Batman/Characters/Rogues Gallery: Difference between revisions

[[Batman]] has built up one of the biggest and most popular [[Rogues Gallery|Rogues Galleries]] in the history of all media. Here are his deadliest and most recurring foes:

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== [[The Joker]] / Red Hood I ==

The Joker is one of the most famous supervillains in the history of comic books and a character who is equally as famous as his archnemesis. In sharp contrast to Batman, The Joker's skin tone is chalk white, his hair a bright green, and his costume consists of a bright purple tuxedo. The trait that truly connects these two personalities, while still isolating them, is the fact that Joker is ''a murderous sociopath''.

 

 

''And he's far from done.''

 

 

Why doesn't he get the chair? That's what many of us are asking. In-universe, however, it seems to be due to the courts pronouncing him insane and whisking him off to [[Bedlam House|Arkham]] [[Cardboard Prison|Asylum]].

 

 

 

As for his origin... well, no matter who tells it, it almost always involves him falling into a giant vat of acid (or something green). Most accept Alan Moore's portrayal of Joker as an unsuccessful comedian with a pregnant wife prior to the transformation, but as Joker said himself in that very story: "Sometimes I remember it one way, sometimes the other! If I'm going to have a past, I prefer it to be multiple choice!"

[[File:harley.jpg|frame]]

 

 

Though it was ''[[Batman: The Animated Series|Batman the Animated Series]]'' that introduced her (originally as just the Joker's henchgirl), Harley became popular enough to be included in the comics as well, and it was a comic (later adopted into a TV episode) that first told her origin. Perhaps even crazier than the Joker himself, you can count on Harley to be right alongside her "puddin'", mindlessly loyal to him, but cleverly lethal.

Not even Harley can stand the Joker's endless tirades of abuse and madcap lifestyle, however, and when she's in her downtime, she often finds consolation in Poison Ivy, whom she has [[Les Yay|a deep friendship with]].

 

* [[All Girls Want Bad Boys]]

* [[Ax Crazy]]: Not as concentrated on single, gruesome killings as her puddin', but much more enthusiastic towards large-scale property damage.

* [[Bunny Ears Lawyer|Bunny Ears Psychiatrist]]: Naturally. While the writers flip flop on whether she skirted her way through school or not, every once in a while she does show she's still a pretty skilled psychoanalyst despite the crazy.

* [[Canon Immigrant]]

* [[Critical Psychoanalysis Failure]]: Granted, Joker does this ''a lot'', but none of his other doctors wound up ''in love with him''.

** She once wrote up a report on the Joker claiming that he was perfectly sane, but simply faking it to avoid the death penalty, and because he was enjoying his own maniacal behavior. This arguably subverts this trope, since [[Depending on the Writer]] this is ''exactly'' what [[The Joker]] is doing, meaning she is the first one to crack him (of course, she probably thinks [[Mad Love|this makes him a genius]]).

* [[Dumb Blonde]]: She's ''really'' psychopathic, but still a ditzy, kinda sweet girl. Like [[Death Note|Misa-Misa]].

{{quote|'''Harley:''' Hah! And here you thought I was just another bubble-headed, blonde bimbo! Well, the joke's on you; I'm not even a real blonde!}}

* [[Glass Cannon]]: In all continuities. Even though she definitely can fight, she isn't very resistant and is often easily knocked-out when things get physical.

* [[Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain]]: Often depicted as such but she still has some bouts of ''true'' efficiency and is in fact the villain who got the closest to actually killing Batman. But well, [[Mad Love]] you know...

* [[Shrinking Violet]]: She was very shy and reserved before meeting The Joker. Needless to say, that's changed quite a bit.

* [[Spell My Name with an "S"]]: The DVD captions for ''Mad Love'' in Volume Four of ''Batman: The Animated Series'' spell her real name as "Harlene Quinzelle".

* [[Stating the Simple Solution]]: Suggested [[Just Shoot Him|just shooting Batman]] to Joker, who proceeds to blow up on her (then later use this idea).

* [[Steven Ulysses Perhero]]: C'mon, Harleen Quinzel? ''[[Batman: The Animated Series|Batman the Animated Series]]'' [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshades]] it by having Joker point it out in the episode showing her origin, and her dryly responding [[Never Heard That One Before|that she's heard it before]]. This conversation was pretty much replicated in ''[[Batman: Arkham Asylum]]'' in one of her interview tapes.

* [[Unholy Matrimony]]: She and Mr J. are one textbook example.

* [[Villainous Harlequin]]

* [[Word of Gay]]: With Ivy. It isn't known if her relationship with The Joker means she is bi or has a case of [[Single-Target Sexuality]].

** Though she did kiss Batman at the end of Harley's Holiday, though it's still hard to tell.

 

== Two-Face ==

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Harvey Dent}}

 

 

Much like Jim Gordon, Harvey Dent was one of the few honest law enforcers in Gotham. Young and handsome, he was nicknamed "Apollo" by the press, but beneath his good looks was hidden an unstable mind. The details vary from origin to origin, but he eventually had half his face doused in acid, turning the left half of his face into a nightmarish, demonic monstrosity.

Note that in spite of his stature, Two-Face never made an appearance on the [[Batman (TV series)|sixties show]] (likely because that he wouldn't fit into their campy approach; however, Joel Schumacher proved them wrong in a big way). FALSE Face did, but that's a different character altogether.

 

* [[Amoral Attorney]]: Averted; he was an incredibly honest and hardworking D.A. before the transformation.

* [[Anti-Hero]]: There are moments when he seems to be gunning for the title "The DCU's [[The Punisher|Punisher]]". It doesn't last.

* [[Anti-Villain]]: Sometimes, [[Depending on the Writer]]. Type I, II and/or III, [[Depending on the Writer]] as well.

* [[Villainous Breakdown]]: Often.

* [[What Could Have Been]]: There were indeed plans to include him on the Adam West series; there, he would have been a reporter whose face was scarred by an exploding TV - and played by [[Clint Eastwood]].

 

== The Riddler ==

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Edward Nigma / Eddie Nashton}}

 

 

Thanks to the unforgettable [[Batman (TV series)|sixties show]] (where he essentially replaced the Joker as Batman's lead villain), the Riddler is one of the "big four" classic Bat-Rogues (alongside the Joker, Catwoman and the Penguin). Like most of the Bat-Rogues, the Riddler is victim to a mental disorder - in his case, an Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder that subconsciously forces him to leave clues in the form of riddles at the scenes of his crimes. Flashes into his past have shown an abusive father that would beat him every time he lied and an obsession with riddles, puzzles, and word games, all of which probably didn't help his descent into a criminal.

The Riddler is best known for his many (often silly) riddles that confound all but the Dynamic Duo, as well as his over-the-top deathtraps. He is, however, incredibly intelligent, yet considers his battles of wits with Batman to be a game - one in which he heavily respects his opponent.

 

* [[Affably Evil]]: When he's in a good mood.

* [[Ascended Extra]]: A rather minor villain until his first appearance on the sixties show. A combination of the series' popularity and Frank Gorshin's memorable performance saw Riddler become far more prominent in the comics.

* [[Attention Whore]]: His justification for becoming The Riddler, as shown in ''Detective Comics Annual'' #8:

{{quote|'''"It wasn't the money I wanted. It wasn't the action I sought. I just liked the attention."'''}}

* [[Butt Monkey]]: Jeph Loeb's ''[[The Long Halloween]]'' and ''Dark Victory'' both portray him as this. {{spoiler|''Catwoman: When in Rome'' and ''Hush'' (both written by Loeb as well) avert this, however}}.

** Although, {{spoiler|the aftermath of ''Hush'' shown him getting beaten up by pretty much everyone he used before, as stated in the description above.}}

* [[Not-So-Harmless Villain]]: As ''Hush'' proved.

** "Dark Knight, Dark City" shows that if Riddler ever stepped up his game, he would completely ''own'' Batman.

* [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]: {{spoiler|During ''Catwoman: When in Rome''.}}

* [[Private Detective]]: A slightly crooked one, but still legit as of now.

* [[Psychotic Smirk]]: A trademark of his.

* [[Screw This, I'm Outta Here]]: His reaction to the earthquake that created ''No Man's Land'' arc. Note that he's the ''only'' Arkhamite to even consider making a break for it. Which he does.

** In ''[[Batman: Arkham Asylum]]'', he does the same. He doesn't seem very concerned with escaping from [[Batman: Arkham City|Arkham City]], though.

* [[Spell My Name with an "S"|Spell My Surname With An S]]: Is it "Nigma" with an "I" or "Nygma" with a "Y"?

* [[Spirited Competitor]]

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Victor Fries}}

 

 

Victor Fries was once a great scientist, who was accidentally exposed to some chemicals and was forever changed. While this was beneficial to the Flash, it ruined Fries' body physiology and he cannot survive for very long in high temperatures (even being in room temperature would eventually kill him). Being forced to create a suit to keep him cool, Fries eventually turned to crime, becoming the sinister Mr. Freeze.

In recent history, Freeze managed to revive his wife with one of Ra's Al-Ghul's Lazarus Pits in exchange for building a machine to capture Cassandra Cain. However, due to Nora being dead for so long, she gains superpowers from the pit. She is pissed off at her husband and left him becoming the villain Lazara. [[The Woobie|Poor, poor Victor]].

 

* [[Anti-Villain]]: Type I or II.

* [[Bald of Evil]]: The transformation process apparently caused all his hair to fall out.

* [[Freak Lab Accident]]: Something that ''every'' version of him has in common.

* [[Freak-Out]]

* [[Harmless Freezing]]: Sometimes. Most of the time, he ''does'' kill whoever he freezes.

* [[Human Popsicle]]: Did his to his wife. He's kind of a walking, talking, killing one himself.

* [[Lost in Imitation]]: With the exception of the one in [[Batman (TV series)|the Adam West show]], every version of Freeze draws from the [[DCAU]] one. Of course, this is partially because the ''comics themselves'' [[Canon Immigrant|adopted the DCAU version as his official backstory.]]

** The one in ''[[The Batman]]'' is actually much closer to the original version, lacking a [[Morality Pet]] wife... which led to a lot of nerd rage about him [[Ruined FOREVER|ruining]] the good name of the "real" Mr. Freeze.

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Jonathan Crane}}

 

 

Much like Mr. Freeze, and to some extent, the Riddler, the Scarecrow was a one-shot character in the comics, revived decades later to become a major part of the Bat-Rogues. Thin and bookish, he was (predictably) bullied by kids at school. As a result, he became even more withdrawn and angry at the world, culminating in him bringing a gun to the high school senior prom and attacking [[Jerk Jock]] Bo Griggs and his [[Alpha Bitch]] girlfriend Sherry Squires (who had rejected Crane's affections), killing the latter.

In recent times, Crane has had a bit of a [[Freak-Out]] over the fact that he is pretty much nothing without his toxin. As a result, he abandons use of it (almost) entirely and instead relies on his expertise with the human mind in his criminal activities, beginning by [[Hannibal Lecture|driving two prison inmates to suicide with words alone]].

 

* [[Abusive Parents|Abusive Grandmother]]

* [[Adaptational Attractiveness]]: In ''[[The Dark Knight Saga|Batman Begins]]'' and ''[[The Dark Knight Saga|The Dark Knight]]'' he is played by [[Cillian Murphy]], who is considerable more attractive (to most) than his geekier comic book likeness.

== Bane ==

 

 

You'll note that most of the entries on this page are rather old characters. One of the more recent Bat-Villains to make "the leap" to a top-tier threat was Bane, created in the 1990s for a specific purpose: to enable the writers to get Bruce Wayne out of the Bat-costume and replace him with a character intended to turn the readers against [[Nineties Anti-Hero]] Azrael, and [[Nineties Anti-Hero|Nineties Anti Heroes]] in general. The gambit worked spectacularly well.

To say Bane had a bad life is putting it mildly; he was essentially raised in a Central American prison, sentenced there for life ''while still in the womb'' for a crime committed by his father. However, once he managed to be old enough to defend himself, he thrived, and was selected for an experimentation program where he was made more durable (via the implantation of subcutaneous armor) and, more importantly, had a delivery system for a super steroid implanted in his body. While not quite superhuman in strength, when on the drugs he was very close, and combined with his genius-level intellect represented a foe unlike any Batman had faced to that point: one arguably as cunning as he was, but with far more physical prowess. After wearing Batman down, Bane eventually caught up to him and shattered his spine. Although eventually defeated by AzBats, that one storyline gave the character enough credibility that he instantly shot up to be one of the top Bat-Villains, and merited appearances on ''[[Batman: The Animated Series|Batman the Animated Series]]'', ''[[Batman Beyond]]'', and in the disastrous ''[[Batman (film)|Batman & Robin]]'' movie as a result. The final installment of ''[[The Dark Knight Saga]]'' will feature him.

 

 

* [[Badass Spaniard]]

* [[Batman Gambit]]: By releasing pretty much every inmate in Arkham from the Joker to Mr. Zsasz, he (successfully) wore Batman down enough to easily crack the guy's spine.

* [[Dangerously Genre Savvy]]: Why arrange an elaborate game of cat and mouse when you can have others do all the work and then finish the job like a piece of cake?

* [[Destination Defenestration]]: Used hilariously in one of the ''Secret Six'' books.

* [[Genius Bruiser]]

* [[Poirot Speak]]: While Bane often drops spanish words into his speech in the various adaptations he appears in, he's almost always written with perfect english in the comics. If you only know him from there and don't know his origin, you might not even realize that he's supposed to be Latin-American.

* [[Recycled in Space]]/[[This Is Your Premise on Drugs]]: Bane's was created as [[Doc Savage]] except <small>EVIL AND ON STEROIDS!</small>

* [[Shadow Archetype]]: When he first appeared, the impression was given that he was comparable to Batman in terms of intellect and physical prowess; essentially, Batman if he had grown up hated, abused, and imprisoned rather than loved, privileged, and free.

* [[Super Serum]]

* [[Super Strength]]

== Professor Hugo Strange ==

 

 

 

[[What Happened to the Mouse?|If he were used more.]]

 

 

One of the more cerebral Bat rogues, Strange is nonetheless preoccupied with physical as well as mental perfection. He regards Batman as the embodiment of both, and at times his obsession reaches the point where he wants to 'be'' Batman, however he is just as often trying to create his own giant bruisers, and he is interested in pushing his own limits.

 

* [[Arch Enemy]]: In the early years, he had arguably a better claim to being this than [[The Joker]], who was [[Put on a Bus]] shortly after his debut since the writers didn't want Batman to look impotent by letting the clown rack up a [[Irony|ridiculously high body count]]. Strange was a more frequent villain, and predated him.

** In ''[[The Batman]]'', he actually arguably ''does'' fit this trope better than that show's version of the Joker (who is still an A-list villian, but doesn't seem as menacing as the show's Strange.)

* [[Awesome By Analysis]]

* [[Badass Bookworm]]: Inverted. He's a short guy but his obsession with bodybuilding and physical perfection means he is all muscle. The inversion is that he almost never actually ''uses'' them; its largely for show.

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Pamela Isley}}

 

 

Introduced (not surprisingly) in the [[Silver Age|sci-fi obsessed]] sixties, Poison Ivy is one of the few Bat-Rogues with actual powers. In her case, powers over all manner of flora. In addition, she's also got a special immunity towards all illnesses and toxins (sometimes naturally born with; sometimes not), and that's just as well, because she's often portrayed with the ability to naturally produce both lethal and non-lethal toxins from her body. This stems from her being seduced by her senior professor, Dr. Jason Woodrue, and used as a guinea pig for his experiments, although her origin comic by [[Neil Gaiman]] and his ''[[Black Orchid]]'' miniseries establish that the science was just a channel and she's actually, like Black Orchid, a mystical being called a May Queen with a connection to The Green (of ''[[Swamp Thing]]'' fame).

From the year 2000 and on, her role in the comics changed a bit, as elements from the DCAU version became integrated. Namely, it's now rather rare to see her without her pal Harley Quinn, with Ivy tending to be cast as the straight man to Harley's wackiness.

 

* [[Anti-Villain]]: Short of Mr. Freeze, it's hard to find a rogue who gets the sympathy treatment as much.

* [[Astonishingly Appropriate Appearance]]: It's got a fair bit of [[Depending on the Artist]], but her appearance is always reminding of a plant.

** In one such issue, she mistook his saving her from death as proof he loves her, though he responds that she doesn't know the meaning of love.

* [[Well-Intentioned Extremist]]: But not in the same way as Ra's al-Ghul, since she couldn't care less about the morality of humans. She mainly wants to kill them all so that they can't harm her precious plants.

 

== Ra's Al Ghul ==

 

 

Probably the biggest threat to the world in Batman's Rogues Gallery, Ra's Al Ghul (Arabic for "[[Names to Run Away From Really Fast|The Demon's Head]]", and pronounded "Raysh Al-Ghool") is a centuries-old man who leads an enormous international terrorist organization known as DEMON (as well as the League of Assassins). Unlike most of the other Bat-rogues, he is actually quite cultured and polite, if ruthless, and genuinely believes his goals to be noble. Of course, since his goal is to "purify" the world by killing off ninety percent of its population, Batman disagrees.

Ra's has come to blows with both Batman and the rest of the [[Justice League of America]] many times, one time unleashing a genetically engineered virus on Gotham, and on another occasion, taking down most of the JLA with Batman's contingency files. He himself, however, was killed by one of his daughters, also a user of the Lazaurus Pits, who was furious at him for leaving her to die at a Nazi Concentration Camp. Though he eventually returned to life, Batman was able to imprison him in Arkham Asylum under the guise of an inmate named Terry Gene Kase, and assigns him "medication" that keeps him highly sedated.

 

* [[Affably Evil]]

* [[Affectionate Nickname]]: Always refers to Batman as "Detective" as a sign of respect.

== Talia Al Ghul ==

 

 

The daughter of Ra's Al Ghul, Talia was once Catwoman's primary competitor for Batman's [[Love Interest]]. Despite her father being opposed to the Dark Knight, Talia finds herself in love with him, and is often torn between loyalty towards her father and her love for Batman. Much like with Catwoman, Batman has genuine feelings for her, and has even fathered a child by Talia (albeit one which he was told had been miscarried). She's normally not above co-operating with Batman if it would serve her own ends, yet has firmer ties to the rest of the [[DCU]] villain community than her father, even taking over for Lex Luthor as CEO of LuthorCorp upon his election as president.

Eventually, she was kidnapped and brainwashed by another one of her father's daughters, thought to have died in a Nazi concentration camp. Said daughter planned to kill Ra's for abandoning her at the camp, and succeeds in doing so. This, however, turns out to be a [[Xanatos Gambit]] on Ra's' part to make his daughters accept their destinies as his heirs. Since then, Talia has severed ties with Batman, but still holds infatuation for him, and has recently returned to Batman's life to let him know that he owes roughly eleven years' worth of child support payments.

 

* [[Amazon Brigade]]: Her own personal guard.

* [[Anti-Villain]] / [[Anti-Hero]]: Most of the time, though [[Brainwashed and Crazy|sometimes she slips.]]

* [[Brainwashed and Crazy]]: Getting killed and resurrected countless times will do that to anyone.

* [[Convenient Miscarriage]]: In the graphic novel ''Son Of the Demon''. Said novel's canon level has ping-ponged back and forth.

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot}}

 

 

Being born into a rich family can suck sometimes. While we already know about Bruce Wayne's woes, Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot was not without troubles of his own. Having been bullied for most of his life due to his short stature, obesity, and beak-like nose (hmm... wonder where this is going...), he was an outcast in his own family besides his beloved mother. Eventually his frustration built up to a point where he finally decided to release it by becoming a criminal. Due to his upbringing, he always tries to look his best in a tail-coat, top hat, and monocle (so yeah, that's where we were going).

All of that, in addition to his notable love for birds, inspired him to take the moniker "The Penguin" (Tim Burton's version of the Penguin was much more grotesque, almost literally appearing to be a penguin). Whereas most of the Bat-Villains are insane to a degree, Penguin is perfectly sane (Penguin is also one of the few villains to never be committed to Arkham), even operating the "Iceberg Lounge" nightclub, as equal parts legitimate business and front for his OTHER business. The Penguin is mainly an idea person, relying on others to carry out his crimes (although he does get personally involved from time to time), and in more recent years, he has been shown to attempt to be an organizer for a larger group and more of a mob kingpin. Also notable is that Penguin, like Catwoman, skirts the line between being criminal and being on the up-and-up, to the point Batman will even be willing to give him some leeway as long as he doesn't get too dirty, although unlike Catwoman this isn't because he is an [[Anti-Villain]] but mostly just a case of [[Pragmatic Villainy]]. Batman's even used him as an information source on underworld info, since The Penguin knows ''everybody''. They're enemies, but they're willing to let each other be as long as their paths don't cross.

 

* [[Affably Evil]]: He knows he's a villain, but still sticks to what he believes to be gentlemanly behavior. [[Batman: Arkham City|Usually, anyway.]]

* [[All of the Other Reindeer]]: Almost all versions of his backstory incorporate this.

* [[Momma's Boy]]: {{spoiler|Almost to [[Psycho|Norman Bates]]'s levels in ''Penguin: Pain and Prejudice''.}}

* [[Only Sane Man]]: One of the few recurring Batman villains who is considered completely sane and as such rarely (if ever) gets sent to Arkham. He goes to Blackgate Penitentiary instead.

** [[Parasol Parachute]]: Not only parachutes, but pogo sticks, whirlibirds, and [[Jet Pack|jetpacks]] have been equipped into his umbrellas.

* {{spoiler|[[Psychopathic Manchild]]: Type C in ''Penguin: Pain and Prejudice''.}}

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Thomas Elliot}}

 

 

Thomas Elliot was born into a highly respected family in Gotham City, and as a child was a great friend of a young Bruce Wayne. Unfortunately, Tommy's dad was an abusive alcoholic and his mother a controlling [[Rich Bitch]] who made him study philosophy and strategems to help him succeed in life. Eventually his father's abuse got so bad, he decided to apply his studies to improve his own life, by cutting the brakes on his parents car before they had a drive, so he could inherit their money and live by his own way. Unfortunately, thanks to Bruce's father, Dr. Thomas Wayne, Tommy's now crippled and needy mother survived, which was the worst thing that could happen to him. When news of [[Death by Origin Story|Mr. and Mrs. Wayne's deaths]] reach him, Tommy's already budding hatred of his former friend only grows stronger.

In an effort to further bedevil Batman, Hush has recently altered his face to become a perfect duplicate of Bruce Wayne.

 

* [[And Your Little Dog, Too]]: Hush goes after those close to Batman (which makes Bruce realize that for a self-described loner, he sure has A LOT of friends) including, of all people, ''Superman''. Hush thinks big. He also kills {{spoiler|Harold, who was a severely injured cripple who used helped in the Batcave}}. {{spoiler|He}} was a [[C-List Fodder]] who had barely appeared in any comic since the 1980s, but it was still sad.

** He {{spoiler|cut out Catwoman's heart, because she still had feelings for Bruce (and vice-versa). Don't worry, it's only a [[Only a Flesh Wound]] via [[Applied Phlebotinum]] and she gets better.}}

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Jervis Tetch}}

 

 

Jervis Tetch, a man of short stature and large head, went through his life friendless, becoming a scientist and experimenting with technology, specifically that of mind control. His psychosis is a mix of paranoid schizophrenia and manic depression, all of this centering on his fascination with both hats and ''Alice in Wonderland''. Using his technology, Tetch turned to a life of crime as the Mad Hatter, inserting his devices into headgear in order to turn unwitting victims into his slaves. His technology has advanced to a point that where not only can he put his mind-control devices into almost anything (free meal tickets, Walkmans, etc.), but he is now able to miniaturize his technology to a point of simulating telepathic hypnosis/mind control.

The Mad Hatter is possibly one of the strangest Bat-Rogues ever (which is saying something). Throughout his tenure, Tetch has been subject to several redesigns in both appearance and personality; he has gone from average height to quite short to an actual dwarf and has been a goofy thief, a scheming mastermind and a creepy pedophile-esque kidnapper. He's gotten a lot more serious in the comics and has proven to be a formidable and unpredictable opponent.

 

 

 

* [[Alice in Wonderland]]: Tetch quotes this constantly, with Jeph Loeb's incarnation speaking in nothing ''but'' quotes from the book.

* [[Astonishingly Appropriate Appearance]]

* [[Berserk Button]]: Do ''not'' touch his hat.

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Sandra Wu-San / Sandra Woosan}}

 

 

One of the premier martial artists in the DCU, Shiva is a mercenary with her own sense of honor and duty, but who really lives for the thrill of life and death combat. She has trained Batman as well as several of his allies, but that doesn't stop her from fighting them if she feels the urge to. She sometimes acts in a quasi-heroic capacity, occasionally working with the Birds of Prey, but it's a nervous time those allies.

 

* [[Arrogant Kung Fu Guy|Arrogant Kung-Fu Girl]]: She's constantly training and retraining herself to eternally improve her martial arts abilities. She also challenges any combatants whom she deems worthy, testing herself against them, testing them against her, and learning from them/removing them as threats for the future. The later part usually doesn't occur right away.

* [[Asian Baby Mama]]: to David Cain. She rather hates him for it.

* [[The Obi-Wan]]: To Bruce durring his recovery in Knightfall.

* [[Thou Shalt Not Kill]]: When working with heroes, they insist she not kill anyone. This often annoys her, but she complies.

* [[Worf Effect]]: it does happen on occasion, but she often regains herself shortly afterwards. The only person who she did not overcome in the end so far was Prometheus.

 

Despite being cousins, Deever and Dumfree were so alike in both appearance and mannerisms that they could easily be mistaken for identical twins. Drawing inspiration from their shared love of ''[[Alice in Wonderland]]'', the duo went on to commit multiple crimes in Gotham, dressed as the similarly-named twin brothers from ''Through The Looking Glass''. After the apparent death of Dumfree, his twin brother Dumson has since stepped in to take his place. Although they run their own separate criminal organization, they can often be seen in the employ of the Mad Hatter (see above).

 

* [[Astonishingly Appropriate Appearance]]

* [[Creepy Twins]]: [[Playing with a Trope|Played with]]. They actually aren't, but they enjoy giving this impression, and Dumfree and Dumson certainly qualify.

Scarface is his main venting outlet for his disorder, a wooden puppet named and slightly modeled after Al Capone. He communicates his plans through this puppet, and even uses it during his various heists to the point of obsession.

 

* [[Demonic Dummy]]

* [[Extreme Doormat]]: Wesker to Scarface.

* {{spoiler|[[Real After All]]: After Arnold's death, the dummy moves by itself for a few panels before burning up.}}

* [[Those Two Bad Guys]]: Wesker and Scarface are almost always accompanied by the same two thugs, Rhino and Mugsy.

* [[Verbal Tic]]: Due to Wesker being unable to pronounce the letter "b" when doing his ventriloquist act, words with "b's" in them always come out with a "g" sound when Scarface says them; for instance, "Gatman" instead of "Batman."

 

After {{spoiler|Wesker's death at the hands of Tally Man}}, Scarface is taken up by Peyton Riley, the daughter of an Irish gangster, who had worked with Scarface before and grown to like both him and Wesker. Like Wesker, she believes Scarface to be talking to her, although unlike Wesker, she acknowledges this could be a hallucination. She also isn't as meek as Wesker; she has plans of her own, and is working "with" Scarface, rather than for him.

 

* [[Arranged Marriage]]: Her father married her to an Italian gangster in order to unite the two families. This didn't work out.

* [[Demonic Dummy]], but not so much [[Gollum Made Me Do It]].

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Roman Sionis}}

 

 

Roman Sionis was about the same age as Bruce Wayne, and likewise had wealthy parents. However, Roman's parents were extremely neglectful and uncaring towards their son; he grew to resent them and the "Masks" they wore (of good, friendly people), when in private they were miserable. Sionis eventually killed his parents, but ran their business into the ground; at which point it was bought out by Bruce Wayne. Sionis snapped, breaking into his parents' crypt and carving a mask out of his mother's coffin. An attempt to get revenge on Wayne by lashing out at his employees failed due to the intervention of Batman, and ended up causing Sionis's Black Mask to be burned onto his face, making it unremovable.

Later, in the ''War Games'' story arc, Black Mask managed to successfully play the opposing forces of a Gotham Gang war against each other. He managed to kill Orpheus, one of Batman's inside men, and assume his identity, and tortured Stephanie Brown, alias the Spoiler, leading to her apparent demise. Sionis became the de facto leader of all of Gotham's organized crime following this. He was later killed when he once again sought to ruin Catwoman's life mistakenly believing she would abide by the No-Kill rule, she responded by [[Just Shoot Him|shooting him]]. After Batman's "[[Not Quite Dead|death]]", a new Black Mask has surfaced, who turns out to be {{spoiler|an [[Ax Crazy]] Dr Jerimiah Arkham}}, but he was revealed to be {{spoiler|[[Brainwashed and Crazy]]}} after his defeat, and following the reboot is probably no longer in action.

 

* [[Arch Enemy]]: Arguably for Catwoman.

* [[Ax Crazy]]

* [[Card-Carrying Villain]]

* [[Mutilation Interrogation]]

* [[No Indoor Voice]]: Sionis often throws [[Motive Rant|unnecessary tantrums]] with [[Rant-Inducing Slight|little provocation]], particularly when written by [[Judd Winick]].

* [[Religion of Evil]]: In ''No Man's Land'' he turned the False Facer's into a cult where everybody (himself included) horribly scarred their faces and shaved their heads so that they all looked alike, and turned them loose to basically go on a murderous rampage throughout the already devasted city. Black Mask II reffered to his organization as a "Ministry of Science", combining this with his [[Mad Scientist]] routine.

* [[Revenge by Proxy]]

* [[Self-Made Orphan]]

* [[Shadow Archetype]]: Similar to Hush (and preceding him), Black Mask is a Bruce Wayne who suffered from poor parenting and ran his own company into the ground. He's a millionare who became an extremely violent masked crime lord rather than a moderately violent masked vigilante, and he relys more on his natural hidden talents as a criminal than on years of hard work and study.

* [[The Sociopath]]

* [[Torture Technician]]

{{quote|'''Mask''': Before we begin, I'd like to address the topic of screaming...by saying this: go right ahead.}}

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Warren White}}

 

 

Sentenced to prison for [[Stealing From the Till|creative accounting practices]], financier Warren White tried to slip through the cracks by [[Insanity Defense|pleading insanity]], in the hopes of being committed to [[Hospital Paradiso|a modern psychiatric care facility]]. Instead, he wound up in [[Bedlam House|Arkham Asylum]], where the inmates [[Cold-Blooded Torture|ritually tortured and abused him]] [[Initiation Ceremony|for being the "new fish"]]; Killer Croc went so far as to carve gills in the sides of his neck.

After being locked in a freezer for several hours during a riot, Warren emerged [[Red Right Hand|a changed man]]: [[Body Horror|his hair had fallen out, his lips and nose had shrivelled away in the cold, and his skin was now chalky white]]. [[Sanity Slippage|His mind now decidedly twisted]], White has since traded off his appearance and business acumen to become one of the premier mob bosses in Gotham City.

 

* [[Astonishingly Appropriate Appearance]]: Exactly how much so [[Depending on the Artist|depends on the artist]].

* [[Asshole Victim]]: Don't think [[Morally-Bankrupt Banker|he didn't work hard]] to [[Break the Haughty|earn]] that [[Humiliation Conga]].

* [[The Chessmaster]]: After Black Mask's death, he briefly managed to [[Villain Exit Stage Left|oust the Penguin from Gotham]] and control the city's rackets from [[Might as Well Not Be in Prison At All|inside his cell at Arkham]].

* [[Corrupt Corporate Executive]]: Gained his nickname for his ruthless and cold-blooded business practices.

* [[Hawaiian-Shirted Tourist|Hawaiian Shirted]] [[Jerkass]]: In ''Streets of Gotham''.

* [[Karma Houdini]]: {{spoiler|He's worked out a [[Deal with the Devil|deal with the Torture Lords of Hell]] that will enable him to escape any punishment for his life's misdeeds.}} [[Etrigan]] is actually impressed.

* [[Loan Shark]]: [[Stealth Pun|Quite.]]

* [[Phrase Catcher]]: Warren White is [[Running Gag|the worst person you have ever met]].

== Victor Zsasz ==

 

 

An oft-seen but relatively minor bat-villain, Zsasz was once a wealthy businessman who lost fortune and family alike. The loss of his business was too much for him, and he was attempting suicide when a homeless man tried to assault him with a knife. At that point, he embraced a [[Nietzsche Wannabe|profoundly nihilistic]] worldview: all of life is meaningless, and the greatest gift he can offer is to "liberate" them - by slaying them and leaving them in lifelike poses. He celebrates his killings by self-scarification, cutting a tally into his flesh for every life he takes.

 

* [[Ascended Extra]]: Despite being a lesser-used villain overall, he was used in a substantial way in both [[Batman: Arkham Asylum|Arkham]] [[Batman: Arkham City|games]], which has raised mainstream awareness of the character substantially.

* [[Axe Crazy]]: Or rather, knife crazy.

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Basil Karlo}}

 

 

Basil Karlo was an actor who, when he heard his classic horror film "The Terror" was being remade, went mad. He donned the mask of the film's villain, "Clayface," and went on a killing spree, murdering the members of the cast and crew. However, he was stopped by Batman, reappearing a few times before remaining unused. However, during his absence, several other criminals with the name Clayface appeared. They were all made of clay, [[Voluntary Shapeshifting|could change shape]], and one even had a poisonous touch.

One of these new Clayfaces visited Karlo in prison out of curiosity, and they formed a plan where all living Clayfaces would team up against Batman. The group, called "The Mud Pack," was beaten, but Karlo obtained the powers of all the other Clayfaces, becoming a much bigger threat.

 

* [[Elemental Shapeshifter]]: Clayface is a walking mountain of mud, and can use his powers for shapeshifting or brute strength.

* [[Flanderization]]: Karlo was previously characterized as an ego-maniacal actor, but then writers and artists began depicting him more like the Clayface from the animated series, who was more-or-less an amalgamation of the first four Clayfaces, but more predominately Matt Hagen, the second. The difficulty in this is that, the comic version of Hagen died during ''[[Crisis on Infinite Earths]]'', and has remained dead. Unless it's outright stated in the story featuring him, readers have a hard time telling if Clayface is Karlo or Hagen.

* [[Large Ham]]: Comes with the acting background. After receiving the abilities of Preston Payne and Shondra Fuller, Karlo regarded himself as "THE ULTIMATE CLAYFACE!"

{{quote|'''AKA:''' Waylon Jones}}

 

 

Born with a rare skin disease that left him with scaly, crocodile-like skin, Waylon Jones was unaccepted by the outside world. His parents couldn't stand him, and they abandoned him in the wilderness, forcing him to become a career criminal to survive. At one point, he used his razor sharp teeth to become a cannibal and eat people. He has clashed with Batman several times over the years, each time becoming more bestial and reptilian due to a mutation of his already strange disease. He possesses superhuman strength and is much larger than the average man.

 

* [[Absurdly Spacious Sewer]]: Often finds himself in one of these.

* [[Depending on the Artist]]: Sometimes, Croc has a crocodile-like snout and a tail, sometimes not.

* [[Depending on the Writer]]: On top of the above, he seems to be one of those villains writers can never really pin down. It's hard to believe that he was an accomplished marksman and the precursor of ''Bane'', of all things.

A psychiatrist that observed Batman during an isolation experiment, Simon Hurt is the leader of a mysterious organization called The Black Glove. He wants to completely and utterly break Batman, physically and mentally.

 

* [[Ascended Extra]]: [[Grant Morrison]] ascended him out of an unnamed psychiatrist in the [[Silver Age]] story "Robin Dies at Dawn"

* [[Big Bad]]: Of The Black Glove [[Story Arc]] in [[Grant Morrisons Batman|Grant Morrison's Batman run]].

The long absent son of Commissioner James Gordon and his first wife, Barbara Gordon, James, Jr. finally made a reappearance in the 2011 arc, "Skeleton Cases". Having shown symptoms of psychopathy in his youth, James seemed to be ready to be a functioning member of society. However, it was instead revealed that he was a serial killer, having murdered several people who bullied him in his youth, and viewed empathy as a weakness. His brutality and sadism are only matched by his cunning, and proves himself to be a dangerous foe to the reluctant new Batman, Dick Grayson.

 

* [[Antagonistic Offspring]]

* [[Arch Enemy]]: To Dick Grayson. He couldn't care less about Bruce Wayne.

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Characters]]

[[Category:Batman/Characters]]