Why Batman: The Animated Series' Creators Originally Didn't Want To Use Bane

Few comic book villains have had as auspicious a debut as Bane. Created by writers Chuck Dixon & Doug Moench with artist Graham Nolan, Bane was devised as the villain of the "Knightfall." He figuratively and then literally breaks Batman with patient strategy and strength (derived from the super-steroid Venom). Bane came closer to defeating Batman in his first appearance than many older villains ever have. Batman bounced back, though, and Bane's quest to once more break the Bat has turned into an enduring rivalry.

You know who wasn't impressed by Bane and "Knightfall"? The team behind "Batman: The Animated Series," which aired from 1992-1995, overlapping with the publication of "Knightfall." Bane appears in a single self-titled episode of season 2, made after the series' initial 65 episode pick-up. "Bane" episode writer Mitch Brain said, in a 2019 appearance on "Batman: The Animated Podcast" that: "Neither [co-creator Bruce Timm] or I were particularly enamored with [Bane breaking Batman's back], we thought it was pretty stupid." 

Bane was only included "under duress," as Timm put it to "Comics Scene" magazine in 1996. That seems to suggest someone higher-up leaned on them to include the shiny new bad guy. "Batman" wasn't free from corporate synergizing, after all; the series existed to tie into the mega-successful Tim Burton "Batman" movie (even including music from composers Danny Elfman and Shirley Walker).

DC wanting to promote Bane also accounts for him making the jump to the "Batman" comics to movies so quickly — though most would prefer to forget his appearance in 1997's "Batman & Robin." Played by Robert Swenson, this Bane was Poison Ivy's (Uma Thurman) henchman and grunted like Boris Karloff in "Frankenstein." Even if Timm and Brian didn't care much for Bane, the "Animated Series" iteration of him was still superior to that.

In the comics, Bane's vendetta is personal; a bat apparition haunts his dreams, compelling him to battle the Bat. In "The Animated Series," Bane (voiced by Henry Silva) appears as an assassin hired by mob boss Rupert Thorne (John Vernon) to kill Batman. With a tight 21-minute runtime, the episode instantly builds up Bane's threat and his massive stature. In the first scene when he arrives in Gotham City, the frame sometimes cuts off at his shoulders. Later, he beats up another super-strong villain, Killer Croc (Aron Kincaid).

Bane hails from the fictional South American country of Santa Prisca and his costume has a Luchador motif. Per Brian on "Batman: The Animated Podcast," he and the team decided to play up the "Mexican wrestler" side of Bane. Bane's mask was redesigned from the comics to include a mouth opening and smaller eyes, making it look even more like a Luchador's costume. When Batman and Bane at last face each other on a tanker ship, Bane calls it "[his] arena." In a truly cartoony touch, the ship's iron fence railings bounce Batman back into the "ring" like rubber wrestling fences. Batman also uses wrestling moves, like a Hurricanrana, on Bane.

In the behind-the-scenes book "Batman Animated," writer/producer Paul Dini called Batman vs Bane, "the most violent fight ever done for our series." However, this time, Bane does not cripple Batman. In fact, the fight ends with a pointed rejection of the scene Timm and Brian thought was "stupid." When Bane lifts Batman over his head, preparing to break his back over his knee? That's when Batman breaks Bane's Venom injector with a batarang, defeating him. It's hard to get a clearer rebuke of "Knightfall" than that.

"Batman: The Animated Series" led to a full DC Animated Universe, but Bane continued to appear infrequently in later shows. In the Superman/Batman crossover episode "Knight Time," Superman beats up Bane in another humbling moment that feels rooted in the creators' dislike of the villain.

Regardless, the pro-Bane side has been vindicated by history. He continues to appear in the comics, and got another shot at being a movie star in 2012's "The Dark Knight Rises." This Bane, played by Tom Hardy, did break Batman's back. The new comic series "Absolute Batman," by writer Scott Snyder and artist Nick Dragotta, just wrapped its second arc, "Abomination," featuring a truly terrifying reimagination of Bane and an explosive battle between Batman and Bane that makes "Knightfall" look tame.

The split reactions to Bane show the generational fault lines of comic book fans. Bane wasn't in Batman comics when Bruce Timm was a kid, so he had no childhood fondness for him. Compare "Spider-Man" director Sam Raimi's noted dislike of Venom, who also debuted after Raimi's time.

Scott Snyder, though, was a teenager when "Knightfall" came out. He's called "Batman" #497 (the issue where Bane breaks the Bat) one he'll never forget. With "Abomination," Snyder showed younger Batman fans why Bane was such a terrifying villain back in "Knightfall." While I grew up with Bane always being an essential Batman villain, "Abomination" is what finally unlocked the character for me. All the best Batman villains are foils to one aspect of the Dark Knight's character. Where does Bane fit into that?

Like Batman, Bane is a man of unrelenting determination and unbreakable discipline, who has trained himself into the peak of human knowledge and athleticism. Bane is Batman's mirror image, even if "Batman: The Animated Series" couldn't see that.