10 Worst Injuries Superheroes Have Survived

One of the most iconic images in comic history has got to be from 1993's Batman #497, and it's hard to think of a more impactful introduction for a villain than the Knightfall arc, which saw Bane's debut.

Bane starts by freeing every villain in Arkham Asylum's maximum security wing, creating a living nightmare for Gotham's residents. Batman takes it upon himself to single handedly recapture as many of the escapees as he possibly can. But even Gotham's sworn protector needs a break once in a while.

With the Caped Crusader weakened, Bane sees his opportunity to strike, having orchestrated the entire thing in order take out The Bat. This terrifying new villain has discovered Batman's secret identity and heads to Wayne Manor to fight in the Bat-Cave, the one place Bruce thought was safe. The fight ends with Bane making the sadistic choice not to kill our hero, preferring to cause endless suffering instead. Bane lifts Bruce above his head and slams him down onto his knee, as if not a person, but a plank of wood. With the fight over, Bane drops him and walks away, leaving the Dark Knight writhing on the ground helpless and in complete agony.

With Bruce Wayne now paralysed from the waist down, the Batman title is briefly passed to Azrael. Unfortunately during his short tenure, Azrael does an excellent job of completely destroying the good name Bruce spent so long trying to create, leading to his return, and Azrael's defeat.