Villain redesign

[scary harpy]

Baby Doll (with some influences from Mad Hatter and children's toy Barbie): A controlling bulimic perfectionist businesswoman who gets violent when not getting her high expectations achieve on what shes wants: her (dream) house, her (dream) boyfriend, her (dream) life. Also willing to go to extremes to look perfect in every way.

Great idea!

Best concept for Baby Doll that I've heard.

[scary harpy]

Firefly as an artist who sets things on fire and proclaim it as beautiful pieces of art until an alternate art museum tell him its to dangerous to display so he sets the museum of fire and proclaim its his most beautiful masterpiece yet! but he is still driven to make more and better "art".

This might work better for Firebug...a female Firebug. (I always thought the Firebug costume could be really beautiful.)

[scary harpy]

Calendar Girl - Has a an Evil Queen from Snow White complex and is preoccupied with destroying all stereotypical or perceived "beauty" around her; art, architecture, humans, etc. Commentary on our beauty-obsessed culture. She knows it's judgmental and fleeting, so she just speeds up the process.

Sounds great.

I've wanted her back for a long time.

[Mutant God]

Condiment King - A cultured serial killing chef/food critic who takes the art of cooking so seriously he goes after and kills anyone who creates horrific meals (and maybe makes a "condiment" out of them in his next meal). I'm thinking maybe Gordon Ramsey meets Hannibal Lector

[protege]

Let's take a moment and appreciate the irony of these sentences.

So let’s turn another of batman’s Rogues into a rampaging serial killer, or horror knock off. Honestly, I wouldn’t want to read Batman at all if it became too dark.

[godisawesome]

Query and Echo

Instead of just being the Riddler's version of Harley Quinn, these two ladies are almost a reversal of the idea. They're not the perky female sidekicks, they're not arm candy, they're actually very professional henchwomen for whom the Riddler is the best possible employer, and their end goal is to get out of the cime business and make some serious cash.

Originally just two of Penguin's gun molls, they left his employment when he got handsy and basically applied for Riddler's crew that very night. Since Riddler's patronizing attitude towards those less intelligent then himself, he usually had some of the most pathetic and insubordinate thugs under his command. The girls beat up some of his men and answered his riddles, and hijacked the number two postion for themselves. The reason they came was because, as Penguin's hangers-on, they'd heard enough about Riddler to realize that they could make him a deal by being his idea of an ideal henchman: an obedient, patient, and stubborn "stage crew" for all his frustrating "criminal theater" antics. And in return for making most of his henchmen obsolete and running the remaining group with precision (for Gotham), they get the lion's share of his take (Riddler himself simply doesn't care that much about the money.)

Instead of wearing leotards, they both dress in stylish and fashionable power suit ensembles, still customized enough to be costumes, and emblazoned with occasional question marks. Query, being a lover of puzzles herself, is the one most often tasked with ensuring the riddles get delivered accurately, while Echo is more of the administrative talent, acting as the Riddler's enforcer.

They good enough at their jobs, in fact, that when they have been arrested, they're the Suicide Squad's scroungers and underworld liaisons.

[scary harpy]

Condiment King - A cultured serial killing chef/food critic who takes the art of cooking so seriously he goes after and kills anyone who creates horrific meals (and maybe makes a "condiment" out of them in his next meal). I'm thinking maybe Gordon Ramsey meets Hannibal Lector

Sounds great! This character has needed a direction for a looong time.

Query and Echo

Instead of just being the Riddler's version of Harley Quinn, these two ladies are almost a reversal of the idea. They're not the perky female sidekicks, they're not arm candy, they're actually very professional henchwomen for whom the Riddler is the best possible employer, and their end goal is to get out of the cime business and make some serious cash.

Originally just two of Penguin's gun molls, they left his employment when he got handsy and basically applied for Riddler's crew that very night. Since Riddler's patronizing attitude towards those less intelligent then himself, he usually had some of the most pathetic and insubordinate thugs under his command. The girls beat up some of his men and answered his riddles, and hijacked the number two postion for themselves. The reason they came was because, as Penguin's hangers-on, they'd heard enough about Riddler to realize that they could make him a deal by being his idea of an ideal henchman: an obedient, patient, and stubborn "stage crew" for all his frustrating "criminal theater" antics. And in return for making most of his henchmen obsolete and running the remaining group with precision (for Gotham), they get the lion's share of his take (Riddler himself simply doesn't care that much about the money.)

Instead of wearing leotards, they both dress in stylish and fashionable power suit ensembles, still customized enough to be costumes, and emblazoned with occasional question marks. Query, being a lover of puzzles herself, is the one most often tasked with ensuring the riddles get delivered accurately, while Echo is more of the administrative talent, acting as the Riddler's enforcer.

They good enough at their jobs, in fact, that when they have been arrested, they're the Suicide Squad's scroungers and underworld liaisons.

I like it. Echo and Query really should have a chance to shine.

DC needs more villainesses especially with Catwoman, Harely and Ivy becoming less villainous.

[godisawesome]

Crimesmith

During the early years of his career, Batman has his first real case involving Vicki Vale. Vale is up and coming in the newsrooms, but is currently being frozen out of the front page because she's pushing an unpopular theory; that a *huge* number of criminal convictions by Jeffrey Fraser, Gotham's DA after Harvey Dent's fall from grace, are in fact railroaded innocent men framed for crimes by a conspiracy she dubs "The Crimesmiths," since the crimes are forged perfectly to seem like simple returan to crime by ex-cons.

Fraser's incredibly popular, large part because of his conviction rate and partnership with Blackgate's new warden... Hugo Strange. Bruce Wayne begins dating Vicki Vale because, as Batman, he's witnessed that at least two of the convicted suspects weren't at the actual crimes. Eventually, he and she discover that Fraser's the Crimesmith (at least, mostly.) Vale manages to get his personal assisstant to reveal him bring out proof of his dealings, while Batman deals with Hugo Strange. Fraser than commits suicide in disgrace...

...but Vale has her suspicions about the personal assistant, who uses the scandal and her role in "uncovering" it to launch her own career as a Congressman. In the present day, this is Vale's white whale to pursue.

[scary harpy]

Crimesmith

...

Fraser's incredibly popular, large part because of his conviction rate and partnership with Blackgate's new warden... Hugo Strange. Bruce Wayne begins dating Vicki Vale because, as Batman, he's witnessed that at least two of the convicted suspects weren't at the actual crimes. Eventually, he and she discover that Fraser's the Crimesmith (at least, mostly.) Vale manages to get his personal assisstant to reveal him bring out proof of his dealings, while Batman deals with Hugo Strange. Fraser than commits suicide in disgrace...

...but Vale has her suspicions about the personal assistant, who uses the scandal and her role in "uncovering" it to launch her own career as a Congressman. In the present day, this is Vale's white whale to pursue.

Good update of Crimesmith. Excellent direction for Vale!

[godisawesome]

Magpie, Janus/The Judge, Clayface III, Blockbuster I, and Firebug

Okay, you know how Hugo Strange loves to make monsters and occasionally go all faux-philosophical about Batman creating his own enemies (at least in the Arkham games)? Take both those elements, combine them with Strange's obsession with one-upping Batman, and the "Monster Maker" is trying to make knockoffs/"superior" versions of the rest of the rogues gallery, with... Varying results. Tragic results, mind you, but inconsistent. He does it with surgery, chemicals and brainwashing.

Magpie is Strange trying to artificially create what he sees in Catwoman; so he takes a young woman (Margaret Sorrow) who came to him for some help with light kleptomania, and blew it up to an absolutely psychotic degree, leaving us with the unstable and scantily clad hoarder and insatiable thief we know. Catwoman herself finds this all horrifying, and wants to get Margaret some help, though since Strange also tried to brainwash Magpie into having a violent crush on Batman, Selina has to deal with that as well.

Judge/Janus was an attempt to actually "upgrade" an existing villain, with Strange trying to force Two-Face's personalities into one single violent vigilante/hitman he could use, all while pretending to give Harvey Dent treatment and surgery. Harvey has to break the programming by voluntarily scarring himself again and releasing Two-Face to stop being Strange's puppet.

Clayface III is a discarded attempt to copy regular Clayface's powers; Preston Payne only manages to survive and remain mobile because Mr. Freeze, in a rare but sincere moment of sympathy, gave him one of his exo-suits. Preston *can mimic the form of another person for a while, but does so by melting them into plasma, and the effect is only temporary, though the "need" to do so is ever present, like a nasty addiction that kills people.

Blockbuster is meant to be a copy of Killer Croc, in particular by trying to copy some of his biological abnormalities regarding his size and strength. He's also Strange's oldest victim, having been experimented on when he was a pre-teen at his brother Roland's request for some cash. Mark's health and development has been seriously damaged, and Roland wants to get his brother's strength without losing his mind.

Firebug is the result of Strange deliberately hiring Firefly to repeatedly burn down the shelter and housing of a shell shocked and highly skilled military explosives expert, and is the closest to come to being an actual copy of his template, though one deter engined to kill Garfield Lynns.

[Mutant God]

Condiment King - A cultured serial killing chef/food critic who takes the art of cooking so seriously he goes after and kills anyone who creates horrific meals (and maybe makes a "condiment" out of them in his next meal). I'm thinking maybe Gordon Ramsey meets Hannibal Lector

adding his appareance could be similar to the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld

Magpie, Janus/The Judge, Clayface III, Blockbuster I, and Firebug

Okay, you know how Hugo Strange loves to make monsters and occasionally go all faux-philosophical about Batman creating his own enemies (at least in the Arkham games)? Take both those elements, combine them with Strange's obsession with one-upping Batman, and the "Monster Maker" is trying to make knockoffs/"superior" versions of the rest of the rogues gallery, with... Varying results. Tragic results, mind you, but inconsistent. He does it with surgery, chemicals and brainwashing.

Magpie is Strange trying to artificially create what he sees in Catwoman; so he takes a young woman (Margaret Sorrow) who came to him for some help with light kleptomania, and blew it up to an absolutely psychotic degree, leaving us with the unstable and scantily clad hoarder and insatiable thief we know. Catwoman herself finds this all horrifying, and wants to get Margaret some help, though since Strange also tried to brainwash Magpie into having a violent crush on Batman, Selina has to deal with that as well.

Judge/Janus was an attempt to actually "upgrade" an existing villain, with Strange trying to force Two-Face's personalities into one single violent vigilante/hitman he could use, all while pretending to give Harvey Dent treatment and surgery. Harvey has to break the programming by voluntarily scarring himself again and releasing Two-Face to stop being Strange's puppet.

Clayface III is a discarded attempt to copy regular Clayface's powers; Preston Payne only manages to survive and remain mobile because Mr. Freeze, in a rare but sincere moment of sympathy, gave him one of his exo-suits. Preston *can mimic the form of another person for a while, but does so by melting them into plasma, and the effect is only temporary, though the "need" to do so is ever present, like a nasty addiction that kills people.

Blockbuster is meant to be a copy of Killer Croc, in particular by trying to copy some of his biological abnormalities regarding his size and strength. He's also Strange's oldest victim, having been experimented on when he was a pre-teen at his brother Roland's request for some cash. Mark's health and development has been seriously damaged, and Roland wants to get his brother's strength without losing his mind.

Firebug is the result of Strange deliberately hiring Firefly to repeatedly burn down the shelter and housing of a shell shocked and highly skilled military explosives expert, and is the closest to come to being an actual copy of his template, though one deter engined to kill Garfield Lynns.

I like this idea of Strange creating new versions of Gotham's most infamous criminals to further test Batman and the reaction's of the originals.
Other choices: Prankster (Joker), Cluemaster (Riddler), 2nd Mad Hatter, Jeremiah Arkham (Black Mask), Cryonic Man (Mr. Freeze), Reaper (Scarecrow), Crime Doctor (Hugo Strange, as a decoy to pin blame or CD is the one whos been creating the new ones)

[scary harpy]

Magpie, Janus/The Judge, Clayface III, Blockbuster I, and Firebug

Okay, you know how Hugo Strange loves to make monsters and occasionally go all faux-philosophical about Batman creating his own enemies (at least in the Arkham games)? Take both those elements, combine them with Strange's obsession with one-upping Batman, and the "Monster Maker" is trying to make knockoffs/"superior" versions of the rest of the rogues gallery, with... Varying results. Tragic results, mind you, but inconsistent. He does it with surgery, chemicals and brainwashing.

Magpie is Strange trying to artificially create what he sees in Catwoman; so he takes a young woman (Margaret Sorrow) who came to him for some help with light kleptomania, and blew it up to an absolutely psychotic degree, leaving us with the unstable and scantily clad hoarder and insatiable thief we know. Catwoman herself finds this all horrifying, and wants to get Margaret some help, though since Strange also tried to brainwash Magpie into having a violent crush on Batman, Selina has to deal with that as well.

Judge/Janus was an attempt to actually "upgrade" an existing villain, with Strange trying to force Two-Face's personalities into one single violent vigilante/hitman he could use, all while pretending to give Harvey Dent treatment and surgery. Harvey has to break the programming by voluntarily scarring himself again and releasing Two-Face to stop being Strange's puppet.

Clayface III is a discarded attempt to copy regular Clayface's powers; Preston Payne only manages to survive and remain mobile because Mr. Freeze, in a rare but sincere moment of sympathy, gave him one of his exo-suits. Preston *can mimic the form of another person for a while, but does so by melting them into plasma, and the effect is only temporary, though the "need" to do so is ever present, like a nasty addiction that kills people.

Blockbuster is meant to be a copy of Killer Croc, in particular by trying to copy some of his biological abnormalities regarding his size and strength. He's also Strange's oldest victim, having been experimented on when he was a pre-teen at his brother Roland's request for some cash. Mark's health and development has been seriously damaged, and Roland wants to get his brother's strength without losing his mind.

Firebug is the result of Strange deliberately hiring Firefly to repeatedly burn down the shelter and housing of a shell shocked and highly skilled military explosives expert, and is the closest to come to being an actual copy of his template, though one deter engined to kill Garfield Lynns.

Wow...and WOW!

This is a great idea and direction for Hugo Strange. I love how you redefine these rogues.

I always thought Plasmus would be a better name for Preston Payne. Plasmus is a good name and I find the Titan's Plasmus to be generic and boring.

I like this idea of Strange creating new versions of Gotham's most infamous criminals to further test Batman and the reaction's of the originals.
Other choices: Prankster (Joker), Cluemaster (Riddler), 2nd Mad Hatter, Jeremiah Arkham (Black Mask), Cryonic Man (Mr. Freeze), Reaper (Scarecrow), Crime Doctor (Hugo Strange, as a decoy to pin blame or CD is the one whos been creating the new ones)

Great expansion of an idea.

I think I enjoy these threads more than some of the comics I read.

[scary harpy]

Batman #29 June 1945

Adam Frank is utterly obsessed with being the first one in everything and this takes him in a career of crime.

I like my theme villains and this one only needs a slight update.

I'd have his alias be Adam Eden and, maybe, have him dress like a drum major.

This would just be a fun opponent for Batgirl.

[godisawesome]

The Reaper

Okay, this one's a total repackaging. I'm changing the gender, I'm changing the person, and I'm leaning this person away from lethal vigilante Batman has to subdue and more towards a feuding personal villain for Red Hood.

The new Reaper is a female vigilante still wearing a version of the red leather armor with two scythe guns, but she clearly has a personal hit list involving very specific members of a specific international cartel, one that was already effectively destroyed by Batman and the second Robin. She tends to attack using decoys first, ones with the Deathmask, which here is a mask designed to inject the wearer with a lethal dose of Venom, triggering a rampage from the person she attaches it to, usually a target's bodyguard or the target themselves.

When she comes to Gotham, we figure out who exactly her targets were. They belonged to the same cartel that had a major customer in... A Diplomat's Son. The same diplomat who found out his boy was dropped from a multi-story building, and who's own pursuit of revenge got him killed. The Reaper is killing everyone who could be blamed for those two deaths...

...because her last name is Garzonas, and she's Felipe's little sister, trying to avenge his and her father's deaths. She's in denial about who Felipe really was, and about her father's corruption. So when she starts targeting Batfamily members, it's up to Red Hood to stop her, even though he kind of respects her drive and feels some guilt over her own fall from grace... and we get to see whether or not he actually pushed Felipe out a window.

[9th.]

Condiment King - A cultured serial killing chef/food critic who takes the art of cooking so seriously he goes after and kills anyone who creates horrific meals (and maybe makes a "condiment" out of them in his next meal). I'm thinking maybe Gordon Ramsey meets Hannibal Lector

This sounds great, wish it were a thing