TBU Review: Absolute Batman #14

In this review of Absolute Batman #14, Bruce and Waylon take on Bane for the last time. Who will come out on top?

ABSOLUTE BATMAN #14
Written by SCOTT SNYDER
Art and Main Cover: NICK DRAGOTTA
Variant Covers: DAVE JOHNSON, GUILLEM MARCH, CLAY MANN, DERRICK CHEW
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: 11/12/25

This review contains spoilers

Absolute Batman #14 opens with Alfred telling Bruce that they only have two Venom injections left. Alfred suggests that he take one now to see if he can handle it and then one for the fight for Bane. Bruce is having quick memories and his father and visions of what Bane did to his friends. Batman says let’s go to war.

It is time for the fight. Batman vs Bane at the 50 yard line. Batman has Harley activated camera drones so the fight is broadcasted to all of Gotham. Batman’s first move is to blow up a tower near the stadium and it collapses right onto Bane. This is happening while Croc’s big fight with Bibbo is interspliced. 

Bane shakes off the tower because Absolute as Batman autodrives the Batmobile into Bane. Bane is bigger than ever and Batman looks like Ant-Man compared to him. Batman is able to rip out one of Bane’s eyes but Bane regrows his eyeball because Absolute. Super Giant Bane is swinging Batman around by the cape as Harley unleashes Killer Croc as back up. 

Super Giant Croc rips into Super Giant Bane as Batman chops down with his Bat Ax. Super Giant Bane is about to rip off Croc’s jaw as Batman jumps down and slashes Bane’s spine with his ax. Bane can handle the venom at levels that no one could have guessed and all his injuries are healed and he becomes bigger than King Kong. Bane is bigger than the damn stadium and he is punching down and smashing Batman into the field. Bane is urging Batman to use the venom.

Batman gives one final look at Bane and calls for Catwoman to shoot Bane with darts into all of Bane’s venom spots. Batman chucks the ax at him and Bane explodes.

How did this happen? Well Eddie took out the venom from Bruce and he and Selina used to create the darts that she shot at Bane. 

Batman dumps the mush pile that is Bane at the Gotham dump as Selina leaves Gotham with one vial of venom. Bane’s eyeballs and brain as he talks to….. Joker.

Analysis

When I first saw Bane I thought to myself “well he can’t get any bigger.” Boy was I wrong. Bane was bigger than a football stadium. Batman dropped a tower on him. Batman ripped out an eyeball and it grew back in two seconds. Bane kept growing and growing and growing. For me it became too much. This fight meant to be portrayed as some epic comeback. Some shining example of Batman’s will and his never say die attitude. But I did not get that sense at all. Bane was laughably big, Croc was laughably big, Batman was tossed around like a fly and then Bane was shot with venom and exploded into a pile of mush.

The entirety of Absolute Batman #14 made me laugh. Snyder and Dragotta are getting too extreme for extremes sake and it is taking me out of the whole thing. And now there are leaks of what Joker is going to look like and it looks even dumber than Bane. I am slowly getting annoyed by this whole run. Our main characters are too big and too gross and I do not take them seriously at all.

BJ Shea

BJ has had two passions in his life: sports and comic books. Specifically Batman and Robin. Not a day has gone by where BJ hasn’t watched or read something Batman-related. Currently, his goal is to collect as many Dick Grayson (his favorite character) issues as he can. Doesn’t matter if he’s Robin or Nightwing or Agent 37, he wants them. Another goal he has is to collect the complete Robin run of Tim Drake’s classic series. Raised on reruns of Adam West and was there for the animated series, BJ is down for any version of Batman. The Dark Knight is his favorite movie ever. On any day, BJ is most likely watching sports, watching anything Batman, or The Office.