Batman is the greatest vigilante on the planet, but he's also a very principled person and has rules for his war on crime. However, DC has published many Batman stories where the Dark Knight becomes rather lax about the laws he usually lives by. These instances rarely take place in the mainstream continuity, but sometimes even Batman everyone knows and loves crosses the line.
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Batman's rigid code of conduct has defined him as much as his costume, his gadgets, or his sidekicks. Whenever he breaks his own rules, it always has an effect on him. Some rules are meant to be broken, but doing so never spells anything good for the Dark Knight.
10 Batman Turns Gotham Into A Police State in Kingdom Come
Kingdom Come, by writer Mark Waid and artist Alex Ross, showed the DC Universe of the future. Many heroes from the older generation had quit, but Batman's mission wasn't over. While his body was broken, the Batman still owned the night in Gotham with the help of his Batbots.
Batman had gone about striking fear into the hearts of criminals, but everyone in Gotham feared him now. In the past, Batman focused on helping the people of the city, not terrorizing them. The return of Superman helped Batman see the error of his ways. Afterward, he became more like the Batman of old, hatching a plan that helped save the day.
9 Batman Brutalized Mr. Freeze Because Of Problems In His Personal Life
Batman uses violence when he needs to, but he works hard to stay in control, never wanting to take things too far. Batman: Cold Days, by writer Tom King and artist Lee Weeks, took place after Catwoman left Batman at the altar. The Dark Knight was in a bad place and he took it out on Mr. Freeze.
Batman could be brutal, but only when he needed to be. He's only human, but Batman could usually control himself, especially with someone like Freeze. This time, he let his personal business impede his job as Batman and later regretted it.
8 Batman Has Killed Ra's Al Ghul Several Times
Batman and Ra's al Ghul have clashed many times. The Demon's Head respects Batman like few other men in the world and believes he's as close to perfect as anyone can get. He's challenged the Dark Knight to combat several times, most often with swords. During these battles, Batman has been forced to kill al Ghul.
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Knowing that Ra's al Ghul never stays dead may by the only reason Batman goes through with killing him. The Lazarus pits can resurrect Ra's, so killing him is a temporary measure. In a short time, the Demon's Head will wake up and resume the fight.
7 Batman Killed The Joker In JLA: The Nail
DC's has great stories from around the Multiverse, with JLA: The Nail, by writer/artist Alan Davis, standing head and shoulders above many of them. During the story, Batman broke his no kill rule. The Joker, armed with powerful Kryptonian weaponry, had butchered Robin and Batgirl right in front of Batman.
Catwoman helped Batman get free, and he attacked the Joker with abandon. With his weapons disabled by Catwoman's attack, Joker was no match for Batman. The Dark Knight killed the Clown Prince of Crime with everyone watching, which helped the League's secret enemy vilify the heroes even more.
6 Batman And Joker Dueled To The Death In Batman: Endgame
Scott Snyder's Batman stories are beloved by fans, and a notable favorite is Batman: Endgame, with art by Greg Capullo. The Joker returned to Gotham, baiting Batman with a new secret. The two battled it out across the city before Joker tracked Batman to the Batcave. Batman and Joker engaged in a climactic final battle, both of them out for blood.
The battle ended with Batman and the Joker dead, with the Batcave falling down around them. Luckily for the two of them, a river of Dionesium flowed under the Batcave, and both were resurrected without their memories. While Batman didn't kill Joker outright, he made sure the villain died just like he did.
5 Batman Uses A Gun In Final Crisis
Batman is known for planning for the impossible, but he got lucky in Final Crisis, by writer Grant Morrison and artists J. G. Jones, Carlos Pacheco, and Doug Mahnke. He found the Radion bullet Darkseid used to shoot his son Orion from the future. Batman used the bullet to wound the God of Evil, poisoning him with the god-killing element.
However, Batman uses a gun to do it, breaking one of his most fundamental rules. While Batman's aversion to guns depends on the era of the character, modern Batman refuses to use them. Darkseid proved a great enough threat for Batman to forget his rules, but the Dark Knight paid for it when the lord of Apokolips used the Omega Sanction on him.
4 Batman Burned Thugs To Death In All-Star Batman And Robin
All-Star Batman And Robin is the ultimate guilty pleasure comic. Written by Frank Miller with art by Jim Lee, the story often felt like a parody of Batman. It's safe to say that this version of the Dark Knight didn't have all the rules the mainline one did, but that was never established.
Jarring readers, Batman set a bunch of thugs on fire and got intimate with Black Canary in front of the pyre. All-Star Batman And Robin had several moments like that, but that action felt way out of left field for Batman.
3 Batman Became A Vampire To Fight Fire With Fire
Batman can be very scary, but there are few Batmen as fearsome as the one from Batman: Red Rain, by writer Doug Moench and artist Kelley Jones. When Dracula came to Gotham, Batman needed to get some kind of edge. He resisted it for a while but finally allowed himself to become a vampire.
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Batman fought Dracula on the vampire lord's own terms and defeated him. He fought off the thirst for blood, but eventually lost control. Batman kept killing, becoming as terrifying as any of his foes. After regaining control, Batman walked out into the sun, ending his reign of terror.
2 The Batman Who Laughs Killed The Joker And Paid For It
The Batman Who Laughs became a grave threat, almost destroying the Multiverse. All of that stemmed from Batman breaking his own rules. On his own Earth in the Dark Multiverse, he battled the Joker and killed him, falling right into the Joker's trap.
Killing the Clown Prince of Crime infected Batman with a Joker toxin and transformed him into the Batman Who Laughs. Working with Barbatos, he escaped the fate of the other Dark Knights. He ended up terrorizing the world, both on his own and with Perpetua.
1 Batman Became Omega In Batman: The Last Knight On Earth
Batman: The Last Knight On Earth is an amazing alternate future Batman story. Written by Scott Snyder with art by Greg Capullo, it pitted Batman against Omega. Omega had taken control of the villains of the world, but he had a secret.
Omega wasn't a new figure who took over the villain world. He was the original Batman, having become a killer. Omega fell to evil and broke all of Batman's rule, going too far and becoming everything he had fought against. The Batman who defeated him was a clone, one who stayed true to Batman's original ideals.
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