WARNING: Contains Potential Spoilers for Batman #149!

DC can officially claim they have killed off Bruce Wayne with the latest release of Zdarsky’s Batman run. However, Bruce’s death comes with a major twist that no fan saw coming and was surprisingly peaceful rather than him going out in a blaze of glory. Moreover, the end of Bruce Wayne has also addressed a major criticism of Zdarsky’s run.

Chip Zdarsky, Steve Lieber, Michele Bandini, and Nick Filardi’s Batman #149 served as an epic epilogue to Zdarsky’s lengthy Zur-En-Arrh/Failsafe storyline, where Batman’s alternate personality inhabited the body of Failsafe in order to try to take over as the ‘new’ Batman.

However, instead of focusing on Zur, this issue shifts to the ‘Robin of Zur-En-Arrh,’ a young clone of Bruce bearing a striking resemblance to Damian Wayne. Initially dubbed the “Evil Robin” due to his allegiance to Zur-En-Arrh, the epilogue sheds a different light on this new character—a tragic and eye-opening perspective that culminates in the death of ‘Bruce Wayne.’

Zur-En-Arrh’s Clone of Batman Gives Bruce Wayne a Beautifully Peaceful Death in the Gardens of Wayne Manor

After successfully defeating Failsafe, Batman’s top priority shifts to locating and apprehending the Robin of Zur-En-Arrh. However, instead of the typical Gotham Rogue roundup, he decides to bring the young Bruce Wayne back to his brownstone house. It is there, after conducting various tests, that he discovers Zur-En-Arrh accelerated the clone’s aging process without implementing any safeguards to halt it. Despite Damian’s concerns about the clone, Bruce affirms he sees the clone as Bruce Wayne and pledges to do everything possible to mitigate the younger Bruce’s rapid aging.

Despite Batman’s best efforts to halt his clone’s aging, the younger Bruce rapidly progresses from adolescence to adulthood and eventually into old age. Desperate to save his clone, Batman calls upon Mister Terrific, one of the DC Universe’s smartest characters with access to cutting-edge equipment. Despite their combined efforts, no solution is found, and it becomes clear the clone’s time is running out. In his final moments, the elderly clone asks Batman to take them home to Wayne Manor. It is there that the clone peacefully passes away, marking the death of Bruce Wayne.

Goodbye, Robot Hand, and Hello, Clone Hand: The Death of Bruce Wayne Has Officially Given Batman His Human Hand Back

Despite the clone’s death being a tragic moment for Bruce, who had grown deeply invested in its survival, Batman ultimately benefited. Knowing his end was near from the start, the younger Bruce voluntarily severs his hand upon reaching the true Bruce’s age. He does this to restore the Dark Knight’s own hand, which had been replaced by a robotic hand Batman acquired after Ghost-Breaker severed it. Zdarsky’s decision to give Batman a robotic hand was disliked by many fans. Therefore, the clone’s sacrifice addresses one of the most significant recent criticisms surrounding Batman, returning him to his fully human self.

Batman #149 is available now from DC Comics!