Chuck Dixon and
Graham Nolan created the character for the
Knightfall storyline. They developed the concept of Bane after an initial idea by Batman editor
Dennis O'Neil. O'Neil had previously created Bane's birthplace of Santa Prisca in
The Question and the drug Venom in the storyline of the same name (published in the pages of
Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #16–20, and later reprinted as a trade paperback). In the pages of
Azrael, O'Neil introduced Bane's perception of Venom as both an addiction and the weakness responsible for his earlier defeats.
Batman: Knightfall 's back in a
splash page from
Batman #497 (July 1993). Art by
Jim Aparo. This particular image was recreated in other Batman media. During the
Knightfall storyline, Bane devises a plan to weaken Batman both physically and mentally. He uses stolen munitions to destroy the walls of
Arkham Asylum, allowing its deranged inmates to return to Gotham, including the
Joker,
Two-Face, the
Riddler, the
Scarecrow, the
Mad Hatter, the
Ventriloquist,
Firefly,
Poison Ivy,
Cornelius Stirk,
Film Freak, and
Victor Zsasz. Batman exhausts himself recapturing the villains and returning them to Arkham. During this time, Bane remains in the shadows working at his plan for Batman, Bane kills Film Freak, who had been acting as an assassin under the Mad Hatter's mind control. He also captures and interrogates Robin, who had been spying on him, but fails to extract any useful information. Additionally, Bane has a rematch with
Killer Croc that ends in a stalemate, with both being swept away into Gotham’s sewers. Both physically and mentally exhausted, Batman returns to
Wayne Manor, unaware Bane has been waiting for him. Bane ambushes Batman and overpowers him in combat, then ultimately delivers a brutal final blow. He lifts Batman up and breaks his back him over one knee, leaving Batman
paraplegic. This moment, often referred to as "Breaking the Bat", has been depicted in various adaptions, including,
The Dark Knight Rises,
Robot Chickens
DC Comics Special and alluded to numerous times in the
DC Animated Universe, or DCAU. Following Batman's incapacitation, Bane takes control of Gotham's criminal underworld. Bruce Wayne passed the mantle of Batman to
Jean-Paul Valley, also known as
Azrael. Despite warnings to avoid Bane, Azrael attempts to confront the villain in his penthouse suite. By this point, Azrael has modified the batsuit and added a set of high-tech, heavy metal gauntlets capable of launching sharp projectiles. During their battle, Bane uses Venom to enhance his strength and goads Azrael causing him to fight recklessly, allowing Bane the opportunity to beat him. Nevertheless, Bane sustains deep lacerations and experiences significant blood loss. Unable to go to a hospital, Bane increases his Venom intake to manage his injuries while preparing for another confrontation with Batman. A humiliated Azrael returns to the Batcave and constructs an advanced combat suit of metal and equipped with offensive weaponry. In their final battle, Bane, weakened and on the defensive, is overpowered when Azrael severs the tubes supplying him with Venom, immediately causing severe withdrawal symptoms. Watching the fight,
Commissioner James "Jim" Gordon,
Harvey Bullock, and
Robin witness Azrael brutally defeating Bane, who pleads for death. However, Azrael refrains from killing him and leaves him to be taken into police custody, humiliated and physically and mentally broken. He rebuilds his body to its peak and eventually escapes from prison. Returning to Gotham, Bane allies with Batman, who has since recovered and reclaimed his role from Azrael, to dismantle a criminal operation distributing a modified version of Venom to street-level thugs. During their efforts, Bane discovers that the operation is connected to the same doctor who performed surgery on him in Peña Duro. After the criminals are defeated, Bane declares that he is "innocent" of his past actions and urges Batman to cease pursuing him. He then departs Gotham to begin a personal quest to find his unknown father.
Bane's Search for Identity Bane's search brings him back to Santa Prisca. Seeking answers, he consults the Jesuit priest who had educated him during his time in Peña Duro. The priest informs him that there are four possible candidates for his father: a Santa Priscan revolutionary, an American doctor, an English mercenary, and a
Swiss banker. While searching for the Swiss man in Rome, Bane encounters
Talia al Ghul and the
League of Assassins. Over time, he earns the approval of
Ra's al Ghul, who selects Bane to marry Talia and become his heir. However, despite discovering the true identity of Bane’s father, Ra’s withholds this information. Disappointed by his protegé's failure, Ra's recalls the engagement to Talia and disowns Bane. As part of his continued search for his origins, Bane learns from the Jesuit priest that there is a possibility that his biological father is an American doctor in the
Tabula Rasa storyline. Bane eventually uncovers the truth in the
Veritas Liberat storyline, where he discovers his father is the mercenary
King Snake. During this arc, Bane joins Batman and helps prevent King Snake from deploying powerful weapon. During this confrontation, Bane saves Batman from being shot by King Snake, but is mortally wounded in the process. Batman then saves Bane by immersing Bane in a Lazarus Pit, which heals him. Following his recovery, Bane is left to determine his future without the burden of his past actions.
Independent Schemes and Gotham's Upheaval Following the events of
Legacy, Bane appears in the one-shot publication called
Batman: Bane (1997) with the intent of destroying Gotham City using a nuclear reactor. However, Batman intervenes and successfully prevents the plot. In the
Angel and the Bane storyline, Bane ambushes Azrael, defeats him in combat, and captures him. He then forcibly exposes Azrael to an even more potent strain of Venom. Azrael ultimately escapes into the jungle with Nomoz and successfully, through his enhanced stamina and strong will, overcomes his addiction. Despite being weakened and injured, Azrael manages to outmaneuver Bane psychologically and defeats him before taking him back to Gotham, which has been severely damaged by the
Cataclysm storyline. During an aftershock, Bane briefly escapes but is quickly recaptured by Azrael. Bane then resurfaces in the story arc ''
No Man's Land'', where he works as an enforcer for
Lex Luthor. Luthor, under the guise of assisting Gotham's reconstruction, attempts to take control of Gotham. However, Batman convinces Bane to leave after a brief confrontation between Bane and the
Joker. Following the fallout with Ra's al Ghul, Bane embarks on a campaign to destroy all Lazarus Pits worldwide. During this process, he encounters
Black Canary.
Post Crisis and Global Conflicts In
Infinite Crisis #7, Bane fights alongside the villains during the Battle of Metropolis. During the battle, he breaks the back of the hero
Judomaster, killing him. The issue does not provide a stated motive for Bane’s actions. However, in the
Infinite Crisis collected edition, an additional line was included in which Bane states, "I finally know who I am. I am 'Bane'. I 'break' people." Bane resurfaces in the "
One Year Later" continuity of
JSA Classified #17–18 searching for the
Hourmen, Rex and Rick Tyler, asking for their help. He recounts how, prior to the Battle of Metropolis, he had returned to Santa Prisca to overthrow the ruling drug lords. In doing so, he discovered the existence of a new, more addictive strain of Venom. His attempt to eradicate the drug trade led to his capture, and he was forcibly re-implanted with Venom-delivery tubes, making him dependent on the new formula and unable to quit without fatal withdrawal symptoms. Bane was subsequently coerced into serving as an enforcer for the cartel. Believing that Bane genuinely sought Rex Tyler's expertise in
chemistry, Rick allows him to approach his father. However, it is revealed that Bane's story is a ruse. Bane, had already eliminated the drug lords and destroyed all research on the new strain of Venom. During his investigation, he discovered that both strains of Venom originated from Rex Tyler's early research on Miraclo. After discovering from the Tylers that no records of Rex's research exist, Bane captures Rex and steals Rick's equipment, intending to force Rick to take the last of the new Venom and live as an addict. Rick manipulates Bane into using Miraclo, causing the destruction of the building. As Rick and his father escape, Bane is left buried in the rubble of the very same Santa Priscan penitentiary where his story began. Bane resurfaces in Santa Prisca, where he attempts to establish
democratic elections. Upon discovering that the elections had been manipulated by
Computron under the orders from
Checkmate, he enforces martial law, plunging the country into a civil war.
Fire and Judomaster's son, Thomas Jagger, are sent on the mission to Santa Prisca. Jagger, contemplating vengeance for his father’s death, engages Bane in combat. He defeats Bane but ultimately decides not to kill him. At the end of the miniseries
Suicide Squad: Raise the Flag,
Amanda Waller recruits Bane into the Suicide Squad. In
Outsiders #50, he is depicted once again using a tubing system to supply him with Venom. In
Salvation Run #2, Bane is betrayed by his fellow squad members and exiled to the prison planet. In
Salvation Run #3, Bane allies with
Lex Luthor's faction after
the Joker's faction rebels against Luthor's leadership. He attacks
Thunder and Lightning when they attempt to feed
Martian Manhunter. In
Superman/Batman #53-#56, Bane is shown trafficking Venom to drug lords worldwide. During one of these shipments, Batman—who was temporarily imbued with
Superman's powers— responded by attacking Bane at his home. Easily overpowering him, Batman nearly kills Bane due to his vastly superior strength. However, Bane ultimately survives his injuries, aided by the enhanced stamina provided by his Venom supply.
Bane's Role in Secret Six and Later Conflicts Beginning in September 2008, Bane appears as a regular character in the ongoing
Secret Six series. In the first issue, Bane is depicted as a
stoic devil's advocate for the group, offering alternative points of view for both
Deadshot and
Catman on the subject of love. He is later shown to have an almost fatherlike concern for
Scandal Savage's well-being. Although this is largely played for laughs in the early issues, the first arc's final issue displays the depth of Bane's affection. When the Six are attacked by an army of supervillains, Bane's concern for Scandal results in temporarily breaking his vow to never take Venom again in order to save her, despite being on the brink of death. After recovering from his injuries, Bane reappears in Gotham City with Catman and
Rag Doll in an attempt to manage some of the chaos caused by the presumed death of Batman. Over the course of the team's several escapades, Bane reveals both deep respects for Batman, his former adversary, and a painful yearning to assume the mantle of Batman himself. In one instance, Bane tells a trio of rescued citizens to tell people that it was the Batman who saved them. Bane ultimately gives his blessing to
Dick Grayson, praying that "God help him." Following a near-disastrous mission, Bane assumes leadership over the Six. His first act as leader is to remove Scandal from active duty, not wishing for her to be endangered. Bane and Scandal later engage in a one on one fight where he refuses to fight back until Scandal uses her Lamentation Blades to slash his throat. The card is ultimately used to resurrect
Knockout. As his mental state deteriorates, Bane leads the Secret Six to Gotham in an attempt to psychologically break Batman by killing several of his closest allies. The team kidnaps the
Penguin to extract information about Batman's partners. In the final issue of the series, Bane ultimately decides on
Red Robin,
Azrael, and
Batgirl as his intended victims. Before the Six can carry out their plan, the Penguin betrays their location, resulting in a massive army of superheroes ranging from
Green Lantern, Batman and the
Superman family to the
Justice League, the
Birds of Prey, and
Booster Gold converging on Gotham. The Secret Six stage a desperate last stand, but are quickly defeated. With the fates of the other Secret Six members left ambiguous, Bane is last shown being driven away in a Gotham police van. The ending of the issue implies that he plans to escape.
The New 52: War for Gotham In September 2011,
The New 52 rebooted DC's continuity, reintroducing Bane is into DC Universe through
Paul Jenkins and
David Finch's run on
Batman: The Dark Knight (vol. 2). In this version, Bruce Wayne investigates a breakout at Arkham Asylum. There, he discovers criminals are being given a modified fear toxin mixed with Venom, which enhances the criminals strength and immune to fear. Bane is revealed to be behind the new toxin, which is distributed to the criminals by a new villain named White Rabbit. Batman approaches her, but she quickly defeats him and injects him with the fear toxin, which she then gives to the Flash. Batman manages to burn the fear toxin out of his and the Flash's bodies and ultimately defeats Bane and knocks him off an edge. Bane is then washed away by the tide. Bane later appears in
Detective Comics vol. 2 #19, in the story "War Council". His appearance is altered to include a vest and cargo pants, and now commands an army. a flashback reveals that prior to his appearance in
Batman: The Dark Knight, Bane had intended to steal a nuclear device to threaten Gotham City, only to have an encounter with the
Court of Owls, who prevented him from stealing the device to prevent him from interfering with
their plans. After Batman defeats Bane, a mysterious figure informs him that the Court of Owls had undermined his plans. Bane returns to Santa Prisca to lead his army against them. During the
Forever Evil storyline, Scarecrow learns that Bane may be responsible for the Blackgate Prison uprising and will be their leader in the impending war. Bane, having escaped Peña Dura Prison in Santa Prisca, ships his Venom to Gotham City as preparation for when he arrives. He orchestrates the release of Blackgate's prisoners during the Crime Syndicate's broadcast to the world. Later, on board his ship, he prepares his men for the impending war with Scarecrow, and with Gotham in the distant, claims it will be his. Bane enters Blackgate through the sewers to join the prisoners there. While there, he comes across where the Talons are stored hoping to make them into his weapons. While the attack on Gotham City begins between Bane's men and the GCPD, Bane also approaches
Professor Pyg, forcing him to join his cause, and spread word that everything in Gotham is now controlled by Bane. Bane arrives at Blackgate as
Man-Bat and his fellow bats are attempting to transport the Talons to
Mr. Freeze and is able to keep one from leaving. Bane retrieves
Emperor Penguin for the Penguin as part of their agreement. When Bane brings Emperor Penguin to the Penguin, the Penguin tells him that the Arkham fighters are not scared of Bane, as he does not instill fear as Batman did. Realizing this, Bane constructs a Batsuit for himself and heads to Wayne Tower to confront
Killer Croc. Bane fights Killer Croc and is able to defeat him, setting his sights on retrieving the Talons. Bane awakens the Talon William Cobb and takes him through Gotham where he fights various inmates of Arkham Asylum. Bane begins recruiting Gotham citizens to his side, offering his base at Wayne Tower as a haven to the people to escape the rule of the Arkham inmates. He tells Cobb his plan to turn the city over to the Court, in exchange for use of Talons at his disposal to be powered by his Venom. The Talons attack Bane's men, and eventually set their target on Bane. With Cobb's help, Bane injures them enough to activate their regenerative powers and free them from mind control. In
Batman: Eternal, Alfred is attacked by
Hush and infected with a fear toxin, he is transferred to Arkham Asylum, which is soon attacked as part of the conspiracy. Alfred survives the explosion of the asylum and tricks Bane into helping him reach an emergency cave Batman had installed beneath Arkham. Bane is knocked out by the cave's defenses, allowing Alfred to call for help.
DC Rebirth and modern appearances At the beginning of the
DC Rebirth continuity, Bane still lives in Santa Prisca. In
Batman vol. 3 #6, it is revealed that he had been trading Venom to Professor
Hugo Strange in exchange for the services of
Psycho-Pirate, who was helping him overcome his addiction to the substance. Strange uses the Venom to revive the corpses of several of his patients, as seen in the
Night of the Monster Men crossover. In
Batman vol. 3 #10, Batman, per the suggestion of Amanda Waller, undertakes a suicide mission to Santa Prisca aided by
Catwoman,
Bronze Tiger, Ventriloquist, and the clown couple Punch and Jewelee to take Psycho-Pirate from Bane. Batman needs Psycho-Pirate to undo the damage he caused to Gotham Girl, and each member of the team will receive some sort of reward for their efforts. Bane captures Batman shortly after he arrives, and then breaks his back again and throws him into the cell where he spent his childhood. Batman escapes, however, and fixes his back on his own. After allowing Catwoman to "betray" him and having the Bronze Tiger and Punch and Jewellee fake their deaths, Batman uses the Ventriloquist to incapacitate Psycho-Pirate and tells Catwoman to break Bane's back. This act of humiliation and the loss of Psycho-Pirate causes Bane to snap and scream for Venom from the prison guards. In
Batman vol. 3 #16, Bane has recruited his old henchmen Bird, Trogg, and Zombie in his quest to break Batman once and for all before recapturing Psycho-Pirate from Arkham Asylum. Bane hangs Dick Grayson,
Jason Todd, and
Damian Wayne in the Batcave before setting off for the asylum, but the three survive. Bane's henchmen then capture Catwoman,
Duke Thomas,
Commissioner Gordon, and Bronze Tiger to cut Batman off from his allies. Bane beats Batman savagely in an alley and believes him dead, but finds out that Catwoman has escaped, freed the rest of the hostages, and tied up Bane's henchmen, giving Batman a chance to flee. Enraged, Bane storms Arkham Asylum where Alfred is forcing Psycho-Pirate to undo the fear he inflicted upon Gotham Girl. Batman decides to release many of the inmates to fight Bane and thus buy Alfred and Psycho-Pirate more time, but Bane easily beats the likes of Two-Face,
Solomon Grundy,
Amygdala, Scarecrow, Firefly, and Mad Hatter, among others, before making the Riddler open a door to Batman for him. Bane and Batman then have another fight, with a bloodied Batman barely beating his nemesis. In
Infinite Frontier, a partial clone of Bane was introduced named "
Vengeance", hunting Joker for information of her father. In
The Joker (vol. 2) #8, it is revealed that Bane's daughter, Vengeance, was created in a laboratory by scientists.
Bane: Conquest In the 12-issue miniseries
Bane: Conquest, it is revealed that Bane survived his fight with Batman, as he focuses on his criminal exploits outside of Gotham City. Bane and his trio Bird, Zombie, and Trogg, investigate a group of mercenaries who are transporting nuclear weapons to Gotham. Bane is captured alongside Bruce Wayne, but the pair escape together. Bane defeats the mercenaries and their leader, Dionysus, who is little more than a head and two pairs of limbs. Bane and his trio decide to appropriate Dionysus' vast criminal empire. They then attempt to destroy criminal rival organizations Vor and
Kobra. Bane kidnaps the infant heir to Kobra, but Batman intervenes and appeals to his humanity, leading Bane to abandon the child for adoption. ==Other versions==