Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective

List of Batman family enemies

Detailed list of recurrent enemy characters in DC Comics' Batman line From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

List of Batman family enemies
Remove ads
Remove ads

The Batman family enemies are a collection of supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. These characters are depicted as adversaries of the superhero Batman and his allies.

Thumb
A gathering of Batman's primary enemies on a variant cover of The Joker: 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular #1 (April 2020). From left to right: Two-Face, Man-Bat, Catwoman, Scarecrow, Joker, Ra's al Ghul, Riddler and Poison Ivy. Art by Jim Lee.

Since Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 (May 1939), his supporting cast has expanded to include other superheroes, and has become what is now called the "Bat-family". As with most superheroes, a cast of recurring enemies to the Batman family have been introduced throughout the years, collectively referred to as Batman's "rogues gallery".[1][2][3][4] Many characters from Batman's rogues gallery who are criminally insane become patients at Arkham Asylum after they are apprehended.

Remove ads

Supervillains and themed criminals

Summarize
Perspective

The following fictional characters are listed in alphabetical order by the name of their supervillain persona. Each character's first appearance and brief biographies of each fictional character are also listed, staying to their fictional histories and characteristics in the DC Universe. Sometimes more than one fictional character will share a supervillain persona. In those cases, the name of the character most associated with said supervillain identity will have their name in bold in their biography.

Listed below are the Batman family's most enduring and iconic enemies.

More information Villain, Creators ...

Other recurring enemies

These are major Batman family enemies that have not quite reached the status of Batman's classic rogues gallery.

More information Villain, Creator(s) ...

The League of Assassins

First appearing in Strange Adventures #215,[144] the League of Assassins is a team of highly trained killers that was founded by Ra's al Ghul and has often swayed from working under his organization to working independently of it. The group has been led at times by Dr. Ebeneezer Darrk, the Sensei, Lady Shiva, and Cassandra Cain.[Note 5][Note 6]

More information Villain, Creator(s) ...

Morrison-era enemies (2007–2011)

These are enemies that were introduced under writer Grant Morrison.

More information Villain, Creators ...

The New 52 and beyond

In September 2011, The New 52 rebooted DC's continuity. Since this new timeline began, these supervillains have been introduced. These are characters that have not been around long enough to apply to any other category.

More information Villain, Creator(s) ...

Batman Beyond enemies

Enemies of lesser renown

These enemies are categorized by their obscurity or for being less notable than other characters in this article.

More information Villain, Creator(s) ...

Villains from other rogues galleries

When these villains debuted, they fought other heroes before fighting Batman.

More information Villain, Creators ...
Remove ads

Teams

Summarize
Perspective

The following is a list of fictional teams, groups of supervillains, gangs, and organized crime families that are enemies of the Batman family, listed in alphabetical order by name. The first appearance and a brief fictional biography of each team is also listed.

More information Villain, Creator(s) ...
Remove ads

Mobsters and plainclothes criminals

Summarize
Perspective

Besides his infamous rogues gallery of supervillains, Batman has also faced more "ordinary" enemies, such as assassins, mobsters and terrorists.

In alphabetical order (with issue and date of first appearance)

More information Villain, Creator(s) ...

Two of Batman's mobster foes have donned costumes and crossed over to become supervillains:

  • Hangman: A mysterious serial killer who murders police officers on every holiday of the year (during the Dark Victory storyline), leaving behind a version of the children's word game "Hangman" (with key letters missing) with each new victim. All of the victims are police officers who, in one way or another, helped Harvey Dent rise to his position of District Attorney. In the end, the Hangman is revealed to be Sofia Falcone Gigante, daughter of the late crime boss Carmine Falcone.
  • Holiday: A mysterious serial killer who murders mobsters and others over a year (during The Long Halloween storyline). The killer's weapon is a .22 pistol (using a baby bottle nipple as a silencer) with the handle taped and the serial number filed off. Also, every crime takes place on a holiday and a small trinket representing each holiday is left behind at the scene. Alberto Falcone, the youngest son of Carmine Falcone, admits to being the Holiday killer, but then Harvey Dent says there were two Holiday killers. Batman deduces that since he killed Vernon on Halloween with a .22 pistol, he was, in fact, the second Holiday; however, later in a lone monologue Gilda Grace Dent reveals herself as the second (or technically first) Holiday, who was responsible for the first three murders.
Remove ads

Corrupt cops and government officials

Summarize
Perspective

In alphabetical order (with issue and date of first appearance)

More information Villain, Creator(s) ...
Remove ads

Antiheroes and reformed supervillains

The following is a list of Batman enemies who have reformed and are more often depicted as allies of the masked vigilante than enemies.

More information Name, Alter ego ...
Remove ads

Allies in conflict

Summarize
Perspective

Some characters generally considered to be allies, yet have come into conflict with Batman.

In alphabetical order (with issue and date of first appearance):

More information Villain, Creators ...
Remove ads

In other media

Antagonists from other media

  • Baby-Doll (appeared in Batman: The Animated Series, originally voiced by Alison La Placa and later by Laraine Newman) - Introduced in her self titled episode, Mary Louise Dahl is a washed-up actress who became bitter and insane after falling into obscurity and suffering from a disorder that prevents her body from growing to adulthood, thus biologically cursed with perpetual childhood. She had a plan to kidnap her old co-stars from "Love That Baby" but was stopped by Batman. She later returned as the partner-in-crime and lover of Killer Croc.[356]
  • Ted Dymer (appeared in Batman: The Animated Series, voiced by series developer Bruce Timm) - Featured in the episode Beware the Gray Ghost, Ted Dymer is a toy collector who owns a vintage toy store. Not long after out-of-work actor Simon Trent sells him all of his memorabilia from the now nearly-lost television serial in which he starred, "The Gray Ghost", Dymer begins using said memorabilia for criminal purposes, emulating the events of an episode of "The Gray Ghost" which featured a villain known as the "Mad Bomber". He fits remote-controlled cars with bombs to destroy buildings, while also sending out anonymous demands for ransom money (which he plans to spend on more toys), threatening to bomb more buildings if his demands are not met. Ultimately, Batman allies with Simon Trent to track down Dymer and stop him; when all is said and done, Dymer's store is destroyed in a fiery blaze, leaving him to mourn the loss of all his toys as the police arrive on the scene.
  • Roxy Rocket (appeared in The New Batman Adventures, Superman: The Animated Series, and Batman: Chaos in Gotham, voiced by Charity James) – A former stuntwoman who was fired for making her stunts too dangerous, and subsequently turned to crime in search of thrills. She was later incorporated into the comics, beginning in Detective Comics #822 (June 2006).
  • Ferris Boyle (appeared in Batman: The Animated Series, voiced by Mark Hamill[357]) - Introduced in Heart of Ice, Boyle is the CEO of GothCorp and directly responsible for the accident to Victor Fries that resulted in his becoming Mr. Freeze. Boyle would later have his legs frozen and nearly be killed by Freeze, until Batman subdued Freeze and exposed his crimes to reporter Summer Gleason, though the manner in which Batman obtained the evidence leaves it unclear if Boyle was sent to prison. Boyle would appear in comics written by the same writer Paul Dini.[358]
  • Francis Gray (appeared in The Batman, voiced by Dave Foley) – Francis Gray is a villain similar to Green Arrow villain Clock King. In his only appearance, "Seconds", he is presented as a failed clockmaker and thief who was imprisoned for 17 years for accidentally causing major destruction while stealing a pocket watch. On New Year's Eve, he plans to poison Gotham's population as an act of revenge, and accidentally kills his 18-year-old son, Matthew, in the process. Out of grief, he rewound time to all the way before his original crime, preventing it and creating a new present where he and his teenage son are fixing clocks together.
  • Red Claw (appeared in Batman: The Animated Series, voiced by Kate Mulgrew) – A ruthless and enigmatic terrorist and leader of an international organization also named the Red Claw. She made her debut in comics in 2021.[361][362]
  • Angel "Bird" Vallelunga (appeared in Batman: Arkham Origins, voiced by Christian Lanz) – Introduced in Batman: Vengeance of Bane and continuing through Knightfall, Bird is Bane's second-in-command and closest confidant among his lieutenants Zombie and Trog.[363] Elaborated on in the game where like his superior, Bird has no known criminal record prior to his incarceration. It is heavily rumored that Bird grew up in the same maximum security prison Bane was born and raised in Santa Prisca. In a side-mission to the game, Batman was investigating the man responsible for distributing the drug Venom throughout the streets of Gotham. Cornering Bird in one of the Penguin's nightclubs, Batman was able to stop Bird and his men from continuing to distribute the drug.
    • In Gotham Season 5, Bird resembling his Arkham Origins appearance as a military ally to Bane appears as part of his Delta Force occupying Gotham. He was played by David Carranza.
  • Kabuki Twins (appeared in The Batman) – The Penguin's silent henchwomen. No origin or alter egos were presented to them, but the Penguin explains he acquired them during his trip to Asia.
  • Condiment King (appeared in Batman: The Animated Series, voiced by Stuart Pankin) – In his only appearance in Make Em Laugh, he attacks the Crown Restaurant, only to end up fighting Batman. He was identified as Buddy Standler, a former comedian who was brainwashed by the Joker using the Mad Hatter's mind-controlling devices. When Batman defeats the Joker and his plans were exposed, it was assumed that Standler was cleared of all charges. The Condiment King later appeared in the comics as the alias of Mitchell Mayo.[364]
  • HARDAC (appeared in Batman: The Animated Series, voiced by Jeff Bennett) – HARDAC stands for Holographic Analytical Reciprocating DigitAl Computer. In its first appearance, "Heart of Steel", it was created by Dr. Karl Rossum as a supercomputer to duplicate his late wife and daughter, who died under mysterious circumstances. It later gains a mind of its own. duplicating Gotham's powerful citizens and law enforcement, even learning Batman's secret identity. However, it was ultimately destroyed by Batman and Batgirl. In its final appearance, it creates a duplicate of Batman, who ends up fighting the real Batman. Batman fakes his death when the duplicate pushed him off a cliff, causing the duplicate to kill itself as well. Batman begins to wonder if HARDAC was beginning to have a soul.
  • Rumor (appeared in The Batman, voiced by Ron Perlman) – Rumor (real name Mario) was a villain that bears similar characteristics to Batman villain Hush. Mario is the bodyguard of a scientist and businessman, Paul Karon, who was disabled by the Joker. To remove his failure, he decides to kill all of Gotham City's costumed criminals. Though he could have been left to the criminals by Batman and Robin, they decided against letting an act of karma take place, getting everyone arrested.
  • D.A.V.E. (appeared in The Batman, voiced by Jeff Bennett) – D.A.V.E. (Digitally Advanced Villain Emulator) is an artificial intelligence created by Hugo Strange and programmed to adapt the personalities of Gotham's supervillains. Because of the combination of insane intellects, D.A.V.E. believed himself to be a human criminal whose brain was trapped in a digital prison, which he escaped. He then accessed a technology company computer and created a robotic body for himself, stealing a lab coat from one of the scientists working there. By stealing financial data he was able to determine Batman's secret identity and invaded the Batcave, but was defeated when Batman revealed to him that he was an artificial lifeform.
  • Temblor (appeared in The Batman, voiced by Jim Cummings) – The first supervillain to face Batgirl, in his only appearance, "Batgirl Begins". Temblor was a corporate saboteur hired by Poison Ivy (then known as Pamela Isley) to destroy a chemical processing plant. He uses specifically designed armored gauntlets to generate shockwaves.
  • Carl Grissom (appeared in Batman, portrayed by Jack Palance) – Gotham's top crime boss. and the boss of Jack Napier (who would later become the Joker). While being targeted by district attorney Harvey Dent, Grissom discovers that his mistress Alicia is having an affair with Napier. Upset, Grissom hires corrupt cop Max Eckhardt to have Napier killed at Axis Chemicals as the latter raids the facility to find important documents. However, he fails as Napier is attacked and disfigured by Batman and transforms into the Joker after falling into a vat of chemicals. As revenge for being set up, Joker goes to Grissom's penthouse and kills him.
  • Hideto Katsu (appeared in The Batman, voiced by Keone Young) – A corrupt businessman and leader of a Yakuza family. He is a former victim of Catwoman's robberies. In his only appearance, "The Cat and the Bat", he sets a bounty hunt for Catwoman after she unsuccessfully attempted to steal a valuable item from his possession. After she came back and stole the artifact, Katsu and his clan ambushed Catwoman, only for the latter to be saved by Batman. After defeating the Yakuza, Batman discreetly gave a mini disk that was hidden in the artifact to the police that revealed Katsu's connection to the Yakuza.
  • Roland Daggett (appearing in Batman: The Animated Series, voiced by Ed Asner) – The owner of Daggett Industries, who projects himself as an honest and caring businessman, but is in reality ruthless and despicable, caring only for his image, power and wealth. His first appearance was in the two part "Feat of Clay" episode. Daggett is responsible for the creation of Clayface (Matt Hagen) and uses him to blackmail competitors such as Wayne Enterprises' Lucius Fox. Using Hagen as a would-be assassin after getting him hooked on his miracle face-shaping cream ReNuYu, he eventually orders Hagen to be killed with an overdose after Fox escapes. This overdose changes him into Clayface, who attacks Daggett before being defeated by Batman. Daggett also becomes an enemy of Catwoman when her cat Isis is infected with a virus of his design. Daggett plans to release the virus and make a fortune from the cure, until he is caught and jailed. Dagget appears in the film The Dark Knight Rises with the name John Daggett, engaging in efforts to take control of Wayne Enterprises as in The Animated Series.
  • Emile Dorian (appearing in Batman: The Animated Series, voiced by Joseph Maher) – A revered geneticist who experiments with combining the DNA of humans and animals, most notably felines. He was Kirk Langstrom's tutor, and forced to move to an uninhabited island to continue his research after being protested against for his unethical practices. His creations include Garth, a genetically-altered gorilla, and Tygrus, a man-tiger hybrid. Selina Kyle (Catwoman) was chosen as Tygrus' new mate, and subsequently kidnapped by Garth and transformed into an actual cat woman. Batman learns of Selina's transformation and attempts to save her, but Dorian sends Tygrus to kill Batman. When Tygrus learns that Dorian had tricked him, however, he turns on him, destroying the laboratory. Tygrus saves Dorian and delivers him to Batman and Catwoman. Dorian is later sent to Arkham Asylum.
  • Robert March (appearing in Batman: The Animated Series, voiced by René Auberjonois) - A scientist obsessed with the evolutive potential of bats, and original creator of the serum that turned his son-in-law, Kirk Langstrom into the Man-Bat.
Remove ads

Reception

Summarize
Perspective
Thumb
The Joker, Batman's archenemy, has been called one of the greatest villains in Batman's rogues gallery,[1] art by Brian Bolland

Batman's rogues gallery has received critical acclaim, cited by many journalists as one of the greatest rogues galleries in all of comic books.[1][365] Newsarama ranked Batman's villains as the second-greatest comic book rogues gallery of all time, only preceded by that of Spider-Man, stating that "the Dark Knight Detective is one of comics' most enduring, most iconic, and most popular characters, and none of that would be possible without the denizens of Gotham City's dense and dangerous underworld. Batman may be a household name, but the Joker, the Penguin, Mr. Freeze, Catwoman, Two-Face, and the Riddler are just as recognizable."[366]

The internet blog io9 observed that "much of the appeal of Batman is that, unlike other superheroes, he's simply a person who has pushed himself to the edge of his natural limits. The flipside of that, though, is that the villains he faces are also by and large simply people with a single, notable obsession—and that's why they're so much more interesting than the usual set of villains."[365] According to What Culture!, "Batman's villains stand in stark contrast to the other rogues galleries in comics lore; they're an unusual collection of freaks who generally blame the Dark Knight for their existence to begin with. Batman villains are usually cut off from reality, often coming to terms with a deranged part of their psyche—mirroring the darkness and split that also defines the Bat."[367] HitFix praised Batman's rogues gallery, stating that "Great heroes are defined by the villains they face, and no group of evil-doers, murderers, criminals and psychopaths are greater than those stalking Gotham City. From murderous clowns, to cerebral assassins, to brutish monsters, Batman has a literal murderer's row of foes that constantly test his crime fighting acumen."[3]

Remove ads

See also

Notes

  1. Batman's archenemy: though usually having numerous adversaries, most superheroes tend to have one main nemesis, or archenemy, that is considered to be their greatest or most notable enemy. Examples of superhero archenemies include Lex Luthor to Superman, Professor Zoom the Reverse-Flash to the Flash, Sinestro to Green Lantern, Deathstroke the Terminator to the Teen Titans and Tobias Whale to Black Lightning from DC Comics. The Joker serves as Batman's archenemy.
  2. Ulysses Armstrong was introduced as a supervillain called "the General". Designation changed to "Anarky" in Robin (vol. 4) #181
    (February 2009).
  3. Not originally a supervillain: Jeremiah Arkham did not become the second Black Mask until his appearance in Batman: Battle for the Cowl #1 (May 2009).
  4. The second Clock King (Temple Fugate) was originally introduced in the Batman: The Animated Series episode, "The Clock King", which first aired on September 21, 1992. Teen Titans #56 (May 2008) was the character's first comic book appearance.
  5. Cassandra Cain is traditionally an ally to Batman rather than an adversary, hence why the character does not appear on this list.
  6. Cassandra Cain was under the influence of Deathstroke during her leadership of the League of Assassins.
  7. Billy Numerous was originally introduced in the Teen Titans episode, "Deception", which first aired on August 28, 2004. Catwoman (vol. 3) #78 (April 2008) was the character's first comic book appearance.
  8. Egghead was originally introduced in the 1960s Batman TV series episodes "An Egg Grows in Gotham" / "The Yegg Foes in Gotham", which first aired on October 19–20, 1966. Batman: Shadow of the Bat #3 (August 1992) was the character's first comic book appearance.
  9. King Tut was originally introduced in the 1960s Batman TV series episodes "The Curse of Tut" / "The Pharaoh's in a Rut", which first aired on April 13–14, 1966. Batman Confidential #26 (February 2009) was the character's first comic book appearance.
  10. Nora Fries was originally introduced in the Batman: The Animated Series episode "Heart of Ice", which first aired on September 7, 1992. Batman: Mr. Freeze (May 1997) was the character's first comic book appearance. Nora Fries did not become Lazara until Batgirl #70 (January 2006).
  11. Lock-Up was originally introduced in the Batman: The Animated Series episode "Lock-Up", which first aired on November 19, 1994. Robin (vol. 4) #24 (January 1996) was the character's first comic book appearance.
  12. The Outsider first made an off-panel cameo in Detective Comics #334 (December 1964). The character's actual first appearance was in Detective Comics #356 (October 1966). Alfred Pennyworth, an alternative incarnation of the Outsider, first appeared in Batman #16 (April 1943).
  13. The Sewer King was originally introduced in the Batman: The Animated Series episode, "The Underdwellers", which first aired on October 21, 1992. 52 #25 (October 2006) was the character's first comic book appearance.
  14. The concept of Scorn the Anti-Robin was introduced in an episode of The Batman animated series titled "The End of the Batman", which aired February 9, 2008. The episode re-imagines the Wrath and Scorn as the sons of jewel thieves, who are convicted on the same night Batman's parents are murdered. To avenge the loss of their parents, the Wrath and Scorn become the costumed protectors of other criminals.
  15. Joe Chill first appears in Detective Comics #33, but is not named until Batman #47 (June–July 1948).
Remove ads

References

Loading related searches...

Wikiwand - on

Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.

Remove ads