5 DC Heroes With No Kill Rules as Strict as Batman’s (And #1 Is Even Stricter)

Batman is famous, and to many, infamous, for his refusal to kill his enemies. Every fan has their own interpretation of why that is. Some cite “Under the Red Hood,” claiming that Batman avoids killing his foes because it would send him down a dark path he could not return from. Others will point to the numerous times Batman reiterates that he believes that every life is worth saving, even those that see no value in it. At the end of the day, whichever reasoning you subscribe to, Batman will not kill. If Batman does kill, then he simply isn’t Batman. 

Generally, fans know and appreciate this aspect, but a very vocal section of fans is more than fed up with the Dark Knight’s refusal to kill. Spend two minutes in any online space discussing heroes, and you’re sure to find at least one person shouting that Batman’s refusal to kill his villains (only naming the Joker) makes him responsible for every life taken by their hands. Yet these arguments never acknowledge that Batman is far from the only hero who refuses to kill. In fact, not killing is the default for superheroes. Literally ninety percent or more of DC’s heroes refuse to kill, and today, we’re bringing them into this argument by looking at five heroes whose dedication to life is just as strong as Batman’s.

5) Wonder Woman

Wonder Woman might seem like a strange inclusion on this list at first. One of her best-known pages is her killing Maxwell Lord to save Superman. She was raised by a group of the greatest warriors in the DC Universe, learning to use any weapon as confidently as her hands. Yet, those are only surface-level observations that are disproven by Wonder Woman every single day. Killing Maxwell Lord was supposed to be an out-of-character moment that doesn’t even make sense, but the Trinity needed a reason to be angry at each other for Infinite Crisis to work.

Wonder Woman’s defining trait has always been and will always be her compassion. She values life in all forms, and when she sees someone committing crimes, her first thought is how to help this person heal from the pain that drives them to do this. Back in the day, she even ran a special rehabilitation island meant to teach people how to let go of their anger and return to society, being the most ethical prison in the world. She’s not an exception either. The Amazons live by a code of compassion that goes: don’t kill if you can wound, don’t wound if you can subdue, don’t subdue if you can pacify, and don’t raise your hand until you’ve extended it. To Diana, life is always to be protected.

4) Martian Manhunter

J’onn J’onzz is an alien refugee whose entire planet was burned to the ground around him, leaving him one of the last Martians in the universe. After landing on Earth, he dedicated himself to doing whatever good he could, but even when on his home planet, he was a staunch champion of peace and virtue. He’s worked tirelessly to make his adopted planet a better place, and in doing so, has become the beating heart of the Justice League. He’s the calm, controlled leader with seemingly unending compassion, which shows in everything he does.

Martian Manhunter refuses to take lives just as much as any other major hero, while also ensuring that villains cannot become problems in the future. One of the biggest showcases of this methodology came in JLA #4, when he used his vast psychic powers to convince an entire battalion of White Martians that they were ordinary humans. This was his solution to avoiding conflict on all fronts, and while it wasn’t perfect, it showed how far he was willing to go to preserve every life. 

3) Superman

Superman, of course, seems like an obvious character to join this list, but you’d be surprised by how many people seem to think that the Man of Steel is liable to take a life when he needs to. I blame Injustice and the evil Superman crazy it spawned for that one. These fans tend to say that Superman doesn’t truly have a rule against killing, but rather a preference. He would kill if he absolutely had to, but he’s powerful enough to save the day without needing to resort to killing. This is, of course, a misreading of Superman’s character, as there is no length he won’t go to avoid killing.

Superman cares for every life equally and is more than willing to push past every limit until he finds a way to save everyone. My favorite example of this comes from Action Comics #1038, when Mongul trapped a depowered Clark in his slave pits. Midnighter appeared with a plan to destroy Warworld, but Superman refused to leave while there was even a single slave left trapped here. Midnighter asked why Superman valued their lives more than his teammates’, but he said that he didn’t value the slaves more, and he didn’t value them less. Superman sees the value in all life, and he will not stop until every life is saved.

2) Captain Marvel

Billy Batson was chosen as the champion of the Wizard Shazam because of his pure heart. He’s one of the kindest, most innocent characters in all of DC, which has been proven multiple times. The demon lord Neron would pay practically any sum to get his hands on Billy’s soul, after all. Even when he takes on the wisdom of Solomon, Billy never wavers from his goal of making sure that everyone is saved. In a way, he’s almost like a living fragment of the Silver Age, brimming with infinite optimism and undying belief that things will work out in the end.

The fact of the matter is that, despite all his power and wisdom, Billy is still a kid. He wants to believe that the world is a good place, and even if it’s not, that he can make it one. He understands that there are things he won’t know until he’s older, but even so, he’s dedicated himself to fighting for everyone, and in doing so, he brings out that childhood innocence in everyone around him. No kid with superpowers would want to hurt or kill. Instead, Billy follows what he believes is right.

1) Batgirl (Cassandra Cain)

If there has to be one character who values life and refuses to kill even more than Batman, it only fits that it would be his daughter. Cassandra Cain was raised to be the world’s greatest assassin, only taught body language and born from a union that started with David Cain murdering Lady Shiva’s sister to “set her free.” When she was eight, she killed her first target, but thanks to her understanding of how the body works, the dying man screamed every excruciating detail about what it felt like to die. The young girl who thought it was just a game fled, vowing to never take a life again.

Nobody understands the pain of death, or the value of life, more than Cass. She fights harder than anyone else to protect everyone, such as when she ran head-on through gunfire because dodging meant another crook dying in Batgirl (2000) #6. Like Wonder Woman, her assassin heritage means that people love to push her and flirt with the idea of killing, such as when Deathstroke brainwashed her to be his assassin, but Cass has always proven that she believes in the Bat, even more than she believes in Bruce. She wants to save everyone, and will fight any power to save every life. 

What heroes do you love for their refusal to kill? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts on the ComicBook Forum!