again, but that doesn’t mean he’s anywhere near free, and the experiments are having an effect on him.

The whole time he was their lab rat, Dr. Arkham and Bane tried to break Bruce’s spirit so he would become a living weapon. They knew that as long as Batman had the option to fight, he would oppose them till the bitter end, and giving them these powers would be meaningless if he didn’t choose to surrender his free will like Bane had. Now, that willpower is being put to the test as Batman most definitely has Venom flowing in his veins, and he iron clad will might be about to shatter without help.

Bat-Bane, the Absolute Monster

Bruce woke up twenty days after his escape from Ark M, Alfred having found him collapsed on the floor of his Bat Cave. Alfred warned Bruce that they wired some kind of delivery system for Venom into his veins, and although the final step of the process wasn’t performed, some of the dangerous compound was already flowing through him. Bruce insisted that he be let out to go see his mom, but on the way some Venom pulsed through him, making his hunch over in pain as his veins popped and glowed green. This continued at seemingly random intervals, the drug definitely working to transform Batman on some level. It’s already started, as while at the start of the issue it was clearly drawn that Bruce still lacked a few of his teeth from when he used them as weapons, by the end he has all of them back.

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Batman clearly has some kind of limited healing factor now, and based on the displays of strength from his escape, possibly even some limited super strength. The way it was described, Venom didn’t just enhance Bane’s strength, it also fundamentally changed his mind to match, making it practically a supercomputer. Given that he hasn’t gone through the final step in the transformation process, Batman obviously won’t be on Bane’s level with those enhancements, but he will definitely feel their effects. What’s really interesting about this isn’t just the physical implications of Batman being a metahuman, but how it mirrors Bane’s own journey into being what he is, and how he plans to break Batman once and for all.

Batman Pushed to the Edge

Bane knows that he can’t break Batman’s spirit through torture or experiments, but only by making him surrender, and he chose to do this by attacking Bruce’s loved ones. Ozzie, Harvey, and Eddie were all horrifically maimed by Bane, setting each of them on the path to be supervillains. Bane’s assaults specifically played into their worst traits, with the soon to be Riddler saying that it was a challenge to evolve, which is exactly what Bane is offering Bruce. Their journeys to this point are remarkably similar, with Bane having effectively been his home’s Batman and leading a charge to escape his prison, only to choose to become the Joker’s murder-dog once he realized that was how to save his home. He gave up hope, and is trying to force Bruce to give up hope the same way to have someone else like him. Bane desperately wants another person like him, whether to justify his own atrocities or to have someone understand him.

Batman even attempted to give up at the end of this issue, but was pulled out of it by both Alfred and the arrival of Catwoman. If he was on his own, it’s likely that Batman might even become exactly like Bane and be broken, but he won’t because he’s not alone. Batman is being physically transformed, but unlike the abomination Bane, he will refuse to let that change his soul, and be kept on track by those who he trusts and cares for. Bane chose to take everything onto himself, so if Batman wants to beat him, he’ll have to rely on the people around him. Bane’s attempts to break Batman won’t succeed, and will instead only reinforce him body and soul to fight the good fight, because Batman isn’t alone. Bane is a monster, but the people who love Batman won’t let him be one.

Absolute Batman #12 is on sale now!