Justice League: Batman's Body Has Been Shattered by Lex Luthor

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Justice League #6 by Scott Snyder, Jorge Jimenez, Alejandro Sanchez and Tom Napolitano, in stores now.

In the pages of Scott Snyder and Jorge Jimenez's Justice League, the worlds' greatest superheroes are on the ropes. In fact, it almost looks like they're waging a battle they can't possibly win. After the heart of the Source Wall -- the Totality -- crashed down on Earth, a race kicked off between the League and Lex Luthor's Legion of Doom to see who would get to it first -- and who would control its awesome power.

In their bid to safely reach the Totality, both Superman and Martian Manhunter breached its shell, with a microscopic Batman and Hawkgirl hidden inside their respective bodies. (Seriously!) Batman and Hawkgirl's mission was to protect their respective host's bodies from the unique mutagens of the Totality, but what they didn't know was that they weren't alone. The Joker managed to find himself aboard Hawkgirl's minuscule ship inside Martian Manhunter's body, while Lex Luthor sneaked his own ship inside Superman.

In Justice League #6, this adventure inside the bodies of Superman and J'onn J'onzz reaches a boiling point, and it ends with Bruce Wayne sustaining his most catastrophic injury since he first faced the Venom-powered Bane.

Issue #6 begins with Luthor and Joker now in full control of their hosts, as they find themselves on the precipice of reaching the center of the Totality. But before Luthor can achieve his goal, Batman fights back, and smashes him out of his ship. There, among Superman's cells, the Dark Knight and Luthor wage a battle for control of the Man of Steel, as well as the Totality. In the midst of the battle, Luthor drops the doorknob that has been in his possession ever since the beginning of this new arc -- a doorknob that was forged from the pure cosmic power of the Totality itself. But though Batman attempts to grab it, Luthor reaches it first, and unleashes its full power on the Dark Knight.

The purple blast from the doorknob breaks Bruce's arms and legs and, just like that, Luthor sends him packing with Superman and Martian Manhunter. The three superheroes are teleported back to the Hall of Justice, Batman now back at his full size. Defeated and broken, Batman lies on the floor, his limbs utterly shattered. It's a terrible injury, one that looks incredibly painful, and it doesn't look like one Bruce Wayne will just be able to walk off.

It's easily the most brutal beating the character has received since Bane broke his back in the 1993-1994 "Knightfall" storyline. Readers might recall that, following his defeat at the hands of Bane, Bruce Wayne took a long time to recover -- so much so in fact that a new Batman had to rise up to take his place.

And, though there's no second Batman waiting in the wings here (Dick Grayson's current stint under the cowl in Batman is entirely unrelated), it appears as though this isn't an injury Bruce Wayne will recover from between panels, or even between this issue and the next.

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From what we can tell, it appears Justice League will feature a lengthy recovery time for the Dark Knight. While we don't expect the character to be out for a full year like his Knightfall recovery period, we do know that come Justice League #12 in November, Batman will still be on the mend. The advance solicits for issue #12 of the series states that the Dark Knight will go up against the entire Legion of Doom while in a full-body cast. This means that, six issues from now, Batman's injury will still factor into the League's battle against Luthor ands his team.

The vicious beating the Dark Knight suffered at the hands of Luthor was neither arbitrary, nor will it be magically undone in the next issue. In Snyder's Justice League, there is clear intent and purpose, and actions have consequences -- sometimes even on a cosmic scale. The decision to have Batman taken out of the fight in such a catastrophic way is not for naught, and it will undoubtedly have a role to play in the events to come. Batman is the character who is prepared for everything -- every scenario, every possible battle. So what's his plan for this injury?

It's unclear yet if whether wounds will factor into Tom King's Batman solo title, or if they will be confined to the story Snyder and Jimenez are telling in Justice League. Snyder is no stranger to turning the world of Batman upside down, having once effectively killed the character in a bloody battle against the Joker in the caves of Gotham City during his and Greg Capullo's New 52 Batman run. Few writers understand the Dark Knight like Snyder does, which means that fans shouldn't be worried about the Caped Crusader's latest predicament. It's a rough patch, but after all: Batman always wins.

Check out the full solicit for Justice League #12:

JUSTICE LEAGUE #12

written by JAMES TYNION IV
art by FRAZER IRVING
cover by JORGE JIMENEZ
“DROWNED EARTH” part three! It’s Batman, in a full-body cast, versus the Legion of Doom! Get a ringside seat for the craziest fight in comics as a bedridden Batman battles The Joker, Lex Luthor, Gorilla Grodd and Sinestro! Meanwhile, Aquaman locks tridents with Poseidon and Mera discovers an ancient secret that could change the fate of Atlantis—and the entire Earth—forever!
ON SALE 11.21.18
$3.99 US | 32 PAGES

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