10 Characters Who Beat Batman In A Fight

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Few superheroes endure quite like Batman. After decades of big-screen success, countless TV and video game appearances, and an iconic comic book legacy stretching back to the 1940s, the Dark Knight remains one of the most compelling figures in pop culture. We've already ranked Batman's best live-action villains — because, let's be honest, his rogues' gallery is unmatched — but now it's time to tackle a touchier subject.

As skilled and resourceful as Batman is, at the end of the day ... he's just a guy in a cape. When Superman sheds his Clark Kent disguise, he's still a near-invincible alien with godlike abilities. Bruce Wayne, on the other hand, can break, bleed, and feel pain like any other human. Sure, his enemies rarely gain the upper hand due to his tactical expertise — he's a master strategist who never enters a battle without a plan. He once shut down the entire planet with a single button press to stop the Justice League from exposing his identity, for cripe's sake! The man thinks of everything. He even has backup plans for his backup plans.

But every now and then, someone from the DC Universe (or beyond) manages to surprise him — whether by striking when he's vulnerable or outsmarting him altogether. It doesn't happen often, but when it does, it's unforgettable. Here are 10 characters who found a way to beat the Bat.

We'll start with perhaps the most well-known of Batman's losses — "Knightfall." Or, the story where our hero faces Bane, the hulking, Santa Prisca native who literally broke the Dark Knight with a relatively simple method: patience. Yearning to prove himself the ultimate force in Gotham, Bane spends months observing Batman, learning his fighting style. He orchestrates a mass breakout at Arkham Asylum — notably freeing the Joker, Scarecrow, and Firefly — forcing Batman to take them all on single-handedly. Batman becomes physically and mentally exhausted, and that's when Bane strikes.

Sneaking into Wayne Manor — having already deduced Batman's true identity — Bane, using a chemical compound known as Venom, confronts the weakened Caped Crusader. Well, actually, it's more of a slaughter. Batman doesn't have a chance. Bane tosses him around like a rag doll, smashing him throughout the mansion home while Alfred watches helplessly. Then, after having his fun, the masked villain holds Batman over his head and slams him down on his knee, snapping his back. The injury sidelines Batman for several months. Even so, he eventually recovers and later hunts down and defeats Bane in the "Batman: Legacy" series.

Christopher Nolan adapted elements of this storyline for "The Dark Knight Rises," where Tom Hardy's mask-wearing Bane memorably breaks a much older and physically diminished Bruce Wayne. In each instance, Batman returns to exact revenge, but you gotta tip your hat to the supervillain for having the moxie to do what so few have done over the years.

Batman suffered another horrific defeat at the hands of the Mutant Leader in Frank Miller's "The Dark Knight Returns." The popular story revolves around an aged Bruce Wayne who comes out of retirement to fight for the citizens of Gotham City once more. At this juncture, and due to his prolonged absence, criminality has evolved and gotten more violent. A criminal by the name of Mutant Leader now runs the show, using the media to lure more sunglass-toting disciples to his cause.

Batman sets off to take down this mad giant, but finds himself overmatched from the get go. Mutant Leader pummels Batman to a pulp, and he only survives when Carrie Kelley, adorned as Robin, arrives to save the day. It takes Bats a good while to recover from this latest setback. Still, the best thing about Batman is that he learns from his mistakes.

In their second meeting, Batman lures the villain into a pool of mud. The thick sand limits Mutant Leader's movements, nullifying his physical advantages, and allowing Batman to overpower him. Even more impressive, the entire fight is witnessed by Mutant Leader's goons, who quickly switch to the Dark Knight's side once he proves to be the superior fighter. It's a terrific piece of Dark Knight lore, and just as good in animated form where it ranks among his best outings. Be sure to check out our rankings for the best "Batman" animated movies. 

Sandra Woosan, aka Lady Shiva (a character we'd love to see in "The Batman 2"), ranks among the most skilled and dangerous martial artists in the DC Universe. First appearing in "Richard Dragon, Kung-Fu Fighter #5" (1976), this lethal warrior puts fear in the hearts of ... well, practically everyone she comes in contact with, including Batman.

Indeed, the Dark Knight considers Shiva one of the few who could actually best him in combat, remarking in "Detective Comics #952": "Shiva is perhaps the most dangerous fighter alive. More deadly than I ever was. Perhaps more than I could be." That's likely why he turns to her to help him regain his edge after his defeat at the hands of Bane. During this extended arc in "Batman: Legacy," the Caped Crusader spars with Lady Shiva, who repeatedly bests him and pushes him toward a more lethal fighting style. But let's be honest, you came for the real fights.

In the aforementioned "Detective Comics" Batman attempts to bring down Shiva using non-lethal force. Big mistake. They engage in intense combat, and Shiva wins after stabbing him in the shoulder. Now, in "Superman/Batman #3," the Dark Knight decides he's done playing around and knocks Shiva out cold after watching her beat the snot out of Catwoman. Make of that what you will.

For a relatively obscure villain, look no further than Prometheus. Though there are many iterations of the character, the one we'll discuss first appeared in "New Year's Evil: Prometheus #1" (1998). This twisted madman runs around in a black and purple outfit, replete with a highly technical helmet, looking more like a deranged knight than a DC villain. And yet, look closer and you'll find Batman's complete opposite, a man equally driven by vengeance, albeit against the law — policeman murdered his parents — rather than criminals. Like the Dark Knight, Prometheus trained around the world, mastering martial arts, strategy and technology — he even has his own Bat Cave-esque layer, dubbed the "Crooked House." Except, he uses his newfound skills for evil, and has destroyed entire cities, and killed several heroes.

He also bested Batman.

In Grant Morrison's "JLA" run, Prometheus infiltrates the Justice League, posing as a new hero. After taking down several League members, he downloads the fighting techniques of 30 martial arts masters into his helmet and confronts Batman — and it's not even close. Prometheus quickly and decisively wins round one, knocking our hero unconscious. Later, in "JLA #37," the two fight again. This time, Batman is far more prepared after learning the secrets of Prometheus' helmet and defeats him before placing him in a psychic loop. 

For those of you wondering, "Did Batman ever battle a cult?" Fear not! We've got you covered. And the answer is YES. In 1988's succinctly titled "Batman: The Cult," our boy goes toe-to-toe with deranged cult leader Deacon Blackfire — and loses. OK, now, settle down. Deacon doesn't beat Batman in the physical sense. Rather, he captures him and subjects him to drugs, torture, and brainwashing, eventually fracturing his psyche. Batman even begins parroting the Deacon's cult rhetoric, viewing the leader as the cleansing fire of Gotham City.

During this strange period, Deacon's army invades Gotham, kills civilians, and practically burns the city to the ground. Luckily, Jason Todd swoops in and saves Batman, who then detoxes from the drugs and rebuilds his mental and physical strength. He eventually seeks out Deacon, and the two engage in hand-to-hand combat — and this time, Bats walks away the victor. However, the damage to Gotham is immense, marking one of the few times where the Dark Knight has failed to save the day.

Deacon does appear again in later comics, sometimes portrayed as a powerful, immortal madman akin to Ra's al Ghul. He even appears in the "Arkham" video games. However, none of his later appearances come close to matching the intensity of "Batman: The Cult," perhaps the only comic where the Caped Crusader is left truly vulnerable at the hands of a deranged madman. To read more, check out why Deacon Blackfire is arguably Batman's scariest villain.

Yes, Wonder Woman and Batman have fought several times, and Diana typically gets the best of him. And why not? She's an Amazonian goddess with super strength, super speed, and near invulnerability. Of course she would beat down a man dressed in a bat suit. For all his wisdom and preparation, the Dark Knight can only do so much before getting overpowered physically.

A terrific example of this rather lopsided power struggle occurs in "Injustice: Gods Among Us – Year One," an alternate universe where Superman becomes a tyrant, forcing Batman to take up arms in opposition. Wonder Woman approves of Superman's newfound rule and tries to convince Batman to join their side. When he turns down her offer, the pair scuffle. Batman tosses everything her way — punches, kicks, gadgets, and unique tactics — but none are enough to stop Wonder Woman from slamming him to the ground and breaking his arm. And the scary thing is, she was holding back.

Earlier comics, such as "JLA: A League of One" (2000) and "Wonder Woman: Hiketeia" (2002), likewise demonstrate Wonder Woman's clear physical superiority. In the former, she takes down the entire Justice League — including Batman — to protect them from a deadly prophecy. In the latter, Batman interferes in a personal quest despite her objections, forcing Diana to take physical action, ultimately slamming his head into the pavement. Basically, if you're Batman, don't mess with Wonder Woman.

Yes, dreams do come true! In the terrific crossover comic "Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Vol. 1," the Dark Knight gets a matchup with ... the Shredder. And yes, the fight lives up to the billing.

The nefarious Turtle villain leaps from his dimension into Gotham City and surprises Batman with a combination of speed, skill, and ruthlessness. Set in a warehouse, the dust-up is fast, violent, and gritty. There's little dialogue and a whole lot of martial arts action. Batman simply can't match Shredder's ferocity and takes a devastating strike that wounds him badly. And just like that, a legendary rivalry is born.

For Round 2, Batman arrives more prepared, having worked alongside the Turtles, and takes on the Shredder at Arkham Asylum amidst a horde of mutated versions of his rogues' gallery. While the Turtles and Splinter fend off the mutant monsters, Batman engages Shredder and doesn't hold back. A lengthy, brutal contest ensues, and Batman eventually disarms and knocks out the evil ninja with a series of precise strikes. Once again, we see that a prepared Batman is very hard to take down.

Actually, you can catch their first duel in animated form in 2019's "Batman vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles." It's a banger. Ridiculous, sure — but also a lot of fun. The flick also contains the only instance of a voice actor playing Batman and the Joker.

Deathstroke, not to be confused with Deadshot, is one of the few who can legitimately challenge — and sometimes beat — the Caped Crusader due to his enhanced strength, tactical mind, and ruthlessness. While many of their fights typically end in a draw, Slade Wilson has on occasion bested our hero in impressive fashion.

In "Deathstroke: The Terminator #7" Deathstroke and Batman fight on the side of a building. Slade easily wins the quick and brutal brawl, leaving the Dark Knight bloodied and sprawled across a ledge. "Another time, Batman," Deathstroke proclaims before turning away. Batman rises to his feet and tries to attack once more and Deathstroke sidekicks him though a building and into a bookshelf. Yikes. In another matchup, in "Batman: Detective Comics #710," Batman ambushes Deathstroke, preventing him from carrying out an assassination. Perturbed, Slade rises and beats the snot out of our hero, and then vacates the premises; he does this again in the same issue, but eventually loses in Round 3. Not too shabby.     

Later, in 2015's "Deathstroke #5," Batman confronts the masked mercenary in front of Harley Quinn, and only manages to hold his own thanks to her interference. Either way, Deathstroke knocks out Batman and leaves with Harley in tow. Other notable encounters between the two exist — including 2014's animated "Son of Batman" — and this awesome smackdown in the video game "Arkham Origins." Too bad we never got to see Deathstroke take on Batfleck.

This one is rather tricky because, like Wonder Woman, Superman very clearly has the physical edge over Batman — he just chooses to hold back when they come to blows. Most of the time. We saw this in Zack Snyder's "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice," where Supes, ordered by Lex Luthor to kill Batman, spends most of the fight trying to reason with the Dark Knight (leading to the infamous Martha scene). Of course, this example is a direct riff on a similar occurrence in "The Dark Knight Returns," and in each instance, Superman refuses to deliver the final blow, thus giving Batman a slight edge.

And yet, there are times when our red-and-blue hero gets tired of Batman's antics and throws down — hard. In "Injustice: Gods Among Us," for example, he punches Batman so hard that he breaks his back, in an apparent reversal of "Knightfall." In Tom King's "Batman #42," Poison Ivy has take control of the entire planet, including the Justice League. Batman and Catwoman remain her only opposition, leaving them to take on their corrupted teammates. At one point, Batman straight-up pisses off Ivy, and she retaliates by forcing a mind-controlled Man of Steel to punch Batman in the face. The single blow instantly kills the Caped Crusader, a heinous act that should probably be listed amongst the worst things Superman has ever done. While Superman technically doesn't commit the act, it's still a wild example of his true power, particularly compared to Batman's.

As we've seen so far, there are very few people capable of actually defeating Batman. Everyone has their weak points, of course, but Batman holds his own against almost anyone. Yet, there is one person truly capable of taking him down — himself. That's right, in Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's "Batman: Last Knight on Earth" (2019), the Dark Knight takes on an evil iteration of himself "Superman III"-style and wins.

Here's the gist: a young clone of Bruce Wayne awakens in a post-apocalyptic world where most of the heroes are dead, and a corrupted Batman (dubbed Omega) rules over the ruins. With nothing more than the Joker's talking head as his guide, Bruce seeks out and confronts Omega, resulting in a symbolic and physical duel in which the clone wins and restores hope to a world in desperate need of a savior.

It's a powerful story that digs deep into Batman's psyche and asks: What is Batman without Bruce Wayne? And what is Bruce Wayne without Batman? As it turns out, even our stalwart Caped Crusader has a breaking point. His resulting persona, Omega, shows just how dangerous he could become if he ever lost hope and betrayed everything he stands for. In the end, it's refreshing to see the good Batman triumph over his broken counterpart, proving that what truly makes him a hero isn't his strength or skill — it's his unshakable belief in hope, justice, and doing what's right.