Batman / Enemies
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Batman's foes form one of the most distinctive rogues galleries in comic books. These villains range from the psychotic criminals locked in Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane, through Gotham City's mafia bosses, to world conquerors.
Throughout his existence, Batman's rogues gallery has been particularly distinctive because a large majority of its number are defined by a theme, often-times iconic or archetypical psychosis, compulsion, obsession, or a gimmick. In recent years, in several works like Grant Morrison's Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth and Alan Moore's The Killing Joke, much of the psychological similarities between Batman and several of his more well-recognised and significant opponents, with several providing direct parallels to character traits of Batman himself, such as the Scarecrow's use of fear as a weapon, Bane's meticulous planning or Two-Face's dual identity.
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[edit] History
The first villains from the Batman stories were conventions carried over from the pulp magazines that had influenced his creation, each one more excentrict than the previus. The first criminal he fights, Alfred Stryker is just a business man who kills his parners, and the second, Frankie Blake, is a just a common gangster. Doctor Death, a mad scientist, and the the vampiric Monk were the first to have fantastic features and, although forgotten for over sixty years, are also the first to last 2 stories each. With ups and downs, Professor Hugo Strange, is the first villain with real staying power and after him, Batman's creators introduced many of the most familiar villains, which largely drew inspiration from the rogues gallery of Dick Tracy, whose villains were often grotesquely disfigured in order to highlight their evil nature to readers.
The next two lead villains in Batman's publication history could be considered the archetype for the rest of Batman's rogues gallery to be introduced: the Joker, Batman's archnemesis, and Catwoman, both a villain and love interest to the Dark Knight. In contrast with all the previous the Joker appeared in over 60 stories and Catwoman in almost 20, both are themed villains with gimmicks and excentricities and both have been a constant ever since. The Joker is also the first to show his twisted, caotic and sick personality and evilness in his bizarre deformity.
The Penguin became the second most used villain since his creation and others like the Scarecrow, the first Two-Face and Mad Hatter were used in two or three stories during the golden age of comics to reappear years later and become recurrent. The Riddler for instance, was created in 1948 and vanished from the comic book until his appearance in the late 1960s in the television show saw his return to popularity in comics. While most of these villains fom the 1940s were just thieves with gimmicks but no super-powers, The Scarecrow, and the Mad Hatter, have their mind-controlling skills and weapons that would later became their signatures. Deadshot and the original Clayface also debuted in the Golden Age to be revamped years later to become frequent (unlike the Tweedles and the Cavalier, and several others who return but not nearly as often).
By the 1950s, Batman's rogues gallery was largely ignored apart from the likes of the Joker (who appeared in virtually every Batman issue published), the Penguin, and Catwoman. With the growing emphasis on science fiction in the late 1950s Batman stories, even the Joker was shunted aside in favor of alien adversaries.
Villains with physical skills or super-powers slowly began to appear: these villains reflected a growing preoccupation with science fiction in Batman comics. Mr. Freeze and Killer Moth first appeared in the late 1950s, and the botanical scientist Poison Ivy in the 1960s, along with the debut of a new superpowered Clayface, a mud shape-shifter. Many older villains received a boost in popularity thanks to the 1960s Batman television series and consequently, after a long period of dormancy, again became fixtures in the comic books.
In the 1970s, new Batman villains adopted influences from horror, pulp and films. Man-Bat, a geneticist who turned himself into a humanoid bat, the murderous Clayface III, and Ra's Al Ghul all first appeared in this decade. Ra's al Ghul was different from most Batman foes, in that he was, unlike the typical mobster-stereotype, a centuries-old eco-terrorist who commands a large empire of loyal servants, as well as the League of Assassins, a ninja organization (probabbly inspired by the Martial Arts hype of the era). Ra's is an ideological mastermind in the tradition of Fu Manchu or the James Bond villains. His daughter Talia is one of Batman's best-known love interests. Ra's and Talia were the first villains to learn of Batman's secret identity.
The 1980s introduced grim villains like crocodile mutant Killer Croc, self-amputated ex-Russian agent KGBeast, pullback insane Mafiosi leaders like Black Mask and the schizophrenic Ventriloquist's puppet, Scarface. This wave of brutal villains continued in the early 1990s with serial killer Victor Zsasz, and Bane, an assassin addicted to Venom steroids who deduced Batman's secret identity and broke his spine, temporarily putting him in forced retirement.
Joker's unbalanced lover, Harley Quinn, was first seen in 1992 in Batman: The Animated Series; the character was introduced to comics years later due to her popularity. Other characters were also created or revamped in the animated DC universe, with their changes carried over to other media, such as Baby Doll or Lock-Up and the Clock King or Mr. Freeze, whose new origin was integrated into the comics.
New manipulative Bane-like enemies with personal relationships and hate issues with Batman's persona started to appear in recent times, including Hush, apparently one of Bruce Wayne's old friends, as well as assassin David Cain, the father and trainer of current Batgirl Cassandra Cain. Additionally, the long thought murdered second Robin Jason Todd recently returned as the Red Hood putting Batman to the test.
Several writers have noted that the first appearance of real super-villains in Gotham City was just when Batman arrived to fight crime. James Gordon, in Batman: The Long Halloween, implies that these villains are somehow attracted to Batman's presence in the city. According to this theory, Batman is the catalyst for these villains' crimes (this is actually similar to one presented by pop psychiatrist Benjamin Wolper in Batman: The Dark Knight Returns). In Alan Grant's Shadow of the Bat #16, 17 and 18, Anarchy comes to the same conclusion and decides to take down Batman. Gordon also implies this theory in the film Batman Begins. However, Paul Dini denounced this in the Batman: The Animated Series episode Trial, with the defense attouny making the enemies of Batman admit they caused their own problems and declaring him not guilty.
[edit] List of major enemies of Batman
In chronological order (with issue and date of first appearance)
[edit] Major enemies created by the original creative team of Bob Kane, Bill Finger and Rerry Robinson
| Image | Name | Real name | Writer | Artist | First appearance | Date | Appearances (aprox.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Professor Hugo Strange | Hugo Strange | Bill Finger | Bob Kane | Detective Comics #36 | February 1940 | |
| An insane psychologist who knows Batman's secret identity and lusts to take the identity for himself. He is also a chemical genius who can turn people into lumbering, brutal giants. | |||||||
| The Joker | Unknown | Bill Finger | Bob Kane Jerry Robinson | Batman #1 | Spring 1940 | |
| A homicidal maniac with a clown-like appearance, who takes comedic delight in violent crime and challenging Batman. He is generally acknowledged to be Batman's arch-nemesis and worst enemy. His alter-ego is unknown (although referred to in the 1989 Batman as Jack Napier). | |||||||
| Catwoman | Selina Kyle | Bill Finger | Bob Kane Jerry Robinson | Batman #1 | Spring 1940 | |
| Selina Kyle, a criminal who wears a cat-theme costume and often operates as burglar and has a love/hate relationship with Batman. Catwoman has also been known to wreak revenge upon those who do crimes against animals, especially large cats. Catwoman has largely reformed in recent years, though she still comes into conflict with Batman on occasion. | |||||||
| Clayface | Basil Karlo | Bill Finger | Bob Kane | Batman #40 | June 1940 | |
| A name for a number of criminals, with the best known being Matt Hagen, a criminal with the power to instantly change his shape and appearance to any form he wants. There have been no less than four Clayfaces over the years, some lists claiming as many as six. | |||||||
| The Scarecrow | Jonathan Crane | Bill Finger | Bob Kane | Worlds Finest Comics #3 | Fall 1941 | |
| Jonathan Crane, an insane scientist and psychiatrist, specializing in the nature of fear. Dressed symbolically as a scarecrow, he employs special weapons, equipment and techniques designed to use fear to his advantage in his crimes. | |||||||
| The Penguin | Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot | Bill Finger | Bob Kane | Detective Comics #58 | December 1941 | |
| A short round man with a long pointed nose who fancies himself a gentleman of crime. He usually wears a tuxedo, top hat, and monocle, and carries any variety of umbrellas which have various hidden functions such as vehicles or weapons. He has been the second most recurring enemy of Batman and currently he has become the kingpin of Gotham City. | |||||||
| Two-face | Harvey Dent | Bill Finger | Bob Kane | Detective Comics #66 | August 1942 | |
| The former District Attorney and ally of Batman and Gordon. His latent multiple personality disorder fully took hold when half his face was horrifically scarred, and he became obsessed with committing crimes themed around duality and opposites. He makes major decisions by flipping a two-headed coin, on which one of the faces is scarred. | |||||||
| The Riddler | Edward Nigma >br> (a. k. a. Eddie Nash) | Bill Finger | Dick Sprang | Detective Comics #140 | October 1948 | |
| A criminal mastermind who has a strange compulsion to challenge his opponents by presenting clues to his crimes in the form of riddles and puzzles. | |||||||
| The Mad Hatter | Jervis Tetch | Bill Finger | Bob Kane | Batman #49 | November 1948 | |
| A research scientist named who is completely smitten with the works of Lewis Carroll. He is an insane neuroscientist and developed hardware that can control the brain and induce hypnotic states, and often uses hats or other headgear for mind control. (There was also briefly a second Mad Hatter who liked to commit crimes with hat-related themes, but he is currently supposed to have been killed by the original Hatter and does not appear any longer.) | |||||||
| Killer Moth | Drury Walker (a. k. a. Cameron Van Cleer) | Bill Finger | Lew Schwartz | Batman #63 | February 1951 | |
| An anti-Batman who aided criminals just as Batman aids police, but only for money. | |||||||
| Clayface II | Matt Hagen | Bill Finger | Sheldon Moldoff | Detective Comics #298 | December, 1961 | |
| A treasure hunter given vast shapeshifting powers and resiliency by radioactive protoplasm. | |||||||
[edit] Major enemies created by diverse creative teams after the original
| Image | Name | Real name | Writer | Artist | First appearance | Date | Appearances (aprox.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lex Luthor | Lex Luthor | Jerry Siegel | Joe Shuster | Action Comics #23 | April, 1940 | |
| As head of Lexcorp a corrupt corporation with presence in Gotham City, Luthor has feuds with both Batman and Bruce Wayne with and without Superman's presence. Both want to bring each other out. | |||||||
| Deadshot | Floyd Lawton | David Vern | Lew Schwartz | Batman #59 | July 1950 | |
| A suicidal assassin who wears a colorful costume in the hopes that someone will shoot him. He is considered the second greatest assassin in the DC Universe, the first being Deathstroke. | |||||||
| Firefly | Garfield Lynns | France Herron | Dick Sprang | Detective Comics #184 | June 52 | |
| An orphan who became a pyromaniac and has developed a fireproof suit and flamethrower to further pursue his 'hobby'. He was originally known as a cunning criminal who invented numerous weapons that use light to commit crimes with. | |||||||
| Mr. Freeze | Victor Fries | Dave Wood | Sheldon Moldoff | Batman #151 | February 1959 | |
| Formerly a scientist and expert on cryonics. He tried to cryopreserve his stricken wife Nora Fries until a cure was found to her disease. An accident in the process caused his body to function only below freezing point and so he wears a special self-contained refrigeration suit and uses similar ice technology for weapons. | |||||||
| The Clock King | William Tockman | Ed Herron | Lee Elias | World's Finest Comics #111 | August 1960 | |
| Originally Green Arrow's enemy, but the villain appeared as a Batman enemy on the '60s television show. The character was treated as a minor foe until Batman: The Animated Series recreated him as Temple Fugate, a dangerous obsessive stalker. | |||||||
| Poison Ivy | Pamela Isley | Robert Kanigher | Sheldon Moldoff | Batman #181 | June 1966 | |
| A former scientist, who employs plants of all varieties and their derivatives in her crimes. She is often described as fanatical about defending plants from other humans, even being willing to murder them for her beliefs. | |||||||
| Man-bat | Kirk Langstrom | Denny O'Neil | Frank Robbins | Detective Comics #400 | June 1970 | |
| Sometimes an enemy of Batman, as a scientist, he is Batman's ally. He is unfortunately also cursed to periodically turn into an animalistic humanoid bat. | |||||||
| Talia | Talia Head | Denny O'Neil | Bob Brown | Detective Comics #411 | May 1971 | |
| The daughter of Ra's Al Ghul, sometimes an enemy, sometimes an ally and some time's the love of Batman. | |||||||
| Ra's al Ghul | Unknown | Denny O'Neil | Neal Adams | Batman #232 | June 1971 | |
| "Demon's Head" in Arabic, Ra's Al Ghul is a centuries-old world-wide eco-terrorist who knows Batman's secret identity; Ra's Al Ghul desires for Batman to marry his daughter Talia and become his successor. | |||||||
| Lady Shiva | Sandra Wu-San | Dennis O'Neil | Ric Estrada | Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter #5 | December 1975 | |
| A mercenary assassin who once trained Batman. She is possibly the greatest martial artist alive in the DC universe, one of Batman's true physical rivals. | |||||||
| Rupert Thorne | Rupert Thorne | Steve Englehart | Walter Simonson | Detective Comics #469 | February 21, 1977 | |
| Head of one of Gotham City's top smuggling gangs while being Gotham City's Council Chairman and a respected member of society, Rupert Thorne is envied for his power in the underworld and loves prospering from other people's misery. | |||||||
| Maxie Zeus | Maximillian Zeus | Denny O'Neil Detective 6/79 | Don Newton | Detective Comics #484 | June 1979 | |
| An insane mob boss with a penchant for Greek mythology, Maxie has a god complex and usually uses electrically based weaponry to emulate the Greek god Zeus. | |||||||
| Killer Croc | Waylon Jones | Gerry Conway | Don Newton | Batman #357 | March 1983 | |
| A former croc wrestler turned into a criminal deformed by mutation into a humongous humanoid crocodile. He has low intelligence but great strength, as well as crocodilian abilities, such as a keener sense of smell and the ability to hold his breath underwater for long periods of time. | |||||||
| Black Mask | Roman Sionis | Doug Moench | Tom Mandrake | Batman #386 | August 1985 | |
| A former business executive who originally hated Bruce Wayne rather than Batman. He wears a Black Mask and leads the cult-like False Face Society of henchmen. Recently Black Mask became a mob boss controlling large sections of Gotham crime. | |||||||
| The Roman | Carmine Falcone | Frank Miller | David Mazzucchelli | Batman #406 | April 1987 | |
| Led by Carmine Falcone, also known as "The Roman", and prominent in the storylines of Batman's early years, including Year One, The Long Halloween and Dark Victory. In the comics, as well as the feature film Batman Begins, the Falcone family and Carmine Falcone in particular are portrayed as having a massive amount of power and influence on Gotham City. Falcone was killed in the Long Halloween by Two-Face. | |||||||
| Scarface and the Ventriloquist | Arnold Wesker | Alan Grant John Wagner | Norm Breyfogle | Detective Comics #583 | February 1988 | |
| A ventriloquist whose puppet is a gangster called Scarface. It has been implied that the Ventriloquist suffers from multiple personality disorder. | |||||||
| KGBeast | Anatoli Knyazev | Jim Starlin | Jim Aparo | Detective Comics # Batman #417 | March 1988 | |
| A ruthless assassin who Batman encountered many times. Later, while KGBeast was on a mission to assassinate Ronald Reagan, Batman caught KGBeast's left wrist in a loop of the bat-rope, but KGBeast cut off his own hand with an ax in order to escape. He later returned with a cybernetic gun prosthetic attached to his wrist. | |||||||
| Anarky | Lonnie Machin | Alan Grant | Norm Breyfogle | Detective Comics #608 | November 1989 | |
| A vigilante obsessed with theories of Anarchism. He is originally discovered to be a small child, but as he becomes a teenager, he evolves into a superhero himself. | |||||||
| Harley Quinn | Harleen Quinzel | Paul Dini | Bruce Timm | Batman: Harley Quinn | In TV: September 11, 1992 In DCU: October, 1999 | |
| A former criminal psychiatrist who fell in love with the Joker and became his most famous accomplice is the first enemy of Batman to be introduced in an animated series and receive their own line of comics. She wears the clothing of a traditional harlequin jester. Her crimes as an independent criminal motif is to impress the Joker, who she affectionately refers to as "Puddin'" and "Mr. J". | |||||||
| Mister Zsasz | Victor Zsasz | Alan Grant | Norm Breyfogle | Batman: Shadow of the Bat #1 | 1992 | |
| A more or less "common" serial killer who keeps a tally of his victims by cutting new scars into his body with his trademark knife. | |||||||
| Bane | Chuck Dixon | Graham Nolan | Batman: Vengeance of Bane | January 1993 | ||
| An escaped convict from an island prison in South America, who has abnormal strength as a result of having had experiments with a derivative of the drug Venom performed on him. Bane became known as "The Man Who Broke the Bat" when he broke Batman's spinal cord, forcing Bruce Wayne to give up the Batman persona while he recuperated. | |||||||
| Hush | Thomas Elliot | Jeph Loeb | Jim Lee | Batman #609 | November 2002 | |
| A childhood friend of Bruce's. Although Hush's name originates from a nursery rhyme, Hush lives up to it by using manipulation and guile instead of noisy "signatures". One example of this guile is how he led Batman to believe that Hush was the second Robin, Jason Todd, previously murdered by the Joker. | |||||||
[edit] Minor enemies
The following are indexes of the enemies of Batman:
- Minor enemies of Batman (Proffesor Milo, the Cavalier, Amygdala, etc.) Batman / Enemies / Minor
- Recurring henchmen of Batman's enemies Batman / Enemies / Henchmen
- Ordinary mobsters that are enemies of Batman: Batman / Enemies / Mobsters
- Villains created for other media: Batman / Enemies / Created outside comics
- Villanous organizations that are enemies of Batman: Batman / Enemies / Orgnanizations
[edit] In other media
A number of villains from the comic books have made an appearance, or appearances, in Batman live-action media.
[edit] References
- [en.wikipedia.org] The some of original text in this article is adapted from wikipedia's counterpart.
- [1] A site with comparative lists of classic DC Comics character, their first appearances and creators. It also has scans of the fist pages in which they appear. A great deal of the information in this article comes from there.
