10 Worst Things Batman Has Ever Done

One of Batman's defining features is his strict policy against killing. Sometimes though, he doesn't mind breaking that rule.

It's hard to believe it given his silly name, outdated Cold War backstory and D-list status but KGBeast was actually a formidable villain when he was first introduced. In the story arc Ten Nights of the Beast, the Russian assassin travels to Gotham to take out a number of high-ranking targets, including even President Ronald Reagan.

The Beast manages to get through most of his list and Batman desperately tries to stop him before he can kill the President. However, thanks to his excellent fighting skills and ruthless determination (he even slices off his own hand to escape a trap), he's able to fight off the Dark Knight.

With no other choice, Batman lures KGBeast into the Gotham sewers and traps him in a room with only one door. Then, he barricades the door shut and just leaves the Beast to starve.

It's a pretty brutal departure from Batman's usual refusal to kill and was justified in story as him putting justice above his own personal code. It still comes across as an unnecessarily cruel way to dispose of a threat though.

The end of the story was retconned almost immediately as well, Instead, Batman only allowed KGBeast to starve himself into unconsciousness before going back to retrieve him.