DC Comics reviews 11/26/25 – Absolute Batman 14, DC KO 2
Absolute Batman 14
Absolute Batman 14 wraps up the Abomination arc with an absolutely insane over the top epic battle with Batman taking on Bane. Writer Scott Snyder dedicated an issue showing how Bane continued to literally break Batman during his stint at Ark M. Just when Batman appeared to finally gain an advantage, Bane crushed his hoops of escaping all over again.
For Bane, beating Batman was merely an exercise in training up his replacement as he longs to enjoy a well-earned retirement. If Batman can’t do it and won’t tap into the Venom implants the Ark M scientists have injected into his bloodstream, Bane will be forced to break him again.
Snyder does an excellent job of building this final battle. Alfred has a plan for Bruce to best utilize the Venom at the most strategic point; Harley Quinn and her Red Hood army know their role and the mayor has even cleared the battleground under the guise of a curfew to let these two battle it out.
This is a pretty wild issue. Snyder conceives some brutal, brutal sequences that might make the Mortal Kombat creators say that’s going too far. Thankfully, Bane is a bastard of a villain and deserves everything he’s got coming to him. Artist Nick Dragotta might be one of the few artists who could so perfectly deliver all of the chaos Snyder envisioned with this bone-shattering conflict.
Colorist Frank Martin has a lot to fully convey with the colors but delivers spectacularly and letterer Clayton Cowles makes the impact of the blows land even harder with big splashy sound effects.
Absolute Batman 14 pays off on its big showdown while Snyder proves even in a more extreme Absolute Universe, Batman is still first and foremost, a hero worthy of that description. If that wasn’t enough, Snyder and company tease the next major threat as The Joker plots his next move following the end of the battle. This book isn’t laying off the gas pedal anytime soon as this series is the definition of all gas no brakes.
Rating: 10 out of 10