Larvis Arescet (Masks Wither)

A character within DC Comics who's morals and methods have always interested me is the Batman adversary known as Bane. Since his creation, Bane has remained a character capable of much more than breaking Batman. His intelligence and perseverance has set him on a different shelf than the like of The Joker, Scarecrow and many others. That's why for this Pitch-It, I will be presenting my idea for a the mini series: Bane: Larvis Arescet.

There are things about Bane most people don't know, things not presented through his botched representation in The Dark Knight Rises. While Bane is one of the few villains to defeat Batman in their first encounter, Bane has actually gained a large respect for The Dark Knight. After their first battle, the two of them have teamed up and even saved each others lives. Bane was made aware of Batman's identity, gave Dick Grayson-the first Robin-a religious blessing and for time yearned to adopt the Batman mantle. And yes, Bane is quiet the religious fanatic as he's been taken in by priests and has felt remorse over his sins. In more recent events, Bane has actually taken up the Batman mantle during "Forever Evil". For this book, Bane's motivation would be his desire to regain the power and respect he held as Batman without imitating his adversary. To do this, Bane attempts to rid himself of the steroid Venom, train himself to the peak of human strength and take on the criminal underground. Bane wouldn't be heroic, and he wouldn't be villainous, he'd be threatening. Bane would be the type of guy who'd give a drug dealer's kids some movie tickets so they wouldn't see the beating their father would receive from Bane. He would travel all over the world busting crime organizations apart. Cuban drug cartels, middle eastern weapon dealers, Soviet computer hackers, you name it. Along the way Bane would make admiring allies, competent rivals and numerous victims. He wouldn't resort to killing these criminals either, Batman doesn't kill and he defeated Bane, so by Bane's logic that self-control is what gives Batman an edge. Unexpectedly, Bane would have acquired more of reputation than he'd thought, becoming the bounty target of DC assassins like Deathstroke, Deadshot, and The League of Assassins. Additionally, some of Bane's criminal soldiers from the Santa Prisca prison would attempt to take Bane's title by donning their own Bane costumes and using the Venom steroid. Not only would these challenges push Bane to his mortal limits, but they'd force him to come to terms with the monster he used to be. This would also prompt Bane to be more religiously aware, hoping his commitment to The Lord to further his redemption. For the entirety of this book Batman's face would never be seen, not through mental imagery or physical appearance. Bane would even refuse to call Batman by his true name, as it is only The Batman Bane wishes to overcome. Through his weakest moment, Bane would realize it was never Batman he was trying to prove himself superior to, it was his own failures as a warrior-as a man-that'd he wish to conquer. And by renouncing his obsession with Batman's defeat and accepting himself as Bane, he'd be able to serve God's Earth not as it's breaker, but as its guardian.

I've always thought the best thing about Bane was how inverted the character was, on the surface he looked like a masked wrestler with a chemical booster implanted into his skin, but as I came to understand him I saw Bane had depth to him, a sense of honor and symbolism. Bane doesn't do things for his own benefit, he does things because he believes in the idea of destiny and birthright. To have Bane become Batman may seem like an interesting angle, but without his craving to be Batman or to defeat Batman, and to simply learn from encounters with Batman, an intelligent and religious man like Bane might see these encounters as a sign. A sign that while he may not be able to replicate Batman, he could use his abilities for a greater purpose like his adversary. Not because he wants to be like him, but because he knows he'd be a better man by doing so. Thanks for reading.