Episode #085: Knightfall
(Or … “Knightfall – Part One”!) Now that we’ve discussed Superman’s literal death and rebirth, we come to Batman’s symbolic resurrection in the Iron Age: ”Knightfall,” a mega-epic so sprawling we’ll need three episodes to come to grips with it. We begin with the Breaking of the Bat, in which the super-steroid-fueled Bane comes to Gotham City to prove himself the Dark Knight’s superior. To do so, he’ll unleash all the inmates of Arkham Asylum and wear down a Batman who’s already physically and spiritually exhausted. With Bruce Wayne out of the picture, can his chosen successor, Azrael, defeat Bane without going too far? We’ll discuss the origins of this arc, spearheaded by editor and legendary writer Denny O’Neil as a way to tell fans of grim ‘n’ gritty superhero escalation to be careful what they wish for.
Discussed in this episode: Batman #491-500, Detective Comics #659-666, Batman: Shadow of the Bat #16-18, plus material from Showcase ‘93 #7-8
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