The first villain I can remember truly defeating Batman was Bane during the Knightfall story arc in the early 1990s. I was young enough at the time that I didn’t have my own money to spend on comic books, so I ended up reading Knightfall as a novel adaptation by Denny O’Neil. Even so, Bane left an impression on me. Diamond Select’s DC Comic Gallery Bane statue hits all the Bane notes you’re expecting and in just the right way.
The Man who Broke Batman
The 9-inch tall Diamond Select Bane statue comes to us via designer Caesar and sculptor Alterton, just like the Penguin statue we recently reviewed. It hits shelves this month for $49.99 on Diamond Select’s website and slightly cheaper from Entertainment Earth.
This is a big statue. It’s not just tall, it’s bulky. It weighs in at 890 grams (~1.15 lbs), nearly twice as heavy as that Penguin statue. It’s kind of fun just to heft it because it feels so right for a character that regularly bends the white edges of the comic frame with his size. Bane is bent over in a sort of stalking pose, with one of his knees bent low. Just to be on the safe side, Diamond Select included a clear plastic support to put under Bane’s massive frame. I wish it was better integrated into the piece, but I’m glad it’s there.
The bulk of this figure is as much a downside as it is an upside. The Penguin statue felt very well anchored, but Bane is basically on his tippy toes. It’s a pound and a half of material that shrinks down to less than a square inch of contact between the figure and the base. some kind of support is an absolute necessity here; I can imagine someone throwing the support out only for gravity to pull the character off of its base.
It’s in the details
Speaking of the base, let’s focus on that for a bit. The base does a lot to put Bane in the Batcave fighting Batman. Two batarangs stick into the ground, but one bends beneath his foot. Small rocks litter the rough gray slope beneath him.
Also bringing life to this character is the number of textures on the statue. Bane’s skin, tank top, pants, and mask are all different textures. Getting this character under a light can only improve it. That light would also bring out the green in his veins. I almost wish the veins glowed a little bit.
In his hand, he’s holding Batman’s removed cowl. My first thought with the cowl was that it looked kind of corny and stiff. Then I realized that the head isn’t stiffer just to show the shape of Batman’s cowl, but because it would be a thicker, sturdier material, so it wouldn’t droop like the rest of the cape. The tears on the cape are another nice detail here.
The venom dispenser on his wrist and the bright green tubes connected to it and his dinged-up belt are two other nice details.
As with Penguin, I love the muted but saturated colors here. The white and red of Bane’s mask stick out thanks to the drab coloring of his tank and pants.
I have very few complaints with this character. The molding marks are obvious around Bane’s fingers, but that’s me looking for nits to pick.
Bane looks great, and it’s good to have such a faithful rendition of him. I think back to some other adaptations of the character and we get Dark Knight Returns and Harley Quinn. I like the latter’s take better than the former, but I’m still digging this statue even more because of that.
Disclaimer: Diamond Select provided us with one DC Comic Gallery Bane PVC Diorama to photograph and examine before writing this review.
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