Das-Hat here with another look at Bane as he fits into, what I like to call the "Nolan Mythos" of Batman. I have to say that as a concluding villain Bane is perfect.

 

Hey! Don't scroll down to the punch line I mean it.

 

Nolan apparently has a good understanding of not just Bane but of just about all the major villains in the Batman universe and exactly how they should fit into this "in the real world" style he has going.

 

Ras Al Ghul made sense as the first villain as even in the comics he was introduced as having this sort of mentorship role with Bruce. He appreciated and respected Bruce's abilities of the mind over his martial prowess. This makes sense with regards to Nolan's portrayal of the master who trains Bruce while he respects his will power and desire for revenge. Ras was a villain that has always tested Bruce's mind and more importantly his moral center. This is the grandfather of Bruce's son and has long desired (in the comics) that Bruce be his replacement as the head of the Demon. He has pushed him to step over the line time and time again and we saw this in Batman Begins.

 

While the Joker is arguibly the most recognizable of Batman's various villains he doesn't make sense as the penultimate villain of the franchise. While Heath Ledger's performance was wonderful the Joker is not the sort of character you can make a conclusion out of. The Joker has ever been an agent of Hedonism. For those of you who didn't take Philosophy 101 Hedonism is the lifestyle where your actions are made soley to increase the level of pleasure you feel. The Joker is an experiential Hedonist, meaning whatever he does he does to magnify the level of any emotional state a situation puts him in; in the comics. Nolan presented him as a very refined villain who revels in being what he is and demends the other villains do the same. He really isn't the agent of chaos he claims to be but he doesn't have a lofty enough goal, nor does he push Batman in any unique way. If you took a serial killer and put him in the Joker's shoes you'd have much the same result. Seriously, watch a few episodes of Criminal Minds, particularly the season finales when Gideon was still there, and broaden the resources that those killers have, the smart ones could easily cause the same sort of chaos. The Joker's underpinning character doesn't test Batman beyond the fact that he can't be intimidated. But then again, neither was Ras.

 

Bane, in the comics, is a very complex character. As I mentioned in the earlier article about the first six minutes of The Dark Knight Rises , Bane is a very intelligent villain who plans several steps ahead keeping his oposition dancing to his tune. Add to this his physical prowess and you are left with a character who will push Batman's morality, his intelligence, and his martial skills to their extremes. Let me give you a different example, credit goes to Linkara for pointing this out on Atop the Fourth Wall. Venom is an excellent villain in his core concept. He is stronger than Parker, has all of his abilities, can fool his Spider Sense and knows his secret identity. If you remember the early 90's series, Eddie Brock spent much of his arc meeting with Mary Jane and Aunt May when Peter wasn't around, the message being clear. "I know who you hold dear, I can get to them, and there is absolutely nothing you can do to stop me." Various writers ruined this set up by showing him to be this cannibalistic monster. Bane's story is much the same. He is a genious on par with the Batman of the comics with the martial training and strength to best Batman in combat. He remains the only villain to ever have lastingly defeated Batman. This is what a concluding villain should be.

 

From all the news that has been going around since the sneak peak it sounds like Bane is being made out into a sort of terrorist leader but his menace in his ability to both outhink and outfight the Dark Knight hasn't been reduced making him the perfect high point to end the series on.