The madness never ends! Gotham City Criminal Guide 2 [Mizumaru Kawahara's CINEMONOLOGUE Vol.33]

Riddler / Gentleman Ghost / Clayface

The Riddler

The Riddler, who challenges Batman to solving puzzles, originates from Edward Nygma, a puzzle genius. If you shorten his first name, it becomes E. Nygma, which becomes Enigma, a perfect real name, just like the previous Calendar Man. His main goal is to compete with Batman and the police in a battle of wits, and he leaves puzzles at the crime scenes that lead to clues, enjoying watching Batman struggle to solve the puzzles he sets up. He is characterized by his green costume, hat with a question mark on it, and a domino mask that covers his eyes, with the question mark being his trademark.

In the '60s TV series, Frank Gorshin and John Astin (best known for playing Gomez Addams in Dodgers) played the Riddler, while in the film Batman Forever , Jim Carrie played the high-spirited Riddler who teams up with Two-Face, and more recently, Cory Michael Smith's look on the TV show Gotham is becoming more and more established.

In Batman Forever, he worked in the electronics department of Wayne Corporation, but when Bruce Wayne rejected his idea for an electroencephalogram television that sends images directly to the viewer's brain, he resented it and quit the company to become the villain Riddler. He teamed up with Two-Face and made a lot of money by robbing people, and made even more money by mass-producing electroencephalogram televisions. While viewers all over Gotham received images through their brainwaves, Riddler was able to look into their minds, which allowed him to continue receiving vast amounts of information and knowledge into his own head, transforming him into a Monster of knowledge. In the process, he discovered Bruce Wayne's secret, and attacked the Batcave in the basement of Wayne Manor to corner Batman. I really like the scene where he draws a curved line of green light on the Bat Signal floating in the night sky to complete the "?" mark.

・Gentleman Ghost

As the name suggests, he is a gentleman ghost. He wears a tailcoat, top hat, and monocle, but his face is transparent and his hat and monocle are floating in the air. He was originally a villain named James Craddock who was active in 19th century England, but now he continues to wander the earth as a ghost. There are certainly many different types of Batman villains, but this one is a very supernatural being. Or rather, a ghost. He is a character that is almost a foreign object to Gotham, but that is no surprise, as he was originally an enemy not only of Batman but also of other DC heroes, especially Hawkman and Hawkgirl.

As a ghost, he can pass through objects and teleport instantly. He has all the usual ghost characteristics, such as the chills that come from passing through him. He can also turn invisible, but it is said that his face is always transparent to hide his rotting face. His straightforwardness as a ghost villain is bold and interesting, even though he is a character that appears in other works.

Clayface

Clayface, who has a body like clay and the ability to transform freely, originated from Basil Carlo, a fallen supernatural actor. He was angry that he was not able to continue his role in a new movie after his hit, so he transformed into the Monster Clayface that he played, killed the staff and cast, and turned into a real Monster. He is also a large creature-type villain like Killer Croc, and his mud-like appearance makes him look like a monster. It's also sad that even with his appearance like this, he dreams of regaining his glory as a movie actor. Although he certainly gained the ability to transform into various people, in his original state he is no more than a clay monster.

Scarecrow /Ra's al Ghul/Bane