Hey Everyone,
Paul here…
It is good to be back!
Director Zack Snyder (300, Man of Steel, Batman V Superman) recently appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast for a lengthy interview that reignited a longtime debate within fandom: Should Batman Kill? We have our own, very strong opinions on the subject here on The World’s Best Podcast. So what better way to return from our long hiatus? It’s good to be back! Thanks for listening and enjoy!
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Below, we have some of the specific moments from Batman comics, video games and film, that show how the character’s “No Kill” Rule is pretty… flexible. We covered some of these on this episode of the podcast. Judge for yourself!
The Dark Knight Returns
This is the much debated sequence from The Dark Knight Returns, that Snyder discusses on JRE, judge for yourself:
While the moment is definitely a little confusing and ambiguous, it is definitely not Batman shooting The Mutant Gang member in the head, as Snyder described it on JRE. At the very least, Batman definitely seems to shoot the guy. However, confusion about this moment doesn’t invalidate the larger points Snyder was making.
Batman Leaves KGBeast For Dead… TWICE!
In Batman #420, rather than test his skills against the formidable KGBeast, Batman traps and seals him abandoned, underground room. Deep in the bowels of Gotham. In a complete cop out from DC, a later issue retconned this moment, at the behest of DC, mentioning that Batman eventually told the police where KGBeast was. However, that doesn’t change the fact that the intentions of the writers and Batman were crystal clear when this comic was published. This was Batman committing a man to a slow and brutal death.
After KGBeast shot Nightwing in the head, causing permanent brain damage, Batman hunts KGBeast to the ends of the Earth. Culminating in a vicious battle in remote Siberia in Batman #57. To end the fight, Batman pulls out his grapple gun sticks it under KG beasts, chin and fires it at point blank range. The tremendous force instantly snaps his neck, paralizing the man. Despite the assassin’s pleas, Batman leaves KGBeast to die in the frozen wilderness. The only question was if he succumbed to his injuries, or to the cold first.
Batman Begins (2005) “I won’t kill you, but I don’t have to save you”
Batman Mortally Wounds Darkseid
Those are just a few examples, but there are plenty more. Batman may not have outright murdered many people since his early years, but there are plenty of times when his actions knowingly resulted in someone’s death. It’s not much of a rule if Batman’s frequently bending it. Maybe it’s time to get rid of the whole damn “No Kill” Rule altogether?
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– Paul
World’s Best Media 