Top 10 Times Batman Actually DIED
#10: Dying Beside the Joker
“Batman Vol 2 #40” (2015)
In many stories, there are hints that the clown and the dark knight will die side-by-side. That ominous premonition came true in the “Batman Endgame” storyline. After Joker releases a contagious toxin in Gotham, Bruce dives underneath the city to get a healing substance. Unfortunately, the villain triggers an underground explosion and fights the hero. The two get into a brutal fight that ends with both of them clinging to life. Batman then uses his remaining strength to ensure that Joker doesn’t heal and that the cure gets to the surface. Unable to escape the cave-in, he dies next to the clown. Fortunately, the healing substance later brings Bruce back to life…without memories of his Batman career. We guess that’s the price of cheating death.
#9: The Dark Knight Loses His Head
Top 10 Times Batman Got Superpowers
“Countdown to Final Crisis #13” (2008)
Earth-51’s Batman had no problem killing his enemies. Not only did he personally slay his version of the Joker, but he made it his mission to put every supervillain he saw into the ground. So when this trigger happy Batman saw an alternate version of the clown, the hero swooped in to collect another kill. But this Bruce variant didn’t know the villainous Ultraman was watching. The evil super being instantly swooped down and stopped Batman with one punch to the head. While we can’t show it here, trust us when we say that Ultraman didn’t hold back his superstrength. In the wake of Batman’s death, a nearby Jason Todd follows in his twisted mentor’s footsteps and kills that Joker.
#8: Resisting Superman to the End
“Superman: Red Son” (2020)
There was a version of Batman that spent his childhood watching his parents die in a Russian gulag. When this bitter boy grew up, he became a rebel who wished to topple the government that imprisoned his family. After a Soviet version of Superman took over, Batman tried to capture and slay the Kryptonian. But Wonder Woman eventually thwarts the dark knight’s plan. Superman was ready to retaliate by brainwashing Batman. Rather than be captured, this dark knight detonated a bomb that claimed his own life. While the explosion doesn’t harm Superman, it does have another effect. The fatal lengths Batman went to avoid capture made it impossible for Wonder Woman to look at the Kryptonian the same way.
#7: Assassinated By AI
“Batman: Urban Legends Issue #7” (2021)
Years after Bruce became too old to continue on as the dark knight, he passed the mantle on to the young Terry McGinnis. Although the two worked well together, they often butted heads. But all of the bitterness between them was forgotten when Terry found a dying Bruce in the batcave. The former Batman uses his final words to encourage the new dark knight to uphold the honor of the mantle. And when Terry finds Bruce’s AI killer, the young hero decides to spare the new villain’s life. The original Batman is ultimately able to rest easy because he knew that the next dark knight would continue to protect Gotham.
#6: Put Down by Alfred
Top 10 Times Superheroes Broke Their No Kill Rule
“DCeased #2” (2019)
Darkseid usually wants to get his hands on the anti-life equation so he can take away everyone’s free will. In one reality, his pursuit of this formula accidentally caused a techno organic version of a zombie virus to spread across the universe. Even heroes like Nightwing and Tim Drake aren’t immune to the spread. After they get infected, they both bite Batman. The dark knight quickly realizes that the virus will completely consume him too. Before he turns into a mindless zombie, Batman gives his allies advice on how to handle the crisis. And shortly after the dark knight turns, his loyal butler Aflfred puts him down. Batman’s sacrifice inspires his son Damian to step up and save the world from this terrible virus.
#5: Sacrificing Himself to Stop Parademons
“Earth 2 Issue #1” (2012)
When an army of Parademons arrived on earth, Wonder Woman, Superman,and Batman rose to stop the invasion. The dark knight came up with a plan to stop the evil aliens by planting a virus in a crucial enemy tower. As Batman made his way to the vital location, both Wonder Woman and Superman were killed. Just when it seemed like the dark knight would be the only living member of the trio, he told his daughter Helena that he wouldn't survive the mission. There’s barely any time to process this loss before the tower explodes and kills Batman. Fortunately, when the smoke clears, the parademons fall and the Earth gets a second chance.
#4: Expiring As a Vampire
“Batman: Crimson Mist” (1998)
After the dark knight got turned into a vampire, he tried to fight crime while keeping his impulses in check. But as soon as he lost control and drained the Joker of blood, Batman decided to let himself get staked in the heart. In a surprising twist, this drastic act just put him into a deep sleep until Alfred revived him to fight crime again. Batman tried once more to balance crime fighting with his bloodthirst. Upon realizing that he’d lose control again, he willingly embraced the sunlight and burnt to a crisp. Although this dark knight committed some grim acts, his final deed prevented the world from being overrun by a horde of vampires.
#3: Wounded During War
“Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox” (2013)
Technically, the film adaptation of a legendary Flash story features two Batmen deaths. After the speedster alters the timeline running to the past, a young Bruce Wayne dies in Crime alley. This dark incident inspired Thomas Wayne to become Batman. Years after this dark knight became famous, he was recruited to help stop a war between Atlanteans and Amazons. During the heat of battle, this Batman receives a fatal wound from Ocean Master. What makes this death stand out is what the dark knight accomplishes after getting injured. With the last of his strength, Batman shoots the sinister Reverse Flash. After killing this villain, Flash is able to run back in time, fix the world, and deliver a message from Thomas to Bruce.
#2: Destroying the Lazarus Pit
“Gotham Knights” (2022)
The 2022 DC video game begins with Batman fighting the nearly immortal Ra’s al Ghul in the bat cave. After the supervillain pledges to kill the dark knight’s family, Bruce triggers an explosion that ends his life and eliminates the supervillain. Hours after the rest of the bat family arrives in Gotham to fight the evil Court of Owls group, players are hit with a shocking twist. It turned out that Talia al Ghul brought Bruce back to life with a magical Lazarus Pit. But before his family can celebrate, the court of Owls arrives to claim the immortality pool for themselves. To prevent the evil alliance from living forever, Bruce sacrifices his life again to destroy the Lazarus Pit and keep his family safe.
#1: Repeatedly Eliminated By Emperor Joker
Various Realities
What would the Joker do if he was given godlike power? In multiple realities, the clown uses his virtually limitless fifth dimensional abilities to kill Batman in a variety of cruel and twisted ways. After each death, the Joker resurrects his longtime enemy so he can find another painful way to slay the dark knight. In one reality, Batman is so traumatized by his many deaths that he had to get his memories erased just to keep going. There’s no telling how many times Joker killed the dark knight after he became the Emperor. It’s safe to say that the clown is the only villain that turned the idea of slaying Batman from a nigh impossible task into a sick game he loved to play.
Which Batman death shocked you the most? Let us know in the comments below!
