Cover to Batman #497: The breaking of the Bat. Art by Kelley Jones.

KnightSaga is the informal name given to a major Batman story arc published by DC Comics that dominated Batman-related comics from 1993 to 1994. KnightSaga consisted of three parts which were given official names: KnightFall, KnightQuest, and KnightsEnd. Download high resolution version (400x626, 473 KB)Cover to Batman #497. ... Download high resolution version (400x626, 473 KB)Cover to Batman #497. ... The comic book character Batman (originally referred to as The Batman, and occasionally as The Bat-Man), is a fictional character and superhero who first appeared in Detective Comics #27 in May 1939. ... In episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books and comic strips a story arc is an extended or continuing storyline. ... The current DC Comics logo, adopted in May 2005. ... 1993 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ...

Plot

In the storyline, a new supervillain named Bane defeated Batman (Bruce Wayne), breaking Batman's back. Batman was forced to use Azrael as a stand-in, but Azrael was mentally unstable and ill-suited to the task, becoming increasingly violent. Eventually, Bruce Wayne returned and defeated Azrael to re-assume the mantle of the bat. Banes first appearance was Batman: Vengeance of Bane #1. ... Azrael (Jean-Paul Valley) is a fictional character from DC Comics. ...

Prelude

The prelude of KnightSaga consisted of the introduction of two characters key to the KnightSaga storyline:

• Azrael, introduced in Batman: The Sword of Azrael (October 1992) by Denny O'Neil and Joe Quesada
• Bane, introduced in Batman: Vengeance of Bane (January 1993) by Chuck Dixon and Graham Nolan

Azrael (Jean-Paul Valley) is a fictional character from DC Comics. ... 1992 is a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Dennis ONeil (A.K.A. Denny ONeil) is a comic book writer and editor, principally for Marvel Comics and DC Comics in the 1970s. ... Joe Quesada (born 1962 in New York City), colloquially known as Joey Q, started out as an artist in the early 1990s, working on books such as X-Factor. ... Banes first appearance was Batman: Vengeance of Bane #1. ... 1993 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Chuck Dixon is a comic book writer, perhaps best-known for long runs on Batman titles in the 1990s. ...

KnightFall

In KnightFall, Bane freed the prisoners of Arkham Asylum. Batman thus found himself facing all the homicidal lunatics of Gotham City at the same time. Driven to exhaustion, Bane was then able to enter Wayne Manor and defeat Batman in single combat, breaking Batman's back in Batman #497 (July 1993), entitled "The Broken Bat", by Doug Moench and Jim Aparo. Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane is a fictional mental hospital near Gotham City in the DC Universe, where many of Batmans foes (most famously the Joker) wind up after they are captured. ... 1993 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Doug Moench, born February 23, 1948 in Chicago, Illinois, is a comic book writer. ... James N. Jim Aparo is a comic book artist best known for his work on various Batman stories for DC Comics. ...

KnightQuest

KnightQuest is divided into two storylines.

KnightQuest: The Crusade

Jean-Paul as Batman. Cover to Detective Comics #667. Art by Kelley Jones.

KnightQuest: The Crusade follows the story of Jean-Paul Valley, who assumed the mantle of the bat. He enjoyed the initial success of defeating Bane. However, Jean-Paul Valley became increasingly mentally unbalanced. He drove away Robin and repeatedly redesigned his costume, adding more gadgets and more lethal weapons. His questionable actions culminated in allowing the serial killer Abattoir to die. Since Abattoir was holding an innocent man inside a secret, hidden torture chamber at an unknown location, Valley's action condemned that prisoner to death. A classic image of Batman and Robin reinterpreted by painter Alex Ross. ... A gadget is a device that has a useful specific purpose and function. ... Serial killers are individuals who have a history of multiple slayings of victims who were usually unknown to them beforehand. ...

KnightQuest: The Search

KnightQuest: The Search follows Bruce Wayne's search for two kidnapped people, Jack Drake (the father of Tim Drake, the current incarnation of Robin) and Shondra Kinsolving, a medical doctor who was treating Bruce Wayne with whom Wayne had fallen in love. Wayne was able to find Kinsolving. She had been kidnapped by Benedict Asp, who wanted to use her special power to kill people at a distance with but a thought. When Bruce Wayne found her, she used her special power to heal him of his broken spine. However, the drugs forced onto her by Asp had reduced her mind to that of a child, and Wayne had to put her into a mental institution. The word physician should not be confused with physicist, which means a scientist in the area of physics. ... A superpower is a state with the ability to influence events or project power on a global scale. ... A psychiatric hospital (also called a mental hospital or asylum) is a hospital specializing in the treatment of persons with mental illness. ...

KnightsEnd

In KnightsEnd, Bruce Wayne learned of how poorly Jean-Paul Valley had done Batman's job. However, Valley was unwilling to give up the mantle of the bat. Wayne was also out-of-shape and not prepared to be Batman. So Wayne went to the Lady Shiva and asked her to train him. She did, sending many assassins against him, all of whom he defeated. Lady Shiva is a fictional character created by DC Comics. ... Jack Ruby murdered the assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, in a very public manner. ...

Bruce Wayne then reassumed the mantle of the bat and fought with Valley. KnightsEnd (and the entire KnightSaga) ended with Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #63 (August 1994), entitled "Climax", by Denny O'Neil and Barry Kitson, in which Wayne confronted Valley in the Batcave and forced Valley to give up the mantle of the bat. Dennis ONeil (A.K.A. Denny ONeil) is a comic book writer and editor, principally for Marvel Comics and DC Comics in the 1970s. ... In fiction, the Batcave is the personal headquarters of DC Comics superhero Batman, situated underneath his residence, Wayne Manor. ...

After KnightSaga

KnightSaga paved the way for the Prodigal storyline, in which Dick Grayson (Nightwing and a former Robin), who had been angry with Bruce Wayne for choosing Valley over him to be Batman, was given the chance to be Batman. A classic image of Batman and Robin reinterpretted by painter Alex Ross. ... A classic image of Batman and Robin reinterpretted by painter Alex Ross. ... A classic image of Batman and Robin reinterpreted by painter Alex Ross. ...

Influence and impact

KnightSaga took place roughly about the same time as the death of Superman. The two storylines thus involved DC Comics two most prominent characters in what were regarded by some as daring, bold stories and by others as stunts designed to do no more than sell extra comics through sensationalism. The cover of Superman #75 The Death of Superman is the title of the comic book issue Superman #75, and the catalyst for DC Comics major universe crossover event of 1993 with the umbrella title The Death and Life of Superman, becoming a major media event. ... The current DC Comics logo, adopted in May 2005. ... Sensationalism is a manner of being extremely controversial, loud, attention-grabbing, or otherwise sensationalistic. ...

KnightSaga was, in terms of the number of titles and issues it encompassed and the duration of the storyline, by far the most ambitious Batman crossover ever at the time it was published. Its success made it possible for other extremely large Batman crossovers, such as No Man's Land, to later be published. A fictional crossover occurs when otherwise separated fictional characters, stories, settings, universes, or media meet and interact with each other. ... A earthquake destroyed Gotham city, and the U.S. government rather than fix it up, declared it a No mans land and cut it off from the rest of the world. ...